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“EX-CHURCH-OF-CHRIST” AND GENTLENESS

Neal Pollard

There are a couple of web sites out there regarding churches of Christ.  While I do not have the time to read every page and all content, I spent some time looking at them in-depth.  These sites have the following in common regarding their view of churches of Christ.

(1) They vehemently affirm that we are a denomination.

(2) They insinuate or explicitly say that we are a cult or close to a cult.

(3) They point out that we defend what we teach and practice with “ad hominem” (i.e., personal and character) attacks or with hateful, abrasive speech.

Given that we have no convention, headquarters, or central, governing body, no one of us can speak on behalf of every congregation or even every member of a congregation.  Thus, I will not say that there are not congregations that have become denominational or even a denomination.  Regarding denominationalism, what I can say is what I believe and teach (and what many others do).  I do not rest my “heritage” in the life and works of Alexander Campbell, Barton Stone, or any other man but Jesus.  What I teach is that we need to get “before” Catholicism and Protestantism, striving to teach and follow what New Testament Christians did.  Is it possible to worship, teach the same way to salvation, and hold the same moral ideals and principles that the New Testament reveals that the first Christians did?

Regarding the charge of being a cult, religious experts on the subject, like Martin or Ankerberg and Weldon, define and describe a cult in great detail.  Their description has been generally accepted as factual and logical.  A cult is defined as a group of people who follow a person or that person’s interpretation of the Bible (Mary Baker Eddy, Joseph Smith, Jim Jones, or David Koresh).  They consider their own writings of equal authority with the Bible.  They redefine the most basic of Bible doctrines of concepts, including the Godhead, the deity of Christ, human suffering, and works.  Their redefinition has no roots or resemblance to revealed scripture. They also work through excessive spiritual or psychological regulation or dependence (A&W, XXII). These do not even come close to describing mainstream churches of Christ.

However, let me say something about that last charge.  Too often, well-meaning, passionate members of the church have been guilty of lacking adequate kindness and gentleness in responding to individuals like those responsible for the aforementioned websites.  I can understand righteous indignation and love for Christ and His church.  But, let us remember that it is never right to do wrong.  To personally attack anyone, to allow righteous anger to become sinful anger, to be insulting, demeaning, ridiculing, or sarcastic is unjustifiable.  Any defense of such tactics falls short of the ethical and moral standard taught in the New Testament.  I have often heard it said, and I agree, that “if you’re not kind, you’re the wrong kind” or “you can be right, but be wrong.”  Let us study more and sting less, being more knowledgeable and less nasty.  Divine truth is powerful enough to stand on its own merit.  Let us “speak the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15) and be known for our love (Jn. 13:34-35).  It is our most powerful weapon to fight those first two, false charges.

IT’S SELFISHNESS

Neal Pollard

Wendell Winkler talked about counseling in our “Preacher And His Work” class, a course it is my privilege now to teach at the Bear Valley Bible Institute.  Specifically, brother Winkler was speaking about marriage counseling.  Discussing that the details would always be unique, he told us that the issue was almost always the same:  “selfishness.”  While it might not be a problem with both spouses when there is a problem, he contended that at least one of the two would have a fundamental difficulty with selfishness.  He ran us through a simulated conversation.  The preacher asks, “What seems to be the problem?”  The wife would begin, “He doesn’t listen to me.  I am unhappy.  He never considers my feelings…”  The husband would break in, “Preacher, she has it all wrong.  I do everything I can for her, and she doesn’t appreciate me.  She doesn’t care what this is doing to my happiness….”

It is so fundamental and simple that such an observation seems like profound brilliance.  Our problems, more often than not, are that we find ourself “me deep” in self.  What a terrible place in which to find ourselves stuck.  The only way to be free is to think of others, putting them before ourselves.  Most church problems, family problems, and individual sin problems would disappear if we could conquer that basic inclination to be self-centered, self-absorbed, and self-preserving.

I am amazed that some people can go an entire lifetime focused on self.  They are inevitably miserable, and they too often succeed in contributing misery to others.  Let us resolve to follow in Jesus’ steps, actively seeking the good will and happiness of others.  Ironically, it is the surest path to our own happiness and success.

SHALLOW

Neal Pollard

I don’t remember my dad or mom specifically counseling me to this end, but I remember being guided to look for a wife that had substance, “gumption,” and common sense.  God certainly blessed me with such a woman.  Certain words, “ditzy,” vacuous, superficial, and frivolous, are not flattering terms.  Such is not a quality that should draw a man or woman toward a life’s mate.  It is different than gullibility, unintelligence, and lacking in common sense.  It speaks to one who has little beneath the surface.

More grave and serious is the condition of spiritual shallowness. Certain disappointing words and actions give evidence of its existence, even among children of God.  The price of it is greater than an unhappy, dissatisfying marriage or other relationship.  Souls are certainly at stake.

Consider, as an example, church attendance.  The attitude that says, “Do I have to come?,” reveals a lack of spiritual depth.  Look at David’s depth, who exclaimed, “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord'” (Ps. 122:1).  Contrast that with the one who dreads or resents attending.  A life that approaches attendance as a substitute for holy living or a real relationship with Christ is a shallow one.  Jeremiah’s peers had a shallow attitude toward worship and assembling.  The prophet says, “Will you steal, murder, and commit adultery and swear falsely, and offer sacrifices to Baal and walk after other gods that you have not known, then come and stand before Me in this house, which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are delivered !’-that you may do all these abominations?” (7:9-10).  Jesus laments the shallow religion of those whose lips and mouths were engaged, but whose hearts and minds were disengaged (Matt. 15:8-9).  Woe to the one who says, “Do I have to?” rather than, “I get to!”

Some choose not to come at all.  Some come when they feel like coming.  Some come into the building, but then boycott the Bible classes.  Some come in body, but their hearts are nowhere to be found.  Some frankly do not make the assemblies a priority, in body or mind.  In most cases, the only one that knows if they are among the “some” is the individual.  And God.  Are you developing depth and devotion daily?  Don’t be shallow!

Win The Lost At Any Cost


Neal Pollard

When I was a boy, my parents had several records of acapella singing.  Hearing them played often, and always on Sunday, is a fixture of my childhood.  One of the records was of a quartet, “The Ambassadors” from Texas.  On one of their albums was a chilling, challenging song entitled, “Win The Lost At Any Cost.”  In looking for an audio on the web, (sadly) I could not find an acapella version.  Here are the lyrics from “The Ambassadors”‘ rendition:

As we look all around us, all the fields are white,
Ripened unto harvest, and so quickly comes the night.
Christians must get busy, there is work to do
Here’s an urgent task awaiting you.
Souls are crying, men are dying, won’t you lead them to the cross.
Go and find them, Please help to win them win the lost at any cost.
Go out and win, rescue from sin,
Day’s almost done, low sinks the sun.
Souls are crying, men are dying, win the lost at any cost.

In Denny Petrillo’s excellent, ongoing Wednesday night auditorium class on Hermeneutics, he mentioned that a consequence of the “New Hermeneutic” is that it is killing evangelistic zeal.  It does not know or is not willing to say who is lost.  No longer seeing the Bible as an objective standard with a pattern requiring rational thinking and reasoning to interpret, the New Hermeneutic not only languishes in self-doubt and uncertainty but also destroys the incentive to try and convert those outside of Christ.  Yet, armed with unswerving confidence in the inspiration of scripture, we see outlined there a simple set of truths that must push us to “win the lost at any cost.”  Consider.

(1) All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23).
(2) Sin separates one from God (Isa. 59:1-2).
(3) The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus (Rom. 6:23).
(4) Christ died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God (1 Pet. 3:18).
(5) He put away sin by the offering of Himself (Heb. 9:26).
(6) Justified by His blood, we shall be saved from God’s wrath through Him (Rom. 5:9).
(7) He became to all those who obey Him the source of eternal salvation (Heb. 5:9).
(8) He that believes and is baptized shall be saved (Mk. 16:16).
(9) We must repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of sins (Ac. 2:38).
(10) The one who endures to the end will be saved (Mt. 10:22).

Think souls!  Do not think that God has changed the rules.  The lost are lost.  We must win them back to Him.

Immune To Venom?

Neal Pollard

My son, Dale, tells me that the mongoose builds up immunity to cobra venom by eating smaller poisonous creatures, from spiders to scorpions to wasps.  That makes the mongoose an “ophiophagous” creature.  Ophiophagous animals are those which hunt, kill, and eat snakes (including the poisonous ones).  Many of these kinds of animals are thought to be immune from their prey’s venom, and they have antineurotoxic antibodies in their blood.  However, the most venom-resistant animal known to science is the wild and exotic Virginia opossum.  They do not build up immunity, but rather seem to be born with this resistance.

As a Grade A Snake Hater, my skin is already crawling.  However, what a splendid application there is.  In Genesis three, we are introduced to a creature many take to be nothing more than a serpent.  While this may be true, Satan is referred to in symbolic terms as “that ancient serpent” in Revelation 20:2—a seeming allusion to the garden scene (cf. Rev. 12:9).  Is it coincidental that the beguiling serpent is mentioned in the same context as Satan’s beguiling work in 2 Corinthians 11 (cf. 3 + 14-15)?  Whatever may be concluded about any connection between the serpent of Eden and the devil, there are some potent comparisons.  Like a poisonous serpent, Satan is destructive and deadly (cf. 1 Pet. 5:8-9).  As such creatures can strike suddenly and without warning, Satan can do the same (cf. Matt. 4:3).  Just as these can cause fear, so can the devil (Heb. 2:14).  The devil can be made to flee (Jas. 4:7), just as those nefarious reptiles can.

Keeping with our analogy and original illustration, can we build up immunity against the devil?  Yes and no.  We cannot, in the sense that we can ever court sin and temptation and hope to come away unscathed.  The wages of sin are always the same (Rom. 6:23).  However, in another sense we can.  By drawing close to God, we can build up devil-resistance (Jas. 4:7).  Building a proper relationship with the Lord serves the dual purpose of helping us stand against the power of the devil (see Eph. 6:10ff).  By being and remaining in Christ, we are free from the effects of the sting of sin and the spiritual death brought thereby (1 Cor. 15:56-58; Heb. 2:14-15; 1 Pet. 5:8-9).  Let’s work to protect our souls from the ravaging effects of sin by building righteous, submissive, and holy lives!

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In The Beginning? God!

Neal Pollard

Origins intrigue many of us.  We want to know who, how, and where.  Did you know that Chevron Oil Company began in the remote Pico Canyon area of the Santa Susana Mountains of California in 1876 when driller Alex Mentry struck “black gold”?  American baseball came from the English game of rounders, with the modern baseball diamond and formalized rules of the game rendered by Alexander Cartwright in the 1840s.  The Chinese, around 900 B.C. during the Tang Dynasty, are said to have invented gunpowder by mixing saltpeter with sulfur and carbon.  The Mayans, developers of astrology, calendars, and hieroglyphics, are thought to have originated as a civilization about 2600 B.C. in the Yucatan.

Think of the impact Chevron, American baseball, gunpowder, and Mayan civilization have had upon the world, socially, economically, and nationally.  Yet, they all emerged from existent materials, ideas, and manpower.  Each of these randomly selected examples can be given because of the beginning of beginnings.

Genesis one and two introduce mankind to the Uncaused Cause of everything.  Every inch of soil and all resources buried beneath it, every space, place, creature, and particle of matter came from His willing act of Creation.  Yet, who He is one only glimpses here.  The rest of Genesis and the next sixty-five books are needed to produce a clearer picture of the God whose work in creating our world is recorded here.  Still, the power-packed information about these six days of creation lays the groundwork for everything else, socially, scientifically, physically, and especially spiritually.

“IS BAPTISM FOR THE REMISSION OF SINS?”

Neal Pollard

A very cordial and kind denominational preacher visited our church web site and had questions about the page teaching that baptism is essential.  He had two good questions about what we were teaching.  The first centered around why, if baptism is necessary, people filled with the Holy Spirit in Acts ten needed it.  He sought to reconcile this with Acts 2:38.  Second, he wondered about the thief on the cross and why he was saved without baptism.  How would you answer that?  No doubt many of you could do far better than I did, but here is what I said.
(1) Acts 2:38 and Acts 10:48.  I want you to notice that nowhere in Acts is anyone commanded to receive Holy Spirit baptism.  It is always mentioned as a promise, blessing or gift.  In the same context of Acts 2, Peter says, “For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call” (39).  In proper interpretation of scripture, one of the questions we must ask is, “To whom is the speaker or writer speaking?”  The answer here is, “To Jews” (see Acts 2:22).  Also, Jesus had told them to start in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and then the uttermost parts of the world (Acts 1:8-11).  The promise of Acts 2:39 is the receiving of the Holy Spirit.  The “you and your children” would most logically refer to Jews.  Who would “them that are afar off” reference?  Well, in New Testament terminology, there were only two groups-Jews and Gentiles.  Jesus intended for the gospel to go to the Jew first, but also to the Greek (i.e., Gentiles) (Rom. 1:16).  Cornelius is often cited as the first “Gentile convert.”  Why would the Holy Spirit come upon this Gentile household in Acts 10?  The context tells us.  The Jews are amazed because this gift of the Holy Spirit came on them ALSO (Acts 10:45-46).  After this occurs, Peter asks the logical question, “Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit the same as we have?” (Acts 10:47).  Incidentally, baptized was then commanded of them (Acts 10:48).  In Acts 11:14-15, Peter said they were told words whereby they should be saved.  Those words must have included instructions to be baptized.  You will notice that throughout Acts, baptism was part of the instructions for salvation (Acts 2:38,41; Acts 8:12-13; Acts 8:36-38; Acts 16:14-15; Acts 16:31-34; Acts 22:16).  Other books show us the role of baptism as part of God’s plan to redeem us (1 Peter 3:21; Romans 6:1-12; Galatians 3:26-27; Colossians 2:12; 1 Corinthians 12:13).

(2)     The thief on the cross.  We’ve got to remember that baptism is part of God’s plan under the new covenant.  There can not be a change of the testament without the death of the testator (i.e., the one who creates a will)(Hebrews 9:16).  We must remember that Jesus and that thief died under the old covenant, the Law of Moses.  In fact, Jesus nailed it to the cross when dying there (Colossians 2:14).  Also, while Jesus was on earth, He had the power to forgive sins (Mark 2:10).  The thief, then, is not a good example for how we come to salvation today.  He was subject to a different covenant and enjoyed a different circumstance, having Jesus there with Him to forgive His sins.  In light of all of those passages already mentioned telling us how to be forgiven, we must conclude that the terms of pardon are different from us than it was for this penitent thief.

I am sure this is an honest, searching man interested in knowing the truth.  What a reminder that there are those who are willing to open their hearts to scripture.  May we ever be that way, too.  And, let us all be ready to fulfill 1 Peter 3:15 in all its component parts.

THE HIGH PRICE OF INACTION

Neal Pollard

Penn State students nearly rioted overnight, protesting the firing of legendary head football coach, Joe Paterno.  “Joe Pa” had been the symbol of class and integrity, caring for his players and winning big every year.  Just this season, the 84-year-old passed Eddie Robinson as the winningest coach in Division One history, with 409 wins in his 46th season.

But, in 2002, a graduate assistant reported to Paterno that he witnessed a former coach, Jerry Sandusky, committing unspeakable, reprehensible crimes against a young minor on college grounds. Paterno reported it to a school official, but did not go to the police. Sandusky was allowed to maintain a strong presence on campus for another decade!  Along the way, high school coaches, maintenance staff, and other boys who were in the charity for wayward youths started by Sandusky, reported either assaults or suspicious behavior. But, no legal or punitive actions occurred until last week!  The number of boys whose lives have been permanently traumatized is still unclear.

Paterno was not the only one guilty of inaction. The number of bystanders who said and did nothing is staggering.  Now, heads are rolling, including the university’s president and this revered head football coach.  Having this ignominy for a legacy, Paterno lamented, “It is one of the great sorrows of my life.  I wish I had done more” (espn.com, “Joe Paterno’s Penn State Legacy”).

Physically, it is hard to think of a more heinous crime than those against the innocent.  It is an illustration of the high price of inaction!  How bad is it to be aware of danger, of immorality, of that which is unacceptable to God, but say nothing?

I fear that too many pulpits, even in the Lord’s church, are woefully silent when it comes to warning about sin–whether doctrinal, ethical, or moral matters.  Some men will not overtly teach error, but you will never hear them preach and warn about those “difficult subjects.”  How many elderships have failed to lead the church in disciplining the erring or standing up for God’s Word?  How many times have we failed to act on behalf of our Savior, at work, at school, at social functions, and the like?

A world, by and large, is heading toward eternal punishment (cf. Mat. 7:13-14).  We know this is true!  We know the worth of every soul to God (Jn. 3:16).  Will we stand by and say and do nothing?  Do not be guilty of doing nothing!

A DROP OF JOHN’S BLOOD

Neal Pollard

Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz of Krakow, Poland, presented a drop of the late Pope John II’s blood to the St. Mary Roman Catholic Church in Greeley, Colorado, last month.  The Associated Press reported that this is a highly-prized relic for the church, especially in light of rumors that the Vatican will soon name the late pontiff a “saint.”  Father Pawel Zborowski, of the Greeley church, said that Dziwisz “presented the drop of blood on a cloth encased in a decorated gold cross last month in Poland” (via Colorado Springs Gazette online).

The discerning Bible student will find much in the above paragraph to deconstruct, but focus for a moment on the value some have attached to the blood of a man venerated by a sizable percentage of people around the globe.  They carefully encase it, preserve it, and desire to display it.  They call it a “relic” (i.e., a part of a deceased holy person’s body or belongings kept as an object of reverence). It is a rarity to be prized and treasured.

My purpose is not to debate the good and bad qualities of John Paul II.  He will stand before “the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords” (1 Tim. 6:15), the same as you and me.  It is amazing, though, that much ado is made over inefficacious, ordinary blood, while the vast majority reject the only blood that can save.  His blood redeems (Eph. 1:7), washes away sins (Rev. 1:5-6), acquits (Rom. 5:9), makes holy (Heb. 10:29), brings near (Eph. 2:13), cleanses (1 Jn. 1:7), cancels our sin debt (Mt. 26:28), clears our conscience (Heb. 9:14), and purchased the church (Ac. 20:28).  I cannot literally contact that blood.  Jesus died 2,000 years ago, 8,000 miles from here.  In four different ways, God ties the blood of Christ to baptism (see John 19:34 + Romans 6:3; Matthew 26:28 + Acts 2:38; Revelation 1:5 + Acts 22:16; Hebrews 13:12 + Ephesians 5:25-27).  Christ’s is the only blood that matters!

“I DARE YOU”

Neal Pollard

He was James West.  He was Pappy Boyington.  When I was a little boy, he was my ideal image of what it meant to be a macho, tough guy.  Then came the coolest commercial.  In the late 1970s, Robert Conrad was a spokesman for Eveready batteries.  Some of you will remember it well (http://youtu.be/lr-oLQgvcuk). He put that battery on his shoulder, and the trademark line was, “Come on.  I dare you!”

That “double-dog-dare-ya” philosophy might work well when boys are playing cowboys and Indians, or watching Jim and Artemus beat up the bad guys, but it is not the way Christ modeled for us or wanted His people to interact.  It is the world’s solution to conflict and disagreement, not the Lord’s.  In personal disagreements and disputes, He urged “turning the other cheek” and many similar admonitions (Mat. 5:38-47).  When offended, He urged direct confrontation (Mat. 18:15-17).  But, given the overall tone of Christ’s teaching about such matters, one must twist and distort scripture to draw the picture of an angry, insulting, blistering confronter.  Instead, is it not more like the instructions given by Paul in Galatians 6:1-2?  When dealing with false teachers and false teaching, He gives us these guidelines:  “The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will” (2 Tim. 2:24-26).

One will not find a pattern in scripture for an all-too-common mode of operation.  Specifically, where there do we find brethren baiting brethren, “setting them up,” offering veiled threats, puffing their chests, and putting the chip on the shoulder daring another to knock it off?  Undoubtedly, at the present hour, the inspiration and authority of scripture, pattern theology, and the long-understood, logical hermeneutic of command, example, and inference are all facing unprecedented attacks by brethren.  As we fight false ideas and combat error with truth, let us not absorb worldly tactics in dealing with brethren.  We must display the spirit and love God demands of His children, regardless of the “opponent.”  The power remains in the Word of God rather than strong-arm, worldly tactics.  We forget that to our own peril!

AT TIMES, WE ALL NEED A PUSH

Neal Pollard

Irene Sax is an award-winning cookbook author, food critic and food writer whose work is often syndicated.  One of her best known articles, run in the huge Newsday newspaper, was a feature on Jean Nidetch.  Nidetch was a 214 pound housewife who met a friend in the supermarket, telling her how good she looked and asking her when the baby was due.  Not pregnant, Nidetch allowed this to motivate her into action.  She went to the New York Department of Health to get a diet plan to treat her obesity.  She was losing a little weight, but it was when she decided to invite six other overweight women to her apartment that everything changed.  The meeting was a hit and snowballed into the global success and household name, Weight Watchers.  Over a million people in 24 countries are members of the nearly half-century-old program.

Nidetch told Sax how she succeeded with Weight Watchers.  When she was a teenager, Nidetch crossed a park where young mothers were sitting and talking together while their toddlers just sat in swings with nobody pushing them.  Nidetch would give them a push.  She said, “And you know what happens when you push a kid on a swing?  Pretty soon he’s pumping, doing it himself. That’s what my role in life is–I’m there to give others a push” (Irene Sax, Newsday Inc., n/d, and Nanci Hellmich, USA Today, 3/27/10).

One purpose for our assembling together as the church is to “consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds” (Heb. 10:24).  God knew that we would all need a push–to do what is right and stay away from what is wrong.  We can get stagnant and stuck when we try to go it alone.  But, God has given us each other.  As we each battle Satan, we need each other’s help (cf. Eph. 6:10-17).  With your help, I stand a better chance of resisting the devil (Jas. 4:7; 1 Pet. 5:9).  Find a brother or sister, get behind them, and push!

“Let Your Love Light Shine”


Neal Pollard

One of the most famous light houses in America is Minot’s Ledge Light House off shore from Scituate, Massachusetts.  It is not known for its age or beauty.  Though it has a rich, interesting history, it is perhaps best known for its light flashing, in nautical code, “1-4-3.”  The flashing lantern was installed in 1894 by the Coast Guard, a simple flashing sequence.  But, to so many, it quickly came to mean much more.

The wife of light-keeper Winfield Scott Thompson told her small children that Thompson was telling them how much he loved them every night with this “I love you” flash.  Many sailors, long at sea, have taken comfort by Minot’s Ledge’s flashing signal.  Several years ago, the Coast Guard decided to replace the old equipment.  They informed the residents that the new equipment would not be able to flash “143” and the outcry was such that the Coast Guard eventually gave in to it.  The old equipment remained, flashing its message of love to all who came within its reach and influence (info via Boston.com).

Minot’s Ledge Light House is known as the “lover’s light.”  What a wonderful reputation!  You and I are flashing signals, too.  They are perhaps at times neutral, but in the overall they are either loving or unloving.  Our actions, our words, and our attitudes convey a message about us.  They may repel or attract.  It depends on what signals we are sending.

Jesus tells us that His church should be shining a loving light (John 13:34-35).  We should be renowned as a loving people.  Husbands (Eph. 5:25) and wives (Ti. 2:5) are told to let their love lights shine toward each other.  Parents are to love their children in a way that is plainly evident (Ti. 2:5; 1 Tim. 2:15).

What signal are you emitting?  If you are Christ’s, it will be loving.  Let your love light shine and it will bless all who come within your reach and influence.

THE ROAD TO UNIVERSALISM

Neal Pollard

 

Universalism is the idea that all are saved or that one is saved without his meeting any conditions whatever.  Merriam-Webster defines it as “a theological doctrine that all human beings will eventually be saved” (www.merriam-webster.com).  What are the true , ultimate implications of this increasingly popular idea?  Is it not that impenitent mass-murderers, political despots (like Hitler, Hussein, and Khadafi), rapists and molesters, and the like will eventually be saved?  We are repulsed at the very idea!

 

However, how does one get to universalism in the first place?  May I suggest that it is incrementally, bit by bit.  It is also the case that some will not go as far as the illustrations above, but they will be willing to say that people will be saved who have not fully followed the Lord’s teaching.  We are not talking about following Scripture perfectly every time and in every regard.  That is the extreme, false idea of “perfectionism.”  Instead, we are talking about omitting conditions for salvation and/or conditions for the saved.

 

It might be easier to answer “why,” possibly, people want to widen the circle of supposed divine acceptance of people.  One reason could be that we tend to believe in “meritorious works.”  By this I mean the idea that if people are basically good, moral people (and this is often subjectively determined), then they will be saved based on their goodness.  But this denies the atoning work of Christ at the cross and shifts the power from His sacrifice to our goodness.  Paul says, “There is none righteous, not even one” (Rom. 3:10).  There are acts of obedience required of us to receive the benefits of God’s grace, but there are no substitute or partial plans.  Another reason might be the climate of “political correctness” that pervades our culture’s thinking.  We find it distasteful to exercise judgment or evaluate the content of another’s behavior (cf. John 7:24?). We do not want to hurt anyone’s feelings or be seen as condemning another.  Nobody likes to be the “bad guy.”

 

Most people do not begin by saying absolutely “all” will be saved.  Before that, they will say that all sincere, devout believers in Christ will be saved (but, Mat. 7:21-23).  They might say that generally good people will be saved (but, Isa. 64:6).  They might say that sincere people in all religions will be saved (but, Ac. 4:12; Jn. 14:6).  But to say this, “they” must try to take the place of Christ as the one having all authority in heaven and on earth (Mat. 28:18).  No, the road to universalism ends at an eternally frightening destination.  Let us remain on Christ’s way, the narrow way (Mat. 7:13-14).  As the song suggests, “There Is Just One Way To The Pearly Gates.”

“Keep Me From Exalting Myself”

Neal Pollard

There is no prayer in scripture where any person asked this specific thing of God.  Men asked, “Keep me from wicked hands” (Ps. 140:4), “keep me from harm and pain” (1 Chron. 4:10), and “keep me safe” (Ps. 17:8).  Instead, humankind suffers from an all-too common tendency of exalting self.  We want people to know what good people we think we are, what we have done for the Lord and for others, what talents and abilities we possess, what enviable people we are in any number of regards.  But to have the wisdom, humility and foresight to pray “keep me from exalting myself” is not a thing that will naturally occur.  However, may I say that nothing could be more necessary and helpful in any of our lives.

The words, “keep me from exalting myself,” are not only found in the Bible, they are found twice in one verse.  The verse is familiar to most Bible students and its context so widely known that secular people borrow a phrase from it to describe the difficulties in their lives, too.  The verse is 2 Corinthians 12:7, where Paul writes, “Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me-to keep me from exalting myself!”  See, it is not a prayer of humility.  It is an acknowledgement of a fact.  Paul was undoubtedly a special person and probably one of the most special people who ever lived.  Beyond that, he was an apostle and the recipient of “great revelations.”  He wrote half of the New Testament.  He planted the church in Europe and throughout the Gentile world.  He preached to the king of the world.  What a VIP!  What an asset to the Lord’s cause.

Yet, what a wise man.  He knew what that “thorn in the flesh” was meant to do.  He notes what it did–it tormented him.  It hurt and burdened him.  But he also knew why it was there.  He says it twice.  “It’s to keep me from exalting myself!”

We have not achieved the greatness of Paul but we each have ample reason to pray, “Keep me from exalting myself.”  Wendell Winkler used to tell us preacher boys that we should pray before we stood to preach, “Lord, help me to hide behind the cross and so preach that people leave saying, ‘Oh, what a Savior’ and not ‘Oh, what a preacher.'”  May I suggest that no matter who we are, we must “hide behind the cross.”  We must be people wholly disinterested in thrusting ourselves out before the public eye in the hope of receiving the admiration, praise, and recognition of man.  May it not take a thorn!

MAKING EMOTIONS ACCOUNTABLE

anger

anger

Neal Pollard

James Dobson, in Emotions: Can You Trust Them?, wrote, “Emotions must always be accountable to the faculties of reason and will.  That accountability is doubly important for  those of us who purport to be Christians. If we are to be defeated during life’s spiritual pilgrimage, it is likely that negative emotions will play a dominant role in that discouragement” (11).  Now, emotions are God-given;  interest, joy, surprise, anger, contempt, disgust, distress, fear, guilt, and shame are listed by Dr. Carroll Izard as the ten most common emotions (cf. Development and Psychotherapy, 369ff).  He contends that only three of the top ten common emotions are positive and the other seven are negative.  In a world filled with violent crime, alcoholism, divorce, abuse, road rage, and the like, we can be persuaded by this finding.  But emotion is a powerful component of our lives, and some allow it to have too large a place.  That is Dobson’s point.

In marriage, you will not always feel in love.  You will not always want to do your duty or honor your commitment.  In your Christian life, you will be tempted to do what feels good or right in the moment regardless of what the Lord expressly desires.

We talk about feelings getting hurt.  Words like “vulnerable,” “afraid,” “stressed,” and “betrayed” are directly connected to our emotions.  Those feelings may be very real, but they can drive us to irrational behavior.  Marriages end.  Churches divide. Friendships are ruined.  People fall away from God.  All of these commonly occur because of unaccountable emotions.

It is significant that the Bible stresses knowledge, wisdom, judgment, discernment, and thinking.  Too, the teaching of self-control, self-discipline, self-denial, and the like suggest that with learning should come a healthy self-check.  That includes keeping emotions in their proper place.

McKinney mentions several traits that make for the emotionally mature personality, including heterosexuality, appreciation of others, capability of delaying his responses, and a point of view of life (solid convictions on matters such as ethics, morals, politics and the nature of the world and of man)(Psychology of Personal Adjustment, 467-468).  If we are to be socially and spiritually mature people, we must make our emotions accountable!  They cannot dictate our decisions.  They must be subservient, as Dobson says, to our reason and will.  And those things must be shaped and driven by a “thus saith the Lord.”

Don’t Be Overcome By Night

Neal Pollard

Gary, Carl, and I visited the United States Holocaust Museum today.  There is no experience with which to compare this harrowing, sobering, and unfathomable tour of one of the darkest periods of recorded history.  That one human being was capable of treating another human being the way the Jews were treated defies understanding.  We saw pictures and videos of the pogroms, boycotts, concentration camps, executions, and experimentations.  An entire ethnic group across an entire continent was seized with terror for over a decade.  To have witnessed such atrocities and survive must have scarred and wounded the psyche.  Perhaps no one who survived this genocide saw more than the Romanian writer Eliezer (Elie) Wiesel, who spent time in the Auschwitz, Buna, Buchenwald, and Gleiwitz Concentration Camps.  In fact, he only reluctantly became a writer to share his dark experience at the hands of the Nazis.  In his first book, Night, he wrote,

Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed. Never shall I forget that smoke. Never shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky. Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith forever. Never shall I forget that nocturnal silence which deprived me, for all eternity, of the desire to live. Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never.

I do not stand in judgment of Mr. Wiesel’s pain.  Who of us will ever know its depths?  But his words demonstrate how pain and suffering can undermine and even destroy faith.  Paul told the Romans, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Rom. 12:21).  We will not be cast in the throes of despair Wiesel has known, but when we encounter trials, difficulties, and suffering may we keep our faith in God strong.   It may be hard to love our enemies (Mat. 5:44), but may we maintain our love and fidelity to our God–no matter what!

Shanghaied By Bunco Kelly

Neal Pollard

There is a fascinating, if obscure, American figure from the era when ships ruled the waters of this land, carrying freight across the seas.  Apparently, ship captains relied upon men (often of “questionable” character) to fill their crew quotas.  In a tale of truth being stranger than even Pirates of the Caribbean fiction, there were unscrupulous men who scoured docks and seaport towns looking for incapacitated and inebriated men to serve as unfortunate conscripts for these vessels.  Among the dishonorable, Joseph Kelly stood out for unconscionable tactics.  He was legendary.  His nickname, “Bunco,” came from the time he took to the Portland, Oregon, dock a wooden Indian he covered in blankets and delivered for $50.  He kidnapped prostitutes and cut their hair, passing them off as sailors.  His most infamous deal may have been delivering at least 24 men to the British boat, The Flying Prince–bound with logs for China–that were found, to the captain’s chagrin, to be dead.  The men thought they had staggered into the Snug Harbor Saloon, but they missed it by one door.  They went into the basement of the neighboring Johnson and Sons Mortuary and downed a fatal amount of embalming fluid.  Such misfortune for ships’ captains were no concern to the ruthless and avaricious Kelly, who flouted the law and flirted with constant danger (http://www.naosmm.org/confer/port-or/history.html, http://americanfolklore.net/folklore/2009/08/bunko_kelly_and_the_funeral_pa.html, and http://www.tourportland.com/joseph_bunco_kelly.htm).

Perhaps we have a hard time feeling sorry for the salty seamen shanghaied by Bunco Kelly.  The same is true of the ship captains. They were trying to impress men into service that were not cognizant or coherent, all too happy to pay the likes of men like Kelly.  Those who received men this way were as dirty and dishonest as these Shanghaiers.

The New Testament mentions some spiritually unprepared people who were susceptible to religious “teachers” with the scruples of a Bunco Kelly.  In Romans 16:18, Paul mentions some who “by their smooth and flattering speech…deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting.”  Elsewhere, he speaks of others who were like children, “tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming” (Eph. 4:14). Jude spoke of certain ones who crept in unnoticed and turned the grace of God into licentiousness (Jude 4).  In these tragic cases, who is to blame?  The peddlers or the ones who “buy” these eternally rotten “goods”?  Yes!  God will judge, in strictest terms, false teachers (cf. Js. 3:1; Jude 4), but he holds each one of us accountable for what we choose to believe (cf. 2 Tim. 4:3-4).  Do not allow yourself to be “crimped” by unscrupulous men!  Get into God’s Word and know it.  It is your safeguard against the shady strategies of spiritual shanghaiers.

The Turbaned Tornado

Neal Pollard

The man with the unusual moniker, “The Turbaned Tornado,” is a remarkable man.  His real name is Fauja Singh, and on Sunday, October 16th, he became the oldest man to complete a full-distance marathon when he finished the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon!  He was a bit rusty, not having run a marathon since he was 92!  He runs 7 to 10 miles every day, a habit which paid off when he pulled off this unprecedented feat.  Through an interpreter, he said prior to the race, “I just keep going knowing that every step I take I am getting closer to the finish line — standing around is not going to get me there” (info via Sporting News and UPI.com).

I know a great many golden agers who may not have so cool a nickname, but who have the same philosophy regarding their spiritual lives.  Just because they are advanced in age does not mean that they are content to just stand (or sit) around.  Perry Cotham will be 100 years old on January 5th, if God grants him the time.  I was with him in California just a couple of years ago and witnessed him preach with such passion that he preached two non-Christian, middle-aged women “down the aisle” to be baptized.  Great gospel songwriter, Tillit S. Teddlie, lived to be 102 and led singing before a large group of Christians to commemorate his 100th birthday.  Coming up quickly behind these two greats is our own Johnson Kell, who remains an active force in the Bear Valley congregation even as he launches into his mid-90s.

The youth movement folks can keep their “diaper dandies.”  Nothing inspires me more than the aged soldier of the cross still valiantly battling the forces of evil.  As Moses urged the Israelites, “You shall rise up before the grayheaded and honor the aged, and you shall revere your God; I am the Lord” (Lev. 19:32).  A gray head, if found in the way of righteousness, is a crown of glory (Prov. 16:31).  Seeing Christians who have seen many decades of life–trials, hurts, temptations, and heartaches–but who have remained faithful to Christ are heroes.  They have successfully run the most strenuous marathon of all, running that long with endurance (Heb. 12:2) and in such a way as to win (1 Cor. 9:24).  Why not “pick out” an elderly Christian whose faith and works shine before you and thank them!  There is truly no greater accomplishment.

 

“Why Not Fast?”

Ethan Compton (guest Daily Bread baker)

Two Sundays ago, while doing my homework, a random thought occurred to me.  Why not fast?  I did some thinking and decided I wasn’t going to eat anything for 24 hours, starting that Sunday afternoon.

During my fast, my thoughts toward foods changed.  Any food I saw looked delicious.  Even a little cracker or tiny pieces of candy looked amazing and I just wanted to eat it!  And, obviously, when someone doesn’t eat anything for 24 hours, they get hungry.  Throughout my time fasting, I could constantly feel the hunger.

One of the reasons I decided to fast was to make 1 Peter 2:11 come alive and make more sense.  1 Peter 2:11 says, “Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul.”  Most people eat every day.  No one can deny that the human body has to eat.  But, people of the world sin every day, with no sign of guilt or repentance. But as Christians, we should be fasting from all sin.

When I was staying away from food, simple foods offered to me, like candy, looked great!  Let’s be real here.  It’s candy.  Candy is full of sugar and other things that don’t help our bodies.  Sin looks good and it looks like you’re going to be having a great time doing it, but we’re only lowering our chances of getting to heaven.  The constant reminder of hunger was also a great reminder of how we should always be fighting and trying to stay away from sin.

We should be doing as Peter says and abstain from all fleshly lusts.  Each one of us has to eat food, but we don’t have to partake in sin.  Realize that every extra step we take to get sin out of our lives is more than worth the effort.

GAINING ENTRANCE

Neal Pollard

Many of you know that we have been on the proverbial pins and needles awaiting the status of Dale’s desired entrance into Cambodia.  Yesterday afternoon, from her first flight connection in Los Angeles, Kathy called me to share the dire warning expressed by Korean Air employees.  Dale’s passport is still valid, but it expires in December.  Entrance into Cambodia is usually refused if a person’s passport has less than six months’ validity.  Only after signing a waver with the airline were Kathy and Dale cleared to take the chance of getting into the country.  What followed was a 13-hour flight to Seoul, then another 5-plus hour flight to Siem Reap.  I emailed the US embassy, talked to our missionary, Phanat Ouch, by phone, and contacted the State Department.  I called the express passport renewal company recommended by the Wall Street Journal.  None of them were able to give me hope or assurance.  So, there was none for Kathy, Dale, or the rest of our group–except the awesome power of prayer.

No doubt, the many prayers were answered.  An official met our group, asking in broken English for “James Pollard” (Dale’s first name).  He was smiling and explained the situation.  He was going to write a letter, explaining the brief duration of Dale’s visit and vouchsafing for Dale.  With the full itinerary Wes Autrey had the presence of mind to bring, the letter gave Dale sufficient proof to be allowed to stay and engage in the mission trip.  To call us relieved is to sorely understate it!  It turns out that Korean Air had contacted the general manager of its airline operations in Cambodia, J.P. Hong.  Mr. Hong was the friendly, smiling, and helpful man who met them.

If Dale had not been able to stay, two team members would have had to make that long flight back home.  Money would have been wasted, the trip would have been dampened, and the return flight would have been grueling with no rest in between flights!  It was a potential nightmare.

It made me think.  All of us are on a journey to an ultimate, eternal destination.  Regarding heaven, few will gain entrance while the majority will be denied (cf. Mat. 7:13-14).  What is lost by failing to enter far, far exceeds what Dale faced in being refused entrance.  Will we have one to “plead our case” there?  In that case, it will be a matter of whether or not we have confessed Him with our lives (Mat. 10:32-33).  He longs to serve as our Advocate and Helper (1 Jn. 2:1; Heb. 13:6), but He will not force Himself upon us.  We must seek Him (Heb. 11:6).  Are you prepared for that journey or journeys?  Will you have Jesus to plead your case?