"Because I Love the Way I Love"

One of my most treasured memories is Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.  Fred Rogers embodied what may have been the kindest personality on the television.  I recently began watching an old episode of his show called, Mister Rogers Talks About Making Mistakes.  Emotion flooded me as I remembered watching the show when I was a kid, but something nagged at me.  The above picture is a screenshot from a scene where Lady Aberline and Daniel the Tiger were singing a song meant to address feeling different.  Daniel felt that because he was a tiger, he needed to be like every other tiger.  The problem was that he was often afraid and weak, while other tigers were not.  He ended the exchange by asking if Lady Aberline liked him just the way he was, even though he felt the way he felt, looked the way he looked, and loved the way he loved.  Lady Aberline then answered, "Especially because you love the way you love."

I believe that if Fred Rogers were alive today, he would be appalled at how this last concept has been distorted.  

The above flyer was stapled to a phone pole in Oregon.  The top line reads, "Pedophiles are people, too."  The bottom line reads, "Because Love is Love."

In 2010, the book above was being sold by Amazon.com, but then was removed from stores because of the overwhelming protest from Amazon's customer base.  Many threatened to boycott the retail giant until they removed the book. 

NOTE:  There was such an uproar concerning both the pedophile flyer on the pole AND the above book because the practice of pedophilia goes against society's sensibilities.  The problem with this, however, is that society has been attacking the standard that FORMED those sensibilities since the sexual revolution in the 1960s.  Observe the progression.

Psychologists document a technique called systematic desensitization.  They take a patient and slowly familiarize them with something of which they are terrified.  Eventually, the patient is no longer afraid of what formerly scared them.  The sexual revolution began this process in the United States, not with anything people were afraid of, but with immoral standards of sexuality. The steps are as follows:

Before the sexual revolution, sex outside of marriage was widely considered to be wrong.  Slowly, morality was nudged out and "free love" was pushed in.  "If it feels good, do it" became the growing consensus.  Society's viewpoint still held that marriage was sacred and that homosexuality was wrong, but we had bent on the rule of sex being appropriate ONLY within the bounds of marriage, especially if you loved each other.  So...emotion ruled the day.  Rules were made to be broken, right?  

The sexual revolution also brought in the idea of what many call "swinging."  The idea was that if a married couple both agreed to redefine the limits of their relationship, they could explore sexual relationships with other couples.  So...if a couple agrees that it's okay to have sex with other people than their spouse, and the other couple agrees with them, then it was okay.  So...if everyone is okay with it, it must be okay.  Once again, emotion ruled the day, and any standard was replaced by subjective judgment.  Rules were only rules if you agreed with them.  Marriage was no longer sacred.  Infidelity had been redefined to only apply as such if your mate was not in agreement with it.

At this point, homosexuality was still widely viewed as morally wrong, but the moral standard had already begun to crumble.  The effort of systematic desensitization continued.  Homosexuality began to be included in the margins of many Hollywood productions.  It was often the subject of jokes. Slowly society adopted the "behind closed doors" mentality, suggesting that whatever happened in a person's bedroom is not anyone else's business.  Homosexuality was now not looked at as morally wrong, but just something that needed to be kept private.  Very quickly after that, "gay pride" became a movement, and the trip to our current climate was very short.  

Queer Eye for the Straight Guy actually tweeted on November 7th, 2018, "the original show was fighting for tolerance.  Our fight is for acceptance."  The truth is that acceptance was the end goal from the start.  No one wants to hear any type of condemnation for what they are doing.  What the homosexual community has taught the world is that if you push long enough, you get what you want regardless of the rules.

Now the tactics to have homosexuality not only accepted but endorsed are being used to pry open the leaks in the dam of morality.  If "love is love" as many who endorse homosexuality say, then there is no moral ground to condemn any sexual behavior.  In fact, the movement to normalize homosexuality has even sought to bolster its ranks by allying with any type of sexual deviance.  Note the growing label of the movement.  It used to be the "gay" community.  It quickly became LGBT, standing for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transsexual.  It currently has expanded to include LGBTTQQIAAP standing for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, queer, questioning, intersex, asexual, ally, and pansexual.  They now seek to include those who are not necessarily deviant in their ranks by labeling those who are "questioning" their sexuality as lumped in with those who are homosexual.  They have invented the concept of transgenderism, though science has proven over and over that no amount of surgery or imitation will change a person's biological gender.  Pedophiles now seek to normalize their perversion by citing the tolerance and even endorsement of this growing and nonsensical movement.  If society can tolerate and endorse this vast array of sexual deviance and intentional confusion, why can it not tolerate and eventually endorse pedophilia?  If society were to respond consistently, pedophilia would soon be among those sexual practices that are commonly approved. 

Is this truly the end that should be? 

What if society were to realize that the exceptions to morality should never have been made?

What if society had sought for unity through clinging to God's standard, rather than by abandoning it?  

• Extramarital and premarital sexual promiscuity would still be something that was condemned. Galatians 5:19-21
• Marriage would still have its sanctity intact rather than there being a divorce rate of 50% + in this country. Malachi 2:16
• The convoluted falsehood of gender fluidity would be non-existent. Genesis 1:27
• Objective morality and objective truth would still have a hold in this country.  John 7:24
• Marriage would still be defined by our country as God defines it: One man and one woman, together for life.  Matthew 19:4-6
• Homosexuality would never have been endorsed by our country.  1 Corinthians 6:9
• The practice of pedophilia would be forever without traction in our country.

As is often the thrust of this blog, society in our nation has become a moral catastrophe.  If you seek clarity in the blurred fog that has become society's moral view, reach out to God's people.  Let us help you find truth in God's word.

Jeremiah Schnell, minister for the church of Christ at Vermilion

5116 Driftwood Drive

Vermilion, Ohio, 44089

440-967-6757

The Christian Pursuit

"I work so I can enjoy my free time."  

Many people view life this way.  We give our time to our employer in exchange for money.  We use the money to fund whatever it is that makes us happy.  Some make the goal of retirement their focus.  Some enjoy hobbies, sporting, or camping.  On the surface, this seems to be a pretty decent way of going through life.  Christianity, though, sheds a different light on this thought process.

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me" (Galatians 2:20).

When we become a Christian, we stop living with the purpose of pleasing ourselves. While it certainly is not wrong to enjoy the fruit of our labor, this can no longer be the driving force behind our efforts.  

Psalm 1 describes one who has forsaken the worldly way of living and has found a new focus upon God's word.  It begins with the term "blessed," meaning "approved of God."  The psalm goes on to explain that as this man who is approved of God finds delight in God's law, meditating on it day and night, he becomes "like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season.  Its leaf also does not wither, and whatsoever he does shall prosper."  In Psalm 1, God lays out the way to gain His favor and to receive His blessings.  

As Christians, let us make being approved of God the driving force in our lives!  While enjoying the things of this earth is definitely a blessing, our goal must be to seek first God's kingdom and His righteousness, Matthew 6:33.  The promise that "all these things will be added to you" is a promise that if we focus on pleasing God first, the other things will fall into place.  Let us make Christianity our pursuit, not "enjoying our free time."

J

I cannot come down!

  Nehemiah 6:1-3
           1        Now when it was reported to Sanballat, Tobiah, to Geshem the Arab and to the rest of our enemies that I had rebuilt the wall, and that no breach remained in it, although at that time I had not set up the doors in the gates,
           2       then Sanballat and Geshem sent a message to me, saying, “Come, let us meet together at Chephirim in the plain of Ono.” But they were planning to harm me.
           3       So I sent messengers to them, saying, “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?”

We often sing, "I want to be a worker for the Lord," but so many times we end up doing something other than God's work.  Continually walking as a Christian ought is a massive battle that we all fight every day, and obstacles to that walk are frequently placed by the devil.  Nehemiah's example in chapter 6 is an excellent reminder that we don't have to allow those obstacles to derail our progress.

First, notice that Nehemiah keeps the layout of the conflict clear:  These are people who are trying to stop him from doing what God wants!  We must remember that no matter what, anyone or anything that seeks to interrupt the work we do for God is not to be trusted.  "They were planning to harm me." No one who wants to stop you from serving God has honorable intentions.

Second, have you ever noticed that when we stay busy doing what we are supposed to do, it is difficult to get into trouble?  When his enemies attempted to interrupt his work, Nehemiah simply said, "I am doing a great work and cannot come down."  If we don't give the enemy the time of day, he can't really stop us from doing God's work.

Third, notice that Nehemiah pulls no punches when it comes to prioritizing God's work over heeding those who seek to interrupt it.  While we live in a society that demands we offend no one, Nehemiah has no qualms when telling someone that God's work is more important than they are.  "Why should the work stop while I leave it and come to you?" Never be afraid to tell someone that God's work is the most important thing in your life.

As we seek to be workers in God's kingdom, let us remain true to our task.  Do not trust those who want to pull you away from God's work.  Do not heed those who seek to distract you from God's work.  Do not fear openly prioritizing God over others.  Let us build the wall!
J

Turned Upside Down

Christians live in a world that does not see the way God sees.  That provides some friction, but we can usually handle it.  The hard times are when life circumstances completely upend everything, and you seem to be looking at the world upside-down.  Dismay and desperation often set in, and many Christians have made poor decisions because they allow their circumstances to distort their reasoning.  

Let us remember that even though circumstances in this life vary, our dedication to God should not.  Relationships change, jobs change, housing changes, and health changes.  Why, though, would we ever allow the temporary things to change what is eternal?  Never should we forget that this life is only a means to arrive at eternity.  We should always remain focused on the day when God's faithful will have their troubles end, described in Revelation 21:3-4.

If you have been blindsided by some hard things, hold fast to God.  If you don't know God, seek Him out!  Seeing the way God sees allows the troubles of this world to have a little less weight.

J

Church of Christ at Vermilion

5116 Driftwood Drive

Vermilion, Ohio 44089

440-967-6757

The Joy of Being Received

In the movie The Martian, Matt Damon played a botanist-astronaut who ended up stranded on Mars.  He went through many, many days of solitude, but finally figured out a way to communicate with people on earth.  As he typed out his first message and waited, the tension was palpable.  When NASA responded to his message, "Yes, we're receiving you," the viewers rejoiced along with him as his sphere of loneliness melted away.  How wonderful is it to know that you are not alone?

When Elijah ran from the wrathful Jezebel in 1 Kings 19, he arrived at the mountain of God and found a cave.  It was there that God asked twice a simple question, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"  Elijah responded twice concerning the hardships he was suffering, ending with the statement, "I alone am left, and they seek my life, to take it away."  As God responded by prescribing a way for Elijah to be relieved of his service, He included a very significant correction:  "Yet I will leave 7,000 in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal and every mouth that has not kissed him" (I Kings 19:18).  It was a reminder that Elijah was not alone.  While he felt beleaguered and felt alone and felt like giving up, God gave a reminder that Elijah's perceptions did not reflect the truth.  

Do you feel alone?  Do you feel beset by problems that are just too big to solve?  God still has His people, even if you don't see them.  While our world may seem to be swallowed up in immorality, selfishness, foolishness, and greed, God's people are still here and we still follow His way.  If you have been too long 'alone on Mars,' and wish to be received, reach out to God's people.  We can show you that you are not alone, and we can point the way to becoming one of God's children.

J

Church of Christ at Vermilion

5116 Driftwood Drive
Vermilion Ohio 44089
440-967-6757

Meeting Times:
Sundays @ 10 AM for Bible study, 11 AM and 6 PM for worship.
Wednesdays @ 7 PM for Bible study

Sometimes we need help with what's broken.

I was about 8 years old when it happened.  My mother had just been given a gift of decorative soaps shaped like turtles.  They were pretty cool, I thought.  I wanted to touch them and handle them, and see the carving up close.  When she sat them down on a table in the church foyer and walked away, I scuttled over and immediately had one of the delicate carvings in my hands.  I marched him around a stack of bulletins, sat him on a change-for-children can, and was having a grand old time.  Tragedy struck when I looked away for a moment and relaxed my grip.  The tiny soap turtle fell, and his head broke off right in the middle of the thinly-carved neck.  I was beside myself.  I saw my 8 years flash before my eyes, imagining the terrible punishment I would receive for breaking my mother's brand-new soap.  As the tears rolled down my face and I contemplated a hiding place, I heard a very big and very kind voice from behind me.  "It looks like you have a problem, young man."  It was Gib Smith, a tall man whose son was my friend.  I picked up the little soap figurine and croaked out that I hadn't meant to break it.  I welled up again as Gib took the pieces from me.  "I think we can fix this.  There's no reason to cry, just yet."  Gib walked me to the water fountain, and took the tiniest droplet from near the drain.  He settled the droplet on the spot where the head had broken off, and restored the figurine.  There was not the slightest hint that anything had ever happened to the little turtle.  Gib had fixed what I thought was unfixable!  He replaced the turtle on the table next to its counterpart and sent me to the bathroom to wash my face so that it didn't look like I had been crying.  

Sometimes we need a little help handling a situation that we don't know how to repair.  Who better than He who knows all to present a solution?  

Have you encountered a difficult life situation?  Remember that God's solutions are always best.  Do you need help?  Remember that God's help is always the best.  Please know that God's people are always willing to point the way to God.

Church of Christ at Vermilion
(440) 967-6757
5116 Driftwood Drive
Vermilion, Ohio 44089

The Fear of the Lord

For years, the slogan NO FEAR gained much traction.  Many admire a person who can say, "I'm not afraid."  Many, however, cease admiration when a lack of fear translates to an abundance of foolishness.  Never would anyone suggest that simply because one is not afraid should one venture into a lion's cage.  Simply because a person is not afraid of striding into rush-hour traffic does not mean that they ought to do it.  Many times fear can save. A failure to fear or even a misplaced fear often results in much harm.

An instructor told the story of a woman in Africa who became a Christian. Her husband was against her decision, and forbade her from assembling with the other Christians to worship God.  Sunday after Sunday, she defied her husband and assembled with the church.  Sunday after Sunday, her husband beat her for defying him.  One day he asked her, "If you know I'm going to beat you, why do you keep going to worship?"  Her reply astounded him: "I am more afraid of God than I am of you." She understood the God that she was serving.  She understood Matthew 10:28! 

How often do we fail to allow fear to have its proper role in our service to God?  While our society enjoys emphasizing God's love, mercy, grace, and forgiveness, our culture has allowed fear of God to almost vanish.  Never forget that fear of God is a valid reason to obey Him, and it ought to overrule any fear of those who would influence us against Him.

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge," Proverbs 1:7.

He gave up too early

There are many tactics Satan uses to stop Christians from reaching heaven, but rarely are any of his tactics more effective than discouragement.  The poor man in the lower half of this picture was most likely focused on his blisters, his aching muscles, and how much work he had put in with absolutely no reward.  He was only inches from a great reward which by comparison would have made his labor seem like a momentary inconvenience!  While he walks away disappointed, however, the man in the top tunnel is pressing on.  He likely has the same blisters and the same sore muscles.  He has been digging about the same distance as Mr. Discouragement, below him.  What makes him different?

2 Corinthians 4:16-18
           Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Paul spoke to the church at Corinth concerning perseverance.  The theme of the letter could easily be "do not give up!"  With great emotion Paul discusses the hardships of ministry, in hope that the Corinthians would follow his example of "not losing heart," 4:1.  The message was doubtless encouraging to the Christians of the day, and it can give the same encouragement to us.  While Paul dealt with all manner of trouble (see 2 Corinthians 11:23-28), he called it "light affliction," and refused to give up.  Few of us, if any, have faced the dangers and challenges that Paul faced.  If Paul can persevere, we most certainly can, too!

If only the man in the bottom tunnel had swung his pick a few more times...

What have we lost by giving up too early?  How many challenges have we allowed to beat us because we focused on the hurt instead of heaven?  

Let us remember that as we face troubles in this lifespan, we are only comparative moments from an eternity with God where there will be no sorrow, no tears, no sickness, and no death!  If we keep swinging the pick, we can one day look Jesus in the eye!  If we keep going, we will possess a reward that will make the hard things in this life seem like trifles rather than trials!  

2 Corinthians 4:8-10
           We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.

Keep the faith. :-)
J

The Diode

(Story concept courtesy of Dan Schnell)

Bobby excitedly ripped open the brown paper packaging of his long-awaited delivery.  He got goosebumps as he laid out the different components of his do-it-yourself radio kit.  The twelve-year-old young man shut himself in the work shed and meticulously set up his work area.  He entertained the idea of tuning in to the different radio waves with his homemade device as he soldered the circuit board and branded the words "sound box" on the rough cedar casing.  The dials were tight, and the power switch snapped on and off with a sharp *click*.  Bobby licked his lips and anticipated the soft hum of electricity as he plugged in his new radio, but when he plugged it in, nothing happened.  The lights did not come on, and the soft crackle of the airwaves was conspicuously absent.  He flipped the power switch a few times, and even tried different electrical outlets to no avail.  As Bobby regarded the useless radio and considered the hours he'd spent assembling it, he threw it to the ground and stomped on the casing, shouting as it crunched beneath his boot. After shedding a few tears of frustration, he picked up his ruined radio and began laying out the smashed components, trying to understand why his project had failed.  Through checking and rechecking with the instructions, Bobby noticed a tiny diode that he'd soldered hours before.  Wasn't the black side supposed to be soldered to the black wire?  It was backwards!  Bobby disconnected the little part and soldered it in the correct position, then connected the wiring to electricity.  The speaker crackled and the plucking of a banjo permeated the atmosphere in the work shed.  All because the tiniest part of the radio was inverted, the entire appliance had failed to function.  

Ephesians 4:11-16

           11        And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,
           12       for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;
           13       until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.
           14       As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;
           15       but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,
           16       from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.

As we consider the story of the diode, we must ask if we recognize ourselves in the account.  Are we Bobby, who fails to see the backward diode?  This would be the Christian who fails to recognize that someone in the congregation has an issue and needs our attention.  Or are we the diode, a Christian who sees so many problems in the church and wonder why nothing works, while we are actually the source of the problem?

Let us work, both to be mindful of each part of the body, and to make sure that we are a faithful part of the body.

J

To Be Encouraged...

Very nearly every adult in the United States remembers learning how to ride a bicycle.  The usual method involves a parent following behind the learning child, holding the seat of the bicycle as the child pedals.  Eventually, mom or dad lets go of the seat. Notice, however, that they rarely tell the child they are on their own.  It is important to the child to have the encouragement and assurance of safety by their parent's presence.  When learning a new thing, we need assurance.  The need does not stop with learning how to ride a bike.

Christians are forever learning to be transformed into the image of Christ.  As Paul mentioned in 1 Corinthians 14:26, the focus when we assemble is to edify.  We are not to be focused on ourselves or on finding glory for ourselves.  Rather, we should look to edify and build up our fellow brothers and sisters.  Why?  Because as we learn new things and as we strive to make ourselves into the image of Christ, encouragement is needed.  The building up that a Christian receives from others is crucial to his or her success!

When we next assemble, let us seek opportunities to edify.  Let us give encouragement as often as we can.  Let us strive to aid our brothers and sisters in their respective journeys toward becoming more like Christ.  

"And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and good works, not forsaking the assembly of ourselves together as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the day approaching," Hebrews 10:24-25.

-J-

The Cold Within

The Cold Within - James Patrick Kinney

Six humans trapped by happenstance
In bleak and bitter cold.
Each one possessed a stick of wood
Or so the story’s told.

Their dying fire in need of logs
The first man held his back
For of the faces round the fire
He noticed one was black.

The next man looking ‘cross the way
Saw one not of his church
And couldn’t bring himself to give
The fire his stick of birch.

The third one sat in tattered clothes.
He gave his coat a hitch.
Why should his log be put to use
To warm the idle rich?

The rich man just sat back and thought
Of the wealth he had in store
And how to keep what he had earned
From the lazy shiftless poor.

The black man’s face bespoke revenge
As the fire passed from his sight.
For all he saw in his stick of wood
Was a chance to spite the white.

The last man of this forlorn group
Did nought except for gain.
Giving only to those who gave
Was how he played the game.

Their logs held tight in death’s still hands
Was proof of human sin.
They didn’t die from the cold without
They died from the cold within.

Proverbs 14:12 - "there is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death."

When the world goes its own way, disaster is inevitable.  Even more tragic is when the world's thinking invades the church.  Some Christians have allowed a selfish viewpoint to pollute the practice of benevolence, stating that Churches ought only practice benevolence to those who are either of the church or who are interested in becoming Christians.  This blog entry asks the question, "Is that really the way God intended?"  While the worldly way of thinking is accurately described in Patrick Kinney's poem, The Cold Within, God never intended for His people to behave in such a way.  

Matthew 5:13 shows Jesus drawing the metaphor concerning His followers, "You are the salt of the earth."  Salt had the function in that day of both preserving and making things more palatable.  How does that metaphor reflect upon Christian behavior? 

Preservation

It's defined as sparing from corruption, decay, or destruction.  It sounds pretty valuable, does it not?  Christians serve as God's tool for preserving the earth, understood to be referencing those who live on this planet.  Christians spare from corruption, decay, and destruction by sharing God's word with mankind, thus preserving them from the fate of hell.  Christians are to preserve!

Making things more palatable

While the idea of preserving is pretty straightforward and is rarely misunderstood, the function of making the earth more palatable seems to cause problems for Christians, nowadays.  Many congregations of the Lord's church readily practice benevolence to their members, but outright refuse to assist those who are not members, or who at the very least show interest in becoming Christians.  Some members of the church will even argue that being benevolent to the community "doesn't get results," and therefore is not something in which the church should participate.

The question is, what results are we talking about?

Are people supposed to magically know that they are supposed to desire a relationship with God simply because a Christian gives them a cup of cold water?  

Are people supposed to fall on their knees and beg a Christian to teach them God's way when they receive a meal or some clothing from the church?

Consider again the function of salt.  It does not preserve and make things more palatable to serve some other end.  Rather, it preserves things and makes things more palatable as an end in itself!  Charity is completely absent of any qualifiers, if one examines James 1:27.  Doing good is not limited only to those who will sign a contract to hear, believe, repent, confess and be baptized, according to Galatians 6:10!  As Christians work to spread God's word of salvation to the world (preserving) and work to make the world a better place (making things more palatable), we ought not place conditions on God's work.  Jesus taught us to be salt, not salt with conditions.  

So, the result we should be seeking while doing good is that we helped someone.  That's the motivation, and that's the end goal of benevolence.  Christians need to help, simply because people need help.  That's God's design.  Ceasing benevolent activity simply because people don't desire to learn about God would be the same as ceasing to practice God's morality because people don't desire to learn about God.  What other people do does not affect our faithfulness to God.  Let us as God's people be the salt that Christ intended, rather than adopting the worldly qualities of the cold within!

J

Lost, Lost, Lost...

Lost!  The word evokes an emotional response.  It causes us to recall things that have been removed from our use - often against our will.  It denotes a sense of irrevocability and helplessness.  When we lose something...really lose it...all that remains in the newly-created void is a mournful awareness that we are missing what we once possessed. Often times when we lose something, we are prone to expend massive amounts of energy looking for it, trying to regain it.  

Luke 15:1-2 records the Pharisees' complaint that Jesus was receiving "sinners" and eating with them.  They effectively are asking, "Why would Jesus hang out with such people?" In response, Jesus told them three parables about things that are lost:

Luke 15:4-7 - The Lost Sheep

Jesus tells the tale of a shepherd having lost one of his sheep.  Remember, this is a response to the remark of the pharisees.  Jesus is effectively answering the complaint by showing the relationship that God (and thereby He, Jesus) has with the "sinners" with whom Jesus was eating.  "Why am I receiving these sinners?  Because I am the Shepherd, and they are my lost sheep. I am trying to retrieve them!"

Luke 15:8-10 - The Lost Coin

Jesus relates the parable of the lost coin.  In response to the indignant remarks concerning Jesus "receiving sinners and eating with them," He responds with common-sense reasoning that communicates the point, "Why am I eating with these people?  Because they are my lost coins, and I am trying to get them back!"

Luke 15:11-32 - The Lost Son

Jesus illustrates further with the familiar story of the prodigal son.  The interesting fact about this story is that while a sheep cannot find its way without the shepherd and a coin has no way of helping itself, this parable focuses on the limitations that an unfaithful son places on his father.  The father was limited to waiting and watching for his wayward son to decide to come back.  While a sheep is pretty much at the mercy of the shepherd and a coin is at the mercy of its owner, the son had to choose to return.  

Truths From the Parables

• First, in each parable there is joy when what was lost is regained.
• Second, in each parable Jesus communicates the great value of what was lost.  A sheep, a coin, and a son were all things that the Jews would understand as having great value.  The Pharisees and Scribes failed to understand the great value that God (and thereby Jesus) placed - and still places - on those that are lost.
• Third, the Jewish leaders' disapproval of Jesus' actions was flat wrong (like the older brother in the third parable).  They should have been happy that Jesus was reaching out to regain the lost.

A Parting Word

Realize that God lost us when sin entered the world.  When mankind was separated from Him, God was apart from those that He loved, John 3:16.  Isaiah 59:2 explains very clearly the effect of sin upon the relationship between God and men, "But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear." Almighty God had lost something that He wanted back.  Do you remember something...someone...you have lost?  How much would you give to recoup that loss?  Realize that this is how God views you.

Though God had lost us to sin, He was "not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance," 2 Peter 3:9.  God wanted his lost people back, and went to the great lengths of sacrificing His Son to regain us, John 3:16.  Imagine being lost in a place that you didn't know.  Imagine that the place is dangerous and would kill you, but you had no way to get out.  Now, imagine watching someone who loves you facing and traversing all kinds of obstacles to get you back.  That is what God did to get His people back.  Jesus died so that God could regain what had been lost.  That's what Luke 19:10 is all about.  Jesus came to seek and save that which was lost!  

Christians, let us remember that we are the ones over which God has rejoiced when He regained us.  Let us also remember that we ought to see those outside of Christ with the same value that God sees them.  They are precious to Him, and should be to us.  Let us serve as God's messengers, helping Him regain those precious ones who are lost to Him.  If ever you have regained something that was lost, remember that feeling.  We are helping God regain what was lost.

Had It Not Been the Lord

Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,

Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,

     The anger of the enemy would have swallowed us alive,

Had it not been the Lord who was on our side.

Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,

Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,

     The waters would have engulfed us, we would have surely died,

Had it not been the Lord who was on our side.

Blessed be the Lord, who would not give us up!

Blessed be the Lord, for His unfailing love!

The snare is broken and we have escaped;

Our help is in the name of the Lord!

Blessed be the Lord!

Ping-Pong Ball Salvation

A man was watching his wife prepare dinner.  She peeled potatoes and carrots and put them in a pot with a little chicken broth, an onion, some celery and a couple bay leaves.  She seasoned a roast with salt and pepper, then cut off a large section from the end of the roast and threw it away before placing the roast in the pot with the other ingredients.  The man asked, "Why did you throw away the end of that roast?  It looked fine!"  Perplexed, the man's wife said, "I really don't know...it's just how my mother taught me to cook a roast."  At Thanksgiving the man's wife asked her mother, "Mom, why did you always cut the end off the roast and throw it away?" Perplexed, her mother said, "You know, I never really thought about it.  That's just the way your grandma taught me to cook a roast.  Let's go and ask her."  The two ladies approached the matriarch of the family, who was warming herself by the wood stove.  They asked, "Why did you always cut the end off the roast?" The elderly lady replied without hesitation, "We had no refrigerator and only one pot, and it was too small to hold the whole thing!" Tradition can be a funny thing, can it not?  Before simply accepting and emulating practices we have been taught, it is important to understand the reasoning behind them.  Never has this truth been more important than in religious teaching and practice.


One traditional teaching we should examine is what has been referred to as "ping-pong ball salvation."  Imagine watching a ping-pong match with each contestant swatting the ball back and forth over the net.  Now imagine one side of the table with "SAVED" painted across it, and the other with "LOST" on its surface.  The ping-pong ball is a Christian, and as the ball is swatted from the "SAVED" side of the table to the "LOST" side, it is because the Christian has committed a sin.  

SMACK!

-lost, because sin has been committed-

Now the opponent volleys back, symbolizing the Christian repenting and asking God for forgiveness.

SMACK!

-saved, because the Christian has repented and asked God for forgiveness-

When the Christian sins again, they are volleyed back to the lost side, and when they repent and ask for forgiveness they are returned to a saved state, and so on and so on, back and forth.  This teaching is nerve-wracking, to say the least.  It prompts questions like, "If a Christian is driving along and they have a flash of anger and maybe utter a profanity, then have a wreck and die without having time to ask God for forgiveness, do they go to hell?"  Those who teach that this type of salvation is accurate to the Bible would be forced to conclude that the Christian whose ill-timed explosion preceded their death was raising up their eyes in the torments of Hades.  Is this in fact the way salvation works for those who have put on Christ?  

In a word, no.  

In many more words, see the following: 😏

Consider first the book of Romans.  

In chapter 1:16-17, Paul discusses "the righteousness of God."  Righteousness is a poor translation.  The Greek word is diakasune, and is better translated in Romans as "justification."  This means standing in the state of uprightness or "being a perfect 10" before God.  It is something that is done by God for the sinner, mentioned as "the power of God for salvation" in verse 16 to "everyone who believes."  Romans is about faith!  Faith - real, obedient faith (Romans 2:13, James 2:17) - is what allows God to place the sinner into the state of being justified, or "saved".  God views us and treats us just as if we had never sinned (Hebrews 10:17).  If we understand that at the point of baptism we are placed in a state of being justified before God (Romans 6:1-4), the question we must then ask is, "What causes God to STOP seeing us as a perfect 10?"

• Is it that every time we sin, we are no longer seen as a perfect 10 before God?  No.  Romans 3:23-24 says that all HAVE sinned, and FALL short.  "fall short" would be better translated, "DO FALL SHORT."  This is a present-tense word.  It means that they continually, presently fall short.  We HAVE sinned, and DO sin, and we ARE justified (made to be a perfect 10 by God) - present tense again - as a gift by His grace, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.  That means that as we sin, we are justified.  That's what grace does.

•  At this point, the "ping-pong" advocate might say, "Yes, but that justification from sin only happens when the Christian repents and asks God in prayer for forgiveness!"  Please note that this is not stated in the book of Romans.  Rather, we who "fall short" (present tense) are "justified" (present tense) by grace.  This reflects the reality of a Christian trying to do right (obedient faith) but falling short (sinning), and being covered by Grace.  There is not mentioned a period in which the Christian goes from saved to lost, then says a prayer and repents, then goes back to being saved.

Consider second the book of 1st John.  

In 1st John 1:5-10, we read about walking in the light vs. walking in darkness. Many who teach the ping-pong salvation will say that sinning is walking in darkness, and thus when we commit a sin, we are out of fellowship with God.  However, examine verse 7. 

"If we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin."

Just as in Romans the Christian is continually falling short and is continually being justified by grace, in 1st John the same is true.  When the blood of Jesus "cleanses" us, it is a present-active Greek word, which means that it is a continual, perpetual action.  It doesn't stop, provided that we walk in the light.  The assertion that "walking in the light" is living without sinning falls apart at this point, because here "walking in the light" is directly connected to being "cleansed from all sin."  This means that there must be sin to cleanse.  Thus, we sin while walking in the light.  What is NOT mentioned here is that every time we commit a sin, we go into a lost state, then we must repent and ask for forgiveness in prayer and then be in a saved condition again.  Those who walk in the light (that's someone who is attempting to walk in a way that is in agreement with God but can't do it perfectly, but is continually cleansed from those sins as they try to please God) are in a state of fellowship with God!  

So...committing a sin does not place the Christian in a lost condition.  The Christian who while walking in the light sins (making a mistake while TRYING to do right) is continually covered by grace and continually cleansed by Christ's blood according to Romans and 1st John, respectively.

BUT WHAT ABOUT...

• Simon the sorcerer in Acts 8?
• Acts 8:9 - Simon formerly was astonishing the people and claiming to be someone great.
• Acts 8:13 - Simon became a Christian, and was constantly amazed by the miracles that were happening.
• Acts 8:17-19 - Simon saw that these great miracles could take place if the Apostles laid their hands on someone, and attempted to purchase this ability to bestow the Holy Spirit from the Apostles.
• NOTE:  This is what Simon had come out of.  He was previously astonishing people, being called "the power of God," and was claiming to be someone great.  He wanted to get that back, and tried to purchase the ability to lay on hands.
• Acts 8:20-23 - the problem identified by Peter is that Simon's heart was not right before God.  
• NOTE: This would not be someone who was "walking in the light."  One who walks in the light is trying to please God.  It is their intent to practice the things that God desires, though they cannot do so perfectly.  Simon was willfully pursuing something other than pleasing God.
• NOTE: In this situation, Peter then demanded that Simon repent from pursuing his course, and pray that the intention of Simon's heart be forgiven him.
• Acts 8:24 - we have an example of one Christian praying for another that they be forgiven.  
• See 1 John 5:16.  
• The "sin to death" is the willful, habitual WALK of darkness that is in 1 John 1.  It is a refusal to please God.  It is a denial of God's authority and standard.  This is a sin that is no longer covered by the blood of Christ, nor God's grace.  Simon the Sorcerer had begun walking in darkness when he intentionally, willfully, and purposefully attempted to serve his own desires with the gift of God.
• The "sin not unto death" is a sin committed while walking in the light.  The Christian who witnesses another committing a sin while trying to serve God is instructed to pray for that sinner, but the sinner is continually cleansed by the blood of Christ, 1 John 1:7.
• Conclusion - Simon's problem was that he had willfully turned to the way of sin.  He had lost sight of the goal upon which Christians are to focus - pleasing God.  He was walking in darkness.  Upon walking in darkness, a Christian most certainly needs to repent of their actions and pray that God forgive them.

THE END OF THE MATTER - Christians have the benefit of grace, and have the gift of Christ's cleansing blood.  Both of these continually cause the Christian who is walking in the light to stand as a perfect 10, in a justified state, "just as if I'd" never sinned, before God.  So, Christian, if you make a mistake while trying to serve God, do not fear that you have been swatted to the "lost" side of the table.  It was still a sin, and when we are made aware of our shortcomings we must work to improve them.  Keep walking in the light, and sing with confidence and understanding O Thou Fount of Every Blessing, when it says "Oh to grace how great a debtor daily I'm constrained to be!  Let thy goodness like a fetter bind my wandering heart to thee!"  Be thankful for God's grace, and be thankful for the blood that continually cleanses us.

Think On These Things...

 I Should Have Stayed in Bed Today 

By Jack Prelutsky

 I should have stayed in bed today, In bed's where I belong

 As soon as I got up today Things started going wrong. 

I got a splinter in my foot, My puppy made me fall, 

I squirted toothpaste in my ear, I crashed into the wall. 

I knocked my homework off the desk, I landed on my toes, 

I spilled a glass of chocolate milk, It's soaking through my clothes, I accidentally bit my tongue, That really made me moan,

 And it was far from funny when I banged my funny bone. 

I scraped my knees, I bumped my nose, I sat upon a pin, 

 leapt up with alacrity, And sharply barked my shin, 

I stuck a finger in my eye, The pain is quite severe, 

I'd better get right back to bed 

And stay there for a year!

Sometimes bad things happen.  It's normal that from time to time we have a bad thought.  It can even turn into a bad moment.  A bad moment sometimes grows into a bad experience.  A bad experience may even snowball and create a bad day.  That's...normal.  It's okay to have a bad day every once in a while.  It is only when those 'bad' elements change us that our state becomes one that is most pitiable.  

Have you ever met someone who seems to walk around flinching?  What about those folks who have a perpetual chip on their shoulder, and act like the entire world is trying to put a 'kick me' sign on their back?  It's a sad but true phenomenon that there are some people who have been so wounded by the negative element in this world that they become almost...warped...in their day-to-day interactions.  When bad things happen, there must be a stopping point!  There must be a time at which everything stops spinning, we take a breath, and we reset for a better mindset.

One of the fantastic facets of Christian life is the concept that there is always something better on which to focus.  While there is certainly no shortage of negative things in this world, God instructs Christians to seek out those things that are better, wholesome, and good. "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things"(Philippians 4:8, NASB).

Our attitude can change amazingly simply by focusing on something that is good.  The next time a 'bad' moment seems to be clinging to you, take a second and find something on which to focus that reminds you of Paul's words to the congregation at Philippi.  It may be that a moment of positiveness is all you need to break the hold of the negative, and you can move forward to better things.

Let us remember to focus on the good things, so that the bad things don't have time nor room to grow on us!

"You think you're the only ones going to heaven!"

"You think you're the only ones going to heaven!"

A friend of mine was recently accepted to attend the Bear Valley Bible Institute, based in Denver, Colorado.  Most of our conversations have been positive, filled with excitement and anticipation of the good things Robert will learn at school.  The other night, however, he was troubled.  He told me that he had logged his last day at work before he leaves for Denver, and that his boss who serves as a "pastor" (the meaning of "pastor" makes this a word that ought not be used for preachers, but that is for a different post) had delivered quite a parting shot.  "Just so you know, the church of Christ thinks they're the only ones going to heaven," he began, then continued for some time in what Robert relayed as "running down the church."  This is a criticism that the churches of Christ have endured for generations, now, and it is time for logic and truth to take their roles in the discussion.

FIRST, note the absolute lack of forethought in such a statement.  It is spat out as a condemnation and accusation.  Why would it be wrong to claim correctness?  Why would it be wrong to claim exclusivity?  How many products on today's market claim just exactly that?  Countless companies put forth the idea that their product is "the best," and they express in their advertisements why their product should be chosen over all the others that are similar to it, yet no one condemns these companies as elitist.  Nobody slings venomous accusations at the company for making the claim of superiority.  Why does it happen with the church?

SECOND, realize that this is worldly thinking that has crept into the minds of people who are seeking spiritual improvement.  James 1:27 describes pure and undefiled religion before the Lord as "visiting orphans and widows in their distress, and keeping oneself unstained from the world."  This last element of God-approved religion is a necessity for anyone seeking to truly follow God, and all too often we fail in carrying it out.  "World-stains," as one great instructor put it, happen almost without us realizing it.  A prominent world-stain that finds its way into the church is the post-modern, subjective attack upon any standard.  In our emotionally-based society, no one likes to be told they are wrong.  Condemnation of anything is strongly discouraged, and the liberal mindset presses this point at every turn.  It follows naturally that if no one likes to be wrong, the concept of anyone being right must be obliterated.  How...backward...is that?  No one can be right, so that no one will be wrong.  Really?  So that no one feels inferior, let's remove the standard, and give everyone a participation trophy, right?  So that no child feels like they are academically inferior, let's remove the grading system, right?  Do we see the absolute perversity of such notions?  Now as standards are being removed in our society, the trend is continuing into religion.  Now, if a church claims to be the one that Jesus promised, people attack!  Why?  Because a standard means that some people will not meet the standard.  Because if anyone is right, it means that someone must be wrong.  Please allow me to very simply show the importance of standards.  If a person takes their check to the bank and fills out a deposit slip for 900 dollars, they would react quite poorly if they received a receipt for 90 dollars, would they not?  "Hey, I gave you my check for 900 dollars!  Why did you print the receipt saying I only gave you 90?!?"  Imagine the outrage and legal pursuit if the teller said, "Well, from YOUR point of view, you gave us 900 dollars.  OUR truth is that you only gave us 90, and you can't push your beliefs on us."  Yet standards are being attacked everywhere!  What if a pharmacist decided to give a man estrogen supplements rather than blood-pressure medication, citing that the medical standards cannot be imposed upon him because they do not fit into his world view?  What if a waitress decided to put antifreeze in your coffee rather than creamer, stating that food health standards cannot be used to oppress her individuality and expression?  A tiny bit of thought and logic shows that this worldly, subjective attack on standards is dysfunctional at best.
THIRD, the answer to such a poorly thought out accusation is simple:  "Why don't you believe you're the only ones going to heaven?"  Follow this line of reasoning.
1) Denominations exist because people do not agree on how religion should be practiced.  If the disagreements are potent enough that people cannot worship together, it only goes to reason that someone believes they are right where someone else is wrong.  The very existence of denominations shows this to be true, and that these denominations believe in a standard.
2) LOGICAL LINE OF THOUGHT:
          - Because denominations vary in teaching from group to group concerning how a person is justified before God, how we are to worship, and who is to lead in the church, they cannot all be right!
          - If they cannot all be right, why does anyone attend, study, and practice in association with the denomination they do?  They must believe that they are right, while others are wrong.
          - If they believe that they are right while others are wrong, it is hypocritical, unfair, and irrational to condemn a church for claiming the same thing.  Would it not be wiser to examine the biblical standard for the Church that Jesus promised, compare the teachings of each group, and adopt the teachings that are aligned with what the Bible teaches?

FOURTH, the Bible is not unclear about this.

1) Jesus promised ONE CHURCH, in Matthew 16:18.
2) There is ONE body (the church, in context), ONE Spirit, ONE hope, ONE Lord, ONE faith, ONE baptism, and ONE God, according to Ephesians 4:4-6.
3) Any gospel (means of salvation) that differs from the message preached by the apostles renders the teachers as "accursed," according to Galatians 1:8-9.  This means that there is ONE way for people to be justified before God, not "many paths to one end," as so many love to phrase it. In fact, preaching “many paths to one end” results in the preacher being accursed.
4) The Bible can only be correctly understood ONE WAY, according to 2 Peter 1:20-21, thus the popular argument of "well, that's just YOUR interpretation, and MY interpretation is just fine, too," falls lamely flat.  God intended His word to be understood ONE WAY.
5) To say that it is impossible to correctly understand what God desires for His church (as many retreat to saying once “many paths to one end” is disproven) is to say that God is either incapable or unwilling to communicate His will in a clear and understandable manner.  If He is incapable, then He is not all-powerful.  If He is unwilling, then He is unfair, unjust, and just plain cruel.  Both of these notions are erroneous, to say the least, and the mountain of scripture that contradicts them would take hours simply to list. Any who make this assertion have serious theological issues with which they must contend before attempting to convert people to this philosophy.
6) Christians are supposed to be confident in their salvation, according to 1 John 5:13.  We are to "know we have eternal life," just as a chemist is to "know" that they have correctly compounded a formula.  We "know" we have eternal life by the things written in the Bible, just as a chemist "knows" he has correctly combined the formula by the written instructions and equations.  If anyone has a problem with that, they have a problem with God, not with the Christian who follows His word.

7) Hebrews 11:7 speaks of Noah, and that through the reverence he showed God “condemned the world” by doing what was right. The entire population of the world, with the exception of 8 people – Noah, his wife, his 3 sons and their wives – was faced with the doom of drowning. Was the answer to sit on the highest place one could reach and call Noah an elitist, or was the answer to realize that the only way to survive was to repent, listen to Noah, and to get into the ark?  The people had 100 years to listen to Noah as he built the ark, but when the rain began falling God closed the door of the ark and it was too late. How long will the people of our day revile those who submit to God rather than listening to what is right?

The next time that someone throws the accusation of "You think you're the only ones going to heaven," at bare minimum print this article out for them.  At best, know these scriptures and the line of reasoning contained in this article, and answer them yourself.  There is no reason for this backward, subjective slam to continue gaining traction against the people of God.
-J-

Introduction: Cold Hard Steel

Ministry.

It's a simple word with vast implications.  An old friend of mine has been dealing with some very painful realities in his position as minister, and in our discussion I mentioned that while he was one of the busiest men I knew and was fantastic at organizing events, he'd been crippled when it came to ministry.

"But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith" 1 Timothy 1:5.

A minister's task is to bring true seekers of God closer to the ideal relationship with Him.  While my friend had great acumen when organizing activities or planning events, he had never truly learned to minister to God's people.  Questions that ought to populate a minister's mind have to do with how he can help his fellow Christians improve.  What does my Christian family need?  How can I help?  How can I encourage?  What needs to be corrected?  What message from God's word will stir up love, good works, and pursuit of righteousness?  After answering these questions a minister ought to spend his time supplying what he can to fill the needs he has discovered.

A truth concerning the situation of ministry, however, is that Christians must be open to receive the ministry they are offered, and all too often we are not.  Rather than being a possessed of a heart that is hot, glowing and pliable, we guard a heart that resembles cold, hard steel, repelling the efforts of the smith to mold it. Lack of perceived need, resistance to change, pride, and ignorance are all ingredients that harden and make brittle the Christian heart.

God loves the heart that is soft and will adhere to His mold.  Ministers, let us strive to provide that mold accurately and suitably.  Christians, let us constantly ask "How can I take the mold that God wishes me to take?"  Let us work to realize our own shortcomings, be open to change toward the ideal, remove haughty pride, and eradicate ignorance through study of God's word.
J