WHITEWASHING THE SCAPULARS

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WHITEWASHING THE SCAPULARS

scapulars

Some of the brethren condemn your choice of friends, music and instruments while whitewashing the scapulars of those who would scorn them for their hypocrisy. The men they pretend to esteem would refuse to preach in their churches if they were alive today.

Spurgeon said, “… What a degradation to supplant the intelligent … by the theatrical prettiness of a quartet, bellows, and pipes. We might as well pray by machinery as praise by …strings and pipes… We do not need them. That would hinder rather than help our praise…” (Charles Spurgeon, Commentary on Psalm 42.)

Wesley said, “I have no objection to instruments of music in our worship, provided they are neither seen nor heard.” (Adam Clarke’s Commentary, Vol. 4, p. 685)

Luther said, “The organ in the worship Is the insignia of Baal… The Roman Catholics borrowed it from the Jews.” (Martin Luther, Mcclintock & Strong’s Encyclopedia Volume VI, page 762)

Adam Clarke said, “… Music as a science I esteem and admire, but instrumental music in the house of God I abominate and abhor.”

For the life of me, I cannot figure out those who are under the delusion that their church is like those in Paul’s day. They refuse to accept the departure they have made. Yet, they are quick to condemn anyone who moves twelve inches from them. You must be “just like”…

Some things never change. Some of the brethren continue to whitewash scapulars of the dead while crucifying the living who will not march to their… dare we say “drum”?

WHY I AM NOT A RUCKMANITE

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Hero Worship

 

By Ken Blue

I discovered years ago, if you agree with any person on any point or issues, and if that person is disliked, you will be identified as a follower, and will be railroaded. There are many good men who have helped, and encouraged me in the ministry. To my knowledge, every one of them has been under attack on some issue. All flesh is grass.  Dr. Ruckman is a friend to this preacher, and has preached several times at Open Door Baptist Church.

 I believed that the King James Bible was the Word of God, long before I met Dr. Rukman. I also was a dispensationalist in my early walk as a believer. Someone had provided me with Clarence Larken’s Dispensational Truth fifty years ago. I was not a Larkenite. However, Dr. Ruckman was instrumental in helping me to better understand the Word and the dispensations.

Dr. Jack Hyles preached at Open Door dozens of times, and I attended his pastors’ school, at least the same number of times. I learned much from him about building a soul winning church. However, I am not, nor have I ever been a Hylesite.

Dr. Tom Malone was my pastor, and the president of the college where I attended and was ordained to the ministry. No one ever tagged me as a Maloneite. Dr. Jim Vineyard and Dr. Curtis Hudson were also guest speakers, yet I was not branded a Vineyardite, or a Hudsonit. Dr. Noe was one of my professors and a good friend. He too, preached at Open Door several times. Still, there was no stigma of being a Noeite. Dr. Dave Reese is also my good friend, but I am not a Reeseite.

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]If you have nothing more to do than play ecclesiastical cop, you should get out of the ministry, and get a real job.[/pullquote]

This is not a defense of Dr. Ruckman; he doesn’t need me to defend him. However, on many issues I would stand with him, as I would the other men I have mentioned. Also, Dr. Ruckman has been more helpful, more accommodating, and more open to me than all those listed above.

“So, who is the man of God you follow?” You ask. The answer is no one. I gave up hero worship a long time ago. 1 Corinthians 1:12 “Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.” If your so called friends abandon you because you have a friend, or attend a pastors school, or have someone to preach, they don’t approve, wipe the dust of your shoes and move on. Thank God you are free of those who want to control you, or hold you hostage so you will make them your “ite.”

Now, you know that I am not anyone’s “ite.” I’m just a poor ex-Baptist preacher in the far, far away corner of the North West United States. I also have more friends than I can count, and I have them without them being an “ite.” If you have nothing more to do than play ecclesiastical cop, you should get out of the ministry, and get a real job. You’re welcome.

THE HYPOCRITE

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THE HYPOCRITE

hypocrit

I gladly identify with those who believe biblical principles for this dispensation of grace. However, those who select random Bible verses, which are for Israel only and then attempt to imposed them on God’s people today, twist the Holy Scriptures to accommodate their own purpose.

That abuse is clearly seen in their misuse of the following text. “The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman’s garment: for all that do so are abomination unto the LORD thy God.. 8 When thou buildest a new house, then thou shalt make a battlement for thy roof, that thou bring not blood upon thine house, if any man fall from thence. 9 Thou shalt not sow thy vineyard with divers seeds: lest the fruit of thy seed which thou hast sown, and the fruit of thy vineyard, be defiled. 10 Thou shalt not plow with an ox and an ass together. 11 Thou shalt not wear a garment of divers sorts, as of woollen and linen together. 12 Thou shalt make thee fringes upon the four quarters of thy vesture, wherewith thou coverest thyself.” Deuteronomy 22:5-12.

Most Baptist can quote verse 5 by heart. However, they appear oblivious to the following verses. Women have been scolded, embarrassed and humiliated by ignorant pastors who use the text to control them. The text has nothing to do with any woman for the past two thousand years. The pastor who uses verse 5 must obey verse 11 to control himself. Will he? He will not! These verses were written for the nation of Israel (men and women) to constantly remind them of their separation from the rest of the nations.

In this dispensation of grace, there are no special days for worship, no diets to follow and no dress codes to observe. If you think most dresses are modest, you haven’t been out lately. Modestly for men and women is the key, nothing more. The pastor has every right to set standards for his household and his church, but he manifests that he is a coward and a hypocrite when he pretends the Bible supports his agenda on these matters.

CONTROLLING

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# 4

 

controlThe fourth pillar in the management process is that of control. Unless the organization has proper controls in place, all plans are destined to fail.  Seagoing vessels have built in controls to keep them on course. Without them, the ship will veer off course and end up on the rocks, so it is with the church.

The tools that need to be built in to control an organization are: Weekly staff meetings, the Team Report, the budget, the calendar and the planning arrow. These will keep the leadership abreast of where each ministry is in relation to the scheduled plans. If the organization is off course and in the fog, these tools will identify the problem and help the pastor regain control and get the ship back on track.

Note: When we teach the leadership conference, these tools and their use become part of the packet.

WHAT IS LEADERSHIP

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WHAT IS LEADERSHIP

# 3

leadership

By Ken Blue

John Maxwell says, “Everything rises and falls on leadership.” If that statement is true, the pastor’s call to the ministry is really a call to leadership. Perhaps the following definitions Webster will help. “To show the way to by going in advance. To guide or direct in a course. To guide the behavior or opinion of; induce. To direct the performance or activities of.  To inspire the conduct of. To go or be at the head of. To be ahead of. To go first as a guide. To act as commander, director, or guide.  An example; a precedent.”

One is not a leader simply because he has the title or a position. Look behind you, if no one is following, you’re not leading; you’re only taking a walk.

There are many factors that may affect a leadership situation. The following example will suffice. Several New York business men invited a tribal chief of the rain forest to their city to work out an agreement on cutting timber in his area. He was picked up at the airport and shuttled about the city for the next few days. He was overwhelmed by the number of people, the skyscrapers and the traffic. The suits were in complete control as they led him about from one meeting to another.

After a deal was agreed upon, the business men returned to South America with the chief to map out the specific area to cut. The jet landed in a major city, and from there they were to be shuttled in a small bush plane to the village. However, the small plane experienced engine trouble and made a forced landing in the jungle. No one was hurt, but the business men were completely helpless, disoriented, fearful and lost. The chief reassured them by taking the lead. He knew the direction to the village and which plants and animals to avoid. In a couple of days, they reached their intended destination.

[pullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]The pastor’s call to the ministry is really a call to leadership.[/pullquote]

The above story illustrates the many factors that impact leadership. You must know what you want; where you want to go, how to get there and convince others in your ability to get them there safely. In the city, the suits were leading. In the jungle, the chief was the leader.

Although leadership can be learned, there are certain qualities that cannot be ignored if one is to succeed.  Those who follow you must have rapport with your personality; they must have confidence in our competence and they must have respect for your character. Weakness in any of these will impact your leadership. You can lead, but you must be clear on where you want to go. This is discovered through the planning process. Then, you must be able to share the vision with others until they too embrace it.

The above puzzle is a more important illustration than you might think, weakness in any of these hampers your leadership. Meditate on each piece and discover the areas you need to improve. Failure in any one of these hampers your ministry. If you think soul winning and preaching is all you need, that’s all you will attempt. Everything depends of prayer and leadership.