General

It is with sadness that I report what many of you already know that Dr. Samuel Bachiocchi has died. Dr. Bacchiocchi was an interesting scholar, his writings were not confined to the libraries of the academically gifted, but was taken to common people. Certainly his writings were not "dumbed-down," but they were accessible to many.

I have the four volumes on the Sabbath in my library and refer to them often. Reading his book Divine Rest for Human Restlessness was the beginning of my thinking of the Sabbath along these theological lines. His book Advent hope for Human Restlessness and the book on Hal Lindsey's prophecies helped me to think about the end times in terms of more than just end time speculation and waiting for doomsday. I can't say that I always agreed with him, but I can say that I was always challenged by him to think Biblically and more deeply about the subject. My MP3 player right now has all of his available MP3s. I love to listen to his energy and enthusiasm.

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So it is written in 2 Samuel 12:7. Nathan, the Prophet, had to inform King David that he was guilty of that very thing that incensed him when others did it. The other day I heard about a man who was obviously in the wrong and yet he accused his accusers of treating him incorrectly. While it is certainly possible that he was treated incorrectly on some level, it is amazing the ability of us human beings to notice slight wrong done by others and magnify that wrong, while at the same time minimize our own issues and problems.

Why Do We Hold Others to a Higher Standard?

What is it about us that makes many hold others to a higher standard than we hold ourselves? Part of it may be that we can rationalize our misdeeds because we know the full story. We know of our need for the money so we understand our taking it. We know we deserve the job for we cut corners to obtain it. We know we deserve the promotion so we do whatever it takes to get it including undermining others who we deem deserve it less...And yet at the same time, we don't use any such criteria to judge others.

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A while ago I ran a poll asking what size church did you prefer. The majority chose a church between 1 and 350.

Interestingly the Adventist Review has a discussion of very small "house" churches. Many leaders see this as more in line with the Biblical idea of church than what the church is doing today.

Celebrating Consumption

Brad Cecil argues that many churches today are "celebrating the idea that people show up and consume their sermons, songs, and ministries." Cecil argues that consumption is not transformative. In contrast the smaller churches change people by building relationships.

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Thanks to Cheryl Palmer for sending in these links to C. D. Brooks Sermons.

• Who in the World are You? - Preached at North Philadelphia SDA Church. Found on Pastor Keith Goodman's website.
• A Sermon at ChurchPond.com
• The Faithful Witness - This site has a number of sermons from Pastor Brooks. They are mostly links to other sites.

I probably spend too much time wondering about what's behind many closed doors. I wonder if the closed door hides something that would be a blessing to me. You know what I'm talking bout. What is the closed door? It may be the school that hasn't accepted you for admission but you still want to apply for the fifth time. What is the closed door? It may be that special someone who has made it clear that there is no future between the two of you. What is the closed door? It may be on the job where the promotion that you desperately wanted eludes you.

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Many websites and ministers are predicting or implying that this economic crisis will culminate in the final crisis that will usher in our Lord's return. I wish to repeat, it may do just that, but then again it may not, but in any case this crisis is a real one for many.

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Over the course of my 40 years I have seen many "business opportunities." Especially when I was in Huntsville many Multi-Level Marketing opportunities presented themselves. It seems that in Huntsville there is a group of people who jump from one "opportunity" to another. As I attended these recruiting meetings and listened to the CDs and looked at the DVDs and VCR tapes something didn't seem exactly right.

These materials always promoted the idea of being in business greater than the opportunity. It didn't matter what you were selling, it mattered that you were selling it. Today you will see someone selling soap tomorrow it is something else. But it was always about building residual income on those lower than you.

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How do you Praise God? Today we have battles over the music that is sung in church. We have the traditionalists calling us back to the solid songs of their youth. They argue that the best music supports the church theologically and musically. It is largely a call to the rich heritage of the church.

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As the housing and financial crisis deepens the hearts of many are fearful. People are losing their homes, people are losing their retirement. And some are even beginning to attempt to take their own lives. The fear can be paralyzing and overpowering. What do you do?

At times like these it is important to remember the God we talk about during the good times. We go to church every week to hear about the power of God. It is now time to tap into the power in those stories.

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The Second Advent of Jesus Christ shows us the futility of environmental concerns. I am not saying that we should litter, but I am saying that environmentalism is a waste of time. God will clean up all of this polution at the second Advent.

So said one of the pastors preaching a sermon that pointed to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. The preacher perfectly articulated a common theme from the theology of many Christians who accept the Second Advent. However, it is my opinion that such a mindset is not only problematic and promotes poor stewardship of the earth, but it is also anti-Adventist.

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