Endless Hope, Hopeless End?

 A man in Louisiana explained why he refuses to buy life insurance: “When I die, I want it to be a sad day for everybody. Believing that man is nothing more than a pile of material (if magnificent) molecules, millions find it impossible to view death with anything but gloom and despair. What is it like to face death with no more hope than human reason (unaided by faith in God and His revelation in the Bible) can give? The skeptic Ingersoll, while dying (1899) exclaimed, “O God, if there be a God, save my soul, if I have a soul.” The great French skeptic Voltaire (1694-1778), contemporary with American patriot and statesman Ben Franklin, argued that human reason alone was a sufficient guide in life without a revelation from God. But human reason failed to comfort him as he

neared the end of his life. The thought of what was beyond the grave terrified him. On his deathbed he told his physician, “I am abandoned by God and man. I will give you half of what I am worth if you will give me six months of life.” When the doctor told him he

could not comply, Voltaire said, “Then I shall go to hell.” Bertrand Russell, another famous unbeliever, affirmed his life was built on the foundation of unyielding despair. He issued a joint statement with the brilliant big-brained Albert Einstein, just two days before Einstein’s death, confessing that “those of us who know the most are the gloomiest about the future” (quoted by Ravi Zacharias in "Can Man Live Without God?", p 74). David Hume was an atheist philosopher famous for his religious skepticism. His deathbed is said

to have been a horrible scene as he cried out, “I am in flames!” Thomas Hobs, a political philosopher, said as he neared death, If I had the whole world at my disposal, I would give it to live one more day. I am about to take a leap into the dark.” All these were brilliant,

accomplished men loaded with tons of human brainpower. But they all discovered that human brilliance, intellect, reason and brain power alone are no match for the power of death and the hopelessness that accompanies death without Christ. Atheists and materialists sometimes boast they can die without fear. While that may be true in some cases, they want us to forget that they also die without the hope Christians have (see 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).

Contrast this doom and despair with the hopeful and confident words written by the apostle Paul from a prison cell as he awaited certain and imminent death: “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing” (2 Timothy 4:6-8). For Paul death was not the end, and it was not a “leap into the dark.” He was not in despair and was not gripped by a sense of doubt, fear, doom or gloom. For Paul death was not an end but a new beginning! Not a descent into hell – but a transition into a glorious forever, at home with God (verse 18)! Not a hopeless end, but an endless hope. And the difference was not human brilliance or reason alone – the difference was Jesus Christ. How about you? Are you headed for a hopeless end or an endless hope? Jesus will be faithful to you when you die if you are faithful to Him while you live. Are you listening? 

    By: Dan Gulley, Smithville TN     

Unpopular Preachers!

 A preacher was having a tough ministry. His work was not going well and he was not appreciated by many in the congregation. Things were falling apart, attendance was low, finances failing. After one particularly poor bad Sunday morning sermon he received an anonymous note – “The last train out of town leaves today at 3 p.m. Be under it.” History bears out truth-preaching preachers sometimes displease men and women. The bigger question is whether or not God is pleased. Jesus Christ preached truth. In John 8:26 Jesus told a group of Jewish leaders who opposed Him, “... He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him.” But what God had to say was not what those close-minded men wanted to hear, so later at John 8:40 Jesus stated,

“But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God.” They finally did kill Him, but not for long, and He and the truth He told ever lives on. Jesus always pleased God (John 8:29), but that wasn’t enough to please some people. The prophet Jeremiah preached the Word of the Lord for forty years. He spent part of that time in prisons and dungeons for telling God’s truth (Jeremiah 38:6). John the Baptist’s preaching literally caused him to lose his head – to King Herold’s executioner’s axe, that is; all because John had the gall to tell Herod his marriage was unlawful in the sight of God (Matthew 14 * Mark 6). John’s case reminds us God still has a little something to say about marriage, and that preachers who are true to their God-assigned task will remember they answer to a higher authority than kings, Presidents, public opinion polls, the Supreme Court, liberal preachers and churches, popular pop icons, and people who don’t want to change their ways. Jesus’ apostles were often accused of causing trouble and suffered for preaching Christ  (see Acts 4:3, 17ff; 5:18-42; 16:20-24). So dangerous was it to be a prophet over the course of Old Testament history that Jesus plaintively lamented in Matthew 23:37, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing.” The historical record testifies that truth-tellers and preachers who are popular with God are always unpopular with some people.               

 All this is what makes the words of 2 Timothy 4:1-5 so important in every time and place. Wherever you live, whoever you are, whatever church you’ve been in or are in or even if you’re not in one, this is what God expects of the preacher: “I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when        they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” If the preacher is the real deal, those words are his guide. Hopefully he is kind, patient, and loves not only God but people. But he will preach the Word whether it pleases people or not. And God is on      public record – His truth will not please everybody. Never has. Doesn’t now. Never will. Still, we must preach the word. That will make us popular with God, but not all people. Every preacher is unpopular with       someone. The vital question is, is it people with fable-loving and itching ears, or with God? Think about it.

Dan Gulley, Smithville, TN 

What Do Broccoli and the Bible Have in Common?

 

Let’s think about broccoli and the Bible. First, broccoli. It is common knowledge broccoli is a nutritional powerhouse loaded with vitamins, minerals, fiber and antioxidants. The list of healthful benefits for those who ingest broccoli are too numerous to list, but include things like reduced blood sugar and cholesterol levels and reduced inflammation in body tissues. Some research data (not yet definitive but encouraging) suggests broccoli even contributes to protection against certain kinds of cancers. The list goes on. So here is a question to ponder – if broccoli is so good for your physical health, why do some people absolutely refuse to eat it? Former President George H. W. Bush spoke bluntly to that very issue! “I do not like broccoli,” Bush told the New York Times in 1990. He even banned broccoli aboard Air Force One! When that news leaked out, broccoli growers dispatched 10 tons of the health-giving veggie free to Washington. The feisty President dug in his heels and proclaimed, “I haven't liked broccoli since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it. And [now] I'm President of the United States, and I'm not going to eat any more broccoli!” Bush just didn’t like broccoli, and no amount of preaching and persuasion about its many benefits toward good health could change his mind.                 

 Now think about the Bible. Why do many people refuse to include the Bible in their diet and “eat” it’s truths? The Bible is loved by many as the “Good Book.” John Adams spoke even more highly of the Bible when he observed, “The Bible is the best Book in the world.” Many, of course, disagree and point to extreme and egregious attitudes and actions on the part of some who misunderstand, misrepresent and misuse the Bible. Others point to sad but real-life examples of people who loudly profess faith in Christ and talk a big talk but fail miserably to walk the walk. The Bible word for such people is “hypocrites” – and their “example” helps to empower critics of God and His word (see Romans 2:21-24). Be all that as it may, the two-thousand year-old words of the apostle Paul to Timothy continue to make this high claim about the Bible: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable (‘beneficial’ [NASB] * ‘useful’ [NIV]) for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim.3:15-17). We can’t unpack those words here. But it is clear Paul is saying the Bible is not only the Good Book – it is God’s Book – and as such it is good for you and for me! I know the Bible has critics who disagree with those statements, and they offer a myriad of  “reasons” why they won’t consume its teaching and recognize its authority over their lives. The Bible admittedly includes some things “hard to understand” (2 Peter 3:16). But consider this. In John 6:60, after Jesus taught “he who feeds on Me shall live because of Me” (vs 57) “many of His disciples, when they heard this said, ‘This statement is very unpleasant; who can listen to it?’ ” Verse 66 tells us, “From that time many went back and walked with Him no more.” The problem was not that what Jesus said wasn’t true and wasn’t good for them. He offered them the bread of life (6:48, 51)! The problem was they just didn’t like it, and they refused to eat it. That’s what broccoli and the Bible have in common – they are both really good for you, but some people just don’t like them! Think about it.

     Dan Gulley,  Smithville, TN