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Neal Pollard

 

The ongoing revolt in Cairo, Egypt, is dominating the international headlines.  Economically, it has ushered in higher oil prices.  Politically, it has raised concerns about regional stability as Egypt is a key U.S. ally in a part of the world where they are not to be found in abundance.  Socially, however, these protests seem to be the spark for monumental change in what that government will look like.  Aging dictator, Hosni Mubarak, fired his entire cabinet and, for the first time, appointed a vice president.  Some doubt he will run for a sixth term, but think he may try to hand power over to his son.  Anti-government groups emboldened by surging protests want this regime dismantled.  Over 100 protestors have died and thousands have been wounded, but the protests are spreading to other Egyptian cities.  Cameras are being seized, phone and internet outages are widespread, and a mandatory curfew, though largely ignored, imposed.  Why are these citizens not only continuing, but intensifying, their revolt?

 

From so far away, we can only accept with caution the reports being disseminated.  But, the common thread being attributed to their motives is a longing for freedom.  Various sources say there is limited or very restricted freedom of religion, speech, women’s rights, economics, and the like.  Perhaps, other Arab nations, who also have a majority population under the age of 30–a stage of life where one is more idealistic and apt to protest authority–are watching to see how this grab for freedom goes.

 

Whatever all the specific issues at play are, I understand the innate human craving for freedom.  Sadly, too many want freedom from God’s authority and commands.  But, wherever they turn, people will find themselves enslaved.  Paul wrote, “Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness? But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness” (Rom. 6:16-18).  No one is more oppressed and suppressed than those enslaved to sin (cf. 2 Tim. 2:26).  It is a miserable existence offering no future hope.  But, understanding us perfectly and longing to give us what we not only need but crave, Jesus gives this hopeful news that “you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free” (John 8:32).  That truth leads to the ultimate freedom, a spiritual and eternal freedom!

 

These Egyptians seem to want temporal, earthly freedoms granted to them.  We in a land of such freedoms understand that craving.  But, as Christians, we understand that Christ offers a freedom that transcends all other freedoms.  May we spread the news of such freedom wherever we are each day!

 

Joe Wilkie

In the spring of 1981, the rock band Van Halen came to Pueblo, Colorado, to perform at the university there.  They didn’t end up doing the show, but it was for a very weird reason.  At that time, Van Halen had the biggest stage set up, consisting of nine semis full of equipment.  Amazingly, their contract wasn’t much better.  It was very long and detailed.  One of the stipulations in the contract was for a bowl of M&Ms to be placed in their dressing room.  But that was not all, they asked for all of the brown M&Ms to be removed from the bowl.  Many thought this was a ridiculous request, but they had a reason behind the madness.  What they discovered was that if any brown M&Ms remained in the bowl they had requested, the people couldn’t be trusted to set the stage up right.  They had so much equipment on the stage with them when they performed, they didn’t want to have the chance of it collapsing on them while they were playing.  When they came out to Pueblo and saw that the brown M&Ms hadn’t been removed, they cancelled the show.  As it turns out, if they hadn’t cancelled, they probably would have been seriously injured or perhaps even killed.  In the early stages of set up before they had called off the show, the stage had collapsed on the gym floor at the university they were to play at, causing $80,000 worth of damage to that gym floor.

Just like Van Halen, God has given us a contract we must follow.  In it, God asks us to do specific duties while we are here on earth. One of those duties is to repent from our sins, meaning we turn from them and don’t look back.  So I ask you, what are your brown M&Ms?  What are those sins that you are having a hard time turning from and that are stopping you from being prepared for Christ’s return?  Matthew 24:44 says, “For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.”  I ask you to start picking your sins out of your life, so you can be ready for this judgment day.

Picking out those brown M&Ms for Van Halen was time consuming and very meticulous, but it had to be done in order to fulfill their requests.  Getting rid of your sins can also be time consuming and meticulous, but it must be done in order to fulfill Christ’s requests.  I want you to pick one specific sin.  When you pick that sin, I want you to get out a concordance or get on BibleGateway.com and look up a scripture that pertains to it.  If it is anger, find a scripture that speaks to that.  If it is lust, find a scripture that helps you with that.  Then, I want you to memorize the scripture and every time you think about sinning the next day, recite that memory verse.  This might sound dumb to you, and it might sound like a lot, but it really does help.  This is how Christ resisted Satan in the wilderness.  If you do this and it works for you, do it until you conquer that sin and move on to the next, and to the next.  Because when Christ comes back, I sincerely hope and pray you took time to pick out your brown M&Ms.

 

Neal Pollard

From American Idol to reality shows to YouTube to Facebook, the culture has provided us so many opportunities to flaunt ourselves.  We can work to earn our “big break” or we can tell everyone in our sphere of influence about the great things we are doing.   This is a worldly tendency, but we can tend to do this with our Christian friends as quickly as we do those in the world.  But, have we stopped to consider that such self-promotion is unloving?

Paul, defining love in 1 Corinthians 13, tells us three things love either is not or does not do.  It does not brag, is not arrogant, and does not seek its own (4-5).  Whether we may be tempted or driven by insecurity or feelings of inadequacy, narcissism, or a need for the praise and recognition of others, we fail to love when we try to turn the spotlight on ourselves.  It may even be through vaunting our spouse, our children, or our parents.  But, it often sounds like, “Look at me, look at us, who we are, what we’ve done, or how good, smart, talented, and better we are.”  It may be craving credit for an idea or effort.  Yet, these can easily become exercises in self-promotion.

Love tempers success with a realization that God is the One who gives us the resources to do anything.  Love would prefer turning the spotlight on the good others do.  Love has a well-balanced view of self, knowing that we have worth through Christ but that He is the One who deserves the glory.  Love hesitates to read his or her own “press clippings.”

When we practice love as Paul defines it, this genuine humility will stand out in a world of people shouting, “Look at me!”  This perspective allows one to step behind the cross, lift up Christ, and let the world see what He has done!  It also has confidence that the Lord will reward us openly some day for serving Him without fanfare in humility (cf. 1 Tim. 5:25; Matt. 6:1ff).

Neal Pollard

A classmate of mine from Faulkner University told me they have a new preacher coming to work with them, a man who had been converted from a denomination, in part, by my dad.  The classmate told me that the man had left that denomination for the Lord’s church in 1993.  I called my dad to ask about the man and he was shocked to hear of the role he played.  He said that they attended Louisville Bible Seminary, finishing a Master’s Degree in Church History.  It was 1972 and this man was among a group of young men pursuing their Bachelor Degrees in that school.  They had religious discussions with my dad, who would show them God’s Word on subjects in which they disagreed.  My dad has always been a super soul-winner, but all he was able to do was spread some seed.  Twenty-one years later, it sprouted in this man’s heart and he became a member of the church of Christ!  Today, he is a gospel preacher.

As we go about with our “Think Soul” buttons on, this will sometimes give us “ice breakers” and conversation starters.  From what I hear, several of us are getting the chance to invite people to attend church services with us or talk about spiritual things.  Do not be discouraged if people do not accept your initial invitation(s) to come to worship or Bible class or to be involved in a Bible study.  Keep broadcasting the seed.  As the late, great Warren Wilcox often said in relationship to John 4:35 that Jesus could speak of the fields being white for harvest because seed had been planted.  Look at John three and four at the activity and outreach attempted by Jesus and His disciples.  No wonder it was harvest time!  The same is true today.  If we are busy spreading the seed, it will be harvested.  It may not be today.  It may not be by us.  But, as Isaiah assured, “God’s Word does not return to Him empty” (Isa. 55:11).  There will be results, and those results and proportionate to and commensurate with the output of our efforts.  God causes the growth (1 Cor. 3:7)!  Let us be planters!

 

 

Neal Pollard

Beside the computer in my study is an incredible picture of Kathy and beside that an artist’s rendering of me, dated January, 1999.  The artist is Gary, and at that time he was barely five.  My neck in depiction is much slenderer than the real thing, and is drawn in orange marker.  A somewhat round circle drawn in blue makes up my face.  The rest of me is drawn in red, two huge eyes with gigantic pupils (and the right eye about twice the size of the left), eyebrows (astute for a five-year-old), a big smile, no nose, and a tuft of red, squiggly hair on top.  In the upper right hand corner is what looks like a mitten, but given its color and relative shape I know it’s a heart.  In the top left corner, in blue, is the word “DADDY.”

As a dozen years have passed since he yielded a masterpiece for me that I would not trade for a Monet or Rembrandt, I feel several things whenever I dwell on that beautiful picture:  Regret, for any and every moment I could have spent with his brothers and him  that I did not, realization that time waits for no man, resolve to make the time count each day, and responsibility to give these boys the very best “daddy” I can.  People tell us when our children are tiny that these days will be fleeting, but we do not believe them.  The next day, we are handing them our car keys and registering them for college.

Are you satisfied with where you are as a parent?  What values are we instilling in them, preparing them for the day when they can no longer be our charges?  Into our care, God gave us eternal souls we helped bring into existence.  They are “of” us, “from” us, “with” us for a while, and “under” us, temporarily, as pupils in the school of priorities.  Paper tokens of affection, framed and preserved, may touch our hearts, but lives built under our roofs will move us much more deeply.  May we have the wisdom to see that, and live accordingly.

 

Neal Pollard

A Denver Post article from Sunday’s newspaper, given to me by Dave Chamberlin, reveals a remarkable motive behind a string of northern Colorado bank robberies.  The January 16, 2011, piece, via The Greeley Tribune, conveys the rationale of Amanda Maslen, one half of the heisting duo who stole $11,000 from six Weld County banks.  Though she was only involved in one of the robberies with her boyfriend, Jordan Kniffen, she was quick to defend them all.  Her defense of the crimes covered three major premises: (a) Kniffen’s actions were harmless, since he used an unloaded gun, (b) He “was only stealing from the government or the FDIC,” and (c) They deserve the money because they’d had a tough life.  Her words play out like the proverbial shell game, hoping to deflect everyone’s attention from the fact that they spent a large chunk of that change on heroin and that anarchy would follow if everyone used similar rationale in their decision-making.

But, Maslen represents the fruit of some bad philosophical thinking of our times.  Many do not like moral, ethical, and doctrinal judgments to be universal.  They are afraid of prescriptive (i.e., rule- imposing and rule-enforcing) language.  One may choose a similar line of thinking in situations that they feel to be less harmful, not violent, or even protected by the laws of the land.  Do not many people enter into an extramarital affair or divorce and remarry by saying they deserve happiness, fulfillment, a better spouse or partner, or the like?  Isn’t one who has an abortion because it interferes with her educational, financial, or social future borrowing similar logic?  What about the one whose choice of a church because it appeals to or entertains them operate from a like premise?

The only way to straighten out the kind of thinking that led to such outrageous action and even more outrageous defense of it is to recognize and submit to the sovereign will of God and His moral absolutes.  We will be judged by the words of Deity (John 12:48).  We can know and be made free by the truth (John 8:32). Truth was realized through Christ (John 1:17).  As we read Scripture, we have an objective standard that is universally applicable (cf. Acts 17:30-31).  Excuse-making is as old as the Garden of Eden.  It did not work then, and it will not work now.  It is infinitely, eternally better for us to soften our hearts and yield our lives to the guidelines of the Bible than to serve our rebellious desires.

 

Neal Pollard

To speak of “the victims of 9/11” is to bring vivid images, memories, and thoughts to mind.  It is hard to believe that this fall makes a decade since that unspeakable tragedy.  The recollections get more vivid if you say “World Trade Center,” “the Pentagon,” “Flight 11,” “Flight 175,” “Flight 77,” or “Flight 93.”  These places and planes were the sites of an unprecedented attack that led to thousands of lives lost in a concerted attack on our nation.  But, to say “Paul Acquaviva,” “Siew-Nya Ang,” “Takashi Kinoshita,” “Mary Barbara Trentini,” “Juliana McCourt,” “Teddington H. Moy,” “Mary Jane Booth,” or “Lauren Grandcolas” is to make the tragedy much more personal.  Each of the 2,996 victims had family, personality traits, and responsibilities.  Each had a unique tone and quality of voice, a distinctive laugh, a peculiar demeanor, and set of interests.  It is one thing to feel a note of sadness to think back to the big picture of the terror attacks, but it is quite another to see a picture of or to have known someone who died in them.

We sing “Seeking The Lost” or “Rescue The Perishing.”  We read, “God so loved the world” (John 3:16), “the lost” (Luke 19:10), and “many will go in the way of destruction” (Matt. 7:13).  We preach and pray about opportunities to reach the lost and dying world.  That is important, but it can become impersonal.  Too often, “the lost” and “the world” is this faceless, nebulous, indistinct group whose lostness may cause a twinge of sadness in our hearts.  Last Saturday night, during our wonderful, truly inspirational, prayer service, Bob Turner stood before close to 200 saints and prayed for the lost…by name!  Those present wrote the names of loved ones, friends, family, and neighbors who were either spiritually struggling or outside of Christ.  Bob prayed for about 150 names, one by one.  To hear those names, some first and last names, others only first names, a few identified without even the mention of the name, many unfamiliar to us, some very familiar to us, made a profound impact hard to describe to those not present and participating.  To hear, one by one, “Jim,” “Jarvis and Helen,” “Melissa,” “Stacy,” “Doug,” “Austin,” “Katie,” “Manuel,” “Bruce,” “Floyd and Steph,” “Daryl and Becky,” and so many others, shook us into a startling reality.  Yes, we want to “think souls!”  But, those souls are people. They have names!  They are real.  They are personal.  And, they are lost.  We can struggle to ignore that, but it does not make the reality or the task any less vivid.  May God grant us the focus and faith to see the lost for who they really are–the people in our lives we can influence, reach, and bring into God’s wonderful family!

 

(Photo of J.A. Harding)

Neal Pollard

I am reading with interest a book I purchased from the library of Leathal Roberts, retired minister residing in San Marcos, Texas.  The book carries a copyright date of 1889.  The debate was began May 27, 1889, and continued 16 nights in the Central Baptist Church in Nashville, Tennessee.  The disputants were J.B. Moody, a prominent Baptist preacher, and James A. Harding, referred to simply as a disciple from Winchester, Kentucky.

In Harding’s first reply, he did several things worthy of note.  He began his speech with an extremely kind, gentle, and complimentary tone for both the audience and his opponent.  He also revealed himself to be an erudite (i.e., very knowledgeable) scholar, regarding both the writings of contemporaries but also the ancient writers.  He spoke at great lengths about the writings of the early church fathers concerning the subject of baptism.  He was also intimately familiar with the theology of the denominations, including that of the Baptists.  Yet, another thing that impressed me about Harding’s first reply was the firm, forthright way in which he set forth the biblical position and responded to the alternative view of Moody.

One charge Harding answered had to do with the supposed idea that members of the church of Christ are guilty of “ignoring both faith and repentance, and with making baptism the all in all, the only act of conversion” (27).  If one affiliated with the Lord’s church has ever believed that, it has been through either a lack of proper teaching or proper understanding.  Indeed, the Bible goes to great lengths to establish the necessity of faith, without which we cannot please God (Heb. 11:6).  Without faith, there is no salvation (Eph. 2:8).  Faith is essential to prevent one from perishing (John 3:16).  Regarding repentance, a change of mind and heart, there are no prospects for salvation.  One must have a godly sorrow that leads one to eliminate sinful actions and embrace righteousness (2 Cor. 7:9-11).  This repentance involves a turning, a change of course (Acts 3:19).  Repentance is plainly tied to salvation (Acts 2:38).  God is not fooled by an outward act devoid of inward change, and He will not accept such!

Yet, those who teach that salvation occurs at the point of faith and is by faith alone have a quandary.  Their position stands in opposition to plain, biblical teaching.

Answering Moody’s charge that the church of Christ is basically “Romanist” (Catholic), Harding replied, “According to the Romanist the commission (Mark 16:15-16, NP) should read, ‘He that is baptized shall be saved.’  According to our postion it should read as it does, viz., ‘He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.’ But according to my opponent it should read, ‘He that believeth and is saved should be baptized'” (26).

In beginning to summarize his first reply, Harding concisely said,

And then we express our views thus: He who can obey the gospel and will, shall be saved; he who can obey and won’t, shall be damned; he who would obey but can’t (if there be any such), God will take care of, as a being infinite in love, mercy and justice should do.  We are quite willing to leave all such irresponsible people with him who doeth all thing all things well; but in the meantime we will not cease to teach with all earnestness that when Jesus comes again he will come to take vengeance on them ‘that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ’ (See 2 Thess. i.8) (37).

Well said.

Neal Pollard

 

On August 30, 1868, Charles H. Spurgeon delivered a sermon entitled, “Prayer Meetings.”  It contains a lot of good information and ideas, as he begins with the “apostolic history” of such meetings.  He shows at least six purposes of prayer meetings in the New Testament: (1) Encourage the discouraged (Acts 1), (2) Receive power (Acts 2), (3) A Resource for the persecuted (Acts 4:35ff), (4) Individual deliverance (Acts 12:4ff), (5) Guidance regarding mission work (Acts 13:2-3), and (6) The First Step of a new work for Christ (Acts 16).  He follows that up by citing three important results of such a meeting: (1) Draws us closer in a special kind of fellowship, (2) It generates devotion, and (3) God has promised extraordinary and special blessings to those who do it.  He goes on to say some other useful things, but he makes the powerful case that prayer meetings were a fixture of the New Testament church (Prayer-Meetings, Capoccia, 1-2).

 

In more modern times, especially following the “Great Awakening” in this country back in the 19th Century, most religious groups met regularly as a church to pray.  During this same period of time, there were men and women dedicated to restoring the New Testament church and eradicating denominationalism whose custom it was to meet frequently to pray.  And, they believed in prayer.  Alexander Campbell called it “the holy of holies, the inmost temple of religion” and Barton Stone said it was “the offering up of our desires to God for things agreeable to his will” (Enclyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement, Foster, et al, ed., 600-601).

 

While “prayer meetings” are not frequent or common anymore, and that may reveal a lot about the church-wide challenge to evangelize and grow, they still will serve the purposes and produce the benefits asserted by Spurgeon 150 years ago.  When we meet in the sweet communion of prayer, as a church, we will be closer, more devoted to God and one another, and blessed by answered prayer.  A former elder, very funny man, and dear friend of mine in Mississippi, upon reading of our Saturday Night Prayer Session for “Think Souls,” wrote, “Well, first of all, who would ever have thought of having a prayer meeting on Saturday evening at 6:00 P.M. to pray for opportunities to reach souls? Who would have thunk it? We’re still working on getting folks to attend worship.”  Well, we are, too, brother.  But, I cannot wait to see a house full of saints, drawn together to petition “The Great I Am” to help us think, find, reach, and teach the souls all around us!  Oh, the thrill of summoning the One with unlimited power, resources, and knowledge to help us do the thing His Son left for us to do right before He stepped on that cloud (cf. Acts 1:9).  Before we “go” (Matt. 28:19), let us “come” boldly before His throne as a church and ask His help (cf. Heb. 4:16).

 

Neal Pollard

Yesterday was a great day, with excitement, energy, and passion talking about thinking souls.  Now, today, we are in the daily grind, routines, deadlines, and pressures to boot.  What can we do to translate a great idea into a great work?  How can you and I think souls today?

• Have you prayed about it? For opportunities, courage, perception, and attitude?
• Are you clearing your Saturday schedule at 6 P.M. to be here for the prayer meeting?
• Are you making a list of “prospects” or focusing on someone with whom to share the gospel?
• Have you grabbed some “tools” from our tool box?
• Have you jotted down the website for our podcasts, which include the lessons on “Identifying The New Testament Church”? bvccsermoncast.blogspot.com/
• Are you prepared to talk to somebody at church you don’t recognize and who may not already be a member?
• Is there a family member you might encourage?
• Have you thought about forwarding Daily Bread, Bob Turner’s “Leadership Fund,” or some other devotional email that might open a door? http://leadershipfund.wordpress.com/; http://www.forthright.net/; http://bpsfuelforthought.wordpress.com/; http://www.faughnfamily.com/
• If you are paying your bills today and do not pay them online, what about sticking a tract or church bulletin inside?
• Is there someone you might email, Facebook inbox, or otherwise write and encourage, thus maybe opening a door for the gospel at some point?
• Have you tried that proven question, “Would you like to study the Bible with me?”

What kind of “soul harvest” can we have this year to the glory of God?  I don’t know.  God is the limit, so that’s exciting!  Yet, also, we must realize that we cannot hope for a harvest if we are not planting seeds, day by day, “as we are going” (cf. Matt. 28:19).  Think souls today, tomorrow, and every day!  This requires breaking old, bad habits–silence, fear, conformity, or whatever else keeps us from spreading the greatest news ever told!  I am praying for you, that you will think about and reach out to souls today.  Please do the same for me.

Neal Pollard

For all of recorded history, Estonians have lived along the Baltic Sea. They were an independent nation until a series of foreign invaders conquered and subjugated them–Denmark, Germany’s Teutonic Knights, Sweden, Russia, and the Soviet Union.  For over 770 years off and mostly on, someone else “owned” this ancient, European people.    To throw off oppression, many nations have resorted to revolutions.  So often, these are filled with violence, bloodshed, and death.  Estonia’s path to independence was different.  They resorted to song!

The roots of this revolution were found in the rich history of song in Estonia.  At the first song festival following Soviet occupation, in 1947, a tune was set to the lyrics of a 19th Century nationalistic poem, “Land of my Fathers, Land that I Love.”  Somehow, it got past the censors and quickly became the anthem of freedom that Estonians sang throughout the country.  The song was banned by the USSR in the 1950s, but Estonians defiantly sung it until Soviet leadership acquiesced and allowed the song officially back into the program in the 1960s.  By the time Mikhail Gorbachev came to power, with his progressive programs like perestroika (economic restructuring) and glasnost (free speech), all the elements were in place for Estonia to intensify their protests and push for independence.  Organizers were wise enough to keep protests peaceful, and thus singing became the focal point of the revolution.

One incident symbolizes the power of song.  In 1969, at the 100th anniversary of the song festival, the Estonian choir started to sing the national hymn a second time despite Soviet orders to leave the stage.  When no one did, a military band was ordered to play to drown out the singers. Over 100,000 singers began to sing defiantly until the band was muted under the din of song.  Estonia literally sang themselves to sovereignty (Some of this information via http://www.singingrevolution.com)

God started a singing revolution in His church.  Under the Old Law, worship by the Jews involved the ornate, the outward, and the ostentatious from the colorful priestly garments, the opulent temple, the animal sacrifice, and the musical instruments, the harps, the lyres, and the loud-sounding cymbals (1 Chron. 16:5).  These physical, tactile  things were characteristic of the first covenant.  Yet, starting with God the everlasting Son coming by most humble means in the flesh, God instituted a religious revolution.  Priests were not set apart by special garments, but spiritual qualities.  Worship was held in homes and catacombs rather than an ornate building.  The blood of Christ meant the silencing of lambs, bulls, and rams, with the holy of holies and mercy seat now located in heaven (Heb. 9:1ff).  Oh, and in the place of flutes and trumpets Christ instituted a “singing revolution” unmatched in history.  His people, in worship, were instructed to communicate to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs (Col. 3:16; Eph. 5:19).  No musical instrument, whole band, or entire symphony can reach into the heart and teach like “the fruit of the lips.”  Those of us who have been freed from oppression (cf. 2 Tim. 2:24-26) have reason to sing!  We keep singing because we are longing for the day when we are finally freed from the pain, trouble, and temptation of life (2 Cor. 4:16-5:4).  Time marches on, but the “revolution” is in full swing.  It is still reaching and touching hearts today.  Nothing more or less than Scripture specifies is called for or necessary, for God knows the heart of man and what best speaks to it.

 

 

Neal Pollard

For many years, “Safe Sex” has been a term synonymous with an education program targeting youth and purporting to teach them about contraception, avoiding disease and violence, and similar concepts.  The assumption is that teenagers and late preteens are unable to exert self-control and will inevitably fall prey to their desire to commit sexual immorality.  The term itself seems so benign and is misleading to young people.

In his book Moral Choices: an Introduction to Ethics, Scott B. Rae includes a very profound statement made by writer Kari Jenson Gold.  She says,

Consider the notion of ‘safe sex.’ Surely, the two words are ludicrously contradictory.  Sex can be many things: dark, mysterious, passionate,                               wild, gentle, even reassuring, but it is not safe.  If it is, it is not very likely to be sexy.  How to abandon oneself to another, how to give your body                         into someone else’s care and control, and remain safe? Sex is dangerous. It’s supposed to be (211).

The lie in this misnamed term and slogan, whether an intentional or unintentional lie, has scarred and damaged an infinite number of people since time began.  When people change any of God’s rules and make their own, there will be devastation and destruction.  That is certainly true of God’s plan for sexuality.

Most in this world are more concerned about disease than doctrine and feelings over faith.  But, the Bible makes clear what, spiritually, safe sex is.  It is sexual relations between a man and woman in a marriage recognized, ordained, and approved by God (cf. Matt. 19:1-9; 5:27-32). When it comes to our souls, sex is not safe between the unmarried, between those of the same sex, or between a married person and one not his or her marriage partner.

That which is safe is only that which is within the bounds of God’s will.  It does not matter if society gives a pass to those who are “in love” or who “intend” to some day marry.  It does not matter if the culture gives the nod to those whose marriage is deemed “loveless,” “boring,” or “strained.”  On any subject, the only safe ground is that which is built upon the foundation of Christ (cf. Matt. 7:24-27).  The world’s view of sexuality is built upon the shifting sand.  Let us be safe in the arms of Christ, and we will be safe in every relationship.

 

Neal Pollard

It was Christmas Eve, 2007, when 77-year-old Robert Schoff decided to find the source of a clog in his septic system.  He dug a hole, lost his balance, and became stuck in the opening of his septic tank. The Des Moines, Iowa, man was sure that he was going to die.  He yelled for his wife for an hour, but she did not hear him.  However, she did walk by a window and see his feet sticking up in the air.  Two Polk County sheriff’s deputies pulled him out of the mire.  It will not be a top ten holiday fond memory, for sure (AP report via Fox News, 12/26/07).

Probably none of us have fallen headfirst into the same bad situation that Schoff did, but all of us have moments in life that just stink!  Job, the great sufferer, said that life was “full of turmoil” (Job 14:1).  James, by inspiration, dubbed them “various trials” (Jas. 1:2).  These tumultuous trials range from irritations and inconveniences to full-blown, five alarm burdens.  It may be mistreatment.  It could be physical or financial.  It might be emotional or spiritual.  Eventually, it will be all of these for most of us.  What do you do when you fall head first into the unpleasant?

Watch your attitude and speech!  Trials and troubles can turn you bitter.  This will boil over into your speech.  You will sound negative and you will become focused, even obsessed, with complaining about your problems.  You do not want others to associate you with bitter complaints and angry tirades.  Paul writes, “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, with all malice” (Eph. 4:31).  This is a sin-problem that otherwise, basically good people fight, grumbling and growling about those septic tank situations of their lives.

Use it as an opportunity to glorify God!  Such runs contrary to worldly wisdom.  The world preaches that we cry foul, that we howl long and loud for everyone else to hear, that we play the victim, or that we obsess about the matter.  The Christian, realizing the vastness of his or her influence, instead follows the great examples of the faithful in scripture like Job (Job 1:21), Paul (Phil. 4:10-12), and the prophets (Jas. 5:10).  Peter tells us to glorify God if we suffer in our Christian lives (1 Pet. 4:16).  How hard that might be, yet how much more effective that makes us as His light and salt in this dark, unsavory world!

Count your blessings, not your crosses!  Really, isn’t it a matter of upon what we choose to focus?  In every life, rainstorms fall.  In every life!  So, why are some cloud-watchers and others silver-lining-finders?  We decide how trials effect us.  That is somewhat frightening.  Habits are formed by repetitious decisions!  Each trial that comes, we react.  The way we reacted to the last trial sets the trend for how we are more likely to react the next time.  The old poem, in part, goes, “Count your blessings, not your crosses; count your gains and not your losses; count your joys and not your woes; count your friends and not your foes.”  No matter who we are, our negatives cannot outweigh our positives–especially if we are “in Christ” (cf. Eph. 1:3).

I am not minimizing the presence, pain, and perplexity of your problems or mine.  I am suggesting a proper perspective.  Cast an eye to Calvary, whereupon the perfect Man hung.  Peer into the prison, where Paul sat waiting for Nero to behead him.  Watch, listen, and learn!  You will find yourself in some foul places in life.  Don’t let them infect you.  Let them improve you!

 

Neal Pollard

Peter and John had been through quite the transformation over the past few years.  They were, by all evidence, average, ordinary fishermen when Jesus called them to be fishers of men (Mt. 4:19).  The renowned impetuosity of Peter and irascibility of John were tamed and gradually these two great gospel teachers and preachers began to emerge.  Peter had preached the first and second recorded gospel sermons (Acts 2-3), and now they had enjoyed remarkable success as 5,000 people became Christians as the result of their proclamation (Acts 4:4).  This drew pressure from the opposition, who wanted Peter and John to be quiet and disappear.  But these were changed men!  They could not help themselves.  Peter and John spoke up and told them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:19-20).  True, they had literally walked with the Lord for three years.  They were witnesses of His resurrection.  They saw, spoke with, and touched the risen Christ.  Certainly, this influenced their passion and conviction, but what sustained them?  It was faith that this Lord that changed them would continue to be with them.

Baptism constitutes a change for those of us who have submitted to it.  It is a change of condition (from lost to saved), of relationship (from stranger to child of God), of state (from out of Christ to in Christ), of direction (from the broad way to the narrow way), and so much more.  Coming into Christ means continual, if gradual, transformation (cf. Rom. 12:1-2).  Part of this transformation should show itself in a bold, passionate conviction that makes it hard to keep quiet about the difference Christ has made in us.  There will always be opposition, forces at work to keep us quiet.  What will we do?  Will we be bullied and intimidated into silence?  Or will we say with those great apostles, “We cannot stop speaking about” Jesus?

 

(picture of Tawn Lork, taken earlier this year)

Neal Pollard

 

On December 24, Vantawn Lork died in a motorcyle accident en route to evangelize the lost in Preah Vihear province, Cambodia.  He had turned 31 back in June and was preaching in Phnom Penh.  His two brothers, Chann and Sokchea, are gospel preachers we at Bear Valley fully support as they work in the Siem Reap area.  I only met Tawn once, but his brothers are full of life, jokesters, and mischievous until it is time to talk the gospel.  Then, they could not be more serious!  But, they and their fellow Cambodians, as well as other third-world inhabitants I have met in places like Thailand, Tanzania, Kenya, and Bangladesh, remind me of how many blessings I routinely take for granted.

 

Many of them do not have drinking water in their homes, but must go elsewhere to fetch it.  They eat one meal a day, and sometimes they are not that blessed.  They must travel in countries where there are many hazards, and some are thrilled just to have a bicycle.  They are susceptible to diseases that, with cheap, proper medication, are most benign, but many of them do not have access to the medicine.  They often must save for several years to earn enough money for a dowry and thereby enter into marriage.  They face fierce social, religious, familial, and sometimes physical persecution.  Their life expectancy is low.  They understand what David meant when he spoke of walking through the valley of the shadow of death.  They make very little money, and the idea of social security, retirement plans, or even property and house ownership is so foreign to them as to be unknown.

 

Today, you may be having a great day or you could be having a bad day.  You may be going through the biggest trial of your life so far.  You may be facing a fearful future.  Whatever life is handing you right now, take a few minutes to reflect on the many ways God has blessed your life particularly in a material way.  When was the last time you thanked Him for running tap water, antibiotics for only a couple of dollars a bottle, clean hospitals with competent personnel, heating and cooling, real windows, doors, and walls on your house, dependable transportation, paved roads, and religious freedom?  This is not an attempt to make you feel guilty for your prosperity, only a reminder that God in His sovereignty has allowed you to have such blessings.  Be grateful, and use what He gives for His cause and His glory!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Neal Pollard

A study that has always fascinated me is the “minor” characters whose names appear in sacred writ.  The Holy Spirit saw fit to include these individuals in written revelation, and in some instances we know little or nothing about them.  Some of those with brief mention were enemies of Christ, while others were contributors to His cause.  Tychicus, who appears in five New Testament books, is one of the latter.  A combined study of the verses about this brother yields the facts that he was a beloved brother, faithful servant, and fellow bond-servant of Paul (Eph. 6:21; Col. 4:7).  He was trustworthy enough for Paul to send him to perform spiritual tasks (2 Tim. 4:12; Ti. 3:12).  Consider three important qualities that, albeit brief, reveal the character of Tychicus.

He was beloved. What is required of one to be regarded as beloved?  Consider the kind of attitude, type of speech, and specific actions necessary to be loved by other people.  All of us know those we consider easy to love.  Others we know are prickly and standoffish. How will you be remembered by those who knew you best or by those with whom you worked and worshipped?  Much of what else we see of Tychicus no doubt contributed to how beloved a brother he was, but with the emphasis the New Testament gives to proper attitude surely that must have shone through in his life.

He was faithful. Along with being a beloved brother, Tychicus was a faithful servant.  Barclay surmises from Acts 20 that Tychicus was likely the representative to carry the contribution to the poor saints in Jerusalem, and he goes so far as to call Tychicus the personal envoy of Paul (169). Given the timeline of Tychicus’ appearances, nearer the end of Paul’s life, this disciple played a prominent and visible role at a time that many abandoned him (cf. 2 Tim. 4:6).  Some, as Curtis Vaughan points out, translate “faithful servant” as “trusted assistant” (Gaebelein, ed., 223).  Clearly, Tychicus appears to have been supremely trustworthy, one that could be entrusted with tasks however great or small.  What a great legacy for us, if we can leave behind the memory of a Christian who could be counted on to help in the cause of Christ!

He was a servant. Paul uses the word “doulos” (According to Zodhiates, “A slave, one who is in a permanent relation of servitude to another, his will being altogether consumed in the will of the other”; The complete word study dictionary, elec. ed.) to describe Tychicus.  He was one who served the Lord along with Paul and the others.  “Church work,” whatever it was at the moment, was never beneath this brother.  He saw it as his duty and place, to spend himself serving the Lord.  Is that how others think of us?

Melick gives a great summary of Paul’s description of Tychicus in Colossians 4:7, writing, “These qualities represent the best in Christian growth. All three descriptions occur with one article before them all, and they are joined by ‘and.’ This is an emphatic way to indicate that all belong together in this one man” (Vol. 32, elec. ed.).  Oh, to be thought of as beloved, faithful, and servant-minded!  When we see our place in the body of Christ as an active rather than a passive one, we are well down the road to being a Christian like Tychicus.

 

 

Neal Pollard

Many of you have doubtless heard about the tragedy in Casper, Wyoming, on Christmas Eve.  A 22-year-old snowboarder collided with a woman and her five-year-old daughter on a black diamond resort slope.  The snowboarder and the little girl perished in the accident, and the mother is, as of this writing, in critical condition in a Casper hospital.  Exactly how and why it happened may never be known, but there may be blame enough for both.  Why did the mother and the little girl stop in the middle of the slope rather than at the side of the trail?  Was the snowboarder going too fast, if he could not stop in time to avoid people stopped in the middle of the trail?  In accord with human tendency, different people are assessing blame to each party involved.

When you consider the tragic elements involved, that it was on a holiday so special to many people, that it snuffed out the lives of two young people with so much life ahead of them, that it involved a comparatively frivolous activity, and that there are two pairs of parents left to grieve the loss of their children, we are moved to wonder why.  There will likely be guilt, anguish, and anger for the survivors of this sad event.

Tragic events happen many times over on a daily basis.  They are reminders of the fallen world in which we live.  They point out the heavy consequences that follow the choices that we make, especially ones deemed unwise.  They emphasize the unpredictable, fragile nature of life and the fact of the inevitable appointment all of us will make with death.

How do Christians face tragedies?  Our faith in the Great I Am trusts that He can work in the most tragic events of life and bring about good, though He is never responsible for sin or evil.  Our trust in His power leads us to find comfort and hope, both of which shine brightest in the darkest days.  Our perspective concerning life and spiritual things causes us to cast our focus on “things above” and the eternal facet of our being, knowing that this life is not all there is.  There is a “heaven to gain” and a “hell to shun.”  Knowing these things, we can be God’s gentle, guiding force to help and encourage those without benefit of these blessings of Christianity.  Through them, we may be able to open a door that leads to the salvation of souls.  Let us keep that heavenly perspective in tragic times!

 

Neal Pollard

Epicurus and Aristippus were both Greek philosophers interested in the value of pleasure.  According to Everett Ferguson, Aristippus’ philosophy tilted more toward sensual pleasure while Epicurus “promoted the placid pleasures of the mind, friendship, and contentment” (Backgrounds of Early Christianity, 370).  Epicurean philosophy is summed up as a fourfold thought process: “Nothing to fear in God; nothing to feel in death; good (pleasure) can be attained; evil (pain) can be endured” (ibid., 377).  The most obvious difference between the philosophers was that Aristippus glorified bodily pleasure and Epicurus glorified intellectual pleasures (ibid., 329).  Yet, while Aristippus may have been the forefather of the sexual revolution, Epicurus was dangerous in his attitude that deity (he believed in the Greek mythological gods, but his view would be applied by his disciples to any deity) could not render punishment or reward after death (Bell, A.A., Exploring the O.T. World, 170).  Both men seemed to have a view of life that emphasized getting all the enjoyment you can in this life because there is no afterlife.

That materialistic view has been adopted by many in the modern, western culture.  While charity and good deeds may have some place, it is primarily to enhance one’s own position or pleasure.  Many show through what they value, how they spend their time, and what captures their passion that they are living only for this life.  The Christian must live differently from that.

The apostle Paul speaks of the past resurrection of Christ and the future resurrection of His followers in 1 Corinthians 15.  His view of life, shaped by his Savior, was dramatically different.  In 1 Corinthians 15:32, in proving the resurrection of Christ, he says, “If the dead are not raised, let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”  This seems to be a quotation of Isaiah 22:13, but Paul also seems to be addressing contemporary philosophies throughout the chapter (cf. 15:29, 33).  Thiselton quotes Anders Eriksson in his now out of print volume, Traditions as Rhetorical Proof, to suggest that “both Isaiah 22:13 and contemporary anti-Epicurean polemic equally designate the libertinist life.  Paul uses it to point to the utter futility of a life without the motivation given by the resurrection of Christ” (Thiselton, A.C. The First Epistle to the Corinthians: A commentary on the Greek text, 1253).

Paul taught a future judgment where there would be reward and punishment (2 Cor. 5:10).  He also taught of the hope that fuels the individual to live beyond the moment, based on the fact that Christ arose (1 Cor. 15:54-58).  Ancient and modern philosophers encourage man to look within and to a lesser degree to look around himself.  Christians, encouraged by Bible writers like Paul, begin by looking up to God.  Everything else, past, present, and future, is filtered through that worldview.  As time has tested all the philosophies of man, nothing compares to the Christian worldview.  While there may be a certain degree of wholesome pleasure that follows obedience to Christ, Christianity does not make pleasure the top priority.  At least, it does not focus primarily on bodily pleasure on earth.  It points to eternity and the everlasting pleasure the faithful will enjoy in heaven.  The individual must decide which has the clarion ring of truth, but that choice has everlasting consequences and it will influence how one lives on this earth.

 

 

Neal Pollard

One of the pillars of the U.S. Constitution is the “First Amendment” in the “Bill of Rights.”  In brief, it states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”  When one reads the prolific writings of our early leaders of government, he or she cannot fail to be struck by the fiercely religious tone that filled those writings.  The early, government documents are riddled with statements of faith and Bible quotations.

They certainly could not have envisioned all that their national progeny would have attempted to promote, defend, and embrace in the name of the First Amendment.  Legal eagles, even if they have religious leanings, feel their hands are tied by the language of that amendment even if reprehensible, perverse ideas are peddled through free speech.  What proof that no system of government is inherently righteous or incapable of spiritual and moral corruption.

A man in Pueblo whose name I refuse to share has published a manifesto the title of which I will not say.  To say this man promotes wickedness is to woefully understate the matter.  Yet, he is allowed to advocate without punishment such shameless sin because of a moral erosion that is the product of removing God and His Word from the marketplace.  We cannot avoid an immutable truth, that “righteousness exalts a nation, and sin is a reproach to any people” (Prov. 14:34).  God surely will not forever bless and uphold a nation who so thoroughly dismantles His precepts and principles.  Please pray for America!