Category: Uncategorized

Neal Pollard

The 21-year-old woman driver who lost control making the turn at the corner of Utica and Mineral is devastated that her car struck and killed a 47-year-old Baltimore, Maryland, resident who was in Denver attending the Colorado Center for the Blind.  David Nanney and two other students were struck by the woman’s vehicle while waiting for a bus to take them to the center.  The accident occurred on Friday morning, just a day before he was scheduled to fly back to be with his family for Christmas.  Apparently, as the blind man heard the approaching automobile skidding onto the sidewalk where the three stood, he “pushed the two women out of the way and took the brunt of the hit” (9News.com).  He was a carpenter in Maryland and was here to learn how to use, in his sightless condition, the tools of his trade.  He is remembered as thoughtful, charitable, and a natural leader.  He was well-liked by all who met him (www.denverpost.com, Howard Pankratz and Carlos Illescas, “Denver And The West”, 10-18-10).

Thinking about the individuals making up this story, some things come to mind.  First, the young woman driving the car feels she’s done the unthinkable.  Reports indicate she will be charged with some traffic violation, but nothing will likely penalize her like her own conscience in the time to come.  Then, the two women saved by Nanney will likely feel gratitude for as long as they live that someone did something to save their lives and wound up losing his to do it.  Finally, there’s Nanney.  He apparently was a man full of good deeds in life who gave his life doing good.  In fact, he made the ultimate sacrifice.

Occasionally, life’s tragedies yield powerful illustrations of vicarious sacrifice and incomparable love.  Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).  Scripture says that Jesus, the ultimate sacrificer, “died for us” (Rom. 5:8; 1 Th. 5:10), “died for all” (2 Cor. 5:14), and “died for sins” (1 Pet. 3:18).  He was perfectly sinless (2 Cor. 5:21), but was purposely sent for our sins (Gal. 4:4-5).  Nanney is an unqualified hero because he shoved two friends out of harm’s way.  Jesus is the unparalleled hero of Calvary because His death saves us from eternal condemnation.  May we appreciate the great price paid which gives us life!

 

Neal Pollard

It is my view that every member who can should always be there when the doors are open.  That has nothing to do with Hebrews 10:25.  It has more to do with the idea that the shepherds are charged with feeding the flock (Acts 20:28), that each service we assemble helps accomplish that, and none of us should feel free to miss feeding time.  It also has something to do with an easy, logical way we can encourage and build up one another (1 Th. 5:11) and stir up each other to love and good works (Heb. 10:24).  It further has to do with how since kingdom matters have first place in my heart and life (Matt. 6:33) the meeting times of His saints should be at the top of my priorities.

 

But, my sentiments at the moment have less to do with that and more to do with selfish reasons.  As I look back on the life God has blessed me with to this point, I have collected so many wonderful memories.  A significant number of them have occurred on Wednesday nights.  As I survey my Wednesday nights, in the recent and long distant pasts, I call to mind:

• An 11 year old Christian brother lighting my fire with his motivational devotional talk.
• A father and husband putting Christ on in baptism.
• Bible class lessons that built my faith and flared my passion for further study.
• Seeing and hearing my own sons speak, lead singing, and pray.
• Seeing and hearing our teens do those same things.
• Being met at just the right time by a brother or sister who lifted my spirits with a timely word “fitly spoken.”
• Seeing a man confined to a wheel chair who will let nearly nothing keep him from being here, despite personal pain, discomfort, and sacrifice (and seeing others like him through the years).
• Many other public responses made by Christians confessing sins or asking for prayers or others who chose on Wednesday night to become Christians.
• Enjoying a weekly family reunion with my spiritual siblings, a lift above the mundane matters of life.
• Seeing brethren from other congregations, whether I had never met them or have known them well in the past, who “popped in” on Wednesday nights.
• Spiritual uplifts from congregational singing or heartfelt prayers on Wednesday nights.
• New Christians, taking their first spiritual steps which include coming to Wednesday night Bible study.
• Week after week that helped build a closeness and relationship with the Lord that is built not just on my personal feelings and estimation but on study and worship.

Though those may be mostly or entirely selfish reasons, I am thankful for the good Wednesday nights have done and are doing my family and me.  The church is my spiritual family.  How else would I want to spend my Wednesday nights?

 

(My Dad and Mom, taken around their tenth anniversary)

Neal Pollard

William Doherty, in Take Back Your Marriage, writes about “Resisting Consumer Marriage.”  He goes a long way in defining that concept with his good, thorough discussion of it.  He writes, “Consumer culture has always been based on individuals pursuing their personal desires. But in the late twentieth century, advertisers began to emphasize desire for desire’s sake…Consumer culture has always been one of self-gratification, but the entitlement dimension is more prominent now” (30-31).  He later says that certain “jingles” or tunes, to borrow ad speak, play in our minds, things like “I am not getting my needs met!”, “I deserve better!”, “If only I were married to that one!”, “My marriage is not as good as you’re marriage!”, “My spouse is a flawed person!”, or “I’m the good guy here!”  (ibid., 44-46).  He ends by urging, “The best way to keep the consumer culture from dominating your marriage is to see yourself as a citizen of your marriage…Being a citizen of a marriage means taking responsibility to make things better and not just be passive, to value the marriage itself and not just your own interest in it” and several other wise, valuable pieces of advice (47).  Doherty seems to have identified a major threat to marriage in the modern world.  He gives it a new and catchy name, but its true identity is “selfishness.”

Marriage with selfish participants is doomed.  That seems harsh and pessimistic, but I have seen it too many times.  Me-first marriages meltdown.  Interestingly, Peter encourages a different model upon which to build a marriage.  In 1 Peter 3:1-7, he addresses husbands and wives.  It is a passage that speaks to unity and security.  Focus particularly on the central phrase, “Being heirs together of the grace of life.”  In marriage, you have a singular identity because you are “fellow-heirs.”  You have a singular goal since you are fellow-heirs “of the grace of life.”  You have a singular approach as you are heirs “together”–not mine, not yours, but ours and us!  This model, the biblical model, calls for husband and wife to be cooperators.  We are teammates, pulling the same direction and encouraging each other.  That will never be done in a sin-free, perfect environment because each participant cannot qualify for that (cf. Rom. 3:23).   At the beginning, God saw marriage as the lifelong opportunity of each to suitable help for the other (Gen. 2:18).  May we have the grace and wisdom to do the same.

–Doherty, William J.  Take Back Your Marriage: Sticking Together in a World that Pulls us Apart (New York: The Guilford Press, 2001).

Neal Pollard

While delivering and having the invitation is an expedient rather than obedience to a specific command, it seems a very wise and judicial custom.  If someone has heard the gospel preached and the plan of salvation delivered, they may never be more inclined to obey than in the moments directly following the invitation delivered.  Whether we are talking about members responding to ask for prayers or confessing sin struggles or a lost sinner expressing a desire to be baptized, the invitation is a vital moment of decision for several at any given service.  Perhaps because it is such a “fixture” in our services, occurring at the end of each lesson, it can make us, individually and as a whole congregation, lax about how we should behave leading up to and during the invitation and the “invitation song.”  Consider some suggested advice for “invitation etiquette.”

• Select an invitation song that convicts, persuades, and admonishes.  Some songs do this much better than others, as evidenced by indexers efforts to list certain songs as “invitation songs.”
• Avoid the pregnant pause. The song leader who is ready to begin leading the song as soon as the preacher stops speaking helps prevents that dramatic time lapse that may be enough to break one’s train of thought who is mentally wrestling with the decision to respond.
• Avoid the rack rattle.  As listeners who are thoughtful of one another (including those deliberating over whether or not to respond), let us be careful not to drown out one’s thoughts by pulling out our songbooks as we anticipate the preacher “winding down” his sermon.  Most of us know most of the songs well enough that we probably don’t need the songbook for the first line anyway.  It is a courtesy to the preacher and potential responders when we refrain from the racket of pulling out the songbook as the invitation is offered.  If you must get the songbook ready while the preaching is still going, go the extra mile to remove it without making any noise!
• Moving lips should be singing.  The invitation or the song that follows it is not the most ideal to handle logistics, further worship planning, and similar discussions.  Who knows but that we may be carrying on some conversation in such a way as completely distracts one who might have been readying to respond?  If a dialogue with someone is necessary, why not discreetly excuse yourself and the other person to some place outside the auditorium, if possible?
• Be prayerful. How powerful would it be if all present not intending or needing to respond were in prayer for anyone who might be wrestling with that decision?  Satan is looking for any obstacle or scheme (cf. 2 Co. 2:11) that will keep someone away from Jesus.  By silently praying for these ones as we sing, who knows what impact will be made in this matter?

Perhaps there are other “etiquette tips” that could be added.  Certainly, the preacher should give thought and preparation to that final part of his sermon, emphasizing urgency and eternity.  He should not make false promises of concluding a sermon without “keeping his word.”  With that, let the rest of us consider how we can partner together with him to make each invitation as impacting and effective as possible.

 

Neal Pollard

Too many congregations have forgotten the reason they exist.  Maybe you have heard Thomas Wedel’s parable of the crude lifesaving station that was just a hut and one small boat with a few dedicated members who constantly looked for shipwreck victims lost on the storm-tossed sea.  In time, their success attracted new members, and they were able to buy several new boats and train large crews.  Eventually, as they swelled in numbers and affluence, they became a social club that talked about the value and importance of lifesaving.  Yet, gradually, they had stopped saving those in actual danger (Heaven Bound Living, 99-101).

Are there churches filled with people who study about, preach about, and talk about our mission, but are not saving many?  Perhaps, in too many cases, we are not being true to our reason for existence.  It is like the story about a man who sees a sign in a store window in a small European town.  The sign said, “Pants Pressed Here.” The man goes in and starts to remove his trousers, but he is stopped by a clerk who asks him what he’s doing.  The man said, “I saw your sign and want my pants pressed.”  The clerk replies, “We don’t press pants here.  We just paint signs” (source unknown).  It says “church of Christ” on our buildings.  Are we serving Him and the lost, or have we just painted a sign?

Forgetting or betraying our reason for existing may be a matter of failing to realize why we are here.  The age in which we live has given us astounding opportunities and tools to grow, but a failure to realize the need to grow may be behind the fact that the church is not growing throughout the brotherhood.  A lot of congregations and individual Christians have forgotten that the world is really lost.  Second, our pluralistic culture has caused many to lose a clear picture of who is saved and who is lost, and as a result many hesitate to talk to others about their lost condition.  Third, we have become too internally focused on felt needs and personal satisfaction rather than on the eternal salvation of souls around us.  Finally, too many churches question the absolute authority and truth of scripture, seeing it as spiritual suggestions and not Divine directives.  In essence, Jesus says, “Look around you and take off the blinders.  People are dying eternally lost and need the gospel!”

We must remain true to our original purpose.  We must remain true to what the sign in front of the building says.  Only then will we keep reminded of exactly what we are doing here!

 

Neal Pollard

A Republican and a Democrat came up with opposing bills.  That’s hardly news, except the issue does not seem politically charged or motivated.  Both bills have to do with changing “how Coloradans set their clocks” (Colorado Springs Gazette, 12/8/10).  Greg Brophy, the Republican, wants us to keep daylight savings time year round to take advantage of  longer daylight to engage in outdoor activities, for which our fair citizens are so well-known.  Ed Vigil, the Democrat, wants us to be like Hawaii and Arizona and stay on standard time year round.  He says that would give farmers, ranchers, and school kids an advantage over the current format.  Neither knew of the other’s bill proposal, but both wanted to change how we reckon time.

Who knows if either of these proposed pieces of legislation stand a chance of becoming law?  We can change the time on our clocks, but what we cannot change is how much time we are allotted.  There are still but 24 hours in a day.  No piece of legislation can give or take time from us.  No bill can lengthen or shorten how much time we will have lived.  Each of us, individually, are stewards of our time, no matter what time it is when the sun rises and sets.  The admonition of scripture is to make “the most of your time” (Eph. 5:16), “inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment” (Heb. 9:27).

Harvey MacKay, owner of MacKayMitchell Envelopes for more than 45 years, once said, “Time is free, but it’s priceless. You can’t own it, but you can use it. You can’t keep it, but you can spend it. Once you’ve lost it, you can never get it back.” What wisdom!  What a challenge for us to spend that priceless commodity in view of eternity and the unique influence we wield.  A constituent told Brophy, “If we could shorten Monday to Thursday by an hour we could extend Saturday and Sunday each by two hours” (Lynn Bartels, Denver Post, 12/8/10).  Don’t hold your breath for that.  But make the most of your Mondays, Saturdays, and the rest of your days!

 

Neal Pollard

Dean Derrow was one of 1,178 listed as wounded during the attack on Pearl Harbor, which happened on this date in 1941.  He was a fire control man who served about the USS West Virginia.  That ship was blasted by five torpedoes and two bombs, and Darrow was blown into the water by the blast.  There, unconscious, he was rescued by personnel from the USS Solace, a navy hospital ship.  As he was being transported by motor launch to the Solace, a Japanese plane started strafing the boat.  Finally, the servicemen made it to the hospital ship where Derrow was examined and judged fit to return to duty.  He set out with others on the USS Porter, which set out for Midway and Christmas Islands. Derrow passed out while swimming and slept for ten days in sick bay.  He went back to the Solace and had his appendix removed on February 24th.  But it was what was discovered in March, 1942, that almost defies belief.  Herb Louden, a Navy corpsman on the Solace, wrote, “Then finally, March 7th, 1942, an X-ray technician by the name of Robert Rule found a 7.7 MM 1 1/2″ long bullet lodged in Derrow’s heart, three months after the attack on Pearl Harbor. It became obvious that when he was pulled into the rescue boat a bullet from the strafing Japanese fighter plane had struck his back, penetrated his lung and the back muscle of his heart, stopping before popping out the front” (http://pearlharborsurvivorsonline.org/html/WoundedHeart.htm).

What an incredible story of survival.  How blessed Derrow was for the fortuitous outcome.  So many other amazing things happened in this story.  Alice, the nurse who took care of him, married him and they enjoyed 50 years of married life in California. Louden, who told the story and helped pull him out of the water, conducted his funeral on January 4, 1992.

As we honor these heroes who faced such terrifying odds as teenagers and young men, I find something significant about this incident.  Derrow went 132 days with a bullet lodged in his heart.  He apparently did not know it or feel it, but that did not make it any less serious and life-threatening.  If that object had not been removed, Derrow would likely have died.

Satan shoots his fiery darts at us, trying to destroy us!  The stakes are eternally high.  He aims at the heart, which controls and influences all we do and who we are.  If we are not careful, we can allow him to hit us there and wound us.  We will show symptoms, but we may be able to function despite the serious danger to our hearts.  We must allow the Great Physician to help us remove any object from our hearts that threatens our spiritual lives!

Neal Pollard

A blogger from Australia, who seems at least quasi-religious, wrote an article entitled, “Why I Hate Rules.”  He gave three reasons.  (1) Rules are for “twonks” (British slang for “a stupid person.”  (2) Rules are for others (rule makers are notorious for ignoring the rules).  (3) Rules don’t inspire me.  Here, he cites among others Jesus’ healing on the sabbath and eating with tax-collectors and sinners.

This man, to some degree, seems a casualty of pop culture.  Nobody likes rules.  It is more noteworthy to find someone who does.  It goes against our nature to be subjected to rules.  You hear, “Rules are made to be broken.”  Sometimes, those who do not say it live it.

While some may unevenly apply rules or abuse rules, like the Pharisees, priests, lawyers, and scribes too often did, to disdain and disavow rules because some misuse them is like asking for a ban on automobiles because some are reckless drivers. Certainly, there is the sense in which the Bible itself is a book containing several rules.  We are not saved by rule-keeping, but that does not nullify the importance of rules in our lives.  Rules serve several roles.

Rules create accountability. I am accountable to others and, most of all, to God (Rom. 14:12; Heb. 13:17; 1 Pet. 4:5).  His expectations and instructions are designed to help me see my accountability and to be accountable to Him.  If I live to myself and die to myself (cf. Rom. 14:17), I can do just as I please.  Gravity is a natural law, but it implies certain rules that cannot be defied and which hold us accountable.  How much more is it true that the Bible contains spiritual laws that include with them accountability measured either by obedience or disobedience.

Rules foster consistency.  “What’s right for me may not be right for you” only works in fairy tales and fantasies.  God is an impartial judge (Acts 10:34; Rom. 2:11; etc.).  Thus, it is fair for the perfectly fair God to have all His rules apply evenly to everyone.  With but two eternal destinies and two roads to get there, there needs to be objective directions given.  Consistency and fairness are complementary.

Rules encourage submission. Jeremiah wrote, “I know, O Lord, that a man’s way is not in himself, nor is it in a man who walks to direct his steps” (10:23).  Most of us wrestle with trying to be our own boss, but rules stubbornly stand in the way of that philosophy.  I am not my own man.  I am God’s man.  He tells me, “Submit therefore to God” (Jas. 4:7a).  How do I do that apart from obedience and submission of my will to His.

The limitation of the rules rest with us.  When we fail to obey the rules or obey them disingenuously, they do little if any good.  It is like the old story of the girl, sternly warned by her mother to sit down, who replied, “I’m sitting on the outside but standing on the inside!”  But, our consistent failure to apply these rules to our lives, while such may hurt a great many, other people, ultimately hurts us most of all.  Paul said, “For neither is circumcision anything, or uncircumcision, but a new creation. And those who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God” (Gal. 6:15-16). The new creation that we become through Christ by getting into Christ (Gal. 3:26-27) is one in which Christ lives within us (Gal. 2:20).  That means He rules!  When He rules over me, the rules I am under are bearable and doable.  Thank God for His righteous rules!

 

Neal Pollard

 

In Genesis 15, Abraham is offering a heifer, goat, ram, turtledove, and pigeon on an altar.  This was the way you worshipped in Abraham’s day.  As a matter of course, Abraham was cutting all but the birds in half in preparation to worship when the buzzards buzzed the sacrifices.  Almost as a footnote, Moses writes, “The birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away” (Gen. 15:11).

 

Have you ever had to do that when you worshipped?  Maybe, you’ve prepared for worship and are actively engaged in it when the vultures try to descend.  That bird of prey might be a noise in the auditorium, an uninvited thought, an action by another worshipper or a worship leader, the room temperature, some type of visual distraction, or almost any other sort of external or internal intrusion.  But, these things can become the predators that pick at, sabotage, or consume our worship.  Our thoughts and attitudes can be adversely affected to the point that we fail to offer God acceptable worship.

 

Sometimes, you have to shoo away those birds of prey.  Swoop into action.  Pray.  Redouble your concentration.  Give yourself a mental pep talk, reminding yourself why you are assembled.  Do not let the vultures violate your veneration!  Fight off the distractions, annoyances, and aggravations!  You will be the better for that effort, and God will be pleased with what you offer.

 

Neal Pollard

What do Marilyn Monroe, Eddie Murphy, author Dave Pelzer, Olympic athlete Reese Hoffa, Cher, and Dr. Ruth Westheimer have in common?  All of them spent time growing up in foster care.  There have been a great many famous foster parents, too.  My parents were involved in foster care for several years during my childhood.  Several good brethren today continue to provide a home, if temporarily, to those whose own homes are strained or broken.

There is a man in Acts, an Ephesian, whose time upon the inspired stage is brief.  His name, Trophimus, literally means “foster child.”  Though there is no particular significance attached to his name, it is one of the more interesting names in the New Testament. It seems that adoption was very common in the Greco-Roman life.  Ryrie says, “Childless couples could often adopt a son who then became their heir. Even if the adopted son had living biological parents, they had no more claim over him after the adoption had taken place. Often parents were willing to let their sons be adopted by another family if it meant a better lot in life” (Basic Theology, 306; see rules of adoption in Women’s Life in Greece and Rome, Lefkowtitz and Fant, 99-100).  A foster child would have been essentially the same as an adoptee in that society,

It is not far-fetched to think that Trophimus was converted through Paul’s efforts (cf. Acts 20:4; Easton considers him to have literally been a foster child).  Paul once called Timothy his “true child in the faith” (1 Tim. 1:2) and his influence over many others, among them Titus, Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, Jesus Justus, Clement, may have had a paternal flair.  Once, he told the Thessalonians that he was as gentle as a “nursing mother” caring for her own children (1 Th. 2:7; the word for “nurse” there is in the same word family as Trophimus).

Trophimus was certainly nurtured and tutored in discipleship under Paul’s capable guidance.  The Ephesian was with Paul when he was arrested in Jerusalem, mistakenly assumed to have entered the temple with Paul (Acts 21:29).  Trophimus had come to Jerusalem on Paul’s last recorded visit to that city (Acts 20:4).  At the end of Paul’s life, Trophimus was unable to accompany the apostle due to illness (2 Tim. 4:20).  Some have supposed that he was one of the brothers who accompanied Titus in delivering the second epistle to Corinth in 2 Corinthians 8:16-24 (cf. Elwell and Comfort, 1275).  “Legend suggests that Trophimus was ultimately beheaded by the order of Nero” (ibid.).

That is all we know of Trophimus, but we know he was in the sphere of Paul’s influence.  Paul adopted him, as he no doubt did others.  What an example Paul provides for us of the power of mentoring and influence.  Leadership training, church growth, and elder, preacher, deacon, or other working enlisting is a valuable, but too seldom practiced, work.  We need to foster our own Timothys, Tituses, and Trophimuses.  Who are you helping grow in the service of the Lord?

 

Neal Pollard

Chann Lork, our missionary in Cambodia, first alerted me to the tragedy in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, that occurred just a few days before Thanksgiving.  It was a national holiday, the three-day water festival, and Chann says it was like the day of Pentecost when the crowd came together in amazement and started spreading rumors at the commotion of the apostles speaking in tongues.  What happened at the festival has been described as “mass panic.”  Officials investigating the tragedy “found that the natural swaying of a suspension bridge ignited fears it would collapse among an estimated 5,000 to 7,000 people on the structure. In frantic efforts to escape, the crowd pressed and heaved, crushing hundreds of people and leading some to dive off the span into the water” (AP, 11/29/10).  Apparently, people began voicing fears that the bridge was going to collapse under the weight of the revelers, and as word spread the rumors escalated.  In the end, 351 died and 395 more were injured (ibid.).  The bridge never collapsed.

 

Observers of human behavior know how all-too-common this sort of thing is.  There was an old Andy Griffith episode about rumors and gossip, where gossipers transform Barney’s cut finger into him shooting himself dead in less than three hours.  I have seen the same thing in church life, where hearsay and “talebearing” allows a sickness or situation to grow much larger than life.  While these, like old Barn’s situation, can be more humorous than dangerous, there are other times where not getting the story right can be fatal.

 

Many people build their entire worldview around claims, assertions, and beliefs that are entirely untrue.  Sometimes, that worldview breeds fear and trembling.  I have known people who are certain their dead ancestors were going to pay them a visit, and that prospect was terribly unnerving to them.  People who believe they have seen ghosts and apparitions get obsessed with them and can become irrational.  Others who believe that demon possession happens today, that buy into a premillennial view of the end times with the apocalypse and period of tribulation concepts, that hear doomsday predictors boldly claim the world will end on a specific, imminent date, and the like live in and sometimes spread fear.

 

It is a fearful thing to consider going to the Judgment without the blood of Christ covering our sins (cf. 2 Th. 1:7-9; Mt. 25:31-34; Heb. 10:31).  Too many fail to be frightened at the consequences of their continued disobedience.  Yet, others are needlessly frightened or frightened about the wrong things.  They worry about things over which they have no control.  They fail to put their trust in God and His word, and so they are ripe for futile fears.  We rightly consider the tragedy in Cambodia to have been needless and costly, but so is holding on to any belief that is without biblical foundation.  “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 Jn. 4:1).

 

Neal Pollard

James Hastings, the scholar of more than a century ago, wrote in his classic work, Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics (1903, p. 280), about ancient Greek and Roman gods and goddesses of plenty and fertility, from Dispater, Hades-Pluto, Cernunnos, and Aeracura,  who often were horned or having hammer and cup.  In early inscriptions from the Rhine valley, there are depictions of Aeracura holding a cornucopia.  Many cite the fight between two Greek gods for the affections for a king’s beautiful daughter. The horn was filled by nymphs with flowers and the myth grew and changed from there through time.

However, that is not to say the cornucopia is simply another symbol originating in paganism.  Although some specific symbols and depictions would have come from their own imagination and practices, the Old Testament often shows the “horn” as a symbol of power.  Thus, David exults God for being the horn of his salvation (2 Sam. 22:3).  Repeatedly, in the Psalms, David speaks of God causing the righteous man’s horn to be exalted (cf. 89:17; 92:10; 148:14; etc.).  In Daniel’s, Micah’s, and Zechariah’s prophesies, the horn appears in visions as symbols of power and strength.

Whatever the exact origins of the cornucopia, the figure has come to symbolize what the name means: “the horn of plenty.”  Certainly, our nation has been thought of as the horn of plenty, as God has blessed us with abundance.  Today, as every day, we should spend considerable time in prayer thanking Him for all He has given us.  Yet, Christians live out entire lives in Christ as beneficiaries of endless, unsearchable riches and blessings.  From the cornucopia of God’s grace and mercy, we enjoy all spiritual blessings (Eph. 1:3).  We will never get to the end of our list of things for which we should be thankful because of our relationship with God!  But, may we always spend more time counting these things from God’s hand than we spend focused on our limitations, detriments, and burdens.  God gives us the abundant life now (John 10:10), and He is preparing an eternal home for us (John 14:1ff).  Take some time, today, tomorrow, and each day thereafter, thanking God for giving us a superabundant horn of plenty through Christ!

 

 

Neal Pollard

Marriage matters are continuously in the news.  One of the top entertainment news stories of the week involves the pending marriage of Prince William to Kate Middleton on April 29, 2011.  News stories about gay marriage regularly pepper the newsprint and online media outlets, from Prop 8 to “don’t ask, don’t tell,” to any number of such stories.

But, a particular “news item” on marriage really grabbed me.  A Time/Pew research poll of 2,691 adults found that 40 percent of Americans believe that marriage is becoming obsolete.  Apparently, a similar poll conducted in 1978 found that just 28 percent had such feelings about marriage at that time.  44 percent of those ages 18-29 saw marriage as obsolete, while 32 percent of those 65 and older felt the same.  Besides the young, those who had so high a percentage of skepticism about marriage included the uneducated and the poor. In 1960, 72 percent of all adults were married.  Today, that number is at 52 percent.

People can debate whether or not the pool of the polled was skewed or fairly selected or why people responded as they did, but I am undeterred.  I still believe in marriage.  Marriage was still the first institution created by God (Gen. 2:18-24).  Marriage is still the best way to learn the finesse of communication and interpersonal relationships, including negotiation, team-building, and shared success.  Where else can intimacy be more fully experienced than in a lifetime, monogamous relationship where the layers of complexity and interest are only multiplied through the days and years of life together?

Marriage creates fellow heirs of the grace of life (1 Pet. 3:7).  Marriage creates greater self-esteem, self-confidence, self-image, and self-identity, when both partners strive to live it out according to the pattern (cf. Eph. 5:22-32).

I am certain that my positive image of marriage is prejudiced by my 18-plus years of experience with it.  But, I believe in it despite the bumps and bruises that are inevitable on such an exciting journey.  My spouse is imperfect.  But, my spouse’s spouse is really imperfect.  Too many may have lost faith in marriage due to some poor examples of it.  No doubt the preaching of the culture seeks to dissuade rather than persuade people to participate in traditional marriage, as God outlines it.  Doing the will of God, following His pattern for anything, including relationships, will never be obsolete!

 

Neal Pollard

Longfellow memorialized them in his sad poem, Evangeline.

This is the forest primeval; but where are the hearts that beneath it
Leaped like the roe, when he hears in the woodland the voice of the huntsman?
Where is the thatch-roofed village, the home of Acadian farmers,
Men whose lives glided on like rivers that water the woodlands,
Darkened by shadows of earth, but reflecting an image of heaven?
Waste are those pleasant farms, and the farmers for ever departed!
Scattered like dust and leaves, when the mighty blasts of October
Seize them, and whirl them aloft, and sprinkle them far o’er the ocean—
Nought but tradition remains of the beautiful village of Grand Pré.”
(Parker and Bryan, Old Quebec.  London: McMillan, 1903. pp. 203-204)

These Frenchmen who inhabited the British owned peninsula now known as Nova Scotia did not want to be under the dominion of the British Empire.  After years of rebellion against them, in 1755 King George sent imperial soldiers to cities like Grand Pre to expel them from their lands and homes.  Apparently, the soldiers found the task very unpleasant.  Those who pledged their allegiance to the crown could stay.  Many escaped deportation and the “oath of subjection,” fleeing to Quebec.  This French city had encouraged the Acadians rebellion, but now refused to take them in and care for them.  According to the archives of Nova Scotia, the Acadians who fled for refuge to Quebec were met with neglect and inhospitality.  A chronicler wrote,

In vain they asked that the promises they had received should be kept, and they pleaded the sacrifices they had made for France. All was useless. The former necessity for their services had passed away. They were looked upon as a troublesome people, and if they received assistance they were made to feel that it was only granted out of pity. They were almost reduced to die of famine. The little food they obtained, its bad quality, their natural want of cleanliness, their grief, and their idleness caused the death of many. They were forced to eat boiled leather during the greater part of the winter, and to wait for spring in the hope that their condition would be bettered. On this point they were deceived (ibid.).

They were forced to scavenge for food in the gutter and their lowered living standards left them vulnerable to a smallpox epidemic that wiped out entire families.

When we read of how Quebec treated those Acadians who fled to them for help, we are reminded of man’s inhumanity to man–even his own kinsmen.  But, we are also reminded of the blessing we have in coming to Jesus.  After pointing out the impossibility of God lying, he speaks of those of us “who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us” (Heb. 6:18).  This is a sure and steadfast hope (Heb. 6:19). God desires for us to be assured about the safety He provides (Heb. 6:17). Indeed, it anchors the soul.

When we flee from our sin to come to God, He will not reject, neglect, or deflect us. He will not disown us.  What He promises, He will abundantly provide.  That is true and trustworthy.

 

Neal Pollard

There are some interesting facts about kings throughout history.  Egyptian King Pepi II is said to have had the longest reign of any king, holding the position 90 years from 2272-2182 B.C. Emperor Charlemagne could read, but could not write.  Frankish king Pepin the Short earned the name through his slight stature, standing only four feet, six inches tall.  His wife was known as “Bertha the Big Foot” (Yona Williams, Interesting Facts About Ancient Kings).

 

Kings and other rulers have ranged from savage and fierce to pathetic and effeminate. There have been magnanimous and moral kings, but many more depraved and vile ones.  In the history of Israel, many of these descriptions would have fit kings serving God’s people.  Hosea, still pleading with Israel to return to God, reviews Israelite history. In the process, the prophet reminds the people that God wished to rule over them as their only sovereign from their very beginning.  They were ravaged and destroyed; yet, He still wished to rule over them.  Hosea reminds them that back in Samuel’s day He only relented and allowed their foolish wish to be granted.  He had not rejected them, but they had instead rejected Him as king.  He reminds them that they truly had no other king but Himself.

 

We have earthly rulers whom we must honor (1 Peter 2:17) and for whom we must pray (1 Timothy 2:2).  Yet, God still wants to rule in His church and in His people’s lives in a theocracy. He would remind us that, though we are to be respectful and obedient to the laws of our nations, He is our ultimate sovereign. We must obey Him above and before all others (Acts 5:29).

 

(Devotional from the new book, “More Strength for The Journey: A Daily Devotional Guide.”  These are now available for order.  A special announcement appears in our Sunday church bulletin.  If you are interested in ordering a copy of this book, edited by David Deffenbaugh and co-written by Danny Boggs, Kirk Brothers, Bobby Dockery, and me, you can get information or order by email–tyrelhatfield@gmail.com–or at Little Acorn’s website–www.littleacornkids.net)

 

Neal Pollard

There is no better New Testament chapter for showing us the power of forgiveness than Romans 5.  One of the concepts Paul uses to teach forgiveness is “justification” (5:1,9, 16, 18; see also “reconciled,” “saved,” and “made righteous” in this chapter).  One source illustrates justification by referencing a supposedly true story centering around the ringing of the bell in London’s St. Paul Cathedral.  It is said this bell saved a sentinel soldier’s life.  The man was on duty at distant Windsor Castle and accused by the guard who relieved him of sleeping at his post. He was tried by court martial and condemned to death.  The man denied his guilt, saying that on the night in question he heard the bells of St. Paul ring 13 times at midnight.  The court did not believe he could hear the bells from so far away, but eventually the testimony of many people supported the claim of this condemned man.  The mechanism on the bell malfunctioned that night.  The king pardoned the soldier, who supposedly lived to be 100 years old.  He was justified after he was condemned.

The word translated “justified” in Romans 5:1 means “acquitted, put right with, and set free” (Louw & Nida, Vol. 2, Gk.-Eng. Lex. of the NT, 64). It means to be declared righteous with God (Friberg & Miller, Vol. 4: Anal. Lex. of the Gk. NT, 117).  Paul mentions three things we get to enjoy, being justified by Jesus’ blood, death, and life (5:9-10).

Because we are justified by Jesus’ blood, we have peace with God (5:1), we get to stand in this grace (5:2), and we get to boast in hope (5:2), in our tribulations (5:3), and in God (5:11).  In the end, because of Jesus, we shall be saved (5:9-10).

We deserve the wrath of God (5:9), spiritual death (5:12), and condemnation (5:16).  Unlike the fortunate soldier, we could not claim innocence (5:12,19).  Our pardon is the result of Jesus’ innocence, but because of that we can lay claim to “eternal life” (5:21).  Thank God for the saving blood of His Son.

 

 

 

Ron Herman (standing, 2nd left) and his wife, Charlene (seated, far right)

 

Neal Pollard

Kathy and the wife of one of our deacons in Virginia were studying with a sweet woman who was eventually baptized and who remains faithful to this day.  The woman lived in an apartment in a higher crime area.  In the midst of one of their studies, her huge, heavily tattooed, and obviously drunk nephew came downstairs weeping openly and profusely.  Apparently he had been eavesdropping on the study and felt, perhaps aided by the large, nearly empty bottle of liquor, a need of God.  Up to that point, Kathy and her co-teacher was unaware this nephew was in the apartment.  It turns out that this young man faced stiff legal problems as a convicted drug dealer who would not leave that lifestyle.  He was miserable, frightened, and utterly directionless.

The girls were able to leave Donna’s apartment safely, and the young man attended on a Wednesday night not long after this incident.  After a brief devotional and the extending of an invitation, this young man responded.  Knowing only his Catholic background, he went up to the very front and knelt right in front of the pulpit.  It seems that nearly all of us were frozen by this unexpected move.  It was unorthodox.  As he made the sign of the cross repeatedly, it was uncomfortable.  No doubt several wondered, “How should this be handled?”  While we all stood and sang, mired in perplexity, Ron Herman, one of our elders, walked up to the young man.  Perhaps many of us thought, “Good, Ron will escort him to the front pew to the ‘scriptural’ place for handling responses.”

No.  Ron immediately modeled Christ in a most compassionate way.  Ron knelt beside him, putting his arm around this big, burly young man.  He quietly, gently discussed with him the nature of his problem that moved him to respond.  Ron was affirming, smiling, and empathetic.  After the song, Ron informed the congregation that this young man wanted us to pray for him.

So far as I know, this young man has never obeyed the gospel.  In fact, soon after his public response, he was incarcerated.  But I learned a lot about what matters most that evening.  Ron was a professional educator, serving in school administration for his long, illustrious career.  Oh, how much he taught us that night. He was a shepherd exemplifying Christ to the flock (1 Pet. 5:3).  Too often we get uncomfortable when we need to get unseated, and we get embarrassed when we need to get encouraging.  So many among us are hurting and are unsure of what to do.  They are unsure of how we, the church, will respond.  Let us have the love and courage to respond just as Christ would.  Just as Ron did!

Neal Pollard

Russell Young, a distinguished veteran of World War II and the Korean War as both a member of the army and marines, once observed with me many comparisons between the military battlefield and the spiritual battlefield on which every Christian is to fight (cf. Eph. 6:10ff; 1 Cor. 9:27; 2 Tim. 4:3ff; etc.).  His musings brought to my mind the following observations.

Some of our brethren are “MIA.”  They are “missing in action.”  It may be regarding attending all the services of the saints, participating in the work of the church, or giving liberally of their means.  When there is work to do, these brethren are not to be found.

Some brethren are, similarly, “AWOL.”  They are “away without leave.”  In other words, they are conspicuously absent without “providential cause” (sickness, certain occupational situations, etc.).  They are the ones to whom reference is made when the question is asked, “Where has _____________ been lately?”  When they leave town for a few weeks, no one knows.  No one knows when and if they are sick.  While members may and should phone, how much easier it is when those who are hurting and ill let the church know where they are.

Some brethren are “POWs.”  They are “prisoners of war.”  The war is with Satan and worldliness, but some have been taken captive by the devil to do his will (2 Tim. 2:24-26).  These brethren have willingly and foolishly placed themselves in harm’s way, lowering their defenses and ultimately weakening themselves to the point of capture.

Some brethren are “defectors.”  They have defected to the side of the enemy.  Their deeds align them with the dark forces of evil, but they have not carefully considered that “the other side” is going to “lose big” some day. The stakes are eternally high (cf. Matt. 25:46). Yet, such POWs can and must willingly leave the enemy’s camp.  Others can have a part in their rescue, but ultimately they have to want to leave the devil’s ranks.

Some brethren have “battle fatigue.”  They are getting weary in well-doing (Gal. 6:9).  Perhaps they are ready to give up the fight (cf. 1 Tim. 6:12).  God wants those enlisted in His army to “war a good warfare” (1 Tim. 1:18), but that will require “endurance” (2 Tim. 4:6-8).  The adversary sometimes is all too clearly seen, and he looks intimidating (1 Pet. 5:8).  Most of the world is on his side (Matt. 7:13-14).  Bible studies sometimes do not end with the student obeying the gospel, fellow-soldiers can disappoint, involvement by brethren can at times seem so limited, and personal adversities can hinder. Yet, it can all be “overcome” by faith (cf. 1 John 5:4).  Those who endure will be rewarded in unparalleled fashion (Js. 1:12).

Some brethren will have been “decorated war heroes.”  The medals have not yet been handed out, but these spiritual soldiers are faithfully fighting the good fight.  Israel has the “Medal of Valor.” Poland has the “Virtuti Militari.”  It is the “Victoria Cross” in the United Kingdom, the “Bir Sreshtho” in Bangladesh, the “Order of the Golden Kite” in Japan, the “Royal Order of the Intare” in Rwanda, and the “Medal of Honor” in the United States.  Countries recognize their war heroes for valor on the battlefield.  James, Paul, Peter, and John all mention the imperishable crown that awaits those who come to the end of their battle still standing wearing the armor.

Let us be like those who “became mighty in war” (Heb. 11:34), aware of those things which “war against the soul” (1 Pet. 2:11).  Endurance is the key to victory!  Maybe you have given up or you feel like giving up the battle. Perhaps you are simply discouraged. The battle may seem long, but the victory promises to be the sweetest ever experienced! Keep fighting!

 

Neal Pollard

Drs. Cardoso and Sabbatini consider emotional tear-shedding to be the simple product of evolution, as “all animals with mobile eyes have nictitating membranes, or inner eyelids, and tears aid in opening, closing, washing, lubricating, and protecting the eye’s delicate, transparent, adaptive lenses” (www.cerebromente.org).  But, they cannot tell us when, how, or why such an evolution occurred.  Science can identify the individual parts of the tear ducts, the orbital and palpebral parts, the superior and inferior lacrimal papilla and puncta, the lacrimal canaliculi, the plica semilunaris, and the rest, but they cannot tell us why these are triggered when humans are sad, afraid, euphoric, or otherwise emotionally touched.  Science can reveal mechanisms and functions, but is at a loss to connect it to the moral, psychological, emotional, and spiritual facets of human beings.

In the Bible, which presupposes and asserts not only God’s existence but also His will, feelings, expectations, and nature, God acknowledges and cares about the emotions that move us to tears as well as to laughter.  The psalmist says God has a bottle, as it were, in which to store our tears (Ps. 56:8).  God Himself, in human flesh, wept (John 11:35; Luke 19:41; Heb. 5:7).  David expresses the vital role tears played in his repentance (Ps. 51), and Paul calls for as much in 2 Corinthians 7:7-11.  The sinful woman washed Jesus’ feet with her tears (Lk. 7:38ff).

Why is it that movies, books, or news stories move us to tears?  When we experience a relationship breakup, are hurt or betrayed, or are righteously indignant, why do we sometimes weep and cry?  How is it that the commemoration of the Lord’s Supper, a convicting, moving sermon, a touching spiritual song or hymn, or particularly heartfelt prayer can drive us to shed tears?  If we can separate ourselves from humanistic, godless explanations, we see what is most logical.  We are not simply “the animal that weeps.”  No, as one made in God’s image, we are uniquely able to feel and respond to such feelings with a depth of emotion unmatched in the rest of creation.  God designed us to experience and express the movements of a feeling heart and soul.  Neither evolution nor mere science can supply another, adequate answer.

 

Neal Pollard

As a little child, I remember learning and loving a song we would sing at Vacation Bible School time and sometimes during the weekly Bible class time.  You may know the song:

Don’t drink booze, don’t drink booze, Spend your money on a pair of shoes.
Please don’t smoke, please don’t smoke, Feed your tobacco to a billy goat.
Please don’t curse, please don’t curse, I can’t think of anything that’s worse.
Be polite, be polite, always treat other people right.
Worship God, worship God; Don’t go Sunday with a fishing rod.

It indoctrinated about the perils of using alcohol, tobacco, and curse words as well as the need for courtesy and faithful attendance.  It so happens that I could see the logic in the lesson it taught.

The Associated Press reports that Omega, a 12-year-old chimp, has developed a nicotine addiction from his cage at a Lebanese zoo. Omega has not had an ordinary life, even for a chimpanzee in captivity.  He began life as an entertainer in a local restaurant (you can’t make this stuff up!), where he smoked cigarettes until he was too big and strong for that gig.  The last 10 years have been spent at the zoo, where he waited for those moments when a visitor would toss him a cigarette inside his cage.  Animal rights activists are rescuing him, putting him on an Emirates airline flight, and relocating him to a sanctuary in Brazil where it is presumed they will try to rehabilitate him and break his smoking habit.

Omega cannot be held responsible for an unhealthy choice he cannot possibly weigh and rationalize.  Tobacco is an addictive substance, providing a short-term pleasure and creating a dependency that increases with continued use.  He is not made in God’s image (cf. Gen. 1:27), and he has no heaven to gain or hell to lose (cf. Matt. 25:31ff; 2 Cor. 5:10).  We, on the other hand, have been given stewardship over time, money, talents, and other resources, including our bodies (1 Cor. 6:19-20).  There are a myriad of choices we make that can harm those bodies, from overeating to drug abuse to tobacco use.  We do not want to make deliberate choices that wear down or weaken those bodies in which we are to be found wholeheartedly serving the Lord.  The list of poor health conditions related to the effects of long-term, regular smoking is very long.

Beyond that, we should not want to be enslaved to anything or anyone other than our Lord and righteousness.  How sad to see a chimp reduced to taking a drag from a used cigarette.  Sadder still is to see people made in the image of God reduced to nervous, distressed, agitated messes for want of another smoke.  Let us work not to let cigarettes or any other earthly thing make a monkey out of us!