Posted: 9/29/06

WorldconneX links layman’s
vision with village’s need

By David Williams

WorldconneX

PASADENA—A Texas Baptist layman wanted to provide a water well for someone in another country. A village in Kenya needed a source for water. And the WorldconneX missions network matched the resource to the need through Buckner Orphan Care International.

It started when Lee Vaughn, a retired oil company worker, approached retired missionary John Mills, who teaches adult Sunday school at South Main Baptist Church in Pasadena.

“He came to me simply knowing that we had been missionaries in West Africa and was interested in giving money to provide a well,” said Mills, who had served as West Africa regional leader with the Southern Baptist Foreign Mission Board.

Vaughn explained he had received a small inheritance and wanted to use it to help someone by providing a water well.

“When I was a kid, I had to carry water about a quarter of a mile,” Vaughn said. “So, I feel for people who have to do that, and I know how important it is to have good, clean water.”

Vaughn previously had donated a well to an orphanage in Mexico, but this time he was having some trouble finding a channel for making his gift. He hoped to provide the well somewhere in Africa.

Vaughn asked Mills for suggestions. Mills, in turn, talked to their pastor, Ron Lyles, who suggested they contact WorldconneX for help.

“I called WorldconneX in Dallas,” Mills said. “They came up with the idea that Buckner was doing a project that would need a well.”

The connection came through a series of events in rapid succession, which participants saw as God’s hand at work. Victor Upton, WorldconneX systems support leader, was traveling in Kenya when he first received an e-mail alerting him to look for a well project in Africa.

The next morning, Upton had breakfast with Randy Daniels, Buckner’s director of international programs, who was in Kenya to check on a child-development center Buckner was building in a nearby village.

“Victor mentioned this potential donor who wanted to do a well somewhere in the world and, I said, ‘What about right here?’” Daniels recalled.

He told Upton about the project in Busia, one of five early childhood education centers Buckner is developing in rural areas of Kenya. In addition to serving about 75 children, the facility also will serve as a community center and a staging area for missions efforts such as humanitarian aid, training, camps and Vacation Bible Schools.

Upton told Vaughn about the opportunity, and then put him in touch with Daniels at Buckner. A few days later, Vaughn sent a check to cover the $13,000 well project.

Buckner has drawn up plans for the well and is in the process of securing a contract for the work.

“The well will absolutely invigorate this place,” Daniels said. “That well will not only serve the child development center, but also that local community, which for the most part does not have access to water.”

Vaughn had heard of Buckner, knew of its reputation and was pleased to be making his contribution through them.

“The main idea is to win lost people to Christ,” Vaughn said.

“It gives the missionaries a way to get in. When the people see what is being done for them, the missionaries can talk to them and win them to Christ. That’s the main idea.”

Posted: 9/29/06

CYBER COLUMN:
Perfect lawn

By Berry Simpson

I have been reading a book I found on the new-book shelf at the Midland County Library, American Green: The Obsessive Quest for the Perfect Lawn, by Ted Steinberg. One amazing fact I’ve learned: Americans spend an estimated $40 billion a year on lawn care.

Steinberg would be disappointed to know that the Simpson family doesn’t have a lawn in the front yard; at least, not a conventional turf-grass lawn. Some years ago, we replaced our grass with a variety of ground covers that some former neighbors might say is nothing but “a big science fair experiment.” The reason we did it was because we wanted something different and more interesting, and because I decided I was sick of mowing. We were successful. Our yard is interesting, if confusing, and I only mow the front yard once a year when Cyndi makes me cut down the Vinca after the daisies have dropped their flowers.

We do have grass in our back yard, however, but only because we have a dog who lives back there and needs grass as part of her environment. Her name is Lady, and she is a Golden Labrador who hates the water and refuses to retrieve (glaring weaknesses in the world of Labrador Retrievers). But she like to run long distances with Cyndi. She’s run over 10 miles on many occasions. Now, she’s suffering the effects of old age, and her body can’t run as well as her mind thinks it can. I can relate to that. (She shows no interest in reading my journals, or in much of anything I have to say for that matter, so I know she won’t mind my mentioning her.)

So we have a back lawn for Lady’s sake. And this summer it’s looked better than it’s looked in years because, well it’s rained a lot lately, and that makes a big difference. But besides that, it was mowed every week all summer. In previous summers, we were out of town so much or I was sick of mowing in 100-degree heat so much the lawn often went three or four weeks between mowings, and it always looked pathetic. Lawns need more attention than I was prepared to give, and our back yard suffered because of me.

But at the beginning of this summer, I learned that my good friend Todd was leaving his lucrative job as a physics teacher and coach and looking for work in the private sector. While he was job hunting; he intended to mow lawns for extra money, and I felt called to help him and his young family by hiring him to mow my lawn every Wednesday. Some may’ve thought that I was taking advantage of Todd’s plight and simply “dodging work,” but I stuck to my commitment and contributed to Todd’s new life all summer long. And our nicely manicured lawn shows the happy results.

We have a mixture of Bermuda grass and St. Augustine grass in the back yard. We used to have a lot of dense Bermuda when the kids were young until our pet rabbits ate it all right down to the dirt. So I replanted and we soon had another dense Bermuda lawn until our Honey Locust trees got big enough to shade-out much of the grass. I didn’t mind the shading effect, and, in fact, I took advantage of it with frequent naps in my hammock. But then the trees died of old age and bores, and I lost my treasured shade, and the grass never grew back to its previous lushness—I think out of sympathy.

The St. Augustine came from our neighbor to the south who one year went crazy and redid his entire back yard. His St. Augustine was so aggressive in its search for new territory it crept under the wooden fence separating our yards and invaded my spotty Bermuda. It steadily moved north and has, of date, conquered half of our backyard. I’m OK with that. I want grass that is happy to be there and ambitious enough to seize the territory, not has-been grass still pouting over old glory days, even if I myself an still pouting over the loss of my hammock shade.

Ted Steinberg quoted Abraham Levitt, creator of the first great planned suburb, Levittown, on Long Island, and pioneer in the American quest for the perfect lawn, who said: “Grass is the very foundation of life.” Well, maybe it is. I have a complicated relationship with my lawn. I want it to look nice and friendly and inviting and pretty, but I don’t want to spend any time working on it. I’d rather lay in my hammock in the shade and read a book.

“I run in the path of Your commands, for You have set my heart free” (Psalm 119:32).

Berry Simpson, a Sunday school teacher at First Baptist Church in Midland, is a petroleum engineer, writer, runner and member of the city council in Midland. You can contact him through e-mail at berry@stonefoot.org.

Posted: 9/29/06

Church arguments spilling
out into blogs and websites

By Hannah Elliott

Associated Baptist Press

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (ABP)—Bellevue Baptist Church is on the cutting edge of a growing trend—at least when it comes to conflict. Like members from several other prominent churches nationwide, congregants at the Memphis-area megachurch are using websites and blogs to post details about ongoing dissent within the ranks.

But do such high-tech tactics empower church members to address conflict or merely make the conflict worse while airing a church's dirty laundry to the world?

The issue at Bellevue involves Pastor Steve Gaines and a group of longtime church members, who say he’s receiving an inappropriately high salary, is pushing the church toward an elder-led system and has forced out a popular music director.

Others have said Gaines uses intimidation and arrogance as his main method of operation. Still more say they feel it’s too soon to change the 30,000-member church after the 2005 death of legendary pastor Adrian Rogers. Gaines, along with a strong contingent behind him, has denied the allegations.

As part of their protest, Bellevue members created www.bellevuetruth.blogspot.com and www.savingbellevue.com, which includes letters from members, a transcript of an interview with a concerned deacon, and links to sites of churches in comparable straits. As of Sept. 26, the site had received more than 90,000 hits.

Across town at Germantown Baptist Church, and hundreds of miles away at Montrose Baptist Church in Rockville, Md., congregants have faced similar divisions and used similar methods to disseminate information and garner support. At First Baptist Church in Colleyville, bloggers brought scrutiny to financial dealings that led to the pastor's resignation.

All four church conflicts involved conservative churches divided over leadership style and use of authority. But the trend to take those battles to cyberspace is not limited to churches of a particular political stripe.

In Germantown, member Clark Finch helped organize www.savegbc.com to rally members against instituting elder rule at the 9,000-member church. Finch and other opponents used the anti-elder website to enlist historians, professors and laypeople to save their church “from the improper use of elders,” Finch said. He supports “leading elders” but not “ruling elders,” a role he said constitutes a dangerous departure from biblical descriptions of the office. So far, the opposition to elder-rule has held sway.

In Rockville, confusion about financial conflicts of interest caused the apparent need for an alternative information source—a website called “Friends of Montrose Baptist” at www.montrosebaptist.org. The site was instrumental in communication between church members during the scandal.

Although pastor Ray Hope resigned in 2002 after church leaders investigated his involvement in recruiting students to attend the church’s school, the website still posts chats, news and reviews for “those who have been wacked-upside-the-head [sic] with the 2×4 of spiritual abuse, but still love God.”

Blog and website proponents claim they need the online vehicle to level the playing field. The technology lets them publish information—like church financial statements or proposed bylaws—that would otherwise be hidden by dictatorial pastors and elders. Supporters also say blogs are necessary to distribute information actively blocked by other, more conventional channels. Some supporters say opposing factions within a church need a forum to communicate their concerns.

William Thornton, an Atlanta resident who has not met Bellevue pastor Gaines, wrote on www.Baptistlife.com that the pastor had been not only inept at dealing with direct criticism, but he lacked the skills to deal with online criticism as well.

“I think it's the same old story of blogging being ignored until it is recognized that thousands of people are reading one side of a story,” Thornton wrote. “Gaines might [do well to] drive across town and talk to Sam Shaw at Germantown Baptist, who was skewered by bloggers and websites on a church proposal that was defeated and eventually led to his resignation.”

Bob Perry, congregational-health team leader of the Baptist General Convention of Missouri, disagrees with the need to use blogs as weapons. Perry said that blogging about denominational politics on a national level is useful to inform mass audiences via a broad medium—bloggers recently helped effect reforms in the Southern Baptist Convention and its North American Mission Board—but it’s unacceptable, he continued, to use blogs for conflict revsolution in individual churches.

“I think at the local church level, it is very, very wrong,” Perry said. “I just can’t imagine that there’s any real value to this.”

Christians should use biblical models for resolving conflict, like the 18th chapter of Matthew, he added. If dissenters need a forum, Perry said, use the church directory to mail correspondence to relevant people, or have large church meetings. Just don’t advertise the problem on the Internet.

“I think a part of what’s implied in (Matthew) is that one of the principles you use is don’t let the resolution process spread the conflict to a broader audience than it had to begin with,” he said. “I think blogging is one giant violation of that principle.”

Perry also noted a passage in First Corinthians where the Apostle Paul exhorts followers to avoid settling disputes in secular courts. He said the principle there applies to blogging about church conflict, which places an internal church dispute on the Internet so “it is laid out before a whole unbelieving world.”

“God only knows the damage it does to the cause of Christ,” Perry said. “You’ve got people reading blogs in India and China—folks we are hoping to evangelize. And they are reading about local disputes in Baptist churches. I think it’s just very unhealthy.”

On the other hand, Joe Deupree believes knowledge is power, especially when it comes to church conflicts. Deupree was instrumental in generating, among other outlets, online media coverage during alleged improprieties at First Baptist Church of Colleyville. Bloggers picked up the links, and Pastor Frank Harber resigned Aug. 18 after months of online and print queries about questionable real estate transactions involving the church.

An independent audit revealed no questionable financial practices, church members learned Sept. 24 at an annual business meeting. Still, the Internet made the Colleyville group successful in the “educational process” that finally ousted Harber, Deupree said.

“My thought on religion is that it should be completely open. Hopefully, we have left our secret societies and medieval hidden messages” behind, he said. “It’s better to be completely transparent than let people wonder what you’re trying to hide.”

Deupree said there are some parameters for proper Internet use amid church conflict, however.

“Be sure anything you put in there is factual, and if there is any doubt, don’t do it,” Deupree said. “Anything you get off other sites, give it a check with two or three sources.”

Posted: 9/28/06

BaptistWay Bible Series for October 8

The joy of worshipping together

• Psalm 84

By David Wilkinson

Broadway Baptist Church, Fort Worth

Years ago, when our family lived in Nashville, my friend Gerry called me on a Thursday night to tell me his wife had the flu, leaving him with a ticket to the homecoming game at his beloved alma mater, the University of Georgia. I like football, so I was delighted to go along for the ride. But I was unprepared for my introduction to “Dawg” devotion.

As any bona fide college football fan would readily attest, game day begins long before kickoff. In this case, the anticipation began as soon as we headed south for the drive to Atlanta. It gathered momentum throughout the evening at the home of Gerry’s former college roommate, where all conversation after “hello” was devoted to the glories of UGA football.

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By mid-morning the next day, the anticipation had reached full speed. Although the campus in Athens was only an hour away, the pilgrimage from the Atlanta suburbs began five hours before kickoff.

We ate lunch at a local restaurant packed with red-clad fans. After squeezing into the campus bookstore to buy UGA sweatshirts and other paraphernalia for Gerry’s children, we began the long walk to the stadium, joining one of the multiple streams of boisterous fans converging into a sea of red.

An hour later, as the Bulldogs’ kicker approached the ball for kickoff, I stared in amazement as Jerry—a brilliant physician and otherwise intelligent human being—rose with the throng and barked at the top of his lungs.

After reading Psalm 84 with its description of the joy of worship, I wondered: What if Christians approached our Sunday morning gatherings with as much anticipation and exuberance as those Georgia football fans?

Familiar notes

Throughout our study of the Psalms, it may be helpful to return to previous passages to be reminded of the prominent themes and larger purposes of this inspired collection of poetry, song and prayer.

The language of Psalm 84 reverberates with familiar themes encountered in earlier lessons. The longing for God’s presence (v. 2) echoes the opening lines of Psalm 42. The series of beatitudes (vv. 4, 5 and 12) picks up the refrain with which the book of Psalms begins (1:1). The love for the house of God (vv. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 10) and the rituals of worship are reminiscent of Psalms 22:22, 25; 23:6; 27:4; 42:4; 43:4; and 73:17.

Pleas and praise for God’s provision and protection, including the images of God as sun and shield (v. 11), repeat the notes of Psalms 1:6, 3:3; 22:4-5; 23:4; and 27:1, 5. The contrast of God’s care for the righteous and judgment of the wicked (vv. 10-11) returns to a familiar theme found in Psalms 1; 3:7-8; and 73:27-28.

First and foremost, however, this is a psalm of worship. The language of praise and worship, especially as expressed in the form of music (v. 4), captures the spirit of the Psalter as the hymnal of God’s people (Psalms 13:6, 27:6; 42:4; and 43:4).

Psalm 84 often is classified as a hymn of praise to Zion (with Psalms 46, 48, 76, 87 and 122), but it also belongs in spirit to the collection of pilgrim songs (Psalms 120-134). It also can be paired with Psalms 42-43. While the latter speak of the thirst for God, Psalm 84 testifies to the fulfillment of that yearning in the joy of being in the presence of God.

Sacred space

The psalmist’s six-fold references to the sanctuary or temple—from God’s “dwelling place” (v. 1) to “the house of my God” (v. 10)—offer an important reminder of the importance of “place” in the worship of God. God’s Spirit may be everywhere, but that does not mean God is placeless. God comes to us in time and space. Our sanctuaries, our places of worship, are made holy by God’s presence.

In the spirit of the Old Testament’s description of worshippers in joyful procession to the temple, we go to worship God as a community of believers who gather for that purpose. As Old Testament scholar James L. Mays reminds us: “God dwells in heaven, but he has place on earth. We ‘go’ to God. Every visit to a temple or church or meeting of believers is in a profound sense a pilgrimage. We ‘go,’ not just for practical or personal reasons; we go theologically.”

When we go in the spirit of the psalmist, we go with joy. The psalmist’s longing for “the courts of the Lord” (v. 2) and his joy in worshiping in the house of God (vv. 2, 4 and 10) echo the familiar refrain of Psalm 122:1: “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord!’”

They also challenge our tepid appreciation for the centrality of corporate worship in the life of faith. Indeed, the psalmist’s yearning stands in stark contrast to our frequent reluctance to get out of bed on Sunday morning to “go to church.”

Language of worship

The psalmist’s use of various terms for God—“Lord of hosts” (vv. 1, 3 and 12), “Lord God of hosts” (v. 8), “God of gods” (v. 7), and “God of Jacob” (v. 8)—represents more than creative use of synonyms. The language speaks to the vast richness of God’s nature, to God’s sovereignty and to God’s covenant relationship with the people of Israel.

In the mystery of God’s love for us, we worship not only the God of the universe and the God of time and eternity, but also the God who is our God. God is both the subject and object of our worship. As such, genuine worship calls for giving our whole selves, our “heart and flesh,” to God (v. 2).

Out of this spirit and understanding of genuine worship, the psalmist declares he would rather have a single day standing at the mere threshold of the house of God (in keeping with the literal meaning of the phrase, “I would rather be a doorkeeper”) than a thousand days spent elsewhere (v. 10). May the psalmist’s experience of the irreplaceable place of worship be true for each of us.

Discussion questions

• In what ways does this psalm call you to the purpose of worship?

• Does the psalmist’s exclamation of sheer joy in anticipation of worship resonate with your experience? Why or why not?

• Try substituting the name of your church for each of the psalm’s references to the house of God (verses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 10). Does this express your attitude toward worship?

Posted: 9/28/06

Bible Studies for Life Series for October 8

Take hold of godliness in action and attitude

• 1 Timothy 4:6-16

By Kenneth Lyle

Logsdon School of Theology, Abilene

A little over a year ago, my then 15-year-old-son, Walker, suffered an injury to his left shoulder while playing football. Four weeks earlier he had suffered the same injury to his right shoulder. After the first injury, he spent four weeks in physical therapy rehabbing his right shoulder. He spent hours exercising and reconditioning his right shoulder. After four weeks, the doctor said he was OK to play.

On the first day back to practice, Walker suffered the same injury to his left shoulder. This time the shoulder required surgery. The surgery and subsequent rehab effectively ended Walker’s football season.

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Walker went into off-season workouts with a renewed enthusiasm to be ready for the next football season. He ran, lifted weights, participated in agility training, ate the right foods, drank the right shakes and by all accounts seemed ready for the fall.

On the third day of pre-season workouts, Walker twisted his knee during a drill and strained his anterior cruciate ligament. Not a tear, but enough to keep him out of practice for several weeks. After much thought, Walker made the decision not to play football.

Walker’s story provides an apt athletic metaphor about the relative value of being prepared physically. No matter how much a person trains for the athletic event, there still is the possibility of failure and injury.

In 1 Timothy 4:6-16, Paul centers his encouragement to Timothy on an athletic metaphor in order to draw a powerful and necessary distinction between physical preparedness and spiritual preparedness. Paul does not dismiss the need for physical exercise, but he urges Timothy to engage in the kind of training regime that leads to an evident and admirable godliness. The lesson bids us to “Take Hold of Godliness,” by developing and demonstrating godly lifestyles.

The background passages for this lesson are instructive. Paul spends a great deal of time in chapters 2 and 3 describing a vision of life within the church. Paul offers advice about the nature of prayer (2:1-15), proper dress and deportment (3:9-10), and the qualifications for bishops (3:1-7) and deacons (3:8-13).

At the end of this section, Paul offers a word of explanation to Timothy: “Although I hope to come to you soon, I am writing you these instructions so that if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:14-15). Clearly, Paul demonstrates a primary concern for what the church, the household of God, should not just look like, but what it should act like.

In that context, Paul sets out to describe to Timothy what his role should be within the household of God. In last week’s focal passage, Paul encouraged Timothy to “Take Hold of Truth.” Here, Paul continues that thought with a further description of the kind of false teaching Timothy might face.

Paul tells Timothy that, “If you point these things out … you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, brought up in the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed” (4:6). The preceding verses provide the content of the “these things” of verse 6.

Paul describes a belief system which disparages marriage and forbids the eating of certain foods. Paul describes the adherents and dispensers of these teachings as “hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron (4:2).

While specific identification of these “false teachers” is not possible, it seems likely they represent a gnostic tendency within the church that drew strong distinctions between the body and the spirit, and often misplaced emphasis on either ascetic or libertine practices. Here the focus of the false teachers seems to be on what a person must give up in order to achieve super spiritual status.

Paul rebuts the erroneous conclusions of these false teachers and offers a clever counter argument and substitute regime. Paul reminds Timothy that “everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving … (4:4). Paul essentially argues it is not food or marriage that should be avoided, but rather the “godless myths and old wives tales” (4:7) which are the source of poor spiritual nutrition.

Paul not only argues for proper spiritual nourishment; he also prescribes a regime of spiritual training. Paul adapts a proverbial saying about the relative value of physical training, which in its original context would have supported the intellectual life over the athletic life.

It is important to note that Paul does not here disparage physical exercise in favor of the spiritual disciplines. His point is that “godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come” (4:8). Physical exercise is beneficial and provides benefits visible in this life—likewise the disciplines of prayer, Bible study and worship. Paul also wants Timothy to grasp the eternal and abundant benefits of a godly life.

Chapter 4 concludes with a call for Timothy to demonstrate godliness in both internal and external ways. Paul reminds Timothy of the gift of God’s grace that needs to be demonstrated “in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity” (v. 12); but he also encourages Timothy to practice “public reading of scripture … preaching … and teaching” (v. 13). It is important to acknowledge that Paul does not just encourage displays of godliness as an end; rather, Paul recognizes power of a godly life to make disciples (vv. 15-16). Paul wants to make clear Timothy’s role in the household of God. Timothy, by his very life, is to demonstrate a winsome godliness that benefits those around him.

Discussion questions

• What kinds of behaviors are usually held up as examples in the life of the church? What kinds should be?

• Are there “godless myths and old wives tales” that get too much attention in church?

• How do we balance the need for internal expression of spiritual discipline with the requirement for and external demonstration of godliness?

Posted: 9/28/06

Explore the Bible Series for October 8

Christian maturity is not accidental

• Hebrews 5:11-6:12

By Howard Anderson

Diversified Spiritual Associates, San Antonio

The writer of Hebrews was discouraged because the Jewish believers could not grasp Christ’s high priesthood. They could not grasp the basic truths, apply them, and by constant application, go on to maturity. These Christians are immature and “slow to learn” not having grasped even the elementary truths of the gospel. To be mature is to evolve toward full development. Immaturity is a lack of growth and development.

Description of immaturity (Hebrews 5:11-14)

The writer to the Hebrews deals with the difficulties that confront him in attempting to get across an adequate conception of Christianity to listeners who are “dull of hearing.” The writer is complaining about the quality of their faith. They were slow-moving in mind, lazy in understanding, dull of hearing and illogically forgetful.

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True Christian faith should culminate in growing knowledge. He is about to start into the very heart of his epistle—that Jesus is “a high priest after the order of Melchizedek” (v. 10); but he finds it hard to speak, for his readers should understand, and they do not.

These Jewish believers were Christians for some years. The mere passage of time, if saving faith is at work, should have led them through many experiences of the goodness of God to an advanced knowledge of divine matters. Every believer is to be a teacher (2 Timothy 3:15). If these Hebrews really had obeyed the gospel of Christ, they would have been passing on that message to others. This is our Christian responsibility in the church.

Knowledge without obedience does not advance a person. By rejecting saving faith, the Hebrews were regressing in their understanding concerning the Messiah. They had been exposed to the gospel long enough to be teaching it to others but were babies, too infantile and unskilled to comprehend, let alone teach, the truth of God. “The word of righteousness” (v. 13) is the message about the righteousness of Christ that we have by faith (Romans 3:21-22) rather than works.

In verse 14, “of full age” refers to the completion that comes when one becomes a believer in Christ, rather than referring to a Christian who has become mature. Jesus invited unbelieving Jews to the salvation that came only through following him in faith (Matthew 19:21). Those who come to Jesus Christ by faith are mature and able to receive the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 2:6). The immature person’s righteousness is not in Christ (Phillippians 3:2-20).

Directions to the immature (Hebrews 6:1-8)

The writer to the Hebrews was certain of the need for progress in the Christian life. Teachers would get far if they had to lay the foundations all over again every time they began to teach. “Let us go on unto perfection” does not imply complete knowledge but certain maturity in the Christian faith. As we grow older, we should be able to think for ourselves. We should be able to say better who we believe Jesus Christ to be. We should have a deeper grasp of the facts and the significances of the Christian faith.

As a person grows older, there should be more and more of the reflection of Christ upon him or her. In our daily faith walk, we should be eradicating ourselves of old faults and achieving new virtues. There can be no standing still in the Christian life—the person who ceases to be better ceases to be good.

The Christian life begins with repentance that is literally a change of mind. The person has a new attitude toward God, humankind, life and self. It is repentance from dead works. Coming to Jesus Christ, we realize our works had nothing to do with salvation or the life Jesus offers. We turn away from ”works righteousness” in the Christian life as well. Our achievement of salvation is by the grace of God.

Baptism is by total immersion in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Laying on of hands is the sign of setting apart to some special office or ordination. Resurrection from the dead and eternal judgment summarize the believer’s hope.

Encouragement for maturing (Hebrews 6:9-12)

This is the only passage in the whole letter where the writer addresses his people as “beloved.” The writer was yearning over humankind, as God himself does. We discover that even if the people to whom he is writing have failed to grow up in Christian faith and knowledge and even if they have been falling away from their first enthusiasm, they have never given up their practical service to their fellow Christians.

Sometimes in the Christian life, we come to times that are barren; the church services have nothing to say to us, the teaching we do in Sunday school or the singing we do in the choir or the service we give in a ministry becomes a labor without joy.

At such a time, there are two alternatives. We can give up our worship and our service, but if we do, we are lost. On the other hand, we can go determinedly on with them, and the strange thing is that the light, romance and joy will return. In the barren times, the best thing to do is to go on with the habits of the Christian life and of the church. If we do, we can be sure the sun will shine again.

Christians who are mature should be imitators of those who through faith and patience inherited the promise. Our challenge is to go in the realization that others have gone through the struggle and won the victory. The mature Christian is not treading an untraveled pathway, but are treading where the saints have gone ahead of him.

Discussion questions

• How can you ensure your Christian maturity?

• Is the maturity of others in the body of Christ your responsibility as well?

Posted: 9/25/06

CYBER COLUMN:
Striving for excellence to please God

By Jeanie Miley

On a warm fall Saturday night, I attended a concert put on by some of the most highly trained ministers of music in the country. The Centurymen is what they are called, and I’m pretty sure they are some of the best singers in the whole world. (They looked pretty handsome in their tuxes, too.)

I sat near the front, and so I got to watch the accompanists closely. I loved watching them do what they do. I felt so blessed, watching one of the world’s great choral conductors, a genius among us, conduct those professional musicians in a concert that made chills run up and down my spine over and over.

I could not stop smiling, just from the sheer joy and privilege of being in the presence of musicians who are sublimely talented, uncommonly committed to their craft and willing to endure a lifetime of rigorous discipline. The beneficiary of their gifts, I experienced God’s love and grace through them, measure after measure, song after glorious song.

About halfway through the concert, I couldn’t stop the tears of gladness. “This excellence in church music,” I thought to myself, “is one of the things I value most and love best from my Baptist heritage.”

Riding home with friends who grew up Baptist like I did, we talked about some of the things we value most about our heritage, and excellent church music was one of the things each of us said was essential to the faith development and the strength of faith we experienced.

Some of us talked about times when we had been exposed to a highly trained choral director, organist or pianist who had inspired us to stretch a little more in order to aim just a little higher and develop whatever natural talent we might have had because excellence was what God expected of us.

Some of us had stories of teachers and mentors who pushed us more than we enjoyed at the time to “study to show ourselves approved unto God” in an era when it was a good thing to do your best, excel in school and aim for excellence. Each of us had someone who demanded excellence from us at a tender time in our lives, expecting us to give more than we knew we could give.

Each of us remembered how we were taught the parable of the talents. We told stories about times when we had to reach down inside ourselves for strength, endurance and persistence we didn’t know we had because excellence was what God expected of us! Doing our best was a sacred obligation, a divine imperative—a privilege.

I’m thankful I got from my Baptist heritage that stout hymn that admonished me to “give of my best to the Master.”

I’m grateful that there were people who expected me to show up on Sunday mornings in my Sunday best, not for show but as a symbol that there is something about going to church that has to do with dignity and respect.

Indeed, the Good News invites each of us to come to God just as we are. We don’t have to glitz and glam ourselves to look good to God or other people. And when we fall short and fail, God loves us and offers mercy and grace.

Now and then, however, it’s almost unbearably sweet to be in the presence of people who are pushing the standard of excellence ’way out on a far edge.

I can’t sing like the musicians I heard, but the God-who-does-all-things-well used the magnificent music of The Centurymen to fill my heart and soul with inspiration. Their beautiful excellence inspired me to do what I do better. Their discipline encouraged me to do what I can do—as if unto the Lord and with all my heart.

Jeanie Miley is an author and columnist and a retreat and workshop leader. She is married to Martus Miley, pastor of River Oaks Baptist Church in Houston, and they have three adult daughters. Got feedback? Write her at Writer2530@aol.com.

Posted: 9/22/06

McKissic wants SBC to address
'tongues' in Baptist Faith & Message

By Robert Marus

Associated Baptist Press

NASHVILLE (ABP)—A Southern Baptist trustee, whose recent seminary chapel sermon was partially censored over his comments on speaking in tongues, has asked that the denomination address the issue in its official confession of faith.

Dwight McKissic, pastor of Cornerstone Baptist Church in Arlington, and a trustee at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in nearby Fort Worth, publicized a letter he sent to members of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee, which met Sept. 18-19 in Nashville, Tenn.

In it, he asks SBC President Frank Page and other leaders to study the issue of tongues among Southern Baptists.

“The purpose of this letter is to respectfully and prayerfully request that the president and Executive Committee of (the) SBC initiate a process of addressing and formally adopting a position sanctioned by the SBC in 2007 or 2008 annual meeting, to be included in the ‘Baptist Faith & Message,’ regarding our position(s) on spiritual gifts, private prayer language and speaking in tongues,” he wrote.

Page, asked by a reporter during the Executive Committee meeting Sept. 19 if he had any reaction to McKissic’s request, said he had not had sufficient time “to study it in any detail” and that “obviously, at this meeting, it was too soon to deal with it.” However, Page added, “We’re going to take it seriously, because there are some concerns in it that I happen to share.”

The Baptist Faith and Message is the denomination’s official confessional statement. It was last amended in 2000.

In his Aug. 29 chapel sermon at Southwestern, McKissic recounted how, while a student at the seminary in 1981, he had an experience of speaking in a “private prayer language” that he believes was evidence of the Holy Spirit helping him communicate with God. McKissic said he continues to have such experiences.

He also criticized a policy, recently established by trustees at the Southern Baptist Convention’s International Mission Board, that bans the appointment of missionaries who practice such private versions of glossolalia, or speaking in tongues.

On orders from seminary president Paige Patterson, the school refrained from its normal practice of immediately placing a recording of the morning chapel sermon on its website. In the early evening hours, school officials released a statement saying they made the decision because McKissic had criticized actions by the trustees of a sister SBC institution and because seminary leaders “reserve the right not to disseminate openly views which we fear may be harmful to the churches.”

McKissic’s statements—and Patterson’s reaction—caused a whirl of activity among Southern Baptist bloggers, many of whom accused Patterson of hypocrisy. They noted he had earlier used his office to circulate a “white paper,” written by a former colleague, criticizing the SBC’s International Mission Board and its president, Jerry Rankin, on strategy issues.

McKissic’s request for official SBC action came on the eve of the SBC Executive Committee’s fall meeting.

In his letter, McKissic said the denomination and its institutions need doctrinal clarification on the issue of speaking in tongues because some SBC leaders appear to hold to a “cessationist” view of tongues and other extraordinary gifts of the Holy Spirit outlined in Scripture. Cessationists believe tongues and other such gifts ceased after the apostolic era.

“There is clearly a lack of consensus and clarity on these issues among Southern Baptist(s),” McKissic wrote. “Because some in our convention are ‘cessationist’ and semi-cessationists who hold powerful positions of authority, they are defining Southern Baptist(s) in the public square as cessationist or semi-cessationist, and this position has never been sanctioned in the ‘Baptist Faith & Message.’ It is an assumption by many that the majority of Southern Baptist are cessationist, but many of our leading professors and preachers do not hold a cessationist viewpoint.”

Updated: 9/21/06

‘Jesus and Me’ camp benefits Brenham’s children

By Elizabeth Staples

Communications Intern

BRENHAM—For a dozen years, children from low-income families in the Brenham area have formed lasting relationships, developed important skills and learned spiritual values at JAM—the “Jesus and Me” summer day-camp.

Many children, ages 5 to 12, experience Christ’s love for the first time during the day-camp, said Marcus Lawhon, director of JAM and pastor of House of Worship Church in Brenham.

The Brenham Housing Authority and the school district have partnered with JAM to provide free breakfast and lunch for the children.

“We hope to be a holistic, evangelistic ministry with low-income families, beginning in the Brenham Housing Authority,” Lawhon said.

Churches in Independence Baptist Association worked with the Baptist General Convention of Texas to launch House of Worship Church and JAM to reach low-income families in their area who did not attend any other church.

This summer, more than 100 children were involved daily for eight weeks in games, crafts, Scripture memorization and science and reading programs that challenged them spiritually and academically.

The Brenham Independent School District provides JAM with reading and science specialists. They have created a curriculum specifically for JAM that has helped to raise standardized test scores.

It’s helping these children to not only catch up in school, but even get ahead, Lawhon said.

The “Jesus and Me” summer day-camp helps low-income students catch up and get ahead in school.

For five years, the Brenham Housing Authority and the school district have partnered with JAM to provide free breakfast and lunch for the children.

But the ministry doesn’t end when the children leave JAM each summer afternoon. Many days the counselors go home with them in the evenings to meet their families, play games and bring a more positive environment to the community, Lawhon explained. JAM works closely with the House of Worship church and receives support from the BGCT and from First Baptist and Fellowship Baptist churches in Brenham.

“We are just tilling the soil,” Lawhon said. “These aren’t church kids and have a very limited background. We’re helping them to build a strong foundation.

“When the light is brought into the darkness, it changes the tone of the community. When they’ve seen the light they have something to look forward to. Just the presence of light makes a difference, even if we’re not seeing it right away.

“These children come from families and backgrounds where they don’t see the light on an everyday basis unless someone tells them. And that’s the mission of JAM—to be humble Christians, loving people and showing the light of Jesus to lost children and families.”

Many children, ages 5 to 12, experience Christ’s love for the first time during the day-camp.

Posted: 9/15/06

Islam built on five pillars
of worship & five pillars of faith

By Ken Camp

Managing Editor

DALLAS—Muslims treat the Quran as their Bible, and they see Muhammad the way Christians view Jesus Christ, right? Wrong, Muslim leaders insist.

Muslims see the Quran as God’s final revelation—roughly comparable to the way mainstream Christians see Jesus Christ as the Living Word and God’s ultimate revelation, said Alif Rahman, who teaches an outreach class about Islam at the Dallas Central Mosque in Richardson.

Muhammad is the last in a long line of prophets and the bearer of God’s message, but Muslims do not worship him, Rahman noted. In a sense, he roughly parallels the role many Christians believe the Bible fills—not an object of worship but the instrument through which God makes his message known.

While Muslims see Muhammad’s life as exemplary, they do not consider him divine, Rahman emphasized.

“There is no incarnation of God as a human being in Islam,” he said.

Islam is built on five pillars of worship—regulated rituals and rules for living—and five pillars of faith—essential beliefs.

“It is a religion that has rules and regulations for the individual, the family and society—day and night, every second,” Imam Yusef Kavakci of the Dallas Central Mosque said.

The five pillars of worship are:

• Shahada. The Muslim confession of faith, repeated as a part of worship, states in Arabic that there is only one God, and Muhammad is his prophet.

• Salat. Five times daily, Muslims perform formal, ritualized prayer. Bodily positions—such as prostration with one’s forehead touching the ground—are prescribed at specific points during the ritual.

• Zakat. Muslims give alms—often understood to be 2.5 percent of their liquid assets and income-producing property—to support charitable causes and the propagation of Islam.

• Saum. Fasting from dawn until dusk daily during Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, includes refraining from food, drink and sexual intercourse.

• Hajj. Every Muslim who is physically and financially able makes a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in his lifetime.

Muslims also hold tenaciously to five basic beliefs.

• The oneness of Allah.

Kavakci thinks this simple, clear-cut and inclusive view of God—in contrast to Christian teaching about a Triune God who must be approached through Jesus Christ alone—accounts in part for the rapid growth of Islam worldwide.

“Islam is belief in one God, one faith. Before the creation of Adam, Islam was there,” he said. “We accept all messengers as ours. There is one God for the whole universe.”

• Angels, such as Gabriel.

“Rules and regulations are revealed to humans through Gabriel and to the messengers for people to live in, live by, live to and live for,” Kavakci said.

• The Quran.

Muslims believe the Book of God is a heavenly book that was revealed in part through the Jewish and Christian Scriptures but later was corrupted. They believe Gabriel gave the pure word of God—in Arabic—to Muhammad as the final prophet in a series of messengers that began with Adam and also included Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus.

“Adam came, and Islam was given to him as a guide and to all the messengers who followed. We look at Jesus Christ as a prophet—as our messenger,” Kavakci said.

• A final Day of Judgment.

“There is a strong accountability in our belief in the Day of Judgment,” Kavakci said. “We don’t know whether we will be accepted or not. We live between hope and hopelessness. There is no assurance. There is striving.”

• Sovereignty of God.

God is responsible for everything that happens. Nothing can happen outside his will.

Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly described the Muslim practice of Saum as fasting from dusk until dawn during Ramadan. The fast instead is from dawn until dusk.

Posted: 9/21/06

BaptistWay Bible Series for October 1

The shadows of doubt can become thick

• Psalm 73

By David Wilkinson

Broadway Baptist Church, Fort Worth

There are times on the spiritual journey when the path is steep and narrow, and a misstep can be perilous to faith.

That was the experience of the writer of Psalm 73, who discovered just in time the impossibility of keeping one eye on God while also keeping a jealous eye on the ways of unbelievers who arrogantly flaunted their prosperity and power —along with their apparent insulation from God’s judgment. The psalmist confesses that his “feet had almost stumbled” and his “steps had nearly slipped” because of his envy of the wicked (vv. 2-3).

Written in first-person, Psalm 73 is a testimony. It is an honest confession of how close the writer came to slipping into the dangerous cavern of cynicism and doubt.

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The testimony, however, clearly is written as a “life lesson” for people of faith, and its instructional tone gives it some of the flavor of the “wisdom” psalms. The psalm also incorporates many of the themes of previous psalms, which may have been a compelling reason to place it at the beginning of Book III, the third of five sections into which the Psalter has been divided.

Journey of faith

This psalmist’s description of the journey from faith to doubt and back to faith again has endeared Psalm 73 to generations of Christians. The reason is apparent: The poet has traveled ground familiar to most of us.

The psalm begins with a proverb that could also be seen as a form of beatitude: “Truly God is good to the upright, to those who are pure in heart” (v. 1). Evidence from early manuscripts argues for rendering the Hebrew word translated “the upright” as “Israel,” which emphasizes the corporate dimension of the psalm in keeping with the nature of the Psalter as the prayer book for the worshipping community.

“Purity of heart,” as Soren Kierkegaard noted, is to will one thing—the love of God. It is a single-minded devotion to God. In the list of beatitudes included in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus declared the pure in heart will “see God” (Matthew 5:8). They will experience the blessing of God’s presence, the joy of being “near God” (v. 28).

The psalm’s opening word, “truly,” is the English translation for a Hebrew term repeated three times—verses 1, 13 (not rendered in the NRSV) and 18—which also serves to divide the psalm into three sections.

The first section (vv. 1-12) lays out the problem: A crisis of faith (vv. 1-3) triggered by the success and prosperity of the wicked (vv. 4-12). The third section (vv. 18-28) describes a two-fold resolution of the crisis seen in the ultimate destiny of the wicked (vv. 18-20) coupled with the reassurance of God’s uplifting presence (vv. 21-28).

The central section (vv. 13-17) not only functions as a transition from one section to the other, but also offers the key to the psalm: “The pure devotion to God at the psalm’s conclusion replaces bitterness and estrangement at its beginning” (vv. 2-3), theologian James Mays said. “The meaning and the mystery of the psalm lie in its transition from one to the other.”

Cause for doubt

The psalmist’s perception of the arrogant ways of the wicked is striking. In verse 3, he confesses he became envious after seeing the “prosperity”—in Hebrew, the shalom—of the wicked. To ascribe a state of peace, prosperity and even wholeness to unbelievers who “scoff and speak with malice” (v. 8) and “set their mouths against heaven” (v. 9) using a term usually applied to the people of God speaks to the depth of the psalmist’s feelings. Doubt and discouragement hit bottom in the declaration that “in vain” he has followed God’s ways, being “plagued” and “punished” rather than blessed (vv. 13-14).

However, it is here at rock bottom, when he dares to voice his complaint to God, that the psalmist begins to gain new perspective. The crisis takes a positive turn when he affirms his relationship with—and obligation to—the community of faith. He confesses to God that to have given in to his feelings of envy would have made him “untrue to the circle of your children” (v. 15).

There are times when our feelings threaten to lead us astray, and in those moments we find our way on the basis of long-term covenant rather than short-term experience. When the heart begins to doubt, fidelity is a good anchor.

The next step in avoiding the slippery slope of cynicism is the psalmist’s recognition that he could not rescue himself through the power of his own reasoning or ingenuity (v. 17). “Reason cannot unravel experience to supply the ground for faith.”

Cause for praise

It was only in the experience of worship in “the sanctuary of God” (v. 17) that the psalmist gained the understanding that put things in perspective. Seen in a new light, things were not at all as they had seemed, either for the wicked the psalmist was tempted to envy or for his own life of faith. Despite their arrogance, the wicked were resting on “slippery places” that would eventually lead to ruin (v. 18). In humility, the psalmist confesses that he has been “stupid and ignorant” (v. 22). And yet, the gift of God’s presence has been constant throughout. Even when he doubted to the point of behaving “like a brute beast” toward God, God had never let go (v. 23), an affirmation that leads to a hymn of praise (vv. 25-26).

The psalmist testifies to the importance of the worship of God among the people of God. When our focus is on God (rather than ourselves or others), we are better able to understand our place in God’s economy—and leave the fate of others in God’s hands.

As an aside, it should also be noted that we never know when we plan, lead or participate in worship the particular point where every worshipper may be at that hour, and, like the psalmist, how close some may be to their own “slippery slope” of giving in or giving up.

Finally, Psalm 73 reminds us faith is dynamic, not static. The psalmist’s spiritual journey took him from bitterness to hope, from estrangement from God to intimacy with God, and from envy of persons living arrogantly without God to trust in the goodness of living in God’s presence.

Discussion questions

• Can you recall a time when you envied the apparent success and prosperity of those who scoff at Christian faith? Why is such envy dangerous to faith?

• In what ways has the experience of worship helped you gain perspective on life and faith?

• Read verses 25-26 as a hymn of praise. Is this your experience? If not, what may need to change?

Posted: 9/21/06

Bible Studies for Life Series for October 1

Contend for the truth always

• 1 Timothy 1:3-7,12-20

By Kenneth Lyle

Logsdon School of Theology, Abilene

As the parent of two teenagers, I spend considerable time, energy, thought, time, resources, conversation and more time making sure these two near—adults receive the necessary equipping to face the real world.

Christians, too, must spend time, energy, thought and resources learning to face the challenges of life.

In October, the Bible Studies for Life series takes up the study theme “Equipped for Real Life.” Using 1 and 2 Timothy as the primary resource, the lessons of the next five weeks ask us to use our time, energy, thought and conversation to: Learn how to guard against false teaching (October 1); consider our need to live godly lives (October 8); be content in our circumstances (October 15); become useful to God (October 22); and exercise faith in order to endure difficult times (October 29).

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Called the pastoral epistles, 1 and 2 Timothy, along with Titus present themselves as mentoring letters of encouragement from an older minister, Paul, to two younger ministers, Timothy and Titus. Some scholars question the genuine Pauline authorship of the pastoral epistles because of issues like vocabulary and syntax, conflicting historical circumstances, and the level of concern for things like church organization and “heresy.” The arguments on both sides are complex.

In short, those who hold to pseudonymous authorship point out the letters sound too different from the known letters of Paul. In addition, the letters do not seem to fit into the known timeline of Paul’s life reconstructed from his letters and the Acts of the Apostles. Finally, the letters’ concern with qualifications for church leaders and the repudiation of false teaching suggests to some scholars a second century composition date.

Of those who hold that Paul did not write these letters, some allow that fragments of genuine letters from Paul were added by later writers. Others suggest a complete pseudonymous creation as a way of maintaining Paul’s influence.

A better position maintains that Paul authored these letters later in life and allows for changes in compositional style and vocabulary attributable to Paul’s age and circumstance. We can readily acknowledge Acts does not tell us everything Paul did or every place Paul visited. Paul may well have composed the pastoral epistles after his imprisonment in Rome during a subsequent missionary journey.

Certainly, Paul writes these letters later in life with the full realization that he leaves behind young leaders who need to be able to identify and deal with difficulties in the church. The letters’ concern with false teaching and church organization does not seem out of place in that context.

Identify the false teaching

The lesson for the week of October 1 bids Christians to “Take Hold of Truth.” First Timothy begins as all of Paul’s letters begin, with a salutation offering an address and a greeting (vv.1-2). Paul identifies himself as “an apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our savior and of Christ Jesus our hope” (v. 1).

While Paul sends most of his letters to individual churches, here the lone recipient is Timothy. The greeting is typical of Paul: “Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord” (v. 2).

Without a typical word of thanksgiving, Paul moves immediately to a warning about “false teachers.” Paul urges Timothy to “command certain men not to teach false doctrines” (v. 3). While the identity of these individuals is not certain, and the content of the false doctrine is unclear, Paul suggests it includes an unhealthy interest in “myths and endless genealogies” (v. 4).

Other ancient writers often used the combination of these terms to denote the idea of false and foolish stories. In this context, the “myths and genealogies” may reflect the practice of some Jewish Christians who wished to find a super—spiritual significance in some of the Old Testament genealogical lists. Paul bluntly states that those who wander away from the “goal of love” (v. 5) turn to “meaningless talk” (v. 6).

It is important to recognize that these are not anti-Christian teachers opposing the work of the church from without. These Christians claim an extra level of understanding and knowledge that distracts from central truths of the gospel. Misplaced devotion to a particular theological framework, fictionalized accounts of the end times or Christian self-help programs come close to an unhealthy devotion to “myths and genealogies.”

Take your stand on the gospel of grace

Paul’s response to these challenges is to remind Timothy about the marvelous grace of God. Paul holds himself out as an example of one who has received God’s grace through the faithfulness and love of Jesus Christ in spite of Paul tremendous failures. Paul calls himself “a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man” (v. 13). He reminds Timothy that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst” (v. 15).

The good news of God’s grace allows that mercy might be shown even to Paul, so that in “the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life” (v. 16).

Paul reminds Timothy salvation comes to us because of God’s grace demonstrated in his son, Jesus. No sin is so great as to put any person beyond the reach of God’s grace. That is the content of the “glorious gospel of the blessed God,” (v. 11) entrusted to Paul. Endless devotion to silly stories and the feeling of superiority generated by “expertise” distracts from the true good news: We are all in need of God’s grace.

Contend for the truth

Chapter 1 concludes with a recapitulation and amplification of Paul’s initial encouragement to Timothy: “Fight the good fight, holding on to faith and a good conscience” (vv. 18-19). Paul understands the importance of connecting belief to actions.

Martin Dilelius argues the phrase “good conscience” suggests good Christian citizenship. Christians fight the good fight by the way we live our lives in peaceful obedience, seeking the “goal of love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith” (v. 5). It seems the fight envisioned here is less a fight against other people and more a fight against the tendency to wander away from the goal of love.

Too often, I turn to “meaningless talk” when I should contend for the truth that by God’s grace “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.” The truth of the gospel is that we are all sinners in need of mercy, and the grace of God pours out on us in abundance (v. 14). Focus on anything less moves us perilously close to distracting shores of meaningless talk and foolish stories.

Paul warns about some who have “shipwrecked their faith” (v. 19, compare 2 Timothy 2:17-18); however, his main concern seems to be that Timothy avoid that fate by connecting faith to action.

Discussion questions

• What kinds of “foolish stories” and “mindless talk” fill the classrooms and corridors of your church? How do we distinguish helpful instruction from mere talk?

• How does belief or faith connect to our actions?

• What are Christians supposed to contend for or against?