Disinterestedness: The Man Whose Funeral Was Cancelled Twice

by Jim Elliff

Disinterestedness. This compelling word is not about what you might expect. We have all seen (and been) the disinterested student, expressionless, gazing into some unknown blank space outside the classroom, waiting out the final eternal moments of the professor's pedantic, sleep-inducing hum. That describes a use of the word, but not our use. What we wish to say with this word is immensely desirable; it was once employed to describe the best of conditions of the believer. The following intriguing story from the pen of Archibald Alexander, beloved 19th century Princeton professor, illustrates.

In the middle colonies, mid 1700's, there were no schools for the training of preachers as there were in the east. William Tennent, Sr., began what was soon called "the Log College" to address the need, and trained his own sons there—first, the famous Gilbert Tennent, then John, and finally William, Jr. After young William finished, he was preparing for his ordination examination when his studies began to affect his health. He became emaciated, "and at length was like a living skeleton." A young physician attended to him and became a warm friend. Little hope was left for him after some time and his spirits began to fail. He began to "entertain doubts about his final happiness."

"As he was conversing one morning with his brother in Latin on the state of his soul he fainted and died away. After the usual time he was laid out on a board...and the neighborhood was invited to attend his funeral on the next day. In the evening, his physician...returned from a ride in the country" and was deeply disturbed. Upon feeling some unusual warmth in a certain place, he "insisted that the people who had been invited to the funeral should be requested not to attend." Gilbert believed this to be absurd, "the eyes being sunk, the lips discolored and the whole body cold and still." The doctor prevailed and used every possible means to treat the patient, night and day.

The third day came and still there was no life. "The people were again invited, and assembled to attend the funeral. The doctor still objected, and at last confined his request to delay to one hour, then to half an hour, and finally to a quarter of an hour. He had discovered that the tongue was much swollen and threatened to crack," and "was endeavoring to soften it, by some emollient...with a feather, when the brother came in, about the expiration of the last period, and mistaking what the doctor was doing for attempting to feed him...in a spirited tone said, 'it is shameful to be feeding a lifeless corpse;' and insisted that the funeral should immediately proceed. At this most critical moment, the body, to the great alarm and astonishment of all present, opened its eyes, gave a dreadful groan and sunk again into apparent death. This put an end to all thought of burying him." In about an hour this happened again and he went back into the former state. "Mr. Tennent continued in so weak and low a state for six weeks, that great doubts were entertained of his final recovery."

About 12 months later, "his sister . . .was reading the Bible, when he took notice of it and asked her what she was reading. She answered that she was reading the Bible. He replied, 'What is the Bible? I know not what you mean." William, she discovered, had forgotten all details of his earlier life and therefore had to start learning English and Latin like a schoolboy. However, during that period, all of a sudden, he had a shock in his head and completely regained his senses and memory.

Alexander asked Tennent personally for any explanation he could give. Though Tennent almost never spoke of his experience because it was so precious, here were his words: "While I was conversing with my brother on the state of my soul, and the fears I had entertained for my future welfare, I found myself, in an instant, in another state of existence, under the direction of a superior being, who ordered me to follow him. I was accordingly wafted along, I know not how, till I beheld at a distance an ineffable glory, the impression of which on my mind it is impossible to communicate to mortal man. I immediately reflected on my happy change, and thought, —Well, blessed be God! I am safe at last, notwithstanding all my fears. I saw an innumerable host of happy beings surrounding the inexpressible glory, in acts of adoration and joyous worship; but I did not see any bodily shape or representation in the glorious appearance. I heard things unutterable...I then applied myself to my conductor, and requested leave to join the happy throng; on which he tapped me on the shoulder, and said, 'You must return to earth.' This seemed like a sword through my heart. In an instant, I recollect to have seen my brother standing before me, disputing with the doctor. The three days during which I had appeared lifeless seemed to me not more than ten or twenty minutes. The idea of returning to this world of sorrow and trouble gave me such a shock, that I fainted repeatedly."

Listen now to his expression of our subject, disinterestedness. In correspondence from another who had talked with Tennent he quoted him as saying, 'For three years [following recovery] the sense of divine things continued so great, and everything else appeared so completely vain, when compared to heaven, that could I have had the whole world for stooping down for it, I believe I should not have thought of doing it.

This long story, whether you believe it to be credible or not, illustrates in an exaggerated sense what disinterestedness is about. It is the product of an absorption of mind so deep that the world and normal temptations have no appeal. Francis Schaeffer wrote that believers should live their lives as if they had died and gone to heaven and then returned again. Just how would you respond to your normal temptations after having seen heaven?

"Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on the earth . . . therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire and greed . . ." (Col. 3:2,5)

Copyright © 1997 Jim Elliff Permission granted for reproduction in exact form. All other uses require written permission.

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Restoring Those Who Fall

Our Statement Regarding Church Discipline

To read it, click here.

Sweeter Than Honey: A Lesson from Pooh

by Daryl Wingerd

In Psalm 119:103 the psalmist exclaims, "How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth." Though we may not put it in such eloquent words, that is the testimony of every true Christian.

Nevertheless, even true Christians, those who recognize the importance, excellence, beauty, and authority of the Scriptures, sometimes lose their appetite for the study of God's Word.

How does this happen? Perhaps they are busy with their job, or their children occupy a great deal of their time, or they moved away from a good church where friends encouraged them to read and study. Maybe they have fallen into a bad habit of sleeping too much, watching too much TV, reading too many other books, or spending too much time on the internet. Perhaps they can't explain how or why it happened. It just happened. The study of the Bible lost its appeal whil e other pursuits gained the priority in their time and attention. They may have reached the frustrating point where they regularly choose not to study the Bible even when they have plenty of time and nothing else to do.

Is this your story? Do you miss those former times of discovery and amazement as you enthusiastically turned page after page in the book of God-breathed words (cf. 2 Timothy 3:16)?

What can you do? How can you get your appetite back?

Believe it or not, Winnie the Pooh illustrates the answer for us. I recently watched a Pooh video with my young sons. In this episode, Pooh lost his appetite for honey. Pooh's friends (Tigger, Owl, Rabbit, Piglet, and Gopher) became suspicious that this bear, one who looked like Pooh and was claiming to be Pooh, might be an imposter because, as everyone knows, the real Pooh bear loves honey. Pooh even began to question his own identity.

Gopher eventually led Pooh and Tigger to a large tree with a Pooh-sized hole way up high. He assured Pooh and Tigger that Pooh's missing appetite was inside the hole. Tigger promptly pushed Pooh through the hole, causing him to fall into the middle of a giant pool of honey inside the tree. Then an amazing thing happened. As soon as Pooh found himself in the pool of honey he instinctively began to eat . . . and eat, and eat, and eat.

Gopher was right. Pooh's appetite for honey was inside that tree, right in the middle of a big pool of honey —the very thing Pooh bears love best. Pooh was really Pooh, not an imposter. His rediscovered appetite for honey assured everyone of that fact, including Pooh himself.

Just as Pooh found his appetite for honey when he found himself in the middle of a pool of honey, we will likely find our appetite for Scripture when we find ourselves in the middle of Scripture. We will rediscover our love of God's Word when we begin once again to discipline ourselves to study God's Word.

The only alternative to intentionally recovering our appetite is both unprofitable and disturbing. If Pooh had moped around, wondering how he lost his appetite for honey and helplessly waiting for it to return, he may have never rediscovered it. Likewise, you may never rediscover your appetite for God's Word if you don't search for it with diligence.

Read your Bible! Study with the help of other solid biblical literature. Expose yourself to good Bible teaching in fellowship with other Christians as often as possible. And pray that God will grant you a renewed fervor. If you spend your time doing nothing more profitable than lamenting your spiritual deadness and coldness, you will only grow colder.

And here's the disturbing part: If Pooh were never again able to enjoy honey, neither he nor his friends would have any reason to believe he was truly a Pooh bear. Though his appetite waned for a time, real Pooh bears will always love honey. That's just the way Pooh bears are. Likewise, although their spiritual appetite may experience ups and downs, real Christians will always love the Word of God. If the pattern you establish and maintain is one of increasing spiritual coldness and deadness, and if you never experience a reversal of your affections, you may prove yourself not to be who you thought you were.

Jesus said this to some who professed to be His disciples:

"If you abide in My Word, you are truly My disciples, and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free" (John 8:32).

Copyright © 2005 Daryl Wingerd. Permission granted for electronic reproduction in exact form. All other uses require written permission.

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The Church That Disciplines

by Jim Elliff

Let me tell you why church discipline is important to me.

A number of years ago my minister father left my mother after an adulterous affair with his secretary. I’m telling this story with his permission. My father is now 90 years old.

This turn of events jarred us. We’ve not seen divorce often in our extended family. All of us are believers, and most of us are in the ministry, for four generations. While my father was working as a denominational executive, he began to counsel his secretary about her marriage. She found in him what she could not find in her husband. Soon, compromises entered in and adultery followed. My father did what he had often told us never to do—counsel someone of the opposite sex in a closed room. What seemed impossible to him and to us actually happened. And it happened within months of his retirement.

The four children gathered, from long distances, at my parent’s home to beg for dad’s repentance. He appeared to repent at that time, but soon backed away from it. Like Lot’s wife, his heart was gone, even though, by his own admission, there was nothing on my mother’s part to cause his sin. He did not turn around. Rather, he divorced my mother, married his secretary, and moved to another city. His retirement years, which at one time were going to be filled with ministerial activity and travel, were now an impossible dream.

Then came my mother’s death, just two years later. She died of Alzheimer’s disease, the effects of which were not noticeable until after the divorce. She had remained godly, fervent in her prayers for her former husband, and amazingly forgiving. But, to put it mildly, she was devastated, never before imagining that this could possibly happen to her.

Before she died, father truly repented. With tears of anguish over his actions, he asked the family’s forgiveness. He even came to the bedside of my mother to speak with her prior to her death. But the damage was done. He had lost his job, his reputation, his confidence, his family’s respect, his future ministry, his joy, and even the assurance of his own salvation. He had been a fool.

We are now twenty-two years beyond that awful period of time. Thankfully, Dad has been restored to Christian vitality, though with scars. His repentance was real and lasting. He has attempted to help others avoid the sinful actions of his past. Recently, as an old man, he stood before the Baptist pastors of one of our states and said that “he was a testimony of failure in the ministry.” But he also spoke of God’s remarkable grace. He spoke on this subject as well at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Ft. Worth, Texas, where he had been a student. (Hear his story here)

Just this last year the four children took my father on the trip of his life. We traveled to ten small towns to visit all the memorable places of his childhood. We went to the place of his conversion, his call to preach, and his first church. This was a trip that none of us will ever forget. We laughed and cried, took pictures, and told stories all the way.

One day we drove down the dirt road to the quiet, secluded cemetery where my mother was buried, several miles outside of that familiar southern town where she grew up. This was the first time my father had seen the grave. He had refused to be disruptive by going to her funeral twenty-two years earlier. As we approached the grave, his body convulsed with tears as he clung to us. “How could I have done what I did to such a sweet person?” he cried. It was an agonizing, but cathartic moment for us all.

Why have I told this personal story? At the time of the affair, our family had attempted to convince the pastor of his church, one of the most prominent churches in the large city where my parents lived, to practice church discipline on my father. We had hoped that, at that vulnerable period, he would listen and repent if the church lovingly exercised this restorative biblical practice. They refused. I’m sure it was because they were not accustomed to such action and also because of the stature of my father in the church and community.

When we were in the car after that experience at the cemetery, I asked my father this question: “Dad, we tried to get your church to discipline you when you committed adultery. They would not do it. Do you think it would have stopped you from leaving mother if they had?”

Dad, who always takes the blame for his sin himself and would not let anyone else share in it, nonetheless, very humbly admitted, “I think it would have.”

Now, let me ask you, was the church where my parents attended loving my father by refusing to discipline him? Were they being gracious and kind? Were they doing what was best for him?

More that that, was the church loving God when they did not discipline my father? Were they following the Head of the church, Jesus Christ? Were they helping other families? Were they helping the believers throughout the city? Were they instructing younger children and youth in their church in the way of holiness and the sanctity of marriage?

What is the truth here? The truth is, church discipline is the most benevolent action that can ever be taken toward an erring church member, and when it is not done, it is flagrant disobedience toward God.

Restoring Those Who Fall

Let me be practical about an important matter. You need to have a comprehensive discipline statement for your church. We have a church discipline statement that may be adopted, or adapted for your use. It is called Restoring Those Who Fall, and it is the church discipline statement that I helped to write along with one of the pastors of the church I serve. The two of us were the first pastors of the church.

I have been involved in writing several statements like this in the past, but this is the clearest and most usable presentation of this doctrine I have had the privilege to work on. Dr. Jay Adams put the first writing of this statement in his Journal of Modern Ministry making it even more accessible to leaders. FIEL Ministries of Brazil distributed 22,000 copies of this statement to pastors and leaders in a small booklet for Portuguese-speaking people also. If you cannot find a better statement, or cannot write your own, you may consider accepting this as your discipline plan.

Let me suggest that you obtain copies of this booklet and make them available for your leaders. Or, you may download the statement in electronic form found on this site. Take them carefully through each line, looking up Scriptures and talking through the implications and strategy your church will take when sin enters the fellowship. Then you might consider taking the men as a whole through a period of study on church discipline, using the statement. Finally, it could be presented to all of the members. Then, according to the way your church makes decisions, the statement could be adopted as your church discipline policy.

We have found it helpful to have all incoming members read the discipline statement. We even include these words in our church membership agreement (church covenant):

I will submit to the church’s discipline upon myself and lovingly assume my responsibility to participate in the discipline of other members, as taught in Scripture.[1]

You can understand my burden for restoring this practice. If you love people and love God, you will do it. If you neglect church discipline you will be disobeying the Head of the church, Jesus Christ, who commanded that you do it.

__________________

Restoring Those Who Fall, a church discipline statement, may be ordered from CCW for inexpensive bulk rates. The publication date for this booklet will be announced soon on this site. An electronic copy of Restoring Those Who Fall may be found online at www.CCWtoday.org or www.ChristFellowshipKC.org.
_________________

[1] See The Fellowship of the Spirit for a membership agreement (church covenant) that may be adopted or adapted for your use.

Copyright © 2008
Christian Communicators Worldwide, Inc.
Permission granted for not-for-sale reproduction in unedited form
including author's name, title, complete content, copyright and weblink.
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Friendship in Hell

by Jim Elliff

John Bunyan, the writer of Pilgrim's Progress, said that is "better to be born a toad than to die unconverted."

Why? Because toads don't go to hell and humans do.

The subject of hell is so solemn that our natural instinct is to either ignore it or reject it. Yet, like the cancer patient before his doctor, it is better to hear the whole truth.

Once a woman told me, with an nervous giggle, that she "guessed it would be best to go to hell since all her friends would be there." But she was wrong. Her acquaintances might be there, but they will not be her friends. Here is a list of the people the Bible says will be in hell:

Evil doers, blasphemers, wretches, those behaving like snakes and vipers, wicked slaves, weeds in the wheat, bad trees bearing bad fruit, chaff, vessels for common use, goats on His left hand, lovers of darkness rather than lovers of light, objects of wrath, mockers of God, disobedient, arrogant, the self-seeking, the sexually immoral, enemies of the cross of Christ, despisers of authority, experts in greed, lawless men, perverted persons, grumbles, faultfinders, scoffers, the adulterous, magicians, sorcerers, thieves, idolaters, the cowardly, the vile, and all liars.

Among the inhabitants of hell are those who follow the corrupt desires of their sinful nature, those who exchange the grace of God for a license for immorality, those who deny Jesus Christ our only sovereign and Lord, those who boast about themselves and flatter for their own advantage, those who divide you, those who do not have the Spirit, those who follow mere natural instinct, those who reject the preaching of the word and will not listen, those who devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers, and those who are disobedient to parents.

But hell also includes lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, those who worship and serve created things rather than the Creator, slaves of depravity, those who invent ways of doing evil, the senseless, faithless, heartless and ruthless, those who know their actions deserve death yet still do them while also approving of others who also do the same things. And hell includes all hypocrites.

These occupants of hell are not going to be on their best behavior. In fact, Jesus said those who live in hell will experience "weeping and gnashing of teeth." "Weeping" speaks of endless depression; "gnashing of teeth" speaks of eternal anger. There can be no amiable relationship with such people. Those fellow inhabitants of hell who once loved you here, will despise you there.

But this is not the main discomfort of hell. Puritan William Gurnall said, "We fear men so much, because we fear God so little. One fear cures another. When man's terror scares you, turn your thoughts to the wrath of God."

Hell is a stark absence of all God's favor, an endless domination of sin, a place of pain and suffering, an asylum of pangs of conscience, anguish, despair, and uncontrollable hatred. Jeremy Taylor described it as "a death without death, an end without end, for death shall ever live, and their end never begin."

Nobody should want to go to hell. Though your own sin made you a future citizen of hell, you may still turn to Christ to be delivered from God's wrath. God made a way of escape through Jesus Christ.

The Bible calls Jesus "the Savior." The words means "Rescuer." He alone can rescue you from a certain future in hell. By taking man's sin on Himself at the cross, He paid the complete price for all who will come to Him. If you will believe in Him (trust or rely upon Him) you will escape the judgment you deserve. It is not faith in yourself that saves, or merely faith in general, but faith in the Rescuer alone.

Trust Christ the Savior and be released from your fears of hell forever.

"He who believes in Him has eternal life." John 6:47

Copyright © 2009 Jim Elliff
Permission granted for reproduction in exact form, including web address.
All other uses require written permission

Our Life of Trust

by Jim Elliff

Long ago I learned that people are not so interested in what a man can do for God, but rather what God can do for a man. I wanted my life to be a visible demonstration of the fact that God exists and that He hears and answers prayer. This led me to make financial choices that many of you ask me about. I am happy to talk about this since one of the very reasons I have taken this course for my life has to do with the immense value of testimony.

But first jump back with me to the 1950's to our parsonage on Gladstone Blvd. in Kansas City, Missouri. In a box in the closet were most of the books we owned. There I could find my favorite one about a little boy counting out ten pennies with his chubby pink hands, and saving one for the Lord. That little book sparked in me a desire for giving to God.

I went though college and seminary days with the income of a barefooted monk. The austerity program of paying for my schooling and preaching around the country taught me even more about money. I loved to give, wherever, whenever I could. I thought that God had an endless resource to supply my needs, but that I was not to indulge myself in useless items. I did, however, go without meals in order to buy books.

One of those books etched itself into my thinking. It was the life of George Muller by A. T. Pierson. In it I saw firsthand that a person could give and give, and trust and trust some more, and God would continually supply. I found that a powerful message could be lived out this way. Every thing inside of me said, "Yes!" At first I majored even more on giving money. Then, after several years of marriage, God allowed Pam and me to stretch another way.

Like novice hang gliders, we moved into the ministry that we now call Christian Communicators Worldwide. The air currents kept coming and we stayed airborne. Our first sum, consisting of a few thousand dollars of inheritance money, and a large initial check from what would become a faithful partner in the work, was immediately given away to a missionary. That was 1988. Since that time we have witnessed in such specific ways the answers to prayers, the veracity of Scripture, and the generosity of the Father, that we have difficulty doubting that God will supply.

What We Do

By God's Grace

This is how God has led us thus far.

1. We have chosen not to solicit for money for our ministry. I can say with joy that I have not knowingly spent even a moment of my time since making this decision asking people for money. I have not written a letter to do that, nor have I sat down with a businessman to discuss our needs.

Someone once observed three models for financial support of ministries in recent history. The first is that of D. L. Moody and is the most popular today. Moody would go into the office of a businessman and say to him, "Here's the need and here's why you ought to give. " The second option is that of Hudson Taylor, the missionary to China. Taylor would let the need be known, but would not ask for funds. The third is that of George Muller, the man who trusted God for millions without making the need known or asking anyone but God for help. Although we believe that each of the above methods have their merit and can be supported in some way by Scripture, it is this latter option we have chosen.

Churches cannot take the Muller approach fully (no expression of needs, no solicitation) because the needs of the church must be shared with the whole body of believers. A pastor should not keep quiet about the finances since it is the privilege of the whole church to trust God for money needed and not his alone. Our situation is different.

2. We have chosen not to reveal the present state of the funds. Why? Because doing so can be a subtle way of asking for money. We do freely tell of the work of God and the trials we have faced in retrospect. We do make available an annual report of what God has done in retrospect.

3. We give away our literature freely as well as supply extensive resources on our websites. Tens of thousands of our publications are sent out around the world at our own expense. These items and postage represent a significant expense of this work. We also sell some books in order to get the message out to additional audiences through booksellers, churches, and other ministries. But, our great joy is to provide written tools that God may use to change lives. We hear regularly of people who have been converted or dealt with in some significant manner because of these.

4. I give all of my services in preaching and teaching free of charge. My motto has been: "Freely you have received, freely give." By this I mean that I prearrange not to receive love offerings or honoraria for any speaking engagement. Though churches and organizations cover travel and lodging, there is no financial profit for us in traveling to speak. All profit is spiritual — both for me, and, hopefully, for them. The question is not whether the church or institution can afford to give compensation for my services, but that I am allowed to make a statement of the sufficiency of God's care by looking to God alone for all my needs. In this way I preach both by my words and by my life.

5. I have decidedly refused to get our ministry in debt. It has been my observation through the years that many otherwise sound ministries have incurred debts to carry on their work. Some have been destroyed by this policy. I do not find it useful, logical, or a biblical precedent to get ministries into debt, as if to say, "This work depends upon the bank to succeed."

6. My family receives through the ministry only what comes specifically designated for us. All other gifts go into the printing and distribution of materials and the other ministry expenses. In other words, we do not receive a set salary through CCW. In this way we are allowed to trust God weekly for His provision as a family. He has always provided. Several years ago we were one day late in paying a bill. We were charged $25. We still do not understand the delay of the Lord on this one experience when He had regularly supplied for each bill at least by the day it was due. But God has His reasons. We have seen our bank balance shrink to less than $10 and swell to several thousand during these many years. We haven't used the times of little to fret or the times of abundance to spend carelessly. Either way we are equally dependent upon and accountable to God to guide us in the use of it. The awareness that it is God who supplies is in our minds daily.

Extensions

Some of you are aware that I have been instrumental in beginning a church in the Kansas City area (www.ChristFellowshipKC.org). I have found that by integrating my ministry through CCW with the ministry of the local church there are great benefits for both. Each provides a context for extending the effectiveness of the other. Much of what we do in CCW in providing help to ministers and churches is hammered out in the workshop of church life. I offer myself financially as freely there as I do for any other opportunity I am given.

But Why?

I could, of course, do things differently. I could charge for all our publications, my speaking, my consulting and my services to our local church. And, if God were to so lead, I would do that.

All of us are required to trust in God as the one who supplies our needs and to put no confidence in our own ability to make money. Because one has a job that pays a salary and another also works hard but does not have a set income is, in one sense immaterial. But we do have to obey God in the specific ways he directs.

It is not that I believe every Christian worker should follow the pattern of living I have chosen in order to be spiritually useful. There is a long history of great men and women who have demonstrated otherwise. Why then would I do it?

First and foremost is my own sense of the will of God. I am not a mystic, but believe that God has uniquely "extruded" me into this kind of life through many experiences, the personal disposition He has given me, the mental and spiritual preparation He has taken me through, and the biblical warrant He has made plain to me. And He has given me a supporting wife and children who love this approach to life, and actively participate in it. It is beyond the scope of this article to elucidate fully how I believe God has led me, however, I believe that God shapes us and trains us all for certain effects on the world and the Kingdom. This is our part. "We are His workmanship, created by Christ Jesus unto good works, which He has ordained beforehand for us to walk in them." (Eph. 2:10) His will for me on the one hand is to preach and teach and evangelize the lost—on the other hand, it is to live a life of trust in God as visibly as is possible.

Secondly, I choose to live this way as a public demonstration that God is alive and answers prayer as freely today as he did in the days of the apostles. The frequency with which I see His care for me and the way He constantly and often uniquely provides for CCW assures me of His willingness to do this. I have seen his supply in many forms: people, prayers, encouraging words, gifts ranging from a nickel to thousands, the rebuking of the devourer, the perfectly arranged circumstance, etc. I find this testimony of God's faithfulness a powerful tool in promoting the gospel. We all live with the skepticism of the unregenerate persons who believe that every Christian laborer is in his work to make lots of money. We find that our lifestyle helps to demolish this perception and to make a way for the gospel. They think, "If a man would give up a secure income for the gospel, surely there is something here worth listening to." In fact, they are right.

But our lifestyle has potential to help believers as well. Who among us does not long to see clear, unmistakable illustrations of God answering prayer? We have seen many believers encouraged and strengthened to trust God because of our pattern of living. We don't pretend perfection, but are people "of like passions" as Elijah, nevertheless, God has, to this point, chosen to hear our prayers. Even our struggles with faith and the delays to answers are encouraging to some. I wish that every Christian would prayerfully ask, "In what way may I visibly demonstrate that God is alive before a watching world?" God is pleased only by faith (Heb. 11:6). Our faith so casts us on God that He must come through or we fail. God actively blesses our desire to demonstrate that He will support what He initiates.

Whether I am preaching in a conference, writing a CCW publication, composing for other publications, sending letters, challenging students, witnessing on an airplane or in a coffee shop, counseling a friend, studying the Word, hosting friends in our home, or discipling young men or my family, my aim is to expend myself for God and the gospel. What I do may shift and change its form from time to time; how I do it may change as well if God so leads. But it is my desire to continue as I am, trusting God fully in the way He has called me to do it, visibly and dramatically, for as long as I can, to the glory of God.

Copyright © 2005 Jim Elliff
Christian Communicators Worldwide, Inc.
Permission granted for not-for-sale reproduction in unedited form
including author's name, title, complete content, copyright and weblink.
Other uses require written permission.

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The Elderly Mr. Phipp

[A Brockton Dialogue]

by Jim Elliff

James, the youth: Is affection necessary for true spirituality? I mean, can't a man be Christian, yet cold as a stone emotionally?

Mr. Brockton: Affection cannot be separated from true religion.

James: But are we to strain to be affectionate toward God when it is not natural?

Brockton: We are to strain to know God, and that is enough. Mr. Phipp will make my point for me. Hear his story:

When the elderly Mr. Phipp lost his wife, he cried for the first time in seventy-plus years. Emotions were not Phipp's strong suit. He despised them. Even when Jasmine died, his oriental war bride, the emotions that surfaced were fugitive and hung in his ocular cavities only temporarily, much like condensation on a cold glass. He was not going to give in. He thought that a man, if he were truly manly, conquered emotions in childhood and never permitted them again. His stubbled face, sun-creased features, Korean War haircut, and thick unadorned black glasses gave him a no-nonsense look. He liked that—believed in that. He was Harlan Phipp and as much like Harlan Phipp as he could possibly be.

Without any question, deacon Phipp's role in the church was one of supreme importance. He occupied one end of a pew on which he and Jasmine had rested their "blessed assurance" since their very first visit to the church. By "occupied" I mean that term in the military sense of the word. Loyalty was a big deal to him and holding one's place in the sanctuary symbolized this elevated virtue before the watching, yet more unstable types in the church. He was here to stay. If some day you did not find him in his pew, he would be stretched out in the front of the auditorium in a pine box—those were the only two options. His crusty hands brought his imitation leather King James Bible to that pew each Sunday. He did not open it, but he was demonstrably faithful in bringing it.

When the tender-hearted Miss Buelah Corrilton began to occupy the seat somewhat near but not immediately adjacent to Mr. Phipp, he bristled. She meant nothing by it. She was not trying to take Jasmine's place. In fact, she was blissfully unobservant about what such a move might mean to Harlan Phipp. Stiffness, however, took on an even more austere appearance in Mr. Phipp after this time. His Bible was the barrier between he and Miss Corrilton, and it was inched into enemy territory little by little, Sunday by Sunday, so that Harlan could bunker down in ecclesiastical safety. The particular irritation to Phipp, that is, the worrisome and ever dilating strain on his sanctity, was Miss Corrilton's incessant tears. This is what brought about the confrontation.

Leaders like Phipp must not cause waves, misleading the masses that obviously look up to him as the paragon of stability in the church. But he had his fill, and under mortar attack something must be done to protect the homeland. Things were getting out of hand-Miss Corrilton was weeping right in the middle of the pastor's message! He was pressed to believe that it was "now or never." He must hit the beach decisively and not turn his back from the objective. The encounter should take place, he determined, just following the service.

"Miss Corrilton," he croaked, "why do you persist in blubbering in the church of the Living God?" He stared with mouth open and eyebrows raised just sufficiently to display a consternation of pharisaical proportions.

We will not expect Miss Corrilton to answer as a trained word-smith at such a severe moment. All she could eek out as she looked down, and that nearly inaudibly, were the elementary one-syllable sounds, "I can't help it."

If this was Harlan's midnight of infamy, it was Buelah's sunlit midday of unpretentious purity. Perhaps, in that whimper of a phrase, Miss Corrilton was never more profound. And in that phrase, Mr. Phipp was never more condemned.

James: But what could make such a phrase so profound when on the surface it sounds untutored and simplistic? "I can't help it" is hardly a phrase to be remembered.

Brockton: This phrase reveals what matters about emotions.

James: Do you mean that emotions are what you cannot help?

Brockton: That is almost the answer. Emotions are the result of true spirituality and not the cause of it. To worship God is to fix your gaze on Him. Our emotions rise from that fixed gaze and may justifiably be as lofty as the truth we comprehend. Unthinking emotions and self-induced emotionalism are not legitimate as worship. In this gaze, believers are seeing the greatest good and the most perfect Being. This moves them, for there is nothing higher to comprehend. Indeed, to see something of Him and not to experience a rise in affection may be a sign that we are not seeing Him as we imagine.

James: But, though I wish to worship God, I have often been unmoved.

Brockton: This may be because you are conscious of your emotions and are laboring at them. When we perceive something of the Lord's beauty, majesty, knowledge, or some other noble characteristic through what is said or sung or brought to the mind, our emotions are not to be either worked up by conscious effort or checked by deliberate willfulness. To do so would mean that we must take our gaze away from Him to ourselves. We are just to look and enjoy and let the emoting follow as it may—sometimes greater, sometimes lesser—the degree is not important. The regulator of emotion is solely our mental and true (or Biblical) apprehension of God; and the fullest apprehension of God is our single objective in worship. This Miss Corrilton knew by experience, and this Mr. Phipp did not know.

Remember, as an illustration, when a man loves a woman, he does not work up his emotions, but rather he enjoys the other person by discovering as much as he can about her.

James: Is Mr. Phipp a believer?

Brockton: I doubt that it is so, for he appears to have no pleasing thoughts of God. God, of course, will only take worshippers to heaven. A man with no pleasing thoughts of God is only consumed with himself. For one thing, Mr. Phipp would have an awful time in the worship experiences of heaven. There, owning a pew is no merit and pleasant emotions are unrestrained because they flow from an unfiltered apprehension of God. He is totally unsuited for that.

Yet Miss Corrilton even now "rejoices with joy inexpressible and full of glory." A more intense gaze at God is exactly what would please her the most. Heaven is just right for her. She will never be more spiritually-minded than when she is in heaven, and never more emotional. The Lord will even increase her capacity to enjoy Him, but her emotion will never usurp her accurate comprehension of God.

James: I see, then. Affection toward God is inseparable from authentic worship.

Brockton: I couldn't have said it better myself.

Copyright © 2009 Jim Elliff. Permission granted for reproduction in exact form, including web address. All other uses require written permission.

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Public Debate with Bart Ehrman in Seminaries: A Bad Decision

by Jim Elliff

[Important: Please also read the additional comment below by Jim Elliff related to James White's response on his blog.]

Last week a debate was held in a close-by conservative seminary between Dr. Bart Ehrman* and another apologist. I won’t mention the name of the school or the apologist, though I am free to, since I hope this little piece will be useful for a variety of situations yet to come.

Why is it wrongheaded to set up such a debate with Ehrman in a seminary, or, for that matter, any unbelieving skeptic?

First, because Ehrman is a false teacher and we are forbidden to give such men a forum to express their views.

The Bible doesn’t treat false teachers kindly. It is one thing to talk with a skeptic who is asking questions to know the truth, or who is confronting you in public, but it is quite another thing to invite and pay a false teacher to come to your turf in order to present his views in an open forum.

Inviting a false teacher to present his errant views in order to persuade students and the public is like allowing a gunman to shoot randomly out into an audience of military personnel because it is assumed the troops have body armor. For one thing, body armor cannot shield against all shots, and for another, there are many people attending who have no armor at all. At last week’s debate, for instance, there were many people from the public who were not even believers. Some young people also attended, and some seminary students who are not yet prepared for the effects of doubt-producing verbiage.

We overestimate how well some seminary students can shield themselves. Some are new, having no real background in apologetics. They’ve read a couple of Chuck Swindoll books and My Utmost for His Highest, but really know precious little up to this point. I know that several students from a nearby secular college also attended, some of which were unconverted. The assumption was that they would see Ehrman lose the debate and the Christian view would triumph. It didn’t happen. Now the work in evangelism by the friends who naively brought them is that much harder.

Here are a couple of reminders about how we are to treat false teachers:

If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting. (2 John 1:10 ESV)

I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive. (Romans 16:17-18)

Second, because the minority position almost always gains some followers regardless who wins the debate.

When you have a sizable crowd it almost goes without saying that someone will be convinced of the false views of the false teacher. You may sense an overwhelming approval of the debate by many who love the give and take, but fail to take note of the quiet student or outsider to the seminary now stricken with doubt about the Scriptures. Ehrman’s presentation might be all that is needed to move him over the line. In the reverse, it is precisely for this reason that I do think it is useful for a sound Christian apologist to debate an unbelieving scholar in his venue—like Ravi Zacharias might do.

Third, because debates are not always won on the basis of truth alone.

We don’t need to comment much here, because you understand how this works. Ehrman clearly won the debate by the account of several attending. He simply won it by his cleverness and expertise at debating. His opponent, the believer, was well able to defeat him with the truth, but missed his opportunities in several places, giving credence to the idea that he was a better writer and lecturer than debater. In fact, this is the second time Ehrman won a debate at the same seminary, but against a different Christian opponent. What does that do for our witness? Though I have no question in my mind that our position on the reliability of Scripture is the right one and can withstand Ehrman’s arguments soundly, our side was out-debated.

Fourth, because many of the listeners will not have the opportunity to sort out confusing aspects of the debate with professors or knowledgeable persons.

The seminary students may have the benefit of hearing what their professors have to say about the debate. Long and detailed answers may satisfy any lingering confusion. But the guest who will return to her apartment to sort through the issues privately, or even the seminary student who does not have more classes that day, may be affected by the Ehrman challenges for years.

Fifth, because doubt is insidious.

One seminary student who has now graduated told me that he occasionally had huge doubts about Scripture and God. They were not there often, perhaps only for a few difficult days or weeks once every year or two, but they were so strong that he found himself almost smothered by them when they came. This was a leading student, chosen as one of the best preachers of the seminary. Doubt is insidious. Like a drop of ink added to gallons of water, it can ruin everything. It is the fly in the perfume. We are naïve to think that, being free from doubts ourselves, others do not deal with them regularly.

When a man like Ehrman speaks, doubt-producing statements may be forever lodged in people’s minds, causing trouble when least expected. It only takes a tiny amount of doubt for some people to be destroyed. A weak person might believe his doubts rather than believe his beliefs. Paul spoke of some teachers who were able to “upset the faith of some” (2 Timothy 2:18) because of their unscriptural view. Surely we should not pay Bart Ehrman for the privilege of doing that.

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One friend of mine said that upon visiting one of the Baptist Seminaries in another State he was told, “We’re not here to tell you what to believe.” But truth by definition is dogmatic. And professors are to profess it. Students are not to blindly believe it, but to study the Scriptures for themselves to see if what is stated is true. It is one thing for two believers to debate over certain aspects of the Scripture as men who both wish to believe and do what the Word says—like a charismatic with a non-charismatic, a premillenialist with a postmillenialist, or a Calvinist with an Arminian. But to invite false teachers to have the same access is naïve. There will always be some loss, and often not much, if any, gain.

*Bart Ehrman is the author of Misquoting Jesus and Jesus, Interrupted, both bestsellers. He is a New Testament scholar who does not believe in the reliability of the Scriptures. He claims to be an unbeliever.