Thoughts and Happenings
Thoughts
Unbiased opinions on a wide variety of subjects.
Erasing Hell by Francis Chan
Apr 22nd
I recently finished reading Francis Chan’s book Erasing Hell. As with any serious book on the subject of hell, it was not an easy read. One thing I appreciated about Chan’s approach was that he was very up-front about his own feelings on the subject. I also appreciated his sensitivity. He continually emphasized the fact that when we talk about hell, we must not let it just be a doctrine that is divorced from reality; in other words, if we believe what the Bible says about hell, people are going to be there. People we know. People we love. It’s not just an idea, it’s an actual destiny–and a destiny that’s eternal.
In chapter one he gives a brief survey of the different types of universalism–i.e. the belief that all will eventually be saved and go to heaven. He examines the Scriptures upon which the theories of universalism are based and answers them with other Scriptures.
In the second chapter, Chan looks at the views of the Jewish contemporaries of Jesus. What did the people of Jesus’ day believe about the afterlife, and more specifically, about hell? Surprisingly, their views were not much different from our Lord’s–i.e. that hell is a place of never-ending punishment after judgment. He gives a number of quotes from first century Jewish writers to back up his assertion. In this chapter he also debunks Rob Bell’s view that hell is a “garbage dump.”
The third chapter builds on the second. He shows that Jesus, if He had disagreed with current beliefs about hell, would certainly have made His disagreement known very plainly. But He didn’t. He then goes on to quote and examine exactly what Jesus did say about hell. The chapter finishes with Chan’s thoughts on the duration of punishment in hell and some studies on the word “everlasting.” Chapter four leaves the teachings of Jesus and moves on to the writings of the Apostles: Paul, Peter, Jude, and John, and concludes that their teachings lined up with those of Jesus.
Chapter five is an exhortation to allow the doctrine of hell to shake us out of our lukewarmness into a concern for the lost and dying around us. In chapter six Chan offers a powerful apologetic for the kind of God who would condemn sinful human beings to an eternity of torment and punishment.
Finally, chapter 7 is entitled, “Don’t Be Overwhelmed.” He begins by asking, “How can we possibly carry on with life if we are constantly mindful of a fiery place of torment? Yet that’s the whole point–we shouldn’t just go on with life as normal…. We should not just try to cope with hell, but be compelled–as with all doctrine–to live differently in light of it.”
The book ends with a useful Appendix called “Frequently Asked Questions” in which he attempts to answer such questions as, “Are the images of fire, darkness, and worms to be understood literally?” and “Are there degrees of punishment in hell?”
Overall, I found the book to be a very useful study on the doctrine of hell by a very competent writer who also has a pastor’s heart. I highly recommend it.
Touch Not the Lord’s Anointed
Sep 18th
Does “touch not the Lord’s anointed” from the Old Testament equal “don’t criticize the preacher” in the New? Read on to find out.
In Sunday school this morning we studied the incident in 1 Samuel 26 where David passed up the opportunity to take Saul’s life. (For those who don’t know, I’m not the teacher this year.) A deep sleep from the Lord was upon Saul and his men. David’s colleagues encouraged David to use this seemingly “open door” to snuff out Saul’s life and be rid of this troublesome enemy. However, David strongly objects to–even recoils from–this idea. His reason? He will not touch “the Lord’s anointed.” How is Saul God’s anointed when he has already forfeited the kingdom through disobedience and David has long ago been anointed king in his stead? David clearly believes that even though Saul is not currently “anointed” in the sense of enjoying the blessing and hand of God on his life, he is still anointed in the sense that he is still the king of Israel–he still holds the office for which he had been anointed years ago by Samuel.
So why do modern day preachers think “touch not the Lord’s anointed” means “don’t criticize the preacher” or “don’t disagree with the preacher”? I’m not sure, but the idea doesn’t get any support from this Scripture, not from the similar one in 1 Samuel 24 or the one in Psalm 105:15. In all of these Scriptures, the context demands that “touch” means “physically harm” or “do violence to” or even “kill.” When David said he would not touch the Lord’s anointed, he meant that he would not kill him. That’s a far cry from disagreeing with the preacher or challenging erroneous teaching. Remember that the Bereans in Acts were commended for checking out the Bible to see if the things being taught were Scriptural. Remember also that Paul openly rebuked Peter at Antioch for his wrong conduct. Yes we should respect the preacher and obey the truth preached when it lines up with God’s Word, but we are not to sit there and unquestioningly swallow everything just because the preacher said it. Trust me, I’ve done that before, and it’s not good for your spiritual health. We need to be good Bereans, making sure that what we are taught lines up with God’s Word.
Further, it’s important to note that the New Testament regards ALL believers as being “anointed.” Read 1 John 2. Look at verse 20: “But ye [all Christians] have an unction [anointing] from the Holy One, and ye know all things.” Then look at verse 27: “But the anointing which ye [all Christians] have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.” One of the great New Testament truths the Reformers of the 16th century recovered was that all Christians are priests–the priesthood of all believers. No one person is more anointed than another. Yes, God has placed authority figures in the church to guide and instruct us, but these should never be regarded as infallible. We should respect the overseers that God has placed over our local flocks, but at the same time, we should search the Scriptures to see whether these things are so. And the overseers (pastors, elders, whatever your particular flock calls them) should not hide behind “touch not the Lord’s anointed” as a cop out when someone disagrees or points out a potential point of error.
Prayer and Exercise
Jan 4th
Strange title you say? Yes, I thought so too. A couple of months ago or so, I did a breakout study in our adult Sunday school class on the importance of personal devotions or having a daily “quiet time.” We take it for granted that healthy bodies require regular food, exercise and sleep but too often we neglect any kind of regular maintenance for our spiritual lives. I ended the series with an illustration using a jar with rocks and pebbles that showed very graphically that if we get the important things into our life jar first we actually get more in. Translation: you can’t beat having your quiet time in the early morning. No phones. No kids. No distractions. Your time with God then becomes the organizing principle around which the rest of your day revolves and you actually get more done and end up being happier and less stressed out in the long run. One of the best illustrations in Scripture is the manna in the wilderness. It always fell in the early morning, and if you didn’t get up and about and collect your manna, it disappeared with the rising sun. I’d like to write a book about it some time, but when will I get time for that?
Now to the exercise part. This evening I was doing some internet research (don’t you love Google!) on the question of whether it’s more beneficial to exercise in the morning or the evening. What I found was that it doesn’t really matter all that much as far as weight loss, etc., BUT studies do show that those who exercise early in the morning are more CONSISTENT. In other words, of those people who begin a new exercise program, those who chose the early morning for this activity were more likely to still be doing it a year later. Why? Because it’s easier to establish and maintain a consistent habit early in the day. Those who chose the afternoon or evening were more prone to allowing other activities to crowd out their exercise time. Which is exactly why the early morning is the best time of the day for establishing a regular, consistent devotional life. I was especially impressed with posters on a certain internet message board who reported regularly rising at 5:00 in the morning to exercise! Talk about commitment! I remember once reading one of the old time Puritans or early Methodists who said he was ashamed whenever he awoke to the sound of workers on their way to their daily labors in the early morning hours and he had not yet started his quiet time with God. The early morning exercisers ought to shame us into keeping an early morning appointment with God.
Divisive Leaders
Jul 24th
In our adult Sunday school class we’ve been doing a somewhat in-depth study of 1 Corinthians. We’ve progressed as far as chapter 3 and this coming Sunday (well, tomorrow actually!) we’ll be looking at verses 10 and onwards. It’s a very powerful passage. My main purpose for this blog post though is to quote something I found on Bible.org by Bob Deffinbaugh. Those who know me well will know immediately which “leader” came to mind when I read his comments. Here’s what he says:
I know of several men whose failures have caused great damage to the church and to the cause of the gospel. There seems to be one common element in these disasters—the men who fell were so powerful, and their control so great, that they seemed almost “unstoppable.” The reason for this: these leaders were so elevated and revered in the minds of their followers that they were considered beyond the temptations and sins of mankind. When men are elevated too highly in the minds of their followers, the people begin to think their leaders are infallible, that they are above the sins we see in ordinary people. And so they refuse to believe the evidences of sin, even when they are compelling. Even if they are guilty of known sin, no one seems to feel sufficiently qualified to attempt to rebuke or correct them.
The problem of esteeming leaders too highly starts very subtly and innocently. It begins with a deep respect and appreciation, often because this individual has led them to Christ, or that he (or she) has significantly contributed to their spiritual growth. This one person is given excessive credit for the work of God and elevated to a position of authority above what should be given to men. Allegiance to this leader becomes a status symbol in which followers take great pride. Out of this misguided allegiance, they feel obligated to ignore or even oppose other Christian leaders.
Elevating any human leader more than we should is a huge mistake, and can have devastating consequences in our spiritual lives, as Paul tried to show the Corinthians.
Prayer Meeting
Jun 24th
Last night was my turn to take Wednesday night prayer meeting. The crowd was at an all time low due to so many being out at camp meetings, etc. but nevertheless we had a good time. My topic was “Loving God with All Your Mind” (click on that title to read the full text). I had originally thought about finishing what I started in my last year’s talk, which was about the Lord’s Supper, but decided against it. Then I toyed with talking about Repentance. I really wonder if we don’t have a very shallow idea of repentance these days. I began reading several books on the subject, but the more I read and researched, the more the topic seemed to wither away on me. Then somehow I stumbled on to this idea of loving God with all our minds, and the more I thought about it and studied into it, the more it came alive. I read through the whole of J. P. Moreland’s book, Love Your God With All Your Mind and scanned Gene Edward Veith’s Loving God With All Your Mind. I wished I had more time for Veith’s book but I discovered it too late. Anyway, my turn at prayer meeting is over for another year!
How We Got Our King James Bible
May 13th
In prayer meeting last night David Franklin gave a talk on the history of the English Bible. Some of his material I already knew, but some of it was new to me. As always, his study was very thorough. He talked, of course, about Wycliffe and Tyndale and later Miles Coverdale, and many others. He said that William Tyndale could speak so fluently in 8 different languages that it was hard to tell which was his native tongue. It’s always amazing what happens when someone with such colossal intellect places his life at God’s disposal.
One of the things David emphasized was the longevity of the King James Version: The year 2011 marks 400 years since it was released to the English speaking public and it is still among the three top-selling versions of the Bible. What an amazing achievement! He made the observation that its longevity can be put down to the fact that the translators didn’t use the most current English spoken at that time; and that doing so is one weakness of current “modern” translations.
I like the King James Version and it’s the one I’ve used most of my life. It’s definitely the easiest English version to memorize from. But I’m not a “King James only” person. I think it’s a very good translation and has obviously stood the test of time, but it’s not perfect; and contrary to the belief of some, the KJV translation itself is NOT inspired. It’s a translation of an inspired book.
Some people have a real problem with all of the modern translations and compare them unfavorably with the KJV. What’s funny is that almost every translation throughout history has been greeted with skepticism from some quarters. Even the KJV itself was at one time a “modern,” new-fangled translation that was considered unnecessary by certain folks.
