SCRIPTURE HOUND

2009-10-12T07:03:00.000-07:00

Scripture Hound has been a place to share my thoughts and feelings about life and godliness.

When I fist started Scripture Hound I was recently unemployed and had a lot of time to myself. I spent time thinking about my life and the lives of those around me. I had strong opinions about the "best" way to live a life that honors and glorifies God. Most of my readers were close friends and family members.

I re-entered the work force on September 12, 2008 and have found it to be quite difficult to post regularly to scripture hound, because I usually compose 2 or 3 drafts of a post before settling on a final copy. I have decided to re-allocate my composing energies to the simpler and more active Facebook. Please feel free to browse the Scripture Hound archives and perhaps the Lord will use one of my articles to compel you to read God's word because that is where you will find all wisdom for life and godliness.

David

THE HOUSE OF PEPSI

2009-07-08T20:05:00.000-07:00

Now the Philistines took the COCA COLA and brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod.

Then the Philistines took the COCA COLA and brought it to the house of PEPSI and set it by PEPSI.

When the Ashdodites arose early the next morning, behold, PEPSI had fallen on his face to the ground before the COCA COLA.

My Daughter's Notes in Church

2009-03-24T17:01:00.000-07:00

My seven year old daughter was doodling on her bulletin last Sunday and I wanted to preserve her notes. She may not be exactly correct theologically but I am comforted to know that she has a high opinion of Jesus. Her notes are corrected for spelling but that's all.

O Lord thank you for your son. He saved my life, he died on the cross and made my heart clean thank you for you son, he saved my life he died on the cross and made my heart clean.

My only Father died on the cross, he made me but I chose to believe in Christ I will try my best to believe in God and obey Him for He is my God.

He died on the cross your Son is the hero of the world He is, He is. O Lord thank you for your son.

He saved my life, He is my Father.

until next time

David

When Christians "Drink"

2009-03-11T10:12:00.000-07:00

Many Christians regularly drink alcoholic beverages, some are my own friends and family members. I can't find a verse or passage in the bible that specifically forbids “drinking” but I can't shake the notion that something is out of sync with scripture.

When Christians “Drink”.

Every American Christian-drinker is eventually forced to answer the question “why?”.

I have heard several reasons:

(my comments are in parenthesis)

Jesus drank wine.

(the wine that Jesus drank was virtually if not totally non-alcoholic and Jesus never got drunk)

It makes non-believers more willing to listen when I witness to them.

(non-believers are not confronted with their own sin when they see Christians who act just like them.)

I don't drink to get drunk, I am just a social drinker.

(this is not a good reason or excuse, it's just reflects a lack of understanding.)

I have freedom in Christ.

(Gal 5:13 says “For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.“)

why not?

(ok, since you asked)

Ephesians 5:15-18 gives us a very clear contrast between drunkenness and a being filled with the Spirit:

“Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise,
16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil. 17 So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit,"

Drunkenness is unwise, foolish and dissolute.

Gal 5:16 commands Christians to walk by the Spirit:

“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.”

Gal 5:19-21 defines walking in the flesh:

“Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions,
21 envying, drunkenness,(emphasis added) carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Gal 5:22-23 defines walking by the spirit:

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”

I ask you, When you have been drinking which attributes are more likely:

love or hate?

Joy or fear?

Patience or impatience?

Kindness or meanness?

Goodness or filthiness?

Faithfulness or unfaithfulness?

Gentleness or violence?

Self control or recklessness?

Instead of trying to get as close to the world as possible without falling, why not follow the command in 2 Timothy 2:22:

"Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart."

If every swallow brings you a little closer to drunkenness, then what good is taking the first sip?

until next time

David

Off the Beaten Path

2009-02-22T16:34:00.000-08:00

From time to time I find the time to take time to read something for fun. "The Sacred Sandwich" is still one of my favorite cyber vacation spots. Take a look at the wonderfully written dialog between the "Twin Theologians"

The Twin Theologians

until next time

David

To Read "The Shack"

2009-02-19T09:23:00.000-08:00

I first heard about The Shack while listening to The Albert Mohler Program. I posted a link to the program in my April 14th 2008 article which you can view by clicking the link below.

"The Shack" Not a Book Review

I resisted a reading of the book due to various warnings about it's content, but The Shack is beginning to penetrate the thoughts and emotions of people very close to me, and so, I read with a desire to build a framework in my mind on which to place the comments of both those who praise and those who revile the "The Shack".

The forward is a little confusing because it is written in the first person by "Willie" who is "Macks" best friend. I wonder if the author intended to give the subtle impression that someone actually experienced some or all of the events of that unfold in the following chapters?

I am disturbed that the god of The Shack was only willing to manifest himself in ways that were friendly to Macks emotions, not wanting to impose himself on Mack in any way, Manifestations such as Papa the "Father" an over weight black lady, Sarayu the "Holy Spirit", a thin and delicate oriental woman who consisted of a mixture of light and wind were designed to be non imposing to Mack and his weak emotional state. It is not until Mack experiences some major emotional healing that he is allowed to meet with Sophia, a tall "sensual" Hispanic woman who is a personification of Gods wisdom . "Papa" the Father only manifest Himself as a strong male figure once after Mack was able to forgive his own father. Jesus was the only accurate manifestation of God the Son but He was not spoken by the Father as the only way to God but merely the best way. I also noted that Mack was allowed to commune with the Father apart from Jesus many times throughout the story.

I am not going summarize the story or plot because there is enough of that already available on the web. I am going to do what I do best and highlight the parts of this captivating story that jumped out at me. The Shack does highlight a couple of good biblical principles like trusting God in trials, and forgiveness. but the dangers of its theology far out weigh a couple of good biblical principles

First, I agree with every discerning reader of The Shack that has written or spoken unfavorably about The Shacks theological message. The overwhelming point of The Shack is a deep study into the character of God and how he relates to the human race. The bible is hardly mentioned at all and is little more than a bad attempt by the author to make a joke at the Gideons expense. Mack is amused that God puts a Gideon bible in the night stand at the shack and reading it, is presumably unnecessary because God is speaking directly to him in order to clear up all of Macks institutionalised misinterpretations about God. God is supposedly saddened that the human race has been unable to understand that His relationship with us is about mutual submission with us. Here is a dialog from chapter 10, part of a conversation between Mack and Jesus which ends in an explanation of how the Trinity relates to us:

Jesus- "Have you noticed that even though you call me Lord and King, I have never really acted in that capacity with you? I've never taken control of your choices or forced you to do anything, even when what you were about to do was destructive or hurtful to yourself and others."

Mack- "I would have preferred that you did take control at times. It would have saved me and people I care about a lot of pain."

Jesus- "To force my will on you, is exactly what love does not do. Genuine relationships are marked by submission even when your choices are not helpful or healthy."
"That's the beauty you see in my relationship with Abba and Sarayu. We are indeed submitted to one another and have always been so and always will be. Papa is as much submitted to me as I to him, or Sarayu to me, or Papa to her. Submission is not about authority and it is not obedience; it is all about relationships of love and respect. In fact, we are submitted to you in the same way."

You can see that the author wants to belittle the hierarchy in the Trinity and by extension belittle Gods authority over us. Throughout the story Mack admires the way that the trinity mutually submits to itself instead of Jesus and the Holy Spirit being subordinate to the Father, like he had always imagined. God teaches Mack that Hierarchy is a man made idea that has never been part of God's design. The god of The Shack never requires anything of Mack but only makes polite invitations.

There are many concerns that I have with the theology of this book, and make no mistake that this is a book full of theology, but The Shack is also a page turner and a tear jerker. I was driven to tears with Mack as he mourned the death of his youngest daughter, and when he was granted a brief view of her playing with Jesus. I rejoiced with Mack as he was reconciled to his own father and I humbly repented with Mack as he finally forgave the man who murdered his daughter.

The god of The Shack encourages an emotional, rather than a biblical understanding of himself. The god of The Shack does not require us to deny ourselves and follow him. The god of The Shack is very appealing to those who want to be carried away by emotion and feelings.

The Shack will stir your emotions and even drive you to desire an ever deepening relationship with God, but the god of The Shack is not God as we see Him in the bible.

Until next time
David

Music and corporate worship

2008-11-11T18:59:00.000-08:00

Music used in corporate worship should be of regular beat so as to facilitate a well synchronized congregation!
Music used in corporate worship should not include vain repetition!
Music used in corporate worship should not be vague in it's biblical message!
Music used in corporate worship should be doctrinally correct!
Music used in corporate worship should focus more on God's provision, and attributes, and less on our desire to gain something from Him!
Music used in corporate worship should include traditional hymns and songs in order to preserve the biblical faith of our early church fathers!
Music used in corporate worship should not be designed to create a human experience!
Music used in corporate worship should not be demagogic!
Music used in corporate worship does not need to be fresh or new to glorify and honor God!

A NEW AGE?

2008-11-05T16:35:00.000-08:00

My wife and I were discussing the outcome of this 2008 presidential election. She asked me if Obama's victory was a sign that we are in the last days. I reminded her that we have been in the biblical "last days" ever since the completion of Jesus' death and Resurrection, which was the fulfillment of the old testament law and prophesies. Many conservative Americans are afraid of what the next 4 years hold but I prefer not to give in to fear and worry which is sin. I am not talking about the kind of fear we experience when our heart races as we linger on the brink of some unknown adventure. I am talking about the kind of fear that the chief priests experienced when the Roman guard reported their perspective of the events surrounding Jesus' Resurrection from the grave. When the chief priests herd about the earth quake, the stone rolling away, the angel sitting on the stone, and finally the fainting of every Roman soldier in attendance, they refused to believe that Jesus was who he said he was. There were afraid of losing their power and position of authority, Jesus was a political threat and because they were afraid, they continued to try to circumvent God's plan. They bribed the guards and told them to spread a lie. His disciples took His body while we were sleeping! they were to say.

Don't forget that every ruler has authority only as allowed by God. Feel free to stand up for Jesus and what he taught, but don't forget that God has allowed Obama to lead our country for a time, don't be afraid, don't worry, God is still in control and we must give Him glory for what he is doing and will do, according to the pleasure of His perfect will.

Until next time

David

Issues of importance!

2008-10-12T07:05:00.000-07:00

There are a relatively few number of days until the Presidential election, and the "issues" are all over the media.

I am still up to my neck in the learning curve at my new job, and I confess that I am somewhat disappointed in myself and my dependence on a fleshly perspective.

Issues that impact my flesh:

Recreation
Sleep
Food
Pain/suffering

Issues that impact eternity:

Knowing God's Word
Believing God's Word
Obeying God's Word
Living a Spirit filled Christ centered life

I know that a steady habit of reading, understanding and believing God's Word has a temporal and eternal effect on me, but I also know that sleep, pain, recreation, food etc. have a very real and profound temporal effect on me.

The issue I am struggling with is my own human suffering. I am aware that far too many believers around the world are deprived of the very same temporal needs that I hold so dear, and my troubles pale next to theirs. I have not been completely deprived of food, nor have I been brutally tortured, I have experienced a reduction in my own personal comfort. My response to that reduction is quite honestly "fleshly". Fear, and discontentment, have been a "log" in my eye.

I can't remove that log myself. I need a great physician, with a steady and loving touch. I thank God that Jesus is alive and I can know him through the bible. I thank Jesus for sending the Spirit to help me obey Him. I look forward to the day when, through death or rapture, according to God's perfect will and by His mercy, that I'll be with Him, perfected in eternity, no longer engaged in a battle with my own flesh, and God will rescue those believers who experience extreme suffering and they will find everlasting relief in His arms.

Until next time

David

Quote (John MacArthur)

2008-10-01T10:23:00.000-07:00

"There is no greater act of submission than to die for someone, and that is precisely what Christ did for the church. Since husbands are commanded to love their wives the way Christ loved the church, this requires the ultimate self-sacrifice of submission and service on the wife’s behalf.
This does not mean, of course, that the husband is supposed to abdicate his God-ordained role of leadership and authority in the home. What it does mean is that the way he must exercise his leadership is not by lording it over his wife and family, but by serving them and sacrificing himself for them with a Christlike humility. He is to support his wife by helping bear her burdens and shoulder all her cares, even if it means sacrificing his own desires to meet her needs. It’s a different kind of submission—not submission to authority per se, but a loving willingness to sacrifice for her, serve her, and seek her good. In other words, the godly husband’s main aim must be to please his wife rather than merely doing his own will and demanding that she get in line."
MacArthur, John: The Fulfilled Family : God's Design for Your Family. Nashville, Tenn. : T. Nelson Publishers, 2005, S. 16

Apologies or Apologetics?

2008-09-09T18:24:00.000-07:00

Early this September, I wrote a letter to my local Christian Radio station which you can view by clicking the link below
http://www.scripturehound.com/2008/08/one-way-to-god-but-many-ways-to-jesus.html

I have engaged in much correspondence with Lou all week and I will honor his request not post his reply in this public forum. Our talks have been rousing and thought provoking. I will share some thoughts I have, related to the article written by Fischer, which Lou read on the air. My thoughts relate in context to the seeker sensitive movement, and do not reflect personally on Lou in any way. I believe him to be a wonderful, loving, bible minded Christian. I enjoy his radio program very much as he has ministered to me many times.

We should be willing to associate with people of other denominations and faiths, but we must not associate with them in such a way as to lend credibility to their false teaching and our association with them should be motivated by our desire to lovingly share the Gospel with them. We must never be willing to compromise or withhold the Gospel in favor of maintaining those associations. I believe that we live in an age where more often than not, evangelicals make God's love out to be less than what it is. Gods command for us to "love" includes all of the characteristics listed in 1 Cor 13:4-7. Verse 6 is often over looked or mis-interpreted " does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth". Romans 12:9 gives another perspective, "Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good."
I would never discourage a Catholic from being present at a biblically sound protestant service, but take for example the Billy Graham Crusades that encouraged local Catholic Churches to participate in the Shepparding of some of the converts in order to provide continued discipleship after the Crusade was over. Billy Graham should not have associated in that way with the Catholics.
Another illustration of a wrong association is the Protestant Church that I grew up in. I left that church partly due to the fact that they had a community Thanksgiving service every holiday and they let the local Catholic Priest speak as one of the keynote speakers every year. This type of association with the Catholic Priest gives the impression that his teachings are "A OK". Catholic doctrines are an evil contrast to the true Gospel. Jesus' finished work is complete, but the Catholic Church has piled on far more requirements than Jesus' finished work. I can't give you all the dates and places that certain doctrines entered the Catholic Church. What I do know is that somewhere along the line they gave priests the power to hear confessions and forgive individual sins, they also teach that one can not be forgiven of "original" sin without water baptism. they also started offering forgiveness through penance,which is making amends for sin. Little documents called Indulgences are also available for a monetary price, the more you pay the more sin can be covered.
None of these practices are biblical nor are they part of Christ's finished work. They are added to Christ's work as if Christ didn't do enough, we have to ad our own works to the pot.
This is why I say they are anti Christ, because they do not teach that faith alone by grace alone in Who Christ is, What He did, and Why He did it. is sufficient for salvation. If there are "saved" people in the Catholic Church, it is in spite of Catholic teaching, not because of it. When the opportunity arises, we should proselytize the Catholic people away from the Catholic Church or any other false religion, instead of leading them on as if we believe their Church is "A OK". It is the false teachings that we abhor, not the people. We must take a vocal stand against any false doctrine without ceasing to love the people.

I am reminded of 2 Tim 2:15 "Be diligent to a present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth." It is my firm belief that all Christians should strive to become learned in the bible. If the only verse they know is John 3:16, they can not know enough about Jesus to have a saving faith. For example John 3:16 says nothing about the deity of Jesus, which is essential.
We must be very careful not to abandon traditional Protestant Christianity in as much as it is biblical. We don't give authority to extra biblical tradition, but we want to stay true to the so called faith that has been passed down in the holy spirit inspired scripture and the correct interpretation of it. When we begin to allow ourselves to think outside of the bible we risk falling into the same trap that so many modern evangelicals have already sprung. We don't need a new gimmick or a new psychological approach to saturate the spiritual market. We need a narrow minded biblical message that will only reach those whom God has chosen to draw to Jesus.

No matter what path you may take in life, if that path leads you to the Bible , praise God, because that is where you find Jesus. Jesus can be approached and embraced no matter how you have led your life.

Until next time

David

Job Updtate!

2008-09-09T17:27:00.000-07:00

Who would have guessed that for me, the best thing is still "sliced bread"?

It has been nearly 8 months since I lost my insurance sales job. I have applied to scores of jobs and even graduated truck driving school. In these months I have watched a lot of television, remodeled my grandmother's bathroom, replaced my uncles front porch, cut down five trees for my grandpa, cut down 2 trees of my own, gone fishing, gone shooting, gone hiking, left my old church, found a new church, attended Sheppard's Conference, written over 50 articles on SCRIPTURE HOUND, and collected over 15 unemployment checks.

I finally accepted a full time position with Wonder Bread, as a relief driver. I am relieved that I won't be leaving my family for months at a time as a trucker and I may even be able to pick my children up at school every day.

I am scheduled to attend a one day orientation in Sacramento this Friday, and will begin training here in Redding on Monday. My primary duty will be to cover vacation routes for regular drivers, and delivering, stocking, and rotating the company product in grocery stores and restaurants. I will have Wednesdays and Sundays off, work from 4am to approximately 3pm, and receive a comprehensive benefits package as a teamsters union member. I have been informed that I will not have to make cold calls or try to steel customers from the competition.

This is a direct answer to all of the prayers of friends, and family all over the country. I am pleased and exited about this opportunity. Please continue to pray that I will be faithful in sharing the Gospel even in this new endeavor.

Until next time

David

One way to God but many ways to Jesus?

2008-08-29T16:39:00.000-07:00

I though many of you may want to read a letter that I wrote to the local "Christian" radio station in my home town.

Dear Steve,

I was disappointed by the story that you allowed Lou to read during his morning program yesterday. The story was about a protestant who over came his prejudice against Roman Catholics. The story was touching but, the writer stated that his new Catholic friend had found his way to Jesus, differently than the Protestant Writer had, and that the Catholic knew more about Jesus than he did. The Writer makes the claim that although Jesus is the only way to salvation, there are many different ways to Jesus.

Are we to allowed to compromise the true Gospel in favor of developing a civilized relationship with unbelievers? The uncompromising Gospel will likely insult unbelievers due to it's exclusive nature. I assume that you are familiar with the innumerable heresies preached by the Roman Catholic Church that stand against the true Gospel that Jesus preached.

Scripture is very clear that no man comes to Christ unless the Father draw him (John 6:44), faith in Christ is a gift of God by Grace not works (Eph 2: 8,9), and faith is found only by hearing the word of Christ which is only accomplished through the preaching of That Word (Romans 10:14-17), which we now find exclusively in the 66 books of the bible. There is only one way to know Christ, that is by hearing the bible preached. There is no knowing Christ outside of the bible.

The Gospel is and always has been under attack. Many would have us believe that God's written word is no longer sufficient or exclusive in revealing Christ. Please be vigilant to preserve the faith of our fathers. Don't let KVIP continue to slide down this slippery slope.

In Christ

David Brown

My testimony

2008-08-20T14:07:00.000-07:00

When most believers here the word testimony, they think of a dramatic, oral, or written, autobiography that gives an account of the, “before and after” life experiences of a born again Christian. These stories can be powerful evidence of the regenerative power of God the Holy Spirit, and cause unbelievers to question their own unbelief. What effect though, does a “fall from Grace” have on the same unbeliever. My question is, what good is a testimony if the self proclaimed Christian later turns away from righteousness back to a life of sin? What value is there in telling a story that may prove to be false. I propose that the run of the mill Christian testimony is not sufficient to convict the unbeliever of his sin or to compel him to repent from sin and follow Jesus as Lord. It is only by hearing the word of God that an unbeliever will face true conviction and lasting repentance. For this reason I choose to preface my own testimony with a passionate request for any who read or hear it to search God's written word as the only sufficient source of God's truth. The Holy Spirit uses God's written word alone to reveal Christ. It is faith in Christ alone that produces conviction of sin towards lasting repentance and eternal life.

I was born a bouncing baby boy on June 15, 1972. My father was at that time in the
U.S. Army, stationed in Yuma Arizona, where he narrowly escaped over seas duty in Vietnam. Six months after my birth he fulfilled his duty and we moved to Mammoth Lakes, CA.
It was in Mammoth at about five years old that my profession of faith took place. My mother explained that if I wanted to be saved, I had to ask Jesus in to my heart, and being a shy toddler I hid under the dining room table and asked Jesus to come into my heart. I rarely disobeyed my parents and I experienced strong guilt when I disobeyed God. I had Christian parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. Every member of my family was a Christian. I took for granted that everything I had been taught about God was true, but I didn't have my own understanding that Gods Word is our exclusive source of God's truth, I lived as I knew a Christian should. and loved my parents too much to rebel, We moved to Weaverville, CA in September 1982 at the age of ten and I began to have a deep curiosity about controversial theological issues. I praise God that my parents taught God's word because I turned to the Bible for answers to my questions. I wondered what other religions taught and why they were different, by the time I reached the age of twenty I was ready to believe in God's Word by it's own authority instead of the authority of my parents. I began to research other religions and compared them to my own. My knowledge of the scripture grew but tragically, so did my love of sin. As a twenty something young man I was less often under the watchful eye of my loving parents and I began to grow accustomed to getting away with secret sins. It was not until after God blessed me with a wife and children that I began to understand the depth of my own depravity. My wife and I married in 1999 and I took a sales job with Schwan's Frozen Foods. I used my drive time to reflect on my happiness and I began to understand that I was chasing the world, and I was not happy. One day While pondering my walk with God, my attention was drawn to a song on Christian radio. The words of the chorus still resonate in my heart, “go, go, go”. I am not sure if God is calling me to full time ministry, but in my Schwan's truck that day I promised to obey the call of God's great commission and during the years since that experience, God has expedited His process of sanctification in my life. It is indeed possible that my true conversion came on the side of the road in my truck that day as I wept over my own sin.
Baptism is a beautiful picture of how God accomplished the redemption of His chosen, and He commanded His chosen to be baptized. Baptism by immersion is the clearest model of our inclusion in Christ's death, burial, and resurrection. I was sprinkled as an infant before I knew or understood what true obedience to Christ was. It is my desire to be fully immersed as a testament and a witness to my ongoing desire to be conformed to and identified with my Father in heaven through Jesus Christ and to the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. The words of Jesus with regard to His own baptism by John, are a good summation of my own motive and desire to be immersed.
Matt 3:15
“But Jesus answering said to him, “Permit it at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us ato fulfill all righteousness.” Then he *permitted Him.”

Until next time

David

Job Update

2008-08-19T19:52:00.000-07:00

I know that God is moving in my job search because He keeps closing doors. Praise God! He is still guiding me both spiritually and physically. I received a call from Amerigas today and they hired someone else. I am confident in God's providence and I patiently wait on Him and I trust in His timing. I have sent out close to twenty applications to various trucking companies, including some local jobs that I don't meet the experience requirements for, it can't hurt to try! I appreciate the many thoughts and prayers of those of you who are keeping up with my current job hunt.

Thank you

David

O-B-E-D-I-E-N-C-E

2008-08-18T18:15:00.000-07:00

The kindergarten teacher where my kids go to school loves to teach the kids cute, easy to remember, songs with a sound message. One of those songs is about obedience. The tune sounds like something that an oompa loompa might sing as the children spell out the word obedience which after, the chorus states, "obedience is the very best way to show that you believe". My dad had a chance recently to show those in his Church that he "believes". He was sprinkled as an infant, and was recently confronted with the superior doctrine of believer's baptism. I say superior, not to discount paedo baptism but simply to call attention to the fact that "credo baptism" is the outcome of a more literal interpretation of the biblical language as evidenced by the example of biblical characters in the new testament. I don't want to open a can of worms here, I only want to congratulate my dad and encourage him as God continues the process of progressive sanctification in his life. Thank you Dad for setting a sound example for us all to follow.

Lord willing I will post my testimony and explanation of my own up and coming baptism next time

David

The way we used to drive.

2008-08-05T20:42:00.000-07:00

The following is an excerpt from an email sent to me during truck school by my Grandpa who drove trucks for many years. I hope that most of you will enjoy his memoir.

Until next time

David

"With the dual transmissions ( a main box and a Brownlipe aux , most brownies were three speed except like the ones we had as we had a couple of hauls that required a deep under drive in the brownie ) which gave us four speeds in the brownie. We only used the top three in normal driving. Fifth gear in the main box was an overdrive. We never pulled in OD ( with your understanding of transmissions you know why) but technically we had fifteen speeds forward. It was most of the time a two handed job. e;i Starting out we used first gear ( to be easy on the clutch ) at 2100 rpm release clutch and pull the main into neutral, pause, then drop the main into second while pulling the brownie into neutral. Engage the clutch and bring the rpm up to match the total power train and clutch the brownie into second and reengage the clutch, Downshifting required pulling whatever box you were changing into neutral reengaging the clutch, bring rpm up to match engine and transmission speeds clutch drop into needed gear and reengage clutch. Continue the same procedure all the way up through all the gears Another thing that is different nowadays is you never exceeded fifteen hundred rpm against compression. The reason was the fuel pump was a double disc pump. It had two highly polished discs with orifices in them that were timed to line up at the correct time to deliver the fuel to the right injector at the right time. The disc surfaces received their lubrication from diesel fuel between them. With a closed throttle there wasn't sufficient lubrication above fifteen hundred rpm and the discs would score thus ruining the pump. Later in my career the PT pump came out ( pressure timing ) The Cummins engines of those days were to be operated between nineteen hundred and twenty one hundred, except against compression. Also there were no Jake Brakes and the Williams exhaust brake was just coming out.,so you went down the hill in about the same gear you came up it,naturally depending on the length of the hill. There was an aux brake that worked well, but it added too much weight. It was a wheel like a water pump on the drive line. There was a valve that was controlled by the driver. It would restrict the flow of water thereby creating resistance to the drive line. It required a large tank of water mounted behind the cab to supply it with cool water. The additional weight cost payload so they were seen on only a few trucks. By the way the first year I drove the speed limit was forty five mph and we also used the clutch brake to make quick upward gear changes on hills. It is a different ball game today with all the traffic plus the new style equipment and big horsepower."

Some on the road.......some in the weeds......

2008-08-04T09:17:00.000-07:00

My family went to church without me yesterday because I came down with a cold. When they returned, my daughers were singing a fun song that I remember from long ago, "little bitty seeds".

I Graduated truck school with flying colors, and can now legally drive just about anything I can get my hands on. Not only was truck school a learning experience but I had the opportunity to model God's love to the instructors and other students. When I first walked on to the campus, there was very little edifying conversation. Most of the students were staring at the dirty shop floor and the instructors were acting like drill sergeants on the first day of basic training. One student in particular had been struggling to make progress and the instructor had all but given up on him. I felt compassion for both the instructor and the student. I never had the chance to articulate the Gospel but I believe that God was glorified in my time there. By the time I left, most of the students and instructors were happily sharing in each others progress and able to laugh at each others mistakes. I never did explain the Gospel, but every one I talked to knows that I am a follower of Christ and that my attitude stems from God's grace given to me as a believer. I pray that the small seeds I left at that school will find fertile ground, and sprout according to God's perfect will. (Luke 8: 4-15)

Until next time

David

No Routine

2008-07-14T16:55:00.000-07:00

I have been quite busy the last week and a half, studying for truck school, and preparing a list of things that I need to accomplish, in case I get a job that keeps me away from home for extended periods of time. I haven't taken the time to blog due to these new responsibilities. I still don't know if I'll be away from home for weeks on end, but it may be necessary in order to get a trucking job as a "student" driver. I will do my best to keep posting but please be patient as I am not in any routine right now.

until next time

David

Job Update

2008-07-07T17:08:00.000-07:00

Mixed emotions.

That is how I feel after my first day of truck driving school. I enjoyed learning how to drive a truck, but I am a little disappointed that it is harder than it looks.

I actually got to spend about a half an hour behind the wheel of a freightliner with a big Detroit diesel engine and a 46 foot trailer. The instructor (Bob) drove us (3 students including myself) to the playground which consists of a loop in an industrial district of approximately 5 miles. I was the first to get behind the wheel. "Push the clutch pedal all the way to the floor" said Bob, (which engages the clutch brake). "Wait about 3 second then put her in 2nd gear" said Bob again. "Now keep your right foot off the accelerator pedal and let the clutch out slowly."

The rest is history, our goal is to practice "progressive shifting"(rev the engine in second to 1200 rpm, then clutch to neutral, clutch to 3rd, rev to 1300 rpm clutch to neutral, clutch to fourth, rev to 1400 etc.) There is no way to explain, describe, or convey how to drive a big rig with a non synchronized transmission. You have to make lots of mistakes and learn from them. Our truck had a ten speed transmission but we are not allowed to use low gear, so for all general purposes we only use eight gears(1 through 4 then switch the splitter and 1 through 4 all over again).

I can't close this post without telling you about air breaks. I never dreamed it would take over a second after I hit the pedal for the brakes to work. Almost every stop I made, was like riding with a teenager learning to drive a stick. I push the pedal, nothing happens, push harder, then wham! I am kissing the windshield.

I greatly enjoyed driving the truck and I look forward to getting better, but I can't seem to shake my anxiety about being away from home, 3 weeks of every month for an indefinite period of time. My two year old son almost cried with happiness when I got home even though I had been gone for only one day.

Please continue your prayers and ask God to either bless this decision or to close the door firmly.

Until next time

David

Movies and the like

2008-07-03T10:17:00.000-07:00

From time to time, I find a show that I really like. I am kind of a sci-fi, fantasy adventure nut. I suppose that I prefer non "reality" shows because they provide a mental escape from day to day concerns.

One thing that I have noticed about almost every movie and TV show is that the producer almost always weaves his world view into the storyline. Some shows are designed to propagate a world view, producers in the entertainment industry are not afraid to use their influence to make a point.

I saw an episode of Law and Order where a young boy was found eating garbage in front of an apartment complex. The investigators were surprised to discover that the boy lives in a well kept home just a few houses away. They eventually discover that a "home schooling" single mom had been withholding food from her son as a disciplinary technique. The investigators were appalled to learn that the mother had no legal accountability to the public school system. When confronted with the question of accountability, one school official opined that many home schooled children have no way to escape the potential physical and mental abuse of their parents, because when a child is in public school the signs of abuse are more easily discovered.

After watching that episode, I was tempted to feel suspicious of every parent who is not willing "place themselves under the benevolent authority of the American government", buy allowing their parenting skill to be scrutinized by the watchful eye of mandatory reporters.

According to God's word, the responsibility to raise children rest solely on the parents in individual homes. When a parents commit a crime against the child, it then becomes the responsibility of church to restore the parents to righteousness and protect and provide for the child in the mean time.

Liberal and social ideals are growing stronger every year, and I believe that Satan's system is so subtle that even our Judeo Christian culture is sliding down a slippery slope, that will end up in socialism, where the individual freedoms in our culture, and the responcibility of the Church will be replaced with an overbearing government system due to a manufactured "greater good" for the people.

David

Job Update!

2008-06-25T17:26:00.000-07:00

I just returned home from a wonderful time at Great America with my family.

I found a letter from Frito Lay in the mail box that read,

"We are pleased that you have contacted us regarding possible employment with Frito-Lay.

At this time, we are following up with candidates whose background closely matches our needs. If we are able to match your employment objectives to our needs int he future, we will contact you.

Thank you for your interest in Frito-Lay and we wish you success in your career endeavours."

An obvious letter of declination!

On a lighter note, I successfully passed my DMV test for a class A commercial learners permit on Monday. This was a welcome relief since I can't begin "Truck School" without the permit. I am to report to the "smart center" on Friday to finalize my enrolment to the "Truck School" that I will attend beginning 7:30 am next Monday. If I am not able to find a local truck driving job, the school has a placement program that guarantees a "long haul" job after graduation.

A truckin we will go......a truckin we will go

David

(update: my start date at the truck school has been moved to july 7th)

Will Men Ever Measure Up?

2008-06-18T20:34:00.000-07:00

Mother's day is long gone and Father's day is a recent memory.

While reflecting on these celebrations of gender based marital roles, the thought occurred to me that gender based roles are no longer in practice.

We would all agree that popular culture has abandoned gender based roles in order to give credence to same sex partnerships, but I want to focus on American Christian culture. I am proposing that it has become unacceptable in practice (although held up highly in word) by the majority of Christian couples to enjoy and cooperate in the separate roles that God designed and commanded for husbands and wives.

What I am trying to get at here is that even though a high percentage of Christian married couples will affirm that men and women are designed by God to tackle separate and different responsibilities, the daily conflict between many Christian couples is evidence that their convictions are only "skin deep". There are times in my own experience when I observe husbands doing their best, giving attention to the desires of their wives, but those very same women would likely scold their husbands in private for being selfish and insensitive, giving their husbands the impression that they will never measure up to their feminine standards.

I am talking about real people acting very polite and satisfied in public but when I talk to either spouse "one on one" it becomes quite clear that their marriage is more of a contest than a partnership.

I had occasion today to read a few excerpts from a New York Times article about so called “equal parenting”. The article had an extreme message, and the question on cover page says it all, “Will Dad Ever Do His Share?”. It is an aggressive attack on scripture, but I would be willing to bet, that question resonates with nearly every Christian wife in a deep way.

My own wife affirms the biblical command for wives to submit to their husbands in everything but she also admits that it is almost impossible to do in practice. I have been tempted many times to resent my wife's failures, but thanks be to God for giving me his written word to remind me that I am no better.

You see, this article in the New York Times, sites various statistics proving that men do less work around the house than women. The article speculates that women should do more to liberate themselves.

My criticism of this type of thinking is that God did not command wives to measure their husbands work and compare it to their own. Marriage is not a contest to see who can work harder! Marriage is a partnership wherein different responsibilities fall to each partner based on God's design! Instead of asking why women “do” most of the parenting and domestic work, we should be asking why do women “resent” doing most of the parenting and domestic work? Parenting and domestic work is exactly what God designed women to excel in.

At this point I can only speculate on reasons for this undertow of resentment that some Christian women try to hide in public. One thing I know for sure, their husband are all to aware of it, and I don't think they know how to handle it.

If you think I am being too one sided on this issue, then ask yourself, why did God go to so much trouble to preserve His written word without giving women instruction on how to liberate themselves from over bearing husbands, who do too little parenting and too little domestic work? Why are Christian women so quick to submit to their boss at work and not their husband's at home? Satan has capitalized on the Eve's curse, and built feminist culture that is irresistible, even to God's elect!

1 Pet 3:1-7 is so clear and yet it may as well be a crumpled up traffic ticket that never gets payed

1aIn the same way, you wives, bbe submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be cwon without a word by the behavior of their wives,

2as they observe your chaste and 1respectful behavior.
3aYour adornment must not be merely external—braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses;
4but let it be athe hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God.
5For in this way in former times the holy women also, awho hoped in God, used to adorn themselves, being submissive to their own husbands;
6just as Sarah obeyed Abraham, acalling him lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right 1bwithout being frightened by any fear.
7aYou husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with 1bsomeone weaker, since she is a woman; and show her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.

Mothers, teach your daughters to obey their husbands in the Lord without resentment.

Pastors wives, be a model of submission to you husbands for the whole Church to see.

And yes, husbands, love your wives and sacrifice your deepest desires to her

Husbands give preference to you wives even if they refuse to call you “lord” :)

David

Quote(John MacArthur)

2008-06-17T13:46:00.000-07:00

"being a true follower of Christ means the end of human autonomy. And that is as it should be, because self-determination turns out to be nothing more than an illusion anyway" (excerpt from John MacArthur's newly revised book)(The Gospel According to Jesus)

Finally, my own ".com"

2008-06-16T12:42:00.000-07:00

I finally seem to have this blog posted to my new domain http://www.scripturehound.com/ It may seem silly, but the blog just feels more complete without the "-" and " .blogger" in the name. I also hope to be able to add more features to the blog in the future and utilize a: scripturehound.com email address. The old scripture-hound.blogger.com URL will still direct readers to this blog so that any existing links will remain active.

until next time

David

Job Update.

2008-06-14T08:01:00.000-07:00

I still don't know when I will have gainful employment, but I am encouraged to report that I finally gained a final interview with Frito Lay and now all I have to do wait (again) :)

David

The Gospel

2008-06-08T17:10:00.000-07:00

Are you one of God's chosen?

Ephesians 1:4-5 and Romans 8:28-30 clearly teach that God has already chosen those who are destined to live with Him for eternity. John 1:1 teaches that Jesus is God.

The bad news!

By one man(Adam) sin entered the world and every person since that day is fatally infected by sin(Romans 5:12). Sin is any act that defies God's commands, but more importantly, sin is what and who we are. Every single human person has sinned(Romans 3:23). God demands nothing less than death as payment for sin(Romans 6:23). As sinners, we do not posses the capability to change what we are. Can a blade of grass make itself an ant? Can an ant make itself human? Can a sinner make himself righteous? The answer is indisputably no! There has never been a blade of grass that made itself an ant, there has never been an ant that made itself human and there has never been a human that made himself righteous. We all deserve death and eternal punishment as the rite consequence of our very nature, and sadly, most of us will see that end(Mathew 7:13-14).

The good news!

A relatively small number are chosen by God, out of sin and made to be new creatures- (2 Corinthians 5:17). Just as, by one man, sin entered the world, also by one man, Grace was offered to sinners(Romans5:15)!

You see, God loves His chosen so much that He sacrificed His only Son, the only sinless human, to pay the cost of our sin. Jesus' blood, is the only blood that fully satisfies God's wrath over sin. Jesus became sin for us so that he could die in our place and satisfy God's wrath against sinners!

If Jesus died and stayed in the grave, we would have no assurance that our debt has been paid, but Jesus did not stay in the grave, he truly conquered death and was raised out of the grave back to life and because of this, we know that our debt is paid(Romans 14:9).

Jesus now gives his righteousness to those who receive the truth about him(Romans 3:22). God's chosen are saved only by God's grace through faith, not by good works so that no one can brag about his own righteousness(Ephesians 2:8-9).

None of us know exactly who God's chosen are until they begin to live for Jesus.

BUT!

YOU can determine if you are living for Jesus by analyzing your own habits and priorities. Do you truly have a desire to serve God, or do you pretend to live for God so that you gain acceptance from others?

When we are chosen by God, in Jesus, it becomes manifest through our faith, we become a new creature. The sinner becomes righteous and his life begins to change.

If your habits and priorities don't reflect a changed person, it does not necessarily mean that you are not “chosen” it only means that you have not understood and believed the truth about Jesus YET. Your damnation isn't sure until you leave this life through death, for only then is your last chance gone.

Where will you go when you die?

You must believe:

That Jesus is God(John 10:30)
That He is risen from the dead(1 Corinthians 15:17)
That his blood is the only sufficient payment for our sin(John 14:6)

If you truly believe, then God will change you in to a new person, with new habits and priorities, and give you a place in heaven with Jesus.(2 Corinthians 5:17)

If you pretend to believe, and try to live a righteous life without God's choosing, He will deny knowing you and condemn you to eternal death and punishment in hell.(Mathew 7:22-23)

If you are one of God's chosen you can be sure that you will eventually believe!
If you truly believe, then you will be changed!

Believe on Jesus today and start your new life!

http://www.scripture-hound.blogspot.com/

The Gospel

2008-06-07T12:02:00.000-07:00

I am trying to put together a complete representation of the Gospel that can be printed and given to people who God may be calling. I would love to gather input from my readers on this project. The empty parenthesis will eventually have scripture references.

Here is what I have so far:

Are you one of God's chosen?

Ephesians 1:4-5 and Romans 8:28-30 clearly teach that God has already chosen those who are destined to live with Him for eternity. The question is who has God chosen?

How do you know if God has chosen you?

The bad news!

By one man sin entered the world ()and every person since that day is fatally infected by sin. Sin is any act that defies God's commands, but more importantly, sin is what and who we are. Every single human person has sinned(Romans 3:23). God demands nothing less than death as payment for sin(). As sinners, we do not posses the capability to change what we are. Can a blade of grass will itself to become an ant? Can an ant will itself to become human? Can a sinner will himself to become righteous? The answer to all three is indisputably no! There has never been a blade of grass that became an ant, there has never been an ant that became human and there has never been a human that made himself righteous. We all deserve death and eternal punishment as the rite consequence of our very nature, and sadly, most of us will().

The good news!

A relatively small number will be called out of sin() and made to be new creatures(). Just as, by one man, sin entered the world, by one man, sin is conquered()! You see, God loves His chosen so much that He gave His only Son, the only sinless human, to pay the cost of our sin. Jesus' death is the only death that fully satisfies the cost of sin. Jesus became sin for us so that he could die in our place! If Jesus died and stayed in the grave, we would have no assurance that our debt had been paid, but Jesus did not stay in the grave, he truly conquered death and was raised out of the grave back to life and because of this, we know that our debt is paid. Jesus now gives his righteousness to those who receive the truth about him(). God's chosen are saved only by God's grace through faith, not by good works so that no one can brag about his own righteousness(Ephesians 2:8-9).W

When we are chosen by God, in Jesus, we become a new creature(). The sinner becomes righteous and his life begins to reflect that change. None of us know exactly who God's chosen are until they begin to live for Jesus.

BUT!

YOU can determine if you are living for Jesus by analyzing your own habits and priorities. Do you truly have a desire to serve God, OR do you pretend to live for God so that you gain the acceptance of others?

If your habits and priorities don't reflect a changed person, it does not necessarily mean that you are not “chosen” it only means that you have not yet understood and believed the truth about Jesus YET. Your damnation isn't sure until you leave this life through death, for only then is your chance to repent gone.

Where will you go when you die?

All you have to do is believe that Jesus is God(), died, rose again, and paid the price for our sin.

If you truly believe, then you are guaranteed to become a new person with new habits and priorities, and a place in heaven with God.

If you pretend to believe, you may try to live a new life, but without God's choosing, you will eventually follow the masses to eternal death and punishment in hell.

If you are one of God's chosen you can be sure that you will eventually believe!

Believe on Jesus today and start your new life!

David

2008-06-06T17:24:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Pastor Jay for allowing me to post the following information.

David

John tells you how you can know you are saved and how you can be assured of your salvation. He writes in 1 Jn. 5:13, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.” What are the “These things” that John is talking about? Look up the verses below and see if you have assurance of salvation.

Gives you assurance you are not saved:

1:6 Say you have fellowship and yet walk in darkness
1:8 If you say you have no sin and are self deluded
1:10 if you say you have no sin which is as to make Jesus a liar
2:4 If we do not obey God's commands
2:9,11 If we hate our brother
2:15 if we love the world
2:19 If we depart from the Saints
2:22-23 If we deny Jesus is the Christ
3:8 If we practice sin
3:10 If we do not practice righteousness
3:15 If we hate our brother
3:17 If we are stingy, selfish, and greedy
4:5 If we speak like the world
4:8 If we do not love
4:20 If we do not love other believers
5:10 If we do not believe in the Son of God
5:12 If we do not have the Son

Gives you assurance you are saved

1:7 If we walk in the light and are in the light
1:9 If we confess our sins
2:3 If we keep His commands
2:5 If we keep His Word
2:10 If we love our brother
2:17 If we do the will of the father
2:19 If we do not go apostate
2:23 If we confess Jesus Christ
3:7 If we practice Righteousness
3:9 If we don't practice sin
3:16 If we sacrifice for others
3:18-19 If we love with deed and truth
3:21 If our conscience is clean
3:24 If we keep His commandments
4:6 If we listen to the Apostles
4:7 If we love the brethren
4:13-19 If we confess Jesus Christ
5:12 If we have Jesus Christ
5:12 If ye have eternal life

These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life. 1 John 5:13

Quote (Phil Johnson, Pyromaniacs blog 6-6-08)

2008-06-06T10:33:00.000-07:00

"Some readers may be thinking, But no evangelical really believes political activism is a proper replacement for the gospel. Would anyone actually advocate the suppression of the gospel in favor of political lobbying? Actually, people do it all the time. There are Christian radio broadcasters who rarely talk about anything other than political controversy. Often their topics as well as the arguments they use are hardly any different from what you'd hear Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity say. Some of the best-known broadcasters in Christian radio James Dobson, Chuck Colson fit that profile. You'll never hear them stress justification by faith, because Roman Catholic support is essential to the political coalition they hope to build, and they can't afford to alienate that segment of their audience. You're not likely to hear them stress the exclusivity of Christ or the absolute necessity of faith in Christ, either, because that would offend their Jewish allies. In practice, what they are saying when they do that is that they believe it's more vital to achieve a political and legislative solution to America's moral crisis than it is to proclaim the gospel clearly."(Phil Johnson)

WORDS

2008-06-05T14:23:00.000-07:00

Have you ever been one to care much about the proper use of language. I quite regularly use slang, and I often use words that have a cultural meaning but if I am quite honest with myself, I don't know the real meaning of some of those words.

Take for instance, "vanity", my sister had a nice vanity in her room as a young girl. The vanity had a mirror so that she could double check her appearance.

Webster redirects me to the word "vain" in order to define vanity. "Vain" means, "unsatisfying; fruitless, unavailing, ineffectual;empty, worthless; conceited; showy".

With all those possibilities, how can I possibly understand what it means to take the Lord's name in vain? The Hebrew word for "vain" in Exodus 20:7 is "shav" which means ruin; guile; idolatry. It seems to me that none of the definitions of "shav" are to be well translated by our modern day understanding of "vain". We teach our children NOT to say "Oh my God!" why? What act of ruin, guile, or idolatry does that phrase commit? Wouldn't it be better to teach our children not to pretend to pray in Jesus name when they are petitioning our Lord for help with some self centered worldly concern? Isn't that a true example of, "taking the Lord's name in vain"?

Perhaps we Americans should take a lesson in language from our British neighbors, and not be so quick to allow words to become meaningless, or to use meaningless words. Maybe Satan has more subtle plans for hiding God's truth than we yet know.

Don't be willing to take, even the most obscure truth, at it's culturally accepted "face value".

Be willing to test everything and to diligently seek the original context and historical background of Scripture so that God's steadfast truth may not be hidden from you.

David

Quote (Dan Phillips, Pyromaniacs blog 6-5-08)

2008-06-05T14:18:00.000-07:00

"There is a reason why we hold a Bible as the word of God, and not a sack-full of isolated inspired fortune-cookies. God means us to grasp, and be grasped by, "the whole counsel.""

"Otherwise, our counsel will be full of holes."

(Dan Phillips 6-5-08)

Quote(Tim Challies blog 6-2-08)

2008-06-02T20:26:00.000-07:00

Even today, Jesus is present with us through the Word of God. He is quietly but powerfully present there, though just as when most people looked at Jesus and saw only man and not God, today most people look at the Bible and see words but not Word.(Tim Challies 6-2-08)

Quote (Dr John MacArthur)

2008-06-02T10:11:00.000-07:00

“But now and then someone tells me frankly that my preaching needs to be less doctrinal and more practical.
Practical application is vital. I don’t want to minimize its importance. But the distinction between doctrinal and practical truth is artificial; doctrine is practical! In fact, nothing is more practical than sound doctrine.
Too many Christians view doctrine as heady and theoretical. They have dismissed doctrinal passages as unimportant, divisive, threatening, or simply impractical. A best-selling Christian book I just read warns readers to be on guard against preachers whose emphasis is on interpreting Scripture rather than applying it.
Wait a minute. Is that wise counsel? No it is not.” (Dr John MacArthur 6-2-08 Pulpit Magazine blog)

Quote (Dr Albert Mohler from the Albert Mohler Program May 15th 2008)

2008-06-01T15:21:00.000-07:00

“Our belief in the self reveling God has to do with the fact that we have come by faith to believe that He is and that He has spoken to us in his word and that He has spoken to us most completely in His son. We really don't need, and we should not depend upon, borrowed credibility from external sources to try to bolster, either our private or our public understandings of the Christian faith.”(Dr Albert Mohler the Albert Mohler Program 5-15-08)

Are you afraid of a spanking?

2008-05-27T18:12:00.001-07:00

Proverbs 23:13 tells us, “Do not hold back discipline from the child, although you strike him with the rod, he will not die. You shall strike him with the rod and rescue his soul from Sheol.”(hell)

Proverbs 13:24 likewise states, “He who withholds his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him diligently.”

I spent the last 8 plus years of child rearing, withholding corporal punishment from my children and using it only as a last resort for the most heinous of crimes.

I have quite recently over come my fear of spanking my own children, and I am happy to report that they are beginning to act more like little Christians.

I would like to share my simple formula and solicit any feedback from my readers.

Actions guaranteed to be punishable by spanking:

"Dissing”(disobey, or disrespect) your mom and dad or any other grown up.
Dissing can include rolling of eyes, puffing through you mouth, violent acts towards others etc.

Screaming for any other reason than if a snake is biting you.

How I prefer to administer the spanking:

It has to hurt so I use a “rod”

I don't want to shame my kids so I do it in private

It is important that my kids know that spanking is NOT an act of anger, so I talk very calm and quiet and never handle them brutally.

one painful swat on the behind is almost always enough, but if they fight me, then they get an additional swat for each occurrence of resistance.

Sometimes they “dis” me in public and I promise a spanking later at home. It is immensely important that I follow through with my promise, after all the bible says to let your yes be yes and your no be no.

any comments?
David

SERVICE NOT LORDSHIP

2008-05-27T13:22:00.000-07:00

The following, is a letter that I sent to several men that I care about over 5 years ago. I recently found it on my hard drive and wanted to share it with you.

David

We talk about leadership roles in marriage, church, and family. As you all well know, God tells us in Romans 13:1 "let every soul be subject to the governing authorities for there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God."(nkjv). In context this applies to a national, state , or local government. In principle it applies to any relationship in which exist a leader and a subject.

Although this truth applies to all mankind, it is not a command intended as license to rule over those who are commanded by it. God has placed me in a position of leadership and authority over my wife and family. I have the impression that my reputation as a leader is known by some to be that of a chauvinist, lording over those below me. I have come to realize the reputation to be sadly accurate. In Matthew 20:26-28, God admonishes his disciples i.e. you and me, to use our position of authority to lead our governed into service by first serving them. Let us not lord over those who are charged to follow us, especially our wives.

God commands us to "love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the Word." (Ephesians 5:25,26 nkjv). I remind you also that "The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and give his life a ransom for many."(Matthew 20:28 nkjv). Our wives may or may not submit to and respect us, but our reputations will reflect that which is most important, the reputation of the Name we carry, "Christian." Our reward is not a submissive wife but a wake that many will follow, including and perhaps most importantly our children. "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasure in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is , there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:19-21 nkjv)

Endeavor with me starting now, to lead the obedient and disobedient alike, not with lordship but with service, submitting to the ultimate authority, Jesus our Saviour.

Let us not forget the true definition of Love, the "more excellent way."(1 Corinthians 12:31 nkjv), found in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8+. Look it up and don't forget it, It is Gods word and its true. Please remind your fellow brothers in Christ that service and submission to their wives is service and submission to Gods will.(Ephesians 5:21)

Sincerely with love in Christ

David T. Brown

(update) I want to make sure that this particular post is viewed within context of my greater belief on marital submission. please view also my article about the role of a wife in submitting to her husband by clicking the link below:

http://scripture-hound.blogspot.com/2008/02/husbands-love-your-wives-what-if-you.html

Trials in Baja

2008-05-26T11:09:00.000-07:00

Many of you don't know my friends in Baja. Daniel and Jainee have eleven children and are serving God as missionaries in Mexico. Daniel has been quite ill and I would appreciate your prayers for His health and God's continued Glory through Daniels work in Mexico. You can learn more about his trials by viewing his blog:

http://www.lockwoodsministry.com/current-news.html

David

Job Update

2008-05-21T10:07:00.000-07:00

I know that a lot of my readers are interested in my job (jobless) situation. I have applied for a relief driver position at Frito Lay. It has been three weeks since completing two interviews and a ride along, I am still waiting for the manager to return my four messages. My wife's, mother's husband(new step dad) is in the grocery industry and recently had the opportunity to talk to the Frito Lay manager. Apparently he will hire me if one of his existing employees is not able to return to work from medical leave but it is taking longer than expected for the medical situation to resolve. The Frito Lay manager indicated that I am his first choice to hire if the need arises.

Many of you know that I have an alternative job prospect in my back pocket. I have the option to attend truck driving school, free of charge. I was able to postpone my admission date to June 26, 2008. If I don't have a final answer by then, I will put Frito Lay in my proverbial back pocket and jump in to truck driving school with both feet (Lord willing).

Isaiah 40:31

David

Lesser Sin part 3 (Church Discipline)

2008-05-18T17:01:00.000-07:00

Our Pastor preached a great sermon on church membership today. I was intrigued by some of his examples. His first example was that of a husband or wife who lovingly confronts their spouse's selfish attitude. I think that his example can be extrapolated out to mean that church discipline can and should exercised with in the local church body as well as the larger body as a whole. I think that the idea of church discipline is to be applied to the whole body, even to cross denominational lines. In other words, if you see a professing Christian who has been confronted by one individual, without repentance then his sin should be carefully and lovingly brought before the elders of his church for the purpose of seeking restoration. If he still refuses to repent and is only offended by the accusations, then it should be made known to the rest of his church congregation so that they can pray for him and encourage him, and he should be put out until he comes to recognise his sin and seeks repentance. His sin should also be made known to any congregation that he may attempt to run to so that they can attempt to restore him as well.

Continued later

David

Subjectivity Is Not Allowed

2008-05-14T10:31:00.001-07:00

I want to post a link today to the Pulpit Magazine blog. "Johnny Mac's" thoughts are quite pertinent to our current conversation.

http://www.sfpulpit.com/2008/05/13/true-objectivity/

David

Lesser Sin Part 2

2008-05-13T20:16:00.000-07:00

I have defined lesser sins as those that are not so obvious. Many may not call them sin, but Jesus was very clear that even lesser sins are just as damning as the more obvious ones. One of my most faithful readers, Rich, commented on this in my last post. In Matt 5:22-30 records the words of Jesus as he explains the spiritual nature of sin. Impure thoughts lead to guilt, and yet many will say that they haven't sinned because they have not acted on their thoughts.

I think it is fair to ask if Christians should get caught up in testing each other. It could quit easily turn into a "holy er than thow" contest, which is not edifying, nor does it glorify God. Even so I can't help but to remember that Christians are to be proclaimers of the gospel, and when do we stop proclaiming the gospel? NEVER! We must recognise that the gospel is the thread that ties the whole of scripture together. So then, to continue from my last post, what is the best way to confront a professing Christian who is in denial about their lesser sin? Proclaim the gospel. We may never know the true condition of a man's heart, but if his life shows little or no evidence of regeneration, we can't go wrong by continuing to clearly explain the plite of man, and his redemption through the death and Resurrection of Jesus. Sin is evidence of our fallen condition and a constant reminder that human kind is in-capable of fulfilling our obligation to the law of God. We are totally depraved, in that, we are dead in our sin and only God can breath life into our spiritual being. Once God begins that work, we are in-capable of resisting Him. The flash flood of His new birth will overwhelm us, and will pour out of us as we become saturated by it. If we aren't dripping drops of righteousness everywhere we go, then how can we claim to be born again?

Where does church discipline fit in with all of this?

More next time

David

Lesser Sin? Part 1

2008-05-11T22:32:00.000-07:00

It is about 10:30pm on Mother's Day, and I have been tossing in bead for about an hour and a half. I am starting to regret the cup of black coffee (no sugar!) that I had with desert this afternoon. I hope that spending a little time at my computer will tempt me to bow irreverently toward the L.C.D.
As an order of house keeping, I would like to mention that I am offering an e-mail subscription notification for new posts to my blog. leave your e-mail address as a comment to the most recent post and I will add you to my "Post Notification Group".

I had a wonderful opportunity last week. One that I have been inexcusably negligent in. I went to a mid-week bible study at the home of an elder in my new church. I want to focus this post on a question that consumed a large portion of our discussion about discipleship and believers. It's worth mention that the title of "disciple" in the larger context of new testament scripture is used synonymously with the title of "Christian". I would also ad that all believers are "disciples" of Jesus the Christ.

The question?

How are disciples of Jesus, to relate to a professing Christian who has a habitual problem with a lesser sin?

I don't want to address the obvious sins, but rather the subtle sins. I want you to think about bitterness, resentment, temper, white lies, selfishness, etc.

Not to measure the seriousness of these individual sins, but to consider whether or not a pattern of on-going lesser sin, could or should be recognized as evidence of an un-regenerate faker who wants his peers to think he is a Christian because he thrives on their acceptance and approval.

At what point should true believers, confront these types habitual sins, and what response should we expect from fellow true believers after they have been confronted? I would like to suggest that a major defining characteristic of a true believer, is that he will eventually embrace an opportunity to repent of any sin that could hinder his communion with God. How then should a true believer relate to the professing Christian who denies the truth of his sin and gains only insult from the encounter?

More next time

David

The Bitter End (or sweet?)

2008-04-25T18:22:00.000-07:00

As most of my readers know, in Jan 2008, I was laid off by my boss.

I had been selling insurance with him since October 2006, and I sent out dozens of resumes and applications looking for a new job. The Lord closed every open door according to His hidden purpose.

Frito Lay held the most promice but they turned me down after my first interview, and I found out later that they were interviewing for a future position. They had already filled the existing opening at the time of my interview.

3 months later I am still unemployed and receiving unemployment compensation benefits, but I have finally received tentative approval for financial assistance to attend truck driving school.

I have a meeting with the Smart Business Resource Center on Monday where I am scheduled to discuss final plans for starting a course with American Truck Driving School.

As the Lord would have it, my wife took a call from Frito Lay today and they have another opening to fill. I am supposed meet with them for my second interview on Monday at 2pm, only a few hours after my meeting with the smart business resource center.

Frito Lay holds a lot of promise due to the fact that they don't require their sales guys to make cold calls. All commissions and bonuses are calculated based on sales to your existing customers.

I was interested in truck driving due to it's lack of sales, but I would likely spend a lot more time away from my family as a truck driver than as a route sales driver with Frito Lay. Both jobs will probably pay about the same, so I will pursue this recent opportunity with Frito Lay, while trying to keep my foot in the door at the truck driving school.

Well it seems that God is going to keep me guessing until the very end.

David

Heresy Frenzy

2008-04-18T10:44:00.001-07:00

Most of us have been to a fish hatchery and seen the pool erupt in boiling fury when the young fish are being fed. Some in the blogosphere remind me of those fish, swimming around, calm and quiet, until they find something they disagree with. You know the ones, they leave mean and hate filled comments on the popular blog posts.

This media known as the “blog” is unique. It gives us an opportunity to disconnect from reality or perhaps create our own reality. I must confess that I write better than I talk. In here, I can write, delete, then re-write, until everything is nearly perfect before I open my virtual mouth. If someone disagrees with me, I can just pretend that they are not there. Even though I am comfortable with the bible, I am not comfortable with face to face conflict.

I have come to realize that writing about, and exposing heresy in this environment can appeal to the flesh. It is a very profound, emotional experience to record my thoughts and opinions relating to what I believe is false doctrine. I am also keenly aware that I must not indulge my flesh. How tempting it is to allow pride, and hate to drive my pen. How my flesh yearns to be powerful, prideful, and right. I want to be careful in my motive to write. I want to affirm all that glorifies God. I do not want to indulge my flesh. My goal is to proclaim truth in love.

Isn't it easy to look to the world as our source of joy? Let's remember that our joy is in the hope(confidence) of our salvation in Christ through his death and resurrection.

Heavenly Father keep my heart from sin that I may glorify you in all that I do.

David

God's Word Well Handled!

2008-04-16T12:41:00.000-07:00

This post was a joint effort with my cousin and good friend.

I was encouraged to hear that my cousin had the opportunity to teach a home group study in Colossians 1.

I was not able to attend the meeting but I had a chance to interview him via phone.

I tried to accurately record our conversation but alas we were both in a hurry, so I allowed him to proof read this article before posting it, he was quick to admit that the notes in his MacArthur Study Bible were a big help and he gave his approval to enter this post on his behalf.
His focus was on verses 15 through the end of the chapter. Some highlights of the discussion are as follows:

Colossians 1:15 states that Jesus was the “first born” of creation. This is not to say that Jesus was the “first created”, or that he was even the “first begotten”. That is a common mis-interpretation by some false teachers. The Greek word for firstborn can refer to the chronological order of birth but it usually denotes the rank of the child. In early church culture, the rightful heir would be referred to as the firstborn even if he was not the first in birth order. My cousin tried to emphasize how important it is to understand that Jesus is God and that belief in His deity essential to our faith. It was unfortunate to hear that even though my cousin used lots of comparatives and metaphors, Some in the group did not seem to grasp the concept that Paul's reference to Jesus as the first born was indeed a statement of rank as opposed to a chronological reference of birth order. My cousin tried to argue logically that a chronological interpretation of the Greek word meaning”first born” would be contrary to other references in the bible where Jesus is referred to as being the ONLY begotten. My cousin argued, “How can Jesus be the first begotten when indeed He is the only begotten?”

Argued well, he did!

Colossians 1:20 states that God has reconciled all things to Himself through Jesus. The Greek word for reconcile means to exchange or change, this is evidence that God makes a visible change when purifying the lives of those whom he calls to salvation.

Colossians 1:22 states that God's motivation to reconcile, is to present believers “holy and blameless and beyond reproach. This was done in Jesus flesh through His(Jesus) death. It is amazing to think that true believers are so completely justified before a holy god as to be “beyond reproach”. To quote my cousin. “That can only mean that we are as holy as Jesus himself in the site of God”. Some in the group also had trouble with this.

Colossians 1:23 is best interpreted that only those who “continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel” can be counted as those who are reconciled by God. The evidence of a true believer is one with a firmly established faith, that is steadfast and not moved away from the gospel. Again to quote my cousin, “a true believer will
display a constant need, and desire grow and to be fed from god's word”.

Thanks Cus.

David

THE SHACK (NOT A BOOK REVIEW)

2008-04-14T16:17:00.000-07:00

WARNING HERESY MAY BE CONTAGIOUS!

I just finished listening to the Albert Mohler Program via podcast. He did a book review on "The Shack" written by William P. Young.

I encourage all of my readers to listen to Albert Mohler's program about the book.
http://www.albertmohler.com/radio_show.php?cdate=2008-04-11
The book is being classified as a "Christian" book, and is on it's way to being a best seller. The Shack has endorsements from Michael W. Smith and other very well known Christian names. I have not personally read the book, but it is supposedly not intended to be a theological book but rather a fictional story written for children and adults alike. According to Dr Mohler, the fictional story is full of blatant Heresy. Since I have not actually read the book I will resist the temptation to comment directly about it. I am concerned that it may be another subtle attack on the inerrancy and sufficiency of the bible. I also discovered that Tim Challies has already written his less than favorable review of the book
http://www.challies.com/archives/book-reviews/the-shack-by-william-p-young.php

David

(update)
Due to the impact that "The Shack" seems to be having on people close to me, I decided to read and do my own review of the book. Click the link below to read my review.

"The Shack" a Book Review

Dinner and Conversation

2008-04-11T13:32:00.000-07:00

This is a long post but please read it, I am very passionate about this particular post and it is unusual that the content flows forth as effortlessly as this one did.

Great food and stimulating conversation always beget warm fuzzys in me. Last night we had dinner at Nana's house, with a fabulous multiplicity of chicken, rice, rolls, corn, and applesauce. Each morsel in and of itself could have repaid my dinner time impecuniousness(that basically means I was hungry). Nana and I lingered at the table discussing the Gospel and the proper proclamation of it. It is tempting to draw a parallel between that excellent dinner and the Gospel. Is God's word is a delectable collection of books filled with lines of text, any of which are sufficient to satisfy the believer and unbeliever alike? Don't fool yourself into believing such trickery! Every word is useful and good (think of 2 Tim 3:16) to be true but we must understand that God's word is one complete book, much more than a collection of verses. Every word is designed to authenticate the others. Unfortunately, careless Christians throughout history have believed differently. What good does it do to pick through scripture looking for your favorite verses in order to streamline the Gospel? Can the Gospel be streamlined? Think about it, we have all seen (John 3:16) banners and posters at public events, and often we here well meaning Christians Quote (Acts 16:31) as if that one verse alone encapsulates all that we need, to understand God's good news. Both of these verses are indeed God's word, but so are (Eph 2: 8,9)(Rom 3:23)(Rom 8:28-30)(1 John 1:9)(1 John 2:15)and (1 John 5: 2,3) look them up! Let me state clearly that I gladly affirm the essential doctrine of “Grace alone”(sola Gracia), through Faith alone(sola Fide), but Christians must understand that our faith is more than believing who Jesus was and what he did. “Faith” is also a complete adherence to every thing that Jesus ever taught and make no mistake, Jesus taught a lot more than what we find in (John 3:16). You see we can't break the Gospel into convenient little pieces and feed it to unbelievers one piece at a time. We must proclaim the entire uncompromisable truth of what faith in Christ demands. The truth is that if we believe, we are compelled to obey. If we believe, we are a new creature. If we believe, we love(agape) one another. If we believe, then we will deny our selves, take up our cross and follow Jesus. Please listen and understand, If we don't obey God, If we are not a new creature, If we don't love one another, if we don't deny our selves, take up our cross and follow Jesus, then we don't believe, and our faith is a dead(James 2:26). A dead faith is not a saving faith.

Lest we forget that we do harm, not good, by with-holding any part of the Gospel. Fear of insulting or confusing the unbeliever is no excuse. God's written word is complete and we need to strive daily to completely understand it. An unbeliever will not gain an adequate understanding of “saving faith” in one or two verses about salvation. He must understand what it means to be totally depraved. He must understand what it means to be forgiven by grace through faith. He must understand that we don't choose God but God chooses us. He must understand what it means to deny ones self and take up ones cross. He must understand what it means to follow Jesus.

I know this has been a long post and I thank you for reading it through. Bear with me a few more lines as I speculate for a moment.

My former Pastor believes that too many Christians are afraid to act on the internal yearnings of their “heart”. Another respected Baptist Pastor believes that repentance from sin should not be part of a Gospel presentation. Isn't it possible that one wrong move begets another? Think about this, Pastor #1 teaches the sufficiency of scripture but removes repentance from salvation and “wins” many converts. PICK ME! PICK ME!Pastor #2 recognizes the absence of a transformed life in so many “professing” Christians and assumes that Christians are afraid to act like transformed people, and therefore preaches that Gods word is not sufficient and we need to depend on God to speak directly to our hearts.

Come on you guys open your eyes. Pastor # 1's converts don't have a saving faith. Pastor # 2 needs to relate to his flock as if they are unbelievers who have not understood the complete Gospel. Pastor # 1 is guilty of watering down the Gospel and Pastor #2 is guilty of treating the symptoms and has missed the true disease. Both Pastors are guilty of ignoring the peoples sin.

Sin is not A problem, sin is THE problem. We must not leave repentance out of the Gospel. Sin is the reason we need to understand the complete Gospel.

David

Prayer According To Jesus Part 3

2008-04-07T09:22:00.000-07:00

This is the final part of the study that I did on Matt 6: 9-13

Note: I enjoy the photo captions at the Sacred Sandwich Photo Gallery. I posted a link on the right hand side of the page. I would enjoy hearing your comments on them as well

Part 3
Verses 11-13 are the “shopping list”, the only part of Jesus' “prayer” that tells us what to request of God. I think that these 5 things are what believers ought to desire above all else and God is faithful to provide when we ask.

1. daily bread
2. forgiveness of our sins
3. the ability to forgive other who sin against us
4. lead us not in to temptation
5. deliver us from the evil one

There was a concept brought to my attention in the mid 1990s by a parishioner in the Nazarene Church. An individual was thought capable of strengthening his or her faith and gaining higher favor with God during prayer. The idea was that one could praise God in past tense, as if he had already given what in truth had not yet been received. This grandstanding display of faith was thought to induce God to give one whatever they wanted. The praise might sound something like this: “Heavenly Father thank you for giving my family enough money to be able to afford a more reliable car and a bigger house”. Now let me say that I never bought in to that type of thinking but there are many respected preachers who teach that God will give you whatever you ask him if only your faith is “strong”. I reject this type of thinking!
Matt 6:31-33 says: “Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For after all these things the Gentiles seek, For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
This very familiar passage following Matt 6: 11-13, provides a great contrast to such nonsensical faith gimmicks, and helps us understand why Jesus suggests such an non material shopping list for us to lay at the Father's feet. How many people disobey God by violating the command not to worry about even the basic necessities of life? You have herd it said that God is not answering their prayers due to “week faith”. I say don't put your faith in human inventions , but rather place your faith squarely on God, no matter the consequence! Don't look to your circumstances to persuade you of God's faithfulness! Believe that God is faithful because His word declares it!
If our minds and hearts are in line with the first two parts of Jesus' model for prayer, only then are we truly ready to ask him to do anything for us. He doesn't teach us to pray through scripture or to somehow prove our faith by speaking to God in the past tense. If we really believe that God has our needs in mind before we even ask, then we should be consumed with seeking his kingdom, and His righteousness. Nothing else really matters to us. God will add all other things as he sees fit. For His is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen

David

Prayer According To Jesus Part 2 of 3

2008-04-06T19:39:00.000-07:00

Part 2

Matthew 6: 5-8 tells us not to pray for the sake of sounding good to others but rather to pray in secret where the Father is the only one who can here us. We know that this is not a command but rather a concept. Jesus himself prayed publicly, but the idea here is to contrast what the pharisees wrongly practiced, which was to walk around looking quite forlorn and wailing their prayer for the sake of appearing righteous in the eyes of any who would listen. This helps us understand how we are to have our hearts set when we pray.

Matthew 6: 10,”Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven”
We should align our hearts (desires) with Gods will before we ask anything of Him and I think that we find a very condensed explanation of what God’s will is in the first part of verse 10 which is to bring his kingdom (rule) to earth in the very same essence that He already rules in heaven. It is tempting for me to branch off into a study of what God’s Kingdom in heaven is like, based on the parables that Jesus uses to teach about the kingdom of heaven, but today I say only that God desires his subjects to rely completely on him and to obey only him.
In summary, verse 10 teaches believers to set our hearts to desire only His will and His kingdom before we ask anything of Him.

I will post part 3 in the morning

David

Prayer According To Jesus Part 1 of 3

2008-04-06T12:58:00.000-07:00

Part 1

Intro:
The Pastor of my former church asked me to give a 1 or 2 minute devotion before prayer time every week from the pulpit.
In preparation I began to search the New Testament for the word pray and quickly found an account in Matthew 6 where Jesus was preaching the “Sermon On the Mount”. Jesus had just commanded the people against praying like the Pharisees for the purpose of gaining personal recognition, nor to use vain repetition as the heathen do. He explained that our Father knows the things we have need of before we ask Him. Jesus then in verses 9-13 dictates the “Lord’s Prayer”

MATTHEW 6: 9-13 (NKJV) “Our Father in Heaven, Hollowed be You name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heave. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen”
I thought at first that I might give a complete explanation of what the text means on the first day, but as I dug deeper I realized that I would never be able to do that in one or two minutes, so I explained the so called “prayer” one piece at a time over three weeks. This post was adapted from those 3 devotions.

It should be fairly obvious to most believers that Jesus did not command us to quote the “Lord’s Prayer” verbatim, nor did he forbid it, it is not a model of what to pray but how to pray. Jesus himself prays many different times without quoting the same prayer every time. The “Lord’s Prayer” as written in Matthew 6: 9-13(NKJV) begins:
“Our Father in Heaven, Hallowed be Your Name”.
I found myself asking the question; what did the people Matthew wrote to think of when they heard the words: father, hallowed and name.
The Greek word for “Father” used in Matt 6: 9 is pater (pat- ayr) (Strong’s Bible Dictionary) which simply means father in a paternal sense. That is to say that true believers are begotten by the Father. This is not to illustrate that believers are physically conceived by God (Though in a very profound sense we are) but rather In this context, believers are His offspring who are compelled to obey and rely on Him in the same sense that Jesus was compelled to do only his Father's will.
The Greek word for “hallowed” in the same verse is hagiazo (hag-ee-ad-zo)(Strong’s Bible Dictionary) a good translation in this context is to venerate. One Webster’s definition says venerate is “the highest degree of reverence or respect mingled with awe”. (Webster’s New Dictionary and Thesaurus)
The Greek word for “name” used here is onoma (oh-om-ah) which means authority or character. (Strong’s Bible Dictionary) The marginal notes in my study bible say that onoma describes the idea of the total person of God, “all His character and attributes”. (MacArthur Study Bible)
In simple terms, the opening sentence teaches believers to be mindful that we are God’s children who are compelled to obey and rely on Him. We are to hold his character and Attributes with the highest degree of reverence and respect.

I will pick up here in my next post. As usual, edifying comments are welcome.

David

Blast From The Past

2008-03-27T09:05:00.000-07:00

My last post was a poem, either written by or copied by my late Grandfather, Edward Brown.

I have been going through some loose papers in various note books under my desk and found a letter that included a sort of transcript of a sermon that Ed Brown preached before my time.

I took the liberty of cutting the sermon out of the body of the letter that Ed had sent to his son Larry(my Father) on February 1971 who at the time was in the U.S. Army during the later stages of the Vietnam War. I did my best to preserve the original punctuation and spacing in hopes of transmitting Ed's own thoughts and feelings. I made minor spelling corrections and removed the underlining of scores of words.

Enjoy!

David

"The text is Matthew 19:16—22, (I should say the Scripture reading rather) and I read from the Phillips translation. The text, is of course, Exodus 20:13. “Thou Shalt Not Kill”.

“As we consider this 6th commandment - we need to be reminded that there are no “easy” anwers in God’s Word - no “short-cuts” to understanding. Definitions and actions - issuing from snap judgments and incomplete knowledge - will only result in confusion, disappointment, and serious error. I will read for you a very relevant quote from an article written recently by Dr. L. Nelson Bell, appearing in the “Presbyterian Layman”. “The greatest protection from error is knowing the truth. ‘what you do not know will not hurt you'. this does not apply to the Christian and his Bible. Much more applicable is Alexander Pope’s dictum, ‘A little learning is a dangerous thing; drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring.’ Error stems from ignorance and superficial knowledge. In the Scriptures we find Truth — a revelation of things man can never discover from any other source. How great, then, is the ignorance of those’ who do not know, or wilfully neglect, the scriptures.”

"May God the Holy Spirit, help us to discover a trustworthy foundation for our actions and our attitudes." (at this point we had an opening prayer).

“Now let us look at part 1 of a suggested foundation for our understanding of this commandment. The context, of this commandment - is the same as for the other commandments. There is, however, an added dimension in this commandment - that must be noted. The particular hebrew word (translated “kill”) - is significantly rare - in it’s Old Testament usage. The Hebrew word “rawtsach” - is also (but only) used in five other old testament portions — and each time, it’s English translation, is a form of “murder”. A vital part of our foundation therefore, is to admit, that we must change, the English translation of Exodus 20:13 (as the Moffett and New English Bible translations have done) - so that, it more accurately translates, the Hebrew word, “rawtsach”. The 6th commandment - accurately translated, is - “Thou Shalt Not Commit Murder”.

Several other, different, Hebrew words - are used to describe the taking of life (whether human or animal), and the various words - relate to the different circumstances: but it does seem, that only murder, is specifically forbidden, in this 6th commandment! Abraham, for example, could fully intend - to take his son’s life: premeditate - all the conditions surrounding the act: go so far as to raise his knife over Isaac’s chest: but such premeditation and intent to “kill”
was not in itself, murder: and even had he slain Isaac then and there, (which, in his own mind, was already an accomplished fact - Hebrews ll:19a)- he would not, even then have committed murder! not in the meaning of the 6th commandment. The Hebrew used here (Genesis 22:10), and the words used to describe the killing of Israel’s enemies in war - are different words than “rawtsach” - and do not describe, the act of murder! It does seem therefore, that we can say - that “murder” - was something different, from other acts and attitudes involved in terminating human life: or at least, - that the Old Testament, makes a rather clear distinction between murder, and other “killings”!

Another part of our foundation for understanding - must be the realization that the Old Covenant (in this case the 6th commandment) is not - the final authority for faith and action - for New Covenant disciples of Jesus Christ.! Our final authority, is Jesus Christ: His Gospel: and His New Covenant! We must ask - what is Jesus saying now, within the New? All of the Old Covenant has a, relationship, to Christ's disciples: but of each O.T. part - we must ask — How, does this part - relate to Jesus disciples? Does it relate In the same way as it did to those under Moses’ Law? Some parts do, and some parts do not it depends, on what the New Covenant says!

When Jesus quoted the 6th commandment (Matthew 19:18 and parallel passages) the Holy Spirit saw fit to record in the New Testament - a Greek word - commonly and widely used, to indicate an act of intentional, termination, of human life. The context,
of each usage - indicates that such “killing” - is contrary to the Will of God - Not justifiable in His sight: and in several places, the context indicates that “killing” is justified - only, when God - directly terminates a human life!

The common - New Testament Greek word of which we speak is “apokteino” - related to “phonoos”. In addition to the several times it is translated as “kill”, etc. - it is also used to describe Barabbas eg - as a “murderer”. It is used by the island pagans, who saw a snake come from the burning firewood and hang on Paul’s hand - “he must be a ‘murderer" they said. It is used when Jesus quoted the 6th commandment “Thou shalt do no murder” (Matthew 19:18), and it is used in 1 Peter 14:15, where believers are warned that they - must never be justly charged with murder. Most - New Testament references - to the termination of human life - are set in this context of “murder”. New Testament “killing” - is therefore presented very differently, from Old Testament killing.

The only justified killing in the New Testament, is that which results from God’s direct intervention. In I Corinthians 11:30 for example - those who “sleep” - as a result of participating in the Lord’s Supper “unworthily” - are those whose lives have been terminated by God’s direct action - and what He does, is justifiable on the grounds of His Omniscience. And in Revelation 3:23 - speaking of the self- styled “prophetess” in the Thyatira congregation, (Jezebel) God says - “I, will kill, her children, with death.”(her children are of course those who have believed her teachings).

There is a third and final part - that must be added to the existing 2 legs of our foundation: but first - a brief recapitulation. (1) - Under the Old Covenant - most killing was not defined, as “murder”: and only murder, was specifically forbidden to God’s people. (2) - Under the New Covenant - all killing (except by God’s direct action) is set in the context of murder - and murder - is as much prohibited to Christ’s disciples, as it was to those under Moses’ Law!

It would seem therefore - that one conclusion we can make from what we have learned thus far - is that the 6th commandment, does apply, to Christ’s disciples; - not in the same way, it did to the Jews - but in an even broader, and more inclusive way: that is, that all killing is murder - and therefore no termination of human life is permissible to Christ’s disciples!

But the third part of our foundation, is that up until this point - the “killing”, the “murder” - prohibited under both Covenants has been limited to the physical act: that is, the killing of the human body: Now, however, we must add to this, 2 more facts; revealed within the New Covenant. (1) - “Hatred” - in 1 John 3:15 - is defined by God - as “Murder”! To hate - your brother, is to be, a murderer: and murderers - do not, have eternal Life - in them”(Jerusalem Bible) This word - applies - first of all - precisely to those who profess to be disciples of Jesus Christ (Just as does 1:9) And it applies secondly - to all people - because of the “whosoever” (in the K,,J.V.) The “brother”, here -(for the professing disciple) - is first - all other professing disciples: and secondly - all other persons. For those who do not profess to be Christ’s disciples - a “brother” - is any other human being.

By stretching the N.T. revelation described thus far - we might justify - some killing - IF - such killing could be accomplished without hatred: but, in addition to the factor of hatred - there is still a 2nd. Factor to be added, concerning a disciple’s attitude toward others - and this - is the quality of Love! Not just a human emotion called love - but the volitional Love, of God, -
in Christ’s disciples! The absence - of such a self-sacrificing Love - that is tangibly expressed - as needs arise — and as personal ability allows: Failure - to share one’s possessions: is lovelessness and such a person - is in the same spiritual condition - as the person who hates! “If you refuse to love, your brother, you must remain, dead”(1 John 3:14 Jerusalem Bible) “If a man who is rich enough in this world’s goods, sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against his brother, how can he claim that he has Love for God in his heart?”(1 John 3:17 T.E.V.) And in verse 20 of Chapter 4: (1 John) “If someone says - “I - Love - God”, and yet hates his brother - he is - a liar. For he can not - love God whom he has not seen if he does not, love his brother, whom he has seen” (T.E.V.) If failure - to share simple food and clothing - with brothers in need - indicates - the absence of spiritual Life - How then - can the act of depriving a brother of physical life - which is certainly far more personally precious to him, than more food and clothing) - how can such an act, be any less serious, or carry with it a less deadly consequence?

A foundation - sincerely believed to be both Scriptural and trustworthy, has been offered today. Upon such a foundation, Christ’s disciples can build their own attitudes - concerning the termination of life in a human being - and - concerning their personal relationships - to all other persons.

With specific reference to abortion (I had mentioned the week before that I would relate this commandment to this matter) your pastor’s personal attitude- (built upon this foundation, and built too, upon the persuasion, that a particular human life begins, at the moment of conception) - is that termination of the life of the fetus - is permissible only - when it is the indirect and unavoidable result, of saving - the life of the mother.

And with specific reference to War (had also promised to relate to this matter) - your pastor’s personal attitude - is that the termination of human life, whether for defensive or offensive motives - is an act forbidden, to a disciple of Jesus Christ - because - it is diametrically opposed, to the demonstration - through us - of God’s Love - for every person - even, for His enemies!

These concluding comments regarding abortion, and war, are only personal opinions. We have attempted to set before you the reasons leading up to these convictions - and would willingly discuss further any or all of the reasons and conclusions.

Each disciple, is his own priest before God! To his own Master, he stands or falls. Consider the evidence submitted . Think about it - as deeply and as carefully as you are able: arrive at your own conclusions: keep yourself open to additional Light from God’s Word: and experience, and demonstrate - genuine Love and acceptance toward other disciples who may not agree, with your conclusions.

The way of Love - is our Lord’s way, “Father, forgive them - for they know not - what they do.” “As I have loved you - love one another” “Love your enemies” “Turn the other cheek”

And then we had our closing prayer."

THE ROSE POEM

2008-03-19T15:28:00.000-07:00

Following is a poem passed down from my parents' parents. It is a good reminder to those of you who have been married for a while, lest we forget that God's word comands us to submitt ourselves one to another.

David

THE ROSE POEM

A rose within a crystal glass
A rose to wither and to pass:
It’s beauty fades, it’s glory goes
I know no way to keep a rose.

And yet, there is a rose that blooms
Forever in quiet rooms;
A rose within a fairer vase
Than purchased in the market place.

The rose is Love; The vase is home,
A rose that blossoms when we roam,
And when return, one rose God made
That need not wither, need not fade.

And yet, to keep that one rose fair,
The heart must also give it’s care.
Must nurture it with things like this:
The morning smile, the good-night kiss.

Aye, this is all the red rose needs;
Words of affection, helpful deeds,
Labors divided, burdens shared,
And eyes that looked as though they cared.

The rose of Love would bow it’s head
In rooms where angry words are said.
That rose will brace the wintry sky,
But when hearts chill, that rose will die.

If you the rose of Love possess,
Keep it alive with gentleness;
And crystal pure with tender hands
The vase called home in which it stands.

There is one rose — The rose of Love,
You need not know the fading of:
A rose that watered day by day
You never need to throw away.

author unknown

Letter of Resignation

2008-03-16T18:35:00.000-07:00

Following is the actual letter that I sent to the other elders of my church. I sent the letter via my brother in arms who is also resigning as an elder and member of the church. He shared that the Pastor agreed to read the letter in front of the congregation though I am no longer attending and can not verify if he followed through or not. I can only hope that the other church members don't read it hear first

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March 9, 2008

To the Pastor/Elders of the xxx xxx Community Church,
Dear Brothers,

I believe in recent years that our church has been dieing. We have abandoned the faithful proclamation of sound doctrine in favor of vague teaching designed to welcome and accommodate a broad diversity of thinking. I believe we are guilty of nourishing a tolerant atmosphere in hopes of attracting new members. In recent months, there is little mention of sin and repentance from our pulpit. New members testimonies are devoid any mention of sin, and repentance. Are we inadvertently communicating universal forgiveness, which ignores God's sovereign election(John 6:44)? This only leads unbelievers to false salvation(Matthew 7:21). We mis-interpret the meaning of love, and freedom, tip toeing around sin, hoping not to scare unbelievers away.
How is it that the people of our church aren't testifying about the miraculous work of God-the-Holy spirit in transforming their sinful lives? Why aren't the people calling unbelievers to repent and worship Jesus as Lord? Why are we singing fewer praises of God's holiness and Lordship?
The only conclusion I can grasp is that we, as church leaders have failed to endure sound doctrine(2 Timothy 4:1-5). God's Written word is the only trustworthy tool for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness. Our interdenominational thinking forces us to tolerate extra biblical doctrine, as opposed to taking a stand, and exposing error and truth. We are called to preach the word of God(2 Tim 4:1-5) which cuts to the soul of mankind(Hebrews 4:12).
Pastor's new doctrine, preaching the trustworthiness of our heart's desires, discourages the people from spending more time in God's written word, while encouraging them to listen to God's voice, as He speaks supernaturally, supposedly using our individual desires and passions to guide us. This type of thinking rejects the bible's exclusivity and sufficiency, opening a Pandora's box of extra-biblical ideas.
In light of our interdenominational thinking and Pastor's new doctrine, I am compelled to humbly resign my position as Deacon/Elder and my families membership in the xxx xxx Community Church.

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I grieve my past apathy over the spiritual growth of our church. I am forced to examine my heart and my role as a leader, both in the Church and in my home. I am determined to live as a slave to my Lord. He bought me with his blood. A good and faithful slave does not exercise his own will but lives only in the will of his lord. I will deny my desires. I will deny my passions. I will submit only to the will of God as revealed through his written word.
I have no ill feelings toward any member of the church, and I will always consider you to be my brothers in Christ as I fight the Lord's battle from another camp. I solicit your prayers as I strive to become more like Christ as a husband, father and slave of our Lord and Master Jesus Christ.
I will continue to pray for the xxx xxx church, that God will loudly call sinners to repentance through the careful study and preaching of His Written word.
Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever. Amen!(Rev 7:12)NAS
With continued love in Christ.
Sincerely
David

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The false doctrine of the trustworthiness of the desires of our heart
“The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9)NAS
This type of thinking:
Promotes a low view of scripture (1 Timothy 4:6)(1 Timothy 4:13-16)(2 Timothy 2:15-17)(2 timothy 3:15-4:5)(Romans 10:17)
Promotes a focus on “self”(Matthew 16:24,25)
Promotes an improper view of God's regenerative work(Phi 1:6)

I am now visiting a bible based church that leans more towards John Calvin and Reformed theology, although, they are baptistic and pre-millennial. I will not have any trouble with their eschatology but they may not like that I was baptised as an infant. I look forward to meeting with the Pastor and elders to explore their doctrine more thoroughly. The Pastor was at Shepard's Conference this year and is a graduate of Cornerstone Seminary in vellejo. At least one of the elders is a graduate of the Masters Seminary

David

Shepard's Conference 2008

2008-03-11T11:47:00.001-07:00

I was not prepared for God's work in my heart at the Shepard's Conference. This was my first year, and I did not know what it was like to be exposed to so many men who have given their lives to the careful study and preaching of God' Word. I forgot what it means to take up your cross, deny yourself and follow Jesus. The preaching of God's word was so clear and so powerful that I could not leave the conference being the same man I was. Isn't it sad how, when we forsake the assembling of ourselves as believers, we grow so apathetic and blind to the death that rots all around us. Forsake? you ask. I thought you went to church David?

The body that my family has called church for the last ten years is an interdenominational group of people and with the exception of a few, they care not about sound doctrine nor want to hear it preached. The Church's website proclaims:

"We are a Family Church welcoming all to experience the comfortable feel of a small local Church body. No matter your creed or position in life, you will find the warmth and acceptance of our Lord Jesus Christ who came to comfort us with the Good News of eternal life through Him. Singles, families, those in transition, young, old, believers, non-believers, the oppressed, all are welcome here. Escape the bustle of the city, relax for a spell."

Are you serious? No matter your creed or position in life, your will find warmth and acceptance from Jesus? Escape the bustle of the city, relax for a spell"? What about sin and repentance? What about those who called him Lord, Lord and who prophesied in Jesus name and Jesus said I never knew you? With talk like this we might as well be warming and accepting people strait to hell.

Don't get me wrong, we are called to love our neighbor and to love one another, but 2 cor 13:6 shows us that "Love" is more than warmth and acceptance! Love does not rejoice in unrighteousness but rejoices with the truth!

It is no wander that my wife and I fight and argue about every little selfish thing! It is no wander that my children disobey and dishonor their mother! I take full responsibility for their lack of growth and that is going to change right now!

I sent a letter of resignation to the elders of the church today, and I have already started looking for a new church body. I feel no hardness for the individuals in the church and I will pray that my leaving may be a wake up call for them to get back into the bible and to forget about church growth. We don't need to concern ourselves with building the church because Jesus promised that he would take care of that.

Preach and they will come!

David

God's Providence (a true story from Shasta County)

2008-02-28T19:14:00.000-08:00

A small struggling church, perhaps not unlike my own, is faithfully going about the business of preaching the Gospel. One could probably assume that the church leadership and its pastor are true and good stewards of God's resources and spend the treasury funds wisely. I don't know every thing about this particular church but they have regular financial commitments and money has been tight. The church receives a regular income, most likely through regular donations and the pastors personal salary is allocated from the church treasury. The pastor of the small financially troubled church remembered that the apostle Paul worked as a tent maker so as not to financially burden churches that he planted during his missionary trips, and he expressed a desire to do the same for his church. He wanted to become the proverbial tent maker.
There is a Family in Shasta County, though not part of this particular fellowship, experienced tough times in their former church not long ago. The pastor and leadership of this family's former church faced great personal conflict and it lead to the removal of the pastor. The family felt that their pastor had been treated harshly and they now minister to many local pastors by bringing them in to their home and making sure they experience God's love through hospitality and a fellowship. The hospitable family was amazed when they herd of the pastor's desire to find a full time job. It was no coincidence that the Man of the house managed a small business in Redding and was currently looking for a new employee. The job would be a wonderful opportunity for the pastor because he would only be obligated to work until early afternoon and he would have ample time left in the day to fulfill his responsibilities at the church. This was truly a blessed and visible work of God.
I love listening to talk radio and occasionally I am able to listen to Paul Harvey's “The Rest of the Story”. I have written today's post in that flavor. God is sovereign and I trust him with all my heart. I am at peace with God and myself with his decision to provide a job to the pastor in my story. You see I am currently unemployed and that very same job had been offered to me up until this morning, in fact you might say the job was ripped out from under me because I was actually scheduled to start work on the 10th of March. I know that God will fill the desires of my heart because it is my desire that His kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven and I rejoice in the knowledge that the small church will be financially able to continue to preach the Gospel. To God be the glory for he has provided for his own and He will continue to the end of time.
Amen
David

Ask Not What The Church Can Do For you.

2008-02-26T21:58:00.000-08:00

I have been wrestling with a dilemma about the true meaning of church membership. It seems that in our current culture, there are so many branches of the Christian church that any one could find a church to suit their needs. Should that be the true test of a church? Does it meet my needs? I would like to propose that much like the essentials of our christian faith, the individual Christian has a list of essentials that a church should meet. That same Christian also has a list of non-essentials that a church need not meet.

A few of my church essentials:

Doctrine
My church should hold dear the same doctrines that I do

Demographic
My church should be made up of people that I can open up to and relate well with.

Stewardship
My church should spend money in a way that I can agree with and continue to support.

Leadership
My church should possess a leadership that is willing to preserve it's Doctrine in adversity.

Teaching
My church should have a dedicated bible teacher who masterfully unfolds God's written word.

Music

My church should regularly sing songs that re-iterate it's doctrine

A few of my church non-essentials:

The fence

I don't care how tall the fence is.

The sound system

I don't care if we are plugged in or not.

The choir

I prefer to sing from my own seat and I freely give the same prerogative to all who worship with me.

I think you get the basic idea, Doctrine is on the top of my list but there are many reasons why people choose a church.

what are some of your church essentials?

Feel free to comment.

David

Husbands, Love Your Wives! (what if you don't)

2008-02-19T09:36:00.000-08:00

The title on this post may be slightly mis leading. You might expect me to discuss how a husband can over come a lack of emotional attachment and still effectively "LOVE" his wife. That is not my intent.

Husbands are commanded to love their wives with a huge emphasis on sacrifice (Eph 5:25). Husbands are also commanded to love their wives as their own bodies (Eph 5:28).

Wives are commanded to be subject to their husbands in every thing (Eph 5:24).

It is entirely possible that in our current culture, the majority of married Christian women believe that their husbands are poorly equipped to fulfill the emotional needs of their wives. I would venture to guess that a large number of those women wish they could find some way to educate their husbands in the finer points of emotional tenderness. I want to explore some potential mistakes that a believing woman can make in her quest to refine her husband. Let us assume hypothetically, for the sake of this post, that some Christian men have fallen short of fulfilling the call to love their wives, but they are not grossly living in overt sin.

What should a Christian woman do if her husband doesn't keep up his end of the bargain?

First I want to go over some mistakes that godly women in the bible made which had massive consequences.

The first married woman in history is Eve. Eve was not around yet when God spoke to Adam about the forbidden tree in the middle of the garden. She likely received instruction directly from her husband not to eat of it. When Satan convinced her to eat, he did so by convincing her to question the true motive behind Adams instruction from God. Eve chose to disobey her husband and God because she had been convinced by Satan that God's motives were selfish. She chose to take matters into her own hands because she thought she new better than her husband.

Sarai was Abram's wife who had not been able to provide children to Abram after over 10 years of trying. Sarai never lost faith in God's promise of many descendants to Abram, but she became impatient and talked herself into believing that God would provide those descendants through another woman, thus she convinced Abram to sleep with Hagar the hand maid which was an act of adultery. Sarai took matters into her own hands and because of her impatience, she did not believe that God would fulfill his promise supernaturally.

Lot's wife tragically lost her life when she looked back as she was fleeing the destruction of Sodom, perhaps she was curious, scared, or maybe even sad about it's destruction but God commanded her not to look back and her disobedience cost her life.

Eve, Sarai, and Lot's wife all made a conscious decision to trust in their own judgment, and to ignore what God had commanded. It seems that Eve and Sarai had justified their disobedience because of extenuating circumstances. God's command for wives to submit and subject themselves to their husbands should be no different, extenuating circumstances can not provide justification for disobedience.

We know from various references in 1 Timothy that women can be tempted to falling in to hot tempers, gossip, slander, irreverence and laziness (1 tim 3:11, 1 tim 5:13).

The hypothetical, virtuous wife that we find in proverbs 31, provides comfort for her husband. She only praises him and his good reputation is known in the town because she is smart, morally strong and a hard worker. She works hard to provide meals for her house day and night. She uses her own money to add to her husbands wealth. Every thing she does benefits her husband and lifts him up. I can't seem to find any passage in the old or new testament that would indicate that a wife has the responsibility to stand up for herself or to take it upon herself to make her husband into a better person. I am not aware that scripture gives her freedom to subvert or undermine her husband for any reason. So I ask again, What should a Christian woman do if her husband doesn't keep up his end of the bargain?

The issue here is not wheather a wife should obey her husband. The real issue is, does an unloving husband justify her disobedienc of God?

My point is this, there is no good excuse for a Christian wife to do or say anything that is designed to compromises her husbands reputation, cause mental anguish, manipulate his will or subvert his authority. She can not justify disobeying God even if her husband is not keeping up his end of the bargain..

God does not commission wives to educate their husbands in tenderness. It is not the wifes goal or responsibility to see her husband grow and mature in Christ. In the context of this post, wives should never go outside of the home looking for help to cope with or change their husbands. The Christian wife should be consumed with serving her husband and being his loyal subject, not for what she gets out of it but as an act of pure worship and obedience to her living savior and God.

I have in no means exhausted the bible on this topic and I welcome discussion. Please feel free to ad your comments.

(update) I want to make sure this post is viewed within context of my greater belief about submission in marriage. please view my post about husband's responsibility to love their wives by clicking the link below:

http://scripture-hound.blogspot.com/2008/05/service-not-lordship.html
David

LOVE! and true believers.

2008-01-28T10:54:00.000-08:00

I love my wife, children, extended family and friends. I love my neighbors and hardest of all I love my enemies.

I am making two confessions in this post:

Love is easier said than done.

The current culture of tolerance is false love.

True believers are confronted every day with the love dilemma. How do we obey the most important commandment that Jesus ever gave, without compromising righteousness? I hate conflict, in fact I avoid it at all cost. I have discovered that it is much easier to keep my opinions to myself, therefore avoiding a lot of personal confrontation. What does that say about my desire to proclaim the gospel of Jesus? I want to take a stand for all that is true but if I am honest, I fear any argument that could damage relationships. I have, on occasion, taken a stand against intimate relations outside of marriage. I also have been quite outspoken against recreational alcohol and on nearly every occasion it lead to strain on a relationship.

Most of us have heard about the "common word between us" document that was authored by Muslim scholars as an invitation to the greater "christian" community. They basically want Christians and Muslims to overlook certain differences in order to focus on what is common for the sake of a peaceful relationship between the two religions. One of my readers, "sappy", found a response from John Piper that is most excellent. Listen to see if you catch what he says about the love of Jesus and how true believers should communicate love to the Muslim people. Can Pipers words be true in other relationships with non believers?

http://www.desiringgod.org/Blog/1032_a_common_word_between_us/

I look forward to reading many comments on this thought.

David

Who Do You Worship!

2008-01-21T10:56:00.000-08:00

I don't think I have ever been accused of worshiping idols or bowing to false gods. What about following the teachings of a well established, bible based teacher? Is that worshipping the teacher? Should I dismiss the opinions of a great man for fear of falling into false worship? What if that great man happens to be one of the few that are gifted with a high dose of discernment?

It is rare that I get the opportunity to discuss theology with some of my friends. More often we discuss personal issues or interests such as movies and hobbies, and we frequently allow gossip and course talk, what a shame! It has always been a challenge to initiate an open discussion about bible doctrine. All of my close friends are professing Christians and they can articulate the "Gospel" fairly well. Many of my friends and peers consider my doctrine to be slightly "on the fringe". Most think I am too judgmental and they tire quickly of theological debate.

why else might some of my friends and family avoid discussing doctrine with me? Maybe their brain hurts when they think too much. Are they simply insecure in their own ability to discern true doctrine? Perhaps they are intimidated by my passion and willingness to place more importance on truth and less importance on the self esteem of others. Maybe they have closed their minds to truth in favor of getting along with each other. If we avoid taking a stand on doctrine for the sake of relationships, how do we respond to the words of Jesus in Mat 10:34-36:

34 "Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 "For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; 36 and a man's enemies will be the members of his household."

I have always been uncomfortable taking a stand based solely on my own knowledge of scripture. I am not a well educated man. I dropped out of college after two years and no degree. Most of what I know is gleaned from preachers, books, human experience and logic. I believe it to be impossible for me to sit with my bible and discover a revelation about God that may have been missed by men like John MacArther, Erwin Lutzer, R.C. Sproll etc. I rely heavily on men who make it their life's priority to unlock the mysteries of God's word. On most occasions when I voice a strong opinion related to a highly controversial doctrine, I will lean on the teaching of someone "larger" than me for support. I get a feeling of validation knowing that I agree with a well known figure head in the faith. My reliance on learning from good teachers has forced me to listen to many different sermons and many different points of view. I am beginning to give more credence to certain preachers. I believe that ability to discern true doctrine is a valid gift from God, of which is not given in equal doses to every true believer. This sounds arrogant but I think it's possible that I may be more gifted in that area than some of my peers and that is why some preachers stand out in my mind. Their teaching makes more sense to me.

I acknowledge that there is a real danger in blindly following the teaching of one man! Our faith must be deeply rooted in the belief that God's written word is beyond reproach. Every thought and idea must be filtered through the words of scripture and scrutinized by truth. It is my strong opinion that true believers will be compelled by the spirit to align ourselves with each other and use each other for support. What do I say then to my dear brethren who run away from my opinions when they disagree? I try to show them that I line up with some of the great men of God in our time. Does that mean I am worshipping the preacher? How Absurd! How do I confront error on my own authority? What do I say to those who's interpretation of scripture are in opposition to mine? Should my only evidence of discernment be "Because I said so"? Of course not! I don't worship any man other than Jesus the Christ. When a great man of God says something that sounds good to me, I will reference his name, whoever it may be. If John MacArther's preaching frequently confirms my own opinions, I will recommend his preaching frequently.

I am not afraid to learn a lot from one man as long as he continues to rightly divide the word of truth.

David

LOST!

2008-01-17T20:19:00.000-08:00

I haven't decided yet how personal is too personal when it comes to publishing on the Internet, but I think I will throw this out there and see what happens.

I have had four different full time jobs in the last decade. When I asked counselors in high school for help deciding on a career they gave me a list of possible jobs and basically said "you better choose before you graduate so you can go to college". I couldn't find anything on their list that looked very fun so I trudged through two years of college specializing in general education. I tried computer programming, biology, music, and even took tennis and bowling as electives. It didn't take long for me to run out of money and ambition and so I fell back on my families small town business, working for a little more than minimum wage. I was relatively content to work there until I found someone who loved me and we got married. I knew that I would need a higher paying job to support a family and so we moved to an adjacent city that promised cheaper housing and better job opportunities. That is where my sales career begins. My first sales job payed quite well but I had to work 12 to 15 hour a day going door to door, rain or shine, with a giant freezer truck. My next sales job had cushy 8am to 5pm hours and a car allowance but my boss was never happy with quantity of new customers that I brought in. My current job was a promising career move which could have lead to owning my own insurance agency. I work unsupervised, my boss never complains about my sales performance but I spend way too much time telemarketing and I recently discovered that my boss can't afford to keep me...at least he never complained:) I don't know how else to say it....I am desperate. I have grown to detest sales quotas, and fast paced, self motivated sales jobs in general. Most of my friends and family want me to be a preacher but I really don't enjoy being in front of people or dealing with the pshyco/political nature of church government. I feel like a salmon who has been fighting her way to spawn only to discover that the hatchery is not open for business yet. What should I do? where do I go? How long do I have to wait? I am at a complete loss for direction in my career. I want a new start and I am sincerely tired of doing what I don't enjoy and I want a way out, but there doesn't seem to be any. My deepest desire is to find satisfaction and fulfilment in what ever job I do but nothing I have done so far has met that need. This is my heart talking. I am allowing my emotions to vent briefly to the public because I know that God is working and has been preparing me for some greater task and I pray that I rise to the challenge of whatever he asks me to do, but for now I morn deeply for I am blind and wish to see.

David

Boycotts!

2008-01-13T19:47:00.000-08:00

From time to time the greater christian community stumbles across major companies that engage in egregious activities. I remember a while back we herd that the owner of Proctor and Gamble was a Satan worshiper and so we are supposed to avoid supporting any of his brands or subsidiaries. I herd someone today at church mention that they avoid buying food from Carl's Jr because of the blatant innuendos present in their advertising. If we were to boycott every malfeasance that came through the Christian grapevine we could truly be a powerful force in the consumer market. Is that what God wants? Does He want us to use our power in numbers to manhandle companies or politicians. What about the early church? Were they exposed to any such situation? I am thinking of the early "meat market" where the meat came from several different sources. Some meat was offered to idols and sold for a profit out the back door. The meat market was a place where any citizen could go to buy a nice rack of ribs or a prime steak, but they might be buying meat that had once been part of a sacrifice to idols. The meat market was also a place where prostitutes were plentiful. I imagine that a modern day christian might want to boycott a place like that, but what did the apostle Paul say to the Corinthians? Lets show those heathen a lesson? Let's band together and boycott the meat market so that our enemy can be thwarted? On the contrary, He said that the idles are nothing. Paul said "Eat whatever is sold in the meat market, asking no question for conscience sake; for the earth is the Lord's, and the fullness of it."(1cor 10:25 Mkjv). To put it crudely in my own words, what you don't know won't kill you and it all came from God to start with. If you can buy a Carl's Jr double western bacon cheeseburger or a can of Proctor and Gamble Chile with a clear conscience, then go for it and give thanks to God almighty for his provision. If you happen to be shopping with another believer who's conscience might be violated by your purchase then show good judgement so as not to make a brother stumble. God's word is very clear that the condition of our individual heart is far more important than the works that we do. We would do well to avoid jumping on the various christian boycott band wagons and continue to focus on a pure heart, one that is not easily blown around by the winds of popular opinion. Study God's word and be ready to rightly divide the word of truth so that you can discern false teaching and take a stand against the enemy's true effort which is to propogate lies and mis-information about the Christ. The God-man, who is Jesus the one and only begotton son of God, who is continuously calling his sheep to believe. Don't let that which is temporal distract you from that which is eternal.

David

Useless Information

2008-01-08T19:17:00.000-08:00

I promised to tell you my guess as to who sappy was and I also promised to talk about the story behind the B.K.

I mentioned in my introduction that I am good at putting my foot in my mouth and that is exactly what I did when I inadvertently named my new airsoft gun. You can read my first post to get the story about my cousins 6 year old son and his Christmas present. I had very carelessly joked about shooting the 6 year old before he could shoot me and I suggested to my kids that we could call the toy gun our B..... Killer. The boys name starts with a B. Those of you in my family and close circle of friends know that I was pretty embarrassed when my daughters told their grandma that "Daddy was going to kill B..... My mom was shocked to here her granddaughters talk that way and so my oldest daughter suggested that maybe we should just use the acronym "BK" because it doesn't sound as bad. so there you have it. I will rarely use the names of my friends and family because the blog is open to anyone on the Internet to view with no restrictions so those of you who don't know who I am talking about then use your imagination.

Now who do I think sappy is? I am pretty sure it's my dear mother.

until next time

David

Emerging church a marketing ploy?

2008-01-07T19:20:00.000-08:00

I used to have a hard time reconciling two particular truths in scripture. Eph 1:4-6 states with regard to true believers:

"According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, To the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the beloved." KJV

Mark 16:15 says:

"And He said unto them, go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." KJV

Why would God command his remaining eleven apostles (and all true believers by extension) to preach the Gospel, when indeed he had already predestinated those who would be saved? I have a silly little philosophy that I use when I seem to find contradictions in scripture. I know that God breathed His written word and thus one of my interpretations must be wrong. I can usually find one point of view that is very clear, and I filter the less clear point of view through the very clear point of view. Let take for example the truth of God's sovereignty vs. the choice of man. I have no doubt that God is sovereign therefore I filter any questions about the choices we make through the fact that God is sovereign. Thus I conclude that God works his will through the choices of man. I reject the popular claim that man has the ability to thwart God or that God is in some way putting himself at risk by giving man the ability to make a choice. Fortunately in the case of Predestination vs. preaching the Gospel, God's command to preach overrides any questions about weather or not preaching is necessary. So I conclude that when we preach God's word, true believers will genuinely respond to the Gospel and every one else will fall into one of two categories: Fake believers, or those who openly reject the Gospel.

Now I come to the 5 minute radio spot heard on KVIP. An organization called "Understand the times" airs briefly on KVIP every day and I don't usually hear it. Last Friday however I took half a day off work to fix my storm tossed fences and while driving to the lumber yard, I had the privilege of hearing a very well done commentary on how people respond to the Gospel. The question? Is the emerging church movement a good marketing plan for reaching people for Christ or is it Satan's way of luring fake believers into a false Gospel? The commentary is a must hear.

2386 - What's Wrong With Reaching People?
http://www.understandthetimes.org/windowsmedia/11.wma

2387 - What About The Good Within The Bad?
http://www.understandthetimes.org/windowsmedia/12.wma

P.S. I believe I know who sappy is and I will reveal sappy's true identity and what B.K. means in my next post.

David

Weathering the storm!

2008-01-06T09:24:00.000-08:00

I was worked all day Saturday rebuilding fences that blew down in the storm and I was pleased that one of my neighbors came out and spent most of the day helping. Several noteworthy items from yesterday include:

A visit from a Jehovah's witness and her daughter.

A brief opportunity to share the Gospel with my neighbor.

An excellent 5 minute radio spot on KVIP (the local non-denominational "Christian" radio station).

I will talk about the visit from the Jehovah's witness, and sharing the Gospel with my neighbor in this post because one led to another. I will talk about the radio spot in another post because it was very insightful and spoke about the biggest current trend in "Christian movements" and it deserves more focused thought.

While my neighbor and I were working on our shared fence I had to make several trips in to my garage to find tools. During one of these garage endeavors, I nearly bumped into a nice looking middle aged lady and her school aged daughter. I suspected that she was a Jehovah's witness immediately. My suspicions were confirmed when she pulled out one of her over sized multi-page tracts. I admit that I was annoyed and not willing to entertain a discussion with her but I wanted to set a good example in front of her daughter. I have to give her credit for a very imaginative marketing technique, she suggested that my wife could use the "Awake!" magazine as a curriculum in her home daycare business. I wanted to take as little time as possible so I suggested that the magazine would be helpful to me when I explain to my children what we don't believe. The well dressed lady hesitated and asked me "what do you believe?" I told her as lovingly as possible that I was a Christian fundamentalist and suggested that she do a Google search for Calvinism and reformed theology and to look for the T.U.L.I.P. acronym. I then thanked her for her time and asked her to excuse me so I could get back to work. I don't know if that was the best thing to say but it was the first thing that came to my mind when she asked.

When I returned to the "dig site" I explained to my neighbor that Jehovah's Witness (JWs)teach that Jesus died and rose again and His death paid the price for our sins and they also believe that Jesus is God's son but they don't believe Jesus when he says "I and the Father are one" or "he who has seen me has seen the Father". The Jews understood what Jesus meant because they had him crucified for his claims to be God. The JWs teach that Jesus is a created being and that he was created for the purpose of being saviour (heresy anyone?). My neighbor didn't say very much, but we worked well together for most of the day. Maybe he will continue to think about what I said and God will work in his heart.

Stay tuned for the true definition of the B.K. and to find out why I enjoyed hearing about the "emerging church" on KVIP, and the true identity of "sappy".

David

p.s. To those of you who didn't notice, I made some changes to the original post about my cousin and his son. I removed the fake names because they were in poor taste and I didn't think before I made the first post. Any comments referring to those nick names will be moderated out of the forum. Please feel free to re-post your comments without using the names. (Foot in mouth # 1. :))

Bad weather brings damage and grief

2008-01-04T20:10:00.000-08:00

I am very tired and very sore this evening. If you have been following the weather you know the wind in the northern Central valley was bad today. We had gusts over 60 mph. My wife and I woke up this morning to downed fences in the back yard. I was concerned that our camping trailer(a chalet) could be blown over so I dressed up in rain gear and went out to fold it down. That turned out to be the biggest mistake of the year. As soon as I folded the side panels in, the front roof panel blew all the way over and tore the sheet metal. My wife called her cousin for help and the three of us had to push as hard as we could to flip it back into place. I went to work for half the day and then came home to spend the rest of the day building new fences, at least I didn't have to stay at work all day. Now I am watching a strange new version of the Wizard of OZ with my kids. Weird show.

so long for now.

David

Intro to me.

2008-01-03T17:57:00.000-08:00

I do not intend to be a "blogger"! I only want to pretend to be a "blogger"! I will almost never post new material because I would rather be doing anything else! Occasionally, I May post something that will get me in trouble with my friends and family. I will put my foot in my mouth a lot so please forgive me now. I love changing my mind and I hate to be told what to do. I do not handle suffering very well at all and I care way too much what people think about me. I love anything that makes my life more convenient. I am horrible at spelllling, grammar, and punctuation!.? I despise being in front of any group of people, and I take way to long to make important decisions. I hate to argue but I like to be right. I don't smoke or drink and I think that both are dangerous not to mention habit forming.

That being said I love God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, three persons, one God. I worship Jesus as Lord and as God incarnate. I believe that God has purposefully chosen some to be saved and some to be lost according to the pleasure of his good will. I believe that all of eternity past, present and future are pre-ordained and pre-destinated by the sovereign, triune God of Abraham. I believe the biggest miracles in life are that God accomplishes His will through the choices of man, and that God actually chooses to save any of us. I tend to be very Calvinistic in my theology but only because Calvin's "T.U.L.I.P." is spot on.

http://www.thecaveonline.com/APEH/calvinTULIP.html

I believe that God speaks to modern man exclusively through the well established 66 books of His written word. I believe that it is possible for any translation of the bible to be flawed but the original manuscripts are divinely and miraculously penned by God the Holy Spirit. I believe that Satan is God's slave and that God uses him to test true believers. I believe that when God is done with Satan, He will banish him to eternal captivity and torment in the same hell as non-believers. I believe Satan to be dependant on his own senses to gather information and therefore not capable of reading or controlling the mind of a believer. I believe that demons make up one third of the so called spirit world and angels make up the other two thirds. I believe that Satan and his demons use lies and deceit to mis-lead people in to believing in false gods. I believe that the souls of man immediately and directly enter eternity when they die and therefore are not capable of roaming the earth on their own power.
There is a lot more that I believe but I also want to do more than blog tonight. Maybe I'll try again another day.

The thought occurred to me that I may or may not have directly told all of my friends and family about my car accident late last year. I posted a picture of the other car. unfortunately this was my fault but nobody hurt.

I also thought some of you might like to see my new airsoft gun. My cousin called from Walmart on Christmas eve asking for advise on what kind of airsoft gun to get his 6 year old son. I suggested a low power unit because he has a tendency to be a little hazardous. I ended the call feeling good about the advice, but my cousin called back after spying an electric powered fully automatic machine gun that shoots plastic BBs at over 300 feet per second. That's more than mach .25. I don't know if he finally chose the hi powered machine gun but I decided that I had better get myself some protection for the next time I visit their house. Hence the "B.K." (you figure it out).