Confederate Christians and fellow Compatriots:
Below is my message for Sunday, October 17th. Please feel free to forward or reply. As always, your comments are much appreciated.
May our Lord bless you in all you do.
Bro. Len Patterson, Th.D
Chaplain, Army of Trans-Mississippi
My wife is a very good cook. This is true, and anyone who has eaten what she prepares knows that. Every once in a while, on rare occasions, she makes a dish called baked beans. She begins with a can or two of Pork 'n Beans, adds some other stuff, and places it in the oven for a while. Once, long ago, she asked me how I liked her it. I answered, with a smile and in a jovial manner to be sure, that she had gone to a lot of trouble to ruin a perfectly good can of Pork 'n Beans. Since then her baked bean dish has become known in our family as "ruined beans."
Some years ago, as the pastor of a local church, I was asked to assist in the ordination of a deacon by one or our sister churches. During the ceremony, the presiding minister stood to deliver the message called, "the charge to the deacon." He began by holding up a Bible and firmly stating that it was the Holy Inspired Word of God. He continued by saying that it was absolute truth with no admixture of error and did not need to be updated, amended, abridged, refined, or corrected. To this, there were many Amens.
Then, shortly into his sermon, he read the qualifications of a deacon found in First Timothy 3: 8-13. He began with verse eight, which says, "Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine . . . " Here he stopped reading, looked up at the congregation, and forcefully proclaimed, "A deacon should not be given to ANY wine!" Again, there were many Amens.
Perhaps I was the only one paying attention, but that preacher contradicted himself. He updated and corrected the Holy Inspired Word of God, which he just said didn't need to be updated or corrected. I believe the Bible is God's Word. It says what it means and means what it says. It doesn't need to be updated or amended, and like Pork 'n Beans, cannot be improved. Any attempt at doing so ends up as . . . well, ruined beans.
You may not agree that Pork 'n Beans are fine just as the come from the can and don't need improvement. But, hopefully you do agree the Bible is perfect just as it is and doesn't need any additional ingredients. My wife's baked bean dish is OK, and I don't mind eating it once in a while, but when it comes to the Scriptures, I don't want ruined beans.
Bro. Len Patterson, Th.D
Chaplain, Army of Trans-Mississippi
Below is my message for Sunday, October 17th. Please feel free to forward or reply. As always, your comments are much appreciated.
May our Lord bless you in all you do.
Bro. Len Patterson, Th.D
Chaplain, Army of Trans-Mississippi
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Ruined Beans!
Ruined Beans!
Some years ago, as the pastor of a local church, I was asked to assist in the ordination of a deacon by one or our sister churches. During the ceremony, the presiding minister stood to deliver the message called, "the charge to the deacon." He began by holding up a Bible and firmly stating that it was the Holy Inspired Word of God. He continued by saying that it was absolute truth with no admixture of error and did not need to be updated, amended, abridged, refined, or corrected. To this, there were many Amens.
Then, shortly into his sermon, he read the qualifications of a deacon found in First Timothy 3: 8-13. He began with verse eight, which says, "Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine . . . " Here he stopped reading, looked up at the congregation, and forcefully proclaimed, "A deacon should not be given to ANY wine!" Again, there were many Amens.
Perhaps I was the only one paying attention, but that preacher contradicted himself. He updated and corrected the Holy Inspired Word of God, which he just said didn't need to be updated or corrected. I believe the Bible is God's Word. It says what it means and means what it says. It doesn't need to be updated or amended, and like Pork 'n Beans, cannot be improved. Any attempt at doing so ends up as . . . well, ruined beans.
You may not agree that Pork 'n Beans are fine just as the come from the can and don't need improvement. But, hopefully you do agree the Bible is perfect just as it is and doesn't need any additional ingredients. My wife's baked bean dish is OK, and I don't mind eating it once in a while, but when it comes to the Scriptures, I don't want ruined beans.
Bro. Len Patterson, Th.D
Chaplain, Army of Trans-Mississippi
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