CYPRESSWOOD CHURCH OF CHRIST
May 25, 2008
25424 Aldine-Westfield, Spring, TX. 77373
www.geocities.com/adon77373/cypresswoodbulletin.htm
www.cypresswoodchurchofchrist.com
MEMORIAL DAY
Please remember our military and their families and those who have given
their lives in service to our nation.
PETITIONS AND THANKSGIVINGS:
Our congregation Various relatives, friends and co-workers
Our nation, leaders and military Peace
THIS AND THAT - 2008 - 2
“But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet” (1 Thessalonians 5:8).
I don’t know about you all, but I pick up coins I see on the ground from pennies on up. Those pennies pay the tax for a cup of senior coffee at McDonalds. Israeli archaeologists made a find recently in the old city of Jerusalem coming from the Second Temple Period (rebuilt in 520 B.C. and upgraded by Herod the Great). It was found in an old drainage ditch. The importance of it is that it is a silver coin bearing the head of Melqart, the chief deity of the city of Tyre on one side and an eagle on the other side. The coin is a half-shekel and was used to pay the Temple tax. Only seven others have been found.
The moral condition of politicians continues to make news. It seems that no matter how much they speak for family values or law and order, when in powerful positions, immoral behavior can occur. Power corrupts is so true. Another Northeast governor was forced to resigned because of sexual immorality. What is interesting are comments from a Harvard law professor and from a political pundit. Both said that this is a private thing and it really doesn’t matter what they do in their private lives. Another writer asks in his article what these two pundits wives think of their comments. The pundits might have received a warning about not finding themselves in that situation.
Last year, two of my favorite cartoonists died. The creator of Kuduz was killed in a car accident. I was hoping that either his son or nephew would pick up the strip and bring back the characters of Bypass, but alas, that doesn’t appear to be likely. The other was the creator of B.C., Johnny Hart. In his later years he injected some Christian ideas into his strips, some thought provoking and some controversial, but always entertaining. However, his co-writers do not appear to have the same influences and have tended to neglect the religious ideas around holidays, sad for one and all. This past Easter they did have a strip that had a veiled reference to Jesus and maybe they will consider the legacy of Hart in upcoming strips.
Comments recently by a black preacher, Jeremiah Wright, about the United States have caused considerable controversy. Several have stated that this is the way black preachers preach; making controversial statements at certain points to cause emotions to rise. A black preacher named Thabiti Anyabwile sees black liberation theology as man centered and focused on political solutions, mostly to the left. He questions this because he sees this as a moving away from theology. Certainly in the preaching of black preachers and the songs in the line of the old Negro spirituals, Moses, Exodus and suffering were prominent themes. But this is not what is found in liberation theology. While it concerns him that the older preachers have fallen into this line of thinking, he thinks that young black preachers are returning to good Biblical theology, which is good news for all of us (1).
Philip Jenkins is a professor at Penn St. University and has written a number of books on the spread of Christianity in today’s world. His work has opened up the idea that the continents of the south will be the next great area of the spread of Christianity. He also sees Europe returning to Christianity, though some disagree with his thesis. Recently he wrote an editorial about home grown terrorism not of the Islamic kind (2). He mentions that in the 1930s, 1960s and 1990s, various extremist groups rose in concern for the party in control during those years. While most made a lot of noise, and some gathered weapons, much did not come of it. An exception would be the bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City. Militia and other groups were labeled right wing extremists because they opposed liberal policies. Some groups had the name “Christian” in their title giving rise to fundamental Christians as extremists who would most likely bomb abortion clinics. Talk radio was also included in these “extremists” groups. While the warning Mr. Jenkins gives is something that needs to be heeded, the generalities of which many speak can cause labeling of people who have nothing to do with such groups. We went through this in the nineties with a media that just is not careful in learning distinctions. Jonah Goldberg would argue somewhat differently, that the supposed extreme groups might have more to do with the left than the right (3).
The problem with the above is that there are groups who claim to be Christian who hold racist, anti-Semitic, and other radical views of people they just do not like. By attaching “Christian” to their name, or in some way referring to the Bible, they discredit Christianity in the eyes of many. Since we sometimes think that various groups are monolithic, that is, they all think alike, this presents problems. Those who preach hate of their neighbor are not following the teachings of the Jewish Christ as presented in the Bible, a problem in and of itself. Jesus was Jewish and that presents difficulties for such groups who tend to ignore this to preach their hate.
We in churches of Christ have sometimes had to explain the differences between us and the extremely liberal denomination, the United Church of Christ, which has recently been in the news. We are conservative Bible believers and they advocate liberal theology and government action in social policy. I have had to explain to callers over the years that we have nothing to do with this group even though we have a similar name. It is not unusual for people to take on Biblical names in abusive ways. “The Way” in Acts identify followers of Jesus but today is connected with a cult that has abused children and women. This will be an ongoing problem, especially when the news media cannot make distinctions between different groups out of laziness, poor research, or biasness.
Harry Jackson Jr. is another black preacher who questions Jeremiah Wright’s preaching a black liberation theology. Quoting Ken Blackwell, liberation theology is “a belief system about political agendas, socialistic economic policy, and redistribution of wealth.” Mr. Jackson has co-authored a book with Tony Perkins and is working to healing race relations. He states that people like Mr. Wright are “entrenched in an antiquated, old school, civil rights mindset.” Many black ministers under forty are strongly evangelical and Biblical rather than being into politics (4).
In a recent commentary, Chuck Colson reports on numerous conversions in the Muslim world that has some Muslim clerics worried. While it might be exaggerated, one cleric thinks that some 16,000 Muslims are converting to Christianity a day. Among the nations mentioned include Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, and Iraq. They have seen Islam for what it is and are changing from a false religion of peace to the real religion of peace found in Christ (5).
It appears that the resurrection is a topic of discussion in a wider audience. Two Harvard professors, Kevin Madigan and Jon Levenson, have released a book discussing the resurrection in Jewish thought during and before the first century. Following N.T. Wright, they see resurrection as more than just rising to go to heaven. Rather, it includes a physical, bodily resurrection that means a new body and new life in God’s renewed creation. This can be very interesting in the study of theology.
One would think that the Anglicans just love to stir up controversy. One Robert Harrison has written a book called Must Know Stories. He asked people what stories from the Bible should be past along to the next generation and he rewrote them to make them more accessible. Keep in mind, Britain’s religious knowledge appears to have decline much in the last several decades. The stories he found important are the birth and crucifixion of Jesus, Adam and Eve, the parables of the Prodigal Son and the Good Samaritan, the Ten Commandments, Noah’s Ark, David and Goliath, Daniel in the Lion’s Den, and the feeding of the five thousand. The rewriting has drawn criticism even though he includes the Biblical text next to the rewriting. We find that Goliath was a depressed alcoholic who was hung over when he faced David and Adam and Eve were obsessed with sex because of their nakedness. This is certainly reading into the text what is not found in scripture. One could ask what the Philistines were doing after threatening Israel for forty days before David came to face Goliath. He wrote that Mary did not give birth to Jesus alone in a barn but was in a house with many relatives gathered around because of the census. This might be closer to the truth than our traditional understanding of the Christmas story. As in any effort to explain scripture, one must be careful what one reads into scripture.
Zakaria Botros has been named Islam’s “Public Enemy #1” and is rumored to have a five million dollar bounty on his head. Who is this fellow and what has he done to provoke such ire? He has been using satellite TV and the internet to spread the good news of Jesus Christ. A Coptic Egyptian, he knows Arabic and Islam, is able to read the Koran in Arabic and knows other Islamic texts. He raises questions that many who listen to him want Islamic clerics to answer. Many are rejecting the simple idea that the Koran says it and that is enough. Mr. Botros knows little known facts and acts in Islam and can and has raised them, challenging leaders to answer them for their people. But his real purpose is to draw people away from “the dead legalism of sharia to the spirituality of Christianity” (6). People are listening and turning to Jesus and the clerics can no longer ignore him, hence the title and bounty.
Black liberation theology is akin to what is called the Christian identity movement that is equally racist. James Lewis states that it refuses to accept a God who does not identify with the goals of the black community and that this God must be against white people, that all white people are responsible for white oppression, and ultimately black power is the expression of divine love (7). Most of those I have read on this subject state that this is a view of the older preachers but younger people and preachers with access to the internet see things differently. All racism is wrong, white or black, for God is no respecter of people. We have all sinned and are in need of redemption. Let’s pray to move away from racism to unity, especially among believers.
One activist said that “A society that has more justice is a society that needs less charity.” Some politicians think that “giving at the office” means raising taxes equals charity. George Will quoting Arthur Brooks warns: “If support for a policy that does not exist…substitutes for private charity, the needy are left worse off than before. It is one of the bitterest ironies of liberal politics today that political opinions are apparently taking the place of help for others” (8)
Matthias Kuntzel has written a book called Jihad and Jew-Hatred: Islamism, Nazism and the Roots of 9/11 in which he states that the historical roots of jihad come from Islam’s contact with the Nazis. Andrew Bostom has written a book called The Legacy of Islamic Anti-Semitism: From Sacred Texts to Solemn History where he thinks that the roots of jihad come from the early days of Islam. Some think this is a debate but in reality, both appear to be true perspectives, one that examines jihad from an immediate perspective and the other from an historical account. It appears that jihad is ingrained in Islam, but given some of the information on Muslims turning to Christ, jihad isn’t as popular as some might think.
Expelled is the title of a new documentary in which Ben Stein examines the conflict between Darwinian evolution and Intelligent Design. He interviews various people, asks why those who have a different view of various aspects of science are rejected, fired or denied tenure. If science investigates, why are some so dogmatic to not allow such investigation. We have heard recently that anyone who does not believe in global warming are “flat earthers.” Why the fear of investigation unless there is a fear that something might be found that would contradict one’s views? The purpose of the documentary is to open discussion that thus far has been closed by the philosophical branch of science.
In light of the above documentary, I mentioned in the 3/30/2008 bulletin one Iowa State University professor, Guillermo Gonzalez, who was denied tenure because among his papers, he wrote a book examining favorably of intelligent design. Of course, Iowa State denied that had anything to do with it. However, in recent interviews, two of his examiners at Iowa State have admitted that intelligent design was in part the reason for his denial of tenure. With all that is being taught at universities these days, this opposition to God or anything that might lead to God seems like paranoia (9).
The Brits are at it again. They are beginning a multi-million dollar study to find out the mental reasons for believing in God. They state that the belief in God cries out for a biological reason. Their assumption is that there is no God so we must find out why people believe or to say it another way, it’s in the genes. They want to see if people are wired that way and others are not. Choice is not an option to this point of view. We however see man with a choice to believe or not, or to chose the lifestyle he desires. Science does not have all the answers despite what some think.
On blog.bibleplaces.com this past April 1st was this announcement: Sea of Galilee Discovered
“Officials today announced that the Sea of Galilee, famous in the New Testament as the
location of Jesus’ ministry, has been discovered! Reaction to the announcement was
decidedly vocal in all quarters. Evangelicals claimed that all of the Bible was hereby
proven to be true. One biblioblogger denounced the archaeologists as right-wing
fundamentalists, asserting that no such body of water ever existed but the Bible is completely
true nonetheless. A Palestinian spokesman said that this is all just a plot to steal their land.
One Christian Zionist organization already had an appeal letter for funds in the mail. 60
Minutes had undercover reporters on the scene in hopes of finding an Egyptian scientist to
explain how it must be a fraud. A bulletin posted on Ron Wyatt’s website confirmed that
they had already located Jesus’ footprints in the water. The first chapter was released of a
book by Robert Cornuke in which he claims that he found the footprints, just before being
arrested. Seasoned archaeologists noted wryly that great finds are always made on the last
day of the season, whereas discoveries like this one are always made on April 1.”
On a more serious archaeology note, Yuval Baruch has uncovered pottery artifacts on the site of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem and is considered the first physical evidence of human activity during the time of King Solomon’s Temple. The discovery made in October of 2007 included animal bones, ceramic bowl rims, bases and body shards, the base of a juglet used to pour oil, the handle of a small judlet, and the rim of a storage jar, all dating to the 8th and 7th Century B.C. Keep in mind that the Muslims do not believe the Jews ever had a Temple on the Temple Mount and have opposed archaeological digs there. They have chosen to ignore these finds, obviously because it contradicts their claims.
Under the title of “It’s A Bad World,” Dennis Prager reports the following: “In Israel, Haaretz reported that an Arab woman has been shot in an attempted honor killing. She was to be the ninth female member of her family to be killed. ‘Eight women from the family were murdered in the past six years, all in connection with ‘family honor.’’ Male relatives had murdered them all because they brought shame on their Muslim family by not marrying the men picked for them or otherwise disobeying family religious dictates.” He concludes his article: “I am convinced that human evil is so great that most peop0le choose either to ignore it or to focus their concerns elsewhere -- like those who believe that human-created carbon dioxide emission, not human evil, poses the greatest threat to mankind. No one will ever get killed for fighting global warming. Fighting evil, on the other hand, is quite dangerous” (10).
There are over 5,700 manuscripts of the Greek New Testament. One or two new ones are found each year. Many of these are portions, even fragments, of the New Testament. Last year, a group lead by Daniel Wallace of the Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts, went to Albania to photograph some thirteen manuscripts in their national library. What they found was not thirteen but forty-seven, most not known to have existed before now. For Greek scholars, this is an exciting find. There remains much to study. Some appear to be late manuscripts coming in the 9th or 10th Century. We will have to wait to see what this discovery will add to our understanding of the New Testament.
The environmental movement complains that nuclear power is too dangerous, coal is too dirty, and wind power is too ugly. This has led to some who think that we should just do away with this obsession with electricity altogether. In their desire to find alternatives to oil, etc., a move has been made to use corn and other sources in what is known as ethanol. It sounded good until recently. Nations have been producing food for fuel at the expense of feeding their people. We are now hearing about food riots in several parts of the world. We are also learning that corn needs more fertilizer and water to produce which means we are now not only polluting water supplies but draining them as well. Good intentions but without much thought about the consequences.
Iain Murray reports that researchers have found large mouth bass in the Potomac River who were males but had eggs in their sexual organs. When that happens, the fish population suffers. What is causing this? It is a chemical but not from factories or farms or some other popular source. It is human birth-control pills, morning after pills, and abortion pills that have made there way into the River. Why not research this? Politicians are lined up in support of controlling the population and are unwilling to look at unintended consequences. Oh for a day when common sense once again dominates thinking.
A well known politician has quoted scripture. No surprise here; many do. Here is the quote: “To minister to the needs of God’s creation is an act of worship. To ignore those needs is to dishonor the God who made us.” Sound familiar? No? That is because it is not in scripture. A number of theologians have been searching and have been unable to find anything familiar. Yet this politician has quoted this text a number of times over the last year. One would think the media would have caught this. Oh, that’s right; when the current President quoted scriptures, one media person thought it was some down home quaint sayings from Texas. A Biblical illiterate people can be a dangerous thing.
Did you know there is now a movement for “plant rights?” That’s right. It seems a Swiss group wants to recognize the dignity of creation when handling animals, plants and other organism. Another woman in the U.S. cried when she saw wheat being “mowed” down in a field. Since humans are no longer recognized as made in God’s image, things like this develop in the vacuum left. Sadly, people like this are more likely to support the abortion or euthanasia of humans than of plant and animals.
Sharnel and my trip to California was great. There was somewhat of a culture shock. Traffic was rush hour type 24/7 and posted speed limits seemed to be suggestions. Eating out was expensive though the food was good and Starbucks is very popular; no surprise here. The weather was great. Going through Malibu Canyon became our standard way from the motel to Pepperdine University. We tried another route but doing twenty-five on a narrow two lane road with twists and turns just didn’t cut it. We sat outside at a number of eating places and walked on the beach. We went to Disney Downtown, a shopping area next to Disneyland. We were surprised at the famous LAX International Airport. There are eight terminals but most were small in comparison to Houston’s Bush International. I know why we have to be two hours early at Bush. It is not because of the security but because we had to walk to the far end of Terminal E to catch our flight, some thirty plus gates.
There were a number of good lessons. The one on those famous Old Testament characters, Muppim, Huppim, and Ard was very good and I’m sure many of you had heard good lessons on these fellows (11).
One of the themes that I was interested in was a cappella music. Many who have experienced such music have told various people that we should never give up this. A number of people attended an a cappella conference at Pepperdine last year and Darryl Tippens was surprised at the number of people who came to listen and enjoy the music. Several things came out of a class taught by Jack Boyd, a professor of music at Abilene Christian University. He said that the pendulum has swung back toward more traditional and deep music, suggesting that the praise music is fading. Another though from Tippens is that instrumental music isn’t going to cause the demise of a cappella as much as technology. Praise teams that use microphones that drown out congregational singing might do it. I would agree. The group that led singing at the lectures theme speeches were very good but did drown out the voices of the congregation.
One class I attended dealt with Restoration History and the two schools of thought that have battled each other for over one hundred years. One known as the Texas Tradition has narrowed their views on a number of topics to the point that if you do not agree with them, then you are not a part of the one true church. The other, the Nashville Bible School tradition, is more open to various opinions and is willing to discuss. Some major disagreements are on the Holy Spirit and God’s activity in the world. This is a general view of the class; there are details that I might present in a future article.
The theme of the lectures was The Sermon on the Mount. Mark Black, a professor of Bible at David Lipscomb University, taught a class on this. It was nice to have a professor agree with me on any number of things, ha, ha. He did bring some interesting and thought-provoking things about the sermon, and it was nice to hear a professor say that he is still reflecting on a number of issues raised by the sermon.
All in all it was a good lectureship and I enjoyed the classes. I did meet a classmate of mine from Sunset and we spent two hours talking about missions, Sunset, and preaching.
George B. Mearns
(1) See Thabiti Anyabwile, The Decline of African American Theology, www.boundless.org
(2) Philip Jenkins, “Next terrorism may be of the homegrown variety,” Houston Chronicle, 03/24/2008.
(3) Jonah Goldberg, Liberal Fascism.
(4) Harry R. Jackson, Jr., Faith, Race and Politics, 3/24/2008, www.townhall.com
(5) Chuck Colson, They Want Jesus Instead, 3/24/2008, www.breakpoint.org
(6) See Raymond Ibrahim, Islam’s Public Enemy #1, www.nationalreview.com
(7) James Lewis, How the Leftist Churches Set a Time Bomb for the Democrats, 03/26/2008, www.americanthinker.com For an insightful article on race, see Jeffrey Lord, The Culture of Lincoln, 04/08/08, www.spectator.org
(8) George Will, Mugged by data, 03/27/2008, www.jewishworldreview.com
(9) For more on this and the documentary, see www.expelledthemovie.com
(10) Dennis Prager, 04/08/08, www.jewishworldreview.com
(11) see Genesis 46:21.