Questioning an Axiom

When Albert Einstein was asked what led him to a new approach that was different from the physics of Isaac Newton he said, “I challenged an axiom.” I’ve heard preachers and teachers elaborate to their listeners on what Paul said was true about women. Some of which when looked at together appear contradictory or illogical.

 

We’ve been taught that Paul said women are more prone to fall when tempted than are men. After all, look at Eve. On the other hand, we are taught that women are responsible for upholding sexual virtues. Boys will be boys, but girls are ladies and must tell the boys to behave. If females are less resistant to temptation, why is it they who must tell males when enough is enough?

 

We are told that Paul said women are to obey their husbands and to be subject to male leadership. On the other hand we are taught that women have the ultimate position of leadership. You know, “the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.” If women are less fit to be leaders than men, how is it mothers can teach their sons to be good leaders?

 

This afternoon I heard President Carter on NPR pushing his new book. During the interview he mentioned he had left a section of the Baptist church when they took the position a female professor was not permitted to teach a college class if there was a male in the class.

 

A few years ago Dottie and I were in Abilene to attend the Singing School at ACU and attended the Highland Ave CofC, the congregation behind Herald of Truth and criticized at the time. The bulletin that week said the Elders had decided to undertake a five-year-study on women’s role in the church. A year or so ago I heard they had decided to permit women to do some things in the assembly.

 

Unless there is a conspiracy we have to give those elders the benefit of the doubt that they were operating with a good-faith-effort when they came to their conclusions. On the other hand congregations with long standing preachers do not question. Some authors I have read believe that Paul did not say what we are told he said. Considering the history of discrimination against women, I have to wonder, if those prejudices influence translators and teachers. Then I have to wonder about a God who will torture for eternity anyone who listens to a women preacher regardless of how staunch a follower of Jesus they may be.       

 

 

 

Facing Reality

 

Of all the challenges to faith, few are greater and have caused more believers to abandon their faith than the problem of evil. How can a loving, powerful God allow so much evil and suffering in the world?

 

We must first recognize that humans cause much---but not all---of it. Because humans exercise a genuine free will, they do terrible and immoral things. Free will is essential if the world is to have meaning. Christians see free will as a gift from God---a gift that brings meaning to life and is essential if humans are to relate meaningfully to God. For humans to truly love God, other humans, or  themselves they must be free to choose or reject that love.

 

Because we are free, we can choose between real options. Because we are sinful, we can choose evil that in principle God could conceivably block. But for God to stop the evil in the world caused by humans, our freedom would have to be removed. God cannot give us free will while at the same time restraining us from evil acts.

 

Then there is natural evil. Volcanoes erupt and bury villages. Tsunamis inundate coastal cities and drown their inhabitants. Children fall off cliffs, Poisonous snakes bite babies. Lethal viruses and bacteria kill great numbers of innocent people every year. Plagues have ravaged human societies, ending the lives of millions of people in calamities of such magnitude they were often interpreted as divine judgments.

 

Both humans and all creation have freedom. Our freedom comes with a moral responsibility to use it properly. But that does not prevent us from doing terrible things. An often used example of evil is the Holocaust. The freedom God gave humans was exercised in the construction of gas chambers at Auschwitz and Dachau. But because humans have freedom, we do not say God created those gas chambers. God is, so to speak, off the hook for that evil. Unless God micromanages human decision making we will often abuse our freedom.

Not Dwell in Temples

 

 

Over the centuries much of what has been taught in Christian church buildings each week has roots in maintaining laity dependence upon the clergy i.e. saved-lost, heaven-hell, access to and understanding the scriptures, giving etc. GSMCOC is dependant upon one man as the sole source of religious information permitting church leaders to maintain control over what the laity believes.

 

One can peruse the GSMCOC budget and remain ignorant of the financial requirements of the congregation giving church leaders additional control. Are you familiar with the term “group think?”

 

What is the biblical reason to “give” and does it depend upon the amount given to be considered acceptable? When you look at the total contributed in all categories does it show that GSMCOC is generous or that we are lead by a fund raiser?

 

The Church of Christ prides itself on having bible examples for what it does. When Jesus was in the Wilderness his defense against Satan was “It is written…” Specifically which practices of the Church of Christ can be defended with “It is written..?”

 

Beautiful temples were commonplace among the Gentiles. Paul said God does not dwell in temples with hands.

 

Temples were rare among the Jews. We could say they were nonexistent except for the temple in Jerusalem, first built by Solomon.

 

Paul was saying that no temple ever built by man, including Solomon’s or the Parthenon, can contain God. To think the God who made the world and everything in it and who sustains the world by the power of His Word could be contained in a building regardless of size, beauty or cost diminishes his majesty.

 

God is Spirit, and spirit cannot be limited to any one space or the moment of one event.

 

In contrast to the pagans and the Jewish temple in Jerusalem, in all the New Testament there is no mention that the Christians ever built or bought or owned a material building of any kind that might be called a temple, cathedral or sanctuary for the Lord.  So much of Christianity throughout the centuries has been in some way associated with a material building, which is often an elaborately beautiful and costly facility, the highest priority, the biggest item in the church’s budget, and the focal point of virtually all of the church’s activity. The average Christian’s practice of his religious faith is within the church building.

 

Christians have forgotten that God does not dwell in temples made with hands,

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Meaning of Worship, Ralph Gilmore

 

Worship is a special combination of gifts from the mind and heart poured out in the presence of God. Thus worship should have motivations: (1) making obeisance (reverence, respect, honor) to someone greater; (2) of feeling awe in His presence; (3) reverently bowing our knees before Him; (4) humbly offering our lives in sacrificial service to Him; and (5) establishing a pattern of life consistent with our worship.

 

Despite whatever conceptions we may have concerning worship, that is what true worship to God is all about. The modern church is falling shamefully short of obeisance. We are missing that sense of awe in the presence of the Almighty.

 

“But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth; for the father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship hi must worship him I spirit and in truth.” John 4 23-24.

 

When Jesus speaks about true worship, He implies that there is such a thing as false worship. Second, true worship is offered to God. Third, it must be offered in Spirit, and fourth, it must be offered in truth.

 

This idea of true worship and the inference of false worship should be of concern. It is important to be a true worshiper of God. One reason is because Jesus said this is the kind of worshiper the Father seeks to worship him.  God does not respect anything and everything, any kind of worship that is offered to Him.  That is what Paul meant when he said God was not worshiped with men’s hand’s (Acts 17:25), meaning God is not worshiped with man’s inventiveness and ingenuity as if he is deficient in some way in defining true worship.

Is it Easier to Co-habitate?

A couple decided to marry. He had received a PhD and had a job but she was still working on her PhD. With his career on track and a future wife selected, it might appear that he had made the big decisions. Yet, in the course of their courtship, they had to make a series of tough choices. 

First, they had to decide whether to live together. This decision involved weighing the virtues of independence against the virtues of interdependence, and measuring various practical advantages (convenience, financial savings) of living together against possible parental disapproval. 

Next they had to decide when (and how) to get married.  Should they wait until their respective careers were more settled or not? 

Should they have a religious ceremony, and if so, would it be his religion or hers?  

Having decided to marry, the couple had to decide if they should merge their finances or keep them separate, and if separate, how they should handle joint expenses. 

With marital decisions settled, they next had to face the dilemma of children. Should they have them? 

Yes, they easily decided. However, the question of timing led to another series of choices involving ticking biological clocks, the demands of finishing PhDs, and uncertainty about future employment circumstances. 

They also had to resolve the question of religion. Were they going to give their kids a religious upbringing, and if so, in whose religion? 

Next came a series of career-related choices. 

Should they each look for the best possible job and be open to the possibility that they might have to live apart for some time? 

If not, whose career should get priority? 

In looking for jobs, should they restrict their search to be near his family or her family, or should they ignore geography completely and just look for the best jobs they could find in the same city, wherever it was? 

Facing and resolving each of these decisions, all with potentially significant consequences, was difficult. They thought that they had already made the hard decisions when they fell in love and made a mutual commitment.

American Restoration Movement

Earlier I mentioned how the American Restoration Movement despite its announced goal of using only the bible resulted with The Disciples of Christ, the Conservative Christian Church, and the Churches of Christ.

When we talk about how the church strayed into what we consdiere apostasyhave you considered it was our brother and sisters in Christ who strayed?

And with estimates ranging from 21 to over 50 as to the total number of sub-groups which have emerged from this historical movement for unity among Christians. Additional estimates are around 19 sub-groups within the a cappella sub-group. And that we are one of the sub-groups who will not acknowledge others who like we claim to have been, were immersed for the forgiveness of sins, as children of God

The more we know about our history the more I question if we have been among those who God added to his church; those who were being saved.

John Jenkins
865-803-8179  cell
Gatlinburg, TN



Email: jrjenki@gmail.com
Blogs: http://littlepigeon.blogspot.com/
         http://alumcave.blogspot.com/

"It is difficult for men in high office to avoid the malady of self-delusion. They are always surrounded by worshippers. They are constantly and for the most part sincerely assured of their greatness." 

---Calvin Coolidge, upon leaving the presidency following five and a half years

Observation

The Men’s meeting was hesitant to let the visitors know the full extent of the congregation’s financial situation out of concern the visitors will not contribute. Curious a group demanding their government be transparent isn’t willing to demonstrate that quality themselves. Shouldn’t we give the visitors the information they need to permit them to evaluate who they believe has a greater need for their contribution? 

 

Prior to responding to requests for benevolence assistance the congregation investigates to ensure the need is real and that the situation is not self inflicted. Shouldn’t the congregation perform the same due diligence when in comes to outside requests for financial assistance? How many others have been asked, how many have responded, total income and total expenses etc. Shouldn't the requestors be willing to permit contributors to evaluate who they believe has a greater need for their contribution?

 

Beautiful Temples

Beautiful temples were commonplace among the Gentiles. Paul said God does not dwell in temples with hands.

 

Temples were rare among the Jews. We could say they were nonexistent except for the temple in Jerusalem, first built by Solomon.

 

Paul was saying that no temple ever built by man, including Solomon’s or the Parthenon, can contain God. To think the God who made the world and everything in it and who sustains the world by the power of His Word could be contained in a building regardless of size, beauty or cost diminishes his majesty.

 

God is Spirit, and spirit cannot be limited to any one space or the moment of one event.

 

In contrast to the pagans and the Jewish temple in Jerusalem, in all the New Testament there is no mention that the Christians ever built or bought or owned a material building of any kind that might be called a temple, cathedral or sanctuary for the Lord.  So much of 20^th-century American Christianity is in some way associated with a material building, which is often an elaborately beautiful and costly facility, the highest priority and biggest item in the church’s budget, and the focal point of virtually all of the church’s activity. The average Christian’s practice of his religious faith is within the church building.

 

Christians have forgotten that God does not dwell in temples made with hands,

 

Our History

As we look at our history we see the church established on Pentecost was responsible for the many alterations resulting in various denominations.

 

We fast forward to the Restoration Movement which had the announced goal of using only the bible with the result being The Disciples of Christ, the Conservative Christian Church, and the Churches of Christ. There are different splinter groups within each of these three. Estimates range from 21 to over 50 as to the total number of sub-groups which have emerged from this historical movement for unity among Christians. Estimates are around 19 sub-groups within the a cappella sub-group. Some within a given sub-group will not even acknowledge others within a different sub-group as children of God---much less any who are outside their historical heritage.

 

In the first century it was all about following Jesus. Today it is all about everything but.

Restoration Movement or What?

As we look at history we see the church established on Pentecost eventually was responsible for the many alterations resulting in various denominations.

 

We fast forward to the Restoration Movement which had the announced goal of using only the bible with the result being The Disciples of Christ, the Conservative Christian Church, and the Churches of Christ. There are different splinter groups within each of these three. Estimates range from 21 to over 50 as to the total number of sub-groups which have emerged from this historical movement for unity among Christians. Estimates are around 19 sub-groups within the a cappella sub-group. Some within a given sub-group will not even acknowledge others within a different sub-group as children of God---much less any who are outside their historical heritage.   

 

Natural Evil?

 

 

There are wasps that lay their eggs inside the body of caterpillars, and when the eggs hatch, the baby wasps eat the internal organs of the caterpillar. They come into the world programmed with an instinct to consume the internal organs of their hosts in the order that ensures their host lives as long as possible. This seems like the stuff of horror movies, not Mother Nature and definitely not a loving creator.

 

In an attempt to resolve the problem of natural evil, Christians say that no animals were carnivorous before the Adam and Even sinned which is not the most reasonable reading of Genesis, nor can it be squared with science.

 

That would require that almost every animal on the planet had its way of life drastically transformed. Sharp teeth and poison glands---and the genetic code to produce them---had to pop into existence since animals were going to start killing each other for the first time.  Thorns had to suddenly appear on bushes. Vast numbers of vegetarian animals became carnivorous.  Scientists believe if this scenario were correct there would be fossil evidence.

Additionally for The Pre-Fall world to be completely free from every kind of physical death, it could not have been an orderly free world at all. Somehow, no animal would have been able to fall off a cliff until Adam and Eve sinned; no branch could break off and fall on a rabbit or empty out a nest of baby birds; no chipmunk could fall into a stream and drown; no hoof could land on a grasshopper. Imagining such a world is impossible.

 

 

 

Fighting Against God?

When contributions are high I hear "God is blessing GSMCOC" and "When God wants something done he will provide the money;"

If that is correct God must not want us to do what we are doing.

 

Change

On the subject of people believing Christians also needed to be circumcised and our thoughts on how difficult it must have been to abandon that idea I write this:  

 

We can only imagine how difficult it was for the church to change it’s understanding of the Bible in the sixteenth century concerning the earth revolving around the sun when Scripture seemed to teach the earth is immovably fixed in space.

 

Christians accepted the "new" interpretation and did not hang on to a "literal" understanding of the "pillars of the earth?"  

 

For Christians the nineteenth century was rough. In a span of about twenty years, three independent, technical and powerful forces converged to challenge the historical reliability of Genesis, not to mention other parts of the Old Testament.

 

One of the three forces was natural sciences advance and its effect on how we understand our planet. In the eighteenth century, geology, showed by the fossil record the earth is millions upon millions of years old---far older than most people had taken for granted and far older than a literal interpretation of the Bible allows. Darwin's work in the nineteenth century followed on the heels of these discoveries. His theory of human origins further challenged the biblical view of the origin of life, to put it mildly.

 

The second force was developments in biblical studies known as biblical criticism; the academic study of the Bible marked mainly by a historical investigation into the date and authorship of biblical books.

 

Complementing the work of biblical criticism was a third factor, biblical archaeology; the growing field of archaeology of ancient Israel and the surrounding area.

 

The nineteenth century was without a doubt a pivotal moment with huge implications for a good many things, including how we read Genesis and thus also for the evolution discussion as well as the discussion of the authorship and dates of the Old Testament including the Pentateuch.

 

As those Christians in the sixteenth-century changed so will we, eventually, and this will be as difficult to accept as it was for those Jews being told what they had practiced their entire life was no longer relevant and the people they considered less than humans were now their brothers and sisters.

 

I am government, trust me

The government program “Aid to Dependent Children” is an example of when government steps in to help it creates another problem. Recently I was reading about Federal programs. Aid to Dependent Children (ADC) was created as part of President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal in 1935 and was intended to supplement existing state relief programs for widows and to provide support to families in which the father was deceased, absent, or unable to work. Families on ADC received support based on the number of children and the father did not live with the family. It appears the Federal government had a hand in destroying the family. 

 

Calls for government to prevent abortions have given rise to laws designed to extend the legal concept of "personhood" to pre-born humans. These laws give legal status as a person to any fertilized human egg, from conception until birth. This includes the zygote before it has implanted, and according to medical science, implantation is the beginning of a pregnancy. These laws permit the rights of the pre-born humans to supersede the rights of the mother. Recently in the news a woman was declared dead but against her and her families' wishes she was kept on life support by the state due to her being pregnant.

 

Christians need to be wary asking government to enforce their moral views.

 

Re: Those Among Us

 

Joe Whitson writes:

 

Noah’s flood destroyed all living flesh upon the Earth. All, in which the breath of life was given, died. Noah and his family were spared to replenish the Earth. Noah’s flood destroyed all but his family.

 

The race of Giants that were born to the daughters of men continued for around 1600 years until the flood and continued after the flood for another 1300 years until Goliath was dispatched by David. These Giants had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot.

 

Since only Noah’s family survived where did the Giants who continued after the flood for 1300 years come from?  For that matter where did the various ethnic groups come from? Your friend might believe Noah’s wife and daughters-in-law were impregnated by aliens. That happened to the women and girls in Village of the Damned one of my favorite movies.

 

Since the 19th century, scholarly consensus has been that the story is not literally true. As I mentioned in an earlier email the 19^th century was tough on Christian beliefs.

 

The Genesis flood narrative is one of a number of similar flood myths. Many scholars believe that Noah and the Biblical flood-story derive from the Mesopotamian versions, predominantly because Biblical mythology found in Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Mandeanism shares overlapping consistency with far older written Mesopotamian stories of The Great Flood, and because the early Hebrews were known to have lived in Mesopotamia, particularly during the Babylonian captivity.

 

There are  parallels, both similarities and differences, between Noah's ark and the ship of  Babylonian flood-hero Atrahasis. Noah's is a rectangle, while Atrahasis was instructed to build his in the form of a cube; Atrahasis has seven decks with nine compartments on each level, Noah has three decks, but is not given any instructions on the number of compartments. The word used for "pitch" is not the normal Hebrew word but is closely related to the word used in the Babylonian story.

 

Have you considered that Scripture is meant to convey concepts and is not intended to be taken literally and is not intended to be scientifically or historically accurate?

 

If correct questions long unaswered will be resolved. One is God’s (remember God is love) propensity to destroy his creation and later torture forever those who did not do or say what he liked. Imagine being tortured in Hell for eternity because you played a piano in the assembly or listened to a female speaker or even worse listened to others sing i.e. a chorus.

 

Much of what we teach is carried over from a time when the goal was keep the laity dependent upon the clergy as protectors from God and the only folks who could understand the Bible.

 

 

John Jenkins
865-803-8179  cell
Gatlinburg, TN



Email: jrjenki@gmail.com
Blogs: http://littlepigeon.blogspot.com/
         http://alumcave.blogspot.com/

"It is difficult for men in high office to avoid the malady of self-delusion. They are always surrounded by worshippers. They are constantly and for the most part sincerely assured of their greatness." 

---Calvin Coolidge, upon leaving the presidency following five and a half years

On Wed, Feb 26, 2014 at 4:59 PM, John Jenkins <jrjenki@gmail.com> wrote:

He makes a lot of assertions most if not all unverifiable. I have observed what I call the Law of Verifiability which says when verifiability is low confidence is high and when verifiability is high confidence is low. As with the Law of Gravity there is no law just observation of consistent behavior. He probably explains Area 51.

 

Who is this guy?

 

 

John Jenkins
865-803-8179  cell
Gatlinburg, TN



Email: jrjenki@gmail.com
Blogs: http://littlepigeon.blogspot.com/
         http://alumcave.blogspot.com/

"It is difficult for men in high office to avoid the malady of self-delusion. They are always surrounded by worshippers. They are constantly and for the most part sincerely assured of their greatness." 

---Calvin Coolidge, upon leaving the presidency following five and a half years

On Wed, Feb 26, 2014 at 3:45 PM, slate1960@yahoo.com <slate1960@yahoo.com> wrote:

See what this stirs up with you. I responded but can't confirm his contentions, though I do wonder where some of this comes from. Job would probably say that Satin is still trying to confuse us(more).

Ray

Sent from Samsung tablet

-------- Original message --------
From Joseph Whitson <jgwhitson36@gmail.com>
Date: 02/18/2014 3:29 PM (GMT-05:00)
To Ray and Martha Slate <slate1960@yahoo.com>
Subject Those Among Us

   Ray--- for your review and critique.

--
Joseph Whitson

Do We Have a Clue?

 

 

 

Have you considered that Scripture is meant to convey concepts and is not intended to be taken literally and is not intended to be scientifically or historically accurate?

 

On the subject of heaven it was enough for David to know that: goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Did he need more details? Did he need gold streets or pearly gates or was it enough to know: … in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. David was satisfied with looking forward to relationship with God not possible here.

 

I am told free will will exist in Heaven but what does that mean and what will cause people claiming to be Christian who are prejudiced, argumentative, selfish etc to change or will only the perfect be in Heaven? We are told there will be no temptation. James says temptation comes from within. Having our sins forgiven does not change the desire for sinful things. What will cause us to change?

 

Are we sure we have a clue?

Does Anyone Believe What They Say They Believe?

Do you ever wonder if anyone believes what they say they believe?

 

Christian Scientists believe that disease is a spiritual rather than physical disorder, that there is no death, and that the sick should be treated, not by medicine, but by a form of prayer that seeks to correct the beliefs responsible for the illusion of ill health. And yet they die and no one blinks an eye.

 

Snake handlers believe God commands them to do what they do. Mark’s version of The Great Commission includes: “And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” Jesus says the signs will accompany those who believe apparently a dead snake handler was not among the believers. And no one blinks an eye. As a side note we “rightly divide” that Jesus meant one sentence for us but not the next and that we can send and not go.

 

I am told God answers prayers and that prayer works (whatever that means) and while he has never healed anyone in response to prayer no one blinks an eye. Al says we pray that it will be God's will for Dez to progress rapidly. Doesn’t that mean it must be God’s will for Dez to not progress rapidly? And no one blinks an eye.

 

When folks decide what they really believe they just might tell others.

 

 

John Jenkins
865-803-8179  cell
Gatlinburg, TN



Email: jrjenki@gmail.com
Blogs: http://littlepigeon.blogspot.com/
         http://alumcave.blogspot.com/

"It is difficult for men in high office to avoid the malady of self-delusion. They are always surrounded by worshippers. They are constantly and for the most part sincerely assured of their greatness." 

---Calvin Coolidge, upon leaving the presidency following five and a half years

Fwd: Reference Your Comments Concerning Abused Children

What does it say about God observing the innocent of his creation being abused and killed and he does not intervene but on the other hand will answer those public prayers for safety? God cannot protect me from you unless he infringes upon your free will which Christians say is a gift from God.

Is there any similarity between God creating us dependent upon various things for survival and not providing them and me buying a lawnmower, not putting oil and gas in it and then throwing it out because it does not work?

Worship?

In his book "Paul’s Sermon on Mars’ Hill," Mack Lyon writes: “if what I am reading in the religious press and seeing in religious television and witnessing in some places I go is a true representation, the modern church is falling shamefully short of obeisance. We are missing that sense of awe in the presence of the Almighty.”

 

I have no idea what it means to worship. I have never had the impulse to throw myself at some one's feet or even God. I do not experience "awe:" a feeling of reverential respect mixed with fear or wonder.

I don't associate worship with our assembly. Hebrews says we assemble to provoke each other to love and good works and Paul told the church in Rome worship was presenting their bodies as living sacrifices. The bible says Abraham believed God. God spoke directly to Abraham he does not speak directly to me.  Today, how can I believe God? Believe him about what he doesn't say anything to me?

 

For those who believe our assembly is worship we are missing the mark. We are referred to as an “audience.” Audiences are spectators an assembly of worshipers are not spectators.

 

If the assembly is for worship and if there are "five acts of worship" what does singing to each other; praying for ourselves; listening to a speech; remembering what Jesus did for us have to do with worship?. We have memorials all the time and do not consider it worship; and giving for our own benefit?

 

Again in Mack Lyon's book: There are six Greek words, or word families, that translate into our English words "worship," "worshipped," "worshiping." and so on....The most commonly used word defines worship as an act of homage or reverence; to make obeisance, to do reverence to or toward, to kiss. Another word means to revere and emphasizes the emotions of awe and devotion. Another word means to bow the knee before the object of worship. Still another word conveys the idea of sacrificial offerings. One word even implies a pattern for religious service."

Ralph Gilmore, Freed-Hardeman University, Gospel Advocate, August 1995 summarized these for his definition about the motivations of worship: "Worship is a special combination of gifts from the mind and heard poured out in the presence of God. Thus, worship should have these motivations: (1) making obeisance (reverence, respect, honor) to someone greater; (2) of feeling awe in His presence; reverently bowing our knees before him; (4) humbly offering our lives in sacrificial service to Him; and (5) establishing a pattern of life consistent with our worship."

How do those definitions relate to our assembly?

Do you suppose Aaron or Moses interrupted the sacrifices to announce a lunch in a couple of weeks or a special collection for gentile babies?

Government and Marriage

In the current issue of Christian Chronicle there is an article “Judge Admonished for voicing concern on gay marriages.” As usual, an unidentified source leaked Tabor's concerns to the media and the story went statewide. Gary Tabor ---a superior court judge and Church of Christ elder was formally admonished for voicing his preference not to perform same-sex marriages. He has voluntarily stopped performing all marriages so he can avoid gay ones. 

 

All I want from a Christian in government is honesty, integrity and ethics. I do not care what their religious beliefs are. I do not want a Muslim judge basing his decision on the Koran. Gay marriage is the law in district of Tabor’s jurisdiction and I expect Tabor to follow the law. “Performing” or “officiating” the marriage does not mean he agrees or disagrees. If my taxes are paying his salary he follows the law.

 

The bigger question is why is Government involved?

What interest does government have in "marriage?" And why is it that a person who "performs" or "officiates" the "ceremony" has to be licensed by the state?  Some five hundred or so years ago a "Marriage Ordinance" was created requiring "state registration" and "church consecration." God created the concept of the family and man inserted government involvement. What government permits government can prohibit. Marriage is not a Constitutional issue. 

Why does anyone care who commits their life to another? It is the benefits provided by our government. What we need is for governments to eliminate all perks for the married. Then no one will care one way or the other.

Allowing that moral issues are involved they are best addressed by Jesus and we should let him. Of course that will require that Christians do something other than protest and I doubt if that will happen. 

Want Truth?

In the January 2010 issue of Smithsonian magazine there is an article about the Dead Sea scrolls. The article says the thousands of tourists who flock to Qumran each year, where the scrolls were discovered, are told the site was once home to a Jewish sect called the Essenes, who devoted their lives to writing and preserving sacred texts. An Israeli archaeologist disagrees, and says the settlement was originally a small fort that was later converted into a pottery factory to serve nearby towns. Which story sounds better to the tourists? Do they want to know the truth or do they want to continue to believe what they want to believe even if it might be false?

What Does Being Inspired Include?

We are told the Bible is inspired by God but what constitutes being inspired? What in the New Testament suggests the writers were inspired?  Was John inspired when he wrote Revelation or was he taking dictation? Was Luke inspired or was he making a record for his friend as he claimed he was doing and how about the rest of the New Testament?

 

Were the writers of the Old Testament inspired or taking dictation or reporting? What constitutes being inspired?

 

For Christians the nineteenth century was rough. In a span of about twenty years, three independent, technical and powerful forces converged to challenge the historical reliability of Genesis, not to mention other parts of the Old Testament. The conflicts that ensued are the very stuff of liberal-versus-conservative divide and continue today.

 

One of the three forces is natural sciences advance and its effect on how we understand our planet. In the eighteenth century, geology, showed by the fossil record the earth is millions upon millions of years old---far older than most people had taken for granted and far older than a literal interpretation of the Bible allows. Darwin's work in the nineteenth century followed on the heels of these discoveries. His theory of human origins further challenged the biblical view of the origin of life, to put it mildly.

 

The second force is developments in biblical studies known as biblical criticism; the academic study of the Bible that is marked mainly by a historical investigation into the date and authorship of biblical books.

 

Complementing the work of biblical criticism was a third factor, biblical archaeology; the growing field of archaeology of ancient Israel and the surrounding area.

 

The nineteenth century was without a doubt a pivotal moment in recent intellectual history with huge implications for a good many things, including how we read Genesis and thus also for the evolution discussion as well as the discussion of the authorship and dates of the Old Testament including the Pentateuch.

 

We all have a tendency to believe that the way things are they have always been but this is not necessarily correct and the Bible is no exception. As anyone who wants to remain relevant in their professional field must be aware of changes and discoveries in their field of expertise the same goes for Christians.

If Christians are to remain relevant we should not ignore Augustine of Hippo’s advice?

“In matters that are so obscure and far beyond our vision, we find in Holy Scripture passages which can be interpreted in very different ways without prejudice to the faith we have received. In such cases, we should not rush in headlong and so firmly take our stand on one side that, if further progress in the search for truth justly undermines this position, we too fall with it. That would be to battle not for teaching of Holy Scripture but our own, wishing its teaching to conform to ours, whereas we ought to wish ours to conform to that of Sacred Scripture"

One of the reasons the church loses a large number of its youth may be that when those youth find themselves in situations unlike those to which they are accustomed they find some of what they have been taught is not true. That should not be.

John Jenkins
865-803-8179  cell
Gatlinburg, TN



Email: jrjenki@gmail.com
Blogs: http://littlepigeon.blogspot.com/
         http://alumcave.blogspot.com/

"It is difficult for men in high office to avoid the malady of self-delusion. They are always surrounded by worshippers. They are constantly and for the most part sincerely assured of their greatness." 

---Calvin Coolidge, upon leaving the presidency following five and a half years

Finances

Considering the discussion in the recent Men’s Meeting concerning adding Brad Harrub to the list of those receiving money from GSMCOC and Gary’s request to consider Raja one can peruse the GSMCOC budget and remain ignorant of the financial obligations of the congregation. If the congregation has the funds to make our obligations we do not need outsider’s assistance. If we do not, the members need to know it. Is GSMCOC self supporting or not?

 

How about a budget that identifies non-discretionary as well as discretionary financial obligations of the congregation? When it comes to items not listed in the budget except for those who are holding funds in reserve for their special projects it is a zero sum game, a dollar given to one is a dollar not given to the other. Why not quarterly distributing to the membership a budget adjusted to reflect the over/under status with budgets adjusted to reflect reality? How about periodically as in annually or bi-annually reviewing every line item and let the entire congregation vote if they want to allocate funds to it? How about a multi-year budget? The ballot should provide for “no opinion” so actual support can be identified.

 

We should require periodic financial reports from all “missionaries” and special requests.  How many people did Brad and Raja and the others ask for help and how many said yes?  Without such reports we have no idea of the necessity of our support. On occasion GSMCOC comes close to what I consider unethical or deceptive practices and I suspect other groups do too.

 

I sent this to you to get it off my chest. I do not believe our leaders will concur they appear to be selective in the information they want to share with the congregation and prefer to keep the visitors ignorant.

John Jenkins
865-803-8179  cell
Gatlinburg, TN



Email: jrjenki@gmail.com
Blogs: http://littlepigeon.blogspot.com/
         http://alumcave.blogspot.com/

“To convince people that they must learn to study is the major obstacle. Most people assume that because they know how to read words they know how to study. This limited grasp of the nature of study explains why so many people gain so little from reading books."  

---Richard J. Foster, Celebration of Discipline

Heaven?

Philip Gulley and James Mulholland co-authored a book “If Grace Is True Why God Will Save Every Person.” Gulley is a Quaker minister and Mulholland has what he calls ecumenical experience in the American Baptist and United Methodist denominations and is currently a Quaker pastor. I bought their book to consider their logic for coming to such a conclusion based on the same bible I read.

 

Their logic is based on what they believe, what they think and what they feel and do not have specific bible support to support the title of their book.

 

We get into that same mode of thinking when the subject is Heaven. The Bible says very little about heaven but we all have our convictions just as Muslims have their convictions. I especially like the fact that if I like to fish I will be able to do that in Heaven. I told the person who told me that that Heaven must be Hell for fish with all those hooks and things. I was assured there were no barbs and it was all catch and release. I hope he was kidding.

 

We can only think in the physical and since Heaven is not physical we have no clue. It was enough for David to know that: goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever (Psalms 23:6). Did he need more details? Did he need gold streets or pearly gates or was it enough to know: … in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. David was satisfied with looking forward to relationship with God not possible here (Psalm 16:11). Why isn’t it enough for us?

God Does Not Dwell in Temples Made With Hands

Beautiful temples were commonplace among the Gentiles. Paul said God does not dwell in temples with hands.

 

Temples were rare among the Jews. We could say they were nonexistent except for the temple in Jerusalem, first built by Solomon.

 

Paul was saying that no temple ever built by man, including Solomon’s or the Parthenon, can contain God. To think the God who made the world and everything in it and who sustains the world by the power of His Word could be contained in a building regardless of size, beauty or cost diminishes his majesty.

 

God is Spirit, and spirit cannot be limited to any one space or the moment of one event.

 

In contrast to the pagans and the Jewish temple in Jerusalem, in all the New Testament there is no mention that the Christians ever built or bought or owned a material building of any kind that might be called a temple, cathedral or sanctuary for the Lord.  So much of 20^th-century American Christianity is in some way associated with a material building, which is often an elaborately beautiful and costly facility, the highest priority and biggest item in the church’s budget, and the focal point of virtually all of the church’s activity. The average Christian’s practice of his religious faith is within the church building.

 

Christians have forgotten that God does not dwell in temples made with hands,