bmd

Last week I asked for your opinion on why we can have such highly rated churches while at the same time the church in American is in decline if not in free fall or collapse. I can’t find any measure of the church, as a whole, that indicates the church in American is doing well both in terms of numerical growth and in discipleship.

So, back to the question: Why are we Christians in the church in America experiencing high levels of satisfaction with our churches while at the same time our churches are for the most part static or in decline?

As I read over the numerous answers I received (thank you by the way) a couple of general themes kept recurring. If you would like to read the answers they are posted at http://beyondharan.blogspot.com/2019/09/here-is-what-you-said.html. The two very general themes are that we are selfish in our expectation of what the church should be and do and that develops from a failure to die to self. Also, we have become addicted to the consumer culture and have translated it into our expectation of the church. If we don’t like the experience at Outback we will go to Ruth Chris. If the wings at Beef O’Brady’s don’t please us we will watch the game at Buffalo Wild Wings. If the music at First Tall Steeple Church is too stuffy we will go to Mega-Wonder Church by the interstate.

When my son was about 5 years old a little girl at church had a crush on him. As much as a 4 year old can have a crush. We had been visiting the family and as we were saying our goodbyes the little girl ran up to my son, started dancing, shaking both arms and chanting, “Do you like me? Do you like me?” The embarrassment of my son was hysterical to watch. And it was cute coming from a 4 year old girl. But it feels like the church stands in front of the carnal world dancing and pleading, “Do you like me? Do you like me?” Christianity has become one more consumer product that is to be marketed and presented as we plead with carnal people to please like us.

But lest I confess the sins of others I must also confess my own sins. As a minister I have a tendency to expect the church to provide me with affirmation, love, support, a good salary, benefits and a retirement plan. I have wanted to work a grueling 29-hour week, use recycled or stolen sermons, and not be bothered with the demands of dysfunctional people that want me to visit them. I have wanted to be treated like a professional, work like a toddler, and put out like an amateur. I have fought these tendencies and in most of my ministry I have done a good job of doing so, but when I do I whine like a spoiled 13 year old in private and subtly play the martyr in public. I think I am not the only one.

I am not saying all preachers are lazy nor am I justifying the evil behavior of clergy killers in the church. I am saying that as ministers we can identify the problems in our churches, but are less apt to see them in the mirror. The church is a mess in

America and we in leadership are part of the problem. We are also the beginning of the solution. One responder said, “We need a Third Great Awakening.” That will only happen if we speak the truth and call our people to die to self. If we speak the truth we may find our churches dismiss us. We may lose good paying jobs and retirement options might be taken from us. We may find that we reenter the work force not as professionals but as laborers drawing pay that doesn’t afford the niceties we are accustomed to. If we find that price too high then we are part of the problem, we are not ready to die to self. We will go our way, “…grieving; for he (we) was one who owned much property.”

What is wrong with the American Church? Join me and let’s all say it together, “I am.”

Beyond Haran, 17/09/2019
https://www.blogger.com/profile/06742143620983427199

Who Can Go To Heaven? – Event

By bmd / events - past

Venue:

Sawtry W.I. Hall,
Gidding Road,
Sawtry.
PE28 5TS.

Time:

05:30 pm – Doors Open
06:00 pm – Event Starts
19:30 pm – Finishes

The church of Christ

By bmd / about our church

“God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.(Jn. 4:24)” Peterborough Church of Christ is a group of Christians striving to follow the pattern of worship found within the Word of God. Our goal is to simply be Christians who are pleasing to God. We do not claim to be perfect, but we do proclaim the excellencies of Him who is perfect (1 Peter 2:9).
Jesus is the foundation of the church (1 Cor. 3:11), and He purchased it with His own blood (Acts 20:28). Jesus makes the statement, “If you love me, keep my commandments” (Jn. 14:15).After the great love Jesus showed us by dying on the cross for our sins, we simply want to love Him back by obeying His commands.
As you read through the Scriptures, you will not find denominations. Instead, you will discover that there was only one church/body (Eph. 4:4). The apostle Paul emphasized over and over again that the church was to be in unity and of the same mind (Phi. 1:27). In fact, Paul condemned the concept of denominations when he wrote to the church at Corinth: ” Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment” (1 Cor. 1:10).Paul continues on in that same chapter talking about how some were calling themselves by the names of men. Then Paul asked the question, “ Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?” (1Cor. 1:13). Obviously the answer to Paul’s question is no.
This is why we believe it is imperative that we worship God and live our lives according to His Word and His Word only. If you are interested in learning more about the church that Jesus purchased with His own blood, then feel free to contact us or worship with us. Glory be to God and the wonderful grace He has given us.

The Essence of Atheism

By bmd / Doy Moyer, sermon

Start with nothing. From nothing, for no reason or purpose, lifeless, mindless material just came into existence.

Lifeless, mindless material, existing for no reason and with no purpose, somehow, some way, through a process that has never been observed anywhere, spontaneously generated something that was living.

This living thing, having come into existence from mindless and lifeless material, for no purpose and with no reason or meaning, found a way to replicate all by itself.

Over millions and millions of years, this now-living material, existing for no reason or purpose whatsoever, developed into creatures that could think and reason intelligently, and are held morally accountable for their actions.

Thus, lifeless, mindless matter, from accidental, purposeless, non-rational forces of chance, gave rise to life and mind, reason and intelligence, morality and responsibility.

Intelligence and morality are thus the end product of non-rational, mindless, lifeless, chance accidents through time.

End in nothing.

Start with nothing. End in nothing. No reason. No purpose. No meaning. From nothing to nothing. Everything in between is the result of mindless, accidental forces with no ultimate goal or purpose.

All of this is called good science.

Those who accept this are then given to ridicule those who believe that Intelligent Mind is responsible for giving humans reason, intelligence, purpose, and morality.

This is considered the epitome of reason and logic.

Doy Moyer

Is There a God?

By bmd / Keith Sharp, sermon

n 1986 a famous visitor made a brief tour of the inner solar system. A luminous body with a long, faint tail hurried on its journey around the sun and returned to the recesses of space. The British astronomer Edmond Halley observed this phenomenon in 1682 and, based on the times of similar sightings in the past, correctly predicted it would return in 1758. He was quite correct, and this body, which circles the sun about every seventy-five years in its highly elongated orbit, became known as Halley’s comet. In the eighteenth century astronomers worked out a complex formula, based on Newton’s theory of gravity, to accurately predict the orbits of comets.

So, what’s the point? The Hebrew king and poet David asserted that the universe itself declares the glory of God. “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And the firmament is declaring the work of His hands” (Psalm 19:1).

The purpose of this study is to demonstrate that the existence and predictable operation of the physical universe, comets included, will lead an honest, intelligent inquirer to believe in the existence of God.

It Is a Matter of Faith

The scientific method of study, called the “empirical method”” is observation and experimentation. For something to be truly a matter of science, it must be measurably observed and the event must be repeatable under the same essential circumstances at different times and places. If scientists cannot “see” something happen and set up a situation (experiment) at another time and place so that the same thing happens again, it is not a scientific matter.

For example, who was the first European to discover the Americas? This question is historical, not scientific. We cannot observe the discovery of America, nor can we experimentally repeat it. Scientific evidence, such as that gained by archaeologists, may be studied, but essentially the inquiry is historical rather than scientific.

The God revealed in the Bible is spirit (John 4:24) and has no material existence (Luke 24:39). He is invisible to man (l Timothy 6:16). God cannot be put into a test tube. I cannot demonstrate by observation and experimentation that God exists, but neither can the atheist prove He does not. To do so, the atheist would have to be able to observe all portions of the universe at the same time in both the material and spiritual realm. In other words, to prove by observation that there is no God, one would have to be God. The existence of God is not a question of science but of faith.

This does not mean it is unreasonable to believe in God. “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). The word “conviction” is translated “evidence” by the New King James Version. “Faith” is conviction about something we do not see based on evidence.

I believe that Christopher Columbus saw one of the islands of the West Indies on October 12, 1492. I did not and cannot see this happen, and I cannot repeat this in an experiment. But my faith rests on clear, compelling historical evidence. It is a reasonable faith. I believe the same is true of my faith in God.

First Argument

Please consider with me three principles of natural science that provide powerful, logical evidence for our faith in the existence of God.

Law of Causality

The first principle of science is the Law of Causality (Buffaloe 6). In essence, it states there must be an adequate cause for every effect. This principle is the basis of scientific inquiry. Natural science deals with the material universe and correctly looks for natural causes to natural events. Scientists properly attribute an earthquake to the movement of tectonic plates. Whether the hand of God is behind it is not their business as scientists.

But natural causes can only explain so much. Eventually, one is forced back to the uncaused First Cause. It is the ageless question, “Which came first, the chicken or the egg?” The backward chain of events must come to rest somewhere.

First Law of Thermodynamics

Perhaps the most basic principle of physics is The First Law of Thermodynamics. This law “states that energy can neither be created nor destroyed but can be changed in form” (Buffaloe 76). High school chemistry students learn to balance chemical equations. Everything that goes into the chemical process must be accounted for in the product. Nothing comes out of a chemical process that was not put into it, and whatever is put into the process comes out in one form or another.

The First Law precludes the reasonable possibility that energy came into being by natural causes; since, in the natural world, “energy can neither be created nor destroyed.”

Second Law of Thermodynamics

This important principle of physics holds that energy tends to dissipate itself … In other words, the second law relates energy changes in a system to the organization of that system. Placed in this context, it states that there is an increase in entropy (disorder or randomness) – that is, a decrease in organization. Since useful energy is organized energy, an increase in entropy means a decrease in useful energy (Buffaloe 77).

According to the Second Law, usable energy in a closed system tends to decrease. Things tend to disorder, not to order. As we drive our cars down the highway, we don’t stop to let gasoline (the energy source) out; rather, we must stop to put more in. The usable energy is converted to motion and heat.

Think!

Now, please think with me. Either the material universe does exist, or it does not. Of course, to be rational, we must accept its real existence. Otherwise, there is no such thing as science, the study of the material universe; and our senses, upon which we depend to gain all accurate information, are totally untrustworthy.

Further, either the physical universe has always existed, or it had a beginning. The cosmos has an immeasurably huge amount of usable energy. Our sun, one small star among numberless stars that compose the Milky Way galaxy, itself one of myriads of galaxies, converts 4,700,000 tons of its own mass into radiant energy each second (Britannica Macropaedia. 17:808). If the universe were infinitely old, all usable energy would have dissipated in the infinite past. Thus, the cosmos had a beginning.

Atheists once looked to matter and energy as the uncaused first causes. Recent research in nuclear physics has further revealed the very essence of matter. Physicists now describe energy particles which compose electrons, protons, and neutrons; which, in turn, are the components of the atom. In other words, behind all matter is energy. Before there was matter, there was energy. The only prime mover atheists can propose is mindless energy.

The question, then, is: Is mindless energy an adequate first cause? Either energy is the uncaused first cause; or there must be a supernatural, i.e., outside and above the realm of the natural, uncaused first cause. But, since energy cannot be infinitely old (Second Law, i.e., entropy), energy cannot be the uncaused first cause. Therefore, we must look for a supernatural origin of the universe.

As our Explorer satellites ranged deeper into space, past Mars, Jupiter, Saturn. Uranus, and their systems, and finally out of the solar system into the unfathomable recesses of the abyss beyond, pictures of incredible varieties of chemical and physical forms hitherto unimagined were sent back to earth. Yet in all this infinite variety is found order. The basic laws of physics and chemistry which have been found operable in our experience on earth apply as well in these remote worlds. The Law of Gravity applies precisely the same on Uranus as it does on Earth. Our universe has amazing order in incomprehensible complexity.

How does one explain such order in diversity? Energy is the only answer available to the atheist. The universe as a whole must be viewed as a closed system, and energy in a closed system tends to disorder, not order (Second Law). Thus, again we are forced to look for a supernatural beginning of the cosmos.

Law of Biogenesis

One of the basic principles of biology is The Law of Biogenesis: “Thus far, life seems to come only from prior life in an unbroken chain, at least under conditions that prevail at present on earth” (Buffaloe 114). The fact is, there is no compelling evidence that life can possibly come from nonlife under any conditions, and the evidence is against the existence in ancient times of the imagined conditions under which life might supposedly have evolved by natural means. The consistent result of hundreds of years of experimentation about the origin of life has been and continues to be that life comes only from prior life.

Think!

Either life exists on the earth, or it does not. Again, to be rational, we accept the existence of life on Earth.

Further, either life has always existed on earth, or it had a beginning. Since life and the earth are parts of the universe, which had to have a beginning, life had to have begun here sometime.

Finally, either life came from natural causes or supernatural. The consistent experience of science is that life does not naturally arise from nonlife, nor has any experiment ever been conducted under any conditions, which demonstrates that it can. Thus, if we are reasonable, we must accept a supernatural origin of life on earth.

What Kind of Supernatural First Cause?

In Romans chapter one the apostle Paul shows why the Gentiles needed the gospel. They had rejected the knowledge of God and were inexcusable for so doing. “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse” (Romans 1:20).

We should mentally see (understand) what is behind those things we physically see. There must be an adequate cause (Law of Causality) for the existence of the universe. What do we understand when we see the material universe?

There must be incomprehensible power behind such an awesome expanse, infinite intelligence to bring order to such endless variety, and will to accomplish purpose. There must be eternal existence to qualify as the uncaused First Cause. The attributes of intelligence and will show this Cause to be a Person, i.e., a Being possessing personality. Having eternal existence and infinite power and intelligence, this Person must be supernatural. The Bible calls this Person, who has eternal self-existence, infinite power and intelligence, and will, God.

Conclusion

Imagine, if you will, a print shop containing many reams of paper, gallons of ink, and thousands of sets of type reproducing over and over the twenty-six letters of the alphabet and the numbers zero through nine. Due to a gas leak, one great explosion occurs in this shop. Ink, paper, and type are hurled randomly and violently in all directions. When the dust settles, the smoke clears, and all components come to rest, the result is all thirty volumes of the Encyclopaedia Britannica in order with no misspelled words or grammatical errors. Incredible?

And yet atheists demand we believe that the universe, infinite in size and complexity, incredibly orderly in function, composed of over one hundred chemical elements in virtually limitless combinations, is the result of a “Big Bang” produced by mindless energy aeons ago. My mind is not capable of such childish, irrational faith.

Incontrovertibly, the existence and predictable operation of the physical universe, in all its parts, will lead an honest, intelligent inquirer to believe in the existence of God. Indeed, “The heavens are telling of the glory of God.”

Keith Sharp

What to Expect When Jesus Returns

By bmd / sermon, Wes McAdams

If we are going to restore New Testament Christianity, then I believe we need to restore a biblical emphasis on the Return of our King. As Christians, the Return of Jesus is our hope. It is what we should be longing for (2 Timothy 4:8). But many of us don’t long for His appearing, because we don’t understand the pivotal role the Return plays in the Christian story. Here are a few things we can expect when Jesus comes back.

Resurrection of the Dead

Most Christians I talk to simply seem to believe we go to heaven when we die. They believe that when this life is over, we immediately go to our eternal dwelling place and that’s it. The story is over. But that’s really not a biblical concept.

The Bible actually says very little about what existence is like for God’s people when they die. Here are a few details we can piece together:

Jesus simply described it as being at “Abraham’s side” (Luke 16:22).
Paul said that it was “gain” and was “far better” to “depart and be with Christ” (Philippians 1:21-23).
The Spirit said it is a “blessed” state of “rest” (Revelation 14:13).

But these are only a few minor footnotes in the biblical story. The real story is about the dead waiting to be raised to life again. When Jesus returns, the dead will be raised and transformed, receiving brand new glorious bodies.

“Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality” (1 Corinthians 15:51-53).

In the biblical story, death is a curse that has fallen over the whole earth because of our rebellion against God. Like characters in a fairytale, mankind has lived under this curse for millennia, anxiously waiting for someone to come and break the spell. The Good News is, Jesus has already broken the curse. And when He comes again, the curse will be lifted once and for all. No more death!

Jesus will call us forth from the realm of the dead, transform our bodies into immortal bodies, and from the moment we meet Him in the air, “we will always be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:17).

Judgement

While we wait for Jesus to return, we are to live in obedience to the Gospel. In other words, we are to live in obedience to Jesus’ Kingship. We are to be His faithful servants, believing He is the King of the world who broke the curse, believing He is coming back, and believing He will reward our love, loyalty, and devotion.

Jesus is calling His entire creation to receive this Good News, to receive Him as King, to bow their knees in humble allegiance to Him. Sadly, the majority of mankind continues to rebel. They continue to choose the way of darkness, the way of death. For them, the Return will not be celebratory reunion.

Jesus will return with “mighty angels.” He will come in “flaming fire.” As for those who are not living in obedience to the gospel:

“They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might, when he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed” (2 Thessalonians 1:9-10).

Neither the living nor the dead, who reject the grace and mercy of God, will escape this fate. The dead who do not belong to the Lord will be raised to face this judgement. But God wants to spare as many as possible from this fate. He is giving mankind ample opportunity to stop rebelling and repent (2 Peter 3:9).

The Destruction of the Earth

Peter compares the Day of the Lord to the days of Noah, when the earth was destroyed by water. In those days, God destroyed the wicked world with a flood and gave Noah a brand new place to dwell. The Bible tells us that we are headed toward a second destruction of the world.

“The heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly” (2 Peter 3:5-7).

Everything in the world is under the curse and it will all be destroyed by fire. But it seems creation itself is waiting for this cleansing fire, “The creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God” (Romans 8:21).

After the heavens pass away with a roar, after the heavenly bodies are burned up and dissolved, after the earth and the works that are done on it are exposed, then God’s people will be like Noah’s family when they stepped off the ark. We will have a “new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:13).

The Bottom Line

The fire is coming, but those who are in Christ have NOTHING to fear. We don’t know what our new bodies will be like except that they will be new, glorious, and imperishable. We don’t know what our new home will be like, except that we will always be with the Lord. And for me, that’s all that matters.

Because of His grace, I get to be with my Lord and His people for all eternity. Which is why I desperately long for His return!