Archive for January, 2009
Say Shibboleth
“And the Gileadites took the passages of Jordan before the Ephraimites: and it was so, that when those Ephraimites which were escaped said, Let me go over; that the men of Gilead said unto him, Art thou an Ephraimite? If he said, Nay; Then said they unto him, Say now Shibboleth: and he said Sibboleth: for he could not frame to pronounce it right. Then they took him, and slew him at the passages of Jordan: and there fell at that time of the Ephraimites forty and two thousand.” – Judges 12:5,6
The book of Judges covers roughly the first 350 years of Israel’s history in Canaan and it records the many dark doings and sad happenings that took place during that time. Judges picks up the story of Israel after the death of Joshua when the Lord was no longer “King in Israel” (Judg. 17:6); the tribes were divided, the people were mixing with the heathen nations, and it was necessary for God to chasten His people. A summary of the entire book is recorded in Judges 2:10-19.
Thirteen different judges are named in this book, raised up by God to defeat a particular enemy and give the people rest. These judges were not national leaders but rather local leaders who delivered the people from various oppressors. Not all of the tribes participated in each battle and often there was tribal rivalry. Such was the case in the verses cited above from Judges chapter 12. The Gileadites, led by Jephthah, fought against the children of Ammon. The Ephraimites were given an invitation to join the fight but declined. When they realized the Gileadites had defeated the Ammonites, they were acrimonious towards their brethren from Gilead because they couldn’t participate in the victory. This rivalry between the Ephraimites and Gileadites led to a battle between the two tribes. Ultimately the Ephraimites were defeated. Those that escaped tried to go home but the Gileadites blocked the passage. Anyone trying to pass through the blockade was given a “password” that someone from Ephraim would have trouble pronouncing due to their accent. If the person said “Sibboleth” instead of “Shibboleth” then the Gileadites guarding the passage recognized that the person was from Ephraim and they would kill him.
We are many years removed from the scene that took place in Judges chapter 12, however there are battles that rage among the brethren today over issues that end up destroying fellowship and in some cases ministries and churches. I am not referring to matters of sound doctrine or Baptist distinctives; both of these are extremely important and should never be compromised (Titus 2:1; 3:10). I am not referring to preaching on specific sins; by all means name them (Is. 58:1). Rather, I am talking about the frequent arguments among independent, fundamental, Bible-believing Christians over something that does not make one bit of difference to the furtherance of the gospel. Most of these contentions can be summarized as some proud believer trying to establish the fact that he or she is spiritual and someone else is not. Their spirituality is based upon, “I do this and you don’t, so that proves I am more spiritual than you.” It is the spiritual equivalent of “Say now Shibboleth.”
Please understand it is of the utmost importance to have convictions and standards based upon the word of God, but we cannot waste time seeking to legislate our feelings or pet peeves, making them a measure of one’s relationship to the Lord. Bob Jones Sr. said, “It is never compromise to go as far as you can along the right road with anybody.” However, self-righteous Pharisees who seek to exalt themselves above the brethren will ignore all the scriptural things we agree on and enter into arguments about nonissues. These arguments always end in division. They cannot be settled because there is no scripture upon which to stand.
Since we have been on deputation, I have been asked on more than one occasion if any of the brethren have given me grief for having facial hair. I was initially surprised by the question. Although no pastors or laity I have met have ever expressed any concern over my goatee, I have learned that some of the brethren believe that facial hair is a sign that a man has sold out to live for the world, the flesh, and the devil. “Say now Shibboleth.” There are numerous other issues that are sources of debate and contention, there are many “Shibboleths” that people are asked to pronounce or give their opinion on to see if they can “frame… it right.” Christians are fighting over things not worth fighting about. If the Lord did not address the subject in the pages of the Bible, a person is certainly entitled to their convictions and opinions. It is folly however to force those views on others or to sow discord among the brethren who do not buy in to those same convictions. There are many issues upon which the brethren bite and devour one another but I will address the facial hair issue to illustrate my point.
When God wanted you to know what He thought about murder, He said, “Thou shalt not kill.” Is there any doubt about God’s view on murder? When God wanted you to know His opinion on adultery, He said, “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” No confusion there. Our Lord Jesus goes to the heart of the matter on both these issues and says about the latter, “whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.” All is obvious. God and His prophets and His ministers are all characterized by what the Bible calls “great plainness of speech.” Do you know why we argue, debate, and fight over, for example, facial hair on men? It is because there is no statement from God regarding the matter. Without a statement from God, we are left to argue over opinions.
The anti-facial hair teaching predominately came from the generation of men who fought, or whose fathers fought, in times of war while the beatnicks and hippies stayed home, refusing to defend their country, wearing goatees and beards. As a reaction to un-American, unpatriotic sluggards, men began to preach against facial hair, figuring if you had it then you were an ungodly, un-American degenerate. This preaching really took off in the 1960’s. Never mind that great men of the faith like D.L. Moody, C.H. Spurgeon, C.T. Studd, David Livingstone, George Muller, etc. all had facial hair. One should also consider that none of the popes have had facial hair, at least none that I have seen. So what does that mean? Nothing. “Say now Shibboleth.”
The Bible is my final authority for all matters of faith and practice. What does the Bible say about facial hair? Every biblical reference that I found was positive. When Hanun took David’s servants and shaved off one half of their beards, David said, “Tarry at Jericho until your beards be grown, and then return” (2 Sam. 10:5). If it is wrong to have a beard then David gave some very bad advice to his troops. In Psalm 133:1-2 we learn that brethren could dwell together in unity, even if the high priest had a beard. Isaiah 50:6 is a prophecy of the sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ that would take place in Pilate’s judgment hall; it says, “I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair.”
The other extreme to this issue would be to say that a man is not right with God unless he has facial hair or those who take a command given to the Jews and try to force all men with facial hair to obey the Law and not trim their beard (Lev. 19:27). There is no commandment from God for the New Testament church regarding the matter of facial hair. I do not wear a goatee to be trendy, slothful, or rebellious; it is simply a matter of preference. As for others, they are at liberty to let their conscious be their guide.
This journal entry is not an angry diatribe about facial hair. Again, that is just one issue among many that some of the brethren choose to quarrel over. This journal is rather about a sin so grievous that it is listed as one of the seven things God hates – sowing discord among brethren (Prov. 6:16,19). As brethren we should not be intent on dividing brothers and sisters in Christ over matters of no importance to the work of the gospel and the cause of Christ (Rom. 16:17; 1 Cor. 3:3). We as born-again believers need to stand firm on “Thus saith the LORD” rather than imposing our preferences on our brethren by having them “Say now Shibboleth”?
“Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” – Matthew 15:7-9
(The booklet “What Are You Fighting About?” by James Knox was referenced and covers additional non-Biblical issues besides facial hair)
Sandy
Sandy and I sat on a bench in Eden Park overlooking the Ohio River. It was early September and we had only known each other for a couple months. It was at this time I realized she was unlike any other person I had ever met; I was intrigued. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
We first met in July of 1998 at Grace Baptist Church in Middletown. She was visiting Grace with a friend and just happened to sit down in the same pew as me. Truly “man looketh on the outward appearance” (1 Sam. 16:7) and I thought she was the prettiest girl I had ever seen. We spoke briefly after church and a little more the following week. The first few months of our relationship the conversations were light-hearted and kept on the surface. I later realized that Sandy doesn’t share her innermost thoughts with just anyone but rather guards her heart and shares bits and pieces of herself with those with whom she develops a trust. So it was at Eden Park that day in September that she guided our conversation more introspectively and I have since discovered that her outward beauty cannot match the beauty of who she is as a person.
Please allow me to tell you a little bit about my wife. Sandy has the keenest intuition of anyone I have ever met; her insight into the behavior and personalities of people is profound. She is not the least bit fake; her sincerity is one of the many qualities I admire in her. She doesn’t try to pretend to be something she’s not and if something bothers her she will not pretend otherwise. She always shows discretion but if the situation requires it then she will address the problem head on with the source itself. She is a loyal and true friend. She boldly defends those she loves when they have been mistreated. She is tenderhearted and very empathetic toward others. She is thoughtful and certainly not flippant in choosing her words. She is playful and adventurous and I can’t imagine my life without her.
“Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised” (Prov. 31:30). More than anything, I am thankful that I have a wife that fears and loves the Lord. She has accompanied me as I preached on the street, wearing a sandwich board sign that read “Jesus Saves” on one side and “Repent or Perish” on the other. I asked her if it embarrassed her to wear it and she responded that nothing could compare to what her Saviour bore on her behalf. I love to preach and it is made all the more sweet the times I catch a glimpse of Sandy in the pew with tear-filled eyes and full of emotion. I have also been moved by the times I have found her kneeling in prayer weeping over the souls of loved ones who do not know Christ as their Saviour. I respect her insight more than any other and as I wrestled with the Lord about the call to Italy I would often seek her input. Her response was a tremendous blessing; she said the decision was between me and the Lord and she would follow wherever the Lord led me. She is a wonderful example of a godly mother and she had the privilege of leading Isaiah to Christ. When she has been failed and disappointed by others, I have seen her find solace in one of her favorite verses, “there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother” (Prov. 18:24).
Even though we celebrated her birthday on January 7th, I was reminded what a gift the Lord has given me in my wife.
“Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.” – Proverbs 31:10
Tradition
Thomas Carlyle, the Scottish historian and essayist, wrote “What an enormous magnifier is tradition! How a thing grows in the human memory and in the human imagination, when love, worship, and all that lies in the human heart, is there to encourage it.” Tradition stirs emotion within individuals and is a part of every society and culture. Traditions may be good or bad, true or false.
When I think of this time of year, the word tradition comes to mind. There are many traditions associated with New Year’s Day: resolutions to get physically fit or give up some bad habit, the Tournament of Roses Parade followed by the Rose Bowl college football game, polar bear plunges, eating sauerkraut and pork, among others. There are many family traditions that take place on New Year’s Day. In our home every year Sandy fixes beef franks wrapped in sauerkraut and turkey bacon – they are delicious. What makes it more special is that she will only fix them on New Year’s Day.
Family traditions often ensure that the warmth and closeness of the family bond continues to grow. The danger is when the family bond and tradition is at the expense of a person’s relationship with the Lord. Even though many Italians are cynical of the Roman Catholic Church, Catholic traditions and mindset permeate every aspect of national and spiritual life in Italy. To be Italian is to be Catholic; it is a tradition that is familiar and expected.
Many cultural rituals that are important to Italians are based on Catholic tradition. Infant baptism, confirmation, and weddings are all “festivals” for the family intertwined with Roman Catholic rites like the Mass. Even at death, a full Mass is observed at the funeral service. To leave the Catholic faith is to be uprooted from family tradition; and being left out of a ritual is a lonely feeling.
Although the daily masses in Italy are usually occupied by a dwindling population of old women, feast days, special events like those listed above, and religious holidays still see the churches filled to capacity. I believe the challenge we will face in Italy will not be so much reasoning with Italians from scripture but rather overcoming the traditions that are so deeply engrained and that prevent them from following the Lord.
“Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition” – Mark 7:13