"Say not thou, What is the cause that the former days were better than these? for thou dost not
inquire wisely concerning this" (Ecclesiastes 7:10).
It rained last Sunday. I went to Radville to worship. A stretch of the road was under construction.
I got stuck. I was late for the service. We lived in Radville many years. For many years there was not any
gravel, let alone hardtop, on any road leading into Radville. To get stuck in the gumbo was not an
uncommon experience. I know that what is called the “Good Old Days” is largely a myth.
I have just reread a book written by James Orval Filbeck entitled The Christian Evidence
Movement. This book shows that at the time of the founding of the American nation Deism and
Agnosticism were rampant. The opposition to truth was strong and more successful than it is today, as
we are prepared to show. Men arose who challenged and defeated the foes of Christianity. Are we too
complacent to do the same thing today?
Opposition to truth was rampant as the American nation was born. Let us look at the truth of this
assertion. This is found on page 71 of Brother Filbeck's book. John Adams said on April 21, 1823: “It
would be more pardonable to believe in no God at all than to blaspheme Him by the atrocious attributes
of Calvin. Indeed, I think every Christian sect gives a great handle to atheism by their general dogma, that
without a revelation, there would not be sufficient proof of the being of a God.” In other words, the Bible
was not needed.
We quote further from Adams: “And the day will come when the mystical generation of Jesus by
the Supreme Being as his Father, in the womb of the virgin, will be classed with the fable of the
generation of Minerva in the brain of Jupiter.” Brother Filbeck shows by exact quotations that there were
many others of the Founding Fathers who were not believers in the Bible as the Word of God, nor in
Jesus Christ as the only begotten Son of the Father.
I want to show next that this had a profound effect on the thinking of the students in the schools
of that day. Yale is one of the oldest and best-known Colleges in the U.S.A. On page 86 of the Filbeck
book we have the following to show that the good old days were not different from what we have now. If
anything, it was worse. The establishment of American Independence had not been affected without the
moral contamination always the result of protracted wars. Licentiousness, both in conduct and
sentiment, had followed the footsteps of liberty, and of the exultation of political emancipation, infidel
philosophers found ready listeners, when they represented the restraints of religion as fetters of the
conscience and moral obligation as shackles imposed by bigotry and priest craft.”
To show how successful the forces of evil were we quote from page 86: “At this critical period in
the history of Yale, most undergraduates avowed themselves skeptics....The terrible condition for
Christendom is made more evident by the fact that in the fall of 1796 only one freshman was a 'professing
Christian': the sophomore class contained none; the junior, one; and the senior only had eight or nine. By
the year 1800, it was reported that there were only five students who were members of the college
church.”
Nor was Yale the only college so affected. We read the following about Princeton: “in the year
1782 there were only two students in the entire body who professed to be Christians.”
We learn this about Williams College: (The following was written by a member of the first class to
graduate from the college): “Respecting the religious state of things in the College during my residence in
it, I have no favorable account to give. It was the time of the French Revolution, which was, at that time,
very popular with almost all the people in that part of the country. French liberty and French philosophy
poured in upon us like a flood; and seemed to sweep everything serious before it.” So great was the flood
of infidelity that we read further of still another college: “So great had been the common danger at
Dartmouth College that in the class of 1799 only one member would openly make acknowledgment of his
belief in Christianity.”
Nor was Adams the only man of the Founding Fathers who embraced the infidelity of the French
Revolution. Thomas Jefferson was the author of the Declaration of Independence, yet Jefferson permitted
Dr. Thomas Cooper, a rank infidel, to teach in the University of Virginia until opposition made it
necessary that he resign.
We could use many pages to show the terrible religious condition of the country at the time of the
War of Independence. Thank God there arose men who met the infidelic challenge and defeated it. Are
we brave enough to meet the present challenge? We have more evidence today to show that the claims of
the infidel are false than they had then.
The following gives us some idea of what happened as the battle was joined in the “good old
days”: “The turbulent wave of French infidelity and aggressive English deism almost simultaneously
encroached upon the American continent. As these forces moved in upon the various phases of life, there
began a counter move which grew stronger and stronger in zeal and intensity” (page 95).
One of the leaders in this fight was Timothy Dwight, many years President of Yale. I quote from
him: “Dwight recognized the significance for mankind of words like Reason and Liberty; but to worship
abstract terms seemed to him idolatry as meaningless as that of the heathen who bowed down before a
sacred cow or stone. It was beyond his understanding how intelligent man could idolize a bare word,
sacrificing at its shrine the very thing which it denoted” (page 97).
As we look at history, the French groaned under oppression, they talked of liberty, but what did
they do? They turned their so-called liberty into an orgy of pillage and murder. The Communists talk of
liberty for the masses but no force has ever so subjected the masses to abject suffering as the Communists
have. Jesus said: “I came that they might have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). True liberty is
only found in Christ. Sin always brings bondage and slavery.
I think we can do no better than to quote Mark Hopkins who was president of Williams College
from 1836 to 1872. (President Garfield was one of his students and is reputed to have said: “A log with a
student at one end and Mark Hopkins at the other is my ideal college.”) Hopkins believed that the
evidence was conclusive in favor of Christianity. He contended that Christianity is supported by moral
evidence.
If any one would care to look around they can see how true this is. In many things we all stumble
but the deeper the faith in the Bible the higher the moral standard. He that would question this must close
his eyes to all the evidence around him.
Hopkins further said: “Hume does not take into account the moral government of God at all. This
is a great mistake.” Our quotation from Filbeck continues: “He (Hopkins) significantly stated that 'moral
government of God is a movement in a line onwards toward some grand consummation, in which the
principles, indeed, are ever the same, but the developments are ever new, in which, therefore, no
experience of the past can indicate with certainty what new openings of truth, what new manifestations of
goodness, what new phases of morals may appear'.”
We follow the reasoning of Hopkins further: “Hopkins took special notice of the question of
divine revelation -- a revelation attested by miraculous demonstration; for whatever probability there was
that there would be a revelation, the same was there that there would be miracles; because miracles so far
as we can see, are the only means by which it would be possible for God to authenticate a communication
to man” (page 106).
The assailants change but the battle does not change. We must put on the whole armor of God
that we may be able to stand in that evil day. The forces of right are much stronger than the forces of evil
but we shall not succeed if we think that we can reach heaven on flowery beds of ease. Others fought and
were victorious. There is no question about the outcome if we are strong in the Lord and in the power of
His might.
J. C. Bailey, 1979, Weyburn, Saskatchewan
Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)
Here’s what J.M. Barrie said in his book The Little Minister,
“Long ago a minister of Thrums was to be married, but something
happened, and he remained a bachelor. Then, when he was old, he passed
in our square the lady who was to have been his wife, and her hair was
white, but she, too, was still unmarried. The meeting had only one
witness, a weaver, a weaver who sat day after toilsome day at his window
as long as there was light, and he said solemnly afterwards, ‘They
didn’t speak, but they gave one another a look, and I saw the love-light
in their eyes.’
No more is remembered of these two, no being now living ever saw them,
but the poetry that was in the soul of a battered weaver, bound by
necessity to his machine, makes them human to us forever.”
Aren’t people like that a gift!? No matter how tough their lives are
they keep the romance in their souls and make the world brighter,
lovelier. They’re able to see what the rest of us can’t—those of us made
hard and cynical or perhaps just too hurt that our poor hearts, because
of the disappointment and loss—can no longer see.
There may have been a time when our hearts raced at the sight of someone
we held precious; there may have been a time when we were sensitive
enough to notice the shy but warm glances that passed between people but
for many of us those days are gone. The light has either gone out or
grown dim and we resign ourselves to live in the twilight until along
comes a “battered weaver” who defied the suffocating world and kept his
soul alive.
Barrie doesn’t say if his battered weaver was married or was in love
with a particular someone or had ever been in love but he makes it clear
that the toil-worn worker was a lover and love has eyes.
Later in his novel he tells how the preacher Gavin Dishart falls in love
with Babbie the gypsy girl who at first has little interest in the
preacher. But that was only at first—before he kissed her. “Until the
moment when he kissed her she had only conceived him as a quaint fellow
whose life was a string of Sundays, but behold what she saw in him now.
It’s said that Love is blind, but love is not blind. It is an extra eye
that shows us what is most worthy of regard. To see the best, the
honorable, but what is truly felt, that is to see most clearly, and it’s the lover’s privilege.”
People like the over-worked weaver won’t end up with a ton of money in
the bank but they’re able to uncover treasure that all the tycoons in
creation can’t buy. You have to have the heart, don’t you see? They
won’t build grand skyscrapers, these people, or multi-national companies
but they build dreams and open to us the possibility of a life that’s
filled with the joy of hope and warmth and they’ll go down to their
well-earned graves with a contented heart.
Maybe you’ve met such people. The kind who aren’t too sweet to be
wholesome but who are sensitive to the good and lovely that lies hidden
just below the surface of an unpromising appearance.
Maybe you are one! Maybe you too are one of the millions that are tied
to a job and to responsibilities that make truly heavy demands of you;
but not so heavy that you’ve allowed them to blind you to the beauty
that is in life—a beauty that a great host of us can’t see. And if you
are one of those, God bless you. God has blessed you. Thank you!
Jesus said that even a cup of cold water given in His name will not be
forgotten, will not go without reward. The beauty and glory that’s in
you changes a dreary world and just by hearing of or, better, knowing
someone like you, we are changed or are given the chance to change. You
don’t keep a record of your good words, looking for that reward Jesus
spoke of; you you don’t think of it in that way; you don’t think of it
at all. You simply have the heart for it and turn to people like us and
say with a smile, “Did you see how they looked at each other?” And if
we’re blessed like you we’ll have seen it and if we haven’t, your sweet,
strong, deathless spirit will infect us and maybe we too will begin to
see, or at least to look.
Thank you! Thank you for the cups of cold water you are handing out without the blowing of trumpets.
(Holy Father, thank you for the warm—honorable—but warm people of the
world who keep our hearts beating and make us smile even when we don’t
feel like smiling. This thankfulness, in Jesus’ name.)
Speaking in the silence of God is pure wickedness, which will be
punished with the silence of outer darkness. Man can’t even direct his
own steps, so what makes us believe we can think for ourselves. We must
speak where the bible speaks, and be silent where the bible is silent to
be pleasing to God. To do more is too much, and to do less is too
little. The bible is an “AS IS” proposition. Take the bible “AS IS”, or
not at all.
1
Sam 2:9; Acts 4:19,20; Act 5:29; 1 Pet 4:11; Rev 22:18,19; Col 4:6; Isa
8:20; Jer 10:23; Deut 4:2; 5:32; 12:32; 28:14; Prov 30:6; Eccl 3:14
Why Is Church So Important? (by: Ben Fronczek)
Text: Acts 2:42-47
Did you ever notice how many church
buildings are in and around Granville, NY area, or what ever area you
are from? If I’m not mistaken there are about 20 churches within a 4 to 5
mile radius oour small country community of Granville. And even though
some churches only have small congregations or have even close their
doors, some of those church buildings date back hundreds of years,
including our old building which was built in 1860.
Over those many years, I wonder over the
years how many feet climbed those stairs to enter this facility? How
many prayers and songs of praise went up to our Lord God? How many gave
their heart to Jesus? How many sermons were preached? How many kids
played behind the pews? How many meals were served downstairs after
church?
By coming here today and worshipping with
us, and sharing a meal afterwards, whether you realize it or not, you
are part of a heritage. People worked hard and gave of their means so
that their children, their grandchildren, and great grandchildren, and
great, great grandchildren could gather together in church buildings
like this all around the community. Why? Because they saw the importance
of having a place to do just what we are doing here today.
Even generations ago those people
understood the tremendous value of gathering together at least once a
week as a church; as a church family.
I believe they recognized that all of us,
whatever generation we live in, have a number of needs which God will
take care of, if we assemble together for church.
Whether you realize it or not, Church can
and should help us with at least three particularly important needs
which each one of us have:
#1 It should fill some Spiritual needs that we have
#2 Some Social needs that we have
#3 And some physical needs that we have
Let me read to you a scene from the early church after it first began . Read Acts 2:42-47
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46
Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They
broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere
hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Proposition: God has placed within each of us some basic needs that are met when we make church a priority in our lives.
In Act 2:42 the writer Dr. Luke tells us that these new Christians, “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”
Now if you don’t know that background to
this text the apostle Peter had just explained to this crowd who Jesus
really was. I’m sure some in that crowd did not know about Jesus. Many
of them had just made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem for the Pentecost
festival from other lands. He explained that Jesus was the one that the
prophets of old spoke about. He was the Messiah that they had been
waiting for, the one who would remove their sin. He tells them that
their fellow Jews had Him killed by having the Romans crucify Him. The
crowd was upset after hearing this and so Peter tells them want they
personally needed to do to make it right. They needed to repent and be
Baptized for the forgiveness of their sins. And we read that 3000
responded to Peter’s invitation and were baptized that very
day. (Read Act 2 for the whole story)
But then what? Then we
have verse 42. They spent time together. They devoted themselves to
learning more from the apostles. They devoted themselves to fellowship
(spending time with one another, breaking bread sharing meals together
like a family). And they also devoted themselves to prayer. And the text
goes on to say that they shared and took care of one another whenever
there was a need.
These are valuable things for us to
consider today as one considers why we should even bother going to
church on a regular basis. First of all, the church assembly is
important… Because… #I. We Have Spiritual Needs that need to be filled
So what are spiritual needs? For one thing, they are not physical needs. Someone once said, “A Spiritual need is the small black hole in one’s heart searching for truth.” He goes on to say that
“life is not worth living if one does not have anything to gain after
death. These are all questions answered by spirituality, religion, and
the divine truth of God. We are spiritual beings and our purpose is to
seek knowledge of truth and follow the right path.”
When we are young most of us care more about our physical needs being
met, but as we grow older, we want and need more. A spiritual appetite
grows within us. That’s why I believe these early Christians devoted
themselves to the Apostle teachings. They wanted to know more and feed
on the spiritual truths being taught.
Three times Jesus told Peter to “feed My sheep or lambs”. (John 21:15-17) Now
Jesus did not have any four legged lambs, but He knew that there would
be hungry souls that would want and need to know more about Him and the
kingdom of God. And that’s what a good church should be doing; feeding
you and helping you grow spiritually through good sermons and Bible
studies. It should be a place where you can get those important
questions answered.
In 2 Timothy 3:16-17 Paul wrote that, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
And as true as that is, and as many times
as I have read the Bible through, sometimes I personally find it so very
gratifying to sit at the feet of someone who has studied it more than I
have. We should never stop seeking, and learning, and growing
spiritually. We are designed to crave such things. And hopefully our
church can help you with these.
2. The next thing that Luke tells
us they were devoted to was “to fellowship…” and to sharing in meals
(including the Lord’s Supper)…” Now, they like us, had some social needs. I don’t know of any
other time in history when the kind of fellowship one can experience in a
good church is needed more than it is right now.
At one time these old church buildings were
the center of the community’s social life. People did not rush to
church, spend an hour worshiping, and then rush home. Back in the 1800’s
people either walked, road a horse, or came by carriage to church. It
wasn’t just a place to worship God, it was also a place to get together
and visit with your neighbors, friends and family after a hard week of
work; maybe even have a meal together. It was a place to learn the
latest news and find out if someone needed help or encouragement. It was
an important social network where people of like faith could worship
together, eat together, play together, laugh together, work together,
and cry together. I believe people are hungry for these kinds of
relationships today. But somehow we’ve made ourselves so busy with our
work, and taking care of kids, and our homes. Rather than spending time
with people, we plop ourselves down in front of our television or
computer exhausted until we conk out at night hardly speaking a word to
someone who really cares for us all week long.
As much as one can worship God on the side
of a lake, on top of a mountain, or walking through a pasture, I believe
that God designed the church to fill some of our social needs. After
becoming part of a church more than once I have heard people say that
they felt closer to members of their church than they did to their own
family, who many times seem distant and uncaring. I truly believe that
God does not want us to be lonely. At any point in time, you should be
able to call someone in your church family if you have that need.
It also has other benifits for our family, for example I read this story last week…
“A little old lady was amazed at how
nice the young man was next door. Everyday he would help her gather
things from her car or help her in her yard. One day the old lady
finally ask the young man, “son, how did you become such a fine young
man”. The young man replied, “well, when I was a boy, I had a drug
problem”. The old lady was shocked, “I can’t believe that”. The young
man replied, “it’s true, my parents drug me to church on Sunday morning,
drug me to church on Sunday night and drug me to church on Wednesday
night”
Even though our kids may not understand the
positive effects church has on their life, never under estimate the
power of what they learn by going to church. Even if they do not go
later in life, what they learn and the time they spend in church becomes
an underling foundation in their life. It’s an added bonus of what
these spiriul teachings and what social network’s influence can do.
#3. The last thing that Luke tells us that they were devoted to, was that they devoted themselves “to prayer.” The emphasis is on collective prayer. This addressed some of their emotional and physical needs.
In the early church, prayer was clearly a
high priority and it was an important part of their life together.
Christian not only sought the prayers of others, we also read where they
prayed and fasted together for many reasons. That’s how much they cared
for and were devoted to one another. And because of that, on many
occasions those individuals and those churches were very successful. I
have not heard of many successful churches that did not place a priority
on prayer.
I believe God has created us all
with these needs and I believe that these needs are meant to be filled
within the context of community, a church family.
People like to say, “Well I can pray and
read my Bible at home!” True, but unfortunately, most don’t. And we
have needs that won’t be met unless we take advantage of gathering
together with a community of believers.
A lot of people seem convinced that going
to church is simply not cool anymore; it’s out dated. It was for another
time and another era, but I beg to differ. In a recent radio program
David Jeremiah spoke of a friend, Leif Anderson, who wrote a book. And
in that book Mr. Anderson gives some interesting statistics to put this
all into perspective.
He mentions that the number of people who
now attend church in the U.S. is about 102 million on an average Sunday.
To put that number into perspective he compares that number to the
number of people who attend a professional sport. The number of people
who attended a professional sports last year, like professional
Football, Baseball, Basketball, hockey etc., numbered about 94 million
in the U.S.. That means more people go to church on a given
Sunday than the number of people that went to a professional sporting
event in all of last year. In a year’s time Sporting attendance
was only at about 2% of church attendance. So if someone tries to tell
you that church attendance is fading away in the U.S. don’t believe
them.
A second thing which he mentions in his
book is that for every 100 worshippers that attend a protestant church
on that given Sunday that are 70-79 years of age, there is an average of
160 to 200 between that ages of 20-29. Every once in a while you hear
that young people are staying away from church.. And I say, “Not they’re
not!”
More and more people are beginning to
realize that endless hours spent working, or watching television,
playing video games or surfing the internet is simply not enough.
Something in their gut is telling them that they need more. They want
more. They want answers, honest answers. They want those spiritual holes
filled. And they also want to find some good people, people who really,
really care about them and their needs, people they can trust and feel a
sense of belonging to.
And that’s what we hope to do here. We are
trying to become the kind of Church that God expects us to be, one that
teaches the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. We want
to be a church where you feel comfortable with the members, maybe even
becoming best friends with some of them. And we also want to be the kind
of church that really cares about your needs and will help you and will
pray with you.
We recognize we have a responsibility to meet some of these important need that each one us and every one of you have.
It is my prayer that you allow us answer
some of your question and help you grow spiritually. If you can’t make
it to our Bible studies or have other questions I will even come to your
home to answer some of those questions and study with you. If you live
out of our area feel free to email your questions to granvillechurchofchrist1@gmail.com and I will do my best to answer them.
I pray that you realize we have your best
interest in mind here and we offer our friendship. We are no perfect, no
church group is, but we are at least trying to live the way Jesus wants
us to live. And we will do our best to help you and pray with you if
your heart is troubled.
We are a small group now but it is our
prayer to develop a sizable congregation of believers here Granville,
NY to meet even more of these needs a we function as a close and loving
family, the family of God, and I personally want to encourage you to
become part of it.
This entry was posted on Sunday, February 5th, 2012 at 10:45 am UTC in the category(ies): Sermons.
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About a month ago, Jefferson Bethke released a highly polished
video declaring the evils of religion in contrast to the true nature of
Jesus' and His work on earth. This lyrical poem, delivered in mild rap,
has produced a fire-storm of both controversy and commendation, while
generating almost 19 million views on YouTube! His primary rebuke
against self-righteousness, self-justification, and hypocrisy was
needed. It was also clever and witty; however, it was not entirely
Scriptural. If you have not seen it already, you can view Jeff's video on YouTube or by clicking on the image below:
Does this article's correction of Jeff's video mean that I
dislike Jeff Bethke? No! Quite to the contrary, I love Jeff and care
for him! Jesus Christ died for Jeff, because He loved him, just like
Jesus loved and died for me. The gospel message of love and grace (John 3:16; Titus 2:11-14)
must be proclaimed from the rooftops! However, whenever anyone enters
the public arena to proclaim what he believes to be truth, then he
necessarily opens himself to review, judgment, and comment from those,
who believe that his proclamation is untrue, at least in part.
My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment. (James 3:1 NKJV)
But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." (Matthew 12:36-37 NKJV)
If we will be judged even by our idle words, how
much more important should our deliberately, publicly uttered thoughts
be thoroughly sifted, contemplated, and chosen? I am not writing this
in judgment of Jeff's heart, soul, or motives. As I said previously, I
love and care for Jeff! However, because I love Jeff, and because he
and those who publicly commend him will influence so many people,
correction of the video's error must be made.
The Good
Clearly, the video is aimed squarely at those, who while living
in sin and hypocrisy, publicly wear the name, Christian. As Jeff
alluded, Jesus Himself graphically, strongly, and forcefully condemned
those who publicly taught God's Word and outwardly displayed piety, but
maintained secret lives of shameful sin:
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence.
Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the
outside of them may be clean also. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!
For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful
outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness." (Matthew 23:25-28 NKJV)
These scribes and Pharisees, whom Jesus addressed above, taught
God's law publicly, but privately they lived as if there was no law!
Furthermore, as Jeff has suggested, these religious leaders made it
exceedingly and treacherously difficult for people to truly seek and
find God. They had constructed a hedge of additional
laws. This hedge may have originally been designed to provide extra
safety from violating God's law. However, the hedge ultimately confused
and obfuscated the way to God. Jesus observed the excessive, undue
yoke levied by the Pharisees and scribes of His day by addressing it
with these words:
... "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.
Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do
not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do. For
they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders;
but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. (Matthew 23:2-4 NKJV)
Such dishonest, hypocritical, sinful lives are indeed despicable.
It is still deplorable, when people repeat even today this same
pattern of wrapping God's good news in an inapproachable package of
needless laws and pointless rules of human origin - all for the purpose
of elevating their own outward piety, while inwardly filling their lives
with putrid rottenness. Such people are in evident need of God's
grace, even more so than any other because of their blindness (John 9:39-41). They attempt to withhold God's provision of mercy from others, just to enhance their own perverse ego (Matthew 23:5-7).
Jeff has done well to illuminate pretentious, feigned piety
versus the gross sin and vanity of such hypocrisy, while letting
struggling sinners know that not all Christians are hypocrites. To this
extent, the video is certainly good. I applaud this aspect of Jeff's
video, because I can support it with Scripture.
The Bad
For all the good and truth of Bethke's video, there is an
inexcusable amount of bad and error. Although the video clearly
denounces hypocritical religion with baseless rules of human origin, it
does not clearly define what is a true religion. Furthermore, the video
does not explain if true religion has any rules whatsoever. In fact,
throughout the video, Jeff uses the word, "religion", indiscriminantly, as if all religion was bad. As numerous other reviewers of Jeff's video have already observed, Jesus did not come to destroy all religion, neither did He come to set aside all rules.
"Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.
For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot
or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.
Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and
teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but
whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom
of heaven. For I say to you, that unless your righteousness
exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no
means enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:17-20 NKJV)
Although Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament, thereby setting aside its authority, He nonetheless established a requirement for righteousness that must "exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees".
As we have already seen, the Pharisees' righteousness was a sham, an
outward presentation only. The righteousness we are to exhibit must
therefore be of a different nature. However, it is a righteousness that
we must possess; otherwise, we "will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven".
Not only must we exhibit this righteousness, but this righteousness is
still subject to law. Moreover, please recall that Jesus told the
people to observe, that is, to obey the words of the Pharisees, whenever
they proclaimed the law of Moses (Matthew 23:2).
Therefore, Jesus taught that obedience to the truth was still
critical, even if it was proclaimed by hypocrites! Furthermore, at the
same time, He denounced the Pharisees for secretly living lives of "lawlessness". If we were to incorrectly accept that a life publicly lived beyond the restrictions of law is acceptable, then what is wrong with living such a life privately?
Finally, Jesus warns of the sure judgment against those who disobey
God by practicing lawlessness, even though they do many good deeds in
Jesus' name:
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in
Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your
name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'" (Matthew 7:21-23 NKJV)
Therefore, Jesus absolutely required obedience to His law for any religious service offered to God!
We live in a hedonistic time of spiritual lawlessness. Whether
through ignorance or error, too many of our day live without respect to
Christ's New Testament law (I Corinthians 9:21; Romans 3:27; 8:2; Isaiah 2:3; Jeremiah 31:31-33; Galatians 6:2; James 1:25; 2:12; 4:11-12).
Admittedly, many also live in discouragement and despair, feeling
unloved and unworthy. It is good to encourage the despairing,
especially when their despair is needless; however, it is bad to feed
the hellish flames of those, who teach and believe that true religion is
without any rules, especially rules which Jesus established by Himself
and through His apostles and prophets (John 16:12-15; Ephesians 2:19-20; 3:3-5).
Admittedly, Bethke has clarified his usage of the word, "religion", to mean "false religion" in the written comments recorded below the video on his YouTube page ("A poem I wrote to highlight the difference between Jesus and false religion."). Further, to Jeff's credit he has recently gone on record in his blog
admitting that his video was unclear and that his language was
imprecise. However, he is strangely convinced that this is somehow
commendable, simply because the lack of clarity forces you to think.
Although he may hide behind the labels of "art" and "poetic license", he
is nevertheless attempting to teach and spread a message that he
believes to be taken from God's Word, and that brings transcendent
spiritual responsibilities of clarity, not exhaustive detail, but
clarity on the vital points that he chooses to address:
Even things without life, whether flute or harp, when they make a sound, unless they make a distinction in the sounds, how will it be known what is piped or played? For if the trumpet makes an uncertain sound, who will prepare for battle? So likewise you, unless you utter by the tongue words easy to understand, how will it be known what is spoken? For you will be speaking into the air. (I Corinthians 14:7-9 NKJV)
Given his deliberate lack of clarity, who knows what Bethke was really teaching about God's grace (I Corinthians 2:11)?
More importantly, who knows whether it will be understood correctly,
imparting God's truth? Even if many people find renewed interest in God
and church, how will they react when they eventually learn that God
expects them to give up their sin and obey Him (I Corinthians 6:9-11; Galatians 5:19-21; Romans 12:1-2; Colossians 3:1-9)?
Will they not feel like they have fallen prey to a "bait and switch",
which nobody likes? Furthermore, despite Jeff's clarifications, his
video still stands as it is, and it is continuing to encourage those,
who would willfully continue to live lives of sin. For example, please
consider the following comment offered in support to Bethke after his latest clarification:
I saw your video and LOVED it. I'm a young gay man (and I hope you are down with my community -- not
as a group that needs to be fixed or anything, but just as another one
of God's children). I certainly don't think (or ever have) that being
gay is bad, immoral, etc. ... In closing, to me, God is love.
And while none of us are perfect, the basic choices we make on a daily
basis should be those which God would be proud of. I hope you keep doing
what you are doing, keep a good level head, enjoy the
ride/journey/experience, and continue to remain a cool guy who is (and this is one of my biggies) nonjudgmental. (Comment #8)
Ironically, Bethke has by his deliberate lack of clarity created
the very thing he has denounced - hypocrites! But, now these hypocrites
hide behind God's grace, as espoused by Bethke, instead of a list of
checked-off rules!
Even if we classify our teaching works as "art", we can still
edit them and re-envision them. (If George Lucas can re-envision Star
Wars because of technical limitations and immaturity, can Jeff Bethke
not correct his video now that he knows better?) Ultimately, are we
slaves to our art or to our God (Romans 6:16-19)?
All teachers have a responsibility to be clear in their proclamation
of God's Word. If their teaching, whatever the form or medium, proves
to be divisive or erroneous, then the error needs to be corrected as
best as possible. Jeff needs to add a few lines to his original video
to make it crystal clear. He needs to explain that God demands
obedience (Hebrews 5:9), and that grace does not provide license to sin (Romans 6:1-6; I John 2-3).
Until then, many will continue to draw false strength and persist in
their own disobedient lives of hypocrisy - now believing their hypocrisy
to be sanctified by grace. Please, Jeff, don't put a correction on the
back page of next week's newspaper. You can fix the original. Please
fix the video!
Moreover, while Jeff has clarified the poem's target as being "false religion",
please do not assume that what he considers false religion is the same
as your definition. It could be that what you consider true religion is
what he considers false! Let us see ...
The Ugly
The above video proclaims God's grace as the means of overcoming
our sin, which is good. However, it is the uniquely Calvinistic brand
of grace, which is advocated by this video, that brings it to its lowest
point - false doctrine! Many have never heard of John Calvin or the
Augustinian theology that he so tightly organized under the doctrine
that now bears his name, Calvinism. If this is new to you, or if you
are a proponent of Calvinism, I would encourage you to study the
Scriptures outlined in the following series: http://www.insearchoftruth.org/articles/index.html#calvinism
I would be happy to discuss this vital issue with anyone, because
it pertains directly to the means and requirements of our salvation.
Please use the site's contact form to discuss the above article series and the Scriptures it raises.
As Jeff's video begins to conclude with its closing stanza,
uniquely Calvinistic buzzwords and terminology point the way to
salvation, according to Jeff. Although very suspicious, their wording
and usage is generally vague enough to deflect condemnation.
Nevertheless, some lines are undeniably Calvinistic. Please consider
the extreme grace extolled by the video's last verse:
Religion is man searching for God, Christianity is God searching for man
Which is why salvation is freely mine, and forgiveness is my own
Not based on my merits but Jesus's obedience alone.
...
Because when he was dangling on that cross, he was thinking of you,
And he absorbed all of your sin, and buried it in the tomb.
Which is why I'm kneeling at the cross, saying come on there's room
So for religion, no I hate it, in fact I literally resent it
Because when Jesus said it is finished, I believe he meant it.
Am I to understand that in true Christianity, man does not search for God? This is patently false (Hebrews 11:6)! I understand that Bethke could have been
emphasizing God's efforts over man's, which would be wholly justified;
however, the Scriptures clearly paint a picture of a God, who pleads and
waits for man:
"And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on
all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times
and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us;" (Acts 17:26-27 NKJ)
Furthermore, how did Jesus absorb our sins? Did he absorb the
punishment, the guilt, or both? Bethke does not say definitively; but
whatever it was, Bethke tells us in his video that Jesus carried it to
the tomb. That sounds like Calvin's notion of transferred guilt to me.
Although there are many unanswered questions and ambiguous
phrases, the next two phrases are worded in the absolute, making clear
the extreme grace being advocated. First, no Christian, who understands
from the Bible and believes that at least some obedience is required
for salvation, could ever say that we are saved by "Jesus' obedience alone".
There simply is no wiggle room to interpret this phrase any other way.
The truth of the matter is that while we are saved chiefly by grace (Ephesians 2:1-10; Romans 3:23-27), we also must save ourselves by obeying the gospel call (Acts 2:37-40; Philippians 2:12).
Anything less advocates Calvin's unconditional election and
irresistible grace. Yes, some may have gone to the opposite extreme of
practicing self-justification and requiring perfect law-keeping, but we
cannot correct one error by running to an opposite, but equal error.
Just as our Father balanced justice and mercy in the cross, we must
harmonize faith and obedience. To deny the requirement of obedience for
salvation is no better than denying the requirement for faith!
Second, Jesus' proclamation on the cross, "It is finished,"
is a prevalent Calvinistic and faith-only proof-text used to eliminate
any conditions of obedience for salvation. How else can we interpret
Bethke's last line and closing slide but to eradicate our need to obey
anything unto salvation, because Jesus has already done it, or finished
it? (Please scroll back to the top and look at the end of his video again, which quotes Romans 4:5 and John 19:30.)
This is a well-honed and clear Calvinistic argument. I am stunned at
the number of people, who do not realize it, even though they denounce
Calvinism. As examples of this Calvinistic and faith-only argument
being made, please see:
According to Bethke, your salvation was finished at the cross!
Can you believe it? Or, must you do anything to be saved? How about
faith? Confession? Repentance? Or, baptism? Is anything required beyond Jesus' death on the cross?
Some may scoff at this analysis; however, when one visits
Bethke's Facebook page and web-sites, they can see the support and
advancement of Calvinism and extreme Calvinistic teachers.
Specifically, on his Facebook page, he advocates Tim Keller, who is a
vocal hyper-calvinist:
Am I saying that Bethke's video should be rejected because he's a
Calvinist? No, I am saying that it should be rejected because the
video's ultimate message is Calvinism! And, the evidence suggests
Bethke would not deny it. So, before you click "Like", recommend
Bethke, or recommend this video, please be aware that you are advancing
false doctrine and a false teacher! If you like his message of grace,
and if you must recommend it, then please do so carefully with
qualifications, so that no one will use your influence as blanket
approval for what includes false doctrine. Or, better yet, find someone
who maintains a Bible harmony between justice and mercy, obedience and
faith to proclaim Scriptural grace to comfort the despairing and
brokenhearted.
It has been said that, "A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down."
Bethke's wit and popular, universally accepted jab at hypocrites
certainly provides some "sugar" to his message. ( -- When was the last
time you saw someone cheer for the hypocrites? Who really likes
hypocrites? Do not even hypocrites disdain hypocrites? Is that not why
they are hypocrites? -- ) Yet, it is the truth mingled with error that
has proven the most dangerous. Maybe a spoonful of truth helps the
error go down too (Matthew 4:5-7; II Corinthians 11:13-15)?
Test all things; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil. (I Thessalonians 5:21-22 NKJV)
Do we not have an obligation to sift through the message (I John 4:1, 6; I Corinthians 14:37-38), cling to what is good and discard what is bad? Why must we swallow it whole or be labeled a legalist?
Conclusion
Has Bethke's video possibly performed some good? I am sure it
has. However, does that potential good grant the video immunity to
correction or judgment? Certainly not (James 3:1)!
Does correcting Bethke's video necessarily mean that I dislike Bethke,
or that I am bashing him? No! As I have said repeatedly, I love him!
And, because I love him and those influenced by his message, I must
correct its errors.
The persistence in maintaining the original video with its
confusing, divisive, and misleading message is inexcusable, considering
how easy it would be to correct the original. I hope Jeff Bethke finds
this post and heeds its encouragement to make his art clear in his
effort to teach God's Word. It is not unforgivable,
neither is it irrecoverable. In fact, it is inexcusable, because the
video could be so easily fixed. Please Jeff, add a few scenes and lines
to the original video to end the division and cut off the opportunity
of false teachers (II Corinthians 11:12)! The Lord Himself was always concerned about people misinterpreting His actions, and He made provisions for their clarity (Deuteronomy 32:26-27; II Samuel 12:14; Ezekiel 36:18-24; Romans 2:22-24). Should we not do the same, if we are lifting up His name?
Lastly, it is the false doctrine of Calvin's unconditional grace
that Bethke espouses, which summons the climax of this correction. The
point of this article is not to refute Calvinism, which we do elsewhere.
Rather, the main point of this article is to warn those who already
know the error of Calvinism, and yet they have identified with the grace
advocated in this video, maybe even publicly. To all I say, please do
not support a false teacher, even if he mixes some truth with his error,
until he repents by correcting his message (Matthew 4:5-6; II John 9-11; I Corinthians 14:7-9; Titus 2:1).
I have searched for some way to share this with Jeff Bethke. I
would like to believe that he will find this and we would be able to
discuss this kindly with open Bibles. Jeff, if you find this review,
please use the site's contact form
to discuss this further with me. If anyone else disagrees with the
above application of Scripture to Jeff's video, please feel free to contact me. May all things be done to God's glory.
"Therefore take heed how you hear. For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him." (Luke 8:18 NKJV)
My friend and former instructor, Larry Deason, quite often used to say "Let Go and Let GOD". While the exhortation always seemed obvious to me, I never really considered a Scriptural underpinning.
Well, here goes...
Galatians, Chapter 5(World English Bible) 16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you won’t fulfill the lust of the flesh. 17 For
the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh;
and these are contrary to one another, that you may not do the things
that you desire. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 19 Now the deeds of the flesh are obvious, which are: adultery, sexual immorality, uncleanness, lustfulness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, strife, jealousies, outbursts of anger, rivalries, divisions, heresies, 21 envy,
murders, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these; of which I
forewarn you, even as I also forewarned you, that those who practice
such things will not inherit God’s Kingdom.
22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith,23 gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts.
25 If we live by the Spirit, let’s also walk by the Spirit. (emphasis added)
2 Peter, Chapter 1 (WEB) 2 Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 3 seeing that his divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through theknowledge of him who called us by his own glory and virtue,(emphasis added) 4 by
which he has granted to us his precious and exceedingly great promises;
that through these you may become partakers of the divine nature,
having escaped from the corruption that is in the world by lust. 5Yes,
and for this very cause adding on your part all diligence, in your
faith supply moral excellence; and in moral excellence, knowledge; 6and in knowledge, self-control; and in self-control perseverance; and in perseverance godliness;7 and in godliness brotherly affection; and in brotherly affection, love. (emphasis added)8 For
if these things are yours and abound, they make you to not be idle or
unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is blind, seeing only what is near, having forgotten the cleansing from his old sins. 10 Therefore, brothers,be more diligent to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never stumble. 11 For thus you will be richly supplied with the entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Know Jesus, love Jesus, hate sin!!! If you know him and follow him, you will do everything possible to eliminate even the "smallest" sin from your life.
