January 10, 2008
Deserters
On December 11, 2007 the Rocky Ford Daily Gazette (Rocky Ford, Colorado) published a letter from David L. Goebel, an Elder at 1st Christian Church. Mr. Goebel wrote that their church attendance at the beginning of Advent was sadly less than 40 people. “My heart was broken for Christ Jesus and Pastor John.” His letter goes on to mention Demas, who according to the Apostle Paul was a fellow laborer turned deserter and Judas Iscariot, a disciple turned deserter. I can think of many descriptions for people with a sporadic religious life: lukewarm, immature, weak faith, worldly, liberal, selfish, uncommitted, lazy, etc. I must say ‘deserter’ had never crossed my mind…but it should have.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Gail;
-----It is a bit easy to imagine certain words carrying more concept than they actually do. When Paul uses this D-word concerning Demas, his situation is a bit different than that of Mr. Goebel and Pastor John. At II Timothy 4:16, Paul states that everyone deserted him at his defense. He was writing this letter from Rome, in the very face of the lions feeding on Christian flesh. I am sure that the thunderous roar of 30,000 screaming spectators carried far enough, and often enough, for Paul to have heard those feasts more than once. Being no idiot, he knew what they meant. And having been also in heaven, face to face with The Lion, he knew by personal experience the glory that meant. He was not going to sacrifice a moment of time in heaven’s brilliance of inexpressible things beyond what man is able to tell as exchange for any number of moments on this dark, cold, cramped, little planet. He carried with him the drive and the fire in his belly lit by his conscious visit with the Lord. He properly compared Demas’ fear of risking death to love for this world.
-----So Demas deserted Paul, and the service he had been providing Paul’s ministry, rather than standing by him at his defense. And that was not right for him to do. But he was no Judas Iscariot. Neither did Paul place Demas’ name beside that of Judas Iscariot as if to imply Demas had deserted the Lord. Paul’s humility would not allow it. Yet, here in this cotton ball life of posh and ease, where our persecution comes through the besmirching remarks of atheists spouting stupidity twice as demeaning to their own selves, not going to Pastor John’s church fails to rise to the level of Demas, and certainly not to that of Judas. Maybe many of those not at Pastor John’s church are at one down the street where they are happier. Maybe Pastor John needed a vacation in the third heaven to endow his messages with a tad more flare. Or maybe he needed to smell the lions’ breathe for his sermons to carry more scent of The Lion’s breathe.
-----But of course, I don’t know these matters, I only guess. I think Paul was in the proper context for the term, but Pastor John probably is not. What Paul faced caused all but the boldest to flee. And what one left when abandoning Paul’s side was the very founding of the church in the world, the planting and watering of the seed. But Pastor John merely faces the competition of many other places to worship. Those walking away from his side may only be walking to the side of another. Without knowing that for certain, Bro. Goebel’s use of the D-word is a potential abuse of his brethren, and a possible exhibition of arrogance.
Post a Comment