ramblings

The Don't Song

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:11:00 +0000

I'm working on a post for this week but it's taking a little longer than normal. In the meantime, here's a little something to help your marriage...

Evangelism Primer

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 19:38:00 +0000

This Sunday I'm beginning a new series on evangelism called Just Walk Across the Room. The study is written by Bill Hybels and our small groups will be using the DVD study as well. In preparing for the first message I revisited some of the older stuff I'd read on the topic including Brian McClaren's More Ready Than You Realize. I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed that book and I recommend it to anyone who's tired of the outdated 20th century methods (evangelism as sales pitch, conquest, warfare, threat, argument, monologue, etc) and ready for something more retro. Something say 1st centuryish in the style of Jesus (evangelism as conversation, friendship, influence, invitation, opportunity, etc).

In chapter 17 he offers a summary of what he learned about evangelism through a on-going conversation with a girl named April. The book is basically the story of those conversations and how she moved towards faith throughout the process. McClaren describes these as "factors--not easy steps, not formulae, but elements, factors, parts of a bigger whole that cannot easily be nailed down." Many of them fit within what I'll be sharing over the next four weeks so hopefully they'll get us thinking in that direction. Here they are (without commentary)...

1. The Relational Factor: Count conversations, not just conversions.

2. The Narrative Factor: Listen to their story, share your story, and share God's story, not just propositions or formulas.

3. The Communal Factor: Expect conversation to normally occur in the context of authentic Christian community, not just in the context of information.

4. The Journey Factor: See disciple-making as a holistic process and unending journey, not just a conversion event.

5. The Holy Spirit Factor: Believe that God is at work "out there" in everyone (either working from the outside to get in or from the inside to get out), not just "in here" in the church.

6. The Learning Factor: See evangelism as part of your own discipleship-not just the other person's!

7. The Missional Factor: See evangelism as recruiting people for God's mission on earth, not just people for heaven.

8. The Service Factor: See evangelism as one facet of our identity as servants to all.

Not-So-Scary Thoughts

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:12:00 +0000

I'm still recovering from last night's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at Maury Hills! I'm not recovering from the work (Todd did most of that), just recovering from the fun. What an awesome night!! We had 400+ and I met several new families. It's always fun to meet new families while dressed as a zombie (many said that was the first time they've ever seen me in a suit). On the way home Jenny and I talked about how we think this event has successfully made the transition from church-event to community-event. Allow me to explain...

Two years ago after completing another successful Trunk-or-Treat several of us got to talking. It was a good event, but it could be so much more! Todd, our student minister, pulled together the children's ministry team and they started dreaming about something bigger and better. Then they made the decision to move the event from a fellowship-orientated church event to an outreach-orientated community event. There were several reasons why.

One, we want people who are not connected with God or a church family to find both! Therefore, we need opportunities to interact with them, meet their families and introduce them to ours. Halloween gives us a chance to do that in a really fun way. Two, Halloween is a holiday geared directly towards kids and we love kids at MH. This gives us our community a chance to see that first-hand and it provides families with a fun, safe place to bring their kids. Three, Halloween has quickly become the 2nd biggest holiday in America. Did you know that? It's inching up on Christmas in terms of participation. Granted, it's not a religious holiday, but we're not trying to attract religious folk anyway. We just want people who are far from God to rub elbows with a few of his followers (costumes and all).

But to move an established event from "church-orientated" to "community-orientated" can be a daunting task. If you plan with only the church folk in mind then you run the risk of scaring away your target audience (no pun intended). For example, say you decide to encourage everyone to dress up as their favorite Bible character. That's cute and fun but only for those who have some familiarity with the Bible. On the other hand, if you plan the event with only the community in mind then you run the risk of offending some church folk. For example, how many churches do you know who advertise "Halloween" in their Sunday bulletin? We decided to risk the latter and here's a few of the changes we've made over the last couple of years.

1) The Name. We actually call it a "Halloween" party. That's a little unique among churches. I see lots of "Festivals" and "Trunk-or-Treats" but very few incorporate the H word. That's because some believers find the term offensive due to its pagan history, but if we're going to attract the community are we going to appeal to them or us? We figured most people outside of the church didn't know what "trunk-or-treat" meant, but almost everyone understood the concept of "Halloween." After all that's what we call it whenever people dress up in costumes and go around getting candy. If we're going to reach the community then let's speak the language.

2) The Music. We traditionally had live music at our Trunk-or-Treat but it was always Christian music. I love Christian music and it's great for church events, but when you invite the unchurched do you expect them to know your songs? Last year we asked the band to "go secular" and play some stuff that everyone knows. They now play classic rock (and they are awesome by the way).

3) The Registration. We used to completely ignore this. Just show up, we already know who you are. But again, if the community is coming, then you better have some way to find out who they are so you can invite them back for a Sunday or another special event. So we started registering everyone. The cost is still free and we don't force anyone to register. As a matter of fact, we don't even call it registration. We just put up a big sign that says "Sign up for Door Prizes!" At the end of the night we draw a name (church members are excluded) for a $25 gift card to Wal-Mart.

4) The Event. We had to expand. You can't just trunk-or-treat because that only takes 30 minutes or so to walk through all the cars, so we added a bit more (actually a lot more). We added a parade, dinner, hay maze, hayride, games, pumpkin decorating, inflatables, not-so-spooky stories, etc. We also asked a Maury County Sheriff's deputy to come out and provide security. All of that adds to the "safe and fun" goals of the event.

5) The Feel. While we don't hide the fact that this event is hosted by a church, we also don't want it to have a "churchy" feel. Therefore, we don't spend a lot of time talking church stuff. We don't preach at anyone, stop and have a devo, put a high-pressure invite on them to come back on Sunday, etc. It's all pretty low-key. We're just a church hosting a party for our community. Come and enjoy yourself and if you decide to come back on Sundays that's great. If not, we still want you to come and enjoy the party.

So that's some of the philosophy behind what we do. I know that some of you could care less about the strategy (but I suspect you've already stopped reading by now) and some of you will disagree with our approach (you're still reading but you're not happy about it). For the rest, I hope this gives you a little insight. I just thought you might be interested in some of the strategy behind the event.

Breaking the Silence

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 14:25:00 +0000

I've been on vacation the last seven days and also took a little break from twittering, facebooking and blogging. I have to confess that I still read few tweets and scanned the status updates from time to time, but I didn't post anything new. It was actually kind of refreshing. It reminded me of what the world was like before all this social media pseudo interconnectedness. I even thought about how these sites are stunting our interpersonal skills and making us all a little Heene-like in our search for celebrity and self-promotion (Heene is the ballon-boy's Dad, in case your wondering). I even pondered the idea of taking a permanent break and perhaps having a real-live conversation with a friend or writing something down in an actual journal with pen and paper. Then I thought, "Hey that would be a great blog post!" Apparently I'm too far gone. The pull was just too great and I'm back in the game. At least for now.

The vacation was good. We were back in Destin for the umpteenth time in my life. Seriously, I've logged well over 20 vacations there, but I love it because my favorite thing to do on vacation is nothing and the beach is a very good place for that. On Sunday we found ourselves back in Columbia a day earlier than expected and since it was my day off, we decided to worship with the Zion Presbyterian Church. What a great congregation! Folks have been worshipping there continuously for 200+ years and the more formal liturgy was a nice change of pace. I found the entire service to be very Christ-centered and Paul Joiner did an excellent job preaching the Word.

While I was out Tom Eddins filled in for me at Maury Hills. I just listened to his sermon online and "WOW!" He did an outstanding job (and I'm not just saying that because he bragged on me at the beginning). I thought the last ten minutes of his message were particularly powerful and applicable. He preached from Romans 14 and used women's role as a contemporary example of an area where we have differing opinions but still have to get along. The key question is not "what do you think?" but "do you have to have your way?" Give it a listen!

This week I'm just trying to get back in the swing of things and working on our new series called Just Walk Across the Room. It's a study of outreach from Bill Hybels and it officially kicks off the first Sunday in November. This Sunday, October 25th, I'm doing a little intro and we're gearing up for the Maury Hills' Not-So-Scary Halloween Party (formerly known as Trunk or Treat). We'll have live music, inflatables, hayrides, pumpkin-carving, food and tons of candy. We're encouraging everyone to dress up and we need lots of folks to decorate their cars and hand out candy. We also need parking attendants, folks to help with registration, security, etc. Contact Todd at greenlawler@bellsouth.net if you can help. Also don't forget to invite your friends and neighbors!

A Wildly Ambitious Goal

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 02:28:00 +0000

As I was running out the door to church this morning I quickly scanned the headlines of our local paper. I saw this headline for the editorial on page 3--Saving Columbia: Making a Difference, One House at a Time. That last phrase sounded a lot like the slogan we've been throwing around with our People Helping People ministry and to my surprise, that's what the article was about! I had two immediate thoughts..."That's cool" and "Uh-oh, we better get to work."

People Helping People is a ministry that focuses on providing home repair and renovation for those in need. Our dream is to transform entire neighborhoods and communities by focusing on one house at a time. I've written about it here and here. It's a vision that's slowly taking root. We've done our first two homes and now are in the process of getting organizing. We also have our first two partner churches...St. Peter's Episcopal Church and Mt. Calvary Missionary Baptist Church. They have been tremendous in terms of support, counsel and help.

I loved the line in the article that described the vision as a "wildly ambitious goal." Yes!! Isn't that what the church is supposed to be about! Wildly ambitious goals. I love it!! The editorial is very well written and it's a clarion call to the church community of Maury Country. Here it is...

A caller to Sound Off, The Daily Herald’s anonymous comment line, suggested recently that churches should pay for the medical treatment of uninsured citizens.

Reforming America’s health care system is a job far too massive to be accomplished by any one segment of our society alone — even church congregations. But the caller’s idea isn’t without merit.

Individually and as denominations, churches already contribute to the nation’s welfare on a massive scale. How much more might they achieve if they united for a common cause?

Here at home, we’ve seen how effective churches can be when they work together to attack social problems. An excellent example is The People’s Table, a collaborative of about a dozen churches that feeds the homeless and poor twice a week.

We’ve also been shown a picture of what might be. Maury Hills Church of Christ recently launched a ministry called “People Helping People” that has paid for new roofs and other important repairs on the homes of two local families that were physically or financially unable to make the repairs themselves.

The program’s vision, according to Maury Hills Minister Russ Adcox, is to partner with other churches and non-profit organizations to revitalize the community through home renovations — to “transform entire neighborhoods by renovating one house at a time.”

The organizers of People Helping People plan to focus initially on the east side of Columbia and eventually spread out to other areas of the city and even the state.

It’s a wildly ambitious goal. But it’s not impossible. By tackling one home at a time, and recruiting one partner at a time, this group could rack up enough successes to inspire the rest of our community to get on board. They could start a movement.

Columbia needs just such a victory. Our economy is still on the ropes from the national recession, our local governments are running in the red and our unemployment is high. Things may get worse as the county’s auto assembly plant — its biggest industry — is shuttered next month.

Many of our neighborhoods were already showing the strain of decades of neglect. A few are simply slums. In times such as these, people look for leaders to step up and give them some hope. To show them the way forward. To lead by example.

Our local churches could provide that leadership.

What if every church in Maury County agreed to “adopt” just a three-block radius around its property? What if church members volunteered their time and efforts to improve those neighborhoods, by collecting litter, painting dilapidated homes, mowing vacant lots or doing whatever is needed?

Those churches fortunate enough to be located in affluent areas could adopt another neighborhood or join People Helping People.

What might be the cumulative affect of all these efforts? Clean, attractive communities attract new residents, new businesses, new jobs.

Our churches, if they answered this challenge, could be the catalyst that turns Columbia’s fortunes around.

The Daily Herald would help generate support for this effort by sharing the stories of reclamation and rejuvenation with our readers.Historically churches have been a lighthouse for the community, helping citizens navigate their way through waters both rocky and smooth.

Can our churches pull off another miracle in Columbia?

Five Years Later...

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 18:45:00 +0000

This Sunday, October 4th, not only marks the 8 year anniversary of Maury Hills, it's also my 5 year anniversary with the church. And since I was feeling a little nostalgic yesterday, I looked up the first sermon I preached here as the minister. It was on October 3rd of 2004 and it was titled Reaching for the Future. There were 15 points in the message (scary huh?) and they represented the vision of the church. Five years later, I'm wondering where we stand? What did we hit? What did we miss? What's changed? What hasn't changed? And most importantly, what's next?

Worship (Matthew 22:27)
·A time of shared worship that engages both the heart and the mind.
·Offer a contemporary style of worship that is relevant to today’s culture.
·Encourage individual worship through a life of humility, prayer, and sacrifice.

Service (Matthew 22:39)
·Meet the spiritual, emotional, relational, and physical needs of others.
·Be known as a church that serves the community in which we live.
·Equip and empower every member to be a minister.

Outreach (Matthew 28:19)
·Have a open door” attitude in everything we do.
·Experience continued growth by sharing the good news with others.
·Provide a safe place for people who are searching for God, especially those struggling to free themselves from legalism.

Discipleship (Matthew 28:20)
·Help believers develop a life-long relationship with Christ.
·Help everyone have an understanding of the core teachings of the Bible.
·Provide an atmosphere that allows for difficult questions.

Fellowship (John 17:22)
·Be a place where all feel accepted regardless of social status, race, or religious background.
·Be a church that doesn’t just practice surface-level fellowship.
·Be a church that is fiercely united through our common belief in Jesus, yet open enough to allow for differences of opinion or style.

Confessions of a Preacher

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:37:00 +0000

I'm skipping Sunday Reflections today because I want share this article with you. It was written by a preacher friend of mine. I've left off his name because because I'd rather not involve him in the backlash that sometimes comes with this blog. I appreciate his boldness, humility and respect for God's Word. For those of us studying Galatians together, I thought you would appreciate the candor of his confession.

I want you to please understand that this is not a rash decision. I don't feel like I am rushing into anything, as this issue has been running around in my mind for quite some time. Truth be known, this is something that I have pondered regularly for the last few years. I have especially been thinking about it a lot lately as a result of much prayer, Bible study and various life circumstances. As with any major decision, I have tried to objectively examine this from every angle and determine what the long-range effects might be on myself and as well as on others around me. So, after much deliberation with myself and God ..... for better or for worse ..... I have finally made the decision.

As of today, Tuesday, September 22, I no longer want to be a “Church of Christ” preacher. Does this mean that I am resigning as pulpit minister of the Church of Christ at [...]? Absolutely, positively not. I hope to be here for many years to come. Does it mean that I don't want to be associated with God's people and worship with them on a regular basis any more? Certainly not. The happiest moments of my life are spent around Christians. Please allow me to explain in the following way.

I understand that my statement may come as a shock to some and a relief to others. Some might question the fact as to whether I was truly a preacher to begin with anyway ..... a thought that has even crossed my mind a time or two ..... or thousand. I want you to understand that I speak of-and-for myself only. There are certainly many talented and loving ministers within the Churches of Christ who do a remarkable job at spreading the Good News. I, though, must take this opportunity to repent of my own ignorance and error in times past. I beg forgiveness for the times that I have stood in judgment of someone while at the same time having a two-by-four sticking out of my own eye. I apologize for all the times that I preached certain issues as being Biblical doctrine and matters of salvation when in actuality I was foolishly trying to defend the commandments and traditions of men. I humbly request pardon for all the times that my attitude was haughty, arrogant, rude, mean-spirited, and down right hateful. I'm sorry for any occasion where I assisted someone in feeling beat down, unlovable and unforgivable. I fall on my knees in repentance both to God and my brothers and sisters in Christ and hope and pray that trust can soon be restored in me once again.

Please take time to read what the Apostle Paul wrote to the churches in Galatia, especially Galatians 1:6-10. I think Paul was thinking about me when he penned that passage, for I believe I have been guilty of “perverting the gospel of Christ” (vs 7). I have taken part in trying to uphold the traditional aspects of my beliefs while all the while shunning the true message of what the gospel actually is ..... the birth, life, death, burial and resurrection of God's perfect Son. I have spent far too much time embracing “foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law” (Titus 3:9), while my time could have been much better spent on the “greatest commandment in the Law ..... Loving God with all my heart, soul, and mind and loving my neighbor as myself” (Matthew 22:36-40). But alas, all that is in the past, and God willing, I will be given time to change only that which I can ..... the future.

It is my Biblical, heartfelt belief that God desires for me to be no other kind of preacher than a “Gospel preacher” ..... no more and no less. Fact of the matter is, I think he desires that for us all as we “go into the world and proclaim the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). I believe it is God's desire that we plainly preach the doctrine of Christ rather than “Church of Christ” doctrine. Can the two of those things be different as night and day? You bet 'cha. But could they also be synonymous with one another? Absolutely. God has left it up to us to decide which way it will be.

What If?

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 13:31:00 +0000

Yesterday I attended a luncheon at F&M Bank about the People Helping People ministry. A couple of weeks before one of our members had run into Tim Pettus, the bank president, and told him about the ministry. Tim serves on the board of the Tennessee Housing Development Agency and wanted to get us together with their director. He felt like they may have some grants that could help us fund the ministry. So I put it on the calender.

A week before the event Jim Kitchen called and said I needed to share a few words at the luncheon. No problem. I'll just wing it. It will only be a handful of people and a fairly informal setting. When I arrived at the bank yesterday there were lots of suits in the room and about 30-35 folks gathered. Tim met me at the door and handed me a program. He said I would be speaking first. I took the program and scanned the list below my name. There was the City Mayor, Director of the Columbia Housing Authority, Past President of Habitat for Humanity, County Mayor, City Councilwoman, Chief of Police, Maury County Sheriff and the Executive Director for the THDA. Gulp. Maybe I should have prepared a little something.

I just told them a little about the ministry and what our vision was for the east side of Columbia...to partner with other churches and non-profit organizations to revitalize our community through home renovations. I explained our vision of being a church that "serves the community in which we live" and how we wanted to "transform entire neighborhoods by renovating one house at a time." I'm sure I didn't say it that concisely off the cuff but that was the gist.

Then the leaders of these various organizations and government agencies talked about how they had the same goal. They want to see the neighborhoods revitalized so that it would be safe for residents to walk the streets again, children could play in the yards and people could take pride in their community. Turns out that was the point of the luncheon. Tim's motivation was to get all the groups together to show that we share a similar vision and that within us are the resources to make it happen. He proposed a "what if" scenario. What if the local government, police departments, non-profits, banks, businesses and churches could actually come together and work toward a common goal? What could we accomplish in our community if we all pulled together and no one cared who got the credit? I think we'd be surprised.

So he challenged us to get more banks involved, more community leaders involved and more churches involved and let's become an example to the nation of how one community pulled together and transformed their city. Is that an idealistic dream? Certainly. But what if?

Sunday Reflections

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 01:37:00 +0000

Another big day for the children's ministry. Had nearly 175 in there (including the volunteers). This ministry continues to explode. Looking to hire a Children's Minister if you know anyone.

We've had a "bring your Bible" push with the children's ministry and this morning it looked like about 75% of them had Bibles. In the upper grades they are being challenged to read the Bible every day.

Had another powerful time of response. I only meant to use the "respond in the back" format for a couple of Sundays but so many are taking advantage of this time that it will continue. Our shepherds want to pray for member's needs and this a simple way to do it.

Spoke on "I Am Free" and got to talk about what's (in my opinion) the most powerful words in Galatians..."For in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision or uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself in love." (5:6)

Gearing up for Anniversary Weekend. We're hosting Don McLaughlin this year. Don is one of my favorites and I can't wait for everyone at MH to hear him. Read about the weekend here if you want to join us!

Dynamic Marriage began tonight. This is a powerful 8 week marriage enrichment course. A big thanks to Brad & Peggy Lewis for leading this ministry. Lynn Spivey is also starting up another Divorce Care class in October. She's also asked Sandra McCarthy to lead the Divorce Care for Kids. Contact the church for info.

That's about it. This afternoon I went to Hampshire to settle up on the hunting lease, watched my yard flood and had a great time with my small group.

Sunday Reflections

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 00:31:00 +0000

If I keep dragging my feet I'll have the change the name of these posts to "Tuesday Reflections." I had busy day yesterday prepping for our monthly shepherd's meeting and following up with stuff from Sunday. Today is a little more routine (if there's such a thing in ministry).

We had a great day last Sunday at MH! I spoke on the allegory of Hagar and Sarah from Galatians 4 asking "do you want to be slaves or sons?" It was a message of freedom for the many of us who've been in bondage to legalism! During the first service when I quoted Galatians 5:1 (...do not let yourselves be burdened again with the yoke of slavery) they broke out in spontaneous applause. Then at the end of the second service after we sang the words My chains are gone, I've been set free! the guy offering the closing prayer couldn't contain a shout of joy!

However, the most powerful part of the service was our response time. We moved it up before the message and explained that many times people come to church with hurts or fears that the sermon doesn't address. So we're not waiting on a sermon or a preacher's invitation to respond to God, if you need prayers you can come right now. Our shepherds went to the back and people came to pray with them during the next few songs. We had several people respond and it opened some great doors for further ministry!

Beach Club was amazing as always. I only wish I could be in there with them. This is our family experience for kids and parents. We try to do it once a month and use it to introduce the month's virtue. This month they're learning about "wisdom" and how to "make the wise choice." They had over 170 attend, which was more than we had in the Worship Center. Wow! We may have to swap locations with them next time.

Finally, we showed before and after pictures from our latest project with People Helping People. F&M Bank funded the materials and MH members volunteered the labor. Look at the transformation of this home!!

Leadership Summit Notes

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:23:00 +0000

Meant to do this long before now, but I wanted to post some of my notes from Willow Creek's Leadership Summit. This was first year at the conference and it was great! Good variety of speakers and interesting insights to leadership and Christianity. Here's some of the highlights...

Bill Hybels (Leading in a New Reality)

How prepared is your church for rogue waves (i.e. the current economic downturn)?
In times like this churches have to be the church (Acts 2) and practice kingdom economics.

Gary Hamel (Manage Differently Now)

Are you changing as fast as the world around you?
When the internal change lags behind the external change, you're ineffective.
Success is a self-correcting phenomena (think about that one!)

Tim Keller (Leading People to the Prodigal God)

The parable is targeted towards older brothers.
Both sons miss the Father, one because of his rebellion, one because of his obedience.
In the end, it's the "bad" son who is restored to a relationship with the Father while the "good" son is still outside.

Harvey Carey (Against All Odds)

Do you want to be a "holy huddle" or are you going to "get in the game?"
Plan service projects on Sunday. Cancel services and go serve!
Many churches suffer from paralysis by analysis (they think too much).

David Gergen (Eyewitness to Power

Leaders read and reflect.
There are three parts to communicating (ethos-credibility, logos-logic, pathos-emotion).
Good speakers start with ethos (if they are unknown to the audience), introduce pathos, spend the body of the message on logos and close with pathos.
When speaking give people mental breaks. Think of it like lifting weights. You do a set, take a break, do another set, etc.

Chip & Dan Heath (Switch)

Big problems are rarely solved with big solutions, they are solved by a series of small solutions.
When you encounter problems ask "Is this a people problem or a situation problem?"

Steer Clear of Legalism

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 20:18:00 +0000

I'm still thinking on Philippians 3 for Sunday. Talking about leaving legalism and I almost feel like I could just read this Sunday morning and sit down. This is Peterson's paraphase of the passage...

Steer clear of the barking dogs, those religious busybodies, all bark and no bite. All they’re interested in is appearances—knife-happy circumcisers, I call them. The real believers are the ones the Spirit of God leads to work away at this ministry, filling the air with Christ’s praise as we do it. We couldn’t carry this off by our own efforts, and we know it—even though we can list what many might think are impressive credentials.

You know my pedigree: a legitimate birth, circumcised on the eighth day; an Israelite from the elite tribe of Benjamin; a strict and devout adherent to God’s law; a fiery defender of the purity of my religion, even to the point of persecuting the church; a meticulous observer of everything set down in God’s law Book.

The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I’m tearing up and throwing out with the trash—along with everything else I used to take credit for. And why? Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. I didn’t want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ—God’s righteousness. I gave up all that inferior stuff so I could know Christ personally, experience his resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering, and go all the way with him to death itself. If there was any way to get in on the resurrection from the dead, I wanted to do it.

Phil 3:2-11 (The Message)

Leaving Legalism

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 14:16:00 +0000

Today God took me to these familiar words from Paul in Philippians 3:4-9. I've read these verses dozens of times, but Galatians has shed a whole new light on them. They spoke to me with such clarity. Once you discover the way of liberty through faith in Christ, the way of legalism becomes powerless and meaningless.

If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless.

But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ--the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.

Wow!! My paraphrase..."You want to talk legalistic righteousness...I was the best of the best. A spiritual performer. A zealous Pharisee. I had all the credentials and followed all the rules. But it was meaningless compared to the greatness of knowing Jesus as my Lord. The religious pedigree, the self-righteousness, the spiritual pride. It's rubbish compared to Jesus! I've given up on trying to earn my own righteousness through the law and desire a righteousness that comes through faith in Christ--one the comes from God, not me. I'm leaving legalism and turning to Jesus!"

Sunday Reflections

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 02:58:00 +0000

What at day at MH!! My message was on the connection between faith and baptism from Galatians 3:26-27. I taught for about 10 minutes and then invited Aubrey Flagg to join me on stage. I interviewed him about his baptism and what it meant to him then and since. It was very powerful. I love his passion for the Lord! It's contagious!! I'll have it posted by tomorrow.

Announced three new families today. Jason & Shannon Lovell (and their two kids), Ruth Ann Pevahouse (and her three kids) and Charles & Mary Alice Goolsby. All great families and all will be a huge blessing to MH. Jason & Shannon were also baptized about a week ago. I know of at least three more families that are considering membership so we'll hopefully have more to announce next Sunday.

Taught the 101 class after second service. We had about 15 attend, including one person who was visiting MH for the first time today! I love teaching this class because it's about the purpose, values and vision of our church. I could talk about that for hours but unfortunately I'm limited to about an hour and then we open it up for Q&A. The diversity of questions represent the diversity of our church. Love to hear how the different backgrounds have influenced people.

The praise team continues to rock. I don't know what it is but I've just found worship to be particularly powerful the last couple of weeks. The singing is powerful and the songs have been well-chosen. The lyrics are preaching a better message than I.

The teens got back from retreat today around noon. I think they ended up having 52 go and I still counted 7 or 8 who were here for worship. Love to see the student ministry growing.

I got home from church around 2:30 pm and had time for a quick 3 mile run, dinner with friends and then the all important fantasy football draft at my house. An annual tradition of bragging, laughing and smack-talk. Once again I have drafted the best team and will undoubtedly take the league championship.

Baptism

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 15:29:00 +0000

I'm preparing for a message Sunday on the connection between faith and baptism. I'd planned on using some of these thoughts from Cecil Hook but they're not going to make the cut so I decided to share them here. These are the beginning paragraphs from an article entitled "Sectarian Baptism."

After fifty years of observation in the Church of Christ as both a listener and a preacher, I am forced to admit that we have emphasized baptism above all other points of teaching. Hardly a lesson comes from our pulpits that does not mention baptism and it has been the theme of countless other lessons.

Baptism is a necessary part of our obedience. Can we overemphasize that which is necessary? Yes. Vitamin C is necessary to our physical health but, if we make it our chief claim to health, then things are out of proportion, and health can be lost. So it is with baptism or any other over-stressed doctrine or practice. Overemphasis of baptism puts us out of balance, develops into a credal test, and becomes a sectarian device. Because our teachings on baptism have seemed so solidly scriptural, it has been no easy matter for me to arrive at this conclusion.

By the Catholic theologians who have developed the sacramental system, a sacrament is defined as a visible rite or ceremony instituted by Christ to give grace. The scriptures give no such designation, definition, or description. Yet most of us have accepted that concept of baptism - that it is a ceremony by which grace is conferred upon us. Thus, though denying it, we have accepted the concept of baptismal regeneration.

You can read the rest here.

Sunday Reflections (via Tuesday)

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 14:49:00 +0000

My reflections are a little late this week because I did something strange and refreshing yesterday. I took a day off. An entire day. It's been a while since I've done that. I usually take a half day here or there during the week and I always have Saturdays off, but even then I spend at least a couple of hours reviewing the message. But yesterday I decided to take the full day. No answering email, writing blogs, posting sermons, updating websites, following up on communication cards, returning phone calls, setting up appointments, studying for next week, etc. It was exactly as I said at the beginning...strange and refreshing.

Sunday morning was a tale of two services (at least for me). I finished up chapter three of Galatians which is where Paul details the finer points of justification by faith. This week we focused on the purpose of the law. It was a little heady and I was struggling to make it sensible and interesting. I felt that I failed to do that in the first service. I just had one of those sick feelings preachers get when they feel like they've failed to connect or communicate. A handful of people came up afterwards and told me they enjoyed the message so I asked them, "What part of it was hard to follow?" Maggie Smith & David Parks really helped me out in that regard. Maggie helped me clean up some of the stuff I said about the Spirit and David just said, "you need to say it simpler." So in-between services I took a pencil to the notes and made it more concise and easy to understand. Second service went much better and of course, it's the one you'll find online (http://www.mauryhills.com/podcasts.htm). I feel like I owe the first service folks an apology for not being as prepared as I should have. I'm sure many of you preachers who read the blog can relate. Some Sundays everything clicks and some Sundays everything crashes. I was just thankful for a second chance to preach that message!

About 30 minutes after second service I walked into the Surf Shop (teen room) and it was still full of students. They were hanging around talking and playing the Wii. It was also full of parents. They were scattered about the tables filling our retreat registration forms (Sunday was the deadline). Todd said he has about 45 signed up for the retreat. That's amazing growth for this ministry!!

One of our members came up to me Sunday and said, "When are we going to build phase three?" I laughed. After managing two major building projects in the last four years, the last thing I want to talk about is phase three. But she'd just taken a visitor down to the new children's wing to show her where the kids go and said it was packed. There was a line for registration that ran halfway down the hall and kids were everywhere. That's another ministry that's experienced quite a bit of growth, but let's get the new children's minister hired before we tackle phase three!

Sunday evening we had a dinner over at Stephen Worley's house with all the shepherds and their spouses. We try to do this whenever we add new shepherds. Sitting around the table with these couples I was struck by the quality of leadership we have at Maury Hills. We are truly blessed to have such Godly leaders. I love talking with them and learning from them. It's challenging to preach before these guys each week. You really have to do your homework!

Next week I'm pumped about the Maury Hills 101 class and hoping it fills up! There are several new attenders that we're hoping will make the commitment to membership. If you'd like to sign up, contact the church office at mhcoc@bellsouth.net or 380-0206. Lunch and childcare will be provided.

People Helping People

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 13:37:00 +0000

The Daily Herald ran an article today titled "Group helps with home repairs." It was about a new ministry that's getting started at Maury Hills called "People Helping People." The focus is on providing home repairs for those who are physically or financially unable to do themselves. The first home is 95% complete and the second home is in progress now. So how does something like this get started? Let me share the story...

In October of last year, Rick Atchley spoke at our Anniversary Weekend. He challenged us with a message called "The Church Without Walls." It was about serving others and the idea that its past time for the church to get out of the building and into the community. Some of our folks took that challenge to heart. About a week after the message, Christopher Taylor (our worship leader) ran into Suzy Pruitt (one of our members) at McDonald's. Suzy was on her way to a friend's home to help her do some minor home repairs. Christopher went with her and they ended up tearing out carpet and doing some cleaning. While there they discovered that the home was in need of a new roof, overgrown trees/bushes we're causing drainage problems and the siding and trim was rotting. They called me and I put them in contact with Jan Wright (our Servant Leader for Habitat for Humanity). Jan went over to the home and her heart went out to the homeowner. She went ahead and secured a bid to replace the roof, started organizing volunteers, and had a small group go over to clean out all the overgrown trees/bushes. The only holdup then was funding.

A few months later I show the church some pictures of the home, tell the story and explain that we have a roofing contractor and volunteers ready to go, we just need the funds. I told them that the bid for the roof is $800 and as soon as we get that in hand we'll replace the roof. The rest we'll just do as the funds come in. After worship I was flooded with people giving me small bills or checks. They ended up giving me about $3,000 that Sunday. Within two days of that we had new roof on the house. Then volunteers beginning replacing the siding, window trim and painting. The home looks completely different now!

The first day of the project, Daryl Compton (an electrician and MH member) came by the house and brought Jan a handwritten note of a vision he had to expand this project. He was thinking of a "extreme makeover" type ministry where we provide this service for as many homes as we can. Jan brought that vision by my office and said "let's do this!" Being the more analytical one, I said something about "let's think about it and put together a plan."

So while we were putting together a plan, two more people are converged on this vision. One was Diana Bray. She was sitting in church the Sunday we announced the first house and she couldn't help thinking of a friend of hers who needed the same kind of help. She sent me an email and explained that her friend was a hard working single Mom trying to put her kid through college and she just couldn't afford to keep up the home repairs. Her roof was leaking and every time it rained she was putting out buckets to catch water. I forwarded the email to Jan. She went out and surveyed the home and called me to say "we need to do this one too."

Then Jim Kitchen (another MH member) came to see me. He'd been following all the news stories about the east side of Columbia and how the local government was trying to revitalize the area. He asks, "What's the church doing to help?" I honestly didn't know. His vision was that the church (not just ours, but the kingdom) needed to take the lead in rebuilding our community. So he casted a vision for us to go into neighborhoods on the east side and provide home repairs for those who can't afford it. Hey, this sounds familiar! I had him hook up with Eddie Miller (our ministry coordinator) and Jan Wright. Turns out the second home we're doing is on the east side and things just start falling in place. Jim dedicates himself to finding funding from a local business and Jan starts coordinating volunteers and supplies. Jim speaks with the councilwoman for that area, other local officials and ministers and asks F&M Bank if they will fund the project. They graciously agree to this and provide the ministry with a grant of $5,500. So the second home was underway! The new roof was completed yesterday and the siding is going up today.

That's where we are currently. I'm sure that there are other people working quietly behind the scenes whom I failed to mention because God has given this vision to more than one. My role thus far as just been a cheerleader. The great majority of the work is being done by people who are volunteering their time, skills and hard work. The plan is to complete these two homes, see what we learn and put together a team for expanding the ministry. Next year we're thinking about doing one home per quarter (two paid for by the church and two by sponsoring businesses). Then we'd like to expand the opportunity to other churches. See if some other churches would partner with us by sponsoring a home. The dream is for this not to be a "ministry of Maury Hills" but a "ministry of the Christian community in Columbia." Be praying.

Gospel & Doctrine

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 19:31:00 +0000

From Cecil Hook...

Although we garnish the tomb of Alexander Campbell, if he were here today, he would be unwelcome in most pulpits of the Church of Christ. Certainly, the guardians of the faith would denounce him for this statement:

"There was teaching, there was singing, there was praying, there was exhortation in the Christian church, but preaching in the church or to the church is not once mentioned in the Christian scriptures!

"Paul once, in his first letter to the church in Corinth, said he would declare to the Corinthians that gospel which he had preached to them, which also they had received and wherein they stood. We preach, or report, or proclaim news. But who teaches news? Who exhorts news? We preach the gospel to unbelievers, to aliens, but never to Christians, or those who have received it." (Millennial Harbinger, April 1862; copied from The Twisted Scriptures, p. 43, by Carl Ketcherside; other thoughts are adapted from that source also.)

The revealed word of God in the New Testament writings contains two kinds of messages to accomplish two different purposes. Campbell recognized this, but the distinction has been obscured to most of us in this century. That lack of understanding has added to our confusion and led us away from any practical basis for unity among those who believe in Christ. If the entire New Testament is the gospel, since a person but know, believe and obey the gospel in order to be saved, one must know, believe and obey everything within the New Testament to be saved. Every point of teaching becomes a life-or-death matter. Belief in any error would be damning. If all are not in exact conformity, then someone is lost.

So, in view of our list of difference in Chapter One, it looks hopeless for all of us, for who can be sure that he knows, believes, understands and obeys all that is taught in the word of God? For example, such instructions as, "And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God" (Eph 4:30), "Be filled with the Spirit" (Eph 5:18), and "Pray in the Holy Spirit" (Jude 20) become frightening, for I don't really know whether I am understanding or doing those things or not.

Then too, if I can know and obey all, I don't need grace; hence, I would make void the grace of Christ by my perfect obedience.

Although these two kinds of messages are not isolated into different paragraphs, books or epistles, there is a valid distinction to be made. There is the gospel which brings us into life and the teachings guide us on to ultimate rescue. The gospel gets us on the Lord's work force and the doctrine directs our work on the job. The gospel brings us into fellowship while the doctrine/teaching guides those in the fellowship.

The gospel is the good news, but, as Campbell asks, who teaches good news? The gospel was fully preached on Pentecost but all the epistles came later. The gospel was preached - heralded, proclaimed, evangelized - while the doctrine was imparted by teaching, instruction, reproof, rebuke, and exhortation. The gospel message was conveyed through evangelists, but prophets, pastors, and teachers edified through teaching.

The gospel is "the faith" which was already delivered (Jude 3), to which they were obedient (Acts 6:7), which Elymas resisted (Acts 13:8), in which the disciples should continue (Acts 14:22), which was the basis of unity (Eph 4:13). The faith is the basis of our salvation.

Some of the argument is a little convoluted, but you get the gist...the gospel (the death, burial and resurrection) is the message of salvation and the basis for unity! Read the full article here.

Sunday Reflections

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 01:00:00 +0000

Full day at MH! Great crowds at both services and I saw several new faces. Although I have to admit, it's getting hard to know the new faces from the old faces around here.

Two awesome songs before the message...Forever and I Stand in Awe. It doesn't take much talent to preach a good sermon following such great worship. A big thank you to all who sing on our praise team. You guys (and girls) do a tremendous job of leading us in worship each week!

I didn't get into obedience as promised. Instead, I decided to "linger a while on grace." I'm glad that we did. We really need the message of justification to sink in and penetrate our hearts. The song during the response time (Amazing Love) beautifully communicated the theme...what love is this that pays so dearly that I, the guilty one, may go free!

Started a new response format this morning. Instead of only having shepherds in the front to receive responses and pray with people, we had shepherds in the back as well. If people want prayers but don't want to respond publicly, they can go to the back. I think this will make it easier for people to respond.

Kicked off Financial Peace University this afternoon. There are 26 in the class. I really appreciated Tommy Lamar's testimony about how the class changed his life. It's changed mine too and I think these 26 folks are in for a life-changing experience.

Had a Belize planning meeting after worship. We're looking at two trips this year. One during the spring and another during the summer. Both will have a medical emphasis. We're also exploring options for a permanent clinic in the country. Dr. Chaney is planning a trip this fall with a small team that will see what needs to be done. This is in addition to the scholarships that we're planning to offer so kids can pay their school tuition. We'd like to get 10 children sponsored this year. Got our first donation ($500) for that ministry today!

The home remodel ministry, which is now called "People Helping People," is starting on its second home. We're putting on a new roof and new siding. This home was graciously sponsored by F&M Bank who gave $5,500 to purchase all the materials. MH volunteers are doing the work. This lady is having to put out buckets every time in rains because of all the roof leaks. By this time next week, she can toss her buckets.

One last thing, Todd talked about Escape today. This is the first MH retreat for students. We've done several retreats in the past, but we usually partner up with other churches. Not this time. The youth group has grown so fast in the last three or four months that Todd feels the need to get everyone together for some community building. He wants 100% participation.

Controversial or Orthodox?

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:30:00 +0000

The last few weeks I've been preaching through Galatians and I've made some bold claims. Some might even say controversial claims.

The gospel is not the entire New Testament. It's the the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. Nothing more and nothing less. The gospel is what saves us and brings us into a right relationship with God, not our own endeavors or goodness. Grace is a free gift of God. It's not something we earn through perfect obedience or human effort. We are justified freely by faith in Christ and not through good works or observance of the law.

I've been pondering these statements today and wondering what makes them controversial? Would Paul see them in this way or would he see them as orthodox? And if Paul sees them as orthodox, which I suspect he would, then why do some Christians today see them as unorthodox?

Sunday Reflections

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 01:30:00 +0000

My apologies for not blogging during the week. I usually try to get at least one post in on Wednesday or Thursday but this week I attended the Leadership Summit hosted by the Willow Creek Community Church. Unbelievable! Learned from some amazing pastors and business leaders, but it did get me a little behind.

Today at Maury Hills was awesome!! Felt a lot of energy during the sermon, which was odd because it was not a high energy topic (at least that's what I thought at first). I talked about "justification by faith" from Galatians 3 which I didn't exactly consider an exciting doctrine. That is, UNTIL I grasped how powerful that concept is and what it truly means to be "made right" by what Christ did and not what I did. That's exciting! Even though I'm guilty, through Jesus Christ, I've been declared innocent. Wow. The message will be uploaded to www.mauryhills.com/podcasts.htm sometime tomorrow.

Had a beautiful response in the second service from someone who's struggled with some family health issues and personal anxiety/stress. She talked about trying to do it all on her own before finally turning everything over to God. She asked for forgiveness and prayer and one of our shepherds, Gary Vanwormer, prayed a beautiful prayer about how she was already forgiven because of justification! She's been "made right" (just as all of us have) by the grace of God and the work of Christ.

Had two conversations with members after worship about how the study of Galatians has been very freeing. (Yes! That's the point!!) One felt like the message was speaking directly to her and her situation and I have no doubt that is was. The Holy Spirit has a way of working like that. She's gone through a really intense two years and was starting to feel like it was something she'd done wrong. Like God was punishing her or something, but the message reminded her that our standing with God is not based on what we've done, but on what Christ has done. When that truth sank in the result was FREEDOM!

Also had two more baptism celebrations today. Hayley Thurman (Billy & Kami's daughter) and Dalton Hughes (Chip & Diana Bray's son) were both baptized into Christ after the second service. About 150+ were there to participate. Hayley was baptized by Jerry Jeter who is the pastor at Cornerstone Baptist. A lot of their church was there as well. Hayley is good friends with Jerry's daughter and she participated in summer camp with their youth group. They've had a great influence on her walk with Christ and it was neat to see the two churches come together to celebrate her baptism. Dalton was baptized by his grandfather who's a member at Graymere Church of Christ. He had some kind words for me and it was awesome to pray with him and Dalton before the baptism. I also appreciated the words he spoke to his grandson in the water. Watching baptisms never gets old.

Finally, this afternoon we had our big Back-to-School swim party at the YMCA. This was a Wednesday night event that got rained out. We had a great turnout. I would guess about a 100+. Have you ever tried counting kids in a swimming pool?! It was a relaxing end to a great day. We'll have some pics up at http://www.mauryhills.com/ under "Photo Album."

Oh yeah...we also welcomed a new member to Maury Hills!! Ruth Raines!! She's another one with Hohenwald ties so watch out...we're slowly taking over. I've also talked to a couple more families who are thinking about baptism and membership so be praying. I love all the positive things that are happening at MH. Thanks for being a great church!!

Sunday Reflections

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 15:22:00 +0000

A great day at MH yesterday! Huge crowd and lots of energy in the room. God is at work here and it's exciting. Just a few highlights...

Financial Peace University is beginning in a couple of weeks. I'm a graduate of FPU and a disciple of Dave. I credit him with saving me from many stupid financial decisions early in my marriage. Give to God, save money, get out of debt, spend on a budget. These principles work (and they're Biblical)!

Jan Wright updated everyone on Eliane's house. It was awesome to see how much the home has transformed in three months. We've already committed to our second home re-model and it will start soon. If you want to help with this ministry, email Jan.

We announced a baptism in the first service. John Gibbons (Laura's son) was baptized here last Wednesday. Then in between services I found out about two more baptisms. BJ & Larassia Cawthon (Amy's children) were baptized at camp last week. So we announced all three at the second service. Then right after that Todd came by to turn on the baptistery because Tyler Pevahouse was getting baptized at 6:00 pm! God is good.

A month ago I begin the Galatians series by quoting Warren Wiersbe..."Galatians is a dangerous book." Each week I'm discovering how right he is. Why do we have such a hard time accepting the message of grace? Perhaps that's a topic for a future blog.

Remember "the list" from the first message? Well, Matthew White and Kevin Miller have turned it into a mid-week study for young families. Should be interesting. We also have two other great studies starting this week...Buddy Norman on transformation (Romans) and Diane McQuiston on the patriarchs (via Beth Moore).

Blast is back! Can't wait. My kids still talk about Professor Fleebinflabin (sp?) and Ooga Booga (sp?). It cranks back up this Wednesday night at 6:30 pm.

"Draw Me" is becoming one of my favorite songs. Perfect lead in to communion.

Tebow's Gospel

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 19:49:00 +0000

Someone sent me this tidbit from an SI article on Tim Tebow's faith. Say what you want about his choice of colleges, Tebow is the real deal. The more I read about him, the more I'm impressed. The part of the article that caught my friend's attention was something Tebow's Dad said about the gospel.

We've been talking about the gospel the last couple of weeks at Maury Hills. Specifically asking, what is the gospel? Many define it in broad terms, mixing the story of Jesus with doctrinal positions or church traditions. The Bible defines it simply as the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. Nothing more and nothing less. To take anything away from that or to add anything to it is to preach a different gospel. Tebow's Dad gets it...

Founded in 1985, the Bob Tebow Evangelistic Association boasts a staff of 45 Filipino pastors who have preached the Gospel to more than 15 million. The ministry has also helped start 10,000 churches and opened an orphanage that houses more than 50 children.

Under the heading What We Believe, the BTEA's website details the conservative brand of Christianity it is spreading. The ministry espouses a literal interpretation of the Bible ("This is to say the written Word of God is totally without error of any kind"), supports the teaching of Creationism ("We believe God created the heavens and the earth ... out of nothing in six 24-hour days") and is convinced of the inevitability of the Rapture followed by a seven-year tribulation period. "During this time the antichrist will appear," says the BTEA. Some will be saved, but "many will be martyred."

Asked if there is any wiggle room for people nagged by doubts about, say, the creation of the world in six days or the imminence of the Rapture, Bob strikes a warm, inclusive note. "You don't have to believe everything I believe to be saved," he says. "You just need to believe in the Lord Jesus and trust him to give you the free gift of eternal life, and you can figure out Genesis and all that other stuff later."

Sunday Reflections

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 04:36:00 +0000

Great Sunday today! Beautiful weather and awesome worship. The last two Sundays we've sung "Only By Grace." It's a great fit with the message of Galatians. Also noticed how great the praise team sounded on "Blessed Jesus." We've got some awesome voices there and I appreciate their dedication in leading our worship.

Spoke on Galatians 1:6-10 which begins with... I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel--which is really no gospel at all. Wow! We asked "What is this different gospel?" and "What is the gospel?" In short, the gospel is the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. Period. A different gospel is anything that adds to or takes away from that!!

Galatians is stretching a few of us and that's good. The message of grace can be frightening for those of us who've not heard it preached that much. As one member related to me, "When I was growing up we never heard sermons on this book for fear of where it might lead."

We prayed for our shepherds during response time. It was powerful to see the congregation affirm these men by gathering around them to pray. Please continue praying for them, their families and their leadership of this church. We've already had our first meeting and I can tell that this is going to be a great group of shepherds.

It finally looks like vacation season is winding down! We had a lot of our regulars back in town and we also had several new families worshipping with us. Second service was packed! We're adding more chairs this week.

The List

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 19:11:00 +0000

Someone called today and wanted a copy of "the list" from Sunday. I thought I'd go ahead and post it here as well. This is from my introduction to our study of Galatians...

How would you finish this sentence? If I want to be a really good Christian then I must _________. What would you put in that blank? I’m sure a few of you have some answers swimming around in your head that might fit, but I’m guessing that many of you are thinking right now, “I can’t answer that question....there’s not enough blanks!” That's because many of us here at this church grew up in churches or a religious environment where the answer to this statement is endless.

To be a really good Christian you must…attend every time the doors are open, three times a week preferably, don’t swear, don’t drink, don’t smoke, don’t associate with people who do, don’t listen to rock and roll music, don’t go to R-rated movies, don’t play cards, don’t use music in worship, take the Lord’s Supper every week, have a daily quiet time, pray, memorize Scripture, give regularly, men-wear a coat and tie to church and kept your hair short, women-don’t wear slacks to church and be modest, neither of you can wear shorts on Sunday, no mixed swimming, no dancing, only use the KJV, go to a church that’s sound in the faith, don’t clap, don’t raise your hands, don’t show excessive emotion in worship, do everything decent and in order, no eating in the church building, no women praying, no women teaching boys over the age of 13, be baptized in the right way at the right time in the right church by the right person, go to a church that has the right name on the sign, don’t mess up, read your Bible and pray to God you make it!

That's just to name a few. I’m sure you could come up with more and the answers vary depending on which fellowship you were raised in. Yours may include things like you must speak in tongues, show evidence of baptism of the Holy Spirit, believe in predestination or once saved/always saved. The list is literally endless and it’s no respecter of denominations.

Would it shock you for me to tell you that it’s also dead wrong? That there’s really only one answer to the question of what it takes to be a really good Christian. And I hear the objections now, “But what a minute! There are some good things in that list you rattled off, sure some of its traditions that we don’t fool with anymore, but you mentioned some really good practices for Christians!” I agree. But anytime we start using our practices to define our acceptability before God or our righteousness or justification, then we’ve gotten off message. And it’s wrong. Paul would say we’re teaching a different gospel, which is really no gospel at all.