Today is a special day comemorated the world over. Today is the day we remember the crucifixion. It has always seemed to me that calling today "Good Friday" was a bit inappropriate since what we remember on this day is without question one of the worst things that ever happened. From every external indicator there is no reason why we should think anything good on a day comemorating the execution of God's Son. Rather than having a day off to buy new Easter clothes, you might think we would sit in ashes with black clothes. We don't, though. We comemorate this day with celebration of various kinds. Truly, it seems paradoxical.
When we study the invisible aspects of what transpired on this day so long ago, we still come up with same result - the death of God's Son. We start with God the Father and quickly surmise from explicit Scripture references that the Father SENT the Son into the world to die for the world. We study his character and learn that his holiness, justice and all of the qualities that he possesses to infinity required that the law be satisfied by the shedding of blood. We read of the Son that he desired to come and lay down his life. When we look at the motives of the those who played out this redemptive drama we see them filled with rage and malice. We know that love factors into the divine motive and yet the end result of this day is the death of God's Son.
When we consider the result accomplished by the death of God's Son we can see nothing but goodness, mercy, grace and justice all rolled into one. The righteous law of God required that atonement be made for sin. Blood had to be shed and not just any blood. Hebrews tells us that the blood of bulls and goats just isn't sufficient. The kind of blood that had to be shed was the purest, cleanest, undefiled and most holy blood - the blood of Jesus. It was in his death that the law was satisfied and God's wrath against sin was turned away. It was in the turning away of God's wrath that his mercy and grace flowed freely to us. It was in the whole act of his punishment and death that God's goodness ultimately triumphed. All of these things occured at the expense of God's Son.
There is no question that good has come from Good Friday. There is also no question that a lot of hard and ugly things occurred in order to accomplish that good. Good Friday is a bitter-sweet reality. Our comemoration of it should be similar. In our joy over having a day off and the opportunity to go shopping or whatever it is you do on Good Friday, take some time to meditate upon the reality of Jesus' death. It was in the cross event that the utter sinfulness of mankind was set against the backdrop of God's infinite goodness. Two opposing powers collided that day and good won out! Maybe that's why we call today, Good Friday.
Friday, March 21, 2008
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Physical Therapy and Eternity
Several weeks ago I was diagnosed with degenerative disks in the neck with just a little arthritis to boot. My doctor said, "If you don't want to be a young crippled man, then I suggest physical therapy." So...he wrote me a prescription and off I went with my pain in the neck. I don't particularly like going to the doctor. I don't mind doctors, so much, but I do mind the co-pays, the insurance system that sucks my resources dry and the all the hoop-la I have to endure every single time I go to the doctor - that I DON'T like! Anyway, after putting off this physical therapy thing for as long as possible I finally gave up the fight and went this morning.
I went with great fear because I thought I would end up with some big, ugly woman with a thicker mustache than mine. Thank goodness that didn't happen and Bertha never materialized. I ended up with a very nice therapist who helped me greatly. He went through the whole evaluation thing and we talked about my aches and pains. It seemed to take a very long time to do all of that, but it was only a few minutes. He pushed and pulled on my neck and several times I thought he was going to kill me. Of course, while all of that was going on he was carrying on a polite conversation with me about polite topics. It seemed to take a long time, but it really was only a few minutes.
Once he had finished with the pushing and pulling I found myself alone in an evaluation room waiting for the therapist to return. It seemed like a really long time, but it really was only a few minutes. He emerged from the door with a piece of paper explaining all of the new exercises I am supposed to do in order to strengthen my neck. He went over them with me and we tried a few. Again, this seemed to go on forever, but it was really only a few minutes. He finished the exercise thing and I thought I was done and that I would be on my merry way and that's when he told me what we were going to do, today. He said, "I think your neck muscles are too tense and with some electric stimulation we can fix that." He went on, "something something something something something something something mild electric impluse." That part was the only part that went by fast - too fast! I still don't know what he said.
So....he takes me out to this curtained room that is opened to the main exercise floor. He starts "hookin' me up" and I notice an older gentleman who is obviously watching me with a sly grin on his face. He was working on his shoulder. Apparently, he had had some type of shoulder surgery and was in his rehabilitation phase of recovery. The whole time my therapist is "hookin' me up" the older guy is just watching and gawking. I'm sure it wasn't that long. It was probably only a few minutes, but it seemed like a long time. I finally asked the old guy if he had done this kind of thing before - the kind of thing I was about to go through. He smiled that sly smile and said with an all-knowing and condescending smile, "Yes. I know all 'bout that thing you gettin' ready to do. And in just a few minutes, you'll know all about it too!"
As soon as the guy started the thing I knew I was in trouble. He said you could set it at 30. 30 what, I don't know. He said you could go as high as 30. I made it to 12. Once he got me "hooked up" and made sure I was shooting fire from my mouth he set a timer for 15 minutes. For 15 solid minutes I had 12 whatevers running through my body and let me tell you...even though it was only 15 minutes, it seemed like a very long time. Eternity works a little bit like that. We think we have an idea about eternity, but the truth is that our eternity has already begun. Some of it we've wasted. Some of it we've invested. Some of it we've squandered. Some of it has yet to be, but the most of it is yet to come.
The next time you're dragging around and time seems to crawl along remember that you are already burning eternity. I'm sure it doesn't seem like it, but you are. Everyone will live forever. The question is, "Where will you live forever?" I don't know about you, but as for me, I'm to that place where there is no electronic equipment that I can be hooked up to. I'm going to be with the Lord. You can too if you come to Jesus. I hope you'll consider coming to Jesus, today. Feel free to contact me if you'd like to know more about Jesus. I'm sure it seems like it would take you a long time to talk with me about Jesus, but it really wouldn't take that long. Just a few minutes....
I went with great fear because I thought I would end up with some big, ugly woman with a thicker mustache than mine. Thank goodness that didn't happen and Bertha never materialized. I ended up with a very nice therapist who helped me greatly. He went through the whole evaluation thing and we talked about my aches and pains. It seemed to take a very long time to do all of that, but it was only a few minutes. He pushed and pulled on my neck and several times I thought he was going to kill me. Of course, while all of that was going on he was carrying on a polite conversation with me about polite topics. It seemed to take a long time, but it really was only a few minutes.
Once he had finished with the pushing and pulling I found myself alone in an evaluation room waiting for the therapist to return. It seemed like a really long time, but it really was only a few minutes. He emerged from the door with a piece of paper explaining all of the new exercises I am supposed to do in order to strengthen my neck. He went over them with me and we tried a few. Again, this seemed to go on forever, but it was really only a few minutes. He finished the exercise thing and I thought I was done and that I would be on my merry way and that's when he told me what we were going to do, today. He said, "I think your neck muscles are too tense and with some electric stimulation we can fix that." He went on, "something something something something something something something mild electric impluse." That part was the only part that went by fast - too fast! I still don't know what he said.
So....he takes me out to this curtained room that is opened to the main exercise floor. He starts "hookin' me up" and I notice an older gentleman who is obviously watching me with a sly grin on his face. He was working on his shoulder. Apparently, he had had some type of shoulder surgery and was in his rehabilitation phase of recovery. The whole time my therapist is "hookin' me up" the older guy is just watching and gawking. I'm sure it wasn't that long. It was probably only a few minutes, but it seemed like a long time. I finally asked the old guy if he had done this kind of thing before - the kind of thing I was about to go through. He smiled that sly smile and said with an all-knowing and condescending smile, "Yes. I know all 'bout that thing you gettin' ready to do. And in just a few minutes, you'll know all about it too!"
As soon as the guy started the thing I knew I was in trouble. He said you could set it at 30. 30 what, I don't know. He said you could go as high as 30. I made it to 12. Once he got me "hooked up" and made sure I was shooting fire from my mouth he set a timer for 15 minutes. For 15 solid minutes I had 12 whatevers running through my body and let me tell you...even though it was only 15 minutes, it seemed like a very long time. Eternity works a little bit like that. We think we have an idea about eternity, but the truth is that our eternity has already begun. Some of it we've wasted. Some of it we've invested. Some of it we've squandered. Some of it has yet to be, but the most of it is yet to come.
The next time you're dragging around and time seems to crawl along remember that you are already burning eternity. I'm sure it doesn't seem like it, but you are. Everyone will live forever. The question is, "Where will you live forever?" I don't know about you, but as for me, I'm to that place where there is no electronic equipment that I can be hooked up to. I'm going to be with the Lord. You can too if you come to Jesus. I hope you'll consider coming to Jesus, today. Feel free to contact me if you'd like to know more about Jesus. I'm sure it seems like it would take you a long time to talk with me about Jesus, but it really wouldn't take that long. Just a few minutes....
Inerrancy and Ignorance
Here in the Bible-belt region of the USA there is a phenomenon that occurs in religious circles akin to the culture of the religious in first century Palestine. That phenomenon of which I speak is the ability of church folks to believe in the inerrancy of Scripture while, at the same time, not taking the time to read it, learn it or memorize it. It really is an interesting thing.
You've doubtless read by now that I am committed to the concept of inerrancy. I beleive the Bible is truth, without any mixture of error and that means I trust it. Belief in inerrancy, though, doesn't necessarily mean I practice it. Here's how it works. A Christian person says he believes the Bible is absolutely correct and without error, but he never reads it and really doesn't know what it says. This person's lifestyle then tells the tale about his true conviction. This person may think he knows what the Bible says about life, but, in fact, has never read it and actually bases his worldview on what he thinks the Bible says. This is an interpretation based on ignorance and it is a powerful strong hold to break.
The person who builds his lens for viewing the world on what he thinks something says is akin to someone practicing medicine without a license - he can use the words and might have some skills, but he'll mess you up! These are the people who get confused between what the Bible says and what they've always done. In other words, they equate their tradition with the law and the tradition becomes the thing that is inerrant - not the Bible. Even if someone takes the message of the Bible to them in an effort to correct their erroneous thinking, they'll refuse to hear it and may even become hostile to the messenger. Does this sound familiar? This is exactly what happened to Jesus during his earthly mininstry. They understood inerrancy, but they applied it to the wrong thing. Then, in their ignorance, they become puffed-up, arrogant religious people.
Let me give you another scenario to try an illustrate the point. Say a Christian man who understands and practices inerrancy comes to hold a grudge against a friend for a wrong done to him. He may claim to be an inerrantist and actually use the Bible to defend his right to hold a grudge against this person who wronged him. He might say something like this, "The Bible says, 'Whatever a man sows that shall he also reap.'" He might say something like this, "Well, I know what the Bible says about forgiveness, but even if I forgive him, I'll not forget it!"
In the above example, this person blatantly disregards biblical teaching on a subject in favor of his own warped interpretation or in favor of his own rebellious spirit. Either case, the guy does what he wants rather than what the Bible says. This is called disobedience. One knows the truth, respects the truth and believes the Bible to be true, but disregards it in order to do his own thing. With this comes the conviction of the Holy Spirit, an opportunity to repent and confess and an opportunity to be restored into fellowship with God.
Concerning those who in ignorance uphold tradition or some other thing as inerrant, there is the danger of quenching the Holy Spirit and missing the opportunity for repentance, confession and restoration. This is what happened to the Pharisees and Sadducees. They upheld the wrong thing (be it the law, their opinion or their biases) as inerrant and missed the work of God. Consequently, they crucified the Lord. I wonder how many religious people, today, would do the same thing given the opportunity?
So....what are we to do? It really is a simple matter. As Christian people we are to be guarded against the possibility viewing as inerrant our tradition or opinion. We are to nurture our personal relationship with the Lord Jesus by spending time reading this thing called the Bible and seeking to surrender to its teaching in the power of the Holy Spirit. We are to decrease our level of ignorance by studying the word, spending time in meaningful and authentic fellowship with other beleivers and we are to find simple ways to be genuine in our service to God by meeting others at their point of need - where they live.
An inerrantist can be one of the most arrogant persons you would ever meet. We've all known that kind of inerrantist. The kind of inerrantist that anyone would like to meet and the kind of inerrantist who has the power to change the world and the inerrantist who can passionately share the Gospel without beating people with the Bible, is the guy or gal who simply seeks to surrender his / her life everyday in everyway to the Lord and His Word. Would you join me in being that kind of inerrantist?
You've doubtless read by now that I am committed to the concept of inerrancy. I beleive the Bible is truth, without any mixture of error and that means I trust it. Belief in inerrancy, though, doesn't necessarily mean I practice it. Here's how it works. A Christian person says he believes the Bible is absolutely correct and without error, but he never reads it and really doesn't know what it says. This person's lifestyle then tells the tale about his true conviction. This person may think he knows what the Bible says about life, but, in fact, has never read it and actually bases his worldview on what he thinks the Bible says. This is an interpretation based on ignorance and it is a powerful strong hold to break.
The person who builds his lens for viewing the world on what he thinks something says is akin to someone practicing medicine without a license - he can use the words and might have some skills, but he'll mess you up! These are the people who get confused between what the Bible says and what they've always done. In other words, they equate their tradition with the law and the tradition becomes the thing that is inerrant - not the Bible. Even if someone takes the message of the Bible to them in an effort to correct their erroneous thinking, they'll refuse to hear it and may even become hostile to the messenger. Does this sound familiar? This is exactly what happened to Jesus during his earthly mininstry. They understood inerrancy, but they applied it to the wrong thing. Then, in their ignorance, they become puffed-up, arrogant religious people.
Let me give you another scenario to try an illustrate the point. Say a Christian man who understands and practices inerrancy comes to hold a grudge against a friend for a wrong done to him. He may claim to be an inerrantist and actually use the Bible to defend his right to hold a grudge against this person who wronged him. He might say something like this, "The Bible says, 'Whatever a man sows that shall he also reap.'" He might say something like this, "Well, I know what the Bible says about forgiveness, but even if I forgive him, I'll not forget it!"
In the above example, this person blatantly disregards biblical teaching on a subject in favor of his own warped interpretation or in favor of his own rebellious spirit. Either case, the guy does what he wants rather than what the Bible says. This is called disobedience. One knows the truth, respects the truth and believes the Bible to be true, but disregards it in order to do his own thing. With this comes the conviction of the Holy Spirit, an opportunity to repent and confess and an opportunity to be restored into fellowship with God.
Concerning those who in ignorance uphold tradition or some other thing as inerrant, there is the danger of quenching the Holy Spirit and missing the opportunity for repentance, confession and restoration. This is what happened to the Pharisees and Sadducees. They upheld the wrong thing (be it the law, their opinion or their biases) as inerrant and missed the work of God. Consequently, they crucified the Lord. I wonder how many religious people, today, would do the same thing given the opportunity?
So....what are we to do? It really is a simple matter. As Christian people we are to be guarded against the possibility viewing as inerrant our tradition or opinion. We are to nurture our personal relationship with the Lord Jesus by spending time reading this thing called the Bible and seeking to surrender to its teaching in the power of the Holy Spirit. We are to decrease our level of ignorance by studying the word, spending time in meaningful and authentic fellowship with other beleivers and we are to find simple ways to be genuine in our service to God by meeting others at their point of need - where they live.
An inerrantist can be one of the most arrogant persons you would ever meet. We've all known that kind of inerrantist. The kind of inerrantist that anyone would like to meet and the kind of inerrantist who has the power to change the world and the inerrantist who can passionately share the Gospel without beating people with the Bible, is the guy or gal who simply seeks to surrender his / her life everyday in everyway to the Lord and His Word. Would you join me in being that kind of inerrantist?
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Inerrancy and Insecurity
I remember the first couple of sermons I preached as the pastor. I was terrified. That actually puts it mildly. I was more than terrified. I didn't know how to preach a sermon (even though I never owned up to that). I didn't know how to invite people to respond to the message they had heard. I didn't know how people would respond to me. I didn't know if what I said had any significance or not. I didn't know a lot of things and I was very insecure. Those first few months were very difficult because I longed for guidance and hung on every word my church friends would say. If they liked what I did, then I felt good. If they didn't like what I did, then I worried about my tenure and my reputation and my ability to climb the denominational ladder and so on... To put it mildly, I was insecure and worried about what everybody thought.
When sermon time rolled around (and believe me it rolled around a lot), I would find myself hiding out and begging God to give me a word to share with the people. Sometimes I would get a clear understanding of what that word was and when I shared it, it was like ice cream in the summer - short lived and sweet! Sometimes I would get a sense of what I needed to say and it would come out ok. Other times I would have a clue what I was talking about and it was like the dog days of summer - miserable and never-ending! This cycle went on for about a year and then I learned about something called inerrancy.
I had heard about inerrancy before and even understood what it was, but I had never seen anyone apply it. One of my professors helped me to understand it when he asked this question in class - How do you guys get your sermons? Man, he got some responses. One guy said, "I get mine from my pastor." Another said, "I spend time in prayer and wait on God to speak to me." Another said, "I just read a text and then tell what I want them to know." This kind of thing went on for a while until the professor asked, "Who gets their sermons from the Bible?" Of course, all of us said that we got our sermons from the Bible. But he got us thinking. He went on to teach us that the Bible is the Word that God has for us and for his people. He taught us that if we would preach the Bible and get ourselves out of the way as much as possible that the Bible would speak for itself. Now that's a radical concept!
You know, I don't have to add anything to the Bible. Indeed, I can NOT add anything to the Bible. I don't have the right to take anything away from it; therefore, I am obligated to share all of it. In short, the Bible stands for itself. There are lots of reasons for this and inerrancy is a big one. Inerrancy means the Bible is free from error. I believe that the Bible in its original manuscripts is totally inerrant and the copies that we have are so close to the originals that we can affirm the same for them.
When my professor helped me understand that the Bible doesn't need my help to give it a voice and that it simply needs for me to get out of the way in the preaching of it so its voice can be heard, he set me free from the problem of insecurity that I was living with. When I or any preacher or teacher clearly presents the Bible for what it is, it is amazing at how well spoken, articulate and clear it really is. It's also amazing at how freeing that is to the one who teaches because then the response of the people is focused on the messenger, but it is focused on the message of God's Word. What a confidence builder? What a faith builder? What a courage builder? The Word of God is just that - THE WORD OF GOD!
Who in their right mind thinks they could add to it or take away from it? Who in their right mind would fear what another thinks about it? Who in their right mind would fear what others think of him? If it is the Word of God ( and it is) and the preacher or teacher does his homework in order to clearly present God's Word, then why would any preacher or teacher ever worry / fret / or feel insecure about it? I don't anymore because all I do is share what the Bible says? Don't be in bondage because of insecurity like this guy...
When sermon time rolled around (and believe me it rolled around a lot), I would find myself hiding out and begging God to give me a word to share with the people. Sometimes I would get a clear understanding of what that word was and when I shared it, it was like ice cream in the summer - short lived and sweet! Sometimes I would get a sense of what I needed to say and it would come out ok. Other times I would have a clue what I was talking about and it was like the dog days of summer - miserable and never-ending! This cycle went on for about a year and then I learned about something called inerrancy.
I had heard about inerrancy before and even understood what it was, but I had never seen anyone apply it. One of my professors helped me to understand it when he asked this question in class - How do you guys get your sermons? Man, he got some responses. One guy said, "I get mine from my pastor." Another said, "I spend time in prayer and wait on God to speak to me." Another said, "I just read a text and then tell what I want them to know." This kind of thing went on for a while until the professor asked, "Who gets their sermons from the Bible?" Of course, all of us said that we got our sermons from the Bible. But he got us thinking. He went on to teach us that the Bible is the Word that God has for us and for his people. He taught us that if we would preach the Bible and get ourselves out of the way as much as possible that the Bible would speak for itself. Now that's a radical concept!
You know, I don't have to add anything to the Bible. Indeed, I can NOT add anything to the Bible. I don't have the right to take anything away from it; therefore, I am obligated to share all of it. In short, the Bible stands for itself. There are lots of reasons for this and inerrancy is a big one. Inerrancy means the Bible is free from error. I believe that the Bible in its original manuscripts is totally inerrant and the copies that we have are so close to the originals that we can affirm the same for them.
When my professor helped me understand that the Bible doesn't need my help to give it a voice and that it simply needs for me to get out of the way in the preaching of it so its voice can be heard, he set me free from the problem of insecurity that I was living with. When I or any preacher or teacher clearly presents the Bible for what it is, it is amazing at how well spoken, articulate and clear it really is. It's also amazing at how freeing that is to the one who teaches because then the response of the people is focused on the messenger, but it is focused on the message of God's Word. What a confidence builder? What a faith builder? What a courage builder? The Word of God is just that - THE WORD OF GOD!
Who in their right mind thinks they could add to it or take away from it? Who in their right mind would fear what another thinks about it? Who in their right mind would fear what others think of him? If it is the Word of God ( and it is) and the preacher or teacher does his homework in order to clearly present God's Word, then why would any preacher or teacher ever worry / fret / or feel insecure about it? I don't anymore because all I do is share what the Bible says? Don't be in bondage because of insecurity like this guy...
Monday, March 17, 2008
Beware of Wolves in Sheep's Clothes
Yesterday was a wonderful day at church. We celebrated the Lord's Supper that morning and proclaimed the Lord's death for sins and enjoyed a wonderful fellowship with Him and with one another. Later that afternoon, I invited our insurance rep to visit with us to help us better understand our insurance coverages and to gain his insight concerning any potential liabilities our church may be exposed to.
He met with our transportation committee (which has been charged with the task of studying our transportation needs and then making a recommendation to the church based on what they learn) and then he spoke with any church members interested in safeguarding our children's / youth ministry. We had an abbreviated service that evening and spent several minutes discussing a proposed policy manual for use in our church. In short, we spent most of our day discussing the reality of living and ministering in a fallen world.
We had to talk about some difficult things. Our rep talked to us about potential liabilities in transporting children, teens and adults in both church owned transportation and privately owned automobiles. We learned more than we ever wanted to know about that and we'll probably be having a hard time getting anyone else to drive for us..... He talked to us about the numbers of children who are abused and how to watch for the signs of abuse. He talked about our coverages should their ever be an accusation against our church or church workers. He talked to us about very practical safeguards to protect against anything bad happening. Things like never allowing an adult to be alone with a child, placing windows in the doors and instituting a screening process for children's workers that includes an interview, background check and waiting period before service all goes a long way in protecting the church and the children and, in some cases, increases your levels of coverage.
Let me just tell you how difficult it was to talk about these issues. For whatever reason, churches seem to treat as taboo these kinds of things and by not talking about them open themselves to all sorts of bad things. Let me also tell you this: As uncomfortable and difficult as it is to talk about these things, it is infinitely more uncomfortable and difficult to experience some kind of accusation or incident. When I was pastor in Louisiana, our church experienced two separate occasions that were potentially dangerous to individuals and to the church. In one, there was suspected abuse by an older man, but before it could be verified he left the church. In the second, one of the members who worked with the teens was involved in a very public and very sinful scandal. That situation cost our church two or three families who left over the scandal. In addition to that, our church's reputation was more than tarnished and we lost a great deal of influence in our community. As one who has now stood before a church to address an issue that happened and one who has stood before a church to address issues that could happen, I would much rather stand before a group and talk about uncomfortable things that could happen instead of standing before a group that is trying to figure out why a bad thing happened.
If you attend church or have children in church, you owe it to yourselves, your children, your church and our Lord to address these issues before they become issues. Beware of wolves in sheep's clothing.
He met with our transportation committee (which has been charged with the task of studying our transportation needs and then making a recommendation to the church based on what they learn) and then he spoke with any church members interested in safeguarding our children's / youth ministry. We had an abbreviated service that evening and spent several minutes discussing a proposed policy manual for use in our church. In short, we spent most of our day discussing the reality of living and ministering in a fallen world.
We had to talk about some difficult things. Our rep talked to us about potential liabilities in transporting children, teens and adults in both church owned transportation and privately owned automobiles. We learned more than we ever wanted to know about that and we'll probably be having a hard time getting anyone else to drive for us..... He talked to us about the numbers of children who are abused and how to watch for the signs of abuse. He talked about our coverages should their ever be an accusation against our church or church workers. He talked to us about very practical safeguards to protect against anything bad happening. Things like never allowing an adult to be alone with a child, placing windows in the doors and instituting a screening process for children's workers that includes an interview, background check and waiting period before service all goes a long way in protecting the church and the children and, in some cases, increases your levels of coverage.
Let me just tell you how difficult it was to talk about these issues. For whatever reason, churches seem to treat as taboo these kinds of things and by not talking about them open themselves to all sorts of bad things. Let me also tell you this: As uncomfortable and difficult as it is to talk about these things, it is infinitely more uncomfortable and difficult to experience some kind of accusation or incident. When I was pastor in Louisiana, our church experienced two separate occasions that were potentially dangerous to individuals and to the church. In one, there was suspected abuse by an older man, but before it could be verified he left the church. In the second, one of the members who worked with the teens was involved in a very public and very sinful scandal. That situation cost our church two or three families who left over the scandal. In addition to that, our church's reputation was more than tarnished and we lost a great deal of influence in our community. As one who has now stood before a church to address an issue that happened and one who has stood before a church to address issues that could happen, I would much rather stand before a group and talk about uncomfortable things that could happen instead of standing before a group that is trying to figure out why a bad thing happened.
If you attend church or have children in church, you owe it to yourselves, your children, your church and our Lord to address these issues before they become issues. Beware of wolves in sheep's clothing.
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