Two men. Two calls. Two responses. From Joppa, one man fled from God while another heeded God’s instructions. Every day, we walk the “streets of Joppa,” and are confronted with a decision. Will I heed God’s call, or will I turn a deaf ear and flee. As you “leave Joppa,” which direction will you be traveling today? Give it some thought.

I’m really looking forward to hearing the rest of the lessons this week and delivering a lesson on church growth on Wednesday.

If you’ve never attended, you’ll not regret making plans to attend next year.

• I am blessed to have been able to experience another phase of life.  One of the things that makes the death of a young person so difficult is the realization of how many things they were not able to experience.  I’ve been blessed to be able to experience childhood, college, getting married, and having and raising children.  I have paused to think of how many people do not get the opportunity to experience the joys that come from each of these milestones in life.  God intended life to be enjoyable, and by being the “Father of the Bride,” I’m able to experience yet another one of those milestones.

• I am blessed that my daughter is a Christian and has chosen to marry a young man who also is a Christian.  Together, they will help each other go to Heaven.  What more can a father want for his daughter than for her lifelong companion to be someone who will assist her in going to Heaven?  Because of their selection, they have both avoided so many pitfalls that come from separate allegiances, competing loyalties, and have greatly enhanced their own hopes for eternal life.  “Two are better than one…” (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12).

• I am blessed because I know the potential that is wrapped up in the God ordained institution of marriage.  I know from revelation as well as practical experience.  I am glad to know that she will be able to experience all the advantages that come from this relationship, not only in ultimately arriving at Heaven, but also in navigating the peaks and valleys of life.

So, tomorrow I’ll be the “Father of the Bride.”  Bumbling, in the way, lighter in the wallet, but most definitely blessed!

Why should you attend?  With nearly all occupations, there is required ongoing education.  Teacher’s, doctors, electricians, plumbers, etc. all  have “professional days” in which they are taught new things, and brought up to speed with new policies, etc.  If our secular work sees the merit in ongoing education, then how much more should we embrace as elders, preachers, deacons, Bible class teachers, etc. the idea of continuing education?  Don’t settle.  Rather be challenged by new and innovative ideas which may be employed to advance the cause of Christ.

What do you think?  Is this a step away from the “Y’s” original mission?  Is this another example of the secularization of America?  One thing I do know is that it won’t be nearly as fun to sing, “It’s fun to stay at the Yyyyyyyyy….., it’s fun to stay at the Yyyyyyyyy….”

While that response is appropriate in some situations, it is wholly inappropriate in others.  Very similar to the above scenario is the person who desires to be “rebaptized” because they want a new start; they had fallen away since their baptism, feel guilty for it, and just want to be baptized again as a way to start all over again.  It’s at this point that the appropriate response is not to “proceed with the baptism to give them peace of mind,” but rather to teach this person the biblical response to their situation.

We have always preached, and rightly so, that God has two laws of pardon; one for the non-Christian (Acts 2:38) and one for the Christian (Acts 8:22).  We would never accept or advise a person who need to be baptized to simply pray for forgiveness, but what would make us think that baptizing a person who needs to repent and pray would be any more acceptable?  That’s the right desire, but the wrong response.

A non-Christian’s sins are not removed by praying to God.  He needs to be baptized.  Likewise, a Christians sins are not removed by being “rebaptized.”  He needs to pray.

While there is a place for “rebaptism” for one who did not understand what they were doing at the time of their baptism, or for one who had the wrong motives for being baptized, “rebaptism” is wholly inappropriate for the person who understood their baptism, but just wants to be “rebaptized” because they feel guilty and want to start again.  Many of our religious neighbors teach people who have the right desire to respond in the wrong way, namely praying when they should be getting baptized.  Let’s not be guilty of the same mistake, only in reverse, by telling people who need to pray to be baptized.

Here’s an excerpt from the book as told by Follis Crow, the funeral director of Crow Funeral Home in Glasgow, KY:

“This is a funny story that happened to the minster not too long ago.  Sometimes ministers will ride in the hearse with me to the cemetery, but most times they’ll drive their own car.

This minister here in Glasgow, Steve Higginbotham, is a big tall fellow and a nice guy.  He got into the hearse with us, was sitting down, and as we pulled out he reached over his shoulder to grab the seat belt to put it on.  Well, in the funeral hearse there is a glass partition between the front part where the passengers ride and the back were the casket is.

When he reached over his shoulder to get the seat belt, he saw the reflection of his hand in the glass partition behind him.  He yelled and jerked back and jerked down like somebody was grabbing him.

That was one of the funniest things that ever happened, and he and I still get a kick out of what happened.  he thought somebody was back there getting ready to get him.”

What can I say?  I watched too many Boris Karloff and Vincent Price movies as a child.

Do you have any funny “Funeral Stories” to share?  If so, why don’t you share them in the comments section?

• One speaker worships with a congregation that employs instrumental music in some of their worship services, and provides audio sermons online wherein their preacher argues that there were women apostles.
• This same speaker told me in a personal correspondence that there is nothing wrong with offering instrumental music to God.
• Two other invited guests do not attend any church of Christ in their community, rather they have set up a “home church” in which they receive their weekly preaching through video from Brentwood Baptist Church in Nashville, TN.
• These two individuals also admit that they employ instrumental music in their worship services.
• One of the invited guests actually argued on his blog that not only is instrumental music permissible, but it may also be commanded in Christian worship (Shades of O.E. Payne).
• Another one of the invited guests is a “worship team leader” in a congregation that made national news when they decided to employ instrumental music in their worship services.

All of this information was discovered in less than 15 minutes of looking on the Internet.  Consequently, I have a few questions:

• Would men who profess and practice such views be invited to our congregations to lead our adults in a special worship series?
• If not, then why in the world would we invite such men to lead our youth in a special worship series?
• If we would not expose the spiritually mature to such men, why would we expose the spiritually immature to such men?
• While a man may not promote or practice such unbiblical views while among us, is there not an issue of fellowship that must be addressed?
• Does it matter only what a person promotes and practices while among us, or does it also matter what a person promotes and practices elsewhere?

This event has been particularly troubling to me because it is in our “backyard,”  but I’m also concerned because I know that we cannot make ground or hold ground by compromising with those who espouse and practice error.  Why we would not tolerate the likes of such men in our congregations, but would be willing to expose our children to such men is beyond me!  If we are going to prevent another division such as has not been witnessed since the division that occurred over 100 years ago, we had better start taking an uncompromising stand for the truth that doesn’t leave our youth wondering what we really believe.

By reporting this rules violation, Brian Davis not only lost an opportunity to win his first PGA Tournament, he also let more than $400,000.00 slip through his fingers.

Question: What would you have done had you been in his situation? Would you have reported the violation which would cost you so much, or would you have forfeited your integrity?

This story reminds me of the famous Bobby Jones. In the 1925 U.S. Open, Jones called a two-stroke penalty on himself when no one but himself witnessed his ball move after addressing it. Because of his honesty, he
ended up losing that event by one stroke. When he was later praised as a hero for his integrity, he replied, “You may as well praise a man for not robbing a bank.”

Brian Davis may have lost a tournament this past weekend, but he gained a fan in me for doing what some would think is incredible, but for him was just “par for the course.”

Having been on this trip, I now think that everyone who is capable, especially preachers, should make this trip.  I can’t begin to explain how much perspective was gained by being able to see things with my own eyes.  I learned that the mental images I had in my “mind’s eye” were often incorrect, and now I have a much better understanding and perspective of many biblical events and places.

Thanks Kim!  I would have never done this on my own.  What a gift!