THE POUND
PROCLAIMER
Volume I
June 2006
Number 8
Sing
to the Lord, bless His name; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day
to day. Psalms 96:2
Some Things Are Not For
The
story is told that the professor of an advance calculus class gave a big test
to his students. Once the test was over and the students handed in their
papers, the professor noticed that one of the students had attached a $100 bill
to his test with a note saying “A dollar per point.”
The
professor had graded the tests by the next class. He handed the test papers
back to the respective students. The student who had attached the $100 bill and
note got back his test score and $64 in change.
We
live in a materialistic society. It is hard for the greater population to understand
that money will not buy everything. Knowledge does not belong to the highest
bidder. Knowledge belongs to those who will work hard, study, and apply their
God given ability to think.
Physical
health cannot be bought with money. The rich get sick and die the same as the
poor. People have been known to spend small fortunes seeking for one more day
of life and health. It matters not how much money is spent. If one has
destroyed their bodies with their lifestyle, they will suffer the consequence
of their actions. Good health comes from nutrition, exercise, and abstaining
from alcoholic drink, tobacco, drugs, etc.
Sinners
cannot buy their way into Heaven. God does not desire our money. It is our
hearts and service rendered in His cause (Romans 12:1-2). Oh, how sad
will be the end of those who try to bargain with God. God, just let my child
get well and I will become a Christian. God, please don’t let them do away with
my job and I will go to every service. Dear God, don’t let it be cancer and I
will do anything you ask of me.
Bargaining
with God does not work, because when the crisis is past people forget their
promises. It is truly worse for them than at the beginning (2 Peter
“But godliness with
contentment is great gain: for we brought nothing into the world, for neither
can we carry anything out; but having food and covering we shall be therewith
content” (1 Timothy
6:6-8).
The Editor’s Page
Sam,
an old man, was a witness in a burglary case. The defense lawyer asked Sam,
“Did you see my client commit this burglary?”
“Yes,”
said Sam, “I saw him take the goods.”
The
lawyer asks Sam again, “Sam, this happened at night. Are you sure you saw my
client commit this crime?”
“Yes”
says Sam, “I distinctly saw him do it.”
Then
the lawyer asks Sam, “Sam listen, you are 80 years old and your eyesight
probably is bad. Just how far can you see at night?”
Sam
says, “I can see the moon, how far is that?”
Good
eyesight is a blessing. I for one would not want to lose mine, although it is
not so good any more. As much as we cherish physical eyesight, spiritual
eyesight is of greater importance. Jesus said He spoke in parables “... because
seeing they see not, and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand”.
He further explains that it is spiritual eyesight rather than physical. “And
unto them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, which saith, By hearing ye shall
hear, and shall in no wise understand; And seeing ye shall see, and shall in no
wise perceive”. The problem was one of being unable to see the truth as
presented by the Son of God. It was presented in parables because “… this
people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their
eyes they have closed; Lest haply they should perceive with their eyes, And
hear with their ears, And understand with their heart, And should turn again,
And I should heal them” (Matthew 13:13-15).
Were
we to ask those to whom Jesus spoke if they were indeed blind, I am sure their
response would be “I can see just fine”. They would
interpret their strict religious life style as evidence of that fact. However,
it is not their ability to see the ‘close’ matters such as keeping the Law of
Moses, but their ability to see beyond the superficiality of this life into the
next. They failed to see the Messiah who stood before them. They were not as
Abraham “for he looked for the city which hath the foundations, whose
builder and maker is God” (Hebrews
How
far can you see? Are you looking? Do not be short sighted by letting your sight
stop at the moon. Look farther and see the Son.
Can You See
Dead People?
A
recent news item reported by the "Sunday Mercury" in
Bosses
of a publishing firm are trying to find out why no one noticed that one of
their employees had been sitting dead at his desk for FIVE DAYS before anyone
asked if he was feeling okay.
George
Turklebaum, 51, who had been employed as a proofreader at a
His
boss, Elliot Wachiaski, said: “George was always the first guy in each morning
and the last to leave at night, so no one found it unusual that he was in the
same position all that time and didn't say anything. He was always absorbed in
his work and kept pretty much to himself.”
A
post mortem examination revealed that he had been dead for five days after
suffering a coronary. Ironically, George was proofreading manuscripts of
medical textbooks when he died.
This
“unbelievable” story is most likely one of those “urban legends” that makes the
rounds ever so often. I seriously doubt that a person’s dead body could lie in
public view for five days and no one notice. On second thought, I am persuaded
that Christians come in contact with dead people everyday. They see them, talk
to them, eat with them, work with them, but never notice that they are dead.
In
the movie THE SIXTH SENSE, the boy had a dark secret. He could see dead
people. Like the boy, Christians ought to be able to say, “I see dead people.”
People who have died in their trespasses and sins, people who have died to the
things of God, people have died to a sense of doing what is good and right.
“And
you (did he make alive,) when ye were dead through your trespasses and sins,
wherein ye once walked according to the course of this world, according to the
prince of the powers of the air, of the spirit that now worketh in the sons of
disobedience;” (Ephesians
2:1-2). Take note, those who walk according to the course of this world by
committing trespasses and sins are dead while they live (1 Timothy 5:6).
I
am persuaded that Satan blinds our eyes to the living dead least we try to help
them. He allows us to see them in the light of being good moral people. He
promotes friendship hoping that we will not want to do anything to jeopardize
the friendship. He encourages Christians to talk about the weather, sports, and
job, just do not speak of the Bible and spiritual things.
Jesus
could see dead people. He looked about Him and said, “Lift up your eyes, and
look on the fields, that they are white already unto harvest” (John
The Last Word
SENTENCE SERMONS
People who wonder where this younger generation is headed
will do well to consider where it came from.
Patience is the ability to count down before blasting
off.
A modern bathing suit is the difference between not very
much and nothing at all.
If fifty million people say a foolish thing over and
over, it is still a foolish thing.
A lie may take care of the present, but it has no future.
A lot of people waste too much sympathy on themselves.
The only “race” some “Christians” engage in is the race
to the door at the last amen.
####################
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
CHANGE IN SUNDAY EVENING SERVICE TIME:
We decided to change our Sunday evening service to 4 pm
instead of 6 pm. It was also decided to revisit this decision in January of
next year. This will give us 6 months to evaluate whether this change will
benefit us in the way we hope. It will take all of us working and praying
together to accomplish what is best for the work in Pound.
HOME BIBLE STUDIES:
We have talked about this many times but have not been
able to make definite plans. It is time for us to move beyond the talking stage
and into the ‘make it happen’ stage.
We encourage you to begin a Bible study in your home and
invite neighbors & friends to study. Contact Glen for any help with
teaching or other needs associated with a class of this nature.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Pound church
web site = www.poundchurchofchrist.org/
The Pound Proclaimer is published monthly by the Pound
All articles by the editor unless otherwise
stated
Editor: Glen Young
Phone: 276-796-5767=Office
276-796-7401=Home
Time of Services
Sunday: Bible Classes—10 am
Assembly—11 am
Assembly—
Wednesday: Bible Classes—
E-mail: gyoung47@ntelos.net or gyoung47@poundchurchofchrist.org
All questions or comments regarding the
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