In This Issue

• IMPOSTORS, WARS, AND PERSECUTION
• NOAH’S BOYS AND LOT’S GIRLS
• DOGS AGAIN
• MORE INFORMATION...

IMPOSTORS, WARS, AND PERSECUTION

Jesus taught that before the destruction of Jerusalem, many would come in His name, “saying, ‘I am He,’ and will deceive many. But when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be troubled: for such things must happen, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be earthquakes in various places, and there will be famines and troubles. These are the beginnings of sorrows. But watch out for yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils, and you will be beaten in the synagogues. You will be brought before rulers and kings for My sake for a testimony to them. And the gospel must first be preached to all nations’” (Mark 13:5-10).

Jesus’ words here are often incorrectly applied to His literal second coming and identified with current events. But all the things Jesus foretold through verse 30 were to be fulfilled in that generation, long before our time. And indeed they were, as He said they would be.

False messiahs and false saviors appeared on the scene. Some of them are briefly mentioned in the Scriptures. Others were mentioned in historical accounts of the times. See Acts 8:9-10 and Acts 21:33. The Jewish historian Josephus tells us that during the time of Felix (mentioned in Acts 24), “The country was again filled with robbers and impostors, who deluded the multitude. Yet did Felix catch and put to death many of these impostors every day…” (Antiquities of the Jews, 20:3:5).

Jesus indicated that before the destruction of Jerusalem, there would be political intrigue, insurrection and turmoil. In fulfillment of His words, four Roman emperors died violently in a period of one and a half years. Various struggles and seditions in the Roman Empire at that time are too numerous to detail. Josephus’ Wars of the Jews records armed battles between Jews and Syrians, between Galileans and Samaritans, between various elements of Jewish society against the Romans, etc.

There were earthquakes and famines, just as Jesus foretold. Acts 11:28 records one of the famines. Jewish and Roman historians have left accounts of at least one pestilence and five earthquakes during the time between Jesus’ prediction and the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. 

Numerous Bible passages show how the apostles and their companions were persecuted, brought before kings and councils, etc. See Acts, chapters 4, 7, 12, etc. All these things were to precede the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple – and indeed they did.

The gospel was to be preached throughout the world. By 63 A.D., the apostle Paul could write: “The gospel… has come to you, as it has also in all the world… The gospel which you heard… was preached to every creature under heaven…” (Col. 1:5-6, 23). 

- Clarence R. Johnson

NOAH’S BOYS AND LOT’S GIRLS

It would have been nice if God had offered a detailed account of the rearing of some godly man like David or John the Baptist. Did Jesse approve of David’s music? Did Zechariah set a curfew? However, God didn’t record such a comprehensive account because I’m not raising David or John. I’m raising Haley (and beginning in August. the Lord willing, her sibling).

Consider two (Gen. 5:32-10:32) and Lots (Gen.l9:1-38). Interestingly, there are a number of similarities. Both dwelt in ungodly environments. Both had righteous men at their head. God delivered both from cataclysmic events. Yet Noah’s boys and Lot’s girls appear far dissimilar in the end.

Observe that spiritual wisdom is important. In Genesis, Lot focuses upon the cities of the plain of Jordan. The citizens of Sodom were “exceedingly” wicked in God’s eyes, and Lot was personally appalled at their lawlessness (2 Pet. 2:7ff). Yet he took his wife and children into such a godless place simply because it was a good business move. He was motivated more by temporal wisdom than by spiritual concern. Some of his daughters died in Sodom Gen. 19:14-15); his wife died looking back (Gen. 19:26); his two surviving daughters sacrificed their virginity to and bore children by their father after they enticed him to drunken ness Gen. l9:30ff). What happens to this family had Lot been more spiritual in his choices?

Active faith makes an impact. Noah spent years proclaiming righteous ness and preparing to save his family from an event absolutely unimaginable (Gen. 7:11). His boys saw a father who trusted God so completely that he built an incredible boat to receive an unbelievable menagerie. Imagine the ridicule and scorn they must have endured. Yet Noah was resolute and his faith must have inspired some trust in young Shem, Ham, and Japheth, for God delivered the boys and their wives as well. Contrast Noah’s active faith with Lot’s fear and hesitation. Granted, Lot was righteous (2 Pet. 2:7ff) but he gravitated repeatedly toward men (Gen. 13:12; 14:12; 19:20ff), attempted to appease the Sodomites with his virgin daughters, hesitated to leave Sodom, and begged God not to send him to the mountains “lest some evil take me, and I die” (Gen. 19:19). God delivered him, yet his faith was far from monumental. It is little wonder that his wife and daughters did not appear to share his abhorrence of ungodliness, and that his sons-in-law ridiculed him. We must do more than simply despise evil.

Parents must guard their character constantly. Lots girls seem to have been exposed to a pattern of inconsistency. How would you feel if your father offered you to a mob of sexual perverts? His sons-in-law considered his warnings a joke. He hesitated to leave. He couldn’t stop his wife from looking back. He was afraid of the mountains though God had delivered him. He allowed himself to become drunken before his girls.

Perhaps their incest and sinful reasoning shouldn’t surprise us. But Ham, in Gen. 9:l8ff, manifests contempt and disregard for Noah in response to one mistake. No doubt Ham already harbored some dishonor for his father, yet Noah’s intemperance offers the opportunity for him to display his irreverence and mockery. Perhaps Ham was looking for inconsistency in his father, but Noah had apparently offered no ground for such criticism - until now. Parents, we mast guard our character constantly. Our kids are watching.

A child eventually chooses his own character. It’s difficult to tell whether Noah’s boys, before the flood, were righteous like their father, Perhaps God saved them for Noah’s sake, though I believe otherwise. Shem and Japheth appear to imitate their father’s godliness in their reverence in Genesis 9:18f. Ham is another story. He is over 100 years old, with at least four boys of his own when he revels in his father’s sin. His character is now his own to pursue, and he pursues ungodliness on this occasion. Perhaps this is an indication of his moral fabric as a grown man. Though Noah was wrong in his drunkenness, Ham was old enough now to choose his own path. Noah had provided a godly example for his boys. “God saved my Dad from the flood. Who else could make such a claim? But as with Noah and Ham, parents can only provide their children the foundation of faith, instruction, evidence, examples, and admonition. There are no guarantees that they will trust God. We can’t give them our faith. How frustrating! Yet my little girl needs to love God by her choice, not by mine.

There are other lessons here and elsewhere. God knows that parents need help with their children and that children need help from their parents. Let’s work hard to offer our boys and girls every opportunity to survive this world. We owe it to them. We owe it to our folks. We owe it to God.

–Russ Bowman, Christianity Magazine, June 1998

DOGS AGAIN

[Editor’s Note: In last week’s Sentinel, we ran a short article by Tim Smith regarding some “churches” offering worship services for pets. We received a couple of interesting comments from readers, which we choose to share with our other readers. -CRJ]

David Tant who works with the Lord’s church in Roswell, Georgia (Atlanta area) wrote: “Clarence, in regarding your note about the animals and church: One woman was somewhat disturbed when standing in line with her dog to receive communion, when another dog in line spotted a squirrel outside in a tree and took off after it. The communion service was somewhat disrupted. The dog should have been withdrawn from."

And not to be outdone, a Jewish synagogue up in the northeast has now starting offering a "Bark Mitzvah." A Jewish boy has this "coming of age" ceremony at age 13. The article didn't state whether they did this for dogs counting in dog years or human years.

”Thanks for keeping me on your mailing list.”

And Dale Pennock who works with the church of Christ in Addison County, Vermont wrote: “I enjoyed the item "The Church is Going to the Dogs" in the latest Sentinel. It reminded me of the attached article from a few years ago. If perhaps you wondered why nobody ever thought of this before, now you know they have. It's just another black eye on our fair state.

First dog church caters for all creeds and breeds

THE world's first chapel for dogs has opened in the American state of Vermont, with pews and stained-glass windows depicting black Labradors with halos. 

Up to 15 dogs at a time have been attending chapel in a forest near the small town of St Johnsbury, in accordance with the doctrine on the notice board outside: "All creeds, all breeds, no dogma." 

The chapel is a gesture of thanks from Stephen Huneck, a folk artist, to his five dogs who, he says, helped him to recuperate from a serious illness three years ago. He said: "They played a really important part in my recovery. They understood that I needed to become well and would surround me whenever I went out." 
After recovering from a virus that left him in a coma for two months, Mr. Huneck, 51, went to work on the chapel, which is modeled on a traditional early-19th-century design and made out of white clapboard. 

His devotion to dogs is in the details. The weathervane is a running dog while carved dogs hold up the pews. Light plays through stained-glass windows that show dogs and the legends: "Peace", "Play" and "Love". 

Mr. Huneck {who spent £140,000 on the chapel} is an artist with a growing reputation, with works in the Smithsonian in Washington, the Museum of American Folk Art and the American Kennel Club in New York. 

After opening this summer, the chapel has become a haven for man and dog, particularly owners who have lost pets. "I was up there today," he said, "and there were 15 dogs. They seemed really happy to be there." The entrance to the building is already covered with photographs and messages from bereaved owners. "I want dogs and people to feel as if they are in a cathedral," he said. 

Later this year, he hopes to hold "blessing of the animals" services. Local clergy, he said, had raised no objections either to the idea or the canine theme. "In fact, quite a few of them have been to see if there is anything they can do."

-James Langton © Telegraph Group Limited 2001

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