PART TWO... WITH AN EXPLANATION
Sunday October 28, 2012 7:10 pm
“These six things doth the Lord
Hate...” (Proverbs 6:16a) There's that word again, “hate.” In
relationship to what the Lord hates
there are dozens of things... and or people that is included in what
the Lord hates. In the above passage I am going to quote (on my next blog)
will be listed seven things that are hated by God.
I
suppose because this is not an easy topic to accept from the Bible
that the God of love also hates sin, and we will look further in that
writing to see if that extends to the sinner as well? In order to do
that I will have to go back and do something I no longer feel
qualified to do, nor do I have the necessary desire to do again: and
that is to teach something about the Bible. If I have any long-time
readers of my blog left... I will explain the difference between what
I have done for the last several years as I write, and how my next
blog will be somewhat different.
Since
I have begun writing this blog (many years ago) I have had hundreds of
blogs where I have included my opinions on various subjects, and many
times I have used Bible verses in order to support my strongly held
opinions. But, I have always done it as one sinner writing to other
sinners and allowing for the possibility of error in my beliefs, and
whatever subject matter I was writing about. Next time, and probably
for the last time in my lifetime I am not going to do that. Instead I
will write that blog as I one time used to teach and prepare messages
to be delivered. I will do it with authority from the Book on my desk
and I will not write with the idea that I could be wrong. Because,
plain and simply stated... if I am wrong in what I write with my next
blog then the Bible is nothing more than a complicated book of
carefully crafted fairy-tales compiled by well-meaning, but misguided
men.
I will
now explain something I had no intention of ever telling anyone.
Perhaps then it will be easier to see the difference in what I have
before written... and what I write in part three. I suppose my only
real concern is that the few times I allow others to take a
quick peek inside the veritable zoo I call my mind, that someone,
somewhere, is going to say, “... that guy is nuts!” Then, out
comes the nets and the white coats and the locks... and it's just
such a mess (:
More
than 20 years ago I made a decision that I would no longer put myself
in a position where I could create any type of following. Never again
would I set myself up where I could cause anyone else to stumble or
fall if they were trying to follow my lead. So, through the years I
have filled a few pulpits and taught a few lessons, but never enough
to cause any one to want to follow me. And, for every message I have
relented and done, I have turned down dozens of offers. I have become very good
at obfuscating and putting people off. Even with this blog I did
something similar.
I
began writing this blog for only one reason. I had written a book and
I was trying to find a way to break into the publishing market. I
never intended to write beyond the time of my book being published,
if that would even happen? Then, along the way something funny
happened. After my book was published I still kept my blog because I
found I enjoyed doing it. And, apparently there were other people who
also enjoyed reading what I wrote. All the while I was doing that I
never even considered that I was (without conscious thought) creating
something I long ago determined I didn't need, nor could I be trusted
with. (People, some of whom because of what I wrote or said might follow me?)
It was
about six years ago that one day I looked at the numbers of those who
were reading and I was excited, because they were high... but it also
dawned on me that I was doing exactly what I had sworn to never do
again. So, I decided to “shoot myself in the foot.” I began
changing topics and I was all over the place with what I wrote. I
figured that way for those who liked politics if I quit writing about
it, they would quit reading. The same was true for religion, love,
etc. I would just write on an odd assortment of all things.
Predictably
the numbers fell... but maybe not enough? I remembered what Curtis
Hutson said in a message one time, so I tried that. He was mocking
pastor's whose membership was falling and he felt it was because they
just sort of “mailed in” their messages they had for their
people. That is they were preaching without giving it their best
effort and their lack of study for their messages showed. His
statement was that if you have a dinner bell that you ring for the
cattle to know that food is in their trough, and you ring it... every
time they will come running. But, if you begin ringing it and day
after day when the cattle come to the trough there is no food? Well,
it won't be long before the sound of the bell no longer attracts them
because they are not being fed.
He
said the same thing happens when the church bell rings and the saved
“sheep” come to be fed... however, the pastor is ill-prepared and
his message is poor and the sheep are no longer being fed? Anyway, it
just follows that the sheep stay home when the church bell is ringing
if they are not fed when they arrive? I know that was a lengthy
explanation to state that long ago I decided to quit writing on a
regular basis so no one could depend that if they took the time to
open my blog that there would be anything new. The numbers began to
drop... good.
However,
I started getting lots of emails asking if anything was wrong? Where
was I? Many wrote to say they missed what I wrote... so, I
discontinued providing my email at the bottom of my blogs I wrote.
Finally, I think (?) the numbers are where I can accept them.
My
next blog will be different than any I have written before in that I
won't present it as “one take” or a “possibility” or some
person's “opinion.” Then, after that I will go back to writing (inanely) as
I have before, as just one sinner (with an opinion) writing on a
variety of subjects. Because the election is only eight days away I
will try and type and get that blog out as quickly as possible.
posted by Robin Johnson @ 7:10 PM
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