An Apostle Called on the Carpet!

A guy said, “I once had a goldfish that could break-dance on a carpet. But only for like 20 seconds.” My apologies to goldfish and those who love them. This little article is about a Bible passage in Galatians 2:11-21 where the apostle Peter is doing a little dancing of his own. Not on a carpet, mind you, but around the truth of the Gospel. To use the words of the apostle Paul’s inspired indictment at verse 13, Peter “played the hypocrite”! Incredible thought — one apostle accusing another of being, for the moment, a hypocrite! And so Paul, as we say, “calls Peter on the carpet.”

Back to that passage in a few moments. According to website @ grammarist.com, to “call on the carpet” is an idiom meaning “to reprimand someone, to be criticized, scolded or blamed for some sort of mistake or infraction.” Early on the idiom was “walk the carpet” and came to describe a servant being called before his mistress or master in order to be scolded or blamed for a mistake. The idea is that the servant has been called out of the kitchen with a flagstone floor, or the servants’ quarters with wooden floors, into the quarters of the master of the house where the floors are carpeted. Today the phrase “call on the carpet” may be used to describe a reprimand to anyone, from anyone, but it is often a superior who calls a subordinate on the carpet.

The passage mentioned above in Galatians chapter 2 records an incident between two equals. Two apostles of Christ, that is. Peter was one of the original 12 apostles chosen by the Lord and Paul’s call by Christ came later in dramatic fashion (see Acts 9, 22, and 26) “as one born out of due time” (1 Corinthians 15:8b). Both Paul and Peter had preached the same gospel — salvation and justification through faith in Christ, not by keeping the Law of Moses or circumcision, Paul preached mostly to Gentiles and Peter mostly to Jews (Galatians 2:6-8), and the two were in full fellowship (2:9). But alas, Galatians 2:11ff relates a sad day in Antioch (of Syria, some 300 miles north of Jerusalem) when Peter began to backtrack and “play the hypocrite.” Read carefully – when no other Jews were around, or at least when leading, influential ones were not, Peter did as the Gentiles did, having table fellowship with them (vs 12a). But when influential Jews (that is, Jewish Christians who still preached circumcision) showed up, he gave in to peer-pressure and did as the Jews did. He “withdrew [from the Gentiles] and separated himself from them, fearing those who were of the circumcision” (vs 12). It was then that Paul “called Peter on the carpet” and charged him with hypocrisy (vs 13). Paul “withstood him to his face [note, not on Facebook!], because he was to be blamed.” He challenged Peter’s conduct “before them all” (vs 14), not behind Peter’s back or in a tweet.

Here’s the point — while the apostles’ message was inspired, their manner of life was not. To quote Edward C. Wharton in his commentary on GALATIANS, “The apostles were not super-human beings. They had to fight sin and self.” Peter lost one battle but not the war. No doubt Paul and Peter cared for each other as brothers and fellow soldiers in and for Christ. But Paul and Peter also knew their Hebrew Scriptures said in Psalm 141:5 – “Let the righteous strike me; It shall be a kindness. And let him rebuke me; It shall be as excellent oil; Let my head not refuse it.” Consider: do we fear people too much to “call them on the carpet” when the need arises? God help us always be sensitive and kind but have a stiff spine to stand for the truth.

by: Dan Gulley, Smithville, TN

The Sure Way To Forfeit Forgiveness!

        A grudge was apparently held by Mark Twain when he wrote about someone who died: “I did not attend the funeral, but I wrote a nice note saying I approved of it.” Twain’s words remind us it is easy to “nurse a grudge.” But nursing a grudge is never easy on us. As Ken Kesey said, “The man [or woman] who seeks revenge digs two graves.” English poet Alexander Pope [died 1744], in his “Essay On Criticism” (1711), reminds us there is a better way with the familiar saying, “To err is human; to forgive is divine.” The saying echoes the Bible’s teaching that all accountable human beings sin (even Christians – Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8-10), and that God forgives when people meet the conditions He laid out in the Gospel (Acts 2:37-38; Colossians 2:10-13). Pope’s saying hints at something Jesus taught clearly and forcefully – if we want forgiveness, we must work at having a forgiving spirit. The Lord said in Matthew 6:14-15, “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you do not  forgive men their trespasses, neither will your heavenly Father forgive you.” That’s blunt stuff.  Jesus didn't qualify what kind of trespasses. He didn’t say, “You have to forgive other people of the easy and lightweight stuff or the stuff that’s easy to get over.” Instead, He jars us with one the toughest demands He ever laid out for those who would genuinely follow Him – if we forgive, God forgives us. If we don’t forgive, God won’t forgive us. That’s how you forfeit forgiveness. And before you decide God will let you off the hook for being unwilling to forgive, recall the cross where God’s beaten, bloodied, battered, blasphemed Son, with not a single sustainable charge of sin against His pure and innocent soul, prays, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Luke 23:34). A few weeks later the Father did forgive many of them who complied with Gospel conditions (see Acts 2:36-41). Does what you see at the cross suggest to you there was anything easy as God, through His Son, brought to completion His ages-long plan to be able to righteously and justly forgive your sins and my sins and everyone else’s sins? I think not.

         Elizabeth O’ Connor reminds us, “Forgiveness is a whole lot harder than any sermon ever made it out to be.” One clear message from the cross is that forgiveness is horribly difficult and costly. To forgive us cost God His Son, and cost the Son excruciating physical torment and agony, let alone the unimaginable spiritual pain and torture He suffered there in His soul. If it proved that costly to God and His Son to forgive our sins, why would we expect it to be easy to forgive others who have trespassed against us? By the way, before I forget to say this, can you imagine how costly it would have turned out for us if God and His Son had been unwilling to pay the price to forgive us? Yes, to forgive is sometimes very, very difficult. As some sage noted, “To err is human, to forgive is unusual.” It may be unusual for those who don’t know Christ to offer forgiveness. But the call for those who claim to follow Jesus could not be more plain or direct – “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32). Burton Coffman’s commentary on this verse provides a succinct if sobering summary of the New Testament’s teaching on God’s demand that we be forgiving – “The watchword for Christians, and for all people, is, ‘Forgive or forfeit forgiveness.’” The sure way to forfeit forgiveness is to refuse forgive.

       by: Dan Gulley, Smithville, TN 

A Church of Velvet and Steel!

A very unusual tribute was paid to Abraham Lincoln by American poet and biographer Carl Sandburg. He wrote, “Not often in the story of mankind does a man arrive on earth who is both steel and velvet, who is as hard as rock and soft as drifting fog, who holds in his heart and mind the paradox of terrible storm and peace unspeakable and perfect.” You may or may not agree with that assessment of Lincoln. But one thing is sure — the kind of character Sandburg describes is all too scarce in human beings. And, may I add, rarer in the church than we should hope.

 Jesus Christ was a man of velvet and steel. He was tough and He was tender, depending upon what different people and different occasions might call for. To those who had been done in by the devil but who were open to His teaching, guidance, and forgiveness, Jesus was tender as a loving mother and / or father. In John 4 He encountered a woman at Jacob’s well who had been married five different times to five different husbands, and Jesus reminds her the man she is currently living with is not her husband John 4:18). And yet, and yet — He didn’t write her off.  He didn’t castigate or scald or scorch her for living in sin.” He deftly and directly but gently spoke to her about “living water” and His desire to provide it for her (verses 10-14). Read the whole account and you will see how tenderly Jesus dealt with her as He sought to lead her to faith in Himself as the long-awaited Messiah. Another example of Jesus’ tenderness is found in John 8:1ff where the Pharisees sought to trap the Lord. They brought Jesus  “a woman caught in the act of adultery.” They urged Him to be hard as steel and tough in dealing with her, reminding Jesus, “Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do you say? You can read His response in John 8:6-9. With skill He turned the tables on these religious hypocrites, and His tender response to the woman is, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” She answered, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you” — but then tough words followed as He urged her, “Go, and sin no more” (John 8:10-11). Even a casual reading of the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ life shows Him to be a man of velvet softness when dealing with hurting people and suffering sinners, but hard as steel when it came to truth.

 The apostle Paul gives more than advice or a suggestion with his directive in Ephesians 4:15 that Christians be “speaking the truth in love.” Any Bible student knows the apostle Paul was anything but soft on the truth. At great personal cost to himself he preached it up and down the first century Roman Empire. He had an iron will when it came to preaching God’s truth. In Galatians 2:5 (we don’t have space to get into the context), Paul made this unbending statement about some people who attempted to change the teaching of the gospel: “to whom we did not yield submission even for an hour, that the truth of the gospel might remain with you.” But before that book ends, we hear the apostle calling for tenderness between Christians — “... through love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another” (Galatians 5:13b-15)!” Let every Christian take notice — God        wants a church characterized by velvet and steel. Velvet when it comes to dealing with people and their problems and sins. But a will of steel when it comes to holding fast to the truth of the gospel. 

  Dan Gulley, Smithville TN

The Greatest Text Ever Sent!

            Texting is all the rave these days. But you have to be careful to send the message you really want to send, especially if your phone has autocorrect. For instance, someone observed that thanks to autocorrect, 1 in 5 children will be getting a visit from Satan this Christmas. Some other wag texted, “The guy who invented autocorrect for smart phones died today. Restaurant in peace.” Then there was this exchange between a mother and her son:   * Mom: Your aunt just passed away. LOL.   * Son: Why is that funny?    * Mom: It’s not funny, David! What do you mean?   * Son: Mom, LOL means Laughing Out Loud.   * Mom: Oops! I thought it meant Lots of Love. Whether all texts convey what the sender really means to say or not, texts are flying off our fingertips and out of our phones. Statistics on texting are staggering. Some 81% of Americans text regularly. Over 6 billion texts are sent daily. Over 180 billion texts are sent every month. 27 trillion texts are sent every year. America is responsible for approximately 45% of the world’s text volume. Adults under 45 send and receive 85+ texts every day, on average. Adults 18-24 years old send and receive over 128 texts every day. Adults 18-24 years old send and receive 3,853 texts a month. I can’t go on with this except to note that texting, like just about every other technology, is a mixed bag. It can be so helpful, but also so harmful. If used reasonably it is a useful tool and can even be fun. But if allowed to, it become a tyrant that turns in to an addiction. Like other potentially dangerous activities, maybe there should be a warning to texters that says something like, “Text responsibly.” 

            Now that I’ve said all that, let me print out the greatest text that has ever been sent, and it was sent almost 2,000 years ago, before anybody on earth ever thought of “texting,” let alone sending one on a smart phone. That “text” is found in what always polls as the most famous and favorite verse in the Bible — John 3:16. It reads this way in the New King James Version: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”  No single verse in all the Bible more effectively captures the heart of what we call the gospel or good news of God’s love and desire to save mankind from sin than that 25-word text! It is the most frequently quoted, used (and we might add, misused), and preached verse in the Holy Scriptures. Consider this from Bible scholar of past years B. C. Goodpasture. He wrote, “Forty men engaged in writing the Bible over a period of 1,500 years (1,400 B. C. to 100 A. D.). They wrote as moved by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21) and not in words of human wisdom but in words given by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:13). The Bible contains 3,566,840 letters; 773,746 words; 31,173 verses; 1,189 chapters; 66 books (39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New).”

He goes on to say, “We cannot be far off the mark when we insist of all letters, words, verse, chapters and books in the Bible, none more effectively and comprehensively captures in a single statement of Scripture the Good News God brings to mankind that    the statement in John 3:16.” Amen, Bro. Goodpasture! John 3:16 is simply the greatest text ever sent!

Dan Gulley, Smithville TN 

Heirs, Not Spares!

The ire of many British people has been stoked to red-hot intensity of late, since the release of (former) Prince Harry’s book “Spare” (January 10, 2023). The title is a provocative reference to the notion that as the second child in line to the British throne, Harry was a “spare,” able to inherit the throne only if something happened to older brother William. Royal historian Robert Lacey stated on a Pod Save the King podcast, “I would say William has been more kindly treated than Harry has been, but that has always been the fate of the spare,” Lacey said. He went on, “Harry follows, sadly, in the tradition of Princess Margaret or Prince Andrew as number twos in the system, who are treated harshly by the logic of the royal system, which actually favors the main bloodline.”  Lacey explains that as time goes on the number 2 or “spare” to the throne gets increasingly pushed down the line to number 3, or 4, or 5 etc. Anyway, a royal stink has been stirred, and, of course, millions of us un-royal folks in America can’t wait to read the book and hear all the juicy, possibly un-royal, stinky, inside-the-royal-British-family stuff Harry spills in his tell-all type book.

 The idea of being a spare, not the heir, leads my brain to think far beyond Britain’s royal family to God’s spiritual family, the church.  Everybody who genuinely and Biblically comes into that family is declared to be an heir, not a spare! Romans 8:14-17 is but one place in the New Testament that makes that clear, and what it makes clear ought to thrill every child of God from our spiritual heads / hearts down to our toes! Hear it: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs — heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.” Christians are people who have been adopted into the family of God! The act of adoption was a big deal in first century Roman culture. The adopted child received a brand-new name and identity, a complete break with the past and its debts and obligations, and equal legal and social status as any other children who had been born into the adoptive family. This act on God’s part has an eternity-altering impact on our standing and status and relationship with Him. Though we are not now nor ever can be a Son / child of God’s in the same way Jesus was or is (God’s unique, only begotten, one-of-a-kind, virgin-born, crucified-buried-resurrected- ascended to God’s right hand Son!), yet we can, through faith in Christ and obedience to the Gospel, enjoy all the spiritual standing and status His perfect life and work at the cross made available to us. In Jesus Christ we stand to be joint heirs with Him, even if some suffering is required to do so. Christians have been given access to “every spiritual blessing” and “unsearchable riches” (Ephesians 1:3; 3:8). The apostle Peter describes the Christian’s inheritance as  “incorruptible, undefiled, and that does not fade away, reserved in Heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:4).  The big take home point: there are no spares with lesser spiritual standing or status in the family of God! Every person with genuine faith in Christ puts on Christ and becomes a child of God when baptized into Him (Galatians 3:26-29). What faithful Christians stand to inherit makes anything in any earthly royal palace pale by comparison. God’s heir, not a spare — as the old adage goes, if that doesn’t light your fire, your wood’s wet!

Dan Gulley, Smithville TN

The Best Book in the World!

Millions past and present refer to the Bible as “The Good Book.” America’s first vice-president and second president, John Adams, paid an even greater tribute to the Bible when he observed, “The Bible is the best Book in the world.” Many, of course, would      disagree, some of them on the flimsy basis that it disagrees with them! Like Judah’s foolish King Jehoiakim who lived 600 years before Christ in the days of God’s prophet Jeremiah. Upon hearing parts of Jeremiah’s inspired words he didn’t like concerning his and Judah’s conduct and future, the Bible says Jehoiakim “cut it [that is, the scroll] with the scribe’s knife and cast it into the fire.” But God had the prophet write the words down again, and Jeremiah’s scroll, along with the rest of the inspired writings of God’s Book, has stood the test of time. In the words of the late Charles Colson, “The Bible — banned, burned, beloved. More widely read, more frequently attacked, than any other book in history ... Yet nothing has affected the rise and fall of civilizations, the character of cultures, the structure of governments, and the lives of the inhabitants of this planet so profoundly as the words of the Bible” (A Dangerous Grace, p 18). The Bible, measured solely on the basis of its beneficent and positive influence in human history and lives, is indeed the Good Book, yea, the Best Book.  When respected and practiced, the Bible’s teachings bring into human society and institutions and relationships such things as “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). Thomas Jefferson, who, by the way, rejected Jesus’ miracles in New Testament and Christ’s Divinity, never-less paid tribute to the Bible’s powerful effect for good. He declared, “I have always said and will always say that the studious perusal of the Sacred Volume will make better citizens, better fathers, better husbands . . . The Bible makes the best people in the world.” Indeed, as W. J. Bryan noted, "There is not a community which cannot be purified, redeemed, and improved by a better knowledge and broader application of the Bible to daily life. The Good Book makes good people.

For 1,000's of years the Bible has outlasted its critics. The reason can be found in 2 Timothy 3:16: All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” The Bible is the Good Book, even the Best Book, but it is more. It is God’s Book. Herein lies the secret to its staying power — it is God’s Word. The Bible is still going because God is still going. The Bible is still relevant because God is still relevant. You can ban and burn copies of the Bible, but no man or court of council or government can bury it forever. Oh, men can pronounce it dead and attempt to bury it and, just as they did Jesus, seal the tomb and make it as secure as they know how (Matthew 27:65-66). But they might as well try to extinguish the sun by spitting on it. It is tougher than the black boxes designed to survive intact through the worst plane crash. It is quite simply but absolutely, indestructible. Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away” (Matthew 24:35). You and I will pass away, but God’s Book is here to stay. Joseph Cook said, “Do you know a book that you are willing to put under your head for a pillow when are dying? Very well. That is the Book you want to study when you are living. There is only one such Book in the world.” The Bible — the Good Book, the Best Book, God’s Book! 

Dan Gulley, Smithville TN 

No Improvements Ever Needed!

Question: Why are calendars becoming obsolete? Answer: Because their days are numbered.” Obsolescence is defined as “no longer produced or used; out of date.” Packages of perishable food and other things are stamped with the words “Use by” or “Best if used by” followed by a date. Of course, the most common way for a product to become obsolete is for it to be replaced by something marketers frequently claim is “new and improved.” The truth is many products humans dream up and produce will wear out and be improved as time goes on! From cars to clothes to computers, stuff wears out and advances are made, making obsolescence practically unavoidable.                      

 But not God or His Son Jesus Christ or the Bible! They endure and are never out of date! That’s why they continue to be so compelling today. In a world where everything we see, wear, eat, and drive is temporary and perishable (including our physical lives and bodies — 2 Corinthians 4:16-18), God and Jesus and their Gospel go on and on and on! Today’s critics and skeptics and foes of God loudly claim that He and His Son are out of date with the modern, technological 21st world. To those foes and          critics and claims, Bernard Ramm made this insightful response about the durability of the Bible (and God and His Son): “A thousand times over, the death knell of the Bible has been sounded, the funeral procession formed, the inscription cut on the tombstone, and committal read. But somehow, the corpse never stays put. No other Book has been so chopped, knifed, sifted, scrutinized and vilified ... the Bible is still loved by millions and studied by millions.” In addition to “out-of-the-closet” foes, many who claim to respect the Bible swallow the shallow charge that the Gospel is “irrelevant” and isn’t addressing the needs and problems we face today. So they adjust its message and add on some “apps” to make it “more relevant” for worldly culture today and announce a “new normal.” Others seek to bend or amend the truth of the Gospel to fit their own religious beliefs and practices. Admittedly, research, education and technology have made us people smarter and even improved life in many ways, but the evidence is in that technology has not and cannot make people morally and spiritually better. Sin still saturates human society. Immorality is perennially pandemic. The death rate is still 100%. The Gospel always has been and always will be the only thing known to mankind that addresses those issues, forgiveness of sins, enablement to live in a holy way, and hope in the face of inevitable death. We don’t have space to examine the context, but the inspired words of Galatians 1:7b-9 send a sobering threat to anyone who would dare to tamper with the Gospel as God gave it — “... there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.” My friends, those jarring words make this truth clear — the Gospel as God gave it never needs any add-ons, App’s, updates or improvements. Those who dare tamper with it do so at the risk of their souls. You could never improve the Bible, but its inspired teachings can improve you. Will you think about it?         

                          “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” — Hebrews 13:8 

       by: Dan Gulley, Smithville, TN