When the Faithful Disappear
Psalm 12:1 “Help, LORD, for the godly man ceases! For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men.”
Dear CBC Family,
A dear friend and mentor passed away on Monday night. It came as a painful shock and was not something I expected. I had known John for decades. He was a family fixture and someone I seriously admired. I went to school with his daughter from the 5th through the 7th grade. He was used by the Lord in incredible ways in my life and is one of the main reasons I ever went into ministry. He even came and spoke at the installation service when I was made the pastor of this church. I will miss him greatly. His departure leaves a big hole in so many ways. He was one of my “go to” men when difficulty came my way.
His passing has bought up many happy memories of a kind man that spent endless hours answering my questions about the Bible early in my walk. I realize that each time a seasoned saint goes into eternity that the body of Christ suffers a great loss until another takes their place. It reminds me of David’s cry “help Lord for the godly man ceases. The faithful disappear among the sons of men.” That plea to God for strong men in Psalm 12 also resonates with my own heart. The universal church needs mature, biblically solid men to rise up in our day to lead the precious body of Christ to her glorious destiny. Men who are men and who are not afraid to stand alone and say what needs to be said. May the Lord raise up such men. John died on Monday the 16th thus he passed on “John 3:16.” I smiled when that thought entered my head.
I have enjoyed the two-week bunny trail into Ezekiel 38 &39, looking at the war in Iran, and principles of prophesy, but it is time to get back to the verse-by-verse study in chapter 4 of Galatians. I am still getting questions about eschatology so I am considering how to best address these things to get the most impact. Prophesy is not the “meat” of the word. As I said last Sunday, the writer to the Hebrews 6:1-3 calls the things pertaining to the end of all things (eternal judgment of the end and the resurrection) as “the elementary principles of Christ.” That means that these things are what people need to learn at the beginning and be solid in.
One question that comes up often is what do I personally believe. This question is usually asked to determine what “camp” I fall into. I am NOT a dispensationalist, or any other “ist”. The central belief of the dispensationalist is the erroneous idea that God still owes promises to “Israel,” whoever that is, and that He has two distinct peoples. That is biblically false and is bordering on blasphemous since Paul has told us time and time again that “there is no difference” between any people and that every person must come to the Father by Jesus alone. Jesus hated the Rabbinic Judaism of His day and had no patience for it. I am not a preterist, replacement theologian, covenantalist or any other modern term name. I take each doctrine individually and actually find that what the early church taught is pretty much what I would hold to thus I call myself and CBC a “Historic Christianity” Church.
As we approach Easter please be in prayer about who you know that needs Christ. Invite them on Good Friday at 5:30 PM or Easter Sunday at 10:00 AM and see what the Lord will do. As each of us do our part the Lord will build His church!
Blessings to all who love the Lord,
Pastor Scott
Dear CBC Family,
A dear friend and mentor passed away on Monday night. It came as a painful shock and was not something I expected. I had known John for decades. He was a family fixture and someone I seriously admired. I went to school with his daughter from the 5th through the 7th grade. He was used by the Lord in incredible ways in my life and is one of the main reasons I ever went into ministry. He even came and spoke at the installation service when I was made the pastor of this church. I will miss him greatly. His departure leaves a big hole in so many ways. He was one of my “go to” men when difficulty came my way.
His passing has bought up many happy memories of a kind man that spent endless hours answering my questions about the Bible early in my walk. I realize that each time a seasoned saint goes into eternity that the body of Christ suffers a great loss until another takes their place. It reminds me of David’s cry “help Lord for the godly man ceases. The faithful disappear among the sons of men.” That plea to God for strong men in Psalm 12 also resonates with my own heart. The universal church needs mature, biblically solid men to rise up in our day to lead the precious body of Christ to her glorious destiny. Men who are men and who are not afraid to stand alone and say what needs to be said. May the Lord raise up such men. John died on Monday the 16th thus he passed on “John 3:16.” I smiled when that thought entered my head.
I have enjoyed the two-week bunny trail into Ezekiel 38 &39, looking at the war in Iran, and principles of prophesy, but it is time to get back to the verse-by-verse study in chapter 4 of Galatians. I am still getting questions about eschatology so I am considering how to best address these things to get the most impact. Prophesy is not the “meat” of the word. As I said last Sunday, the writer to the Hebrews 6:1-3 calls the things pertaining to the end of all things (eternal judgment of the end and the resurrection) as “the elementary principles of Christ.” That means that these things are what people need to learn at the beginning and be solid in.
One question that comes up often is what do I personally believe. This question is usually asked to determine what “camp” I fall into. I am NOT a dispensationalist, or any other “ist”. The central belief of the dispensationalist is the erroneous idea that God still owes promises to “Israel,” whoever that is, and that He has two distinct peoples. That is biblically false and is bordering on blasphemous since Paul has told us time and time again that “there is no difference” between any people and that every person must come to the Father by Jesus alone. Jesus hated the Rabbinic Judaism of His day and had no patience for it. I am not a preterist, replacement theologian, covenantalist or any other modern term name. I take each doctrine individually and actually find that what the early church taught is pretty much what I would hold to thus I call myself and CBC a “Historic Christianity” Church.
As we approach Easter please be in prayer about who you know that needs Christ. Invite them on Good Friday at 5:30 PM or Easter Sunday at 10:00 AM and see what the Lord will do. As each of us do our part the Lord will build His church!
Blessings to all who love the Lord,
Pastor Scott
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