THE POUND
PROCLAIMER
Volume I
Feburary 2006
Number 4
THE DARKNESS
BY:
Danny Boggs
“And God said, let there
be light and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God
divided the light from the darkness” (Genesis
1:3-4).
There
are many examples of darkness. For instance, at sea,
men have died by boats colliding together because of the darkness. Men have
fallen overboard and because of the darkness they couldn’t be seen and were
lost.
The Darkness of
the night sky in time of war has caused fighter planes to crash together. It
also makes runways impossible to land upon.
I personally
believe that the darkness a man faces who works in the coal mines is total
physical darkness. I have worked over 20 plus years in underground coal mines
and on several occasions had my light to go out. Believe me, it is the darkest
darkness one can experience physically.
Over the years I
have had several injures. In 1998, I was a little less than a mile under ground
by myself and a steel bar burst my light along with
my face. I was hurt and had to get myself outside. It was like I could feel and
breathe the darkness. The experience helped me understand just how overwhelming
darkness can be.
But as terrible
as physical darkness can be, there is a darkness that is far far worse. Being
cast into outer darkness where there will be wailing
and gnashing of teeth, where the worm never dies, and to suffer eternally
forever and ever, will be far worse. Are you in the darkness? Don’t let it make
you collide like the boat. Don’t let it make you crash like the plane. Find
your way out like I did; out of darkness into the light because God is light
and in him is no darkness at all (1
John 1:5).
Where are you?
Are you in darkness or light?
— dannyanddebrah@bellsouth.net —
The Editor’s Page
Recently, I have
suffered several ailments, although not life threatening; they have caused me
much discomfort. One such ailment was a cist on my back. It had ruptured under
the skin and became abscessed. Before having it surgically removed, I sought
relieve from my family doctor. The day I could take the pain no longer; I
submitted to my wife’s, shall I say, prodding and went to the doctor. I
couldn’t see the doctor but did see a nurse practitioner. She examined the cist
and consulted with the doctor. The conclusion was that the inflammation must be
reduced and I should be referred to a surgeon.
During
her examination, I made a few [well, maybe more than a few] comments about
how much pain I was in and that her
touch increased my pain. She finished her exam and consultation with the
doctor. When she returned she announced that I would be put on an antibiotic
and given a shot. The shot would contain a ‘high powered’ antibiotic of which I
was familiar because I had received one before. I said I knew those shots hurt so
bad that they put a numbing agent in them to help with the pain. I told the
nurse that when I had the shot before I would have cried if I hadn’t been 58
years old.
By this
time, she was going out the door to get the shot. She reached the door and
stopped. She turned and looked me straight in the eye and said, “You sure are
whinny fer a big ol feller!”
Isn’t it
amazing how that the most blessed are the most ‘whinny’. Consider the children
of Israel. They had just begun their journey to the promised land when they
began to whine. “Oh, that we had died by the hand of the
LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat and when we ate
bread to the full! For you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill
this whole assembly with hunger” (Exodus
16:3). What did God do? He gave them bread
from heaven (Exodus
16:4-5). It was bread for which they did not
labor. Bread that was there every time God said it would be. Bread that
sustained their lives.
Even this great
miracle could not stop their whining. They whined because all they had was this
bread (Numbers 11:6).
What did God do? He sent quail; so many that they ate for a month and were made
sick (Numbers 11:31-34).
Surely, there is
a lesson here for Christians. We need to cease our whining and count our
blessings. Life hands us many hardships. Things are not always as we would like
them to be. However, we have a loving God who wants the best for His children.
We need to be careful lest we try His patience with our whining.
WHO ARE WE?!
The Psalmist David
expressed his awe at God’s care for man when he said, “O
Lord, what is man that you regard him, or the son of man that you think of him” (Psalm 144:3)? No
doubt David’s awe was prompted by his first hand knowledge of man’s weakness brought
about by the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (1
John 2:16). Like David, Christians stand in awe
of a Heavenly Father who knows them and thinks of them although they are often
confused, selfish, hurtful, and emotionally immature. Does God know something
about us that we do not know about ourselves? What is there about mankind that
God believes is worth saving? Something He believes is so worthy that
He gave His only begotten Son to die for the salvation of man.
The answer lies
in the creation. “So God created man in his own image, in
the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27). “Then
the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his
nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature” (Genesis 2:7).
God made man in His image by giving him a spirit [He breathed into his nostrils
the breath of life]. This spirit God housed in a fleshly body [God formed the
man of the dust from the ground]. Paul affirms this duality of man when he
writes; “Therefore,
we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward
man is being renewed day by day” (2
Corinthians 4:16).
We know that
each day a man lives brings about the decay of the outward man [fleshly body].
It is an observable event. Although the renewing of the inward man [spirit] is
not observable; it does not make it any less true. The truth of Paul’s
statement about the outward man proves the truth of his statement about the
inward man. Man is a dual being comprised of both body [flesh] and spirit
[image of God].
Because of his
dual nature, man is the crown jewel of God’s creation. The rest of creation is
filled with wonder and amazement. However, none of creation can compare with
the complexity and magnificence that God has called man. On the one hand, man
is flesh with the accompanying lusts, selfishness, and emotional instability.
On the other hand, man is the image of God with the ability to think, reason,
to discern good from evil, to make choices, to love, to show compassion, and to
make sacrifice for the sake of his fellow man. Indeed, man is a study in
contradictions. How is man able to make sense of all this? This is where we
must look to God our Creator and Heavenly Father for guidance.
To be continued
The Last Word
I would not trade “I
love you, daddy!” for an hour of oratory. A warm look of trust, or a child’s
touch, is praise far exceeding mere words. And I am persuaded the Heavenly
Father would have us talk to and with Him, rather than about Him. Perhaps that
is why I am intrigued by a shift of pronouns in the beloved 23rd
Psalm.
David begins, “The
Lord is my shepherd… He maketh me to lie down…”
speaking of the Lord in the third person. The psalmist is talking about the
Lord.
Then in verse
four there is a change to second person. David begins to talk to or with the
Lord. Now it is, “thou art with me, thy rod and thy
staff, they comfort me.” The first portion is a tender
testimonial of David’s love for the Lord, and declares the personal
relationship of shepherd and sheep. But it is a declaration, it tells others
something about the Lord. The second portion loses sight of all others, and
speaks directly to the shepherd.
I am reminded of
a story I once heard about a social gathering where guests were asked to
contribute something to the occasion. Many recited poetry, and one eloquent
speaker made a theatrical production of the 23rd
Psalm. The next in line was an unlettered man, now greatly embarrassed because
the 23rd
Psalm was the only poetry he knew; and he was forced to repeat what had just
been recited by the talented gentleman.
There was a stir
among the guests as he began his halting, unpolished presentation. But “my”
shepherd was more than words to this man; and as he followed David into his
close personal relationship with the Lord, he forgot the audience. He ceased to
talk about the shepherd and began to talk to the shepherd. The room grew quiet.
When he had
finished, the eloquent man arose to apologize for his ‘production.’ I know the
23rd
Psalm well,” he said, “but this man knows the shepherd.”
~ Editor ~
####################
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?
###################
FAMILY MATTERS
Please remember the following in your prayers.
OUR SICK:
Ray
Jones will be having surgery on the 17th.
Remember him in your prayers. As always, there are others from the congregation
with physical sickness that we may not be aware of at this time who need our
prayers. Pray for them and visit them in their affliction.
OUR WORK:
We would like to
call your attention to our web site. David Mays has done a good
job getting us started. The site is still a work in progress, so keep checking
as new things will be added shortly [see address at bottom of page].
Those who are
interested in establishing a Bible class in their home need to contact Glen
Young ASAP.
A gentle
reminder to the men that we need articles for The Pound Proclaimer.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Pound church web site = www.poundchurchofchrist.org/
The Pound Proclaimer is published
monthly by the Pound church of Christ 9517A Orby Cantrell Hwy. Pound, VA
24279
— All articles by
the editor unless otherwise stated
— Editor: Glen
Young
— Phone: 276-796-5767=Office
— 276-796-7401=Home
— Time of Services
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— Assembly—11 am
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— Wednesday: Bible
Classes—7 pm
— e-mail: gyoung47@ntelos.net
— All questions or
comments regarding the content of this bulletin should be directed to the
editor. He may be reached at the e-mail given above or at P. O. Box 802 Pound,
VA 24279-0802.
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