Recently, Barry King, pastor of Grace Baptist Church (http://tiny.cc/te1v3), Wood Green, London came into contact with some friends in Germany who are at the heart of a struggle for Biblical reformation in their land. The testimony of Anita Kupfermann is sending shock waves through the churches of Germany.  Her complete testimony was published in German in Bibel und Gemeinde in the October 2011 issue (pp. 9-14). This English translation is published here in hopes of encouraging prayer for Anita and others like her who are standing for Biblical orthodoxy in Germany.

Would you join him in prayer for God to continue to move among German Baptists?

– the Editors of SBC Today

My Life Changed! How God Gave Me Faith:
A Testimony

by Anita Kupfermann



Dear Reader,

Thank you for taking the time to read my story!

My name is Anita Kupfermann and I would like to tell you about my time studying theology.  It is my hope that this little account of my experiences will serve as a warning and an encouragement to you. I would like to warn you of how the so-called “Higher Critical” (Historical Criticism) method left my relationship with God, and therefore my entire life, severely damaged. Yet I equally hope to encourage you! I can testify with great joy and thankfulness that the Lord Jesus Christ, during my time at university, healed my unbelief and called me to follow Him.

I hope and pray that God will be glorified through these pages and that you, the reader, will be encouraged to fully trust the Word of God.

My Time At Theological College & the Higher Critical Method (HCM)

Through my parents I was confronted with the Christian faith at an early age. I regularly went to Sunday School and was baptized at the age of 14.

A full ten years later, whilst working at a nursery, I was gripped by the desire to do something else with my time, something equally meaningful.  I wanted to submit myself to the Word of God and reflect on my walk with God. Although I had been baptized, I realized that I did not know the Bible. I couldn’t say I had a living relationship with God.  I longed to know God better, to better understand what being a Christian meant. So, I decided to attend a theological college for ten months. My hope was that these ten months would supply what was missing in my faith.

Right from the beginning of my time at theological college I was confronted with Biblical criticism in the form of the “Higher Critical” method, (HCM). The HCM is the current philosophy of understanding and explaining Bible passages at German universities, as well as at many free-church theological colleges. According to this philosophy the Bible is not understood to be the inspired Word of God but a contradictory, mistake-prone, human work. Just like any other piece of literature it must be critically questioned and examined. This method of approaching the biblical texts normally leads to rejecting the historicity of the Bible – in other words, the historical accuracy and reliability of the Bible is questioned. Simply put, the Bible’s stories are just myths that never happened.

An example of this technique may help explain what it looks like in practice.

We were taught that Mark’s Gospel has its origin dated back to roughly 70 A.D. According to the HCM, it is categorically denied that it was possible for Jesus Christ to have seen the future. However Mark’s Gospel reports that Christ predicts the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem. This prophecy was perfectly fulfilled: in 70 A.D. the Romans razed the temple to the ground. The majority of critical researchers believe that the prophecy in Mark is a fake prophecy, (vaticinium ex eventu). Only after the event, they assume, was Jesus’ prophecy added to the text. The Gospel of Mark cannot have predicted the future destruction of the temple, therefore it must have been written afterwards.

With this fixed, faithless presupposition, the Holy Bible is critically evaluated until all her reports are questionable. A few more short examples give a fuller picture of the results of this modern critical scientific approach to the Bible:

Adam and Eve never existed. Rather, they are merely literary symbols for all of humanity. Hence, there never was a real fall into sin.

Noah and the ark is a legend, not a real event.

The first five books of the Bible were not written by Moses. Instead they were compiled by at least three different writers over a long period of time. Moreover they are, at least in part, contradictory.

The Ten Commandments did not come from God but slowly evolved from various stories. This happened a long time after Moses had died.

The conquests such as those that are recorded in Joshua never happened.

Jesus’ words and deeds in the Gospels were often invented later by well meaning Christians. Therefore, much of the Gospels is simply fictitious. For example; Jesus never talked about His death, much less His resurrection. Furthermore His identity as the promised Christ and as the Son of God was also invented at a much later date. He never wanted to start a church or reach out to the Gentiles.

Paul is not the author of the New Testament letters to the Colossians, Ephesians, 2 Thessalonians and 1 and 2 Timothy, or Titus. Neither did Peter write the letters ascribed to him.

These are just some of countless examples. The theories of the HCM were not taught at this theological college, or in my later studies, to merely acknowledge them. Instead they were taught and proclaimed with conviction. Under the influence of such teaching, the reliability of the Bible was increasingly questioned. I became more and more convinced that the Bible is not the infallible Word of God but a jumbled collection of human, (i.e. imperfect) thoughts about God and life.

An unavoidable question-mark was now next to every person and event in the Bible. Moreover, as well as my new discoveries about the unreliability of the Bible, my ethical convictions were also brought into question. At the college we discussed themes such as homosexuality and sex outside of marriage. Were these perhaps permissible after all? In short, I felt my doubts about Christianity and the Bible grow and grow. If everything is not as it was written then, how could I be sure of anything I believed?

My skepticism blossomed as we took up the theme of world religions in our classes. Faced with a deep crisis of faith, I seriously considered giving up Christianity. My lecturers were so certain that it could only be good for me to give up the fundamentals of my former faith. Only such a “deconstruction” would give me a new mature and responsible faith. Such was their conviction for my life, and I desperately hoped that they were right.

My Time at the Theological Seminary

After these ten months I returned to my old job for a year. During this time I toyed with the idea of furthering my education. As the questions raised by the HCM still occupied my thoughts, I was keen to further study theology. In addition I rather liked the thought of becoming a pastor. So it was that 2007 saw me begin to study theology at the Theological Seminary of the German Baptist Union. I received no call to this by God, even if I tried to talk myself into believing this was the case. I talked with many people about my plans, but not with God Himself.

In the meantime I no longer sought to question the HCM as I was well familiar with its teachings from my previous time at college. However, the criticism of the Bible was to increase dramatically over the next few years.

I can still remember, for example, a lecturer leaving a lecture hall, stopping at the doorway to say, “Tomorrow we’ll kill Moses!” He meant that the following day we would be taught that historically, Moses never existed as the Bible taught. Furthermore I learnt that many of the Old Testament accounts were nothing more than myths and legends; far removed from history and reality. The Jewish worship of Yahweh, – the temple system, services, festivals, and commandments, – was mostly copied from the religions of Israel’s neighbours at that time. Over hundreds of years the biblical texts were added to, changed and consciously manipulated by numerous unknown authors. This is why the Bible is (apparently!) so full of contradictions. If given room to do so, the HCM swiftly gains power, tearing through every point of doctrine like a hurricane, until assurance of faith lies shattered.

I heard many students say that these “academic” discoveries were a great help for them; at the time I agreed, or at least talked myself into agreeing. In reality I was beginning to reap the bitter harvest of my new, “mature” faith. At the end of the second semester I came to the firm conclusion that the Bible was totally unbelievable and thus I laid it aside at the bottom of my bookshelves. I had no more desire to read it, let alone to try and live according to it. I did not pray any more, nor did I ask God for help or wisdom. I was just too confident of my new critical attitude.

Despite having no inner relationship with God, I continued with the outward appearance of wanting to be a pastor. I preached and seemed religious – at least whilst in church! It was a different story when I was with my fellow students. There I did not hold myself back, increasingly getting drunk at parties and losing my distaste for lying and cheating. I especially enjoyed gossiping and slandering the other students. In this case I had a specific target, a group of young men who annoyed me beyond all else. They wholeheartedly believed in the Scriptures as the Word of God. There was a small group of students in my semester who defended the trustworthiness of the Scriptures – even in our classes.  This greatly irritated me and other students and thus we delighted to spread rumors about them.

In doing this I was not in the least bothered by my conscience. I had long lost any fear of God or an eternal punishment. The words of warning in the Scriptures weren’t important to me. The god I had discovered through my studies did not get angry, respected people’s doubts and forgave everyone everything. What did I have to be afraid of? Why not have fun and live life to the max? This was my new philosophy for life, and this was how I lived. However, once the initial euphoria had left, life became worse and worse for me, until I felt there was nothing for me to stand on. An inner emptiness made it increasingly clear that I had no true life or peace. In books critical of the Bible and in conversations I tried to find what I was missing, but to no avail.

Finally I asked an evangelist I met at a church event to pray for me. I longed for a real relationship to God but felt unable to ask Him. It was as if I had lost any ability to pray.

The Change!

A few weeks later the preacher’s prayer was answered. On the 6th December, 2008 the Lord opened my eyes to see my guilt and godless life.

The catalyst for this was a polemical speech given by a lecturer at a film evening at the seminary. Above all, he mocked those who put their trust in the reliability of every word in the Bible. One of those being mocked sat right in front of me and didn’t react. I talked to him afterwards and he assured me that he was not ashamed of his faith. His inner peace and assurance made me stop and think. I asked myself how the rest of the Bible-believers, or “Fundys” (short for fundamentalists) as we called them, reacted to all this.

To my great amazement they did not consider boycotting the classes. Instead they continued to meet together every day to pray for the mockers, lecturers, and the entire seminary. I saw that the Lord was their shield, that He had given them a firm faith. The Bible says that Christians do not live for themselves anymore, but for Him who died for them.  Thanks to these young men I was able to see that the grace of God was working in them. They did not feel forced to defend themselves. I did not think this was a normal reaction to such a situation and I was greatly impressed. They simply passed the humiliation that they suffered on to Christ, and so anger or a desire for revenge simply had no hold on them.

After all these events, I drove home to spend Christmas with my family. There I recognized even more that I had despised God through my embrace of higher criticism. I had denied God’s word, rejected God’s grace, and mocked God’s servants. Worse than all, I had called myself a Christian and cared nothing for the atonement Christ bought at the cost of His life. This I realized to be an unbearably dreadful mistake. Over Christmas and with many tears I repented of many things, seeking God in prayer, and rejoiced to know His full and free forgiveness. With a glad heart I bought a new Bible and began to read it eagerly and joyfully; today I enjoy this book as much as I did then!

I called on the Lord Jesus Christ, humbling myself before him. I entrusted my life to Him and told Him that from now on I would believe His Word, no matter what questions I might have. To this day I do not have an answer to everything, but I am fully convinced that the Bible is completely inspired by God; inerrant and infallible in all that it teaches. I thank God from the bottom of my heart for the sovereign grace that He poured over me in letting me see my sinfulness and the Savior who has given me such forgiveness.

Dear Reader, I am so happy that you have read my testimony to the end. God has richly blessed my life and by His grace I believe that His Word is truth. (John 17: 17) It is very precious to be able to believe with childlike faith; I do not bother myself with any doubts or so-called academic discoveries that call into question the trustworthiness of the Bible. Instead I find in Christ, the true subject of Scripture, all the riches of wisdom and insight. Let us trust our Lord and Savior, for then He will bless us. My prayer is that you, too, will be saved from unbelief and that your faith in God and His Word will grow from strength to strength.

In Christ,
Anita Kupfermann

The Bible:

“This book speaks of the thoughts of God, mankind’s condition, the way of salvation, the unfortunate fate of all unrepentant sinners, and the joyous future of all believers. Its teaching is holy, its commandments binding, its decrees unchanging. Read it to become wise, believe it to be saved, obey it to become holy. It contains light to guide you, food to strengthen you, comfort to gladden you. It is the traveler’s map, the pilgrim’s staff, the seaman’s compass, the soldier’s sword and the Christian’s royal book. Here Eden is restored, Heaven is opened and the doors to Hell revealed. Christ is its great theme, our wellbeing its product, and the glory of God its one great aim. It should fill our minds, rule our hearts and determine the steps of our feet.

Read it carefully, thoughtfully, regularly, and prayerfully. It is goldmine of riches, a paradise of glory, and a river of joy. It is given to you in life, it will be opened at the day of final judgment and will remain in our hearts for all eternity. It brings the greatest responsibility with it, will reward all our efforts to live by it, and will damn all that ignore her.”

by Steve Lemke, Provost, Professor of Philosophy and Ethics, McFarland Chair of Theology, and Director of the Baptist Center for Theology and Ministry at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.

A debate has been swirling in Apologetics circles (particularly the Evangelical Philosophical Society) between two well-known and effective Christian apologists, Norman Geisler and Michael Licona. We at SBC Today have been aware of the debate for some time, but withheld comments on it in hope that a resolution amenable to all parties would take place. After the EPS meeting in San Francisco earlier this month, it has become apparent that no such reconciliation is likely. Therefore, we want to describe our understanding of what has happened (in Part 1), particularly for those of you who were not previously aware of this controversy. In a future post (Part 2), we would like to attempt to provide some perspective on the debate.

The subject of this controversy is Mike Licona, a Christian apologist who (until recently) served as Apologetics Coordinator for the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, and as a research professor at Southern Evangelical Seminary in North Carolina. He has spoken and debated on behalf of positions held by evangelical Christians in numerous venues – regional Baptist meetings, evangelism conferences, scholarly meetings, and college campuses. He is a member of the Evangelical Philosophical Society, which requires an affirmation of the inerrancy of Scripture as a prerequisite for membership. So, to summarize, Licona is a conservative evangelical and inerrantist who has served the SBC effectively in addressing Apologetics issues in conferences, churches, and college campuses.

The focus of the controversy is several pages in Licona’s new book, The Resurrection of Jesus: A New Historiographical Approach (Downer’s Grove: IVP, 2010). The overwhelming majority of this book is very positive, presenting a careful and well-researched scholarly defense of the historicity of the resurrection of Jesus. However, it is just a few pages (pp. 185-186, 548-553) out of this 718 page book around which the controversy has swirled. On these pages Licona addresses “that strange little text” (p. 548) in Matt. 27:52-53, which describes six events after the crucifixion – darkness, an earthquake, the tearing of the temple veil, rocks splitting, the opening of tombs, and some saints coming to life from the tombs. Licona mentions this scriptural account while addressing John Dominic Crossan’s hypothesis that these events were associated with the “harrowing of hell” (1 Pet. 3:19-20, 4:6). Licona suggests that apocalyptic events such as these were claimed in Greco-Roman literature at the death of kings (Romulus, Julius Caeser, Cladius, etc.) and similar significant events. Indeed, Licona notes, the Roman historian Lucian openly admitted that he embellished his stores “for the sake of ‘dullards’” (p. 549).

Licona also notes the similarity of these words and events with the apocalyptic language utilized in Old Testament texts (Judg. 5:4; 1 Kings 19:11-12; Ps. 77:18; Isa. 2:19, 5:25, 24:18; Jer. 4:23-24, 15:9; Ezek. 37:12-13; Dan. 12:2; Joel 2:2, 10, 28-32; Amos 8:8-9; Nah. 1:5-6; Zeph. 1:15-18; and Zech. 14:4). Since Matthew would have been familiar with this Old Testament apocalyptic language and the practice of “phenomenological language used in a symbolic manner in both Jewish and Roman literature relating to major events,” Licona proposes that it is “most plausible” that Matt. 27:53-54 be understood as “special effects” drawn from “eschatological Jewish texts” (p. 552). Licona also “forthrightly” acknowledges that not only these events but also including the post-resurrection appearances of angels (Matt. 28:2-7, Mark 16:5-7, Luke 24:4-7, and John 20:11-13) were possibly “mixed with legend” (p. 185). Licona holds this interpretation despite acknowledging that (a) the darkness was reported in all three Synoptic gospels, as well as by the secular historian Thallus, and (b) that earthquakes were common in that region, which would have accounted for the earthquake, the tearing of the temple veil, the rocks splitting, and the tombs opening.

Enter Norman Geisler. Norman Geisler is one of the best known conservative Christian apologists over the last few decades, the former President of Southern Evangelical Seminary and of the Evangelical Theological Society. He was a framer and original signer of the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy, and wrote the commentary for the Chicago Statement on Biblical Hermeneutics. Geisler expressed concern that Licona’s interpretation of Matt. 27:52-53 did not pass muster with inerrancy as defined in the Chicago Statement. After a personal note received no response from Licona for a month, Geisler published his first open letter to Licona. After Licona continued not to respond, Geisler published a second open letter (August 21, 2011). Licona did respond with his own open letter (August 31), which included Licona’s reaffirmation of inerrancy, an acknowledgment that in any such book “there will always be portions in which one could have articulated a matter more appropriately,” and a statement that the furor had led him to “reexamine” his position, resulting in at least this concession: “…at present I am just as inclined to understand the narrative of the raised saints in Matthew 27 as a report of a factual (i.e., literal) event as I am to view it as an apocalyptic symbol. It may also be a report of a real event described partially in apocalyptic terms. I will be pleased to revise the relevant section in a future edition of my book.” Geisler responded with a third open letter (September 8), in which he did not find Licona’s concessions sufficient. At the ETS meeting in San Francisco, Licona presented a paper that defended the ahistorical reading of Matthew 27, but also characterized himself as “undecided” in interpreting that text. Geisler responded to Licona’s paper as well.

By this time, a number of others were weighing in on the debate. Al Mohler published a post largely critical of Licona, to which Licona responded. Baptist Press had two articles, one citing the concerns with Licona’s views, and another offering a response from Licona. Geisler then posted his response to the Baptist Press articles. Among others, Peter Lumpkins, Tim Rogers, James White, and Nick Norelli (here and here) essentially agreed with Geisler and Mohler that Licona’s interpretation of Matthew 27 (and inerrancy) was problematic. Christianity Today also published an article on the controversy, (basically pro-Licona) to which Geisler also responded.

On the other side, a number of Christian apologists and New Testament scholars rose to Licona’s defense (while not necessarily agreeing with his interpretation of Matthew 27), asserting that Licona’s view was not inconsistent with inerrancy. Some such defenders included (among many others) Licona’s son-in-law Nick Peters (here and here), Steve Hays (here and here), Jason Engwer, Max Andrews, Jacob Allee (here and here),  Randy Everist, Brian LePort, Marc Cortez, Michael Bird, Randal Rauser, J. P. Holding, and Dave Jones. In addition, after Licona’s first response to Geisler, a number of well-known evangelical scholars affirmed that despite most of them disagreeing with Licona’s specific interpretation of Matthew 27, “we are in firm agreement that it is compatible with biblical inerrancy.” This group included David Beck, Craig Blomberg, James Chancellor, William Lane Craig, Gary Habermas, Craig Keener, Douglas Moo, J. P. Moreland, Daniel B. Wallace, and Edwin Yamauchi. Paul Copan, President of EPS, while also disagreeing with Licona’s interpretation of Matthew 27, has also affirmed that Licona’s view is consistent with inerrancy.

Meanwhile, secular humanists and skeptics have gleefully enjoyed the intramural evangelical fight, though clearly siding with the Licona perspective (here, here, and here). This has led some evangelicals such as Stephen Bedard to plea for peace from both sides.

So, what do you think about all this? I’ll be providing my perspective in Part 2.

By Franklin L. Kirksey, Pastor, First Baptist Church of Spanish Fort, Alabama, and author of Sound Biblical Preaching: Giving the Bible a Voice.

These expositions by Dr. Kirksey are offered to suggest sermon or Bible study ideas for pastors and other church leaders, both from the exposition and from the illustrative material, or simply for personal devotion.

Introduction

The Centerpiece of Christianity is the cross of Jesus Christ.

Eric Metaxas, shares the following in Everything You Always Wanted To Know About God (but were afraid to ask):

Q: But how is it that Christians have a monopoly on grace?

A: Christians don’t have a monopoly on grace by any stretch of the imagination. God has a monopoly on grace. But despite Christians’ often graceless behavior, Christian theology is the only theology that puts God’s grace at the center of everything.

Q: How is Christianity unique in that regard?

A: By means of the central event of the Christian faith: Jesus’ death on the cross. The idea is that Jesus’ death is the only thing that makes it possible for us to enter heaven. He paid the price for our sins. It’s his grace toward us, demonstrated in that act, that allows us to be close to God, to have a relationship with God, and to go to heaven. It’s based on what Jesus did for us out of love for us, not on anything we do. So it’s all about his grace, not about our moral performance. Of course human beings are so prone to pride that, ironically, Christians will sometimes be prideful about the idea that grace is at the center of Christianity, as if to say, ‘We have the best religion!’

But if you can see past the problem of religious pride, you’ll see that grace in an extraordinary and infinitely wonderful thing. And it’s available to everyone, certainly not just Christians. What makes it available is Jesus and his voluntary death on the cross. But because grace is at the core of Christian theology, Christians sometimes act as if they invented it, which they didn’t. God did.[1]

Paul writes, “But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Galatians 6:14).

We will explore several aspect of the cross of Jesus Christ to gain a greater appreciation for its importance.

I. The Veritable Paradox of the Cross of Jesus Christ

Dr. A. W. Tozer (1897-1963) shares in That Incredible Christian,

At the heart of the Christian system lies the cross of Christ with its divine paradox. The power of Christianity appears in its antipathy toward, never in its agreement with, the ways of fallen men. The truth of the cross is revealed in its contradictions. The witness of the church is most effective when she declares rather than explains, for the gospel is addressed not to reason but to faith. What can be proved requires no faith to accept. Faith rests upon the character of God, not upon the demonstrations of laboratory or logic.

The cross stands in bold opposition to the natural man. Its philosophy runs contrary to the processes of the unregenerate mind, so that Paul could say bluntly that the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness. To try to find a common ground between the message of the cross and man’s fallen reason is to try the impossible, and if persisted in must result in an impaired reason, a meaningless cross and a powerless Christianity. . . .

The cross-carrying Christian, furthermore, is both a confirmed pessimist and an optimist the like of which is to be found nowhere else on earth.

When he looks at the cross he is a pessimist, for he knows that the same judgment that fell on the Lord of glory condemns in that one act all nature and all the world of men. He rejects every human hope out of Christ because he knows that man’s noblest effort is only dust building on dust.

Yet he is calmly, restfully optimistic. If the cross condemns the world the resurrection of Christ guarantees the ultimate triumph of good throughout the universe. Through Christ all will be well at last and the Christian waits the consummation.[2]

II. The Vantage Points of the Cross of Jesus Christ

From Scripture we discover the point of view of the cross of Jesus Christ from heaven and earth. We will note the vantage points before, during and after the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

A. First, we recognize the prophetic oracles before the crucifixion.

Prophetically, God through David reveals an x-ray of the cross in Psalm 22. In addition, Isaiah 53 reveals a picture of the cross many years before its fulfillment. Acts 8:26-39 reveals Philip preached Jesus to the Ethiopian eunuch from Isaiah 53, known to some as “The Forbidden Chapter”.

B. Furthermore, we remember the personal observers during the crucifixion.

We see Jesus’ earthly mother, Mary, and others near the cross (John 19:25-27). Some present that day loved Jesus while others hated Him. Still others were simply indifferent to Jesus Christ giving His life on the cross. The Roman soldiers were ignorant according to Dr. Alexander Maclaren (1826-1910). In his message titled “The Blind Watchers at the Cross” based on Matthew 27:36, he states, “A strange picture; and a strange thing to think of, how they were so close to the great event in the world’s history, and had to stare at it for three or four hours, and never saw anything!”[3]

C. Finally, we review the particular opinions after the crucifixion.

There are many opinions about the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. To some the cross of Christ is an embarrassment. Paul explains, “We preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness” (1 Corinthians 1:23b). However, some, like Paul, embrace the cross as the wisdom and power of God. Still others attempt to embellish the cross to diminish its shame and severity.

III. The Vulgar Perception of the Cross of Jesus Christ

The term “vulgar” comes from the Latin language. It means common, coarse, obscene, lacking taste or refinement. Vulgate is a related word meaning the speech of the common people. Apparently the term “vulgar” refers to those lacking education and refinement.

Pop star, Madonna, reportedly said, “Crucifixes are sexy because there’s a naked man on them.” Many like Madonna maliciously mock the cross of Jesus Christ.

The writer to the Hebrews warns,

For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The LORD will judge His people.” It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:26-31).

Have you heard of the Twisted Cross? Heinrich Heine (1797-1856), a German poet, made an unusual prediction in 1834. Heine stated that Germany was in an angry mood and the only thing holding back the lust for war was the cross of Christ. He did not comprehend the meaning of the cross and saw it as a talisman or good luck charm with magical powers. Heine said, “That talisman is brittle, and the day will come when it will pitifully break. The old stone gods will rise from the long-forgotten ruin and rub the dust of a thousand years from their eyes, and Thor, leaping to life with his giant hammer, will crush the Gothic cathedrals.”[4]

After many years, standing in St. Stefan’s Cathedral in Vienna, young Guido von List (1848-1919) planned to build a temple to the ancient German gods. He chose a swastika, also known as a broken cross, to symbolize his occult religion. List led his followers to perform rituals of sexual perversion and to practice medieval magic.

Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) came to know List and admired him. When his Nazi party was organized they chose the swastika, or broken cross, as their symbol. Therefore, they forced the people of Germany to choose between Hitler’s cross and the cross of Christ.[5]

Have you heard of the Tuareg Cross? According to a description given in an article featured in Moody magazine it is “diamond-shaped with four projections coming from each point.” Interestingly, it does not symbolize the death of Jesus Christ. This is true because Muslim people wear it. The origin of this cross is unknown. No doubt they lost the meaning of the symbol. Dr. Raymond McHenry, pastor of Westgate Memorial Baptist Church in Beaumont, Texas, concludes, “May we as Christians make certain the cross never loses its true and eternal meaning.”[6]

Others market the cross of Jesus Christ for material gain with no appreciation for its purpose.

IV. The Victorious Purpose of the Cross of Jesus Christ

Five words summarize the victorious purpose of the cross, namely, “Christ died for our sins”. We find these words in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, “For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.”

On the cross Jesus said, “It is finished” (John 19:30). Jesus’ sacrifice was complete once and for all and forever. The writer of Hebrews records, “By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified” (Hebrews 10:10-14).

Dr. Adrian P. Rogers (1931-2005) explains, “God grades on the Cross not on the curve.”[7] Some feel they are as good as others therefore they will go to heaven. However, unless we come in faith to the cross of Jesus Christ for His atoning sacrifice for sin, we will never go to heaven.

A. At the cross of Jesus Christ we receive eternal salvation.

In the words of Isaac Watts (1674-1748),

At the cross, at the cross,
where I first saw the light,
and the burden of my heart rolled away;
it was there by faith I received my sight,
and now I am happy all the day!”

From Hebrews 5:5-9 we read,

So also Christ did not glorify Himself to become High Priest, but it was He who said to Him:

“You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You.”

As He also says in another place:

“You are a priest forever
According to the order of Melchizedek”;

who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear, ⁸ though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. ⁹ And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him.

Dr. Thomas Alan Ogle Redpath (1907-1989) explains, “The Cross has a twofold implication. It spells redemption from sin, but also and as a sequel to that redemption, identification with the One who suffered on it in displaying the whole principle of Christian living to others. This is the meaning of Galatians 2:20.”[8] Here Paul writes, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).

B. In the cross of Jesus Christ we receive personal liberation.

Some talk about Jesus Christ being your personal Lord and Savior. It is important that we have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

1. In the cross of Jesus Christ we receive personal liberation from sin.

From John 8:34-36 we read, “Jesus answered them, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.”

This is not freedom to do what we want to do, but freedom to do what we ought to do. Many mistakenly take the liberty of the cross and turn it into license to sin.

2. In the cross of Jesus Christ we receive personal liberation from self.

Paul writes in Philippians 2:5-11:

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

One extremely popular preacher explains, Philippians 2:7, 8, in this way, “Jesus knew his worth, his success fed his self-esteem. . . . He suffered  the cross to sanctify his self-esteem. And he bore the cross to  sanctify your self-esteem. And the cross will sanctify the ego trip!”

Sadly, his interpretation totally misses the point. Jesus warns, “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea” (Mark 9:42).

3. In the cross of Jesus Christ we receive personal liberation from Satan.

The writer to the Hebrews explains, “Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil” (Hebrews 2:14).

Paul exhorts, “Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil” (Ephesians 4:26-27). John writes, “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

C. From the Cross of Jesus Christ we receive spiritual education.

We receive divine discipline and chastening or son training (Hebrews 12:3-11). Peter explains,

But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:

“Who committed no sin,
Nor was deceit found in His mouth”;

who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls (1 Peter 2:20b-25).

V. The Voluntary Pilgrimage of the Cross of Jesus Christ

Rev. John Bunyan (1628- 1688), shares the following in his classic titled The Pilgrim’s Progress, “‘We are poor pilgrims going to the Celestial City,’ said Christian and Hopeful.” After they came to the cross they followed God-given direction.

Dr. Luke records, “Then [Jesus] said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me’” (Luke 9:23). Paul confesses, “I die daily” (1 Corinthians 15:31). Peter writes in 1 Peter 2:11-12, “Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.”

In the words of that great hymn by Baylus Benjamin McKinney (1886-1952),

“Take up thy cross and follow Me,” I heard my Master say;
“I gave My life to ransom thee, Surrender your all today.”
Wherever He leads I’ll go, Wherever He leads I’ll go,
I’ll follow my Christ who loves me so, Wherever He leads I’ll go.

Conclusion

Scottish theologian, George McLeod (1895-1991) writes,

I simply argue that the cross be raised again at the center of the market place as well as on the steeple of the church. I am recovering the claim that Jesus was not crucified in a cathedral between two candles, but on a cross between two thieves, on a town garbage heap; at a crossroads so cosmopolitan that they had to write the title in Hebrew, and in Latin and in Greek: . . . at the kind of place where cynics talk smut, the thieves curse and soldiers gamble. Because that is where church men ought to be and what church men ought to be about.[9]

In the words of John Bowring (1792-1872)

In the cross of Christ I glory,
Towering o’er the wrecks of time;
All the light of sacred story
Gathers round its head sublime.

Paul writes, “But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Galatians 6:14).

The cross of Jesus.

By Franklin L. Kirksey, Pastor, First Baptist Church of Spanish Fort, Alabama, and author of Sound Biblical Preaching: Giving the Bible a Voice.

These expositions by Dr. Kirksey are offered to suggest sermon or Bible study ideas for pastors and other church leaders, both from the exposition and from the illustrative material, or simply for personal devotion.

Introduction

The highest service of man on earth is sharing the gospel. From The Biblical Illustrator by Rev. Joseph Samuel Exell (1849-1909) we read, “The services of men on earth embrace a large variety. There is the service of the agriculturalist, the mechanic, the mariner, the merchant, the scientist, the legislator, the king, &c. Men esteem these services as differing widely in respectability and honor; but the service referred to in the text stands infinitely above all.”[1]

Some are ashamed of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. They attempt to water it down to make it more palatable to this generation. The Apostle Paul shared the gospel willingly, wittingly and winningly. Lexicographers provide the following definitions.

Willingly means, “Having the mind favorably inclined or disposed”. Paul states in 1 Corinthians 9:16-18,

For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel! For if I do this willingly, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have been entrusted with a stewardship. What is my reward then? That when I preach the gospel, I may present the gospel of Christ without charge, that I may not abuse my authority in the gospel.

Wittingly means, “Done consciously, with knowledge and responsibility, deliberate”. Paul boldly declared,

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek (Romans 1:16).

Winningly means, “Capable of winning or charming, attractive, winsome”. In the words of our text, 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, Paul writes,

For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win the more; and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law; to those who are without law, as without law (not being without law toward God, but under law toward Christ), that I might win those who are without law; to the weak I became as weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. Now this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I may be partaker of it with you.

From our text we discover three things we need.

I. A God-given Mission

To win others to faith in Jesus Christ is our God-given mission (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 21:47; Acts 1:8). This God-given mission extends in outreach “to the Jews” [or to the Gentiles (implied)], “to those who are under the law” or “to those who are without law,” as well as, “to the weak” [or to the strong (implied)].

Rev. Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1898) wrote a helpful book titled The Soul Winner: How to Lead Sinners to the Savior. Spurgeon affirms the fact that, “He who wins souls is wise” (Proverbs 11:30). Dr. Warren W. Wiersbe explains, “The word translated ‘wins’ means ‘to capture,’ as a hunter captures his prey. Wise people seek to capture the ignorant and disobedient by sharing God’s wisdom with them.”[2]

We are to be on a mission from God and we are to be on a mission for God. Paul states his mission, “that I might save some” (1 Corinthians 9:22) and “that I may be a partner with you” (1 Corinthians 9:23).

II. A God-guided Method

To become all things to all men is our God-guided method. Paul writes, “I have become all things to all men” (1 Corinthians 9:22). This is to meet people where they are with the message of the gospel. Dr. Jerry Vines explains, “Paul is simply saying that in order to win people to Jesus Christ, he relates to them in their particular culture. He is saying, ‘If I am around a Jew, I’m a Jew; if I’m around a Gentile—someone without the law—I’m a Gentile.’ In other words, when Paul talked with a Jew, he said, ‘Oh, I’m a Jew too. I’m a Hebrew, born of the tribe of Benjamin, and I can speak Hebrew.’ But when he talked with a Gentile, he would say, ‘Oh, is that right? I was born in Tarsus, one of the great Gentile cities.’ When he met a weak Christian who didn’t believe in doing certain things, he wouldn’t do them.

Someone may say, ‘Paul is being inconsistent. He says one thing over here and another thing over there.’ When we examine Paul’s actions, we learn that he is not inconsistent; he is compassionate. He is simply saying, ‘I find sinners where they are, and I identify with them in order to win them to faith in Jesus Christ.’”[3]

The phrase “All things to all men,” according to the Rev. Joseph Butterworth Owen (1809-1872),

Implies no sinking the Christian to meet the worldling. The Christian is no chameleon, taking his hue from every incident he feeds on; but rather like the sunlight of his heavenly Father—the evil and the good are the better for his shining. Apply the rule to places of amusement. Can we imagine ourselves meeting Christ there, as He sat at the festival in Cana, &c.? We can realize His presence on occasions of innocent festivity, but there are others at which, if we could suppose His eye falling upon us, as it did on Peter in the hall of his denial, we should be ashamed to meet Him. I noticed in France pictures of the Crucifixion in streets and public galleries, in Hotel de Ville and Palois de Justice, but never in a Café Chantant or the opera. As believers, you are Christ’s living images, and would be as much out of place in a Casino or a playhouse.

Rev. Owen also states, “Paul was a cosmopolitan in the best sense, the world was his country, mankind his brethren, truth his business, the church his family, and Christ his Lord.”[4]

Paul exhorts in 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22, “Test all things; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.”

Dr. James A. Stalker (1848-1927) warns, “When a weak or insincere man attempts to be all things to all men, he ends up by being nothing to anybody.”[5]

Paul explains in 1 Corinthians 10:23-33,

All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify. Let no one seek his own, but each one the other’s well-being. Eat whatever is sold in the meat market, asking no questions for conscience sake; for “the earth is the LORD’s, and all its fullness.” If any of those who do not believe invites you to dinner, and you desire to go, eat whatever is set before you, asking no question for conscience sake. But if anyone says to you, “This was offered to idols,” do not eat it for the sake of the one who told you, and for conscience’ sake; for “the earth is the LORD’s, and all its fullness.”

“Conscience,” I say, not your own, but that of the other. For why is my liberty judged by another man’s conscience? But if I partake with thanks, why am I evil spoken of for the food over which I give thanks? Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Give no offense, either to the Jews or to the Greeks or to the church of God, just as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved.

III. A God-glorifying Motivation

To know Christ and to make Him known is our God-glorifying motivation. We are to live “for the gospel’s sake” (1 Corinthians 9:23).

These days it is important to ask, “What is the gospel?” Reportedly, someone interviewed people at a Christian book store convention and asked that question. Regrettably, only 1 out of 60 people got it right. Paul clearly defines the gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, where he writes,

Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.

Rev. Charles Haddon Spurgeon cautions, “To keep back any part of the gospel is not the true method for saving men.”[6]

On the road to Damascus we see one converted from a self-satisfied persecutor of the church named Saul to a God-glorifying preacher of the gospel named Paul.

Rev. Edward Meyrick Goulburn (1818-1897), Dean of Norwich, shares, “While never sacrificing truth or principle, yet, so far as truth and principle admitted it, the apostle wore the guise and spoke in the accents of the persons whom he addressed.”[7]

Rev. Charles Haddon Spurgeon recalls,

Mr. [J.] Hudson Taylor [(1832-1905) [founder of the China Inland Mission] finds it helpful to dress as a Chinaman, and wear a pigtail. This seems to me to be a truly wise policy. To sink myself to save others is the ideal of the apostle. Never may any whim or conventionality of ours keep a soul from considering the gospel.[8]

Conclusion

Stan Guthrie, author of many books including Missions in the Third Millennium: 21 Key Trends for the 21^st Century, senior associate editor for Christianity Today and a regular commentator on Moody Radio, states, “Good news is no news at all if it’s not communicated.”[9]

Larry King of CNN’s Larry King Live found himself wading through a sea of sentiments from sympathetic viewers after heart surgery. One package stood out from the others. In fact, it contained something he prizes most of all those received. It contained a leather Bible with his name engraved on the cover with a letter that read:

“Dear Larry, I am so glad to hear that everything went well with your surgery. I want you to know that God was watching over you every minute.

And even though I know you question that, I also know that one day it will be revealed to you. My prayer is that you will remain open, and that God will touch your life as He has mine.

Once I was a disbeliever. When I could not fill my life with basketball, I would simply substitute sex, drugs or material things to feed my internal, shell-like appearance. I was never satisfied.

I have finally realized after forty years that Jesus Christ is in me. He will reveal His truth to you, Larry, because He lives.

Pete Maravich, Pistol Pete.”[10]

Larry King received this package on January 3, 1988, the day before Maravich died. Pete Maravich [1947-1988] was one of the youngest players ever inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Dr. Jerry Vines observes,

I don’t know how some Christians can go a lifetime without realizing that the Lord Jesus brought them into this world and put them where they are so they might meet lost people and bring them to faith in Him. The ambition of our lives, the passion of our lives, the whole thrust of our lives should be to win people to faith in Christ, and that ambition changes our whole attitude toward life.[11]

May we live for the gospel’s sake!

————————————
These expositions by Dr. Kirksey are offered to suggest sermon or Bible study ideas for pastors and other church leaders, both from the exposition and from the illustrative material.
————————————

Introduction

To be a Christian is a contradiction in many ways.  Dr. A. W. Tozer shares in That Incredible Christian:

Let us . . . simply observe the true Christian as he puts into practice the teachings of Christ and His apostles.  Note the contradictions:

The Christian believes that in Christ he has died, yet he is more alive than before and he fully expects to live forever.  He walks on earth while seated in heaven and though born on earth he finds that after his conversion he is not at home here.  Like the nighthawk, which in the air is the essence of grace and beauty but on the ground is awkward and ugly, so the Christian appears at his best in the heavenly places but does not fit well into the ways of the very society into which he was born.

The Christian soon learns that if he would be victorious as a son of heaven among men on earth he must not follow the common pattern of mankind, but rather the contrary.  That he may be safe he puts himself in jeopardy; he loses his life to save it and is in danger of losing it if he attempts to preserve it.  He goes down to get up.  If he refuses to go down he is already down, but when he starts down he is on his way up.

He is strongest when he is weakest and weakest when he is strong.  Though poor he has the power to make others rich, but when he becomes rich his ability to enrich others vanishes.  He has most after he has given most away and has least when he possesses most.

He may be and often is highest when he feels lowest and most sinless when he is most conscious of sin.  He is wisest when he knows that he knows not and knows least when he has acquired the greatest amount of knowledge.  He sometimes does most by doing nothing and goes furthest when standing still.  In heaviness he manages to rejoice and keeps his heart glad even in sorrow.

The Best of A. W. Tozer: Book One, compiled by Warren W. Wiersbe, Chapter 20, (Camp Hill, PA: Wingspread Publishers, 1978, 2000) [Originally published, A. W. Tozer, That Incredible Christian: How Heaven”s Children Live on Earth (Harrisburg, Pa.: Christian Publications, 1964)] © 1978, 2000 by Zur Ltd..  Database © 2007 WORDsearch Corp.

It is my prayer that we will be able to say with that Puritan of old:

I am mended by my sickness, enriched by my poverty and strengthened by my weakness. . . .  What fools are we, then, to frown upon our afflictions!  These, how crabbed soever, are our best friends.  They are not indeed for our pleasure, they are for our profit.

Abraham Wright, The Golden Treasury of Puritan Quotations, compiled by I.D.E. Thomas, by permission of Banner of Truth (Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth Trust, 2000), p. 17.

Dr. John Thain Davidson, author of Talks to Young Men (New York: A. C. Armstong & Son, 1885), shares the following in an article titled “The Christian”:

The word “Christian” occurs but three times in Scripture.

In the first we read of being “called” a Christian; in the second, of being persuaded to “be” a Christian; and in the third, of “suffering” as a Christian.  There is thus here an ascending graduation: first, the name; second, the reality; and third, the suffering or experience.

Up to the year of our Lord 42 or 43–that is, the period indicated in our first text–the followers of Jesus had no distinctive title by which to separate them from the world around; that is to say, they had no appropriate designation accepted by themselves, and recognized by those who did not belong to them.  Not till this time, indeed, as I shall presently show, had such a designation been necessary.

But, as it may be interesting to trace the appellatives applied to the followers of Jesus from the commencement of the Christian era, let me, in a single sentence or two, enumerate them.

The very first name given to them was that by which their Divine Master Himself was pleased to designate them, viz., “disciples,” a word which means learners and followers, and which occurs in the gospels more frequently than any other, e.g., “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on Him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed” [John 8:31].

The second name was “believers,” which was given to them on account of the faith they professed; e.g., “and believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes,” [Acts 5:14] etc. This name, however, as we learn from profane writers, was sometimes applied by way of reproach, though of this we have no instance recorded in the New Testament.  It was not unusual for the Greek philosophers to nickname the Christians credentes, that is, “believers,” because they did not exercise their reason, but took things on trust.  Augustine used to say, “Let them jeer us for our faith; let us nevertheless believe.”  In human and earthly concerns belief comes after knowledge, but in spiritual things it often goes before: e.g., John says, “We believe and are sure (lit. know) that thou art the Christ,” [John 6:69] etc.; not “We know and believe.”

A third name given to Christ’s people was “the brethren” [Acts 6:3].  This they were called because of the spirit of love that bound them together, and the recognition of their oneness and equality.  “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren” [1 John 3:14].

The fourth and only other name, so far as we can learn, by which they were know among themselves, was “saints” [Acts 9:13,32,41 26:10].  This they were called because of their holiness, and separation from the ways of the world; e.g., “Salute all them that have the rule over you (that is, the office-bearers of the church) and all the saints” (that is, the members) [Hebrews 13:24].

The names I have now mentioned, “disciples,” “believers,” “brethren,” “saints,” were all honourable and pleasing titles, and were given to the early Christians by their Divine Master, by the Apostles, and by each other; but, you will observe, there is nothing in any of these designations to mark them out, in the eye of the world, as a distinct and separate people.

As their numbers increased, however, and they became as a body more consolidated, it was to be expected that some generic title would come to be attached to them; and so it happened.  And as the name “Christians” became the distinguishing appelation of the followers of Christ, the fact itself, and the place where the name originated, were worthy of record.

By whom or in what spirit this name was given to them is not certainly known, and yet we have some glimpses of truth in regard to the matter.  Undoubtedly it was not the Jews who originated the title; for as the word “Christ” means simply “Messiah,” to call the followers of Jesus “Christians” or “Messianists,” would be giving up the argument to them altogether, and acknowledging that their Master was indeed the true Christ.  No; the ground of their reproach against the disciples was not that they believed in a Christ or Messias, but that they accepted Jesus of Nazareth (or of Galilee) as the Christ.  Hence, whom they wished to designate the disciples contemptuously, they called them “Galileans,” [Acts 2:7] or more frequently “Nazarenes” [Acts 24:5].  Thus we read (chap. xxiv. 5) that one of the charges which Tertullus (a legal orator engaged bye the Jewish party) brought against Paul before the governor Felix was, that he was “a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes,” which just meant a leader of the Christian body.

And as their name was not given them by the Jews, neither, we have reason to believe, was it directly given them by God.  Some have taken up this idea, and imagined that the title was a matter of special divine revelation.  To this I reply, that there is not hint given of such a thing; and as the word occurs only in two other places, and is not once used by Paul, it is extremely unlikely that it came from divine suggestion.  It was given to them, no doubt, by the citizens of Antioch.  Those Gentiles could not enter into the spirit or meaning of such words as “disciples,” “believers,” “brethren,” or “saints,”  nor could they enjoy the paltry spleen which the Jews exhibited in their contemptuous title “Nazarenes;” and as Antioch was the first place where idolatrous Gentiles were converted and real missionary work began, and the infant church was therefore becoming less and less identified with the Jewish nation, what more natural than that they should call the disciples after the name of their great Master, especially as that name was doubtless continually on their lips?

It is possible, indeed, that they may have been a vein of derision in the origination of this title, but eventually this passed away; and it is a singular thing that most of those names which are now honoured and respected in the Christian Church, were framed at first as terms of reproach and contempt.  I need only mention the words [Huguenot], Puritan, Methodist, and even Protestant, to show how names that were derisive in their origin may afterwards be gloried in as titles of true nobility.

Such, then, seems to have been the origin of the name “Christians;” not given by God, nor by themselves, nor by the Jews, but by their heathen neighbours, to mark them as a new sect, and designate their relation to Him whom they acknowledged as their Head. The honoured name we accept; let us seek to be worthy of it.

“The Christian: A Weekly Record of Christian Life, Christian Testimony, and Christian Work,” Thursday, April 28, 1870, (London: Morgan & Scott, 1870).

As we have noted, we find the term translated “Christian” three times in the Bible.  After reading each passage we will ask a question.

I. The first mention of the term translated “Christian” is in Acts 11:26.

Let us begin reading in verse 19, where Dr. Luke writes,

Now those who were scattered after the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to no one but the Jews only.  But some of them were men from Cyprus and Cyrene, who, when they had come to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenists, preaching the Lord Jesus.  And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord.  Then news of these things came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to go as far as Antioch.  When he came and had seen the grace of God, he was glad, and encouraged them all that with purpose of heart they should continue with the Lord.  For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith.  And a great many people were added to the Lord.  Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus to seek Saul.  And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch.  So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people.  And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch (Acts 11:19-26).

Are you frequently perceived as a Christian?

Based upon your actions and attitudes do people regularly perceive you as a Christian?  Are you “the salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13) with flavor?  Are you the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14)?  Are you “a city set on a hill [that] cannot be hidden” (Matthew 5:14)?  Does “your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16)?

II. The second time we find the term translated “Christian” is in Acts 26:28.

Let us begin reading in verse 24,

Now as he thus made his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, ‘Paul, you are beside yourself!  Much learning is driving you mad!’  But he said, ‘I am not mad, most noble Festus, but speak the words of truth and reason.  For the king, before whom I also speak freely, knows these things; for I am convinced that none of these things escapes his attention, since this thing was not done in a corner.  King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets?  I know that you do believe.’  Then Agrippa said to Paul, ‘You almost persuade me to become a Christian.’  And Paul said, ‘I would to God that not only you, but also all who hear me today, might become both almost and altogether such as I am, except for these chains.’  When he had said these things, the king stood up, as well as the governor and Bernice and those who sat with them; and when they had gone aside, they talked among themselves, saying, ‘This man is doing nothing deserving of death or chains.’  Then Agrippa said to Festus, ‘This man might have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar’” (Acts 26:24-32).

Are you fully persuaded as a Christian?

Paul forcefully witnessed to Agrippa.  Unless you are fully persuaded you will never be persuasive.  Paul was fully persuaded as he writes in 2 Timothy 1:8-12,

Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God,  who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,  but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,  to which I was appointed a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles   For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day” (2 Timothy 1:8-12).

Paul writes in Romans 8:31-39,

What then shall we say to these things?  If God is for us, who can be against us?  He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?  Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect?  It is God who justifies.  Who is he who condemns?  It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?  Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  As it is written: ‘For Your sake we are killed all day long; / We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.’  Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.  For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Several months ago, my good friend Scott Ward, with GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention, sent an article titled, “Young adults less devoted to faith.”  In it Cathy Lynn Grossman states, “Most young adults today don’t pray, don’t worship and don’t read the Bible, a major survey by a Christian research firm shows.

If the trends continue, “the Millennial generation will see churches closing as quickly as GM dealerships,” says Thom Rainer, president of LifeWay Christian Resources.  In the group’s survey of 1,200 18- to 29-year-olds, 72% say they’re “really more spiritual than religious.”

Among the 65 percent who call themselves Christian, “many are either mushy Christians or Christians in name only,” Rainer says.  “Most are just indifferent.  The more precisely you try to measure their Christianity, the fewer you find committed to the faith.”

Key findings in the phone survey, conducted in August 2010:

•65% rarely or never pray with others, and 38% almost never pray by themselves either.
•65% rarely or never attend worship services.
•67% don’t read the Bible or sacred texts.  Many are unsure Jesus is the only path to heaven: Half say yes, half no.

“We have dumbed down what it means to be part of the church so much that it means almost nothing, even to people who already say they are part of the church,” Rainer says.

The findings, which document a steady drift away from church life, dovetail with a LifeWay survey of teenagers in 2007 who drop out of church and a study in February by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, which compared the beliefs of Millennials with those of earlier generations of young people.  . . .

Even among those in the survey who “believe they will go to heaven because they have accepted Jesus Christ as savior”:

•68% did not mention faith, religion or spirituality when asked what was “really important in life.”
•50% do not attend church at least weekly.
•36% rarely or never read the Bible.

Neither are these young Christians evangelical in the original meaning of the term — eager to share the Gospel.  Just 40% say this is their responsibility.  Even so, Rainer is encouraged by the roughly 15% who, he says, appear to be “deeply committed” Christians in study, prayer, worship and action. . . .

The 2007 LifeWay study found seven in 10 Protestants ages 18 to 30, both evangelical and mainline, who went to church regularly in high school said they quit attending by age 23.  And 34% of those had not returned, even sporadically, by age 30.

The Pew survey found young people today were significantly more likely than those in earlier generations to say they didn’t identify with any religious group.  Neither are Millennials any more likely than earlier generations to turn toward a faith affiliation as they grow older” (Cathy Lynn Grossman “Young adults less devoted to faith”, USA TODAY, Available from: http://www.usatoday.com/NEWS/usaedition/2010-04-27-1Amillfaith27_ST_U.htm Accessed: 08/12/10).

III. The third time we find the term translated “Christian” is in 1 Peter 4:16.

Let us begin reading in verse 12, where Peter writes,

Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.  If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.  On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified.  But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people’s matters.  Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter.  For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?  Now ‘If the righteous one is scarcely saved, / Where will the ungodly and the sinner appear?’  Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator” (1 Peter 4:12-19).

Are you fiercely persecuted as a Christian?

One pastor lamented after reading the Book of Acts, “You know wherever the Apostle Paul went, there was either a revival or a riot.  Everywhere I go they serve tea.”

From 2 Timothy 3:1-12, we read,

But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come:  For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power.  And from such people turn away!  For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts,  always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.  Now as Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, disapproved concerning the faith; but they will progress no further, for their folly will be manifest to all, as theirs also was.  But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance,  persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra—what persecutions I endured.  And out of them all the Lord delivered me.  Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.

In an article titled,

“American missionaries gunned down for ‘preaching Christianity’”, Kathy Gannon shares the following:  “KABUL, Afghanistan – Taliban terrorists have declared they shot and killed a team of missionaries, including six Americans, because they were ‘preaching Christianity.’”

Ten members of a medical team, including six Americans, were shot and killed by the Islamic terrorists as they were returning from providing eye treatment and other health care in remote villages of northern Afghanistan, a spokesman for the team said Saturday.

Dirk Frans, director of the International Assistance Mission, said one German, one Briton and two Afghans also were a part of the team that made the two-week trip to Nuristan province.  They drove to the province, left their vehicles and hiked for hours over mountainous terrain to reach the Parun valley in the province’s northwest.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid told The Associated Press in Pakistan that they killed the foreigners because they were “spying for the Americans” and “preaching Christianity.””

Kathy Gannon further explains, “Among the dead was team leader Tom Little, an optometrist from Delmar, New York who has been working in Afghanistan for more than 30 years, Frans said.

Little was expelled by the Taliban government in August 2001 after the arrest of eight Christian aid workers – two Americans and six Germans – for allegedly trying to convert Afghans to Christianity.  [On September 11, 2001, Muslim extremists, known as al-Qaeda, coordinated a series of suicide attacks on the United States of America.]  He returned to Afghanistan after the Taliban government was toppled in November 2001 by U.S.-backed forces” (Kathy Gannon – Associated Press Writer – 8/7/2010 6:20:00 AM “American missionaries gunned down for ‘preaching Christianity’”  Available from: http://www.onenewsnow.com/Church/Default.aspx?id=1116150 Accessed: 08/12/10).

Conclusion

Dr. A. W. Tozer shared his pulpit once with Dr. Vance Havner (1901-1986).  After the message Tozer went up to him and said, “Finally, a man I don’t have to clean up after.”  Dr. Vance Havner wrote a book titled Why Not Just Be Christians? (Vance Havner, Why Not Just Be Christians? Available in electronic format from:  http://www.wordsearchbible.com/catalog/search.php?author=Vance+Havner Accessed: 08/14/10).

From The Best of Vance Havner we read, “The early Christians did not adjust to the situation, they adjusted the situation” (Vance Havner, The Best of Vance Havner, Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1989). Dr. Havner shares the following in Hearts Afire: Light on Successful Soul Winning:

There is a lot of soft, sentimental talk about Him today that brings no conviction.  When Isaiah saw the Lord, he did not feel comfortable!  Neither did Habakkuk nor Daniel nor Paul nor John.  We want a picture of Him today that does not disturb us, that smiles at sin, and winks at iniquity.  I remember a man who told me he wanted to hear no hell-fire sermons but rather about the meek and lowly Jesus.  Yet the poor man did not seem to realize that the meek and lowly Jesus said more about hell than is reported from the lips of anyone else in the Bible!  We need a true and complete vision of God in His holiness and Christ in His glory that will bring us to repentance.”  Dr. Havner further observes, “But we are a pretty comfortable crowd of Christians, who seem to forget that for us the Gospel is not something to come to Church to hear, but something to go from the Church to tell.  The cause of Christ is not carried forward by complacent Sunday morning bench-warmers who come in to sit but never go out to serve.

Vance Havner, Hearts Afire: Light on Successful Soul Winning (Westwood, NJ: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1952) Database © 2009 WORDsearch Corp.

Invitation

Allow me to ask three more questions:

First, do you have genuine Christian Faith?

“So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17).

Paul writes to Timothy, “But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them,  and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:14-15).

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.  For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:8-10).

The Christian faith is an evangelical faith.  It matters what you believe.  We must believe the good news as we read in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, “Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.  For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.”

Furthermore, do you have warm Christian Fellowship?

John writes in his first epistle,

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.  If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.  But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us (1 John 1:5-10).

Paul warns, “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them” (Ephesians 5:11).

Finally, do you have a sharp Christian Focus?

From Hebrews 12:2 we read, “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

This verse calls to mind a hymn by Helen Howarth Lemmel (1963-1961) who was once a vocal music teacher at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, Illinois.  From the Refrain we read, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, / Look full in His wonderful face, / And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, / In the light of His glory and grace.”

Make certain that you have repented of your sin and believed on the Lord Jesus Christ.  If not, may the words of the old African American spiritual be yours, “Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart”  [Emphasis mine].

May each one of us truly know what it means to be a Christian.

So, when the research tells us that 91% of non-Christians see evangelicals as anti-homosexual, what are we supposed to do?  Quit saying that homosexuality is a sin?   Because, I’ll guarantee you that no matter how nice you try to say it, and no matter how many times you say that you love the homosexual person; whenever you say that the Bible teaches that homosexuality is a sin, people are gonna accuse us of being anti-homosexual.   I’ve seen this first hand on more than one occasion.  The lost crowd just does not want to hear that it’s sin against God; plain and simple.

And, when 87% of the lost crowd sees evangelical Christians as judgmental, are we supposed to stop calling sin what it is…”sin?”  Because, listen, the lost, rebellious crowd will say this just because we call sin by it’s ugly name.  That’s just how a lost person is, when they’re living in those sins. They don’t like for their sin to be brought to light.  And, once again, no matter how nice and loving you try to be, once you name a sin as a sin, especially one that a person is living in; then you’re labeled as judgmental.  Go on a talk show, and as nice and as lovingly kind as you can possibly say it; say that any sex outside of the marriage boundary is a sin against God.  See how the crowd responds.   It wont be pretty.

Okay, the next thing on the research list is  that famous old, worn out line that a lot of lost people like to use about evangelical Chrisitans.  85% of the lost crowd sees us as hypocritical.  So, what’s new here?  I’ll bet this has been said ever since Noah first lifted a hammer and told people to get right with God, because it was gonna rain.  Christians have faults and shortcomings.  Every Christian sins; every last one of us.  We all fail to be all that God wants us to be.  So, everytime a Christian fails God, the lost crowd is waiting to pounce on it like  a coyote after a fat, plump bunny rabbit.  I think it makes them feel better about their own sins, when they can call Christians “hypocrites.”  I think it eases their consciences just a little bit to point out the failures of a Believer.  It gives them a good excuse to stay lost.  And, you know what, lost people just dont understand grace.  Again, what do we do with this info?  I mean, we cant stop sinning.  We’re gonna sin.  We’re gonna fail God.  So, what good is it to know this info?  How does this help us?  What in the world can we do with it?

Now, I’m not gonna go over every single research item that was listed in the Spring 2010 On Mission magazine by NAMB.  But, here are the other topics: Non-Christians see evangelicals as Old Fashioned 78%; Too involved in Politics 75%; Out of Touch with Reality 72%; Insensitive to Others  70%; Boring 68%; Not Accepting of Others Faiths  64%; Confusing 61%.   Well, some of these things we can work on.  The old fashioned thing can be remedied, and it is being remedied by many, many Churches with contemporary music, technology, and dressing more cool and hip at Church.  The “Too involved in Politics” thing is something that we’ll always be accused of, if we ever take a political stand for moral reasons.  I do agree that some Pastors are too involved in politics.  But, I’m glad that some Christians feel led to get into politics, in order to do good.   And, any political stand that we take will be seen as too much for a lot of the lost crowd out there

Now, I’d imagine that evangelical Christians will always be looked upon as being out of touch with reality by the lost crowd.  After all, we look thru the lens of faith at the world, and the lost crowd doesn’t.  We can work on being more sensitive to others, but I doubt that us being more sensitive to others will ever be good enough for the lost crowd.  The boring thing….well, I was bored with worship and Bible study and prayer, too, back when I was lost and living in sin.  It didn’t do anything for me, as a lost person.  I doubt that there was anything that could’ve been done to make it less boring for me, as long as I was lost and living in sin.  Then, the “Not Accepting of Other’s Faiths” thing…well, this is just how it’s always gonna be.  How could it ever be seen as any different?  I mean, as Christians, who believe the Bible, Muslims are lost and wrong, and they worship a false god.  Buddhists are lost, and they will not go to Heaven.  Jews are not going to Heaven when they die, unless they put their faith in Jesus as their Messiah.  Mormons are involved in a cult, and they definitely worship a false god.  So, how in the world could we ever change this perspective, and still be true to God and to His Word?  The Bible is exclusive.  God is exclusive.  All dogs don’t go to Heaven.

You know what I think?  I think that the lost, rebellious crowd is always gonna view us, Christ Followers, as a strange and peculiar people, no matter what we do.  I think that the lost crowd is gonna look upon us in a bad light, no matter what.  I think that the lost crowd is not gonna be accepting of our beliefs, nor change their view of us, unless we’re willing to compromise our faith.  They will look upon us in a bad way, unless we’re willing stop living for the Lord.  I knew this before this study was ever done, and we all knew this before NAMB chose to put it in their magazine.  I mean, I didn’t expect to win any popularity contest in the arena of the world, as a Believer.  Who does?  Anyone?  The simple fact is that the lost crowd does not like us due to our walk with God; due to our being a follower of Jesus; due to us calling sin what it is; due to us preaching the Gospel….exhorting them to repent and put their faith in Jesus. 

I’m not really sure why NAMB put this in their magazine, nor what we’re supposed to do with this study; but I’m sure that there’ll be some wimpy Christians out there that this will really disturb.  There will be some namby, pamby Christians out there, who’ll be really upset that the lost crowd doesn’t like us.  And, they’ll want to make every change possible to “get the lost crowd to like us.”  Why?  Why are there some Believers out there, who think like this?  Who think that we have to please the worldly crowd? Who think that we have to be acceptable to the lost bunch?  Who honestly think that somehow we can “make the lost people out there like us and accept us?”  Who think this study  is even important to know? 

Are we gonna stop preaching against the sins of adultery and fornication and lying?  Are we gonna start preaching that “all dogs go to Heaven?”  Do we need to start telling homosexuals that “you’re ok, and I’m ok?”  Are we gonna start having scantily clothed dancing girls in our church, so that the men will not be bored?  And,  sign up men from the church to be in our newly formed, worship leaders group the “Holy Chippendales,” so that the ladies will be more excited about coming to church?  Do we need to start advertising that pre-worship cocktails will be available in the lobby?  Maybe that’ll make the lost crowd feel better about us? or, at least,  less bored with our worship? 

I dont think so.  I think that what we really need is  for Christians to be more like the Believers in the book of Acts, and turn our world upside down.  I really think that we need to trust the power of the Holy Spirit to call people to salvation.  I really think that we need to preach the Gospel, stand on the truth of God’s Word, and leave the results to God.  I really think that we should tweak how we do worship without violating Scripture; be creative in our outreach without getting stupid or crazy; and be open to making sensible changes that might open doors for us to able to reach lost people, without compromising our faith.  Now, please know that I was not saying that NAMB, nor Barna, was saying anything about compromising, nor even hinting at compromising.  I’m really not sure why they felt that this study was important.  Maybe they just did it, and printed it merely for information’s sake, or out of curiousity, or to tell us what we all should already be aware of? I don’t know.  But, I can just see the wheels turning in some “Evangelical Christians” minds about this info.  They might start thinking of all the things that we need to do to be more acceptable to the lost crowd.  I can just hear their thoughts about the shame it is that the lost crowd would think this of us, and how we need to change this perception. 

Again, I ask how?  And, will anything really change their perception of us?  Do we honestly think that the lost crowd will ever view us in a truly positive light?  I mean, if we really live for God, and preach the Gospel?

UPDATE:  Franklin Graham was cancelled from speaking at the Pentagon for some remarks he made about Islam.  Franklin Graham spoke the truth about Islam, and he was censored.  Anyone surprised?  Some of the people, who think that lost people will love us are probably a little shocked.

Maybe you haven’t seen this video of a young man making this poetic “speech” about being sorry for being a Christian.  He even uses the F word a couple of times in his “poem.”  It makes you wonder why he felt the need to use the F word in a poem, where he was going after Christians and others for all the ills of Christendom that he sees.  You can see his “poem” on this site  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EieFdXy_HwM on youtube.  I warn you now that he has a potty mouth, and he uses the F word.  But, he recites this “poem” to the jeers of the crowd.  They’re especially happy, and you can hear the laughter, when he apologizes right off the bat for being a Christian.

Well, I’m not sorry for being a Christian.  I’m not sorry for calling sin what it is…sin.  I’m not sorry for saying that sin will be judged by God.  Why am I not sorry?  Because a lost man’s sins will be judged by God.  And, the lost crowd needs to hear that.  How can a lost man be saved, until he sees his need of a Savior?  He cant.  So, why would I apologize for calling sin what it is, and for telling people that God is not happy with our sins?  I know that some lost people will call that intolerance, and they’ll think it’s mean and narrow; but it’s the truth.  The truth shall set you free.

Also, I’m sad about the loss of life at the hands of the Crusaders and the Catholic Church.  But, why should I apologize for the Crusades that happened hundreds of years ago.  I wasnt there.  I didn’t do it.  So, why should I apologize for something that happened hundreds of years ago.  Why, it wasn’t even my Church that did this thing.  It wasn’t a Southern Baptist Church.  It wasn’t any Churches that came out of the Reformation.  So, why should I, a 48 year old Believer, apologize  for something that some misguided people did a long time ago?  Why would any Christian feel the need to bring this up and apologize for it?  Why would this make anyone be sorry that they’re a Christian.  I’m not sorry that I’m a Christ Follower, just because of what some knights did back in the dark ages.

BTW, while we should love gay people, I’m certainly not sorry for calling homosexuality what it is.  It is sin.  It is sin that God will judge.  Now,  I know that God will also judge the adulterers and the liars and the thieves and all other sinners.  But, this young man seems to be saying that he’s sorry for calling homosexuality a sin.  Well, young man, it is a sin.  And, those people, who die in this sin, will go to Hell.  They need to be saved, and I do pray that they’ll be saved and go to Heaven.  I love gay people.  I do not hate gay people.  I wish that everyone of them would get saved today.  I certainly hope that I get to spend eternity with all the gay people in this world, because they repented and put their faith in Jesus.  I really do.  But, should I apologize for calling homosexual sex what it is?  A sin.  Never.

Also, I hate that there are homeless people, and I really hate that some men beat their wives.  I wish every homeless person had a home, and I wish that every wife beater would have to spend 30 minutes with CB Scott in a locked room by themselves.  But, you know what?  There will always be homeless people. Jesus said that the poor will always be here. And, some people are homeless because of the bad choices they’ve made in life, and people will continue to make bad choices, and do things like drink alcohol, use drugs, gamble, etc.  And, these choices will cause them and their family to suffer financially, and in many other ways.  Why should I, as a Christ Follower, apologize for the homeless?  I didn’t make them that way, nor can we give them all a home.  Some of them dont even want a home!  Also, why should I apologize and be sorry that I’m a Christian, because of what some drunken, mean man did to his wife?  Christians didn’t make this man into a wife beater.  Christians cant stop men from being wife beaters.  There will always be mean, ornery men out there, who will beat women and children.  That’s just a sad fact of life, and a result of the fall of man.  So, why would this make me be sorry for being a Christian?  I don’t get it.

Also, what Indian tribe was wiped out in the name of the Church?  I thought it was done, because white men wanted the land.  Some of it was done, because white men thought that gold was on the land that the Indians claimed belonged to them.  Why bring the Church into this?  Was General Custer a Christian attacking Indian tribes for some Church?  I mean, really; is some school out there teaching young people that the Church wiped out Indian tribes in America?

As I listened to this video, I was also left wondering if all Christendom should be blamed for the child abuse that has happened in  some Churches?  I was left wondering if preaching the Gospel was something that a Christian should apologize for?  And, did Christians bring in the plague?  Really?  And, maybe he doesn’t know about all the 15 year old girls and others that have been helped by all of the Christian pregnancy centers and Christian counselors that have helped women deal with the awful affects of abortion? Another thing, did Christians start wars between the nations?  Did Christians start WW I; WW II; or the Gulf War?  I don’t recall Dr. R. G. Lee declaring war on Germany.  I don’t recall Dr. A. T. Robertson declaring war on Japan.  Do yall?  What’s this guy talking about in this poem?  Why would anyone say that this poem is something that needed to be heard by all Christ Followers?  What’s the point of this young man’s poem?

This poem reminds me of my college days, where we had some flaky people floating around, who were anti-Church.  You know the types.  They don’t belong to a Church.  They don’t like to commit to anything.  They’d rather show up at a college, Bible study group every now and then; but they don’t get into commitment.  They’re unsound in their doctrine, and they really don’t like for anyone to help them understand the Bible better.  They’d rather complain and whine about all the bad things that they see in their minds about the Church.  Every thing is looked at thru negative glasses concerning the Church and sound doctrine.  I saw many young people on my college campus, back in my college days, who were just flaky and out there, in deep center field, on the fringe, who just saw everything negatively.  Everything was bad, and they were the ones, who could fix it, of course.

Well, I’m glad to be a Christian.  When I look at how most of the hospitals and orphanages in our world were started by Christians, I rejoice.  When I look at all the institutions of higher learning that Christians started, I rejoice.  When I look at all the people who’ve been helped by Churches and Pastors and Christian counselors, then I rejoice.  When I look at all the millions of people, who’ve been saved thru the years, by the witness of Christians and missionaries, I rejoice.  When I look at all the people, who have been ministered to by the prayers of faithful Christian people, I rejoice.  When I look at all the marriages that have been not only helped, but saved, due to the grace of God coming thru a Pastor’s sermons and counsel and prayers and encouragement, then I rejoice that I’m a Christian.  When I look at the people, who were at the brink of suicide, but some Christian helped them find hope in the Lord Jesus, then I rejoice.  When I think of the disaster relief teams that go out in the name of Jesus from SB Churches, and they help people in incredible, heartbreaking disasters, then I rejoice.  When I think about all the people that have been fed, their electric bills paid, their water bills paid, clothes bought, etc. ; paid  by Churches all over the USA and the world, then I rejoice.  And, I’m talking about every week, SB Churches in little towns and big cities all across this land, helping people keep the lights and the heat on; feeding children, etc.; then I rejoice.

I’m not sorry for being a Christian.  I’m thrilled to be a Christ Follower.  I’m excited about being a child of God.  I’m ecstatic about what God is doing thru the Church.  I’m delighted that God uses Christians to do so much good in our world.  Sorry?  Apologize?  Why?  Why should we apologize for being a Christian?  Aren’t you glad to be Christian?

As I understand it, the Camel Method is part of a larger missiological movement known as “Common Ground.” As it relates to evangelism among Muslims, I suppose the name speaks for itself. Today I came across a guest post on the blog Biblical Missiology. It was written by a Christian from a Muslim background, and I was fascinated by his perspective on this “Common Ground” movement. Particularly intriguing to me were the questions he asked regarding the so-called “converts” that result from this approach. Here is his paragraph containing those questions:

And so following some years in closeness with Common Ground movement, still there were a lot of unresolved questions within myself!  Should CMBs (Christians from a Muslim Background) continue to attend mosques and would that be helpful for them? If that is the situation what happens after the Islamic congregation understands there are some different Muslims in their congregation? Will they tolerate, expel or persecute them? Where will they get their true spiritual nourishment? Perhaps they will meet in home groups in addition to attending mosque, but for how long that situation will last? What about church planting since they are supposed to stay within the Islamic culture and religion, will it be established at some point the Christian community or such a thing is not necessary? What about their identity, is it like Christian with Christians and Muslims with Muslims? Who are going to be their true brothers and sisters, Muslims or Christians or both of them? Is there any compromise in all of that? These were some questions I faced and am quite sure most of these believers do go through.

The entire post can be accessed by clicking here, and I encourage readers to take the time to read about the experiences of this former Muslim who believes that this deceptive approach is doing more harm than good.

Have you ever considered what your world view is, and where did you get it?

When we became Christians something wonderful happened. Our world view changed.

2 Corinthians 5:16 From now on, then, we do not know anyone in a purely human way. Even if we have known Christ in a purely human way, yet now we no longer know Him like that. 17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new things have come. 18 Now everything is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:

Your world view has changed. Your view of Christ has changed. Your understandings of everything have changed to some degree.

World view is a fancy name that speaks about something we take for granted. We take for granted how we see the world. Like most folks over 50 I wear glasses. It changes the way I see the world, other cars, people, some of my friends are much older now that I wear good glasses. Hopefully the lenses in the frames help me have a more accurate world view. I have grown so used to my glasses sometimes I haven’t realized I have been wearing them; I once searched for my glasses for 3 hours, until I asked my wife where they were. She told me they were on my face! There are four basic lenses that give us a world view of the things around us. Sometimes we are not aware that we are looking at our world through a combination of these four lenses. There are various ways that something can be known. How much weight we place to the many ways of knowing effects our world view.

All Christians recognize the authority of the Scriptures. Someone once described an ordination service in a cult group. The ordinand held his bible in one hand and the writings of their cult leader in the other. Really, the ordinand was affirming the authority of his cult leader above the authority of the Bible. We may wrongly affirm Reason, experience or the traditions of our community above the authority of the Bible.

A. Reason. The Enlightenment made reason primary. Its creed was “if it can’t be verified, it can’t be believed.” Thus, science became the determiner of truth. Sadly, much was critiqued on the basis of reason and found to be wanting. “Miracles were impossible so miracles could not happen”. Sometimes as we try to prove by reasoning or the scientific method, we ourselves succumb to the same error, putting all our eggs in one basket. This form of reasoning succumbs to the premise of rationalists that the only true form of knowledge is that which can be gained using the scientific method. It allows the methodology and world view of scientism to become the dominant worldview. The Hebrew word for “Truth” is “emet”. This word has been translated into Greek as “alètheia”, and into Latin as “verilas”. But its meaning is quite different from that which the Greek and Latin words have in philosophical usage. For the Greeks, truth is essentially the transparency of a thing to the mind; “alètheia” means “unveiling.” Thus the criterion of truth is evidence. But the root of the word “emet” refers to the solidity of something from which one receives support; the pillar on which a building rests; the support that a child receives when resting in his mother’s arms; In the moral sense, the word refers to the faithful servant, on whom reliance can be placed.

The nuance to the idea of truth that “emet” brings is not the evidence of something known, but the veracity of the testimony that supports knowledge. Scientific method cannot attain the essential realities of personhood. These are only known by testimony. Realities such as; love; the love of others for us; the reality of historical events; are only known by testimony. Reason and scientific method allow us access to the material world, however when we come to the level of persons, the properties of persons can only be known if they reveal themselves. And for this reason we utilize the “evidence” of testimony. Revelation is God unveiling to us His nature and being, which we could not know in any other way. Baptists accept that there are more forms of knowing than just scientific method, and accept that if God is to be known, He must make Himself known. He has done this by His Word, the Bible.

B. Experience and Intuition.. In reaction the new creed of postmodernism is “if it has happened to me, it is real.” The desire for experience in all fields can become overwhelming in itself and can lead to the “If it works, it must be right.” pragmatism that characterizes many aspects of church life.

By its very nature, truth by experience is relative to the individual. This worldview concedes too much ground to pluralism and the post-modern mindset which says, “What’s true for you may not be true for me, and what’s true for me is all that matters.” But in normal day to day life we do acknowledge that there some limits to this form of knowledge. Everything is not true in medicine and life. Aren’t you glad your doctor does believe that there is a real difference between cyanide and Panadene. Reason tells us that poison and medicine are not both good for headaches. The same is true in our Christian beliefs. We do not hold that both atheism and Christianity are both true. It is logical to say that opposites cannot both be true at the same time. With such a diversity of religious experience being offered today, where does one look to find truth? Recently some have taught a prosperity gospel. They claim that God wants all Christians to be rich, and that wealth and power are proofs of God’s blessing. Others have pressed that all Christians should speak in tongues. Still others have thought that by the strange mysticism of Feng Shui, they can bring good luck to places or organizations. As Baptists we reject this as being something more akin to animism. If we heard of Baptist organizations supporting such ridiculous ideas we would be upset. Where do we go to find out where truth is? Baptists have historically examined the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. In reading the Bible, we discover that neither the prosperity gospel nor the overemphasis upon tongues is biblical. We discover the Feng Shui has roots in the demonic. And so as Baptists we assert the authority of the Bible over the authority of experience or intuition to direct our lives.

C. Community. We can believe stuff because our community believes stuff. Often the way we vote politically is more fashioned by the way our parents voted than by our conscious choice. It would be hard to estimate to what extent our conscious choice is fashioned by our family’s beliefs anyway. Prior to the Reformation in Europe Church attending folk believed that church officials, Popes, and priests had the power to pardon sins. Why? Because the church community had traditionally believed that for some time (this belief still continues today as the pope recently promised pardon for sins for those who visit the Vatican as tourists or pilgrims). But does God truly cancel sins that way? As Baptists we go back to the Bible and we discover that “the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.”( 1 John 1:7). We would prefer to take God’s Word for it, than the word of any Pope. How can we know truth from error in religious community? I recently chatted with a young elder of a bike riding denomination who admitted that he might have believed differently had he been raised somewhere else in the United States. Traditional views are community views that have become entrenched. One of those non-biblical views that has been accepted in tradition as being important in some churches is that of infant baptism. Baptists assert that if a teaching isn’t in the Bible it is dangerous to build our beliefs upon it.

D. Revelation. Billy Graham is famous for saying “God said it, I believe it, that settles it.”

In a world that relies heavily upon rationalism or experience or community beliefs we need some clear guidance that transcends our human biases and frailties. If the transcendent God is to be known (transcendent meaning that He is above our human efforts to understand Him as He is of different nature to ours Job 11:7 Can you by searching find out God? can you find out the Almighty? Ecclesiastes 3: 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.) He can only be known if He reveals Himself. As an act of grace, God specially revealed Himself to humans through the living Word (Jesus) and written Word (Bible). This revelation is authoritative as it comes from God Himself. I like how A W Tozer expressed the priority of revelation: “A Christian knows a thing to be true, not because he has tested and verified it in experience, but because God has said it.” In other words, although personal experience and tradition and the church and our own rationality are wonderful things, the final judge for our beliefs is God’s Word. It is the standard and guide to our Christian experience, our church traditions and our understandings of the world and all that is in it.

Psalms 119:130, “The entrance of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple.”

Psalms 43:3, “Oh, send out Your light and Your truth! Let them lead me; Let them bring me to Your holy hill And to Your tabernacle.”

Proverbs 6:23. “For the commandment is a lamp, And the law a light; Reproofs of instruction are the way of life”

Psalms 19:The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes;

Baptists believe that all other authorities must bow to the supreme revelation God has given us of Himself in His Word. We must bring our minds (rationality) and hearts (experience and emotions) captive to God’s Word. 2 Corinthians 10:4 We demolish arguments and every high-minded thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.

Paul spoke in the context of a confused world Acts 20:29 For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock.30Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves.31 Therefore watch, and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears.32 “So now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

We need to study God’s Word to keep our stability on a confusing and strange world of shifting ideas.