I would have to confess that I am probably not the typical kind of Pastor. I did not grow up in a Christian home. I grew up in a broken home going from one parent during the week to another parent on the weekend. I was about twelve when my I was told that I was going to have to choose which parent I would live with until I turned eighteen. Can you imagine having to choose? This was my life. I did not have the knowledge of the scripture or the challenge to walk with the Lord even though I was part of the Catholic Church. I had never heard what it means to be saved or what it was to be lost.
When my father passed away I couldn’t fill the void it left and turned to a gang lifestyle. My family was unaware that I was drinking, doing drugs, or running with gangs. I was good at hiding it. This was my life. I was on the path to destruction. I was on the path to failing in life. I knew it and didn’t know what I was going to do about it. What I didn’t know at the time is that I was on another path that would lead me to Hell. This was my life.
You see this is the beginning of the story because as I said this “was” my life, but praise God it is not anymore. God sent a wonderful women in my life who didn’t know she would be my wife at the time but was a huge instrument in the Lords hands by just sticking to what she knew was right and got me to come to Church. It was there I heard the good news that I didn’t have to go on the path I was living and could come to know that heaven was my home. I have never been the same. I am a child of the King! This is my life!
It is from this foundation that has paved the way to what God has made me today and why I feel I am an atypical Pastor. Shortly after I was saved, God began to work in my heart about becoming a Pastor. I know my father wasn’t saved and is in hell today, and it is this knowledge that God allowed to resonate in my mind as I thought of the ministry. It is almost as if I could hear him say, “There are Daddies everywhere that are going to go to hell if someone won’t tell them.” I surrendered with a passion for souls.
As the Lord grew me my passion never changed but God certainly expanded it. I started seeing families falling apart, young people not seeing the Lord as relevant, and more importantly believers finding their “Christianity” failing them when the rubber met the road. Why is that? What happened? What failed? We had a mold, but what went wrong? I noticed in college and for some that I had worked for as an assistant pastor that the solution was easy. Push soul winning more, Push dress standards more, push Sunday school more, push Bible reading more, push faithfulness to Church more. Now let me add a disclaimer here by saying that I am not against soul-winning, Sunday school, faithfulness to Church and for sure not against reading Gods word, but the success of a Church hinges on so much more than methodology. And there begins the problem…
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Are you serious?
Recently I have been reading a lot lately of what has been going on in the world of Fundamentalism and all I can say is: are you serious? In the past several months there has been a battle brewing over the King James Bible, its preservation, and the inspiration of the Word of God. It all seems to focus on Jack Schaap the Pastor of First Baptist Church in Hammond, IN. Last year as I sat in Pastor’s School I heard a statement that was made in reference to a book that Pastor Schaap wrote, that I knew was going to cause some uproar. It was a statement made about how we are fighting amongst each other or the King James and its inspiration. I looked over at my friend, Pastor Andy, and said, “Watch, he is going to take a lot of heat for that.” Wow did I totally underestimate the inferno that was to come.
What was the response, almost a public lashing and separation of fellowship from the Church and any ministries of the Church. What is amazing to me is the amount of print that has been taken up of “Why we are breaking ties with First Baptist Church of Hammond, IN or Hyles Anderson College.” (This is not a quote, but a paraphrase of titles that I have seen). It has been printed in the Church Bus News, a personal letter written to graduates of Hyles-Anderson College, and others that have also thrown their hat into the arena. What amazes me is that the groups arguing are really ignorant the fact that they are saying the same thing, but they are saying it differently and in some ways incorrectly. Let me give you an example.
In my work of the ministry I have heard preachers say, “There is no such thing as a woman preacher!” and we all shout amen right? Well yes and no. The reason why yes is because being in the IFB movement for the years I have now I know that the preacher that would make a statement like this is saying that Biblically there is no way a Woman could be a Pastor (Or hold the office of Bishop as the Bible Calls it—I Timothy 3, Titus 1). The problem is he is using the word Preacher, which in the 1828 is defined as: One who discourses publicly on religious subjects. In the NT the word Preach (G2784 kēryssō) means to herald or to proclaim, and contrary to the statement; men, women, children, all those who know Christ as Saviour are to proclaim the good news of Christ. It is called soul-winning, evangelism, discipleship, etc. This is a simple example of how one word can be used to describe something that is Biblically correct, however not correct in the context of what the word really means.
This is what I liken the whole feud over; the saying of the same thing but one says it scholastically correct the other correct in the sense of we (fundamentalists) get you and understand what you are saying. It just simply amazes me to see this all play out and the foolishness that come because of it. In one letter it was talking to Dr. Hyles…in the letter! I mean if that isn’t bizarre then I don’t know what is. It was funny because after the person that wrote his letter finished his portion to Dr. Hyles (Who died in 2001) he misplaced a sentence (Or at least I hope he did) and said that you could feel free to contact him and gave his Email address. Last I checked, I wouldn’t be checking my Email in heaven.
Let me conclude by saying this. I am a King James only Bible user. I have seen the evidences for the King James and against and through prayer, study, and conviction I will never use any other Bible when I preach in English. I believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God and has been preserved for us as He has promised. I also believe that it is important to quit fighting amongst each other and focus our attentions on the true enemy for he loves times like these.
What was the response, almost a public lashing and separation of fellowship from the Church and any ministries of the Church. What is amazing to me is the amount of print that has been taken up of “Why we are breaking ties with First Baptist Church of Hammond, IN or Hyles Anderson College.” (This is not a quote, but a paraphrase of titles that I have seen). It has been printed in the Church Bus News, a personal letter written to graduates of Hyles-Anderson College, and others that have also thrown their hat into the arena. What amazes me is that the groups arguing are really ignorant the fact that they are saying the same thing, but they are saying it differently and in some ways incorrectly. Let me give you an example.
In my work of the ministry I have heard preachers say, “There is no such thing as a woman preacher!” and we all shout amen right? Well yes and no. The reason why yes is because being in the IFB movement for the years I have now I know that the preacher that would make a statement like this is saying that Biblically there is no way a Woman could be a Pastor (Or hold the office of Bishop as the Bible Calls it—I Timothy 3, Titus 1). The problem is he is using the word Preacher, which in the 1828 is defined as: One who discourses publicly on religious subjects. In the NT the word Preach (G2784 kēryssō) means to herald or to proclaim, and contrary to the statement; men, women, children, all those who know Christ as Saviour are to proclaim the good news of Christ. It is called soul-winning, evangelism, discipleship, etc. This is a simple example of how one word can be used to describe something that is Biblically correct, however not correct in the context of what the word really means.
This is what I liken the whole feud over; the saying of the same thing but one says it scholastically correct the other correct in the sense of we (fundamentalists) get you and understand what you are saying. It just simply amazes me to see this all play out and the foolishness that come because of it. In one letter it was talking to Dr. Hyles…in the letter! I mean if that isn’t bizarre then I don’t know what is. It was funny because after the person that wrote his letter finished his portion to Dr. Hyles (Who died in 2001) he misplaced a sentence (Or at least I hope he did) and said that you could feel free to contact him and gave his Email address. Last I checked, I wouldn’t be checking my Email in heaven.
Let me conclude by saying this. I am a King James only Bible user. I have seen the evidences for the King James and against and through prayer, study, and conviction I will never use any other Bible when I preach in English. I believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God and has been preserved for us as He has promised. I also believe that it is important to quit fighting amongst each other and focus our attentions on the true enemy for he loves times like these.
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