Posted: 12/19/03

LifeWay Family Bible Series for Dec. 28

Jesus Christ is life and the light of the world

John 1:1-18

By David Jenkins

New Hope Baptist Church, Big Sandy

From the beginning of human history, people have asked, “Where is God?” Some ask with the cynicism of the scientist, looking for God in a test tube. Others, having been nurtured all of their lives in a secure “family religion,” have accepted God's existence with their minds, but not their hearts. Between these two groups are those of us who have a natural, healthy desire to know more about God. This desire begins to develop when we are born into God's family.

The Apostle John wrote his Gospel approximately 30 years later than Mark, the earliest of the synoptic gospel writers. After that time lapse, John had the advantage of perspective. He did not deal with the virgin birth of Jesus as did Matthew and Luke. He began when Jesus was one with his Father in heaven.

The majestic beginning

Most people define “word” as merely a vehicle by which a thought or action is expressed. Sometimes our words are artificial and fickle. We say one thing and mean something else, or someone misinterprets our choice of words and takes what we say to mean something entirely different. Sometimes we purposely say something in assumed innocence, when in reality there is another meaning behind what we say. Yet when John speaks of the “Word,” he has in mind something far beyond what we usually think about words. For the Jews, a word spoken had unique power. It was a living reality, so they used words sparingly.

The greatest illustration of the power of words was demonstrated when God spoke at creation and life appeared. God's words continue to be active and creative spiritually, as well as physically (Isaiah 55:10-11). God spoke to the heart of Abraham, and he left Ur. He spoke to Moses at the burning bush, and he appeared before Pharaoh. Then we have discovered that one cannot be exposed to the word of God and do nothing about it. It has such power that neutrality is out of the question.

In verses 1-3, John gave a remarkable progression. First, there is the beginning of salvation history, where Jesus was presented as the foundation of God's plan of redemption. Second, Jesus was not only the Word of God, but also the expression of God. Third, he was the one who brings repenting sinners to recognize what God is truly like, as he is reflected in Jesus Christ.

Then, in verses 4-5, we discover Jesus was the life that resides in God–the everlasting life that both creates and redeems. It is an eternal gift that comes to us through his word. In short, God was in Christ, redeeming the world to himself. God is in his Holy Spirit, revealing to us our sins and also showing us the love, mercy and forgiveness of the Heavenly Father.

When God came

Beginning with verse 6, John moved from the vast expanse of eternity where God has always been, to the earth and to a simple, solitary person. He introduced John the Baptist who was “sent from God.” We see here the sovereignty of God in choosing John to be the herald of the Messiah. He, too, had a miracle birth, though not as miraculous as the virgin birth of Jesus.

John was quick to note that this herald who would come was not the true light he had introduced in Jesus. The light God gave John the Baptist was that of understanding, perception, and moral and spiritual awareness. John was a reflection of the true light found in Jesus.

Yet when Jesus came to his own world, his own people ignored him and passed him by. But those who did receive him were given power to become his sons and daughters because they believed on his name. We were not born “of blood,” or inheritance, nor of “the will of the flesh” by human decision apart from the Holy Spirit, or by “the will of man,” or by a legal transaction based on a cold, calculated business decision. In the verb “become,” there is both a sense of instantaneous regeneration and of progressive growth. Those who receive Christ are constantly in a state of “becoming.” Each of us is a work in progress.

When the Word became flesh

Jesus, who was one with the Father, was an eternal spirit with no limit nor restriction. When he came to earth, he descended from that loftiest of all heights to become flesh–the lowly, earthly matter from which God formed Adam.

Jesus began a new dimension of existence. He came and “pitched his tent” among us. He did not establish a permanent residence but remained here just long enough to identify with human beings, to understand their temptations, emotions, physical pain and mental anguish. Yet he was filled with grace toward undeserving people, and he became the communicator of truth. He was unique, specially loved by the Father. He came to bring us to God and God to us. In him, the distant, unknowable, invisible, unreachable God has come to us. God can never be a stranger to us again.

Question for discussion

In what ways is Jesus unique in his relationship with us?

Posted: 12/19/03

LifeWay Family Bible Series for Jan. 11

Courage plus faith produces incredible results

1 Samuel 17:1-58

By David Jenkins

New Hope Baptist Church, Big Sandy

On a visit to the Valley of Elah in Israel, the traditional site of the contest between David and Goliath, an Israeli friend accompanying us had brought along a slingshot fashioned like those used in ancient times. It was made of two strips of leather attached to either side of a small leather cup in which the stone was placed. The two strips were held in the hand and swung overhead. At the proper moment, one strip was released, and the stone was flung from the cup toward the target. My Israeli friend demonstrated the procedure for me, and expertly caused the stone to sail across the small valley. He invited me to try it. My effort was a total disaster. I learned he had developed his skill with the slingshot through practice since he was a child.

Likewise David, no doubt, had spent the long days alone in the fields with his sheep practicing with his slingshot. Yet more important than his skill in using that primitive weapon was his faith in God's presence with him. His boldness was not presumption but reliance on God's power.

Goliath's challenge

The story of David and Goliath is so familiar it is used to describe any conflict in which a considerable inequity exists between the combatants. We often hear such conflicts, whether between athletes, companies or nations, referred to as “David-and-Goliath” situations. The event has a special appeal not only to children who delight in hearing and retelling the story, but also to adults who are faced often with the giants of the world. We find courage and inspiration in the simple faith of David.

The Philistines had been enemies of God's people from ancient times. They had a highly trained military organization, equipped with horses, chariots, numerous foot soldiers and archers (1 Samuel 13:5; 31:3). The armor of Philistine soldiers included bronze helmets, coats of mail, leg protectors, spears and shields.

This particular skirmish with the Philistines was one of many during King Saul's reign. Once again the two armies faced each other in this particular valley. On this occasion, the Philistines used a unique ploy. Among their troops was a giant of a man who was a frightening spectacle to the Israelites. This giant Goliath was more than nine feet tall. His armor and weapons were formidable indeed. Furthermore, he was quite the actor, and his brazen taunts had terrified Saul's army.

An unexpected response

With verse 12, the scene changes from the encampment of the Israelite and Philistine armies to David's home in Bethlehem. Jesse, David's father, was an old man. Three of his eight sons had enlisted in Saul's army and were engaged in the confrontation with the Philistines in the Valley of Elah.

David, the youngest son, was responsible for keeping his father's sheep. David learned early the art of shepherding, which prepared him for the awesome task of shepherding a nation as their king. Moses had 40 years' experience shepherding his father-in-law's sheep before God sent him to Egypt to deliver his people and “shepherd” them through 40 years of wilderness wandering.

Jesse's concern for his older sons in Saul's army was reflected in the assignment given David. He was to take food for his brothers and the commander, find out how his brothers were faring and bring back a report to his father. David arrived at the front in time to hear Goliath's daily challenge. David could not believe Saul's army trembled in fear because of Goliath. He considered their cowardice a disgrace, because they were the “armies of the living God” (v. 26).

David's oldest brother, Eliab, was embarrassed because of David's boldness, rebuked and chided him, and demanded he go home. He refused, and eventually secured Saul's permission to accept Goliath's challenge. After refusing to wear Saul's armor, David took his shepherd's staff, “five smooth stones” which he had retrieved from the bed of the brook, and with his slingshot in his hand, he approached Goliath.

Claiming victory for the Lord

Goliath was livid with anger when he saw David representing the army of Saul. David's reply to the Philistine's curses was that he had come only “in the name of the Lord.” When the enraged Goliath rushed to meet David, David ran toward him, put one of the stones in his sling and struck Goliath in the forehead. The Philistine fell on his face. David ran to the giant, took his sword from its sheath, and cut off his head. The army of the Philistines suddenly lost their courage and fled, for their champion was dead.

The army of the Israelites then pursued the Philistines, killing and wounding many of them. It is important to note that David countered Goliath's speech not with a threat, but with an announcement. David emphasized the difference between their armor. David came “in the name of the Lord” and not with weapons of warfare. Most important of all, David vowed that because of the outcome of their contest, everyone would know that there “is a God in Israel” (v. 46).

Question for discussion

How has God enabled you to overcome a difficult situation and brought honor to his name?

Posted: 12/19/03

LifeWay Family Bible Series for Jan. 4

God chooses the unlikely and equips them well

1 Samuel 16:1-13

By David Jenkins

New Hope Baptist Church, Big Sandy

Bill was a stutterer. All through his childhood and youth, he was the victim of unkind taunts from his peers. Prolonged speech therapy had helped, but he still stuttered and often could not complete a sentence.

But he was a devoted Christian. One Sunday morning at the close of the worship hour, Bill came forward and spoke to his pastor. The congregation was stunned when the pastor reported that Bill was convinced God was calling him to preach. Many asked, “How could Bill ever preach with his stuttering problem?” The pastor asked the congregation to pray for Bill as he followed God's leadership in his life.

After Bill finished high school, college and was about to enter seminary, he asked his pastor if he could preach on a Sunday evening. When Bill stood to deliver the sermon, the congregation again was stunned, but this time because of the miracle they witnessed. Bill did not stutter, but spoke with confidence and conviction. Many wept, and everyone learned a valuable lesson. Those whom God calls to serve him, he equips for the task.

The anointer learns obedience

How much time had elapsed between the end of chapter 15 and the beginning of chapter 16 is not certain. King Saul had disobeyed God's command through Samuel to totally destroy the Amalekites and everything that belonged to them (15:2-3). Because Saul spared Agag, the Amalekite king, and took spoils of the best of the cattle, God rejected him as king over Israel.

Samuel was still mourning because of what had happened to Saul, in spite of the fact God “was grieved that he had made Saul king over Israel” (15:35). Samuel was reproved for his mourning for Saul, since God had rejected him as king over Israel. God instructed Samuel to take a horn of oil and go to Bethlehem, where he would anoint one of the sons of Jesse to be the next king of Israel.

Samuel hesitated to follow the Lord's instructions because he was afraid Saul would find out and kill him. We are often slow to follow God's leadership because of fear, forgetting that God has promised to be with us and to empower us to do his will.

Furthermore, the choice of one of Jesse's sons would not be up to Samuel, for God had already chosen him. God also told Samuel there would be a secondary reason for his journey to Bethlehem. He must be prepared to sacrifice a heifer. This ceremony would be for a select few, which would include Jesse, his sons and the elders of Bethlehem. God assured Samuel he would show him what to do. The elders of Bethlehem trembled when they saw Samuel coming, for he was held in high regard as God's spokesman. They also may have heard the recent news that Samuel had executed Agag, king of the Amalekites, whom Saul had spared.

Outward appearances are deceptive

Samuel likely still was nervous about what he was going to do, realizing his action would be an act of treason should Saul learn about it. He was anxious to get on with his assignment, and he saw Eliab, Jesse's eldest son, and was impressed with the tall, handsome young man. He was ready to anoint Eliab, when God reminded him that he did not look on the outward appearance of a person, but on the heart.

Samuel learned something we must all understand. What we see in a person is not necessarily what God sees. Abinadab and Shammah, the second and third sons of Jesse, were also impressive young men, but by this time Samuel had learned his lesson. He relied on God's impressions in his heart, and not on his own assessments. In all, seven sons of Jesse were interviewed by Samuel, and none received God's approval.

The wonder of God's surprises

By this time, Samuel may have been a bit confused. He was convinced God had chosen one of Jesse's sons to be Israel's next king. So, probably with a tone of desperation in his voice, he asked Jesse if these seven were indeed all of his sons.

Possibly with some reluctance, Jesse admitted the youngest son was in the fields, tending the sheep. “Youngest” also means “smallest” in Hebrew. Because of his youth, David likely was small in stature–quite different from Eliab, whose height had impressed Samuel. Kings often were described as shepherds in Israel and in other countries in the ancient Near East. David's role as a shepherd may have been a prophetic indication of his coming position as the shepherd of God's people, Israel.

At Samuel's request, David was brought in from the fields. He was a handsome, striking young man. The Lord immediately commanded Samuel to anoint David as Israel's next king. David's name appears here for the first time in the books of Samuel. Two significant things happened–he was anointed in the presence of his brothers, who were witnesses of God's choice, and “the Spirit of the Lord” came upon him “in power” (v. 13).

Question for discussion

Can you think of a time when God used someone in a remarkable way whom you would never have chosen for the task?

Posted: 12/19/03

Faith-based prison touted in Florida

TAMPA, Fla. (RNS)–Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has announced the creation of what he calls the nation's first entirely faith-based prison at a facility in his state.

Bush made the announcement in Tampa at one of a series of conferences sponsored by his brother's White House Office of Faith-based and Community Initiatives.

He applauded the work done by the office instituted by President George W. Bush, as well as the efforts by Attorney General John Ashcroft to recognize faith-based organizations.

“It is imperative for government to work in close and careful coordination with community and faith-based organizations, because government alone will never solve the problems tearing the fabric of our society,” he said.

The governor's plan is for more than 790 inmates to live in eight dormitories at the Lawtey Correctional Institution in Raiford, Fla. Participation by inmates is voluntary, and entry into the program will not depend on the inmate's faith preference or lack of faith. Those who choose to be part of the program will be involved in faith-based activities seven days a week. Programs will focus on family life, personal growth and life skills.

Posted: 12/19/03

Religious beliefs, experience impact views on homosexuality

By Michelle Gabriel

Religion News Service

WASHINGTON (RNS)–Religious beliefs and personal experience are the two biggest factors shaping Americans' attitudes toward homosexuality and the volatile issue of gay marriage, according to a new poll.

The poll, conducted in mid-October by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, was released the same day as Massachusetts' highest court ruled that denying civil marriage to gays and lesbians violates the state's constitution. The court gave the legislature 180 days to find ways for homosexuals to marry.

The Pew poll found 59 percent of Americans oppose gay marriage, but the percentage was significantly higher–80 percent–among people who frequently attend church services and describe themselves as “highly religious.”

Evangelicals are most strongly opposed to the idea of gay marriage and also are the most likely to hear homosexuality denounced from the pulpit. Among evangelicals, 80 percent oppose gay marriage, compared to 54 percent of mainline Protestants and 55 percent of Catholics.

Opposition to gay marriage was up since July, when pollsters last asked the question. In the July poll, 71 percent of highly religious respondents opposed gay marriages. Those who supported it dropped from 21 percent in July to just 12 percent.

Scott Keeter, associate director of the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, said the change might mean churches, particularly evangelical churches, have mobilized their members to more strongly oppose gay marriage.

Evangelicals, such as Southern Baptists and Pentecostals, are generally theologically conservative, while mainline churches, such as Presbyterians, Lutherans and Methodists, tend to be more theologically and socially liberal.

In the poll, a majority of Americans (55 percent) said homosexual behavior is a sin, a view shared most strongly by “highly committed white evangelicals” (88 percent), black Protestants (74 percent) and “committed” Catholics (64 percent).

Sixty-eight percent of evangelicals said homosexuality is frequently discussed in their churches, compared to only 33 percent of mainline Protestants and 49 percent of Catholics.

The poll found 59 percent of evangelicals heard negative references to gays in church and only 1 percent heard accepting references. Eight percent classified the gay references as “no position” or “other.”

Thirteen percent of mainline Protestants heard negative gay references in church, while 4 percent heard accepting references. More than a quarter (28 percent) of Catholics heard negative references, while 3 percent heard positive ones.

The poll also showed that when gay issues arise in church, parishioners tend to absorb what they are told.

More than half (55 percent) of evangelicals whose clergy talk about gays report a “very unfavorable” view of gay men, while those whose clergy do not discuss gays reported only a 32 percent “very unfavorable” view.

Among mainline Protestants and Catholics, 28 percent of people who heard about gay issues in church reported “very unfavorable” views of gay men, while only 18 percent of those who did not hear gay issues discussed in church said they held “very unfavorable” views.

Although most evangelicals do not support homosexuality, 60 percent said they feel comfortable around gay people, compared to three-quarters of the general population. Highly religious white evangelicals reported the most discomfort with gay people, at 34 percent.

Keeter said the widespread support and comfort around gays could be indicative of Americans' increasing contact with gay issues–the poll found that 60 percent of Americans have a gay friend, family member or co-worker.

In a society brimming with stereotypical portrayals of gays in the media, Keeter said, a personal relationship provides the only accurate way to understand the homosexual community's perspective.

The poll was based on a survey of 1,515 adults conducted Oct. 15-19. It has a sampling error of between 3 and 4 percentage points.

Posted: 12/19/03

Austin church adopts 50 families for care

By George Henson

Staff Writer

AUSTIN–The Christmas season marks a new, more personal relationship between God and humanity. Hyde Park Baptist Church in Austin hopes to engender some new and personal relationships this holiday season as well.

Families within the church have adopted 50 families with ties to the Christian Women's Job Corps classes the church sponsors or one of the church's four church starts. The church starts were facilitated with funds from the Baptist General Convention of Texas and Austin Baptist Association.

Three of those congregations are in multi-housing projects of the Austin Housing Authority, and the fourth is in a mobile-home park.

Chris Rowley, director of Mission Austin and the Christian Women's Job Corps program, said in the past, church members have brought gifts to the church for families, and the gifts were distributed at a party held at the church.

“It was big and it was fun, but it was a bit impersonal. The families didn't get much of a chance to know one another,” she said. “People are really excited about how we're doing it this year.”

This year, Hyde Park families will deliver their gifts to each recipient family's residence. Most of the families are headed by single mothers, “who are notorious for being overlooked,” Rowley said. In addition to gifts, food also will be given along with a “What Christmas is All About” evangelistic tract.

Rowley encourages the Hyde Park volunteers not only to make a visit but to establish a relationship that lasts beyond Christmas.

“It's relationships that make the difference,” she said. “We're trying to take it to the next level, not just play Santa.”

Posted: 12/19/03

IMB's goal is one worker in every unreached people group

RICHMOND, Va.–The International Mission Board has a simple goal: One missionary assigned to every unreached people group in the world.

Sounds simple, but the numbers tell a different story.

Researchers have identified nearly 6,500 unreached people groups, with a combined population of about 3.4 billion people.

For the IMB, the foreign missions arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, to touch each people group would require doubling the number of existing full-time personnel. From that perspective, the task may appear overwhelming, IMB administrators acknowledge.

People groups refer to groups of individuals, families and clans who share a common language and ethnic identity.

An unreached people group is a “people group in which the number of evangelical Christians totals less than 2 percent of the population,” explained Scott Holste, director of the IMB's global research department.

Already, about one-third of IMB personnel are engaging unreached people groups with little or no access to the gospel. Expanding that reach will require more resources.

IMB President Jerry Rankin stresses that the point of missions is “to eliminate lostness.” Unfortunately, he said, “many churches are forfeiting the very thing that would result in their growth and vitality by depriving their people of being involved in God's mission. He has called us as the people of God to make him known among all peoples. We must continue to be driven by the question: 'By what criteria should any people be denied the opportunity to hear and respond to the gospel?'”

The challenge of unreached people groups is illustrated by a case study in Sumatra, the largest unevangelized island on earth. Sumatra is part of Indonesia, a nation spanning 17,000 islands of the Indonesian archipelago.

If Sumatra were a nation, only nine other nations would have more unreached peoples. Sumatra is the home of 52 known unreached people groups consisting of 25 million people. Of the 52, 48 have no indigenous churches and 34 have no known gospel workers.

“There was a time when we could mark initial progress in this task of world evangelism by keeping track of and learning about the countries in which we had missionaries,” Holste explained. “We have learned, however, that reality is much more complex than that. Virtually every country in the world contains scores, if not hundreds, of diverse people groups. We can no longer be satisfied that we have made disciples and established the church in one or two people groups in a country.”

Missions agencies have always been about winning people to Christ, but up until the last 20 years, agencies “were content to work only where missionaries were welcomed, while more than a third of the world remained isolated from access to the gospel,” Rankin said.

The motivation behind the IMB's mission statement–“Making Christ known among all peoples”–is anchored in the instructions of Christ to “make disciples of all nations,” he added.

“When Jesus gave us the Great Commission, the terminology he used was 'panta ta ethne,' which literally means all the peoples of the world. Every people group deserves the opportunity to hear, understand and respond to the gospel in their own language and cultural context.

“They should not have to cross barriers of ethnicity and language to know Jesus.”

For this to happen, the church in America must wake up and look beyond itself, Rankin asserted.

“The Great Commission was not given to a mission agency to carry out on behalf of the churches but was given to every church, every believer and every denominational agency,” he stressed. “The role of the IMB is to channel, enable and facilitate all Southern Baptists being obedient to the Great Commission.”

Still, many in the church hold to the view that “there is plenty of work and evangelism for me to do right here in my neighborhood and town.”

The church in America must realize the gravity of a lost world, Rankin declared.

Posted: 12/19/03

Why do we know not Joseph?

By Kevin Eckstrom

Religion News Service

WASHINGTON (RNS)–Poor Joseph.

For someone who is otherwise a crucial character in the Christmas story, the earthly father of Jesus is often overlooked, some would say neglected, or worse, ignored.

Each year, the Madonna and child are featured on a postage stamp, but not with Joseph. In the Bible itself, Joseph appears briefly at the beginning in Bethlehem, again when Jesus is 12 years old, but then disappears from the story. There is no mention of his life, or curiously, his death.

“Churches named after him are everywhere, his altars and statues abound, yet he is seldom referred to and often seems to be the forgotten saint,” writes Ann Ball in the new Encyclopedia of Catholic Devotions and Practices. “At Christmas, Joseph is always depicted at the nativity, yet the songs sing of the child and mother, the star, wise men, angels and shepherds. Joseph is there, yet hardly noticed.”

A mosaic portrait of Saint Joseph from the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.

Scholars who have examined Joseph–and there aren't many–seem to agree on one thing. While he may seem to play a minor role in Jesus' life, he was by no means insignificant and should not be overlooked.

If nothing else, Joseph was an “unsung hero” who provided Jesus with protection, royal lineage, a livelihood and, perhaps, a worldview that shaped his outreach to the poor and downtrodden.

“All of us are kind of bit players in bringing about God's purposes,” said Stephen Davis, a professor of philosophy and religion at Claremont McKenna College. “The vast majority of us, like Joseph, will not get headlines or our 15 minutes of fame, but we all have our parts.”

The main reason Joseph is such an enigma is that the Bible says so little about him–only that he was a pious carpenter from Nazareth, although some think he was an architect, or maybe a general contractor.

Other texts that never were accepted as Scripture go into much more detail. The Protogospel of James, written about 150 A.D., says Joseph was an elderly widower when he was chosen by lot to be with Mary, who was only 12.

“I have children, and I am an old man, and she is a young girl,” Joseph protested in the account. “I am afraid, lest I become a laughingstock to the sons of Israel.”

The Legend of Joseph the Carpenter, from the 4th century, goes further, saying Joseph was a 93-year-old father of six when he met Mary and died at 111, when Jesus was about 18 years old.

The Christian gospels are less precise–Matthew calls him “a just man” who is betrothed to Mary and tempted to “send her away quietly” when she becomes pregnant with Jesus. An angel appears in a dream and convinces him to stick by the virgin.

Both Matthew and Luke trace his lineage back to King David, which provides the family pedigree necessary for Jesus to be the Messiah. Still, Jesus is dogged by questions of his legitimacy, frequently called “the son of Mary.”

“It is uncommon, and somewhat insulting, to refer in that day to a man as the son of his mother,” said Timothy Friedrichsen, assistant professor of New Testament at Catholic University. “That's sort of like calling someone a mama's boy.”

After Jesus was born, Joseph fled with the family to Egypt to escape the death sentence imposed by a paranoid King Herod. Paul Perry, author of the new book “Jesus in Egypt,” spent two years tracing local legends about the refugee family and discovered a “rousing chase scene up and down the Nile.”

“Jesus kept getting the holy family into trouble in Egypt,” Perry said. “He was destroying idols and getting them run out of town. That was a concern for Joseph because we wanted to slow down and rest easy.”

When the family returned to Israel–Perry said Jesus was probably 7–they resettled in Nazareth. Again, colorful legends emerge that never were accepted as part of the Christian canon.

Joseph is portrayed as a vexed father of an impish teenage son with super powers. In the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, the adolescent Jesus is a source of constant headaches for his father, even striking dead a teacher who threatens to whip Jesus for petulance.

“Henceforth we will not allow him to go out of the house,” Joseph says, “for everyone who displeases him is killed.”

There is no biblical mention of the family again until Jesus goes missing at age 12 and is found by Mary and Joseph instructing rabbis in the temple. From then on, Joseph is not mentioned. The popular explanation is that he died without so much as an obituary.

“I have the image of a fading picture, where a character just starts to disappear,” said Philip Sellew, a professor of New Testament at the University of Minnesota. “Eventually you look around and he's not on the stage anymore.”

Some scholars think Joseph, like other members of Jesus' family, takes a secondary role in order to keep the focus on Jesus. Others say the family was strained to the point of dysfunction because of Jesus' radical ministry.

“The truth of the matter is, we're not surprised not to hear about the demise of Joseph, because frankly, the family had little to do with Jesus,” said Ben Witherington, a professor at Asbury Theological Seminary. “Jesus was so out of the box, such a radical figure, that his family couldn't figure him out.”

The debate over Jesus' family and conflicting views on Mary's virginity are crucial to Joseph's secondary role, scholars say.

Most Protestants say it is clear that Joseph and Mary had other children after Jesus. Catholics say no, because they believe Mary was a perpetual virgin and say Jesus' siblings are actually cousins.

Orthodox Christians, meanwhile, say the siblings were Joseph's children from an earlier marriage. They refer to Joseph as “the betrothed of Mary” who never married the woman who helped incarnate God in human flesh.

“Joseph is kind of a neglected saintly figure,” said Theodore Stylianopoulos, professor of New Testament at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology. “Compared to the Roman Catholic tradition, one could talk of a silence about Joseph in Orthodoxy.”

Posted: 12/19/03

West Texas minister keeps lots of balls in the air

By Leann Callaway

Special to the Standard

LUBBOCK–At the end of his junior year at the University of Tulsa, Steve Winger was eager to head home for the summer. But as he walked outside and began to load up his car, he found something out of the ordinary.

“A friend had left a verse on my car,” he explained. “It was Proverbs 16:3, 'Commit your works to the Lord, and your plans will be established.'”

This was just the encouragement Winger needed as he applied for a summer job.

Steve Winger

“As I drove, I prayed a simple prayer committing my summer work to the Lord and asking him to establish my plans,” he said. “As I continued to drive and pray, I felt God leading me to spend my summer sharing my faith with young people.”

When Winger returned to his parents' house in St. Louis, Mo., he took a job working in the shipping department at a factory.

“As I did that job, I remembered my prayer committing my work to the Lord and asking him to establish my plans,” he said. “But I wondered what boxes and UPS men had to do with sharing my faith with young people. Then one day, there was an article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch about a summer job search, where students could place a free four-line ad in the paper that would run once a week for a month.

“On the spur of the moment, I filled out an ad that read, 'Christian youth seeks an opportunity to share his Juggling for Jesus act.'”

The next week, he received a call from a newspaper reporter who wanted to know, “What is a Juggler for Jesus?”

Winger explained his desire to share his faith with young people using the art of juggling.

“The newspaper called me back 30 minutes later asking if they could send a photographer out to my house to take some pictures,” he said. “So I found myself in my front yard having my picture taken by a news photographer. The next day, I spent eight hours throwing boxes at a UPS man. When I came home, my mom met me at the door and asked me to sit down. … I thought someone had died.

“Then she showed me our copy of the St. Louis Post Dispatch. On the front page was an article about me juggling for Jesus. In her other hand was a stack of notes from people who had called wanting me to come and juggle for their groups. In the next two and a half months, I juggled over 75 times in three different states. God had taken the simple prayer of a college student, and he had established my plans in ways I could have never dreamed of.”

Winger caught the juggling bug when he was 13 years old. “I saw a man at a carnival juggling, and I was so impressed with his abilities that I went home that night, picked apples off my tree in the backyard and started practicing,” he explained. “The joke in my family was, 'Steve's in the backyard making applesauce.'

“From those humble beginnings, I developed an increasing appreciation and love for the art of juggling. With limited talent but an abundance of passion, I applied for a position as a street performer at a local shopping center in St. Louis. I wasn't very good, but they gave me an opportunity to develop my craft. It was there that I learned to juggle and tell stories at the same time and interact with an audience. I spent Friday and Saturday nights during my high school years at the shopping mall, juggling in front of stores and entertaining the passersby.”

During his college years, Winger was asked to share the story of the prodigal son in a creative way to his peers.

“As I read the story in Luke 15, I realized I could do a juggling trick to correspond to many of the words I had just read,” he said. “In a matter of minutes, I had written a juggling version of the prodigal son story. I shared the story a few nights later, and it was very well received. There were some members of our college football team in attendance who were involved in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

“They came up to me after I was done juggling and said, 'You are going with us to the high school FCA groups to share that juggling ministry.' These guys were 6-foot-8, and they told me I was going … so I went, calling myself a Juggler for Jesus. My act consisted of only five minutes–the prodigal son story and my testimony. I was more than happy to go and share with the high school FCA groups, because it was just a few years earlier as a freshman in college that I received Christ at an FCA event.”

Today, almost 20 years after Winger committed to full-time ministry, he continues to share the message of Christ's love with all ages.

“We all have special gifts and talents, and God calls us to use these gifts to serve him and encourage others,” he noted. “I combine the arts of juggling and storytelling to present a highly visual presentation of biblical stories, truths and principles. It is an intergenerational message that touches people of all ages.”

After capturing the audience's attention, Winger stays true to his motto: “Lightening hearts while enlightening souls.”

Currently, Winger juggles a busy schedule with more than 100 events each year, including performances at Vacation Bible Schools, worship services, prison ministries, retirement homes and Upward Basketball award nights.

He also has performed internationally–in Mexico, Costa Rica and Ecuador.

This spring, he will be the featured performer at the International Children's Pastors' Conference in Atlanta. In addition to his juggling ministry, Winger serves as staff evangelist at Indiana Avenue Baptist Church in Lubbock.

“I love making people's hearts light with the humor that is built into my performance,” he said. “But most importantly, I love to tell people about Jesus and connect them to a local church.”

Posted: 12/19/03

TEXAS BAPTIST FORUM:
Claim the name

Every day, the name of Jesus becomes a “rock of offense” to more and more Americans.

In an effort to offend no one, timid church members–especially politicians–are using a new term to escape the scorn of the “politically correct.” Instead of “I'm a Christian,” it's now, “I'm a person of faith.” This brings no criticism from those who don't like the name of Jesus.

E-mail the editor at marvknox@baptiststandard.com

Saying, “I am a person of faith” is just a bit vague.

Faith in what? A rock? A tree? Faith in whom? Buddha? Confucius?

Make no mistake about it. The gates of heaven only open for those who confess Jesus.

Political platitudes won't do it.

Doug Fincher

San Augustine

21st century dream

Over 75 years ago, E.Y. Mullins, president of a large Baptist institution, had the initiative and creativity to bring together a new venture in mission work. We still are the beneficiaries of the Cooperative Program.

Now a new vision needs to be cast by BGCT leaders Charles Wade, Ken Hall, Albert Reyes and Dennis Young. Appropriately, two of these people are leaders of institutions; all have the kingdom of God as their priority. A new vision should have the feel of several initiatives:

Realigning the BGCT budget. It's time to embrace traditional Baptist entities like the Baptist University of the Americas, Truett Seminary and Logsdon School of Theology. Use the money that is going to Houston Baptist University for institutions that train ministers for our churches.

Restructuring Texas Baptist ministries and missions. Let's ask the hard questions. Where are we duplicating efforts with other organizations? How can we cut overhead and focus on missions? Can churches who want to partner with non-Texas Baptist groups send those checks directly to those bodies rather than using the BGCT as a collection and deposit agency?

Making room for the Spirit. We see its work in the lives of women and men deciding to serve vocationally in ministry. The Spirit comes through the work of Hispanic, African-American and Asian leaders who are in desperate need of resources to accomplish the dream God has given them.

Mullins' vision worked for 1925; let's cast a 21st century dream before this open door closes.

Bill Shiell

San Angelo

'Lottie' beneficiaries

Who benefits from the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering? The Southern Baptist Convention? The International Mission Board? No. The chief beneficiaries of your gifts are the lost!

Do you not like a personality in convention leadership? Think the denomination and its agencies already have enough money? Tired of “battlin' Baptists”? Got some other beef?

The lost around the world don't know or care about these things. The Lottie Moon Christmas Offering is for them. It sends and supports those who deliver good news. It provides for the Bibles, the tracts, the films, the starting of new churches.

More than a century ago, a passionate missionary in China wrote to her fellow Southern Baptists in the United States, urging them to give their lives and money sacrificially so all peoples might know Jesus Christ. Her message may be even more relevant today.

In the December 1887 edition of the Foreign Mission Journal, Lottie Moon wrote: “How many there are … who imagine that because Jesus paid it all, they need pay nothing, forgetting that the prime object of their salvation was that they should follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ in bringing back a lost world to God.”

If you love the Lord Jesus Christ and the lost who are without hope that only the Christ of Christmas can give, then please give sacrificially and significantly to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering.

They don't know it, but the lost are depending on you.

Rodney Hammer

IMB regional leader

Prague, Czechoslovakia

Response to Islam

President Bush has spoken about the fact the word for God in Arabic, “Allah,” is used by both Christians and Muslims. Both groups regard Allah as the Creator, in control of the universe and of our history. Beyond that, the two understandings of the nature of God differ drastically.

In Christianity, the basic nature of God is love. In Islam, the basic nature of God is power. In Christianity, human life is considered sacred because we are made in God's image. In Islam, human life is valued only for what it can do for God through the spread of Islam and the destruction of those who oppose it. In Christianity, God's high moral values are to be reflected in his people. In Islam, moral values are relative to the will and purpose of Allah. In Christianity, God provides salvation by grace, through faith in Jesus, the Lamb of God. In Islam, God only provides a way of salvation through obedience to his revelation through Mohammed.

Islam is a religion of peace where it is the majority religion and its rule is not threatened. Where it comes up against any other religion or threat to its territory or power to rule, it often is violent, seeking to dominate.

Our response to Islam must be compassion and love demonstrated, as we recently did, by the distribution of 45,000 boxes of food in Iraq and by serving their needs in Christ's name.

David King
Marshall

Asian vs. Asian-American

I enjoyed reading your article titled “Asians critical of LifeWay’s Rickshaw Rally VBS theme” (Dec. 8). However, I found your headline highly offensive.

The headline (although unintentional) those critical of the Rickshaw Rally program are not Americans, when in fact they are.

Would your paper mix up Africans and African-Americans? Probably not. The same should go with Asians. Asians and Asian-Americans have highly distinct cultures and heritages. People should stop mixing them up. It only causes more stereotyping, prejudices and generalizations.

The headline is an affront to the Asian-American pastors and people who disagree with the portrayal of Asia in the Rickshaw Rally curriculum.

I am either Asian-American or American. I am not Asian. As Christians, we need to be more sensitive to each other’s identities to minimize outbursts of prejudice and racism. Sadly, such insensitivity starts with how the media portrays other races.

I realize that your editors have no intention in misrepresenting Asian Americans; however, they have.

Li Chung

Evanston, Ill.

Biblical world view includes more

George Barna’s recent poll—which shows only 4 percent of American adults and 9 percent of born-again evangelical Christians (8 percent among Baptists) have a biblical worldview—is eye-opening.

Marv Knox’s editorial (Dec. 8) fills in three noticeable gaps in Barna’s worldview criteria that are helpful. However, even these additions don’t go far enough if we are to grasp what really makes up a biblically worldview-driven church and Christian life.

Doctrinally, among other things, it must recover the glory and worship of God as the church’s chief purpose; creation, fall and redemption as the church’s complete story; Jesus as the cosmic creator and redeemer Christ; the kingdom-rule of God and its total redemptive significance; the nature of the believer as a whole person, including the body; the identity of the church as the new Israel of God; and the “already but not yet” eschatological character of the church in redemptive history.

Ministerially, among other things, it must recover the historic liturgies of the church; the deeper meaning of the sacraments, baptism and communion; expository preaching that is christological and canonically contextualized; the authenticity of Christian community; the vision of Christian humanism as the goal of discipleship and spiritual formation; the Protestant doctrine of the calling and giftedness of every believer in all spheres of life and service; transformative cultural engagement; and holistic evangelism.

This kind of comprehensive biblical worldview fills in even more gaps in our understanding and living and will foster the adulthood of the church.
David Naugle
Duncanville

Scratching my head

I was amazed to read the letter scourging Baptist leaders for their support for America’s “illegal, unprovoked war” against Iraq (Dec. 8).

I expect such language from Democratic presidential candidates, but to read such words from a fellow Baptist boggles my mind.

Evil condoned and pursued by Hussein and his sons? Torture chambers and mass graves? Genocide of Iraqi and Kurdish people? Development and use of biological and chemical weapons, intentionally killing tens of thousands of Iranian soldiers and innocent Kurdish civilians? Seventeen U.N. resolutions, including the last authorizing “extreme measures,” which was approved unanimously by the Security Council? Congress voting to give the president bi-partisan authority to use military force?

I suspect the writer would have criticized Baptist leaders for supporting the Allied defeat of Nazi Germany (genocide) and imperialist Japan (Pearl Harbor).

“Turning the other cheek” never was meant to be national foreign policy. “And when your east coast is attacked, turn unto them thy west coast also.” Jesus was telling us, as born-again citizens, how to treat each other in the kingdom.

But then we find a quick slap at these same Baptist leaders for speaking out against homosexuality. Perhaps the actual focus of the letter was an attempt to silence the moral condemnation of homosexual behavior by employing the fiction of an “immoral war.”

I applaud the freedom of Americans (including Baptists) to express opinions freely, but I am also free to scratch my head at such convoluted thinking.

Rick Yount

Fort Worth

Advent resources

Your recent article on Advent (Dec. 8) made for interesting reading. Our church has observed Advent, with candles, for the last three years. It has been a blessing to our church and helped us focus on the true meaning of Christmas.

Texas Baptists don’t have to go to Oklahoma to find help in planning and celebrating Advent. An excellent book, “Worship Innovations: Hanging the Greens for Christmas,” by Janet Burton is available and published CSS Publishing Company of Lima, Ohio.

Don Doyle

Cotulla

What do you think? Submit letters for Texas Baptist Forum via e-mail to marvknox@baptiststandard.com or regular mail at Box 660267, Dallas 75266-0267. Letters must be no longer than 250 words. They may be edited to accommodate space.

Posted: 12/19/03

Louisiana College restricts textbooks

PINEVILLE, La. (ABP)–In a move that already has generated considerable outcry, Louisiana College trustees will now require college administrators to approve textbooks for classes at the Baptist school.

Previously the selection of textbooks and other classroom materials was at the sole discretion of faculty members. Trustees said the change will bring accountability to the process.

Under the new policy, approved by trustees after a lengthy executive session, all materials used at the school must be approved by department chairs and the vice president for academic affairs.

One trustee said the new policy brings the school in line with the 2000 Baptist Faith & Message, the Southern Baptist Convention's new doctrinal statement.

Two days after the trustee action, the school's faculty approved a statement warning the new policy will damage the college's reputation, devalue degree programs and hinder recruitment and fund-raising efforts.

Trustees took action after a student complained about “A Road Less Traveled” by Scott Peck and “A Lesson Before Dying” by Ernest Gaines.

The new policy is “manifestly impossible,” said Thomas Howell, chair of the history department. “There is no conceivable way to review all the materials. There is no other way but to trust our faculty members to use good professional judgment on these kinds of things.”

Meanwhile, opponents of the new policy organized a candlelight vigil near the Pineville campus.

The issue of textbook approval surfaced in September when university President Rory Lee removed two books from the college bookstore after complaints from a student. The books–“A Road Less Traveled” by Scott Peck and “A Lesson Before Dying” by Ernest Gaines–are considered modern classics in many circles and had been used for several years in a values class. The complaining student noted the Peck book contains profane words and the Gaines novel includes a love scene.

A single complaint should not be enough to get a book pulled, one student told the local newspaper. “Only one student had a problem with the book out of all the years they've used it,” Dale de Perrodil said. “'The Road Less Traveled' is an excellent text.”

Lee acknowledged he ordered the removal of the books without following the established procedure, which provides for students to be assigned alternative readings for materials they find objectionable.

The incident prompted a trustee review of the textbook-selection process.

Fred Malone, chair of the trustee academic affairs committee, said the old policy provided “literally no academic governance or oversight” in the selection of materials. As established, faculty members do not have to submit textbooks or materials for review by anyone, he said.

The changes, which took effect immediately, assign “primary” responsibility to faculty members but require additional approval farther up the academic and administrative ladder. Malone said the new policy falls in line with the 2000 Baptist Faith & Message because it provides the balance of academic freedom and academic responsibility called for in the doctrinal statement.

Posted: 12/19/03

POSITIVE CHARGE:
Interstate Batteries' Norm Miller

Norm Miller is chairman of the board of Interstate Batteries System of America and is widely known for his appearances at NASCAR racing events with driver Bobby LaBonte and the race car sponsored by Interstate. More than that, however, he is an outspoken Christian. A one-time alcoholic, he testifies to God's power to change people's lives. Miller is a member of the Dallas Theological Seminary board, the Dallas Seminary Foundation and the Overseas Council. He is co-founder of the Great American Race, a premier vintage car event. He and his wife, Anne, have two children, Tracey and Scott, and five grandchildren. They attend Highland Park Presbyterian Church in Dallas.

Q.

What are your responsibilities as chairman of the board of Interstate Batteries?

Primarily what I am doing is looking ahead, seeing where Interstate can grow and where we can do better and kind of being an out-front-looking person. Of course, we have our board meetings every few months where I preside and look at our plans and how we are stacking up.

Norm Miller

Q.

How did you get to be chairman of the board, and when was that?

I went to work for the founder, John Searcy, in 1965. Prior to that, I had been a distributor for Interstate with my dad in Memphis, Tenn. Mr. Searcy talked to my Dad about joining him. I was fortunate. He was 22 years my senior and was my mentor. I worked with him, and he trained me from 1965 to 1972. Then he decided he wanted to make a buy/sell agreement with me. And graciously, he made it with me in 1972, and it had a 10-year mandatory enactment, meaning I could buy the company in 1982. However, he elected to exercise the option earlier, so in 1978 he elected the option for him to sell his stock and for me to buy controlling interest. I became chairman of the board in 1978.

Q.

Do you ever miss your old selling days?

Oh, some, because you're out there in the midst of it all and know what all is going on. But it's also a lot of work, and there is some rejection. Some people turn you down. But it also was a lot of fun because you had immediate response. At the end of the week, you knew things had gone well or they hadn't.

Q.

What college did you attend and what was your major?

I went to North Texas State University and graduated in general business in January 1962.

Q.

What did you plan to do at the time?

My father had a service station and garage in Galveston for 20 years but had sold it and was looking at some new business ventures. He had one that was coming to fruition, and he had asked me if I wanted to join him in it. But by the time I got out of college, it had fallen through. I met a fellow my brother knew and with him starting selling World Book Encyclopedias. I did that until I could figure out what to do. My dad knew some people with Interstate, and he asked me to come to Dallas. We talked to Mr. Searcy and took an Interstate Battery distributorship in Memphis in 1962.

Q.

By any measure, you are very successful. To what do you think you owe your success?

First, of course, to the grace of God. He has given me the gift of creativity in marketing. Also a major thing is Mr. Searcy really trained me in just doing it, the application of what we knew was right and getting out there and trying real hard and staying late, using our brain to make it all better. I tried to do things better and faster, being tenacious and diligent. I guess that's it–start early and stay late and do the best you can while you're out there.

Q.

Interstate Batteries seemed to emerge overnight. One day, it seemed, no one had ever heard of Interstate Batteries, and the next day they were everywhere. How did that happen?

We did not advertise. We were out building the distribution system door to door. I sold the batteries myself, going up and down the streets. I counted it up one time, and I did it in 43 states. I would go into an area and work for a week, all day every day, going into places that sold batteries and talking to them about selling ours. With a couple of us doing that 25 or 30 weeks a year–we went from that to 60 people going out every-other week from Dallas calling on service stations, garages, car dealers, marinas, recreational vehicle dealers. If you have 60 people going out and making 100 calls a week and if they can set up 20 accounts, that's 1,200 accounts every-other week. All of a sudden, that's 25,000 accounts in one year, which was about what we did at our maximum. At this time, we have 200,000 wholesale stocking accounts, serviced regularly by our trucks. We have probably set up out of Dallas 165,000 of those ourselves. It took a number of years. I was on the road like that for nine years. I spent a lot of man hours on the street. I called it fullback up the middle. You get three yards and then go back and get three more.

Q

. Aside from material things, how has your life been changed by your success?

I guess my life has been changed by success in the ability to explore all different kinds of cultures. I have been able to go to a lot of places while on mission trips and visiting resorts. Most of it has been related to my Christian faith. It has given me an ability to participate in different ministries and get to know different people. It has expanded my range of relationships in the body of Christ, from paupers to presidents. God has allowed me to participate in both ends and all points in the middle. It's been a wonderful life of experiences.

Q.

What kinds of advice have you given to your kids about how to make it in the business world?

That's funny. I have two children, a daughter and a son. My daughter was never interested in the battery business. My son was not interested in it early and said he never would be, but he has been in business with me now for upwards of 15 years. I always told them to be happy, to do what they wanted to do and to give a day's work for a day's wages. I never was concerned. I saw they both were intelligent and if they worked they would be able to make a living, and whatever they did would be all right with me.

Q.

If you weren't in the battery business, what would you be doing?

I've thought about that. A number of years ago, I said if I wasn't in the battery business I would sell insurance. Everybody is a potential customer, and they are right at hand. There's no traveling involved, and you don't need a warehouse for your goods. As long as you have a policy, you have a product to sell, and once it is sold you earn a commission that not only pays today and tomorrow but has a long-term payout. There's a good accumulation of money to effort. I have enjoyed the battery business, but if I weren't selling batteries, I would probably be dealing in insurance or maybe mutual funds.

Q.

What role has religious faith played in your life?

I became a Christian in May 1974 when I was 35. At that age, I had already reached my goals I had set in college, but I considered myself an empty failure in regard to happiness and anxious about life. A friend began to tell me about the word of God. I challenged him to prove to me that it was the word of God. I began to study to see if a person of intellect could accept it. I studied not the Bible but ancient manuscripts and archaeology and looked at the fulfillment of prophecy. It was too much. Then I began to study the Bible to see what it said to me. I realized I was a sinner in rebellion against God, that his Son, Jesus, had paid the price for my sins and was a bridge to God. I embraced Christ as my Lord and Savior in 1974, and he is my Lord and Savior. That has given me freedom, peace and joy and an ability to love people where before I had liked people but was shallow and cold, and I saw them as here today and gone tomorrow. My relationship with Christ has changed my heart. It has been a great adventure and a wonderful fulfillment.

Q.

How do you apply your Christianity to the way you do business?

Simply said, I try to treat others the way we want to be treated. God in Scripture says we are to consider others' interests before we consider our own. In doing that, I have to ask how would I want to be treated. Not only do I feel that is God's mandate and the wisest way to do business, if I can meet their needs and make them happy in a reasonable financial relationship, they are going to be happy with me and take care of us.

Q.

Is it difficult to be a Christian and successful, hard-charging businessman?

I don't think so. The issue is if you are going to trust God in your life or not. My brother–who joined me in 1969–and I made the decision we would try to operate our company in the way God would expect. We had to ask how far to go with the Christian aspect. We saw that if we carried it too far we could offend people, our employees could quit or we might get sued by the government. We decided to pray about it and came across Matthew 10:28, where we are told to fear not, but if we feared anyone to fear someone who can do something to you after you are dead. We concluded that if we were going to make someone unhappy, we didn't want it to be God. We prayed and asked God to help us to be a great witness for him but at the same time to be perfectly bold and perfectly sensitive so we wouldn't offend anyone. We prayed, “Thy will be done.” It's going on 25 years now, and he has allowed us to be successful and at the same time I pray that we are winsome inside and outside the church.

Q.

Are you a NASCAR fan aside from your business interests in car racing?

I wasn't before. We got into the NASCAR thing because we thought it would be a good way to advertise. But once you get into it and you get to know the drivers and crew chiefs, you become a fan.

Q.

How difficult is it to be a Christian in the business of motorsports.

Not difficult at all. They have a chaplain, a ministry every Sunday. There is a church in the garage area where 25 to 35 drivers and their crew chiefs attend. It's all Christ-centered. We sing hymns, worship together. A great many involved are Christ-believers and honor God in everything they do.

Q.

Who are heroes in your life?

I always can say Joe Gibbs. I met him in 1995. He tries to live for the Lord and applies himself to it at all times. He uses every opportunity, uses his platform and do it in a way that is winsome to advance his faith. I read Oswald Chambers every morning and also writings of Charles Spurgeon, Chuck Swindoll, Charles Colson and Luis Palau.

Interview by Toby Druin