DAILY BREAD, 2-13-07

DAILY BREAD, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2007

"BENNY HINN'S TRANSLATOR"
Neal Pollard

Early this morning, I caught a few moments of Benny Hinn's program. It was taped in Mombai, India. Throngs of people filled the audience. As Benny was speaking to the crowd, he followed his usual format of talking about specific people in his live audience as well as those watching him at home. He spoke of specific ailments and even boldly spoke about specific individuals, calling them by name and mentioning very specific struggles with which they dealt. Apparently, this approach of Hinn's has proven very successful. A cohort of his, taking the microphone, spoke of the Hinn Ministry's ten satellites and worldwide thirty city tour that even included Jerusalem. The people in the audience were paying rapt attention, hanging on both men's every word. Of course, they could only understand Benny and his fellow-laborer through the work of an articulate, but unseen, translator. The man who purports to heal diseases, speak in tongues, have Spirit-led abilities to identify specific people and problems, and to have a supernaturally-given message...needed a translator.
1 John 4:1, talking about the false message of the Gnostics, urges, "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world." You could tell that Gnostics were false teachers because they denied that Jesus had come in the flesh. A broader point is that the Bible is always an accurate "tester" of any person's assertions or doctrine. If there is inconsistency or contradiction, be careful! A man claiming so many gifts of the Spirit should not need an interpreter, should he?
Several websites exist that give line by line proof testing the claims and teaching of Mr. Hinn (see, for example,http://www.aloha.net/~mikesch/tbn.htm, http://www.rapidnet.com/ ~jbeard/bdm/exposes/hinn/general.htm, http://www.deceptioninthechurch.com/bhinn.html ad nauseum). Untold numbers of people offer financial support to false teachers, never once testing their message or assertions by God's Word. Whoever the teacher is and whatever his professed religious affiliation--and that includes even those among us--he should be measured against the Scriptures (Acts 17:11). The Bible is the ultimate measuring stick, and nobody's practice or profession should be in conflict with it.

DAILY BREAD, 2/12/07

DAILY BREAD, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2007

FOR WHAT WILL THIS CHURCH BE KNOWN?
Doug Smith

For its love of selves or its love of lost souls (1 Thess. 2:8)?
For its spreading gossip or its spreading the gospel (Mark 16:15)?
For its rudderless drifting or its strong leadership (1 Pet. 5:1-4)?
For its low ideals or its lofty goals (Col. 3:2)?
For its knowledge of the world or its knowledge of the Word (Acts 17:11)?
For its financial limitations or its generous giving (2 Cor. 8:1-6)?
For its comatose Christians or its many active members (Eph. 4:16)?
For its selfish pursuits or its selfless serving (Gal. 5:13)?
For its internal strife or its brotherly love (John 13:34-35)?
For its different positions or its defense of the truth (1 Pet. 3:15)?
For its cold shoulders or its warm fellowship (1 Pet. 1:22)?
For its living below God's expectations or its living above the world (1 John 3:3-6)?
For its helping itself or its helping the needy (2 Cor. 9:12-13)?
For its innovations in worship or its spiritual and true worship (John 4:24)?
For its accolade of men or its glorifying of God (Eph. 3:2)?
For its stagnation or its vibrancy (2 Pet. 3:18)?

For what will this church be known? Actually the question is, "For what will you be known?" Because, if you are a member of this church, then the church will be known for these things to the extent that you are!

Daily Bread, 2-9-07

DAILY BREAD, FRIDAY, 2-9-07

TRADING PLACES
Neal Pollard

Ed Leonard of British Columbia had been working about a month in the northern half of the volatile country of Columbia when he was kidnapped by guerrillas who were trying to raise money for the drug lords and revolutionaries who controlled much of the country. Leonard had been fed beans and rice for 106 days in a remote mountainous region 300 miles north of Bogota, while the guerrillas were in contact with his employers.
Negotiations took a strange turn when Leonard's boos, a Mr. Reinhart, arrived with an amazing offer. Instead of paying off these captors, Reinhart gave himself as a ransom so that Leonard could be set free. Reinhart took his place. So, day after day, Reinhart experienced what Leonard had. Both men were Canadian, worked for the same company, and they both had families. Reinhart left behind a wife and two daughters. Fortunately, Reinhart was later able to walk out of the camp alive and well. Reinhart is rightly remembered as a hero.
How clearly this illustrates, at least in some small way, man's predicament. The Bible teaches that mankind was hopelessly enslaved and held captive by sin (Luke 4:18; Rom. 6:17; 2 Tim. 2:26). Jesus taught, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave to sin" (John 8:34). Since all accountable persons sin (Rom. 3:23), none had any means whereby to negotiate his own salvation.
In response, God "gave His only begotten Son" (John 3:16). He came in a robe of flesh (Gal. 4:4; Rom. 8:3; John 1:14). Without giving up His divine nature (John 18:5), Jesus came to earth in the likeness of men (Phil. 2:7). All-God and all-man all at once, the One superior to all offered Himself in the place of all (Titus 2:11; Heb. 9:14). He traded the endless glory of heaven for sacrificial sojourn, the climax of which was the suffering of the cross. The end result of heaven's scheme of redemption is that "being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him" (Rom. 5:9). Jesus "gave himself a ransom for all..." (1 Tim. 2:6).

Daily Bread, 2-7-07

Daily Bread, Wednesday, February 7, 2007

The Hooks Are Hidden
Neal Pollard

Growing up in coastal Georgia afforded me many opportunities to fish in fresh waters directly and indirectly fed by the Ohoopee, Altamaha, and Canoochee Rivers, proud rivers known especially for their large mouth bass. Add to the fishing expeditions to local lakes and ponds, and you had the recipe for juvenile bliss.

My buddy David used nice, expensive lures and Little Stinker spray if fishing for mud or channel cats. On a much more limited budget, I bought a dollar's worth of Crappie Jigs (that was usually four or five, figuring in taxes). Many days a cup of gizzards for thirty cents would provide fish food enough for half a day. If htey were biting, the fish ate my fast food as often as Dave's five star cuisine.

One of the keys to successful fishing, whether using lures, chicken parts, or live bait, is sufficiently burying the hook from sight. Those cheap jigs worked well with the first few casts, but soon the feathery thread tail bushing out of the painted wood body would mat down and the silver hook would shine brightly underwater. At that point, the jig lost its splendor. An exposed hook is the death of good fishing.

The hungriest, savviest angler of all is Satan (cf. 1 Pet. 5:8). He is a master at burying the hooks. Gambling looks like a quick, easy way to financial freedom and enormous wealth. Pornography appears to be a private, harmless distraction from reality, an excursion into one's most exciting fantasies. Smoking seems like a calm, pleasurable enjoyment, a way to unwind, or a satisfying diversion. Sex outside of marriage looks like an exciting, passionate, even thrilling way to spice up one's life, live on the edge, and appeal to one's unbridled lust. There they dangle. No consequences. "Just swallow me," they say. "You'll love it!" they say. These and other sins shine like tinsel and are so enticing. Why not? Just one nibble. Eat and run. No harm. No shame.

Then the barb sticks. Financial ruin and dark addiction. A warped and twisted mind, where nothing seems pure anymore. A man in his forties with an oxygen tank, needing five minutes to wheeze and gasp for air just to go from his car to the post office! In his pocket is a pack of cigarettes. Unwed pregnancies, shattered marriages, and untold embarrassment and shame. The perpetrators of sin are now victims of their own folly. They flounder in bad habits and draining depravity. They have been reeled in by Satan's devices (cf. 2 Cor. 2:11).

By the time the lure is old and worn out--and the hook is in plain view--it may be too late. The hunter may have already captured his prey (cf. 2 Tim. 2:26). Yet, while willful and habitual sin may seem like a hopeless trip the other end of which is Satan's table, there is a way to "get off the hook." It takes a mighty struggle. You will have to fight for your life (cf. 1 Tim. 6:12; 2 Tim. 4:7). You will have to become sober and alert (1 Pet. 5:8). You will have to be cagey enough to see past the bait and, by faith, see the barbed, painful hook underneath the temptation. Is a moment of pleasure worht the ride on which you will go that leads where you do not wish to be? God wants to provide all we need, but His way leads to safety and life. Let's remember that with Satan, the hooks are hidden!

Daily Bread, 2-6-07

DAILY BREAD, TUESDAY, 2/6/07




(left) The VP Black College of Biblical Studies at my alma mater, Faulkner University (Montgomery, AL)

VANDERBILT PIERPONT BLACK
Neal Pollard

V.P. Black passed from time to eternity on the Lord's Day, February 4, 2007. He was not too far away from his 90th birthday. He was known and loved to many throughout the decades, one of the finest gospel preachers of the entire 20th century. I can only think of a few times when he was in the audience when I preached, most recently when I was holding a gospel meeting last October at what was his last "home congregation"--Eastern Meadows church of Christ in Montgomery, Alabama. He was so kind and encouraging. However, I was blessed countless times from sitting at his feet to benefit from some of the most memorable lessons I have ever heard. Many who read this will have some distinct memories from this preacher of preachers.
Brother Black exemplified enthusiastic preaching. Speaking at the Preacher Enrichment Seminar at Faulkner University one year, brother Black dealt with Joshua. His conclusion was an unforgettable crescendo. His last line was, "If a mosquito would've bitten Joshua at Gibeon that day, he would have left singing 'there's power in the blood!'" Kathy and I heard him preach a sermon on the "Blood of Christ" is a gospel meeting in Waynesboro, Mississippi, and we agree that to this day it was the most masterful, passionate sermon on the subject we have heard. Brother Black always seemed to "bring his A game." His love for preaching was obvious! What an example. Preaching demands passion and zeal.
Brother Black intimately knew the Bible and the Savior. Brother Black was not above showing emotion when he preached. His preaching reflected the doctrinal balance he so emphasized. His lessons were strong, clear, and drew definite conclusions, but his preaching was also so Christ-centered that one was left with the distinct impression that he loved Christ above all. He could quote all of Acts 2, knew the Bible from cover to cover, could handle the most difficult of texts and topics, and had a peerless way of explaining it. Yet, brother Black could not be accused of worshipping the Word over the Lord. He understood that the two were not mutually exclusive. His love of Christ led to his vigorous defense of His gospel.
Brother Black did as much as any one man to encourage generous giving. Most people who know brother Black associate him with his stewardship Sundays and his intense efforts to raise awareness and encourage participation in liberal giving. Many gave to Christian education or just more abundantly to support the work of their local congregations because of the convicting, persuasive lessons from brother Black on the subject. Despite his modest and unassuming approach to this matter, brother Black's generosity became a well-known testimony to his practicing what he preached.
I cannot think of a better hero for young people to have than faithful gospel preachers. We have lost a mighty warrior from among our ranks in the present battle with Satan. Yet, we thank God that his legacy will live, like Abel, beyond his life.

DAILY BREAD, 2-5-07

DAILY BREAD, MONDAY, 2-5-07

IS IT REALLY A MATTER OF PREFERENCE?
Neal Pollard

I have a friend who is a member of a charismatic-type community church. Once, while we were discussing religion, she observed on the basic of her visit where I preached that "her church" and "mine" were very similar (on other occasions, she or her children had spoken of their "Tuesday healing service," their massive choir, the husband and wife co-pastors, and their rock band). How could she rationalize the vast difference that, in reality, exists between the church of Christ and that megachurch of which she is a member? Her sentiment reflects a dominant cultural view among those in religion today, that there is a church for everyone's "taste."
In kindness, I must say that it is presumptuous of anyone to offer worship or teach doctrine because of what they personally prefer. If everyone can choose to worship in a place that best suits them and makes them most comfortable, who does that make the center of worship? We worship God (John 4:24), not our preferences (Matt. 15:9). We're taught to follow His will rather than our own (Matt. 6:10; Heb. 5:9).
I might better enjoy instrumental music with my worship, a different food or drink with which to remember my Lord's suffering each Sunday, a stand-up comic routine over gospel preaching, or praying to a saint rather than to God. Whatever I personally desire to offer in worship is moot!
My plan of salvation, if I had the option of devising one, would be easier. In fact, I might require nothing of myself to be saved. If it were my choice, why not?
But how I worship and what I am to believe is laid out for me in the Bible. It is the authority. It is the standard whereby I come to decisions about how to serve God in this life. Whether or not I always enjoy it or appreciate why God's will is what it is, I must obey what God has commanded (cf. John 12:48; 14:15).
We must be careful to give God what He wants and expects. Religious division wasn't His proposal (John 17:20-21). Whatever we attempt to do religiously, let's be sure we have a divine seal of approval (cf. Col. 3:17). Otherwise, chaos will result, and God is not the author of that (1 Cor. 14:33). Let us prefer to do what He wants and only that! That is ground that is always safe and can never be shaky!

Daily Bread, 2-1-07

DAILY BREAD, Thursday, 2-1-07

Abel
Neal Pollard

Abel is one of the first true victims of the Bible, if not the first hero. In fact, he is the first character about whom there is only good spoken in the Genesis record. Abel comes onto the scene offering God acceptable worship and he leaves life as a martyr for his righteous conduct. However, writers as late as John and Hebrews look back on his life near the beginning of time to make distinct, New Testament points. He is a vital biblical character from whom we learn at least three important things.

We see the importance of Abel's offering (Gen. 4:4). It was his firstlings. The Lord has respect unto Abel's offering. John would write, "For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous" (1 John 3:11-12). Abel worshiped God the way God wanted to be worshiped, and how does He want to be worshiped? Jesus plainly answers, "God is spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth" (John 4:24).

We see the importance of Abel's blood (Heb. 12:24). Blood sacrifice has seemingly been an intrinsic part of man's spiritual relationship with God since the dawn of time. Blood is vital to life. Giving of blood is the greatest expression of sacrifice. Abel died as the result of innocence and righteousness. That blood even "cried out to God" after Abel's murder (Gen. 4:10-11). Yet, Abel, as righteous as he was, was a sinner. Moreover, his blood saves no one from sins. As important as his shedding of blood is to the unfolding of history, Jesus' blood is superior (Heb. 12:24). He was perfectly innocent, and His death was an offering of the just for the unjust (1 Pet. 3:18). His sacrifice is also the means whereby man is saved from his sins (Eph. 1:7).

We see the importance of Abel's faith (Heb. 11:4). Among the mighty in faith throughout the ages, Abel's name is prominently etched. "By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks." Herein we see that Abel's faith was--(1) active, (2) saving, (3) notable, and (4) influential. First, his faith acted. He offered a sacrifice. Next, his faith was productive. God counted him righteous as the result of his faith. He did not earn that recognition, but God granted it as the result of his faith. Then, his faith is noteworthy. It was such faith that God testified of Abel's sacrifice, the product of his faith. Finally, his faith is influential, as it is still upheld nearly six thousand years later as an example for us to follow. Though he is dead, his faith is still living and leading people today. Thereby, one today can learn and should imitate the type faith Abel had.
Abel is a total hero for the ages. He can be described by such adjectives as faithful, righteous, innocent, and better. Let us learn from and imitate this patriarchal giant so we can shine as a beacon of faith, sacrifice, and obedience even after we depart this life!