YOU and GOD

Of the Pharisees, the Word says: “They loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.” (John 12:43) This was true of the Pharisees and, sadly, it is true also of many “religionists” today who, having a form of godliness, deny the power thereof.

Nowhere is this more readily found than in the pulpits of our land. To preach for the praise and plaudits of men is the basest occupation under the sun. But if men today are like men of all times (and they by and large are), false prophets are still with us. One writer speaks of these in a poem:

            “To please them all on Sunday morn; just dish them out the same old corn;

            A touch of humor here and there; some prudent statements made with care.

            And if you’re not one to exhort—if saving souls is not your forte;

            If you don’t want your crowd depressed; by such a thing as sins confessed.

            If facts of life are far too strong, for righteous people never wrong;

            Use illustrations far away, and preach on ‘drink’ on Labor Day;

            And when your folks arise to go, they’ll all confide, ‘Enjoyed it so.’”

One English authority on the subject categorized modern sermons according to seven qualities: “(1) The sesquipedalian—big words—little thoughts; (2) the wishy-washy, (self-explanatory); (3) the pyrotechnic, burning with brilliant metaphors and illustrations, finishing with a faint odor of gun smoke; 4) The anecdote—teeming with stories, some good enough once, but gone bad with time; (5) the flowery, rhyme more important than reason; (6) the mellifluous, with calm, unbroken flow; (7) the paregoric—against which all the powers of wakefulness fail, so much alike at all points that a yard can be cut off at any point.”

Enter Mighty Micaiah! He steps onto the pages of holy writ when the evil king of Israel, Ahab, and the good king of Judah, Jehoshaphat, had—defying all understanding—agreed to join forces together against Syria, whose king at that time occupied the coveted Ramoth-gilead. The king of Israel gathered 400 prophets together to seek their counsel as to whether the two kings should go against Syria in battle. Every one of the false prophets encouraged the two kings to do so. (I Kings 22:6)

But Jehoshaphat raised the question: “Is there not here a prophet of the Lord besides, that we might inquire of him?” Well, Ahab had to admit there was one other prophet who could be consulted, but the wicked king hastened to say: “I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil.” Jehoshaphat could not believe that, so an officer was dispatched to fetch Micaiah. While he was gone, the priest Zedekiah made horns of iron and, in a visual way, demonstrated how the two kings would push back, as with iron horns, the king of Syria.

The messenger sent to bring Micaiah onto the scene informed him of the proceedings, coaching him not to rock the boat—since 400 prophets, led by the priest Zedekiah, had assured the covenanting kings that victory was a sure thing. Micaiah responded with: “As the Lord liveth, what the Lord saith unto me, that will I speak.” (I Kings 22:14)

When Micaiah came face to face with Ahab, the king asked, “Shall we go against Ramoth-gilead to battle?” With what was no doubt a “tongue in cheek” answer, Micaiah said, “Go and prosper, for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king.” Incredibly, the king retorted: “How many times shall I adjure thee that thou tell me nothing but that which is true in the name of the Lord?” So, Ahab knew that a true prophet of God would counsel him not to go to battle as he and Jehoshaphat had planned to do!

And, sure enough, Micaiah proceeded to share what God had shown him: Israel scattered as sheep with no shepherd. About that time, Ahab turned to Jehoshaphat and said, “See, I told you he would not prophesy any good toward me!” Micaiah then told the two kings what God’s Word was: he painted a picture of God seated with the host of heaven before Him, asking His servants how He could persuade Ahab to go up against Ramoth-gilead to fall there in battle. After a couple of ideas were shared, one spirit said, “I will persuade him; I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.” This was the answer that the Lord was looking for, and He dispensed the spirit to go and prevail.

Predictably, Micaiah was howled down, slapped in the face by the false priest, Zedekiah, and ordered to solitary confinement with only bread and water to eat. The two cohort kings went to battle as the false prophets had encouraged them to do; and, having concocted a strategy where Ahab disguised himself while the king of Judah put on his robes and parked his chariot away from the heat of the battle, all of their proud plans melted when a man drew a bow at a venture that struck Ahab “between the joints of the harness,” resulting in his death. (I Kings 22:34)

Mighty Micaiah. He had the spiritual backbone of a David, a Daniel, or an Elijah. He made only a brief appearance on the pages of scripture, but he was true to his calling as a man of God, a prophet who with undaunted courage told the misguided kings the truth—and was exiled to prison for it. What a great example of faithfulness to our calling in the face of scoffing, criticism, rejection, and persecution. God, give us prophets, pastors, preachers, men of God today with the courage and conviction of Mighty Micaiah!

“When principles that run against your deepest convictions begin to win the day, then battle is your calling, and peace becomes sin; you must, at any price, lay your convictions bare before friend and enemy, with all the fire of your faith.” (Abraham Kuyper)

From the founding of the local New Testament church—on the Day of Pentecost, in about 30 A.D.—to the present, believers have been engaged in spiritual warfare against principalities and powers and spiritual wickedness in high places. (Eph. 6:12) Our only hope and help against these other worldly powers is “the whole armor of God.” (Eph. 6:12ff.) Satan’s attack is two-pronged, involving “wiles” and “fiery darts.” (Eph. 6:11,16)

Jesus warned against the wiles that His followers should beware of when, in His sermon on the mount, He plainly said, “Beware of false prophets which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.” (Matt. 7:15) In his emotional farewell parting from the elders of the church at Ephesus, the apostle Paul would say: “Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock…for this know, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.” (Acts 20:28,29) Peter, John, and Jude, among others, would sound the same solemn warning against “certain men crept in unawares…turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Jude 4)

These stern admonitions against the false prophets in sheep’s clothing remind me of what I once read about the “Judas goat.” At one time, in certain meat companies, a goat would go to work about 7 each morning, escorting a herd of sheep from the unloading pens near the docks to the slaughterhouse, where the sheep would be killed and dressed. Two to three hundred ewes and lambs might follow the “Judas goat” each time. Sheep cannot be driven like cattle and hogs, but they will follow a leader. It is estimated that one “Judas goat,” over the course of its life, might lead four or five million sheep to their deaths.

The wiles of the Devil, using ravening wolves in sheep’s clothing, are even more dangerous and deadly. Throughout the centuries of church history, the number of unsuspecting lambs led to the Devil’s slaughterhouse is incalculable.

Beware the wiles of the Devil; he is first deceitful in his disguised attack. But he is also deadly, with “fiery darts” that can only be quenched by the shield of faith. (Eph. 6:12) Some of those deadly darts are:

Doubt. “Whatsoever is not of faith is sin.” (Rom.14:23) Satan tried, successfully, to get Eve to doubt God: “Hath God said?” He tried to pull the same wool over our Lord’s eyes: “If thou be the Son of God….” (Matt. 4:4,6) He is still firing those darts today, trying to get God’s children to doubt His love, goodness, call, and promises.

It is nothing new. The children of Israel saw Goliath and said, “He’s so big no one can kill him.” David saw Goliath and said, “He’s so big, how could I miss him?”

“Doubt sees the blackest night; faith sees the day. Doubt dreads to take a step, faith soars on high.”

One believer, whose close friend was killed in a car accident, cried out to God: “Lord, I don’t understand You. Why did You allow this death?” Isaiah recorded the answer in advance, “Have you not heard? The everlasting God…neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable.” (Isa. 40:28) Again, the bereaved friend cried, “Lord, you are beyond my understanding, but I still wonder, have You turned your back on the world?” And again, God answers: “God reigneth over the heathen; God sitteth upon the throne of His holiness.” (Ps. 47:8) Finally, the distraught friend cries: “Lord, I do believe you are ruling this world, but do you care about the pain?” God hears and proclaims, “For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive, and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.” (Ps. 86:5)

Some other fiery darts:

Discouragement, the fruit of which is nothing. Peter, discouraged, said: “I go fishing!” The Bible says, “And that night, they caught nothing.” (John 21:3)

Defeat. Moses felt the sting of this dart when he struck the rock twice rather than simply speaking to it as God had instructed; he was not able to enter the promised land because of his disobedience, which led to a momentary defeat. (Numbers 20:2-13)

Distraction. “No man, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:52)  Not being fit does not mean the man will miss heaven; it means he is not yet ready for heaven. He has been distracted. The young John Mark was distracted. As was Demas, whom Paul said had forsaken him because he loved the world.

Disinterest. “How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation?” (Hebs. 2:3) It is subtle, but how many once-faithful followers have just “neglected” spiritual disciplines?

Disillusionment. Think of someone who had looked up to the prophet Jonah before he boarded a ship to Tarshish. Or, in 30 A.D., some Hebrew youngster who, before the Upper Room, had considered Judas a role model. The answer: “Looking unto Jesus.” (Hebs. 12:2)

Discontentment. Paul had to learn in whatsoever state he was in to be content. (Phil. 4:11)

Disobedience. “If thou doest well shalt thou not be accepted? If thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door.” (Gen.4:7)

Disloyalty.  “No man can serve two masters; a house divided against itself cannot stand.” (Matt. 6:24; 12:25)

Beware the fiery darts of the wicked one!

“Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” Eph.6:13

A 17^th-century poet had this to say about good and bad kings: “Good kings are mourned for after life; but ill, and such as govern only by their will, and not their reason—unlamented fall; no good man’s tears shed at their funeral.”

This was certainly the case with King Amaziah (see the Oct. 3 “You and God” about him by clicking here). Ninth king of Judah following King Solomon’s death, after which the kingdom was divided, Amaziah began his 29-year reign successfully and with great hope. But before he died, his own subjects conspired to kill him, and when he had died his burial was without mourning. He started out good, but the last chapter of his life was the story of a king gone bad. Pride was his demise. Yet God, in His gracious accounting of the “big picture,” summarized Amaziah’s life, reign, and death in a single sentence: “And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, but not with a perfect heart.” (II Kings 25:2)

After Amaziah’s death, his 16-year-old son, Uzziah, was made king. He remained on the throne for 52 years in Jerusalem. Like his father Amaziah, it was said of Uzziah, “And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord.” (II Chr. 26:4) A closer look though at the whole of Uzziah’s life—and death—reveals that, like his father, his life ended in tragedy because of his pride. He died a leper’s death, isolated in his own palace.

Two coronated kings, with bright prospects and promising futures. Father and son, with subjects to do their bidding, with the prestige and the power of royalty. Both starting out with successes and victories. But both coming to the end of their lives with ignoble conclusions and, no doubt, with haunting regrets for wasted opportunities and wanton stewardships.

Believers in this church age are said to be “kings and priests.” We shall reign with the King of kings. (Rev. 5:10) It behooves us to learn well the life-lessons of these Old Testament kings, incorporating into our lives the good features of their ways and avoiding the pitfalls that caused them to bite the dust in death. 

Look with me, then, at Uzziah’s walk with God and at his walk without God:

•  Uzziah’s Walk with God

He began his reign by doing right. He was just 16 years of age, but with good and faithful counsellors, he made good decisions: “And he sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions; and as long as he sought the Lord, the Lord made him to prosper.” He heeded the words of his ancestor, King Solomon, who had exhorted his son: “Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many.” (Provs. 4:10)

He sought the Word of God. Zechariah, the priest, understood God and was able to discern visions that God had given him. Visions were how God, in days before the Word of God was in written form, communicated to prophets and priests. (Hebs. 1:1,2) As Zechariah shared what God had communicated to him, Uzziah charted his course accordingly, and God was pleased with him and caused him to prosper.

Uzziah sought the Word of God, and he sought the will of God. He built a strong empire, with hosts of soldiers that were well armed. He erected towers in Jerusalem, and his fame spread abroad, “for he strengthened himself exceedingly.” (II Chr. 26:8) His success is summarized in II Chr. 26:15: “And his name spread far abroad; for he was marvelously helped, til he was strong.”  Again, what his ancestor forefather Solomon posited proved true: “Righteousness exalteth a nation.” (Provs. 14:34)

•  Uzziah’s Walk Apart from God

When he was strong, God’s Word sadly says, “His heart was lifted up to his destruction.” (II Chr. 26:16) Again, Solomon had warned: “A man’s pride shall bring him low.” (Provs. 29:23) And “when pride cometh, then cometh shame.” (Provs. 11:2) 

Uzziah’s fall came through pride, when he presumed that as king he could go into the temple and offer to the Lord incense. His sin of presumption was met with rebuke from priest Azariah, backed up by fourscore priests. (II Chr. 26:17,18) Uzziah was angered (“wroth”) by their rebuke, but when the king began to put forth his hand to offer incense to God, he was smitten with leprosy on the spot, “even up in his forehead.” 

The priests, led by Azariah, thrust him out of the temple, and Uzziah lived in a separate house until he died. He was buried in a cemetery for kings; his son, Jotham, who had been acting king until Uzziah died, reigned in his stead. For the record, Jotham was also said to be a “good king,” reigning 16 years. (II Chr. 27:2)

Uzziah—much like the first king of the nation, Saul—presumed to take upon himself the assignment of offering what priests alone were commissioned to offer: burnt offerings, in Saul’s case, and incense in Uzziah’s. Saul lost his kingdom for his disobedience. And Uzziah, for all practical purposes, lost his.

The story of this king who started his reign with such promise—but ended it so sadly, due to sin—offers a life-lesson that we as “kings and priests” must heed:  Sin comes with a hefty price tag.

“Wherefore let him that thinketh that he standeth take heed lest he fall.” (I Cor. 10:12)

Solomon reminds us that “a merry heart doeth good like a medicine.” (Provs. 17:22) We have all been in very tense, maybe nerve-racking situations, when some wag uttered an utterly ridiculous thought that caused even the most wearisome among us to laugh. There was always in school—and maybe there is in every family—someone whose genius was to find something humorous to comment on that would relieve the pent-up tensions.

Now, there is undoubtedly a time and place for everything, but few of us can remember a time when the world was closer to a boiling point than now. With the Middle East a tinderbox, the recent hurricane holocaust, and the political pit bulls growling and sneering loudly—maybe, just maybe, something should be offered to lighten life up just a bit.

Admittedly, humor is not my “bailiwick,” but I can borrow a laugh or two now and then, so I am going to share with you, my faithful readers, a few items you probably have all read or heard before. But they never fail to bring a chuckle—much like an old routine of Red Skelton, Lucille Ball, or Jackie Gleason (for you old-timers). Here, then, are some church-bulletin bloopers for your enjoyment once again:

•  The third verse of “Blessed Assurance” will be sung without musical accomplishment.
• During the minister’s illness, a bulletin: “GOD IS GOOD. Dr. Hargreaves is better.
• Due to the Rector’s illness, Wednesday’s healing services will be discontinued until further notice.
• The concert in the Fellowship Hall was a great success. Special thanks to the minister’s daughter who labored the whole evening at the piano, which as usual fell upon her.
• The Reverend Adams spoke briefly, much to the delight of his audience.
• The eighth-graders will be presenting Shakespeare’s Hamlet in the church basement on Friday at 7:00 p.m. The congregation is invited to attend this tragedy.
• A new loudspeaker system has been installed in the church. It was given by one of our members in honor of his wife.
• The outreach committee has enlisted 25 members to make calls on people who are not afflicted with any church.
• Evening massage: 6 p.m.
• The Pastor would appreciate it if the ladies would lend him their electric girdles for the pancake breakfast next Sunday morning.
• The audience is asked to remain seated until the end of the recession.
• Bertha Belch, a missionary from Africa, will be speaking tonight at Calvary Memorial Church in Racine. Come hear Bertha Belch all the way from Africa.
• Reminder of the upcoming National Prayer and Fasting Conference. The cost includes meals.
• Miss Charlene Mason sang, “I Will Not Pass This Way Again,” to the obvious delight of the audience.
• Ladies, don’t forget the rummage sale. It’s a chance to get rid of those things not worth keeping around the house. Don’t forget your husbands.
• The peacemaking meeting scheduled for today has been cancelled due to a conflict.
• The morning sermon: “Jesus Walks On the Water.” Tonight’s message: “Searching for Jesus.”
• Next Thursday will be tryouts for the choir. They need all the help they can get.
• Barbara remains in the hospital and needs blood donors for more transfusions. She is also having trouble sleeping and requests tapes of Pastor Jack’s sermons.
• The Rector will preach his farewell message, after which the choir will sing “Break Forth into Joy.”
• Remember in prayer the many who are sick in our community. Smile at someone who is hard to love. Say “hell” to someone who doesn’t care much about you.
• Irving Benson and Jessie Carter were married on October 24^th in the church. So ends a friendship that began in their school days.
• The service will close with “Little Drops of Water.” One of the ladies will start quietly and the rest of the congregation will join in.
• The ladies of the church have cast off clothing of every kind, and they may be seen in the church basement Friday.
• At the evening service tonight, the sermon topic will be “What is Hell?” Come early and listen to the choir practice.
• The senior choir invites any member of the congregation who enjoys sinning to join the choir.
• Attend and you will enjoy an excellent speaker and heave a healthy lunch.
• Potluck supper at 5 p.m. and prayer and medication to follow.
• This afternoon, there will be a meeting in the south and north ends of the church. Children will be baptized at both ends.
• On Sunday a collection will be taken to defray the expense of the new carpet. All wishing to do something on the carpet, please come forward and get a piece of paper.

Ok, enough for now. And, most of these no doubt occurred before “spell-check!”

“All the days of the afflicted are evil: but he that is of a merry heart hath a continual feast.” (Provs. 15:15)

Where do I begin? A flood of memories waft through my mind as I look back on the 42 years that I have been blessed in serving as a member on the Baptist World Mission board of directors. Dr. Monroe Parker was the General Director of BWM when I first joined the board, and I cannot forget meeting around his desk in a small office in Decatur, Alabama, in what was an executive  committee meeting with a half-dozen or so other board members with the General Director. I must have pinched myself a couple of times as I felt like a pigmy in the land of giants. But, Dr. Parker, with his slight lisp and southern draw, soon made me feel comfortable, and lunch that day at the Director’s favorite place for a mid-day meal, Bob’s Barbeque in Decatur, Alabama, was all that I needed to feel right “at home.”

There have been scores of meetings since, under the leadership of Dr. Parker, his able successor,  Executive Director, Dr. Fred Moritz, then the adroit administrator, Dr. Bud Steadman, and now the seasoned missionary whom God has moved from the field of Cameroon to the home office to lead 300 plus missionaries, a wholly dedicated staff of field administrators and office personnel, and a board of 32 pastors who assemble a couple of times a year to encourage missionaries, appoint new ones, and to give direction to the board administrators. I have found Baptist World Mission to be a servant of local churches in assisting them in getting their ambassadors out to the four corners of the earth in ways that are incalculably valuable.

The fellowship that has been a hallmark of these board gatherings has been cherished through the years, not only for the pastors who gather with other pastors and missionaries, but for our wives who, as Ellen, come to the meetings as often as possible. Not a few of the meetings have been held in the quaint (and at one time, I think, laid-back) town of Decatur, a charming southern city. Our friends, now with the Lord, Pastor Collins Glenn and his wife, Durienne, from Muncie, IN, used to look forward to going with us to certain clothing and shoe stores in Decatur between board sessions, where Pastor Glenn, a one-time Georgia haberdasher, would always leave with a new sport coat or pair of sharp shoes that would, somewhere down the way, set him off as one of the best-dressed preachers in any meeting. He just had a flair for what would look sharp, and all who knew him would attest that he “wore it well!” All of the pastors and wives relished the coffee times and fellowship before and after the plenary meetings.

And the meetings! How instructive to hear the distilled wisdom of pastors from across America who shepherded congregations that majored in missions. Their counsel was out of hearts aflame for world evangelization and full of love, respect and utmost esteem for God’s servants who had been set apart by the Holy Spirit and sent by local churches to perpetuate the fulfilling of that Great Commission that Christ left the Church He founded, and is building. Hearing the burden and feeling the excitement of missionaries who were called and ready to go to the fields of the world, was both humbling and life-changing for this pastor.

Just one of scores of examples now comes to mind. I believe it was at Suburban Baptist Church in Indianapolis in 1985. A pastor and his wife from Illinois had answered God’s call to go to Brazil with the life-saving gospel message. Roger and Sharon Crowder shared their story how that God had led them to leave their home and homeland to answer the Holy Spirit’s directive. It was with wonder that the pastors present listened as Roger shared how that his wife had been afflicted with a crippling disease, having for a time been incapacitated and wheel chair bound; but that God had healed her and she was able to function. I for one just questioned in my heart how this sincere husband and wife could even think about going to a foreign country to labor, having come through what they had experienced. Well, that was thirty years or more ago. The Crowders did go and their labors abounded to the glory of God and they are now home in Huntsville, Alabama, still serving God, but in a “retirement” mode. And that is just one of a myriad of testimonies I could share to the glory of God!

I never came home from a meeting with other board members and the BWM staff but that I was excited to share with our church here in Indianapolis. One year, 1985, our church had the privilege of hosting the annual meeting of BWM. The keynote speakers were Dr. Monroe Parker, Dr. Fred Moritz, Dr. Ed Nelson, Dr. Wayne Van Gelderen, Sr., and Dr. Tom Malone, all giants for God. Ralph McGilvra, long-time soloist on Oliver B. Greene’s “Gospel Hour” broadcast, was our conference music director. LaBelles, Hallecks, Duttons, Kimbles, Johnsons, Crowders, Lears, Grimes and other missionaries shared their vision and burden with us for world missions. Nothing will meld the hearts of God’s people with missions and missionaries quite like having such a conference which is a “taste of heaven!”

Well, that’s a brief look back at my first 42 years as a BWM board member. I loathe the thought of reckoning with the probability that it is time to pass the torch on so that a younger pastor can enjoy something of what I have been enjoying for more than four decades. That time for me is near. But even then I will always, as long as I can think clearly, look back with precious memories of mingling testimonies, tears and thanksgiving with some of God’s choicest ambassadors, all of which has, to this unworthy servant, proven to be nothing short of priceless.

Do you believe that you are “up to the task?” Are you convinced that you can live the Christian life? Having been a believer for quite some time, and having received appropriate training and acquired considerable knowledge, especially of God’s Word and of spiritual matters, do you feel you are ready for just about anything Satan might throw at you?

If you answered “yes” to any of the above rhetorical questions, you would do well to note that you are a candidate for eventual spiritual meltdown.

“What?” your rejoinder might be. “Me, a candidate for spiritual meltdown? No way! I am a serious student of scriptures, of theology and human complexities, and I am ready for just about any possible situation in ministry or life experiences. Bring it on!”

Well, I doubt anyone reading this post is so brash as to admit, “That’s me!” You probably know by now that I am about ready to affirm—with scriptural, Pauline support—that no person can live the Christian life, apart from the way Paul said that he lived it: “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Gal. 2:20) There is not a Christian alive today who is able to live the Christian life apart from the indwelling, moment-by-moment enabling of Christ through surrender to His Holy Spirit. Apart from Christ living His life through you, you are doomed to failure.

If there is an ounce of self-sufficiency in you, deceiving you into thinking that you are up to the task before you, then beware. There is not one good thing in our flesh, Paul exclaimed in Romans 7:18. To do daily tasks, even ministry, in the power of the flesh, can only result in defeat.

Our sufficiency is of God! And when we come to realize that, then we allow God to demonstrate His all-sufficiency. His grace is sufficient, Paul reminds us. (II Cor. 12:9)

After a half-century of preaching and teaching God’s Word, of pastoring one of His choice congregations, I am not sufficient to preach one more message. I now preach regularly in a small church in Noblesville, Indiana, on an interim basis. I have “barrels” full of messages to draw upon, outlines and manuscripts bulging in file-folders. If I were so foolish as to rely upon this experience, or upon these past resources, approaching the pulpit on any Lord’s Day with the confidence that yesterday’s blessings were enough to propel me through today’s needs, I would fall flat upon my face, disappointing God, His Spirit, the congregation waiting to hear a fresh word from God, and, finally, myself (and Ellen, too!).

This is not to say that all past experience must go out the window. I treasure lessons learned, messages received from the study of His Word, outlines and manuscripts that have been used to discharge a life-long ministry. What I am saying is that if I should ever come to the place where I am just depending on these tools to take me through another assignment, then Christ is not living His life through me, and I am ministering in the flesh—in which there is no good thing!

No, I am not sufficient to preach another sermon, in and of myself. I am not sufficient to pastor any church; to be the head of my home, to tithe, pray, counsel, or live another day as a Christian.

But I thank God for His sufficiency, and that through my weakness He is pleased to make known His strength!

In Exodus 36, Moses received offerings, free-will offerings of the people, every morning, with which the tabernacle was to be furnished. In time, Moses had to issue a proclamation that nothing more be brought. There was more than enough. “For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much.”

It’s good to know that He has all we need—and more—to serve Him and to discharge our duties. Yes, sometimes the task seems overwhelming. Maybe you are a caregiver for some loved one—day in and day out, month upon month. You are literally worn out, and you know that in yourself there are no more resources. But, as the meal in the widow’s barrel was never exhausted even though it was apparently depleted, so your supply is always sufficient for the day at hand as you trust Him moment by moment. You cannot think about tomorrow, for that seems an impossibility with the strength you have at the end of today. But your sufficiency is of God, and you trust that when tomorrow comes the supply will be there.

The children of Israel wore the same shoes for 40 years, and they did not wear out. So also in His sufficiency, He will provide our every need. Praise God for that never-ending supply of grace which, like the loaves and fishes, never seems to run out regardless of the huge demands! Who is sufficient for these things? (II Cor. 2:16) God is! And our sufficiency—to live the Christian life, with all of its apparent impossibilities—must come from Him and Him alone. To attempt to live the life for Christ without the “Christ in me, the hope of glory” mindset and surrender, is to set one’s self up for spiritual meltdown. Walk by faith—day by day, moment by moment—knowing and never forgetting that “Our sufficiency is of God!”

“Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God.” (2 Cor.3:5)

We often quote those words, or the phrase “God is good,” in responding to either an ordinary evidence of His grace in our daily lives or an extraordinary example of His providential provision on our pilgrimage from here to eternity. Yes, “God is good!”

I had the opportunity of preaching this past Lord’s Day in two different churches, and my text was I Peter 3:8. Peter exhorts the “strangers scattered” to whom he addressed this “general epistle” to “be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be piteous, be courteous.”

In the wake of possibly the most destructive hurricane that has ever moved over land in our nation’s history, known as Helene, it was timely that the text for these messages touched on such practical and pertinent subjects as compassion, loving the brethren, and being merciful or piteous.

A member of our home church had traveled to Asheville, North Carolina, a few days before the hurricane hit northwestern North Carolina with ferocious fury. He had gone there to visit his elderly mother who had been hospitalized. He and his wife had driven down from Indiana, and his wife drove back with the understanding that he would fly home later.

Well, he was there on the last Thursday and Friday of September when the hurricane moved through the mountainous region of northwestern North Carolina, leaving an unprecedented and indescribable path of destruction. Electric power was off; cell phones were without any connections; travel was hazardous and very limited, with no highways in or out of Asheville passable for the first few days. Our TRBC deacon was stranded at his motel but could not contact anyone; there was no water, nothing. The room he had stayed in for one night was booked for the next night, so he had to vacate. Thankfully, his wife had made a reservation for him at a nearby motel, which he was able to walk to. Reaching it, he found a long line of stranded travelers waiting to get lodging. He was blessed to have a reservation there, so he was assigned a room and given a key to it—yet there was no power, no water, nothing. He asked hotel personnel how far it was to the hospital where his mother was, and he was flatly told he could walk nowhere.

He was able to get a ride to the airport, believing and hoping that he might be better off there. Our friend—a physician and successful professional for many years—confessed that at this point he was at “the lowest point of my life.” He never travels with cash, yet there probably was nothing he could have purchased anyway. No Uber service was available. He said, though, that he never felt like God was not with him and was going to take care of him, as he whispered many times, “Lord, please help me.” After several hours at the airport, helpless but not hopeless, a man on the tarmac was able to get a cell phone connection in a very limited area and generously offered to let anyone who needed to make a call do so. Our deacon called his wife, assured her that he was safe, and apprised her of the situation. Another friend later made it from Greenville, SC to Asheville—navigating around make-shift detours and fallen trees—and took the doctor from the airport to the hospital where his mother was. He would spend the next several days sleeping on the floor of her room, in a place with no water, no plumbing that was in operation, no food to speak of, and for days no coffee!!

On another glad day, while he was stranded in the hospital, a couple of Bob Jones University students—a brother and sister, members of his home church in Indy—made it up to Asheville, bringing him some staples, a change of clothes, and, yes, a cup of coffee!

In sharing his story, our beloved physician, a committed believer, said he was able to visit with many people who were in the same situation. He would listen to their distressful accounts of tragic losses and would ask, “May I pray for you?” I believe he said that, without exception, no one turned down the offer for prayer.

While we watched with horror the aftermath of Helene on our televisions, the doc did not have access to those visual accounts. But, he knew there had been catastrophic damage and that he was experiencing a test the likes of which he had never known. Through the worst of his time there, he testified that he always had the assurance that God was with him and would bring him through. And, one day this past weekend, a fellow church member here in Indianapolis drove down to Asheville, packed up the doctor and his mother, and promptly turned his vehicle northward, returning him and his mother to his home in Hoosier land safely!

My wife has loved ones in North Carolina. Many were impacted by the hurricane, but none lost their home. It proved an opportunity for many to be merciful and compassionate toward those who had lost everything. It has touched millions of lives. Thankfully, there are numbers of non-profits, ministries, organizations, and just caring individuals who are responding with whatever resources they can get to these dear people. We have followed the events in North Carolina carefully because of Ellen’s family there, but we are also deeply concerned for those in other states that were hit hard by Helene. And, yes, now our hearts are heavy for the dear folk in Florida who are bracing, at the time of this writing, for the second major hurricane there within a two-week period, Milton. We pray earnestly for all the people in any of these locales—in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and elsewhere—impacted by these storms

One reliable non-profit that I can recommend is Operation Renewed Hope, directed by Rev. Jan Milton. He is a dedicated believer whose ministry has reached out to thousands, here at home and abroad. You can give through this venue, and rest assured that your gifts will be channeled to those in need—with integrity. Above all, PRAY!

“The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that are his.” (Nahum 1:7)

[Note: This is a lightly edited version of a post that first appeared in “You and God” in December 2021. It remains as relevant as ever today, unfortunately, as the Southeast recovers from Hurricane Helene and awaits Hurricane Milton.]

The second weekend of December and the week following, America was shocked by a killer tornado that was reportedly “on the ground” for 200 miles, claiming (as of this writing) more than 75 lives. The death toll is expected to be in the triple digits when the final assessment is made. Days after the monster had made its way through Arkansas, Kentucky, and other states, the Midwest was hit with multiple tornados, and winds of 80 and 90 mph left a path of death and destruction.

It is altogether well—and should surely be expected—that we ask, “What is God doing?” Although there is no simple answer to that question, there is a Biblical train of thought, woven throughout scriptures, that gives us ample clues as to what the Almighty God of the storms is doing and/or saying. Warning: it should be instructive to anyone who sets out to study the question that three friends of Job and a fourth acquaintance, trying to make some sense out of the calamity that visited the ancient patriarch the day he lost all of his ten children and all of his material possessions, missed the bulls-eye entirely. They misjudged that what Job suffered in the worst 24 hours of his life was God’s heavy hand of judgment upon the man who feared God and eschewed evil. Their conclusion was that Job was to a degree a hypocrite, harboring some secret sin(s) for which God was disciplining him severely. We, with finite understanding and only a limited vision of the field, will make the same mistake apart from direction in our thinking from God’s Holy Spirit. Our conclusions, if we come to any, must be rooted in Biblical theology, not popular psychology, meteorology, or humanistic philosophy.

I love some of the wisdom that Winston Churchill displayed in his thinking and writing. Seeing what was happening politically and nationally in 1935 with the rise of fascism and the weakness of western leadership, Churchill said something that bears upon our current discussion:

“Who is in charge of the clattering train? The axles creak and the couplings strain; and the pace is hot, and the points are near, and sleep has deadened the driver’s ear; and the signals flash through the night in vain, for Death is in charge of the clattering train?”

In contemplating the calamities that have besought our nation and the world in the past few years—including earthquakes, floods, fires, pandemic viruses—I wonder what the masses are thinking about it all. Those who believe the Bible and have sought answers from His Word are in the minority. The masses of humanity, 8 billion or so, must be wondering “who is in charge of the clattering train?”

Well, Bible-believers come to the query with certain foundational bedrock principles as a starting point.  First, we absolutely believe that God is in charge, ultimately, of His world. Satan, the “god” of this world (II Cor. 4:4), has usurped God’s authority through deceit, and he is in the business of wreaking havoc and destruction and death wherever and whenever possible. But God can and does limit his power and the exercise of his usurped authority. God is in charge and has the absolute, ultimate power over all of His created world.

Sometimes, God speaks with a thunderous voice to command the attention of this world’s inhabitants who are otherwise deaf to His voice. Some examples:

“Wherefore when I came, was there no man? When I called, was there none answer? Is my hand shortened at all, that it cannot redeem? Or have I no power to deliver? Behold, at my rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers a wilderness: their fish stinketh because there is no water, and dieth for thirst. I clothe the heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their covering.” (Isa. 50:2,3)

“The hills melted like wax at the presence of the Lord…the heavens declare His righteousness and all the people see His glory.” (Ps. 97:5,6)

“He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it was dried up: so, He led them through the depths, as through the wilderness.” (Ps. 106:9)

“The mountains quake at Him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burnt at His presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein.” (Nahum 1:5)

Since God does use what we call “nature” to speak to the world, when we observe an intensifying of these “natural calamities,” it is natural that one should wonder, “what might God be doing or saying through these troublesome times?”

First, note that two verses following the Nahum 1 passage quoted above, the prophet affirms that “The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and He knoweth them that trust in Him.” (Nahum 1:7) Whatever the situation, bad as it might be, God is good. Period. And God has not forgotten you if you, by faith, have been born into His family and have been adopted by His grace, with all the blessings attendant to that humbling status. God is not the author of evil; He still is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” (II Pet.3:9)

“For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.” (Romans 8:22) Paul the Apostle wrote those somber words, acknowledging that because of sin’s entrance into the world, not only was man immediately estranged from God, but that the beautiful, tranquil Garden of Eden and the whole of nature’s realm became “out of joint,” groaning under the weight and burden of the blight of sin. This will be corrected in the millennium, when Jesus comes to restore the world to its Edenic tranquility and the Lion and Lamb shall lie down together. The violence that we observe in “nature”—as seen in monster storms, floods, and fires—are part of this convulsing of creation. It was never intended by God but was given as part of the curse of man’s original disobedience. It will continue until Jesus comes again to “make all things new.”

This discussion can and will continue. I trust that I have shared some foundational, scriptural truths that will stir up “pure minds” as we attempt to reconcile what we are living through with what we believe to be absolutely true. Your comments are, as always, welcomed.

“That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the Lord, and there is none else. I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things.” (Isaiah 45:6,7)

If someone asked whether you hoped to succeed or fail on your journey through life, you would surely respond positively with, “Well, I want to succeed.”

Nobody wants or plans to fail. “In the lexicon of youth,” one has said, “there is no such word as fail.”

But, if we could somehow survey all who first heard this message (which I delivered 41 years ago at Thompson Road Baptist Church in Indianapolis), it might be alarming to learn whether—looking back—they felt they had succeeded or failed in achieving their youthful dreams.

Many do fail, even if no one plans to. Some who read these lines just now may be in the process of failing. Things are not going the way you had planned. A third-century philosopher quoted another philosopher who spoke of this universal, age-old dilemma by saying, “It was a saying of Demetrius that men, having often abandoned what was visible for the sake of what was uncertain, have not got what they expected and have lost what they had.”

I believe Amaziah, ninth king of Judah after the kingdom split following Solomon’s death, did not plan to fail. He had every reason to succeed. With a good heritage from his father, Joash, who was for the most part a good king, his future looked bright. But before his 29-year reign ended, Amaziah was disgraced, and his whole reign was marked by a colossal failure.

This king of the past can serve for us, who are “kings and priests” of God, as a lesson on the dangers of success—success that leads to, and ends in, failure.

Consider, then, the rise and demise of King Amaziah, as recorded in II Chronicles 25 and II Kings 14.

The Rise of Amaziah

• We read that Amaziah was 25 years old when he began to reign. One of the first things he did, following his coronation, was to slay the servants who had murdered his father on his sick bed. Yet, in doing this, Amaziah showed a respect for the Word of God, for we read in II Chr. 25:4: “But he slew not their children, but did as it is written in the law in the book of Moses, where the Lord commanded, saying, ‘The fathers shall not die for the children, neither shall the children die for the fathers, but every man shall die for his own sin.’” In doing this, the newly crowned king of Judah acted as “the minister of God” in executing justice, but he did not step over the Biblical bounds in discharging his responsibility. He did not violate God’s sixth commandment: “Thou shalt do no murder.”

Shortly afterwards, Amaziah marshaled his troops, organizing an army of 300,000 men skilled in handling sword and spear. To augment that, he hired 100,000 soldiers out of Israel for 100 talents of silver. Whereupon, a prophet of God warned Amaziah, King of Judah, that he was making a mistake by hiring the soldiers of Israel, “for the Lord is not with Israel.” (II Chr. 25:7) The prophet predicted defeat should Amaziah go to war against Seir with the hired Israeli soldiers. Amaziah heeded the prophet’s warning, paid the soldiers from Ephraim what he had promised them, and, to their chagrin and in spite of their protests, sent them home. Amaziah and his thinned-down army then wrought a great victory over the Edomites. (II Chr. 25:11-13)

The Demise of Amaziah

•  Inexplicably, coming home from the great military victory over the Edomites, God’s Word says “he brought the gods of the children of Seir, and set them up to be his gods, and bowed down himself before them, and burned incense unto them.” (II Chr. 25:14) God sent a prophet to rebuke Amaziah for this idolatry, and the king pretty much told the prophet to “shut up.” (II Chr. 25:16) The prophet complied, announcing to Amaziah that “God hath determined to destroy thee because thou hast done this, and hast not hearkened unto my counsel.”

The rest of the story is sad. Amaziah, swelled with pride following his resounding defeat of the Edomites, challenged Joash, king of Israel, to a fight. Joash tried to dissuade him with the thistle/cedar parable (25:18), but to no avail. The two kings/armies met, and Judah was “put to the worse,” fleeing every man to his tent. Amaziah was taken captive back to Jerusalem, where he watched as Joash sacked the city, pillaging treasures from the temple and taking hostages with him back to Samaria. Amaziah lived several more years, but in the end some of his subjects in Jerusalem conspired against him. Finding him in Lachish, to which he had fled, they slew him and returned his body back to Judah, where they buried him.

There is no understanding why this king, with such a brilliant beginning, turned from the Lord and brought on himself and his fellow Judeans such a colossal failure. It must fall under the heading, “The mystery of iniquity.” It defies reason or explanation. Pride was surely a factor; when the man of God warned Amaziah with a message from God, the king, pumped up following the massive defeat of tens of thousands of Edomites, would not even listen to the admonition. Thus, a king who had such a promising rise to power spent his last years in humiliation and defeat. So, “let him that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall.” (I Cor.10:12)

“His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his own sins.” (Provs. 5:22)

Our church is in the midst of another faith promise/world missions conference, our 43^th annual such missions endeavor. Every previous conference has always yielded lasting fruit for world missions and through the Biblical faith giving approach to supporting missions and missionaries we have enjoyed blessed relationships with hundreds of these choice servants, supporting with both prayers and finances some of them for 30, 40 and even 50 years. Every conference has been memorable and the highlight of our church’s yearly calendar. So, one might ask, why does a church go to the expense and effort of hosting a major missions meeting such as this every twelve months? Glad you asked! My answer is as follows:

1.  Matthew 13 records some interesting parables, beginning with one about a sower that went forth to sow. To understand this parable, in its greater context, one must review chapters 11 and 12. Jesus, like His forerunner John the Baptist, had been preaching that the kingdom of heaven was at hand. (Matt. 4:2) His message was pretty much rejected and He Himself stated that “the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence.” (Matt. 11:12) He concluded chapter 11 with that great invitation to “come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.” (11:28) In Matthew 12, the Pharisees rejected Jesus as their King claiming that what He did He did by the empowerment of Beelzebub, or Satan. (12:24) For the nation of Israel at that time, that was their official rejection of His offer to be their King and it set into motion the events that would culminate at Calvary.
2. In Matthew 13, Jesus outlined for His disciples what would happen in the light of this rejection, speaking in parables so that He could reveal to them that a period of sowing would ensue, followed eventually by a harvest at the end of the world. (13:30) The parables were spoken to reveal to His followers “mysteries of the kingdom,” while concealing from His detractors further accountability and thus further condemnation since “they seeing see not and hearing hear not, neither do they understand.” (13:13) More truth would only bring them under more condemnation for to whom much is given of him shall much be required.
3. These parables, eight in all in chapter 13, outline what the future of the kingdom will look like in light of the King’s rejection. The first one is called the parable of the sower, and one learns that there is going to be a sowing of seed, ending in a final end of the world harvest. The sower is the Son of Man; (13:37) the field is the world; (13:38-as revealed in a similar parable concerning the sowing of bad seed or tares by the wicked one, a counter sowing) the seed is the word of the kingdom, (13:19) and the result of this period of sowing will be that some of the sown seed will not bear any fruit as some is immediately snatched up by the wicked one, (19) some will wither having been sown on stony ground; some will not bear but will be overtaken by thorns, but some will bear good fruit, some 30, some 60 and some a hundred-fold. (13:23)
4. In the other parables in Matthew 13, Jesus would further unfold characteristics of this sowing period. There would be a counter-sowing by Satan that would produce tares which would have to be weeded out at the end of the age harvest; the kingdom during this phase which He would later (Matt.16) identify as the church-age would have a very small beginning, (the parable of the mustard seed) but mushroom like growth (the parable of the leaven) and would be like a treasure found in a field or like a pearl of great price and, in the end of the world, it would be like a net that having been cast into the sea when drawn in would be a full net comprised of both bad and good produce, the good being saved in a vessel and the bad being cast into a furnace of fire.  Thus, the church-age period of the kingdom of heaven was outlined in the parable of the sower and the ensuing parables in Matthew 13.  

So, Jesus had already exhorted the disciples to petition the Lord of the harvest to send forth laborers into this vast world harvest field. (Matt. 9:38) Paul would later teach us that we are co-laborers with God (I Cor. 3:9) and that one sows, one waters but it is God who gives the increase. Writing to the church in Corinth in his second epistle to that church Paul said that we should all be sowing and sowing bountifully because we shall reap even as we have sown. (2 Cor. 9:6-8) Jesus told the 12 in His final intimate teaching moments with them in the upper room that His desire for each of His disciples is that we would go and bring forth fruit, and more fruit and much fruit. (John 15:2,8)

The Psalmist, hundreds of years before Paul exhorted believers to sow bountifully, by God’s Spirit, establishing the universal truth that “He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” (Ps. 126:6)

With an eye toward future rejoicing over seed that would bear precious fruit, Paul wrote in his first epistle to the Thessalonian church, “For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing?  Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming?  For ye are our glory and joy.” (I Thess.2:19,20)

So, thus another world missions, faith-promise conference.  We cannot individually go to the uttermost part of the earth, but we can partner with and send Holy Spirit called and separated missionaries from our church and churches of like precious faith who are ready and willing to go to the field, the world, with the good news, evangelizing, baptizing, discipling the peoples of the four corners of the earth, then organizing them into local New Testament churches that will do the same.  Our job begins with “Go.” The commission has never been withdrawn so thus another world missions faith-promise conference, the 40^th annual at our church, in obedience to His commands.

“Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity:  for God loveth a cheerful giver.  And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things may abound to every good work.” (2 Cor. 9:7,8)

This article first appeared in “You and God” in September, 2021. It is timely today as our church is this week enjoying our 43rd annual faith-promise world missions conference.