I don’t know exactly what you ponder in those quiet moments when you become really reflective about life.  But I would venture thoughts of the afterlife sneak in there every now and then.  What will happen to me?  Where will I be forever?  Will I cease to exist?  Will I go to Heaven?  A man named Nicodemus had these same questions circling his mind.  What’s interesting about Nicodemus is most people would think he already had all the answers of life.  He was wealthy, very religious and a leader among the Jews as a Pharisee.  In John chapter 3, Jesus reminds us that it does not matter what we have obtained, how great others think we are or even how great we think we are.  What matters is what Jesus thinks.  Jesus said in verse 7,  “you must be born again.”  In other words, we need a radical change if we are to see or even enter the kingdom of God.  We cannot enter Heaven in the same condition that we entered this life, sinful and separated from God.  The only way to be reunited with God is through a second birth, a spiritual birth.  This spiritual birth takes place when we recognize and admit our sinfulness to a holy God and turn to Him for forgiveness and cleansing.  Turning to Him is the idea of believing and trusting in Jesus Christ, God’s Son, who died for our sins and arose from the grave the third day.  He took our place that we might be “born again,” “saved,” or “redeemed.”  You can take that uncertain thought about the future that invades your mind every now and then and make it captive to this truth, “for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord, will be saved.” (Romans 10:13)  To settle your eternity and destination “you MUST be born again.”  How have you handled that nagging question of what happens after death?  Think it over by reading John chapter 3 with a sweet tea in hand and share your thoughts.

This past Sunday our church spent some time in John 2 and discussed the scenario where Jesus cleansed the temple of the money changers.  As Jesus made His way to Jerusalem for the Passover, He decided to make a stop at the Temple.  While He observed those that sold oxen, sheep and doves at inflated stadium or airport like pricing, a righteous anger swelled up inside of Him.   He made a whip of cords and drove them all out of the temple with His commanding and authoritative presence.  He then proceeded to flip over the tables where the money changers did their greedy work as well.

This passage is often misused to bring a guilty conscience towards a church for attempting to sell something.  That is not my intent in this blog, however there is something to be applied here.  The great zeal and righteous anger Jesus had wasn’t simply because they had sold the animals to those that were attempting to obey the law and make their sacrifices.  His anger was because they charged an enormous amount for this convenience.  One commentator said they were selling the equivalent of nickel doves for four dollars!  That is price gouging.  If the church has something that members are required to have access to and then charges an inflated price for it this may be an equivalent application.  Most churches do not charge for communion, but can you imagine the church charging twenty dollars for that little cup of juice and twelve dollars for that little cracker?  Just trying to cover the cost, huh? Or would if the church in an attempt to cover the cost of the water in the baptistery charged three hundred dollars per baptism or fifty dollars per ride to church to the cover rising cost for the church van?

Those are probably the better comparisons to the cleansing of the Temple than having a fundraiser.  However there is a statement Jesus made that should make us examine to what extent we raise funds by selling merchandise.  Jesus said in verse 16, “do not make my house a house of merchandise!”  In short, I believe Jesus wants the church to be known for what she is giving the community in time, love, action and ministry rather than what she is always asking for?  Are God’s people today known as givers or takers?  I am not against fundraising altogether, but these are just some thoughts to ponder.  Do you think a church should sell merchandise?   If so, what do you fundraise for and how do you regulate it?

For starters realize that we are not comparing apples to apples.  There is a difference in the wine from Bible times to today.  It is a mistake however for us to state that all the wine that was used in the Bible was just grape juice.  Yes, some actually claim this.  Remember, there was no way to keep the juice from fermenting.  In the warm climate the juice would begin to ferment in as little as six hours!  So the wine mentioned in the Bible is almost always fermented or alcoholic.  The longer it fermented the higher the alcoholic content would increase.  Most fermented wine would be considered strong drink if it were not mixed with water.  Historical documents show that the normal mixture was anywhere from one part wine to three to ten parts water.  They diluted it so they wouldn’t get drunk as well as to purify the water.  So technically, yes a Christian could drink wine properly mixed with water, but here are a few thoughts before you go grab a drink and use that Christian liberty.

1.  You will NEVER worry about getting drunk if you drink products with 0% alcoholic content.

2.  If you want to purify your water like they did back then,  go buy a Brita filter or bottled water.

3.  Welches grape juice offers the same health benefits as a glass of wine per day.

4.  While they were limited on beverage choices, we have dozens of them.

5.  It’s really not that cool, especially when unbelievers are confused by our actions and new Christians stumble.

6.  Most wines today are considered the equivalent of strong drink in the Bible and are clearly condemned.

7.  If your stomach hurts you don’t have to pull out the wine like Timothy did, we can go to CVS to take care of that stomach ailment.

So Christian, still have a good reason to drink? Go knock yourself out, but consider yourself warned.

Virginia I have observed a few things that might help you secure that legacy for generations to come. So in no particular order here they are!

Transportation is always an issue when maintaining hillbilly status.  Continue to drive the riding lawnmower around town for the short trips while wearing your favorite football jersey.  Just last year I saw a man drive across a major highway in front of our church on his tractor wearing a Dallas Cowboys jersey. (Yes, I am making a subtle connection between hillbilly and cowboy fans.) There was no doubt he was securing his legacy.

Speaking of clothing, when your favorite Cowboy jersey is dirty (dirt really isnt an issue here) or it is just too cold outside, be sure to have plenty of camouflage. Jackets, pants, seat covers, hats or anything else for that matter will work for this.  Pink camo is appropriate for women wishing to maintain this hillbilly status. Just make sure it is worn beyond hunting season, year round.

Lastly aesthetics are important.  Leave it where it dies.  It doesnt matter if it was the car, tractor, mower or oven. (Ovens may be pitched in the front yard).  The more objects that you have in the front yard the less grass you will have to mow. (A real hillbilly doesnt even have grass or worry about mowing it if he does).

How will you secure your hillbilly legacy for generations to come?

What Christians think about Sunday Football and Tebow top 10 list

I have been pondering several topics for months to write about on my blog but they all seem deep and time consuming to come around to.  I have ideas in my head to write about work, giving to the poor, Tim Tebow and a few other things.  I figured to break up the ice that I would go with something light hearted that can eliminate some stress .  Please don’t take this seriously or be offended if one of these is your view on the topic, try to have some fun with it.  So here goes a first ever top ten list for this blog on what Christians think about Sunday Football.

10. Watching Tebow play is like going to church or a substitute for it

9. Sunday football is a ploy of the devil to keep people out of church

8.  Wish Timmy attended their church on Sunday’s

7.  Trendy Saturday services were started for NFL fans

6.  Tebow mic up in a game is like a song service at church (google Bears game)

5.  It’s played on Sunday because of the Resurrection

4.  Christians choose a church with an early service that lets out before game time

3.  The Super Bowl should be used for outreach…..errrr, getting out of church

2.  Timmy is really not a Christian because he works on Sunday’s

1.  I would attend church every Sunday in the front row if Tebow was my pastor

Share some of your thoughts on what Christians think about Sunday Football!

Last week was an incredible week for those of us who live in central Virginia. We experienced a rare hurricane, an even more violent thunder-storm and it was all preceded by a jaw dropping earthquake that measured a 5.9 on the Richter scale.  Now it isn’t that I have never experienced devastating storms before. Hurricane Ivan from 2004 on the Gulf Coast is one that I will never forget.  It left the coast in shambles and converted the place into a third world country for a few weeks or even months.  I like to proudly wear my Hurricane Ivan t-shirt around here when everyone is fretting about 30-40 mile hour winds we get from a passing storm. The Hurricane however gave us a heads up. We had time to evacuate our home and head north days in advance. While this particular earthquake did not cause near the havoc and was considered midrange, (by one point on the Richter scale) it certainly got your attention.  When the earth quakes in a rare part of the country and it comes out of nowhere it grabs you a bit, it makes you feel small and helpless.

I know the folks from the West Coast are laughing at us right now and act as if this happens every other week in California.  Truth is major quakes (6.0 and higher) happen about once a year out west according to www.sandiegohistory.org.  We should not rush to the conclusion that the world is ending after last week’s events, after all these major quakes occur an average of 150 times worldwide each year.  Last week’s events should drive us to God and to the Bible to see what He says about these powerful shakings.  Let me show just a few passages of interest for your consideration.

Earthquakes were used in several ways throughout the Bible.  These earth rattlers often signaled the presence of God.  Judges 5:4 LORD, when You went out from Seir, When You marched from the field of Edom, The earth trembled and the heavens poured, The clouds also poured water;  Ps.68:8 The earth shook; The heavens also dropped rain at the presence of God; Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel.

Sometimes the quakes revealed that God was angry and was pouring out judgment.

Psalm 18:7 Then the earth shook and trembled; The foundations of the hills also quaked and were shaken, Because He was angry. Isa 29:6 You will be punished by the Lord of hosts with thunder and earthquake and great noise, With storm and tempest And the flame of devouring fire.

According to Matthew 24, increasing earthquakes in various places are one of the signs that His coming is near.  In Revelation 11 & 16 quakes will be used in future judgment during the tribulation period.  While we don’t know exactly what God’s purpose was in shaking the earth last week we can’t chalk it up to Cœcoincidence or mother nature.  We can bet God was trying to get our attention.  Could it be that God is saying to us wake up, wake up spiritually?

God used a quake to get the attention of a soldier in Acts 16.  This quake caused the soldier to cry out “What must I do to be saved?”  He started thinking about heaven and hell and eternal things.  Don’t let last week’s quake pass without serious contemplation.  Do you know where you will spend eternity?  Has there been a time when you turned from your sin and trusted in Jesus Christ who died on the cross and rose again to pay for our sins?  Christian, allow the circumstances of life to bring the focus back on Him.

Is all secular music wrong? Not all music must be for worship nor must it be spiritual.  Some argue that if it does not mention God then it isn’t appropriate for the Christian. If that is the case what should we do with the book of Esther? It is obviously about God, has everything to do with His providence, orchestration and control, but it does not once mention His name.  Many contemporary Christian songs are condemned for not mentioning the Lord or His shed blood, but neither does the book of Esther.  We must examine our thought process on these issues.  There can be patriotic music, love songs, humorous music and other purposes of music that are not sinful.  The chorus “Hail to the Redskins” sung about two or three times in recent football seasons by delusional skin fans cannot be from beneath, though their play often is.

I just finished reading through the Song of Solomon and was surprised again by the love poetry that was used.  If it wasn’t in the Bible I’m sure many of us would condemn it!  At the same time much of secular music is sinful by its content alone. There is a lot of adultery, greed, drunkenness, and other sin’s that are glorified.  It doesn’t have to be profane or use cursing to be sinful.  Some might argue here that the Bible contains accounts and stories of adultery, murder, and other sins and we are encouraged to read it and study it, what’s the difference? Well, those things are written for our learning and warning, while the secular music that typically contains these topics is glorifying it and normalizing it.

“Aren’t only certain types of music sinful?”  It doesn’t have to be rock or rap, it can be country, R&B, classical or any style of music and be wicked.  Individual selections within genres or styles should be judged on their own merits for the most part. Content along with the authors intent determines the purpose of the music more so than the genre or style.  If all secular music is rejected by the Christian, where does that leave secular talk shows, secular work, secular social events like the neighborhood and community event’s.  Should we avoid anything that doesn’t clearly communicate God?  Now before you run out and grab your favorite secular artist or turn the dial on the radio, keep a few things in mind.  While music does not have to be exclusively about God it should never dishonor God by glorifying the flesh or sin.  Most Christians will not be able to listen to secular stations or secular artist without throwing away 90% or more of it that is filled with debauchery and wickedness (unscientific survey of course).  You could even make the argument it is not worth the effort for the Christian to comb through the mud to find a few gems worth listening to when so much Christian music is accessible today. I buy that argument. So is all secular music wrong for the Christian? No, but be wise as serpents, walk circumspectly and examine it in the light of purity.  Above all run your music through the filter of Philippians 4:8,9.

“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy meditate on these things. ⁹

lasting message of the church.  In fact the resurrection of Christ is the most important teaching of Christianity, it is the truth in which everything in the Christian faith suspends from.  If Christ is not risen from the dead, then Christianity becomes an empty religion, a lie, a fraud of tremendous proportions.  If the body of Christ has rotted in some cave in Jerusalem then all of humanity is still condemned in their sins.  There is no forgiveness, eternal life or Heaven awaiting us if Christ did not arise from the grave.  His resurrection proved that He was God and that He overcame the power and penalty of sin and hell.  So while the festivities of Easter add to the enjoyment of the holiday, without the celebration of the empty tomb Christianity is empty and so is the holiday.

 This past Friday night abc on their program 20/20 aired a documentary on the Independent Fundamental Baptist movement. The program focused in on some scandals within a few of the churches that took place over the past decade. The IFB churches were not presented in a positive or favorable light whatsoever. It was implied and bluntly concluded that these churches are part of a cult, are very legalistic, controlling, and constantly cover up abuses.  Wow, what accusations!  The hard part is that Independent’s have no formal representation to defend themselves or respond.  Being that the readership of this newly launched blog is somewhere between 0-2 people from Russia who accidentally landed on this blog, my response will not suffice. But that will not stop me from responding!

 I have long tired of IFB cult like symptoms. Such ideas present IFB churches as the only way, the only true church, or the only bride of Christ. This presents an exclusiveness that is prideful and paranoid of anything that is even remotely different in style, methodology, or association.  Sometimes these legalistic standards are used to keep people bound and to add distinction and separation between them and everyone else.  We feel special that no one holds to our standards, no matter that they have little biblical moorings.  The good news is that not all of more than 10,000 IFB churches in America are like this, at least none that I have held membership in!

So what should our response be? First we need to clearly condemn actions that are inappropriate in these churches and distance ourselves.  That is if these actions can even be proven!  There is no evidence incriminating the pastors in this presentation.  There is guilt by association when they pull quotes from others about child discipline and other matters that have nothing to do with Pastor Phelps.  This may also mean dropping the embarrassing and dragged through the mud acronym “IFB.”  I have never used this to describe myself to others anyway.  It is unnecessary and damaging at this point for it has a completely negative connotation.  We must return to sound doctrine and not allow the Bible to be abused and taken out of context by extremist unchallenged. Second, we must stop putting IFB churches on a pedestal and kicking down others who may differ on secondary issues.  This is what cults do, stop drinking the cool aid.  Bible Churches, Southern Baptist Conservatives, General Baptist, and even other denominations and churches hold to the same fundamentals of the faith that IFB churches do, (unless you consider music preference, Bible translation and dress fundamentals.)  Maybe what we need is a little persecution.  Secondary issues become non-issues when you are both being thrown into the lion’s den.  Finally, you can’t believe everything on television.  No doubt parts of the story are true and parts have been taken out of context.  We can’t expect the media to present any church in a favorable light.  I can already hear the “IFBers” saying ”it’s all the media, were not crazy.” The sad thing is the truth is somewhere in the middle. 

 Thanks to many that participated in my facebook discussion!

You can view the 20/20 presentation @ http://abc.go.com/watch/2020/SH559026/VD55121488/2020-48-victims-forced-confession

*warning:  there is some distortion of truth in this presentation.  I personally do not believe most of the harmful accusations towards Chuck Phelps or Matt Olsen.  To see the other side of the story go to www.drchuckphelps.com The media tried to brand these men with some of the fringe of the IFB world.  I believe there are huge issues in the movement, but I think abc is way off base on these two men.