Patriotism and Christian Worship

Can we be patriotic in our July 4th Worship Service? Can we sing patriotic songs and have the American, Texas, and Christian flags in our sanctuary? Yes, of course we can.

It seems rather strange that practices I grew up with, seen in church all my life, seen the great majority of churches use, are now vehemently challenged. Some seem to feel they are the first generation in 2,000 years to finally get Christianity right. They have no appreciation or respect for those generations of believers on whose shoulders they stand.

I heard of a young new pastor in a large church in another state who banned the flag in church and refused to do anything patriotic or recognize veterans. The church was seriously hurt and the pastor, perhaps wiser, soon moved on. A new pastor should consider the wisdom of going to a 50 or 100 year old church and self-righteously telling them they have it all wrong and he is going to straighten them out. It just could be that newly hatched pastor needs to learn a few things.

Some have fretted over a patriotic service causing confusion over our allegiance to Christ and to our country. Frankly, I’ve never had someone come to me with such confusion. Usually this issue is pretty clear. Jesus said, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (Matthew 22:21).

Some have worried a patriotic service leads to idolatry. Far from idolatry, come July 4th we commonly thank God (that’s a mighty Christian thing to do) for the good things about our country, and speak out against the moral failings of our country. We do not blindly follow our country, right or wrong. We are grateful however, for God’s blessings on America, including the incredible gift of religious liberty.

It seems that like the Public Invitation and using the Sinner’s Prayer, most criticism of having a patriotic worship service is more a criticism of the abuse, rather than the proper use of them. Of course we should not abuse them. But properly used, they are greatly used of God.

Some criticize a patriotic worship service because it is not explicitly found in Scripture. So are a long list of other practices the critics use on a regular basis. No, God Bless America is not found in the Psalms; but the concept is there, and there is nothing anti-biblical about using a patriotic service to tell folks about Jesus.

What about international students being in a patriotic worship service? Well, they can learn that Americans love God and love their country. They can see believers praying for their country. They can see believers striving to better their country. International students may just be inspired to go home to their own country and do likewise.

I spoke to a Baptist Student Ministry college group about the American history of Thanksgiving. An international student later thanked me and told how she enjoyed the message. She said she had always wondered about Thanksgiving since her country did not have such a holiday. It is not difficult to use an American cultural theme to teach Christian concepts.

Some have expressed concern that a patriotic service may turn into a partisan political rally. Certainly that could happen, but it can also be easily avoided. We’ve never done that in a church I’ve pastored. There is nothing partisan and out of line in singing some patriotic songs and expressing your love and godly concern for country.

Are there some tensions and conflicts between God and country? Yes. That is why Christians discuss the issue of a just war. That is why just because a man dies fighting valiantly for his country - that does not earn him a ticket to Heaven; only faith in the shed blood of Jesus Christ does that. But a patriotic worship service can give us the perfect venue to preach that very truth!

Recently I preached on being ambassadors for Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20). An ambassador learns the customs of his adopted country, while integrating and teaching them the customs of his home country. A Christian ambassador learns the customs of the country in which he resides, while teaching them the customs and beliefs of his home country of Heaven. Our church had an Easter Egg Hunt. We took a custom of our country of America (Easter Egg Hunt) and used it to teach the values and beliefs of Heaven, the Sacrificial Death and Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

July 4th (Independence Day) our church will celebrate the good things of America, pray about the bad things concerning America, all the while pointing folks to Jesus. We will hold our 2008 LifeWay Baptist Hymnals, turn to a patriotic song or two, and sing with gusto. Despite what some critics are saying, you can too!

Note: the Baptist Hymnal (or Broadman Hymnal) has included patriotic songs since at least the 1940 Broadman Hymnal. Other Christian hymnals have done the same. Baptists, without apology, have expressed their patriotism going back to at least the Revolutionary War of the 1700s; they have also criticized their country when they believed it wrong.
The 2008 Baptist Hymnal includes the song, O Canada. I have no problem with believers in other countries being patriotic. If I were worshipping in Canada, I would gladly sing O Canada right along with them.

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, April 18, AD 2011.

Related Articles:   
Saved by the Sinner’s Prayer
SBC Resolution on Alcohol Use in America

Obituary - Pastor David Elliot (AD 1931-2011)

For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him. -1 Thessalonians 5:9-10

Reverend Berl David Elliot passed away Tuesday, March 15, 2011. Born September 3, 1931, he was known as “Sonny” to family, “David” to friends, and “Preacher” to generations of people in communities across East and South Texas. He devoted his life to supporting his family, church members, and community.

Funeral services were held at First Baptist Church, Highlands, Texas March 18, 2011 at 10 am. Deacons in the church served as pallbearers. Burial was at Sterling-White Cemetery, Highlands, TX.

Brother Elliot grew up on farms and ranches and did ranch work as a young man. He owned and rode horses most of his life. He loved his family, watched sports, enjoyed telling stories and country music. His favorite was Johnny Cash.

Rev. Elliot was a graduate of the University of Corpus Christi, TX and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Fort Worth, TX. He pastored churches in South and East Texas, including Second Baptist Church, Highlands. He was a leader in the San Jacinto Baptist Association.

He is survived by his wife Betty Ruth Elliot; brothers Bob and Bill; children David Elliot, Warren Elliot, Jeanene Ickes, and son-in-law Jerry Ickes; four grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

David Elliot’s obituary was in the March 17, 2011 Baytown Sun.

Brother David had a clear mind right to the end. On the last day of his life, his wife Betty related how David Elliot said, “I get to talk to God today.”

Update:  David Elliot's obituary was also listed in the May 2, 2011 issue of the Southern Baptist Texan. 

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, April 11, AD 2011.

2006 SBC Resolution on Alcohol Use in America

Some have alleged Southern Baptists have not spoken to the alcohol issue because it is not mentioned in the Baptist Faith & Message 2000. While alcohol is not mentioned in our doctrinal statement, it has often been dealt with by the Southern Baptist Convention.

Southern Baptists have spoken with a clear voice against alcohol for well over 100 years. The most recent resolution was overwhelmingly passed in 2006. It is listed below. Many other SBC resolutions on alcohol can be found at sbc.net (under Faith & Facts). As a matter of fact, 59 resolutions against alcohol have been passed by the SBC since 1886.


On Alcohol Use In America
June 2006

WHEREAS, Years of research confirm biblical warnings that alcohol use leads to physical, mental, and emotional damage (e.g., Proverbs 23:29-35); and

WHEREAS, Alcohol use has led to countless injuries and deaths on our nation's highways; and

WHEREAS, The breakup of families and homes can be directly and indirectly attributed to alcohol use by one or more members of a family; and

WHEREAS, The use of alcohol as a recreational beverage has been shown to lead individuals down a path of addiction to alcohol and toward the use of other kinds of drugs, both legal and illegal; and

WHEREAS, There are some religious leaders who are now advocating the consumption of alcoholic beverages based on a misinterpretation of the doctrine of "our freedom in Christ"; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in Greensboro, North Carolina, June 13-14, 2006, express our total opposition to the manufacturing, advertising, distributing, and consuming of alcoholic beverages; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge that no one be elected to serve as a trustee or member of any entity or committee of the Southern Baptist Convention that is a user of alcoholic beverages.

RESOLVED, That we urge Southern Baptists to take an active role in supporting legislation that is intended to curb alcohol use in our communities and nation; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge Southern Baptists to be actively involved in educating students and adults concerning the destructive nature of alcoholic beverages; and be it finally

RESOLVED, That we commend organizations and ministries that treat alcohol-related problems from a biblical perspective and promote abstinence and encourage local churches to begin and/or support such biblically-based ministries.
-SBC, Greensboro, NC

Related articles:
Preserving Unfermented Wine in Bible Times
Charles H. Spurgeon on Alcohol
Alcohol Condemned in the Bible 

Biblical Principles Condemn Alcohol
Evidence for the Two-Wine Theory
See other related articles in right hand margin toward the bottom under Gulf Coast Pastor Articles (Labels).  

New book: Ancient Wine and the Bible: The Case for Abstinence by David R. Brumbelow.

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, April 4, AD 2011. 

Young Preachers - Finding a Place to Preach; Part 2 of 2

Now you are actively involved in your church. You’re sincerely living the Christian life. You’re getting acquainted with Southern Baptists and great preaching.

But how do I get opportunities to preach?

1. Ask your pastor if he has any opportunities where you could have a chance to preach. Let him know you would like to begin preaching. Tell him you would love to bring a short devotional to the youth, or other church classes. If there are time limits, honor them. As one of my professors said, “Men, there is no such thing as a bad short sermon.” Better to leave them wanting more, than leave them wanting less.

2. See if there are opportunities to preach or bring a devotion in a Nursing or Rehab Home. Mrs. Osea Voelkle led church services in an Assisted Living Home when I was a teenager. This was before I had my driver's license.  She asked, and was delighted that I was willing to go with them and preach a sermon. I learned much through those experiences. Do the same at Youth Camps, etc.

3. After your pastor has had a chance to hear you preach a time or two, ask him if he would be willing to contact neighboring pastors and let them know you are available to Supply Preach. Supply preaching is filling in for a pastor when he is sick or on vacation. Many pastors would love to have someone like you to call on at the last minute. If your pastor is willing to write a letter recommending you, offer to do the work of addressing letters and paying the postage to mail them. Send a copy to your local, and neighboring Baptist Association offices as well.

If you have preached in other churches, you might want to include the names and numbers of other pastors who would also recommend you. Ask your pastor for his advise along these lines.

4. If possible attend your local Baptist Association meeting (usually monthly or quarterly) with your pastor. Hopefully your pastor or Director of Missions would be willing to introduce you and let the others know of your availability to preach. Have a card or flyer to give to interested pastors. Attend these meetings every chance you have.

5. Attend all types of Baptist meetings. State conventions, evangelism conferences, the annual Southern Baptist Convention. Get to know the preachers. Make yourself available. Prayer should be a large part of all this. But remember that pastors call on people they know. Make sure they know you.

6. Ask if someone will recommend you to fill the pulpit for an area pastorless church. You may not be ready to pastor, but often they are looking for someone to just supply preach a Sunday or two until they get an interim or permanent pastor.

7. Never turn down an opportunity to preach, without good reason. If you have a good reason, explain it to them and let them know you would love to preach for them in the future. I once asked a preacher to supply for me. He declined and never gave any reason for doing so. I assumed he was not interested and never called on him again.

8. No church should be too big or too small. Count it an honor to go to any church to preach the Word of God. Never cancel out one preaching appointment to go to a bigger church to preach. Once you make a commitment to preach, keep it.

If you are asked to preach at a small church, count it a great honor and treat it like you’ve been asked to preach at Bellevue Baptist Church, Tennessee. I have always admired preachers that were just as honored and gracious to preach in a small church as a large church.

9. You may be able to send a short note to your state Baptist paper:
Benajah H. Carroll has been called to preach. He is a member of Sandy Creek Baptist Church, Big Spring and his available to supply preach. Benajah can be reached at 281/BR-549.

Check such news notes in your state paper and see how you might use them. For example, an interim may send in a note saying he has just completed and interim at a certain church, and is now available for supply preaching and interims. Always include complete contact information.

I you are scheduled to preach a revival, always send it in early enough so your paper can publish it.  This gives publicity to the church and revival, and to you as a preacher. 

10. Don’t worry about getting paid; that will work out later. Some places will not pay you at all, some will pay you very little, some very well, some not at all. Some will mail you a check. Right now just jump at every opportunity to preach and count it a bonus if they give you a check.
(By the way, if you are a pastor, see that the supply preacher is paid as well as your church is able to pay him; and see that he gets the check before the leaves your church.)

As more pastors get to know you, assuming you can preach, they will recommend you to others.

When you preach, realize you are there to help, not hurt the church. Be respectful of them. Preach the Word of God with conviction and power, but don’t be obnoxious. Don’t be arrogant and condescending to the people. Be gracious and friendly. If it were not for them, you would not have a place to preach in the first place. Preach in such a way they will want to hear you again.

Note: If you are a newly called preacher of the Gospel, write me a note and send me your mailing address. Write me at P.O. Box 300, Lake Jackson, TX 77566.

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, March 30, AD 2011.

Flee Immorality
Young Preachers - Finding a Place to Preach; Part 1
Other articles in lower right margin

Young Preachers - Finding a Place to Preach; Part 1

When I attended college, I was surprised to meet young preachers who had never preached. They had felt God’s call to preach. They had surrendered their lives to the ministry. They were being educated to follow that call. Yet they had never had the opportunity to preach. Others I met had only had the chance to preach once or twice.

Part of the blame goes to their home pastors. Pastor, if you have a young man who surrenders his life to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ - give him the opportunity to preach. Let him bring a devotional in a Sunday School Class or department. Have him preach on Wednesday night or Sunday night. Help him in preparing a sermon or two. It is inexcusable for a pastor to have young preachers in his church and never give them the opportunity to preach.

Now to the young man who has surrendered to preach. What do you do now? Let me mention some basics, then I’ll specifically mention how to get opportunities to preach.

First, be the best member your pastor has. Be in church every week Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night. How can you claim to want to be a preacher and not even attend the regular services of your own church? Are you only going to regularly attend church when they pay you to do so?

A young man showed up at my church one Sunday night and sat on the front row. That will impress any pastor. Later he told me he was a preacher and wanted me to be his mentor. That’ll also impress a pastor. He let me know he was ready to preach for me anytime. But he attended sporadically and never showed up on Sunday mornings. I found out the reason; he just couldn’t wake up early enough to make it to Sunday morning Worship, much less Sunday School. I spoke to him of the importance of a preacher being faithful to all church services. He never attended on Sunday morning, I never asked him to preach, and he soon disappeared.

Second, study God’s Word and study good preachers. Learn how to put a sermon together. I’ll get in trouble for this, but steal a good sermon from a good preacher (but don’t try to publish that sermon in your name!). Herschel Ford used to say in his sermon books that his sermons were now yours and to feel free to preach them. Soon you will be putting together your own sermons. But feel free to start out heavily using the sermons of others.

R. G. Lee (pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church, Memphis and SBC president) told of a country preacher he met. The preacher thanked Lee for his ministry and said, “I take your sermons and improve on them.” Take some good sermons and “improve” on them.

Good examples to follow: Adrian Rogers, Jerry Vines, Paige Patterson, David Jeremiah… The list goes on, but get their books and DVDs of their sermons. Don’t mimic them; preach in your own style. But learn from them.

Also, find an older pastor that you respect, and get to know him well. Ask questions. Go to him often for advice.

Prepare two or three good sermons and be ready to preach at any time. Keep your notes in your Bible. You never know when you may get an unexpected opportunity to preach.

When I was a teenager, my family drove across Houston to hear Evangelist Dan Vestal in Revival. We arrived a little late, walked in during the song service, and sat toward the back. Vestal was sitting on the platform. He saw us and walked back. I thought it was a little unusual, but figured he wanted to greet dad; they were great friends. He leaned over them and spoke to me. “David, I have a sore throat and I need you to preach for me tonight.” I was terrified. I had a grand total of about three or four sermons under my belt. I had no sermon notes with me. He refused to take no for an answer. I had a couple more songs to prepare my sermon. I got up and preached. God blessed, I think in spite of me, and several folks were saved. Always be ready!

Subscribe to a good paper or two that deals with Baptist life, theology and preaching. Subscribe to your state Southern Baptist paper. Mine is the Southern Baptist Texan and I highly recommend it. It will keep you up on Baptists, ministry, preachers and preaching. You may benefit from subscribing to your own state paper, and another good state Baptist paper. Subscribe to the Biblical Evangelist. It is filled with sermons, Bible studies, and illustrations. Both of these papers are listed in the right hand margin of Gulf Coast Pastor. Click the link, then click Subscribe at their site, and send them your mailing address. Also see links at GCP for Adrian Rogers, Jerry Vines, David Jeremiah and others.

Go to neighboring churches (when your church is not having their regular services) and hear other preachers. Attend conventions and revivals. You will both learn from them and get to know other preachers.

Next: Young Preachers - Finding a Place to Preach; Part 2
You may also be interested in Commentaries and Bible Study.

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, March 21, AD 2011.

Young Preachers - Finding a Place to Preach; Part 2 of 2

How to Give to Japan Disaster Relief

In light of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, many wonder about the best way to give to help with disaster relief. For those who would like to give through a Christian organization, there is no better way than to give through the Southern Baptist International Mission Board.

Southern Baptists have had missionaries in Japan all along. They are already there helping with disaster relief. They are there to give in the name of Jesus Christ and to lovingly share the Gospel.

You can give through your Southern Baptist church. Even if you are not a member, you can find an SBC church and ask them if you can give a gift through them for SBC Disaster Relief. I’ve let our church know they can write a check to our church and designate it for SBC Disaster Relief. We will send 100% of the offering through our state convention (SBTC) who will forward it (100%) to the International Mission Board.

An individual or church can also send their gift directly to the Office of Finance, International Mission Board, 3806 Monument Ave., Richmond, Va. 23230. Designate it for Disaster Relief or Japan Response Fund.

‘When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ -Jesus Christ; Matthew 25:39-40

For more information: texanonline.net; bpnews.net; imb.org. Or just click the links (Southern Baptist Texan; Baptist Press) in the right hand margin of Gulf Coast Pastor.

PS - Remember this Sunday, March 20, 2011 is Substance Abuse Prevention Sunday in the SBC. 

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, March 14, AD 2011.

Adrian Rogers on "Wit & Wisdom of Pastor Joe Brumbelow"

Adrian Rogers was one of the most loved and respected pastors of the Southern Baptist Convention. His preaching blessed the lives of many thousands. Not only those he pastored at Bellevue Baptist Church, Cordova, Tennessee, but also the TV and radio audience of Love Worth Finding (see right margin) and Southern Baptists who heard him preach at conventions. Many, including my dad, called him the greatest living preacher.

Part of my advice to young preachers would be to study, emulate, and learn from the preaching, practice, and theology of Adrian Rogers. It’s not bad advice for older preachers as well. Get Adrian’s sermons and books. He is a great model for preaching and pastoral ministry.

Rogers was a leader in the Conservative Resurgence of the Southern Baptist Convention. The year it all began, 1979, was the year Southern Baptists elected Rogers president of the SBC. This began the process of bringing our convention back to its historic belief in the inerrancy of the Bible. Adrian was elected three times as SBC president.

The times I was around Adrian Rogers I was impressed with him acting like a regular preacher, not someone special. He had a very personal, gracious way about him.

When I wrote The Wit and Wisdom of Pastor Joe Brumbelow about my preacher dad, I decided to write Adrian Rogers to see if he would consider writing an endorsement for the book. I was advised not to do to, since Adrian was such a highly visible leader; he would have no time to bother with such a request. Regardless, I sent him a letter and a rough copy of the book. He had known dad and my family through the days of the Conservative Resurgence. Adrian soon sent a very gracious reply and endorsement for the book. It was used on the back cover.

When the book was published, I sent a couple of copies to Adrian Rogers and thanked him again for his help. Later I would find these were his last days on this earth. He was battling cancer and no doubt did not feel like responding to my letter.

I had not asked for a reply, just wanted him to have the final copy of the book and to thank him again. Nevertheless I received an even more gracious letter concerning the book. The letter said:

Dear David,

Thank you, my friend, for the finished product - The Wit and Wisdom of Pastor Joe Brumbelow.

I spent much time this morning reading, smiling, amening, and just nodding my head. It is a beautiful book, easy to read, and full of genuine spiritual wisdom.

God is love. Jesus is wonderful.

In His Dear Name.
Adrian Rogers
Memphis, TN.
June 21, 2005

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, March 1, AD 2011.

Note - The Wit and Wisdom of Pastor Joe Brumbelow can be ordered at:

Your local bookstore, or
Hannibal Books, 800/747-0738
Amazon.com
Signed copy directly from the author:
David R. Brumbelow, P.O. Box 300, Lake Jackson, Texas 77566 USA. $12.95 postpaid.

Cotton Picking; When He Comes

Cotton farming is still big in parts of the South. My dad did a little cotton picking for extra money when he was a kid. Cotton farming was, and still is, important around his hometown of Damon, Texas.
Damon is about 30 miles off the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The 1932 Hurricane blew the Brumbelow house off the blocks and gently set it down a few yards away. A kerosene lantern never overturned, nor was it extinguished. My dad, Joe Brumbelow, at two years old, was asleep, and never awakened when the house blew off the foundation. (Some of this covered in The Wit and Wisdom of Pastor Joe Brumbelow.)

After that experience, grandpa, E. P. Brumbelow, never stayed for another hurricane. When one was coming, grandpa would pack up his family and head inland for 50 miles or so. They would sleep with others in the halls of the courthouse in Bellville or Brenham or that general area. One year when they evacuated, a rich man, at least to them, invited them to stay at his house. Though he missed the excitement of the courthouse, Joe marveled at the mansion. Grandpa lectured his kids on being well behaved and not touching anything, in such a wealthy man’s home.

Dad told of some friends of his in Damon that were about his age. The Sims had ten boys, and their dad owned a cotton trailer. When a hurricane was bearing down on Damon, their dad would hitch up a cotton trailer, throw cotton in it, and head further inland. The partially filled cotton trailer gave them a perfectly comfortable place to sleep. Joe told of how he envied their setup.

Some have spoken disparagingly of those who worked the cotton fields. Those picking cotton, however, always had my deepest respect. You had to be tough to farm, hoe, and pick cotton. Before mechanical cotton harvesting, an older generation used to jokingly refer to someone as an old cotton picker; usually done in a friendly manner. Call someone a cotton picker, and to me that is a compliment.

I’m just old enough to remember cotton picking. On a trip from the North Side of Houston down to Damon, we would pass through Sugar Land. This would have been the early 1960s. I looked out the car window onto a vast cotton field. Mostly, maybe all, black folks were scattered out along the rows picking cotton, with their long cotton sacks trailing behind. I couldn’t see the end of the rows; they seemed to go on forever. It looked to me an endless job. Ever since I’ve been glad I came along a little too late to have to pick cotton.

But to that older generation, cotton picking brings back bitter-sweet memories. Maybe you have to have been involved in cotton farming to fully appreciate the following poem. But I’m not the only one who likes it; W. A. Criswell did too. He grew up in the cotton country of the Texas Panhandle. The poem reminds me of an humble believer, maybe a slave, in a field of cotton, raising his eyes to the heavens, and thinking of the return of Jesus Christ, his King.

When He Comes

There’s a King and Captain high,
Who’ll be coming by and by;
And He’ll find me hoein’ cotton when He comes.
You will hear His legions charging
In the thunders of the sky,
And He’ll find me hoein’ cotton when He comes.

When He comes, when He comes,
All the dead will rise in answer to His drums.
While the fires of His encampment
Stir the firmament on high
And the heavens are rolled asunder when he comes.

He was hated and rejected,
He was scourged and crucified,
But He’ll find me hoein’ cotton when He comes.

When He comes, when He comes,
He’ll be ringed with saints and angels when He comes.
They’ll be shoutin’ out hosannas
To the Man that men denied,
And I’ll kneel among my cotton when He comes.
-unknown. Quoted by W. A. Criswell in Look Up Brother, Broadman; 1970.

Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! -Revelation 22:20

Note: Wording varies. Some refer to this as an old Black Spiritual Song. The words above are from Criswell’s book. If Dr. Criswell said it, it must be right :-).

-David R. Brumbelow, gulfcoastpastor.blogspot.com, February10, AD 2011.

Common Wine in the Bible #2

Recently a brother asked the question whether a strong case can be made that the most common wine in Bible days was nonalcoholic.

Some of my thoughts:
All agree they had alcoholic wine in the Bible; this is unmistakably the case where folks got drunk, like Noah and Lot. They also plainly had nonalcoholic wine in the Bible, and it was called wine. A few clear examples are Proverbs 3:10; Isaiah 16:10; 65:8; Joel 2:24. These passages are clearly nonalcoholic wine because just pressed grapes do not produce fermented, but unfermented wine or grape juice. Notice how many English translations translate this nonalcoholic grape juice as “wine.”

There are many passages in the Bible, however, that mention wine with no clear immediate evidence to demonstrate it as alcoholic or nonalcoholic. Most modern day readers immediately assume these passages must be speaking of alcoholic wine, as we know alcoholic wine today. Can we not just as easily assume, or even more easily assume, these references are speaking to common, nonalcoholic wine of their day?

A modern day myth is that they could not keep or preserve unfermented wine or grape juice until pasteurization and Welches. That myth is partially answered in the GCP artilce, Preserving Unfermented Wine in Bible Times. Not only could they prepare and preserve unfermented wine, it was easier to do than preserving fermented wine. On top of all this, unfermented wine was simpler to keep, easier to transport, was nutritious, sweet, and had no harmful side effects.

Scripture often refers to new wine and sweet wine. The most obvious and natural meaning of these terms would refer to unfermented wine. New wine and sweet wine always, or almost always, referred to nonalcoholic wine. Scripture also often refers to wine right along with grain, oil, milk, bread. In other words, wine was considered a food like these other substances, not a hard drug.

A few Scriptural considerations:
Grain shall make the young men thrive, and new wine the young women. -Zechariah 9:17
Imagine a preacher today telling young women if they want to thrive, drink alcohol.  That is ludicrus.  Alcoholic wine does not make young women thrive, it does just the opposite. Nonalcoholic wine, however, will make young women thrive.

The donkeys are for the king’s household to ride on, the bread and summer fruit for the young men to eat, and the wine for those who are faint in the wilderness to drink. -2 Samuel 16:2
Sweet nonalcoholic wine is much better for the faint than intoxicating wine.
“Nevertheless, to speak generally and broadly, sweet flavours and those of that order are more nutritive than the rest and more natural.” -Theophrastus, De Causis Plantarum; c. 280 BC.

And you drank wine, the blood of the grapes. -Deuteronomy 32:14
Press a grape and it bleeds unfermented, not fermented wine.

“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” As for him who lacks understanding, she says to him, “Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed.” -Proverbs 9:4-5
The worst thing you could do to the simple is tell them to drink intoxicating wine. Wisdom, however, personified as a woman, bids the simple to drink the common, sweet, un-intoxicating wine so common in that day.

Because the children and the infants faint in the streets of the city. They say to their mothers, “Where is grain and wine?” -Lamentations 2:11-12
The ancients knew intoxicating wine was inappropriate for children. This Scripture would be comparable today to infants crying out for a juice box.

Genesis 40:11 tells of a common method of preparing wine on the spot; and fresh grapes were kept throughout the year.

In ancient times sweet wine was unfermented wine; fermentation took the sweetness away. Aristotle, Hippocrates, Athenaeus and others testified that sweet wine did not intoxicate. (I know we have sweet intoxicating wine today. We are not speaking of modern day wine, but ancient wine. There is a big difference.) Scripture often speaks of sweet, new wine. Nehemiah (8:10) even instructed his people to drink the sweet wine. Most translations just say, drink the sweet. The ESV says, “sweet wine.” Intoxicating sweet wine in ancient times, was the exception, not the rule.

At the wedding at Cana (John 2) great quantities of wine was consumed. After they ran out, Jesus made over 120 gallons more wine. Yet there is not a hint that there were any problems with drunkenness or unruly behavior. Added to this evidence is that the holy, sinless Jesus was unlikely to have made great quantities of a hard drug. Can you imagine Him creating a bale of marijuana today? If you argue but marijuana is illegal - can you imagine Jesus making a bale of marijuana in a country were it is legal today? I can’t.

But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom. -Matthew 26:29
The most natural meaning of “fruit of the vine” is unfermented wine, not that which has been manipulated and processed by man. Jesus is an abstainer now (even of grape juice), but in the future kingdom He will drink wine with us that is new and un-intoxicating.

I could keep going. There is much, much more evidence. But that is what my new book is for, due out later this year.

Ancient Wine and the Bible - the book

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, February 5, AD 2011.

Preserving Unfermented Wine in Bible Times
2006 SBC Resolution on Alcohol Use in America
Deuteronomy 14:26 - Does it Commend Alcohol?
Common Wine in the Bible
Other articles in lower right hand margin under Gulf Coast Pastor Articles (Labels).

Standing Where the Fire Has Been - H. A. Ironside

"Who loved me and gave himself for me. -Galatians 2:20

One of the first Gospel illustrations that ever made a real impression upon my young heart was a simple story which I heard a preacher tell when I was less than nine years old.

It was of pioneers who were making their way across one of the central states to a distant place that had been opened up for homesteading. They traveled in covered wagons drawn by oxen, and progress was necessarily slow.

One day they were horrified to note a long line of smoke in the west, stretching for miles across the prairie, and soon it was evident that the dried grass was burning fiercely and coming toward them rapidly. They had crossed a river the day before but it would be impossible to go back to that before the flames would be upon them.

One man only seemed to have understanding as to what should be done. He gave the command to set fire to the grass behind them. Then when a space was burned over, the whole company moved back upon it.

As the flames roared on toward them from the west, a little girl cried out in terror, “Are you sure we shall not all be burned up?” The leader replied, “My child, the flames cannot reach us here, for we are standing where the fire has been!”

What a picture of the believer, who is safe in Christ!

'On Him Almighty vengeance fell,
Which would have sunk a world to Hell.
He bore it for a chosen race,
And thus becomes our Hiding Place.'

The fires of God’s judgment burned themselves out on Him, and all who are in Christ are safe forever, for they are now standing where the fire has been."

-Harry A. Ironside, Illustrations of Bible Truth, Moody Press; 1945.
Ironside (1876-1951) was a preacher, author of a number of expository commentaries, and pastor of Moody Memorial Church, Chicago, Illinois. During the last century his commentaries have been among the most popular.

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, January 15, AD 2011.

Botswana Lady Meets Jesus in Cowpen - Gordon Fort, IMB

Gordon Fort tells the story of an outreach to a particular tribe in Botswana. During the outreach they were camping in the bush. He and Benjamin were walking through the bush to see the tribal chief. Benjamin was of this tribe and had met Christ as his Savior in the city. He was returning to tell his tribe about Jesus.

As they walked they saw a lady over to the left about 40 yards milking a cow in a cowpen. Gordon felt the Lord leading him to speak to her. Benjamin advised against it saying the woman would be afraid if two strange men walked over to where she was working alone. “Let’s just go see the chief.”

They went a little further and Gordon felt the same conviction to speak to her. He and Benjamin talked it over again.

A few steps further and the Lord spoke again. Gordon said they must go speak with her.

She saw them walking toward her and stood up behind the cow. Benjamin called out a greeting in her native language and that seemed to put her at ease. They got to the edge of the pen. Gordon asked Benjamin to ask her if she would mind if they told her their story. She nodded yes.

Gordon was speaking one African language and Benjamin was translating to the native language of the local tribe. Through the interpreter Gordon told her the simple Gospel message. Why Jesus came. How He died on the cross. And what it means to be a sinner - one who has disobeyed God and owned the responsibility - a powerful concept to the African people.

The lady’s heart began to open to the truth of the Gospel message. Gordon knew she was under conviction. He told Benjamin to ask her if she would like to ask Jesus into her heart today. Benjamin talked to her and she nodded yes.

Standing at the cow pen, she invited Christ to become the Lord of her life.

When she was finished, she turned from looking at Benjamin, looked at Gordon Fort and began to speak fluent English.

Gordon’s first thought was, “It’s a miracle! This is what all missionaries are looking for.”

She went on to say, “I know you don’t know who I am. I have a Master’s Degree from the University of Oklahoma. I’m the Chief Instructor at the Teacher’s Training College in the capital city. I happened to come home this weekend to help my parents with the chores.”

“I knew when you saw me in this pen, you’d think that I was just an ignorant peasant woman. I decided in my heart if what you have to say is so important that you would turn aside to share it with me, that it must be the truth.”

Gordon concluded, “That lady became a leading worker in our Baptist work in Botswana.”

You never know what God might do when you share the Gospel with one for whom Christ died.

-from story told by Gordon Fort. Gordon is Vice President of the SBC International Mission Board. He told this story in his President’s Luncheon message at the 2010 annual convention of the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention in Corpus Christi. Byron McWilliams is SBTC president.

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, January 6, AD 2011.

Baptists & Alcohol in North Carolina

GREENSBORO, N.C. (BP)--A motion to "study a policy of the social use of alcohol" passed by an overwhelming margin on a show-of-hands vote from messengers attending the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina's Nov. 8-10 annual meeting in Greensboro.
Presented by Tim Rogers, pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Indian Trails, the motion reads:

"I move the convention direct the Board of Directors to study a policy concerning the social use of alcohol as it relates to the funding of church plants, employment of personnel, and the nomination of persons serving on committees and boards of the Baptist State Convention of N.C. Inc. and report back to the 2011 annual convention."

Observers told Baptist Press that there were very few votes against the motion. Rogers said he noted only a "smattering of hands, maybe 10" from his vantage point.

"This motion was conceived in my quiet times alone with God, where I cried out to Him, asking for an avenue and the wisdom to place it before my fellow pastors and colleagues of the BSCNC," Rogers said.

With only three minutes to speak to his motion at the annual meeting, Rogers wasn't able to relate all of his talking points. He later told Baptist Press one such point is modern culture: "Today's culture reveals that many Southern Baptist pastors have no problem drinking a glass of wine with their dinner or having a cold beer after a hard day and thinking that's OK."

Rogers believes that attitude will, within a generation, introduce wine for communion services in Southern Baptist churches.

Rogers cited other motivations for his motion.

One motive was his recent reading of the book "Alcohol Today" by Peter Lumpkins, which Rogers said "presents a clear biblical position for abstinence and points out the weaknesses of many positions other than abstinence."

Another motive for his motion, Rogers said, was a question raised during a presidential forum at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary wherein seminary President Daniel L. Akin responded to several questions from students regarding alcohol consumption. Garnering particular attention and a rebuke from Akin was a question that asked whether students who signed the seminary's alcohol abstinence covenant should be allowed to drink between semesters since they believed they weren't technically students during those times.

Akin told students he was "dumbfounded" and "gravely disappointed" that some would raise such a question in search of a "loophole," and that he was "stunned" to receive such questions.

"Your problem is not your view of alcohol; your problem is your integrity," said Akin, who explained that, until a student either graduates or officially withdraws from the seminary, he/she is still considered a student.

"The bottom line is that Southeastern Seminary maintains a position of abstinence when it comes to alcohol.... That's not going to change as long as I'm president, here," said Akin, who also has publicly declared a personal policy of abstinence based on biblical wisdom and his Christian witness.

A third motivation for the motion was a statement in an article posted on the website of J.D. Greear, wherein the pastor of the 4,000-member Summit Church in Raleigh, states, in part:

"At this point, I still choose not to drink, personally, to be on the safe side ... unless I am in a situation where I feel like not drinking would hurt the cause of the Gospel. If my not drinking would be a stumbling block for an unbeliever, I drink. But, to be honest, I would still rather have a culture of non-drinking around our church than one of drinking."

Rogers takes exception to Greear's statement, saying such "an absurdity is being placed before us under the banner of freedom in Christ." He also deems Greear's comment a "false argument" that drinking could somehow advance the cause of the Gospel.

Illustrating his point, Rogers recalled a mission trip to Romania in cooperation with an evangelical group from Germany, whose team members imbibed daily and publicly at a bar in the campground where they were ministering. Rogers said he and his mission team from the U.S. found the Romanians far more receptive to the ministry of abstaining American Christians as compared to the "German Christians who had beer breath."

Saved at 29, Rogers said he "acquired a taste for alcohol" as a non-Christian. "And I was real good at it, too." During that season of his life, he had a conversation in a bar with a Baptist deacon, who told him that drinking was permissible. "I thought that was crazy," said Rogers, noting the negative impact that imbibing church-going people can have on the unchurched.

On the Biblical Recorder's website, editor Norman Jameson called Rogers' motion "simply unnecessary and extra-biblical" and said, "early Baptists in Kentucky sometimes paid their preachers in bourbon."

Noting that such payment was wrong on both sides, Rogers said, "The problem with Brother Norman's analysis has to do with an ethical ploy to win a debate. One tries to kill an absolute by using an extreme position in order to overcome the absolute."

Other talking points Rogers used in presenting his motion noted the BSCNC's opposition to Wake Forest University's efforts to serve beer for profit on campus; a Wall Street Journal article revealing that alcohol is more addictive than crack cocaine, heroin and other street drugs; and a 2006 Southern Baptist Convention resolution adopted in Greensboro stating, in part, "That we urge that no one be elected to serve as a trustee or member of any entity or committee of the Southern Baptist Convention that is a user of alcoholic beverages."

"The resolution passed by a majority vote," Rogers said, "but not until the shocking picture was etched, in the minds of Southern Baptists, of pastors standing in opposition to a resolution on alcohol."

Rogers also expressed concerns to Baptist Press regarding some pastors among the Acts 29 church planting organization who not only practice social drinking, but also use it as a tool to reach people.

"Whatever the position of a church -- that's their business," Rogers said. "But the motion I made merely directs a policy to be implemented that states to the world that the Southern Baptists who make up the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina oppose the moderate use of beverage alcohol and that we will not employ anyone who advances its use."
-Norm Miller is a writer based in Richmond, Va. (Full article posted at Baptist Press 11-22, 2010.)

Notes:
A related article by ABP can be found at: Baptists debate social drinking
Find further information on alcohol under Gulf Coast Pastor Articles (Labels) in Right Margin.
A new book by Brumbelow, Ancient Wine and the Bible: The Case For Abstinence due out in 2011.

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, December 28, AD 2010.

Christmas Greetings, a poem

The first holiday after the death of a loved one is always a tough time. But for believers in Jesus Christ, we know there are better days ahead. We know one day we’ll meet again. The following poem may be an encouragement to some. I came across the poem sometime ago in one of O. S. Hawkin’s books.

Christmas Greetings

I’ve had my first Christmas in Heaven:
A glorious and wonderful day!
I stood with the saints of the ages,
Who found Christ the Truth and the Way.

I sang with the Heavenly choir:
Just think! I, who longed so to sing!
And oh, what celestial music
We brought to our Saviour and King!

We sang the glad songs of redemption.
How Jesus to Bethlehem came,
And how they called His name Jesus,
That all might be saved through His Name.

We sang once again with the angels,
The song that they sang that blest morn,
When shepherds first heard that glad story
That Jesus, the Saviour, was born.

O, how I wish you had been there:
No Christmas on earth could compare
With all the rapture and glory
We witnessed in Heaven so fair.

You know how I always loved Christmas;
It seemed such a wonderful day,
With all of my loved ones around me,
The children so happy and gay.

Yes, now I can see why I loved it;
And oh, what joy it will be
When you and my loved ones are with me,
To share in the glories I see.

So Dear Ones on earth, here’s my greeting:
Look up till the day dawn appears,
And oh, what a Christmas awaits us,
Beyond all our partings and tears!
-Dr. Albert Simpson Reitz

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, December 19, AD 2010.

Duties of the Houswife in 155 BC

What were the duties of a housewife in about 155 BC? Enter a foreign Roman world over a century before the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem. On some issues the people were surprisingly well educated. They knew agricultural practices and food preservation techniques almost unknown today. Slavery was common and accepted. Slaves were of any race. Slaves were made up of those who had lost in wars against Rome, or had simply been born into slavery. Greek and Roman gods were worshipped.

Cato was a Roman military leader, statesman, farmer, writer. He wrote On Agriculture, a farmer’s notebook. It reveals fascinating details of farm life and agricultural practices in the second century BC. Many of these practices were common through the centuries until the mid 1900s.

Following is some of Cato’s advice about the housekeeper:

“See that the housekeeper performs all her duties. If the master has given her to you as wife, keep yourself only to her. Make her stand in awe of you. Restrain her from extravagance. She must visit the neighbouring and other women very seldom, and not have them either in the house or in her part of it. She must not go out to meals, or be a gadabout.

She must not engage in religious worship herself or get others to engage in it for her without the orders of the master or the mistress; let her remember that the master attends to the devotions for the whole household. She must be neat herself, and keep the farmstead neat and clean. She must clean and tidy the hearth every night before she goes to bed. On the Kalends, Ides, and Nones, and whenever a holy day comes, she must hang a garland over the hearth, and on those days pray to the household gods as opportunity offers.

She must keep a supply of cooked food on hand for you and the servants. She must keep many hens and have plenty of eggs. She must have a large store of dried pears, sorbs, figs, raisins, sorbs in must, preserved pears and grapes and quinces. She must also keep preserved grapes in grape-pulp and in pots buried in the ground, as well as fresh Praenestine nuts kept in the same way, and Scantian quinces in jars, and other fruits that are usually preserved, as well as wild fruits. All these she must store away diligently every year. She must also know how to make good flour and to grind spelt fine.” -Cato, c. 155 BC.

What similarities do you see with housewives today?
What similarities do you see with women’s work up until about 60 years ago?
Would your grandmother or great-grandmother relate to any of this?
What differences do you see with the work of women today?
Have you ever preserved your own food?
What do you know about producing and preserving meat, grain, vegetables, fruit?
Have you ever told your children, or written about, your early experiences and jobs?
Do we have it better than in Cato’s day?
What differences do you see with your faith in Jesus Christ today?

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, December 14, AD 2010.

Christmas Quotes

“Last month was our giving thanks holiday, and Christmas is God’s way of saying, ‘You’re welcome.’” -Dennis the Menace to his friend Joey

“My nomination for history’s most profound event is the incarnation of God in Christ.” -Ralph Bailey

“Our main job is not to cry, ‘Look what the world has come to,’ but, ‘Look Who has come to the world.’” - Kermit L. Long

“God walked down the stairs of Heaven with a Baby in His arms.” -Paul Scherer

"Christ was born in the first century, yet He belongs to all centuries. He was born a Jew, yet He belongs to all races. He was born in Bethlehem, yet He belongs to all countries.” -George W. Truett

“In BC we know God is. In AD we know who God is.” -author unknown *

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law. To redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. -Galatians 4:4-5

* Note: BC means “Before Christ.” AD is an abbreviation of a Latin term meaning, “In The Year Of Our Lord.”

Merry Christmas!
-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, December 12, AD 2010.

Next Time You Attend a Baptist Convention

After the convention, when you leave your motel, a lady is going to come clean your room. She works hard for little pay. She gets little appreciation and respect. She probably has a family she is struggling to support. Her work is good and honorable. She does what you very likely would be unwilling to do. She goes home worn out, yet then has to take care of her own housework and family. She has burdens you will never know.

And you have a great opportunity.

So, do this before you leave your motel room for the last time:

* Clean up after yourself. Don’t leave the room trashed. No, you don’t have to clean the room, just make it easy for her to clean.

* Leave a good Gospel tract and several dollars, a decent tip. Write on the tract or leave a note. Something like: Dear Cleaning Lady, Thank you for taking care of my room and making my stay comfortable. May God bless you. Sincerely, [sign your name and write the date].

* If you want to get fancy, go to the bank and get dollar coins, or half dollar coins. or two dollar bills to use to leave as her tip.

Those who serve in difficult manual labor jobs are often taken for granted. But you can show them appreciation and respect. You can also show them Jesus.

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, November 29, AD 2010.

Thanksgiving - a poem by Margaret E. Sangster

For the days when nothing happens,

For the cares that leave no trace,

For the love of little children,

For each sunny dwelling-place,

For the altars of our fathers,

And the closets where we pray,

Take, O gracious God and Father,

Praises this Thanksgiving Day.

For our harvests safe ingathered,

For our golden store of wheat,

For the bowers and the vinelands,

For the flowers up-springing sweet,

For our coasts from want protected,

For each inlet, river, bay,

By the bounty full and flowing,

Take our praise this joyful day.

For the hours when Heaven is nearest

And the earth-mood does not cling,

For the very gloom oft broken

By our looking for the King,

By our thought that He is coming,

For our courage on the way,

Take, O Friend, unseen eternal,

Praises this Thanksgiving Day.

-Margaret E. Sangster

And when you offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the LORD, offer it of your own free will. -Leviticus 22:29

Happy Thanksgiving!

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, November 21, AD 2010.

2010 Annual Meeting of the SBTC

November 14-16, 2010 I attended the Bible Conference and annual meeting of the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention (SBTC) in Corpus Christi, TX. Corpus Christi is a beautiful place to have a convention. The convention center, American Bank Center, is practically under the Harbor Bridge. Huge glass walls of the convention center overlook the bay. The T-Heads and sea wall provide a great place to drive or walk. Years ago my family and I caught our limits of speckled trout right on the seawall. It was a warm January and schools of speckled trout were moving back and forth along the seawall. We caught them with weighted popping corks, small treble hooks, and live shrimp.

The SBTC Bible Conference was outstanding. Officers Heath Peloquin, Nathan Lorick, and Bart Barber did an excellent job choosing the preachers and singers. Steven Smith of SWBTS, Dwight Singleton of Knoxville, TN, Russell Moore of SBTS, and Jonathan Falwell of Lynchburg, VA all did a great job preaching (I didn‘t get to hear some other speakers). Each preacher spoke to my heart.

Bart Barber led a discussion on cultural issues with Richard Land, Russell Moore, Kelly Shackleford. This meeting should have laid to rest any doubts concerning the importance of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC). Richard Land made plain the importance of cultural issues facing our nation today. He pointed out the crucial difference between Freedom to Worship and Freedom of Religion. Richard Land and Barrett Duke (also at the SBTC) are providing strong conservative leadership in the ERLC.

Byron McWilliams is pastor of the historic First Baptist Church, Odessa and is president of the SBTC. He did an able, gracious job as moderator. He preached well in the President’s Message. We heard Jeff Iorg of Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary, Richard Land, O. S. Hawkins of Guidestone, Gordon Fort of the International Mission Board. Jimmy Pritchard of First Baptist Church, Forney preached the Convention Sermon. Frank Page and Kevin Ezell spoke. NAMB missionaries were commissioned.

I did not have the opportunity of hearing all, but the speakers I heard were right on target. Last I heard, 803 voting messengers registered, and I’m sure a large number of visitors. It is amazing how much time, planning, effort go into a state convention.

493 salvation decisions were made during the SBTC pre-convention Crossover evangelistic emphasis. The SBTC operates on 45% of Cooperative Program gifts, and sends 55% on to the ministries of the Southern Baptist Convention. Jim Richards, SBTC Executive Director, has a huge job and is leading well.

I saw a number of old friends. A lady introduced herself to me and told how she and some of her relatives were influenced years ago by my dad’s preaching and ministry. Another lady spoke to me who had been a member of Doverside Baptist Church years ago when I was a teenager.

I attended the SWBTS Luncheon and the President’s Luncheon. Hey, a Baptist has got to eat!

To preachers and laymen - whenever you have the chance, attend the annual meeting of the SBTC. Why?

* You will be blessed and inspired. The singing and preaching will do you good. You will also get some good sermon outlines and illustrations.

* You’ll have great fellowship. Go to the luncheons. If you don’t know anyone, just sit down at a half filled table and introduce yourself. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at the folks you meet.

* You will learn much more about the ministry and missions of Southern Baptists.

* You can probably get a good sermon book by O. S. Hawkins at the Guidestone Display. Criswell College gave out a number of DVDs of sermons by W. A. Criswell.

* If you want to preach and serve more, it helps to get to know as many ministers as possible. If you are looking for a ministry opportunity - preachers recommend preachers they know.

* As you fellowship, you’ll hear some great stories.

* You will find we are reaching people around the world with the Gospel.

Those are just a few thoughts. The SBTC annual meeting will be held in Irving in 2011 and San Antonio in 2012. Read more about the SBTC by subscribing to the Southern Baptist Texan (click link in right hand column under "Sites I Mainly Agree With").

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, November 18, AD 2010.

Limited or Universal Atonement by Dr. David L. Allen; part 2

Part 2 of 2
THEOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS

The key theological argument used to support limited atonement is the Double Payment argument, which says justice does not allow the same sin to be punished twice. This argument faces several problems:

* it is not found in Scripture
* it confuses a commercial debt and penal satisfaction for sin
* the elect are still under the wrath of God until they believe (Eph 2:3)
* it negates the principle of grace in the application of the atonement (nobody is owed the application).

Though Christ died sufficiently for the sins of all people, the promise of salvation is clearly conditional in the New Testament -- one must repent and believe in order to receive salvation. The limitation was not in the provision of Christ's death, but in the application. A man cannot be punished for rejecting what was never for him in the first place!

LOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS

One argument for limited atonement goes like this: Christ died "for His sheep," for "His Church," and for "His friends." These are limited categories of people, thus, this is proof of limited atonement.

Not so fast!

Statements such as these do not prove limited atonement, because to argue such invokes the negative inference fallacy: the proof of a proposition does not disprove its converse.

One cannot infer a negative (Christ did NOT die for group A) from a bare positive statement (Christ did die for group B), any more than one can infer that Christ only died for Paul because Gal 2:20 says that Christ died for Paul.

Consequently, the fact that many verses speak of Christ dying for his "sheep," his "church," or "his friends" does not prove that he did not die for others not subsumed in these categories. There is no statement in Scripture that says Jesus died ONLY for the sins of elect. There are numerous statements that say Christ died for "all," the "world," or for "everyone," as in Hebrews 2:9.

CONCLUSION

Acts 3:26 states: "To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities." Peter is telling his unbelieving audience that God sent Jesus to bless each and every one of them and to turn every one of them from their iniquities. This is equivalent to Peter saying: Christ died for you.

How could Jesus save every one of them (which is what blessing and turning away from iniquity involves) if he did not actually die for the sins of all of them? Certainly "each one" of the Jews Peter addressed must have included some who were non-elect! The free and well-meant offer of the gospel for all people necessarily presupposes that Christ died for the sins of all people.

Limited atonement truncates this good news of the gospel by sawing off the arms of the cross too close to the stake. At this strategic time of focus on a Great Commission Resurgence, should the Southern Baptist Convention move toward "five-point" Calvinism, such a move would be away from and not toward the gospel.

-Part 2 of 2, by Dr. David L. Allen, dean of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary's school of theology; Fort Worth, TX; swbts.edu
-from Baptist Press (BP); bpnews.net (originally posted at BP, 10-1-2010)

Note: David Allen is author of the New American Commentary on Hebrews published by Broadman & Holman. Get his book and Hebrews by R. L. Sumner ($19.95 postpaid, 546 pages and filled with illustrations; Biblical Evangelism, 5717 Pine Drive, Raleigh, NC 27606-8947). They make a great combination and will give you preaching material for the foreseeable future. Remember, get your sermon from one source - that’s plagiarism. Get your sermon from two sources - that’s research!

David Allen is also contributor to Whosoever Will by Allen & Lemke, B&H, an outstanding, bestselling book on Baptists and Calvinism. 

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, November 17, AD 2010.

Related Articles:
Limited or Universal Atonement by Dr. David L. Allen; part 1 of 2
Unlimited Atonement, Jesus Died For All
Saved By The Sinner's Prayer
The Roman Road of Salvation 

Limited or Universal Atonement by Dr. David L. Allen

Part 1 of 2
FORT WORTH, Texas (BP) - The issue of the "extent of the atonement" answers the question "For whose sins did Christ die?" There are only two options: 1) for the elect alone ("limited atonement" also called "definite atonement," or "particular redemption") or 2) for all of humanity.

Importantly, arguing for unlimited atonement and against limited atonement does not require quoting a single Arminian or non-Calvinist. It is a common misconception that all Calvinists affirm limited atonement. But even John Calvin rejected limited atonement, and Richard Baxter, John Bunyan, Jonathan Edwards and Andrew Fuller are just a few of history's well-known Calvinists who likewise rejected this position.

HISTORICAL CONSIDERATIONS

All of the earliest reformers, including Calvin, held to a form of universal atonement -- not universal salvation, but that Christ's shed blood paid the price for all men's sins so the possibility of atonement was unlimited. The five-point Calvinist's doctrinal position of limited atonement was not developed until the second and third generation of reformers, beginning primarily with Beza.

Controversy over introduction of this concept into Reformed beliefs grew to such an extent that ambiguous language on the subject was left in the final draft of the Canons of Dort (1618–1619) so as to allow those among the delegates who rejected limited atonement to sign the final document.

Even the Westminster Assembly (1643–1649) included delegates who rejected limited atonement, and the Puritans in the 17th and 18th centuries included distinguished leaders who preached and wrote against it. For example, John Bunyan declared: "Christ died for all.... For the offer of the gospel cannot with God's allowance, be offered any further than the death of Jesus Christ doth go; because if that be taken away, there is indeed no gospel, nor grace to be extended."

BIBLICAL CONSIDERATIONS

There are three key sets of texts in the New Testament that affirm unlimited atonement:

* the "all" texts,
* the "world" texts, and
* the "many" texts.

There also are three sets of texts that state Jesus died for His:

* "church"
* "sheep," and
* "friends."

How are we to reconcile the universal texts with the limited ones?

The high-Calvinist wrongly interprets the universal texts in light of the limited texts. Non-Calvinists and moderate Calvinists rightly interpret the limited texts as a subset of the universal texts.

Some Calvinists argue that biblical authors believed in limited atonement because they made statements affirming Christ died for the Church, even though biblical writers do not say that Christ died only for the Church or that He did not die for the non-elect.

There is no linguistic or exegetical or theological ground for reducing the meaning of "world" to "the elect" in such passages as John 3:16. John Owen made John 3:16 read "God so loved those he chose out of the world," which changes completely the sense of the verse and turns it into something opposite of its intended meaning. But to make the meaning of "world" here "the elect" is to make not only a linguistic mistake but also a logical mistake of category confusion.

-Part 1 of 2, by Dr. David L. Allen, dean of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary's school of theology; swbts.edu

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, November 9, AD 2010.

Related Articles:
Limited or Universal Atonement by Dr. David L. Allen; part 2

The Girl Who Saved His Ministry

All pastors have bad days. Things can get mighty lonely and discouraging. Sometimes Mondays are the worst. One Monday morning early in Joe’s ministry he decided he could not take it any longer. He got a sheet of church stationary out of his desk drawer and wrote out his resignation as pastor. He was absolutely sincere. He was not going to put up with things as they were any longer. He folded it and put it back in the desk drawer. He would read it to the church the next Wednesday night.

Feeling pretty low, he went to his car and began driving around the community. He drove behind the church where Duff Lane ended in the back church parking lot. As he drove slowly down Duff Lane, he saw a group of girls playing in one of the yards. He heard one little girl call to him, “Brother Joe, please stop.” After he stopped, the little girl ran to the car and said, “Hi, Brother Joe, how are you today?” He answered, “Fine” but later confessed that he lied! Then the little girl said, “I wanted my friends to meet you. I’ve been telling them how you told me about Jesus and I got saved and then how you ‘baba-tized’ me. Brother Joe, thank you for telling me about Jesus. Thank you for ‘baba-tizing’ me.” She then introduced her friends each by name. They all went back to their playing.

Joe returned to his office, took out his letter of resignation, and tore it into little bits. He later said, “No one could have gotten me to resign for anything. That little girl did not realize it, but she may have saved my ministry.” God began to work there as never before. The next year more than 100 were baptized at Doverside Baptist Church.

-from The Wit and Wisdom of Pastor Joe Brumbelow, hannibalbooks.com, p. 108.
Available at Hannibal Books, amazon, or order from your local Christian Bookstore.
Or order from: David Brumbelow, P.O. Box 300, Lake Jackson, TX 77566 USA; $12.95.

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, October 26, AD 2010.

Wit And Wisdom Of My Dad (Wit & Wisdom of Pastor Joe Brumbelow, the book)
Other articles in lower right hand margin under Gulf Coast Pastor Articles (Labels).

Calvinism and Being Dead in Sins

And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins. -Ephesians 2:1 

Many Calvinists emphasize the lost person is dead in their sins and can’t respond in any way. After all, a dead man, a dead body, is lifeless and can do nothing. So a lost person can’t respond to the Gospel in faith. He can’t do anything. Some even go to the point of saying a person is saved or regenerated before faith, since they think a lost person cannot have faith or accept salvation.

If this view of the spiritually dead is true we could go one step further. A dead man can’t sin. A dead man can’t walk and talk and hear. But the unsaved do these things on a regular basis. The very next verse to the one above (Ephesians 2:2) says those dead in their sins “walked.”

This view is rather extreme and has an improper view of death. Death in Scripture does not mean annihilation or ceasing to exist. Death means separation. James 2:26 tells us, “For as the body without the spirit is dead...”

Spiritual death is when a person is separated from God. Physical death is when the soul, spirit, the real you, is separated from the physical body. So at a funeral, the departed is not lying in the casket. If they knew Jesus as Lord and Savior, they are in Heaven with Him. Only their body, where they used to live, is in the casket.

Dead in your sins simply means your sins have separated you from a holy God. Isaiah put it, “your iniquities have separated you from your God” (Isaiah 59:2).

When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, they immediately became spiritually dead. But they could still walk, talk, hear and respond to God (Genesis 3:10).

Even though he is spiritually “dead,” the unsaved man can perceive the truth of God. In Romans, Paul declares emphatically that God’s truth is “clearly seen” by them so that they are “without excuse” (Romans 1:20).

“Dead” is only one of many figures of speech used to describe the fallen state. It is also depicted as “sickness,” which does not imply the person had no ability to hear and respond to God (Matthew 9:12). Depravity involves the corruption of life but not its destruction. The image of God in fallen humans is effaced but not erased. Even unsaved people are said to be in God’s image (Genesis 9:6). The image is marred but not eradicated by sin (cf. James 3:9).

If spiritually “dead” amounts to a kind of spiritual annihilation, rather than separation, then the “second death” (Revelation 20:10) would be eternal annihilation - a doctrine certainly not taught in Scripture. A spiritually dead person, then, is in need of spiritual life from God. But he does exist, and he can know and choose. His faculties that make up the image of God are not absent; they are simply incapable of initiating or attaining their own salvation. Like a drowning person, a fallen person can reach out and accept the lifeline even though he cannot make it to safety on his own.

Men dead in trespasses and sins can respond. That is one reason we are commanded to go into all the world and preach the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Further information on total depravity and being dead in trespasses and sins:
Trouble With the Tulip by Frank S. Page; Riverstone.
Chosen But Free by Norman Geisler; Bethany House.
Whosoever Will by David Allen & Steve Lemke; Broadman & Holman.
Salvation and Sovereignty by Kenneth Keathley; Broadman & Holman.
Calvinistic Paths Retraced by Samuel Fisk; Biblical Evangelism Press.

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, October 11, AD 2010.

Books on Calvinism, Predestination
Dr. Robert Wring on Baptists and Elder Rule
Adrian Rogers on Predestination, Calvinism
Paige Patterson on Calvinism

Preserving Unfermented Wine in Bible Times

Editorial note in Biblical Evangelist:
Last year we published a strong message from the pen of a Texas pastor, David Brumbelow, dealing with so-called social drinking, “The Bible Speaks on Alcohol.” David did his undergraduate work at East Texas Baptist University and then earned a Master of Divinity at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth.

In this issue we are presenting a follow-up as he explodes a long-held criticism against prohibition that “the ancients had no way of preserving grape juice” (the Welches hadn’t been born yet). He gives a fine scholarly answer to this myth, showing that they did, indeed, know how. -Editor R. L. Sumner

*******

A Christian speaks against alcohol and explains how the biblical words for wine were used to refer to nonalcoholic, as well as alcoholic wine. A scholar replies, “But it was impossible to keep wine from fermenting in the ancient world. No one could do this until Louis Pasteur and Welch’s in the late 1800s.”

He adds for good measure, “The Passover wine had to be fermented because it was in the Spring, long after the Fall grape harvest.” That seems an unanswerable argument.

Those who use this argument think they are rightly interpreting Scripture. Instead, they are taking their own ignorance and projecting it onto the Bible and the ancient world. To argue that the ancients could not preserve un-intoxicating wine is wrong factually, scientifically, and historically. Actually, fermented wine was more difficult to make and preserve, than unfermented wine.

Unfermented wine could easily be preserved without electricity, refrigeration, or pasteurization. Following are several examples.

Reduce Its Consistency

One way is to boil fresh expressed wine down to about a third or fifth of its consistency. This thick, strong wine or syrup would keep without fermentation. When ready to drink, it would just be mixed with water. This was also done with cider and other fruit.

Patrick E. McGovern is a pro-drinking secular authority on ancient and modern wine. He said, “Concentrating grape juice down by heating is still used to make the popular shireh of modern Iran and was known to the ancient peoples of Mesopotamia as well as the Greeks and Romans. It enables fruit to be preserved, and, diluted with water, it produces a refreshing, nonalcoholic beverage.” (Ancient Wine: The Search For The Origins Of Viniculture by Patrick E. McGovern, Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 2003).

Tischendorf wrote of a visit to Coptic monasteries in Egypt in 1845, “Instead of wine they use a thick juice of the grape, which I at first mistook for oil.”

Aristotle said the wine of Arcadia was so thick it was necessary to scrape it from the wineskins and dissolve it in water (Patton, Bible Wines).

Length of the Grape Harvest

The grape harvest lasted six months. This was done by planting different varieties of grapes, and planting them in different microclimates. Ancient writers testified of the vast number of varieties of grapes; some said they were innumerable. Grape vines and cuttings were transported throughout the Roman world.

Israel was at the crossroads of the world. Agriculture was their life. Some vines bear an early harvest, some midseason, some late. The first grapes can be picked as early as July, the latest in December. Some vines ripen all their grapes at once; others over a long period of time. Some grapes bore two crops a year. Grapes right off the vine were available for half the year.

It was a common practice to squeeze a bunch of grapes by hand directly into a cup and drink that fresh, sweet (fermentation takes away the sweetness) unfermented wine. “Then Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand; and I took the grapes and pressed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand” (Genesis 40:11). Historian Josephus refers to this. Pharaoh apparently preferred his wine fresh and unfermented.

A stone relief found in the Roman city of Pompeii pictures the god of wine (in sore need of a loincloth), squeezing grapes by hand into a cup (Patton, Bible Wines). Early church writings referred to pressing grapes into a cup for the Lord’s Supper.

Grapes Preserved Fresh

Grapes could be preserved fresh for months. Some will protest their grapes don’t keep long. Let me explain. Any old-time gardener will tell you some fruits and vegetables are “good keepers,” others are not. A good keeper, at room temperature, can remain fresh for months. This was especially well-known in ancient times when such knowledge could mean the difference between going hungry or not, or even prevent starvation.

Characteristics of good “keeping” grapes include a tough skin and adhering well to the cluster. The cluster would be cut from the vine. Any bad grapes would be clipped, not pulled, from the cluster. Pulling a grape leaves a “brush” that can start a molding, decaying process. Grape clusters were loosely packed in straw, cotton, bran, or hung from the ceiling. Periodically they would be inspected and any bad grapes clipped off.

The right varieties of grapes stored in this way would last fresh for months. Leon C. Field, Methodist scholar, said, in 1883, “Niebuhr says that, ‘the Arabs preserve grapes by hanging them up in their cellars, and eat them almost through the whole year.’ Dr. Kerr says, ‘A friend of mine now in Britain not long since unpacked grapes he had received eleven months previously from the continent, finding them fresh and good.’”

Also, “Bernier says grapes were sent from Persia to India, wrapped in cotton, two hundred years ago, and sold there throughout the year.”

An early 1800s recipe book, called “receipts” back then, gives directions that would preserve grapes fresh for 12 months. These grapes could be pressed into a cup at any time of the year (New Family Receipt Book, London; 1820).

Made from Dried Grapes

Wine was also made from dried grapes or raisins. Drying is one of the oldest methods of preserving food. Raisins were rehydrated by soaking or boiling and pressed into wine.

The Talmud (ancient Jewish writings) refers to raisin wine. Polybius (Greek historian c. 100 BC) spoke of un-intoxicating raisin wine. A medieval Arabian writer refers to raisin wine for the Lord’s Supper. Modern day Jews refer to raisin wine.

Sealing “Must”

Seal “must” in amphora (wine container). Roman writer Cato (c. 170 BC) said, “If you would keep must [new unfermented wine] for a year, pour it into an amphora and seal the cork with pitch. Immerse the amphora in cold water for thirty days. Then remove it and the must will be preserved for one year” (De Agri Cultura).

Additionally, olive oil and resin were used to make containers and contents airtight. Filtering was claimed to break the strength of wine. Chemical additives were used. Fermented wine could be boiled to remove the alcohol.

The above methods were widely practiced and provided unfermented wine throughout the year. So, don’t let anyone tell you, scholar or otherwise, that in Bible times they had no choice but to drink fermented wine.

Further study: Alcohol Today, Peter Lumpkins; The Bible and its Wines, Charles Wesley Ewing; Bible Wines, William Patton; Fights I Didn’t Start, And Some I Did, R. L. Sumner; Communion Wine, William M. Thayer; Libertinism: A Baptist and His Booze, Jerry Vines; Oinos, Leon C. Field.

Note:  A new book, Ancient Wine and the Bible: The Case for Abstinence by David R. Brumbelow, contains much more information about Preserving Unfermented Wine in Bible Times. 

See additional articles on Alcohol under Gulf Coast Pastor Articles (Labels) in right margin. 
SBC Resolution on Alcohol Use in America
Ancient Wine Production and the Bible
Wine for Your Stomach's Sake; 1 Timothy 5:23

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, October 5, AD 2010. 

This article was originally published in the Biblical Evangelist, July-August, 2010.

Subscribe at: The Biblical Evangelist - 5717 Pine Drive, Raleigh, North Carolina 27606-8947 or biblicalevangelist.org (see Link in right margin).  Subscription is free, they operate on a donation basis.  If you can, send a generous donation!

Burning the Koran

A pastor has backed off his threat to burn of a number of Korans, the religious book of the Muslims. 

Like the huge majority of Christians, I have no plans to burn the Koran (or Quran). I don’t think others should do so. To do so shows a lack of Christian kindness, and is just inciting hatred and violence. It will probably also cause some out of curiosity to purchase and read what you condemn.

News has reported at least one person murdered in a riot opposing this proposed burning of the Koran. While burning the Koran should be condemned, the violence in reaction should be condemned even more. Which is the biggest atrocity? An unfulfilled threat to burn Korans, or the mob murder of an innocent human being?

Perhaps our president, or generals, should make a speech like the following:

“The world should know that Americans are a free people. They enjoy basic human rights of free speech and religious liberty. In the midst of such freedom, some will occasionally do things others find highly offensive; things our government finds offensive.

There are thousands of churches and synagogues in America. There are also thousands of mosques in America. While most Americans are culturally Christian, all religions are free to worship according to the dictates of their conscience and to share their faith with others. Freedom not allowed in many countries.

Please realize that it is not the American government who threatens to burn what you revere. Instead it is invariably someone on the fringe that does so. Their actions usually say much more about them than anyone else.

There will always be someone who will burn a Koran, a Bible, a cross, a menorah, an American flag. So don’t worry about it, just get over it!

Feel free to be offended. Feel free to condemn those who act in such hateful ways. Do not feel free to riot, murder, and destroy. By doing so you are placing yourself on a lower level than that of the instigator.”

Note: the president and our military are welcome to use this speech. Just send your standard speech writer’s fee :-).

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, September 13, AD 2010.

Thank You President George W. Bush

Below is a letter sent to President George W. Bush in January, 2009. It was also published in the area newspaper, The Facts, Clute, Lake Jackson, TX.

Dear President George W. Bush,

Thank you for your service to our country these last eight years. I especially appreciate:

1. Your strong pro-life conviction. This was reflected in your speeches, personal stand, executive orders, signing into law pro-life measures, vetoes, and appointments.

2. Your Supreme Court appointments that showed respect for the sanctity of human life and judicial restraint.

3. Your conduct of the War Against Terrorism. I believe the terrorists were amazed at how you stood strong and struck back so forcefully.

4. Keeping our country safe from terrorism since the 9-11 attack. It is remarkable that our country has not suffered another major terrorist attack since 9-11-2001. I think that is no accident.

5. Bringing dignity and integrity to the White House.

6. Your support of marriage only being between one man and one woman.

7. Your personal faith in our Lord.

May God bless you, Laura and your family in the days ahead.

Sincerely,
David R. Brumbelow,
Highlands, Texas 77562
January 27, 2009

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, September 7, AD 2010.

Obituary - Missionary Gilbert Ross

Oh how great is Your goodness, which You have laid up for those who fear You. -Psalm 31:19

Frank Gilbert Ross, was born July 2, 1928 in Dallas, Texas. He went from this life to the next on July 23, 2010 at the age of 82.

Gilbert Ross was the son of James Hardy Ross and Minnie Lee (Jones) Ross. He married Carolyn Marie O’Brien on July 1, 1950 in Corpus Christi, TX. Gilbert and Carolyn had six children.

Gilbert was preceded in death by daughter Rebeca in 1961.

He is survived by his wife Carolyn Ross of Dublin, TX.

His daughters and sons in law:
Deborah & Brad Kuss of Garland, TX
Marie & John Drugan of Casper, Wyoming
Katharine Ross of Hermosillo, Mexico
Betsy and Jackie Robinett of DeLeon, TX.
Martha & Billy Aranda of Dublin, TX.
12 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren.
His aunt Virginia Kimberley of Livermore, California.

A graduate of the University of Corpus Christi and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Gilbert Ross was a missionary and plane pilot in Durango, Mexico for 46 years.

“For many years he flew a single engine airplane to minister Jesus’ love to the far flung people of the Western Sierra Madre Mountains. He would land the plane on a dirt landing strip that had mostly been cleared of stones. Then he would gather a group of people together in the patio of one of the villagers. He would lead some praise songs and then he would teach them about Jesus. He had a generator that he would take with him to power up an old film projector and he would use that to show old reel movies of Jesus’ life. This would thrill the children so much. The movies were used powerfully by God to change people’s lives. Then he would rev up the airplane and set off for the next village. His life was a testament to God’s love and faithfulness to the people on earth who don’t have much power or influence. We, his family, are eternally grateful for his love for Jesus and the heritage he has left us.” -from Funeral Bulletin

The funeral was July 26, 2010 at 10 am at Cottonwood Baptist Church, Dublin, TX; burial at Old Dublin Memorial Park. Pastor Mike Fritscher officiated.

The five girls, two granddaughters, and Carolyn Ross sang In the Sweet By and By in Spanish. Soloist Shelly Hooper sang How Great Thou Art and led the congregation in When the Roll is Called Up Yonder. The pianist was Steven Chambers. Philippians 2:1-11 was printed in the bulletin. Arrangements were by the Harrell Funeral Home.

Offerings sent to Cottonwood Baptist Church in memory of Gilbert Ross were sent to a pastor serving in the Durango area of Mexico.

Gilbert Ross’ father, Hardy Ross, was a first cousin to my dad, Joe Brumbelow. In recent years Gilbert & Carolyn would sometimes stay at Joe & Bonnie Brumbelow’s home in Lake Jackson, TX when he would have to go to the hospital in the Medical Center in Houston. They were an inspiration to me as I grew up. May God continue to bless Brother Gilbert’s family and ministry.

Gilbert Ross' obituary was printed in the September, 2010 Southern Baptist Texan. 

-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, September 1, AD 2010.