THE POUND
PROCLAIMER
Volume I
August 2006
Number 10
Sing
to the Lord, bless His name; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day
to day. Psalms 96:2
LEAVING THE PAST BEHIND
Observation reveals
that it is extremely difficult for men to leave the past in the past. Marriages
become conditions of confinement rather than loving relationships and all
because either one or both parties will not let go of the past. Churches are in
constant turmoil without any hope of growth because Christians revel in past
sins and hurt feelings. The only hope for either situation is found in what
Jesus proclaimed. Hear his words. “Jesus said to him, ‘No one who puts his
hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God’” (Luke 9:62).
It is true that we
must learn from the past or else be doomed to repeat its mistakes. However, to
dwell in past accomplishments, past failures, or past hurts at the hands of
others, will destroy the vitality of the present. Christians who are constantly
thinking of the past in the ways aforementioned are unfit for the kingdom of
God.
The hurts we suffer
at the hands of others are the hardest to put behind us. The emotions stirred
by hurt [whether real or imagined] progress from hurt to anger, to
embarrassment, to hatred. All such emotions do nothing but keep men
unproductive in the present.
If any man had a
past that could hinder his present, Paul is the man. He had great achievements
within the Jewish religion (Philippians
3:4-6). Because he was a persecutor of the church, Paul had much to
live down (Acts 8:3; 22:19-20). His past shamed him.
No matter how cumbersome the baggage from his past, Paul would not allow it to
compromise his work for the Lord. “Brothers, I do not consider that I have
made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining
forward to what lies ahead, 14I
press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ
Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14).
The following caught
my eye. It is here offered, to illustrate the biblical principle we are
discussing. Please give it due consideration in that context.
Two monks on a
pilgrimage came to the ford of a river. There they saw a girl dressed in all
her finery, obviously not knowing what to do since the river was high and she
did not want to spoil her clothes. Without more ado, one of the monks took her
on his back, carried her across and put her down on dry ground on the other
side.
Then, the monks
continued on their way. But the other monk, after an hour, started complaining,
“Surely it is not right to touch a woman; it is against the commandments to
have close contact with women. How could you go against the rules for monks?”
The monk who had
carried the girl walked along silently, but finally he remarked, “I set her
down by the river an hour ago, why are you still carrying her?” Irmgard
Schloegl, The Wisdom of Zen Masters
As we walk life’s
journey, we have two choices. We can complain and moan over the past or we can
put down the past at the foot of Jesus’ cross. The Christian’s desire should be
to use his or her talents for furthering the cause of Christ. This is
accomplished when the Christian is willing to leave the past in the past. No
Christian can live a fruitful life for Jesus while carrying around a past of
sin, or a past of success, or a past of hurt.
Are you living in
the present or do you carry around that which you should have left at the cross
a long time ago?
The Editor’s Page
The failure of
growth exhibited among congregations today causes much wringing of the hands
and shaking of heads. What is the problem? In business meetings, in homes, in
automobiles, and in gatherings in general, brethren ponder this grave issue and
how it might be resolved.
The concern and
desire to find solutions are commendable. The fact remains, however, that
little, if anything, is accomplished. So, once again, we ask the question; What
is the problem? It has become a vicious cycle without solution.
What follows is the
offerings of a man; nothing more and nothing less. I make no pretense of being
the smartest person in the room. I simply offer some thoughts for our
consideration about this ever pervasive problem.
A solution we often
heard promoted in the past was ‘door knocking’. We would set up a personal
evangelism class one night a week for eight weeks or so then when that was
finished we would use the same evening to meet at the building and go out two
by two and knock on doors in the community. It would begin like a fourth of
July rocket, explode with great excitement, then fizzle about as fast. The same
can be said for many of the projects we have tried in our efforts to generate
growth.
Is it wrong to do
these things like ‘door knocking’ i.e. personal evangelism. We say ‘no’, a
thousand times no. Our point is, that it is our follow through; not the
projects that are sorely lacking. We seem to tire quickly when it comes to
spiritual work. It is much too easy to think of letting someone else do it.
After all, I have a job and kids in school. Besides, isn’t that what we pay the
preacher to do?
The lack of follow
through is evidence of a lack of leadership. If you know me, you know that this
is a subject near and dear to my heart. Personally, I believe that the failure
to grow is a failure in leadership in local churches. God knows what is best
and what does He do? He decreed that each local church is to be lead by elders
(Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5; 1 Peter 5:1-4). These are men of
ability whose qualifications and character draw followers, they are leaders (1 Timothy 3:1-7).
Until local churches
are willing to have the good sense (dare we say it, show some leadership) and
work toward establishing God’s plan of leadership in every local church; our
numbers are fated to dwindle. There must be a younger generation to replace the
old or local churches are doomed to die.
NO
ROOM FOR COMPROMISE
There are things happening in the world
today that are alarming. Not the least of these is the increase in Moslem
jihad. With the ability to obtain powerful weaponry, the proponents of a ‘holy
war’ believe their goal is attainable.
The attitude behind jihad is a real and
present danger to the existence of free and democratic societies. This is true
because the war against terror is a religious war. Religious wars, by their
nature, do not allow for compromise. How else can we explain parents
encouraging their children to strap on bombs and blow themselves up while
hoping to kill as many infidels as possible.
Personal freedom is at risk because
those in authority think they can achieve peace through compromise. Any true
believer of any religion will tell you that to be faithful and to remain
faithful, one must not compromise the commands given from those they recognize
as prophets. This is just as true for Christianity as it is for the Moslem
religion. Does this mean that Christians should kowtow to false religions and
compromise the teachings of Jesus the Christ? Or, should Christians adopt the
Moslem philosophy of jihad?
Jesus proclaimed that Christians would
face conflict with non-Christians by saying He did not come to bring peace but
a sword (Matthew 10:34). Paul often found himself in the midst of
religious conflict. Note his words written to the Christians at Galatia. “4Yet
because of false brothers secretly brought in—who slipped in to spy out our
freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery—5to
them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the
gospel might be preserved for you” (Galatians 2:4-5). Paul would not
and did not compromise the truth about fleshly circumcision or any other truth
given from God. He withstood boldly any and all who would pervert the true
gospel. The same must be said of Christians today.
Was Paul a leader in fighting a jihad?
Again, we will let Paul answer in his own words. “For we do not wrestle
against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities,
against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual
forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12). Paul said
this because he understood what Jesus meant when He said, “My kingdom is not
of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been
fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not
from the world” (John 18:36).
The Christian does not strap a bomb to
themselves and detonate it in a crowd to kill infidels. He does not shoot off
rockets killing innocent children to terrorize others into believing their way.
The Christian takes the gospel in hand
and speaks the truth in love (Ephesians
4:15). His fight is for the hearts and minds of men. He will not kill or
practice terror but rather will suffer persecution for his faith. He will
humbly accept death without retaliation when necessary.
We should not expect anyone to
compromise their religious convictions. However, we demand that all contend in
an honorable, moral way without terrorism.
The Last Word
SENTENCE
SERMONS
Opportunities to be
kind are never hard to find.
A song in the heart
gives the day a good start.
In the race of life,
it's always too soon to quit.
Like tacks, we can
go no farther than our heads let us.
A problem well
stated is a problem half solved.
A good listener is
not only popular, but learns something.
The worst place in
the world to live is just beyond your means.
Be patient with the
faults of others, they have to be patient with yours.
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WHAT MUST
I DO
Hear: Rom
Believe: Heb 11:6
Repent: Lk 13:5; Ac
17:30
Confess: Matt
Be Baptized: Ac
TO BE
SAVED?
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The Pound church web site = www.poundchurchofchrist.org/
WALKING
BY FAITH
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The Pound Proclaimer is published monthly by the Pound
All articles by the editor unless
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Editor: Glen Young
Phone: 276-796-5767=Office
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E-mail: gyoung47@ntelos.net or gyoung47@poundchurchofchrist.org
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