grow by learning[1] august 2006 thru november 2006

GROW BY LEARNING

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To Bloggers Everywhere

This first volumn of posts will be the beginning years of ministry.Herein is a frank, truthful account, from my point of view of ministry.The good and bad of ministry. But by God's grace He has beengood.

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Contents

THE STORY BEGIN OCTOBER 22, 1947

Tuesday, August 08, 2006

Wednesday, August 09, 2006

Thursday, August 10, 2006

Friday, August 11, 2006

Saturday, August 12, 2006

Monday, August 14, 2006






Sunday, August 20, 2006






Sunday, August 27, 2006





Friday, September 01, 2006

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Saturday, September 02, 2006

Sunday, September 03, 2006

Monday, September 04, 2006

Tuesday, September 05, 2006

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Thursday, September 07, 2006





















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Monday, October 02, 2006


FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH ALTOONA

Wednesday, October 04, 2006

Thursday, October 05, 2006

Friday, October 06, 2006

Tuesday, October 10, 2006




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Sunday, October 22, 2006






Saturday, October 28, 2006

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Wednesday, November 01, 2006

Thursday, November 02, 2006

Friday, November 03, 2006


Sunday, November 05, 2006

Monday, November 06, 2006

Tuesday, November 07, 2006









Saturday, November 18, 2006








Friday, December 01, 2006

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Saturday, December 02, 2006

Sunday, December 03, 2006

Monday, December 04, 2006

Thursday, December 07, 2006


Sunday, December 10, 2006


Tuesday, December 12, 2006

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Thursday, December 14, 2006





Wednesday, December 20, 2006



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THE STORY BEGIN OCTOBER 22, 1947Monday, August 07, 2006

AUGUST 2008 CHARLES AND CHARITYWHISNANTPAULINE WHISNANT AND EVERETTEWHISNANT

THE STORY BEGAN OCTOBER 22, 1947Charles E. Whisnant

The story began October 22, 1947, inLynchburg, Virginia. My father and mother:Rev. Everette and Pauline Whisnant. Dadwas the Pastor of a church in Lynchburg. In1950 we moved to Roanoke,Virginia. Dadwas the pastor of 9TH Street BaptistChurch, and until Feb. 1966 was pastor of acongregation in Roanoke, when my fatherdied of a heart attack at age 62.In 1954 in my father’s church on a SundayMorning, the Lord spoke to my heart,enlightened my mind, and gave me the giftof salvation. I know the Lord saved methen, because some 50 years later, the

Lord is still in my heart. Praise the Lord.I sensed the call of the Lord for ministry in preaching in my early teens. My father askedme to teach the young people’s class in 1964. For twenty-seven months I taught theclass, until my father died in 1966.After my graduation from high school in May 1966, my mother moved to Danville, Virginiaand I enrolled in the Bible Baptist Seminary, in Arlington Texas, and graduated in May1969.In June of 1969 I married Charity Mucha Temple, the daughter of Rev. and Mrs. BobTemple, of West Portsmouth, Ohio. This union has seen four children. Eric (1971) Becky(1976) and Chad (1980) and Kyle (1984). Presently all three boys live in Lexington,Kentucky, and Becky was living in Hutchinson, Kansas, but has moved back to LexingtonKY.

Our spiritual journey has taken us (Charity and I) to several places over the last 39 years.In 1969 we worked with Dr. George Norris at Gideon Baptist Church, in the Bus Ministryand Children’s Church Ministry. In 1970 we worked at the Wooster Baptist Temple inWooster Ohio, as Youth Director.In 1971-1974 I was Pastor at the Madison Baptist Church, in Minford Ohio. Then weworked as Asso. Pastor with my father-in-law at Victory Baptist Church, in WestPortsmouth. Later we worked in Fort Worth Texas, as Minister of Education, then wemoved to Mansfield Baptist Temple, where Tommy Leatherwood asked us to be campdirector and later Single Adult teacher at the church. Then we worked at Calvary BaptistChurch in Connersville, Indiana, under Willie Weaver, as Youth Director.Then in 1980 we went to Altoona, Kansas to pastor the First Baptist Church, on MainStreet. For the next 16 plus years we ministered to the wonderful people in Altoona,Kansas.8

We resigned in 1996, we moved to Lexington, KY. where we stayed for five years andworked in the Ashland Baptist Church, and for a short time worked in the Lusby MillsBaptist Church. We stayed about four months and then we didn't have a vote ofconfidences and we resigned.We had a short four month stay in Princeton Kentucky, a brief try to pastor a SouthernBaptist Church, we had our difficulty with a few, but the many were wonderful. We movedto Portsmouth Ohio to work at the Portsmouth Baptist Church in 2002-03. Then for fouryears we attended the Bigelow Church, in Portsmouth Ohio from November 2004 thruJanuary 2008.Where did the last sixty years go. What a great journey the Lord has allowed us to travel.In every step of the journey the Lord has graciously allowed us to see many wonderfulthings happen, and to His glory some have been saved, some have been discipled, somehave entered the ministry and we have many friends today because of that journey.If any thing has been accomplished that is good, the Lord has accomplished it. Charityand I have given ourselves to the Lord for His service for 39 years. Our love for the Lordtoday is as strong as ever. While we love the service of the Lord, it’s far better to havethat personal relationship with the Lord that really brings the joy to our hearts.If and when and how the Lord so directs us to be a small part of what He is doing, we arehumbled that He would so use usEach chapter in our journey has a different ending and a new chapter begins with a newbeginning.

CURRENT UPDATE: July 27, 2008

The Rivers of Joy Baptist Church, in Minford Ohio has called us to be their Pastor/Teacher.

Charles and Charity WhisnantPortsmouth Ohio

Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 06:37PM (-05:00)

Tuesday, August 08, 2006NUMBERS OBSESSION AND A NIGHTMARE'S OPPRESSION

Now I will move to 2006 and look back over our ministry, in a series of post about howone grows by learning. This is the first of a series that will give a little insight into ministry.My son Chad said I needed to develop my first post. So here is the first: Later I will startat the beginning on this journey in 1947.

How having arrived at FBC on Main Street..... my secret dream of one day pastoring alarge church of at minimal a 1000 people, which would be located on Main Street USA.Only this time FBC was located on Main Street in Altoona, Kansas with a population of500. "Okay God, have I missed my call to preach and to pastor?" On that SundayMorning in March 1980, FBC on Main Street had 35 people. "Okay Lord, we have a wayto go to have a 1000 in Sunday School."

"How To Get A Crowd on Sunday Morning." Now let’s see what the Jack Hyles’s manualhas to say about this dilemma. Maybe I should look into the Super Conference’s Notesfrom Jerry Fallwall! After all I had just taken a Pastor’s Refresher Course from Hyles 9

Anderson College! I should know how to comprehend the task before me. And FBC inHammond had over 20,000 in Sunday School.

First, preach like Jack Hyles, and secondly go soul winning! "Read the book, Charles."Thirdly, get the members on board, and in line with your program. Sounds good, Charles.Let’s try it.Yep! (Charity says, "Charles, you are having fun with this post, aren’t you?")Let’s see, the Sunday School teacher was a Holiness and a member of another church.The choir director was having Mormons teaching a class in his home. And the womenwere running the church, because the men were having a little trouble with leadership.Among other things, I had a duty to get these people disciplined with the program.

And the attendance was averaging seventeen per Sunday for years. Lets’s see... 983people to go to reach 1000. But wait, in that first month, some twenty people left. Oh no!"Lord, have you really called me to pastor this church on Main Street? Maybe I am in thewrong city. "

After a month, I called for a vote to see if the church folks really wanted us to stay aspastor. Somehow the vote was taken, and I was asked to stay. And from that point on, Iwas glad that we stayed in Altoona. We never accomplished a 1000 of course, never gota big congregation of people to come each Sunday. But we loved our 16 years asPastor/Teacher.

While nearly every missionary and friend and pastor would tell us when they came toFBC, "Charles, when are you going to go somewhere and have a church of 1000?" Fortwo years we were determined on bringing people into the church. We did have a lot ofvisitors coming and some people were getting saved.

But in the winter of 1982 I attended the Pastors’s Shepherd’s Conference at GraceCommunity Church. A new light was turned on about doing ministry. IT’S NOT ABOUTGETTING A CROWD. What!?

I learned that you can get people to come to church (maybe not all at the same time).And I have always enjoyed having people come to church. Having four people come onWednesday night was really no fun. So having a group of people come to Sunday Schoolor Church is really not a bad thought. But that is not the main objective of church ministry.

I endured to get an envisioning of the idea "GOD BUILDS HIS CHURCH." First, God’sChurch is made up of believers, whom He is bringing into His Kingdom. The Lord wantsbelievers to come to His church to worship Him. The purpose of the church is to worshipthe Lord on Sunday Morning. Thus getting just a crowd to come is not the purpose.

Secondly, the Believers are to be taught the "whole counsel of God." The Gospel ofJesus Christ is to be taught. Thus the pastor/teacher is to teach the believers thedoctrines of the Scripture.Thus I began to preach from the book of Matthew, chapter by chapter, and nearly sevenyears I preached the gospel of Jesus Christ.

John MacArthur’s philosophy of ministry is "Doing God’s Work in God’s Way." He says,it’s not about numbers, it’s about preaching the Word of God. MacArthur said, theattendance at Grace Community Church grew as a result of people wanting to hear thepreaching of the Scripture. He said that in the providence of God, the church grew.10

So it’s not about getting a crowd, it’s about how you get a crowd. If you do the Lord’swork in the Lord’s way, and in the providence of God, you will have the people whom theLord brings unto Himself.

I don’t believe there is any merit of not having people hear the preaching of the Word. . Idon’t believe there is any significance in saying you don’t care about how many you haveon Sunday morning. The local church is a place where believers are built up into theimage of Jesus Christ. Ephesians 4 tells us the purpose of having a pastor and thedesired result of each believer.So the success of the ministry is not in numbers attending, but in the numbers ofbelievers who are doing the work of ministry and have a knowledge of Christ and are full-grow in the fullness of Christ and know and live doctrine. This is called "shepherding theflock." Acts 20:28.The question at issue here is: "Are Numbers an Important part of the Building of theChurch?"Do I believe we should desire to see people come to hear us preach? Yes. Do I believewe should play down our desire to get people to come to church? No. Then what is theproper balance here. Our focus should be on the preaching of the Word, and focus onshepherding the flock. I do believe as a result of proper philosophy of ministry there willbe growth.

Post by Charles E. Whisnant at 10:03 p.m. May 19, 2006 OriginallyPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 10:59AM (-05:00)

Wednesday, August 09, 2006BIG NUMBERS IN SUNDAY SCHOOL PART 11

(This post should have been yesterday's post. But this is a learning experience.)

I asked Charity, “Do you remember when we would do almost anything to get a crowd inSunday School?” She said, “Yes.”

From my childhood, in my father’s church, numbers seemed to be important. And in thefollowing years, in different churches, same desire. 1000 in Sunday School was alwaysthe goal. I had a dream about being a pastor of a church of 1000.

Going to my first Super Conference in Lynchburg, Virginia, at TRBC, we learned to get acrowd. Dr. Falwell also said, “Saturate your community with every method possible tobring them to church.” Then later we went to the Pastor’s Conference in Hammond,Indiana. A church with over 20,000 in Sunday School and hundreds of buses to bringpeople to church on Sunday. This was the idea presented to us on a yearly diet ofChurch Growth.

There was an activity each week to stir the members up to bring visitors each week. “OldFashioned Sunday”, “Cowboy Sunday”, etc. Then there were the great “Friend Sundays”Some programs would last one month, while others would last three months.

Once while a youth pastor in Connersville, Indiana, we had “Star Wars Sunday.” Now thatwas a great trick. Our attendance increased 100 in one Sunday. Once I said I wouldswallow a worm if we had 100 in our Sr High Class. 11

Once in a church activity we had Max Palmer who at the time was 7'6" tall, and we had agreat turnout that day, something like 150 teens. Getting a crowd was always the goal ofministry in those early days.

One of my friends in Ohio, who was youth director, had over 400 teens coming eachSunday. And he really used a lot of activity to get kids to come.

So numbers has always been the objectives of ministry for a long time. “How many didyou have in Sunday School today, Charles?”

A pastor friend of mine Lexington, Ky said, “I would rather preach to 1000 anytime then topreach to 50.” And his church for 20 years was next to Churchill Downs in Louisville. Hewanted as many cars in the church parking lot as was at Churchill Downs.

I could certainly mention many other occasions that would illustrate the desire to see BigNumbers in Sunday School. Success in ministry was how may were saved, baptized andthe attendance in Sunday School.

When I went to FBC in Altoona, Kansas, coming from FBC in Hammond Indiana, from20,000 in attendance to an average of 17. Where did I go wrong. Had I failed to go to alarge town where I should see 1000 in attendance in a few years? What had God done?That is for another post. Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant Proof Checked by CharityPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 05:52AM (-05:00)

Thursday, August 10, 2006THE CALL TO MINISTRY: The J. Frank Norris Story

I have tried to learn about that term used by some to say that God has asked us topreach. “Called.” In my early years that term was used a lot. Just about every fellowshipmeeting that my father took us to, there was a loud, tall, in-your- face preacher that wouldpreach “Has God called you into the ministry to preach the Word.?” As a young boy, andsaved, I believed that was a good question, so I would pray and ask the Lord if He hadplans to call me into ministry some day {but not just yet.) Since dad was a pastor and wehad a lot of evangelists come, they were always asking that question: “Has God calledyou to preach?” I always wondered how God called? By telephone!?

I remember in 1952, just before Dr. J. Frank Norris died, he came to our church and hestayed in our home. Before he left, he asked dad if he could pray for Don and me thatGod would call us to preach. He laid his hands on our heads and prayed as only Dr.Norris could pray-- loud. Well I was 5 years old, and I do remember that day, but had noidea what that prayer was all about, nor did I know who Dr. Norris was. . Maybe God wasgoing to talk through Dr. Norris about this matter of calling Don and me to preach! .

Maybe God heard Dr. Norris pray that day, and was making plans to do just that when Igrew a little older. There were a few others who came by our church and over to ourhouse, and they were always saying, “Everette, are your boys going to be preachers?”

I have a picture of Dr. Norris preaching in Dad’s church. I wish I had the ability to put thisin this post. . Maybe someday I’ll learn how to do it. My mother gave a copy of the pictureto the J. Frank Norris Library at the Arlington Baptist College. Drafted by Charles E.12

Whisnant Proof Read CharityPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 05:45AM (-05:00)

Friday, August 11, 2006GOD'S DIVINE CALL TO MINISTRY

Jer 13:2 As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate meBarnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.

“No man is to be counted a lawful pastor of the Church...save he which is called of God.”Calvin

“True pastors, do not rashly thrust themselves forward by their own judgment, but areraised up by the Lord.” Calvin. { Eph 4:11 And he gave some, apostles; and some,prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;}

The question then is:“What, however, is the divine call, which alone makes a true minister?”“How shall I know whether or not God has called me?”

“Does God’s call entails some kind of sensational and spectacular experience - - thatGod will appear by vision or audible voice.” Well in my case, I did not have any kind ofextravagant experience, nor did I hear a discernible voice from the Lord, and I did not seeany visions.( Jer 23:21 I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yetthey prophesied.)

In those early years, nine and ten years old, Don and I would go to the church, which wasnext door. I would be Billy Graham, and he would lead singing. Don would listen to mepreach like dad, and he would get saved. The next day, we would change the roles. As Ilook back, the Lord was putting in our hearts at that age the call to preach.

THE NATURE OF GOD'S INWARD CALL.I knew when I was in the 8th grade of school I had the desire to preach. I believe myfather saw that desire in me to teach and preach. He asked me to take a Sunday Schoolclass and teach the young people when I was in the 10th grade. I fell in love with studyingand reading the Bible. Dad had a large library of biblical books, and I was ready to readthem to learn. I did a study of Galatians, ( I still have those notes today} with some depth,I might add, for a sixteen year old. I would spend hours studying and writing for my Biblelessons. The next twenty-seven months were the best times of my young life, and I amnot sure, the best time of all my life. I remember going to the Baptist Tabernacle inDanville, Va. (R.J. arber pastor) to hear Dr. Mar teach the Word, over a period of a yearin special classes. Early in this process I knew the knowledge of the Word of God wasvery important to comprehend. Learning the Word was such a priority that I could not givemyself to playing sports that I also loved. When someone would come to dad’s church topreach, I couldn’t wait to get there to hear them. Dad always had the radio on for us tolisten too. M.R. DeHaan, Oliver B Greene. Charles Fuller, and others.

Calvin believed (I am sure many other good men believe also) that if God called inwardlythat He would provide that man with the necessary gifts to accomplish God’s calling topreach. “Those whom Christ calls to the pastoral office He likewise adorns with the 13

necessary gifts, that they may be qualified for discharging the office.” John Calvin. {John20:22 And when he had said this, he breathed on [them], and saith unto them, Receiveye the Holy Ghost:}

In those early years, I did not stop to question God’s call upon my life, or how I wouldknow if it were real or not. As I look back I can see that the desire was there, the love wasthere, and the gifts were there, and the results were there. I had the deepest desire toteach God’s truth to those who would listen. I was not interested in my fame, I wasinterested in getting young people to know and love the Lord Jesus Christ. My own senseof God’s call to the ministry only came years later, the self-awareness that I have beengifted by God to teach and that others responded to my teaching.

THE NATURE OF THE EXTERNAL CALL.Calvin also believed if God has called one into the ministry, that others would see thatalso. Well, my dad saw that in me. “Charles, I think you are well qualified to teach in ourchurch.”. I was asked often to preach at the Youth Rally in Virginia and North Carolina.Then following my dad’s death, Rev Gene Arnold, pastor of the Fellowship BaptistChurch, in Roanoke Virginia asked me to preach for him, and preach on the radio andteach some in Sunday School. Bro. Gene and the church saw the ability and supportedme financially while I was in Bible College. Thanks Bro. Gene,who is still preaching today.God bless you.

Too often I have seen those who get caught up in the “glory” of the call of God, while theyare unlearned and utterly ignorant of the Word of God which they are called to preach.The zeal is in the “glory” rather than in the zeal to engage in the biblical study andteaching.

It is said of John Calvin that “interested individuals gravitate toward him, that they wouldoften call to consult him and were greatly struck both with his learning and his zeal, whichwas a gift that God had given him.

Only as I look backward and reflect on this subject of the “call of God for ministry” that Irealize that I always had an audience around me listening to me teach, or talk. Peoplehave always recognized that call upon my life to preach and teach and a zeal to know theLord, and a love for people to know the Lord.

I have struggled with this “call of God upon my life” over the last few years. The first thirtyyears were without any questions. Only in the last year or so have I really questioned ,“Have I mistaken the call of God, or has God recalled His call?

So I have been inquiring about this subject of the “Call of God.” I asked John Hendyryxover that monergism.com for some helpful articles on this subject, and he graciouslyreplied Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant Proof Read CharityPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 07:22PM (-05:00)

Saturday, August 12, 2006MY CHARLES SPURGEON’S STORY

I have noticed many of the bloggers are posting Charles Spurgeon’s quotes on Saturdayor Sunday,and some even post his sermons over a week or two. I believe this to be agreat idea for sure. I remember my dad had a library full of Spurgeon’s Sermons. (I might14

add, Dad had Spurgeon’s Original 1858 sermon books) When he asked me to be theteacher of the Young People’s Sunday School Class when I was sixteen, I taught thebook of Psalms and I read Spurgeon’s Treasury of David’s Series on Psalms. Then I wasasked to preach in one of my dad’s friend’s church in North Carolina. Well, having readso much of Spurgeon, I thought that it would be a great idea to use one of Spurgeon’sSermons. I didn’t know any better, nor did I know how to preach in the first place. I didn’tknow Baptist preachers in Virginia and North Carolina didn’t know how to preach theneither. They just preached loud, took a verse in the Bible and for the next thirty minuteschased a rabbit, got him cornered and almost killed him by stomping the pulpit, andrunning all over the auditorium, while at the same time the preacher would have that“mike sound”. You know-- at the end of every sentence, you got that Uh sound. I neverliked that, so I thought I would preach one of Spurgeon’s Sermons. Well, after about anhour, I got the word to quit preaching. They said, “Where in the world did you learn topreach like that? That’s not preaching is it?” Spurgeon was not welcome in that church.

Would a Charles Spurgeon sermon be welcome to be preached in your church Sunday?Drafted Charles E. Whisnant Proof Read CharityPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 06:47PM (-05:00)

Monday, August 14, 2006CAN YOU WORSHIP WITHOUT BEING IN MINISTRY: Part One

Well this is going to be an honest post about what happens when you have beenfired from a ministry, or you feel forced out of a ministry, or you do not get theposition you applied for. I read about too many ministers who have just the sameexperiences and are very discouraged about ministry. Let me tell you, God willwork it out.

Charles,What does discouragement with ministry have to do with God's right to be worshipped?Or is ministry your only reason for going to worship? Just a question or two to ponder ...Godbless.____________

My Reply:What God wants to use as a blessing and growth, Satan will use the same situation as adiscouragement and defeat.

I am discouraged with not doing ministry. I am discouraged with leadership of churchesthat do not see that I can do ministry. And as a result I am discouraged with the thoughtof trying to go to another church and experience.. Because it does seem that ministryplays a big role in being able to truly worship the Lord in the church setting. Can I worshipin a church where I have had no prior connection. Yes.

Can you worship in a church where you have been told you cannot minister or have aministry? Can a wife experience love of her husband when he is a not a loving husbandto her?

Personally I have been in two churches the last several years and other than the firstSunday, have felt resented or misunderstood as to motive or something, of most things I 15

have said or tried to do, by the leadership. Charity and I have felt the warmth of theregular members of the church very deeply. But I am too fleshly and sinful to set asidethe disapproval of what I say and do, and enter into a truly worship attitude. Wepersonally love to visit with the folks, we love to mix with the folks, it’s great. Which is apart of worship too. It’s not so hard to worship the Lord even in jail, but it’s not pleasanteither.. When you know you have been rejected to do ministry, it’s hard to ignore.. I wouldalso say that pride is a factor. When folks know you have been rejected or that you havenot found a church to pastor you sense failure. You would think after so many years inministry that you would be mature enough to handle all the situations that you are put in.That you would be able to throw off all the situations that come into your life.

Until now, we were able to throw off getting fired, and move on and get another job orministry with little problems. This has been the first time that we have felt the pressure ofnot being able to get another ministry or even a secular job. In every case from 1966 thru2003 we were able to leave a job and get another job in only a few months. I have neverbeen without ministry or secular job for more than a few months, never. Charity and Iwould move to the next town and either get a secular job and then wait on the Lord forthe next ministry. And each time we would have a job or two, and then a ministry wouldopen up. But moving to Portsmouth, we have experienced something different. We had ajob when we moved here, secular and ministry, lost the ministry, and quit the job. But thistime Charity had a job and we didn’t want to move. So we thought that we could getanother job or ministry. I have been unable to secure a job or ministry now for over twoyears. We have applied for several church positions which we have not received. Butnow after two years, it’s beginning to work on me. What Christ is doing in my life for Hisglory and what Satan is doing for his purpose cause both spiritual and human reaction.So how can we work through this?

The question is can you worship the Lord without doing ministry? Can you worship theLord in church where you are discouraged about the ministry of the church? Is the localchurch only a place you come to sit and experience what is happening on stage? Howwould you describe worship in a local church? Would you say worship is experienced bymost of the people who are in the church service on Sunday morning? “When I leftchurch this morning, I felt that I had truly entered into worship of the Lord.” Do mostmembers just go to church? Ministry does not necessarily lead to worship of God. Youcan be so busy doing ministry that you do not have time to experience the “spirit” ofworship.

Part Two TuesdayDrafted by Charles E. Whisnant Proof Read CharityPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 05:08PM (-05:00)

Tuesday, August 15, 2006CAN YOU WORSHIP WITHOUT BEING IN MINISTRY: Part Two

The symbiosis of theology and worship.{The state of cooperative relationship betweentwo} in this case: theology and worship. Learning to live the connection between doingtheology and worshiping God. “The purpose of theology and worship alike is to cultivatethe vision of who God is and what God has done, and to cultivate it so well that, when weperceive it, it stops us in our tracks and evokes our praise.” “Worship also requires theright subjective attitude “spirit.” The truth of who God is and what God has done for usengages not merely our minds, but our whole being, or “spirit”: not only our mind, buthearts, hands, and imaginations too.”16

The Lord is as “fresh” to me now as ever.

This is correct for sure. I am disheartened about the pastorate ministry. While thisdescription is correct, it’s not to the extent of being discouraged with God, or even inworshiping the Lord. While ministry is meaningful to me, it’s also the fountain from whichflows discouragement. While ministry has been the source of outward joy, andsometimes the source of discouragement, it has never swayed me away from my love forthe Lord.

I am told that 50% of pastors who have been dismissed from their pastorate quit theministry altogether. I get discouraged because I am not in pastoral ministry. I still thinkthere is another year left in me. If I could come to the decision that I am washed up,preached the last sermon, worked on my last church staff, then finally retired from officialministry, then maybe I could get down to just worship. Or just doing church on Sundays.

Having spent the last two years in extended study of the Word, reading Spurgeon,MacArthur, Edwards, Calvin, Owen, Piper, Mohler, Alexandra, Philpot and Keller,Samson, P. Johnson, Ryle, Hendryx Pritchard, and others, my well is running over. Eachday as I am in the Word reading the letters of Paul and Peter and Matthew is a real joy,it’s never left my desire to continue to read and study. I continue to love to hear the Wordpreached, be it preaching in a local church or on TV or Radio. I continue to love to talk tothe Lord as I walk on US Route 23, and see His beautiful sky and clouds. I can hardlywait to get on the Internet and log on to monergism.com to see what is new. I just getoverjoyed with downloading last week’s Piper’s sermon, or one of Spurgeon’s Sermon.Or to see what Piper has preached last Sunday, and of course what MacArthur ispreaching. I love to download the latest sermon, or the debate that is going on at TMSsite. “Why Would John MacArthur be so hard-hitting on the Emergent Movement.” Or thedebate over “Free Grace” over at the Faith and Practice Blog. Or the debate over“Continuationist or Cessationsim!” Then lately it’s reading Sinclair Ferguson on “APreacher’s Decalogue” and CJ Mahaney on “A Passion for Reading and Learning.” andDerek Thomas on “Preaching from the O.T.. And of course the debate overDispensational Approaches and Preterism. Or even the debate over the Lord’s Supper?Or Baptism Membership? Then two books by Charles Spurgeon-- “Spurgeon onLeadership” and “Spurgeon and Son”. Those two books are very good.

So what is the Biblical Theological answer for this situation? What should be the rightresponse to this seeming dilemma or situation. Knowing the answer, then how can weget into the right spirit or attitude or action to comply with the right response.

Well, it could be in the total providence of God, and He is in full control of this situation.

So why this time, after 40 years do I even think negatively about the situation? Becauseof the pressure of what family and people think about this situation. Otherwise I am willingto ride it out and give it all to the Lord.

God Bless, God is never the problem. If you are not presently in ministry as a pastor oron staff, try get into a presonall fellowship with Him. Drafted by Charles E. WhisnantProof Read by Charity WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 11:59AM (-05:00)

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Tuesday, August 15, 2006SERMON TEXT DISLOCATION SYNDROME

Fundamentalists love preaching. Most love it hot and heavy. We enjoy getting our toesstomped and our hearts tugged. We thrive on a sin-naming, righteousness-exalting, hellfire-& brimstone, Bibl-packed preaching from the 1611 KJV.

Let me just say, I understand there are many pulpits that have not undergone adislocation from the text to the sermon.

I cannot go to an Independent, Fundamental, Baptist, Fellowship meeting and not havethis kind of feeling from the meeting. These godly preachers say they preach from the1611 KJV, but in reality have most likely never seen one. Then they take a text and whenthey read the text and the sermon begins they somehow get disconnected from the text. Ioften say, the text they just read has nothing to do with what they are saying. Of course,that is the whole point. They are not preaching the text-- they are shooting from the hip.What they are saying in the sermon is not necessarily “unbiblical”, it’s just that what thepreacher is saying is not what the text is saying

What I am learning, {Growing By Learning} is that we are critical of Billy Graham’spreaching, or Joel Osteen’s method of preaching, and we don’t like Rick Warren’s styleand a host of other preachers, while a host of WBF/BBF/IBF,etc. do the same things.What do you mean? Both groups start with a text and read into the text what THEY wantthe text to say.

Often what they are saying is true, good stuff, but it's just that they did not get it from thetext they have just read. Well, they might take a statement from the text and try to make itsay what they are saying. It happens a lot. The danger here is, if you can make a text saythings they do not say, then you can as easily make the passage say things the Bibledoesn’t say.

One blogger called this the Pulpit Injuries: Severe Sermon Text Dislocations. I could nothave said it better, and I have been saying this point for years.

For years I suffered from sermon text dislocation. I didn't know you could preach asermon and use the passage of scripture as a starting point and stay with the meaning ofthe text. One such sermon I used, and what a surprise to learn that the "streets"mentioned in Proverbs 26:13 ¶ The slothful man saith, There is a lion in the way; a lion isin the streets. I used "streets" in three ways, Street of Sin, the street of salvation, thestreet of service, etc. Well, it was a good loud sermon, but not within the text I waspreaching. I was really good at spiritualizing the Old Testament stories. But often I wouldstray from the meaning of the text. It’s no wonder that the people in our churches have noreal idea what the Bible really is teaching.

What I have discovered from hearing these preachers preaching is they say they arepreaching the Bible, but they mean that what they are saying is in there somewhere. Andthat the only Bible is the KJV 1611. Preaching, to most of these godly men that I know, isnot supposed to be teaching. I was asked to preach at a WBF Ohio meeting some timeago, (my last time to be asked) and I preached from Ephesians 4:1-6. I followed theexpositional view of preaching. I remember now that I heard no amens. After I finished,one of my good preacher friends said, “Charles, that was a great teaching lesson, but18

that was not good preaching.”

I was invited to preach in a church that my mother went to in Danville, Virginia. I musthave preached one of Spurgeon’s sermons, followed the flow of the text, and the peoplejust looked at me funny. After the service my mother said, “Charles, they have not hearda Bible text sermon ever in this church. They were totally lost in your message.”

So when did I come to realize that you needed an adjustment to get the sermon and textin alignment? That is for another post. Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant Proof/TruthChecked by Charity WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 09:20PM (-05:00)

Thursday, August 17, 2006WHY IS PREACHING THE TEXT IMPORTANT?

Now you might ask, “Why is it important that we preach the Word of God as God intendedus to preach it?” And “How do you know how we are to preach the Word of God?”

Personally I haven’t met any preacher (who I know personally) who does not believe heis preaching the Word of God, especially if it’s from the KJV Bible.

When I went to Bible Baptist Seminary, (Bible....Baptist) we were taught the Bible,Genesis to Revelation. So to know the Bible was very important, to know what the Wordof God said was very consequential. Almost every class was to teach us the Bible verseby verse. There were no better teachers than Earl K. Oldham, Wayne Martin, GeorgeNorris, Raymond Barber, Bob Cunningham. I departed the Seminary presuming I wasfully ready to preach the Bible and to be a Fundamental Baptist preacher and pastor.After all, the biggest churches in America at the time were pastored by preachers whowere educated at the Bible Baptist Seminary under Dr. J. Frank Norris.

I am getting off the subject: WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO PREACH THE WORD OFGOD? WHY SHOULD WE KEEP WITH THE TEXT OF SCRIPTURE WHEN WE AREPREACHING?

IT IS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY THAT WE KNOW AND UNDERSTAND THE BIBLEAS THE WORD OF GOD, AND UNDERSTAND HIS WORDS AS HE HAS INTENDEDTHEM TO BE UNDERSTOOD.

WHY!!!!!! While there is a general revelation of God that men and women know God atsome level of awareness because of God’s revealing work both within them and in Hiscreation and thoughtful care, general revelation is not adequate to give them theinformation of God that is imperative for salvation.

I have come to believe the single most important reason why we shouldn’t getdisconnected with the text of scripture is that it might lead us away from the Godforeordained way of the salvation of mankind.

From the fundamental, independent, Baptist point of view, it seems the purpose ofpreaching is that people are brought to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ and learn toknow Him and live for Him.

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The single most important doctrine that we need to have the truth about is how does aperson come to know Jesus Christ as Saviour? In this post modern world in which welive, that truth is buried. What is “truth” is in question.

Ask the nearest IBF preacher to describe to you the way of salvation and how he givesan invitation for someone to be “born again.” Or for that matter any preacher who claimsto be speaking from the Word of God! An absolute understanding of the Bible textconcerning the “What Must I Do To Be Saved” is the difference between Heaven andHell. Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant Proof Read Charity WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 06:14AM (-05:00)

Friday, August 18, 2006PREACHING THE TEXT IS GOD’S METHOD

In July I preached in Altoona, Kansas, at the First Baptist Church. It’s always nice to beback in the church where you had the joy of sixteen + years of preaching the Word. I wasglad to be invited back to preach. It’s been ten years since I resigned from pastoring thechurch. The best part of being back was seeing the spiritual growth of the members. LikePaul said of Timothy, “They are my spiritual children.” To see their growth in theknowledge of the Word of God and their love for the church is such a gratifying joy.

Ministry is much like raising your children You pray that your parenting will produce somegood adults. And the goal of ministry in a church is to see how God is going to producefor Himself as Ephesians 4:14 “henceforth be no more children tossed to and fro, andcarried about with every wind of doctrine by the sleight of men and cunning craftinesswhereby they lie in wait to deceive.” And they will be “unto God a perfect man, unto themeasure of the statue of the fulness of Christ.” Ephesians 4:13. You want two things fromyour children in ministry as well as your own children. First they will “grow up” to bewonderful adults and secondly “will not be disposed of by the world’s craftiness.”

I remember preaching when at FBC, “How To Get Your Christianity Functioning.”(Ephesians 4:l6-20) The objective is to see believers have the internal power (v. 20) theinner strength (vs 16) the indwelling Christ (vs. 17) and the infinite fullness (vs. 19) andan incomprehensible love (vs. 18) for the Lord and the church. So that you continue toobserve that fresh continuing love for the Lord Jesus Christ. When Charity and I wereback in the church, we saw such character inthe lives of those believers and in their children.

What is the discipline whereby the Lord has designed to accomplish a “perfect man untothe measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ?.” (Ephesians 4:12) I believe it’s therazor-cut teaching of the Word of God.. I came believe that teaching “the doctrines of theBible” is by far the best method of teaching.

I hear the opposite view from many preachers. I heard this “don’t put your best cookieson the top shelf.” (Whatever that meant). The view illustrates that I have heard most ofmy life--when you preach, keep it so simple that the third grade child can understand yourmessage. Their minds can’t take more than a twenty minute sermon and keep thetheology out of the message. This is why I believe many preachers choose to leave theBible Text and vacillate (hedge) off into story land.

Mrs. Fail would say, “Pastor, coming here each week is like going to Bible College.” And20

some of the messages were like going to seminary I must say. Bernice Fail was 80 yearsold, not eight years old.

Many of the people who came into FBC were folks who did not have a lot of Biblicaltraining. Many were saved at FBC, and their training came from the ministry of FBC. Mostof them started off with a course in the “Fundamentals of the Christian Faith.” This coursewas to be a thirteen week course, but ended up a year’s course. We started off newbelievers with lessons packed with theological training in the Word of God. We wouldmeet in Kay’s, or Alana’s, or Christy’s home and have a great time studying the Word ofGod. Today those who came are still active in the Lord’s work.

I did not think I needed to vary off the text very much. Just the opposite, stay on the textand teach each word. I think Eric my son said, “Dad you teach what the periods mean,and what the white space between the verses mean.” Well almost, but each word wasaddressed as to what they meant within the verse, within the chapter, with in the Book.How could any preacher preach a sermon on any given word, or verse in less than fiftyminutes. Uh! Right, Beverly! If you give the historical background, the contextbackground, the grammatical usage of the word, the theological teaching of the word(s)For example: Eph 5:18 word “filled with the Spirit..” (pim i.e. a present imperative, i.e. acommand which involves continuous or repeat action). Which means we are to becontinuously being filled with the Spirit. You are likely, long after someone is saved, tohave the believers continue to be “filled up” with the spiritual psalms, hymn, and songs inour hearts. .

Now, my preachers friends will say, “Charles, you are simply trying to show off yourknowledge.” “:Keep your cookies off the top shelf when you are preaching.” If I haveheard that idea once, I hear it at every preachers’ meeting I go to.. It seems today, that isthe point of view in the post-modern world we live in. Sermons are short, full of stories,little mention of Christ, and certainly keeping your best stuff on the bottom shelf.

Well I will take the critical remarks about my sermons, as long as I see the Lord producesuch folks as those who have been or are now members of First Baptist Church inAltoona, Kansas. Drafted by Charles Whisnant Proof read by CharityPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 08:03PM (-05:00)

Saturday, August 19, 2006THE BASEBALL STORY AT AN AUCTION WITH CHAD.

For years I had used Saturdays to finish up the messages for Sunday. Charity wasalways trying to get me to take Saturday off and be with the family. I always seemed tosay I was busy.

For some reason on that nice summer day I had read in the newspaper there was anauction. Now if you live in Kansas, you learn about auctions. Cattle auctions, etc. Well Ihad never been to one except the time Don Songer took me to a cattle auction. Don said“Don’t move, or they will think you are buying one of those cattle.” I was lucky to get outof there without buying a large cow.

In 1996 I heard that this auction had baseball cards to sell. We were just getting intocollecting baseball and basketball cards with Eric, Chad and Kyle. I wanted something wecould do together. I did not fish, even though there was a great place to fish at the dam at 21

the end of our block where we lived. I must have been the only man in Altoona who didnot fish. And I didn’t hunt. “You don’t hunt!” That was a mark against me in Altoona, too.Duck, deer, quail, rabbit, moose, pheasant..I didn’t even know how to shoot a gun which was also bad for me in Altoona. Don Songerallowed me to shoot a shotgun on my 40th birthday. Once I might add. Then KurtNunnenkamp opened up a hunting guide place and has been very successful, I mightadd. But I didn’t have the nerve to try hunting.

So I thought, how about collecting baseball and basketball cards with the boys. Back tothe auction. We read that about 50 miles from Altoona there was this auction. I mentionedto Charity that I would like to go and take Chad. She almost fainted to think that I wouldbe willing to travel on Saturday to an auction. So we got in the car and went to this bigbarn filled with stuff for auction. We never had been to one like this one. I was given acard to show if I were to buy something. Looking at all the stuff, we came across thesports section and, would you believe, they had shoe boxes of old baseball cards. As Iviewed the baseball cards I became quite excited at what I saw. When the bidding washeld, I bid $17. I held up my card, you know, and wiggled my nose. The auctioneersaid,”How many?” I thought, all of them, but I took four boxes at a total of $17.

On the way home, I was driving and Chad was looking at the cards and so was I. We gotso excited at what we found, I had to pull over and let Charity drive the rest of the wayback to Altoona. Would you believe we discovered several Cal Ripkin, Jr. rookie cards,Eddie Murry’s rookie card, several Willie Mays’s old cards, several Pete Rose’s oldcards,.plus about 2500 other good baseball cards from the 1960's & 70's, & 80's. What ajackpot of great baseball cards!

I wish I had taken more time years earlier with Chad and the boys, but I am glad to reportthat Chad today is doing well in life. He is a fine young man and is managing a hotel inLexington, Kentucky.

This is a true story. Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, Proof read by Charity, Experience byChad Whisnant

IPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 02:18PM (-05:00)

Sunday, August 20, 2006WHAT DOES EPHESIANS 2:1-10 REALLY TEACH?...............

Preachers who think that the KJV is the real Bible, are reluctant to change the words of22

the KJV when speaking about the verses. Example: Ephesians 2:1 “And you hath hequickened, who were dead in your trespasses and sins;” They of course read the verse,but then when explaining this verse, will not say anything other than “quickened.” Whatwould be a shock to their thinking would be to learn that “quickened” is not in the originalGreek. Here is the verse: “and you being dead in the offenses and the sins:” Whathappened to “hath he quickened” which they say proves other translations are not theWord of God.

Paul began by reminding believers of their wretched condition before God performed themiracle of redemption. “Were dead” comes from a combination of a participle and anadjective, so it literally means”being dead” and refers to spiritual death, which is the stateof separation from God.

These first ten verses in this chapter are among the most evangelistic in the Scriptures,explaining beautifully the actual steps which occur in salvation. Paul began by remindingbelievers of their miserable position before God accomplished the miracle of redemption.

If you understand these verses correctly, you just might get the actual steps which occurin salvation! In theological terms, it’s called “the order of salvation” or to impress you“ordo satutis” in Latin. This is the biblical doctrine that deals with the logical sequencing ofthe benefits of Salvation worked by Christ which are applied to us by the Spirit. Thisdoctrine is dealing with the order in which redemption (saving grace) is applied to thebeliever through a series of acts or defines the order of decrees by God in the redemptiveprocess. Berkhof said this: “the process by which the work of salvation wrought in Christ,is subjectively realized in the hearts and lives of sinners.” There is a process that Goduses in bringing about salvation to sinners.

There are two perspectives of God’s order in carrying out His redemptive work.1A election, predestination, gospel call, inward call, regeneration, conversion (faith &repentance) and justification, sanctification, and glorification. (Romans 8:29-30)or2A outward call, faith/election, repentance, regeneration, justification, perseverance,glorification.

So these verses in Ephesians 2 will help you know which order God uses in bringingabout the spiritual change that is wrought in the heart of man. You will believe that manhas the ability, or moral capacity to receive or reject the gospel of his own power, or youwill believe man does not have the power to receive the gospel on his own because he is“spiritual dead” and unable to respond until God gives him life. To say it another way: “Isthe saving grace of God irresistible or resistible? Moreover, is the regenerating power ofGod installed in the believers’s life before or after the decision is made to receive Christas Savior?”

The shock to my system was to hear for the first time, “regeneration precedes faith.” I hadalways thought that in order to be saved, we first had to believe in Christ in order to beborn again. We are talking in this post about “the order or steps that must be taken inone’s salvation.” Actually it’s how we understand Ephesians 2. I had always thought that Icould with a little faith be able within my heart to respond to the Gospel on my own. If Ibelieved by faith that Jesus would save me, it would be possible to cause God to saveme.

Then Ephesians 2 came along. “And you who were (spiritually) dead in your sins were 23

made alive in our souls to spiritual life. This I came to learn meant, we were born againfirst, and then we responded by faith to the inward call of God. Which is what Jesus saidto Nicodemus, “Unless a man is born again first, he cannot possibly see or enter thekingdom of God. “

This is why I think we should carefully “teach” the Scriptures word by word, verse byverse in its context rather than just preach our thoughts.

It’s okay I believe to even explain the KJV. As a matter of fact, I like teaching from theKJV because it takes me much longer to explain the meaning of text correctly.

Preaching seems to mean, ‘here is my thoughts’ , to teach means ‘here is what theverses really is teaching us theologically.’

Postscript: Charity is proof reading this postPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 04:51PM (-05:00)

Monday, August 21, 2006RECOVERING NORRIS, HYLES,RICE, SBC FUNDAMENTALIST

This weekend my son Eric and his wife Leslie were visiting us for a few days. And onSunday we attended the 39th Annervisary of Victory Baptist Church in West Portsmouth.My father-in- law organized the church. The church has had five preachers over itshistory. Bob Temple founded the church in 1967 after he graduated from Bible BaptistSeminary in Arlington, Texas, in 1966. I mention this because in 1966 I arrived as afreshmen of Bible Baptist Seminary. He was leaving inMay, and I came in August. So both of us have a World Baptist Fellowship background,which is influenced still today by Dr. J. Frank Norris. As a foot note, I married his daughterCharity in 1969, and was his associate pastor for fourteen months. Bob is a KJV,independent, fundamental, soul winning, Bible preaching preacher. He still loves the Lordat the age of 74, even though you would think he is in his 60's. A further footnote, thechurch is still pastored by a fundamentalist Hyles’s-style pastor, with soul winning, busministry, and great eating fellowship, and KJV preaching.

Over the past several months while visiting the blogshere I have discovered severalFundamentalist blogs that have addressed the Norris-ite kind of fundamentalism. Theyaddress their concern about the manner in which fundamentalists conduct ministry.(Independent Baptists which I would think would include those in the WBF, BBF, IBFI,those of the Hyles Group, and the Falwell group well as the Southwide group, the JohnR. Rice group. I would also put in here the GARB group (even though they are not of theNorris group), I will throw in some Southern Baptist groups as well because they have thesame idea., and I am sure a lot of other Baptist who would say they are independentBaptist. Since I have attended all of these groups over the last forty years, I do knowsomething of their points of view.

I have been on the staff of these fundamental churches, be it WBF, GARB, BBF, or SBCand attended their schools and gone to their Soul Winning Conferences, so I have beenrather indoctrinated into their form of thinking over the last forty years. I have learned theJohn R. Rice point of view, read his hundreds of books and pamphlets, as well asattended the Jack Hyles Pastor’s School. I have heard them preach and talked to thempersonally, so I will say, I know them and their points of view. I loved Oliver B. Greene24

and Lester Roloff, how that’s for a firm foundation for Christian service. Was I scarred forlife knowing these men?

So I should be a recovering Independent Fundamentalist, Norrisite, Hylesite, Riceite.These were men who had a love for the Lord and the Word and a desire to see lostpeople come to Christ. How could that be wrong to have such love for the Lord andministry? What did J.Frank Norris, teach that so influenced the thinking of those who satunder him? While he died in 1954, his influence was strong in 1966 when I startedseminary, and even today he has a strong influence. Jack Hyles was in control in 1979when I attended Hyles-Anderson, and while he died in 2001 yet he still liveth in 2006.

If you look at my first post, and view the churches that I have been on the church staff, orhave attended their churches, all of them have had their training at one of these schoolsin which one of these men have had their influence. You will note the length of ministrywas about fourteen months in many of these churches.

So if these churches and pastors love the Lord, love to see lost people saved andbaptized, love kids and people that need to be in church, love to preach from the KJV,love to teach separation from the world, why do some think we need to go to anIndependent Fundamental Detoxification Center? A recovering fundamentalist!

How is it wrong having a preacher who is preaching from the 1611 KJV, and the Gospelis still being presented, having a Bus Ministry, still singing from the hymn book, stillhaving Just As I Am as the invitation song, still having a choir with no drums, still havingsoul winning visitation, the pastor still wears a suit when he preaches, most of the womenstill wear a dress, and the men in leadership still wear a shirt and tie, and still havemissionaries come to the church. What is the matter with that?

Our next post will address this idea. Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, Proof-read CharityPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 08:27PM (-05:00)

Tuesday, August 22, 2006 LEARNING WHAT A FUNDAMENTALIST WAS............

When most of what you know about the Bible and ministry is what you have learned fromthose who are independent, fundamental, and Baptist. you think alike and have the samecharacteristics. Those ideas that generally characterize IFB preachers--I can’t rememberif my father ever mentioned those terms, or even exhibited them. I knew I was Baptist, butI don’t remember that dad ever preached like many of the preachers I listened to. I don’tremember dad preaching against everything under the sun either. . I really do notremember dad mentioning preachers at the dinner table, or that he ever spoke againstany preacher or their preaching. He was definitely fundamental, and independent andBaptist. Growing up, in Roanoke, Virginia I never gave the terminology a second thought.

Never really understanding all that was happening in our church, I just knew that dad wasa gracious, kind and wonderful preacher and pastor and dad and husband. He lovedpreachers. He loved preachers who were down and out. He never turned down theopportunity to help encourage a preacher. My dad Everette Whisnant set the example ofwhat I thought an Independent Fundamental Baptist Preacher should be like. I had ashock ahead of me.

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Dad wanted me to attend Bible Baptist Seminary so, six months after his death, I arrivedin Arlington Texas with such great expectation and joy and wonderment. I couldn’t wait tosee a group of students who loved the Lord, loved learning about the Bible and lovedpreaching and teaching. I couldn’t wait to learn how to preach and how to be a preacherand understand about the Word of God. I believed that this would be the most incredibleplace in the world to be and fulfill my desire to preach and pastor a church. The day that Iarrived in Arlington Texas, sometime in the summer of August 1966, I believed I wasready to set the world on fire with the Gospel. But the world of Bible Baptist Seminarywas not ready for me.!!!!!. But I genuinely was prepared to get into my first class. I wantedto absorb as much as I could about the Word. So I had my Scofield Bible notes and all.IFB seemed to have a Scofield Bible, (which I still have in storage). I was aDispensationalist, and believed the Book of Revelation was yet future.

I don’t think I missed a class in three years. (I said I don’t think, after all it’s been fortyyears this month when I arrived in Arlington Texas.) I believe I turned in the largestnotebook in the Life of Christ Class History, some three hundred and fifty typed pages,but you would have to talk to Dr. Raymond Barber who gave me a A+., if this is true.

The first set of books I ever bought was Spurgeons’ Topical Sermons, 18 Volumes, but tomy knowledge Charles H. Spurgeon was never mentioned by the professors. But neitherwas John Calvin, Thomas Watson, Jonathan Edwards, George Whitfield, Martin Luther,John Owen or any of the Reformers, unless you think J. Frank Norris was a Reformer.

I was so surprised how few of those students were really as excited about being inSeminary.as I was. I really loved campus life. I did not like the food, but I loved thesurroundings. Dorm life was interesting, but I soon realized that the students were moreinterested in having fun than learning and going to classes. The students were alwayswanting to go places and have fun. I would say, “ I need to study.”

There were some who were like me, who loved the experience and were sincere aboutwhy they were in Seminary, but for the most part, many did not finish seminary.

I wanted to find a church where I could continue to minister as I did before I came toSeminary. After all, I had for twenty-seven months been a youth director in my dad’schurch. I believed I could continue to do this kind of ministry. Thus I approached thepastor of a church (I would mention the church and pastor, but I have enormous respectfrom him) and asked him if I could work in the church. He said “Charles, I know what youdid in your dad’s church, but our policy here at the church is not to use first yearstudents.” Thus, I was to sit and listen and learn about ministry. And that was theenvironment that I found myself in for the next several years. I went back in the summerto Danville, Va, and worked as a youth director in a church that had over 900 inattendance, but when I went back to Arlington, I could not work in a church. This I couldnever fully understand. I enjoyed students on campus, and I really had a good time. I amnot sure I ever understood the spirit of ministry in these churches, I felt that I didn’t havethe hearts of the professors.

The spirit of the campus was always difficult. When I arrived on campus, there was afighting spirit. Theology was the issue between students. There was a poor spirit betweenthe president of the college and the mission director. There was a difference of opinionbetween professors. There was a spirit of ill feelings between preachers in the fellowship.There seemed to be always something to fight or disagree about. What I always foundstrange was how the professors would always choose the next up and coming “Billy26

Graham” to speak, or to take a position in their church. Only fact was several monthslater they would quit school. I never quite understood that the professors would not useme. I thought that if you really loved the Lord, desired to learn the Word, that they wouldbe so happy to help you advance in the ministry. That never happened.

What is it about some Independent Baptist preachers that they can’t seem to work wellwith another preacher in their church? Here I believe I have come upon the reason whyfundamentalism has destroyed a lot of churches and preachers.

These churches and preachers believe in soul winning, believe in preaching to reach thelost, they believe in getting the lost in the church, they believe in missions, they believe inpreaching the Gospel, they believe in separation from the world. That part of their ministryis not what is so bad. This is a true fundamental Bible believing independent church.

The climate in the 60's and 70's might have been different than today’s climate forministry. Yet you walk into many of the IFB churches, and you are in the 60's and 70's.The way ministry was done in the 60's and 70's is still the main focus today.

So what is the problem with Fundamentalism today? Why do we think the J. FrankNorris’s influence is outdated today? The Jack Hyles’s influence!! The Lee Roberson’sinfluence! The Earl K. Oldham’s influence! Posted by Charles E. Whisnant, Proofchecked by Charity WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 06:37PM (-05:00)

Wednesday, August 23, 2006GROW BY LEARNING.....FROM NORRIS TO MACARTHUR....

What J. Frank Norris was able to accomplish in the 30's was for that time and place.What Earl K. Oldham did at Calvary Baptist and Bible Baptist Seminary, was for his timeand place. What Lee Roberson was able to accomplish at Tennasee Temple in his timewas for his time and place. What Bob Jones, Sr, Jr, and III (is there a IV) haveaccomplished at Bob Jones U was for that time and place. What Jack Hyles was able toaccomplish at FBC and Hyles Anderson, was for his time and place. What Jerry Falwellhas been able to accomplish at TRBC and at Liberty U has been for this time and place. Icould say this about any one servant of God. I mention these men above because theyhave had some impact upon our own ministry, framed my theological mindset andpractice in doing ministry. Isn’t it interesting that these men are fundamentalists. Theyframed my understanding of what is a Biblical Baptist Fundamentalist. Charity would say,"Charles, who are you this month. Norris, Roberson, Hyles, or Falwell?’ "Funny, dear."But this was really true. I was very much influenced by these men in one way or theother. And stopping to think about it, this was not really all that unsatisfactory, you know!I can say that from 1964 to 1982 was for that time and place that the Lord placed me, orallowed me to be in those churches and ministries. I believe there were some goodresults that the Lord was able to accomplish. I don’t know that I would be happy if thosedays were changed. Too many friendships with people Charity and I have come to lovevery much were established

Then I picked up a tape of John MacArthur’s on Ephesians 4:11-12, and it started a newprocess of thinking for me. Never had I heard preaching/teaching like this preacher. Hewas the first non-Baptist that I had allowed myself to listen to. Actually I had listened to 27

this tape in 1972 while pastoring at Madison Baptist Church, and was overwhelmed byJohn’s point of view about ministry. However, it wasn’t until 1982 that I really had thechance to begin to understand the principles. While pastoring First Baptist Church inAltoona, Kansas, I decided to go to Grace Community Church to be in the Shepherd’sConference in 1982. Ministry has never been the same since. I was exposed to anotherform of ministry that I had never seen before.From Fundamentalist to Evangelical? From being a World Baptist Fellowship-Norris-Hyles- Falwell-Fundamentalist Preacher to an Evangelical-MacArthur teacher? Wild.Anything that was not Baptist was purely sinful to think about. As most likely my goodfriend Dr. Roy Johnson would agree with.Of course, if you were not a Norris-ite, you were doomed in my circle. Hyles was notliked; Falwell was not liked; Roberson was not liked. You knew if you were to mentionthose boys you were doomed if you were wanting to preach in their fellowship meetings.But after going to the Shepherd’s Conference in 1982, my entire belief system waschanged.. Thank goodness I was not directed by the Lord to go to a Jimmy Swaggartconference, huh! I did once read one of Oral Robert’s books ...... I remember covering upthe cover with a plain brown wrapper. I didn’t want to be found out. I could have ended upat Oral Roberts U. Wouldn’t that have been something! By the way the book was verygood.Talk about getting outside your comfort box... A whole new world of education wasopened up to me following the Shepherd’s Conference. I must say, MacArthur was suredifferent from the Hyles Pastor’s School, or the Falwell’s Super Conference, or even theJohn R. Rice Sword of the Lord Conferences. Of course WBF folks would say that Ishould stay away from all of them. They were not only KJV 1611 only, they were WBFonly. Sorry about that.I spent a week in Sun Valley, California, and got a Bible stroke. I came back to Kansasand to FBC, and had to completely learn a whole new way of preaching. From Hyles oneweek to MacArthrur the next, from sermons that were topical, example:" Blackbirds,Balloons and the Bible" (that was a really good one, too) to sermons that wereexpositional. Really I went from preaching to teaching. Mrs. Dennision an old saint, savedin 1939 thought I had just plain lost my mind and had just quit preaching.I had a library of over 3000 books, and now I had to completely put them in the ChurchLibrary and have Kurt Nunnenkamp make me wall-to-wall book shelves so I could start allover with the kind of books that I could study to even try to teach expositionally. I don’tthink I had one technical book. (I did have a Scofield Bible.)You know fundamental Bible KJV preachers don’t need books to preach, just the KJV,and the Sword of the Lord, and Hyles’s tapes will do, thank you very much. Really it’strue. Pastor Dwayne Prosser said it was true.Thus for the next fourteen years (1982-1996) the members of First Baptist Church, had tosit each week to three full fifty five minutes of Historical, Theological, New Testament,Practical Application Messages, book by book, chapter by chapter, verse by verse, andword by word. And I think Allen Barnhart heard about all of them.From Norris-Oldham-Hyles kind of Baptist Fundamentalism to MacArthur’s Philosophy ofMinistry and Preaching. I’m still an Independent Baptist who is still learning to grow in theknowledge of the Lord.Truth proof by Charity F. Whisnant

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Friday, August 25, 2006JEALOUSY HAS NO PLACE IN MINISTRY: PREACHERS

( Mistrust Suspicion Defensiveness Resentment)I want to establish the underlying principle that using titles such as "Fundamental,""Baptist" "Independent" "Calvinist" "Reformed" "Covenant" "Dispensationalist" or even"Evangelical" have different meanings to different people, but in fact might not describethe individual anyway. Even when one says he is "Biblical". What preacher would say heis not "Biblical?"{Historic Fundamentalism vs. Hysteric/Cultural Fundamentalism: I will address in the nextpost)But for this post I want to address The Senior Pastor vs. Church Staff Minister:For twenty- seven months I was the Youth Director of the Roanoke Baptist Temple, inRoanoke Virginia, where my father was the pastor. In those twenty-seven months, thepastor gave me liberty to be the Youth Director, and the ability to do ministry was such agreat freedom. When my father died, we had seventy-five in our department that Sunday.I believed this was the pattern for ministry in a church as a Youth Pastor. I had theimpression that in my next position the ministry would be the same as in Roanoke BaptistTemple. I believed that my dad was the example who demonstrated the qualities of apastor and one who I would be working for in a ministry.I remember well, when I arrived at seminary, I mentioned to a senior student, "I amlooking forward to working with pastors and then becoming a Youth Pastor. This seniorstudent, was driving a car at the time, and he almost had a wreck. "Charles, what rock didyou come out from under? Preachers are some of the most jealous people in the world."I am not really sure what happened between my father’s generation and the presentgeneration, but there certainly has been a change.

The time period was 1966, and that student was 100% right. The present time is 2006,let’s see... that is forty years later, and the same characteristic still exists today withpreachers.======================================= JEALOUS Definition:(1)Fearful or wary of being supplanted; apprehensive of losing affection or position.(2)Resentful or bitter in rivalry; envious: jealous of the success of others. (3) Inclined tosuspect rivalry. (4) Having to do with or arising from feelings of envy, apprehension, orbitterness: jealous thoughts. (5) Vigilant in guarding something: Summer of 1967: Mymother who at this time was living in Danville, Virginia, and was working as ChurchSecretary of the Southall Baptist Church, told me "Charles if you work as Youth Pastor ofSouthall, and you are successful, the preacher will have you painting his houses heowns!" I thought that was the most eccentric idea. A Pastor resentful of a Youth Student,who is trying to work with youth in his church. The Pastor said, "Charles, I will hire you tobe the Youth Pastor but do not tell anyone." The people were glad that they were going tohave a Youth Pastor, I learned. I loved the time I was there. The success was wonderful,and sure enough, the Pastor had me painting one of his houses he owned. Mom wasright. Having a successful youth ministry is not the grounds to dismiss a student who wasnineteen years old. Jealousy is. Do you think a pastor would admit that? Of course not.This happened in the summer of 1967, and you know I could give you an example in 29

1980, 1997 2002 and 2004. Call it by any other name, but the name will still be spelled"jealous." Why do you think, as a general rule, Senior Pastors hire someone who seemsless qualified than himself?Fundamentalist, Independents, Baptist, in any branch of fellowship, my pet peeve is thejealous preacher syndrome. As a general rule, these preachers have been taught:"Preachers are the ruler in the church, without accountablity to anyone but God, and totalloyalty is to be with the Preacher." Dr. Hyles would start with the young kids. Eachchildren’s class would have a picture of Dr. Hyles. And the teachers were to say, "This isGod.!" No, not really, but almost. And you were never, I say never, to question Dr. Jackabout his preaching, never, I say never. He totally controlled First Baptist Church for aslong as he lived.But even in churches where the pastor is not in total control, he controls the staff. In thelast church I worked on staff, the outcome was just like the one in the summer of 1967,the Pastor was in my opinion, "Resentful or bitter in rivalry" My understanding, the Pastorasked the Deacons "Should I fire Charles, " and they said on three different occasions,"No, Pastor." But he finally did anyway. He finally said to one of the deacons, "Me and mywife, are going to fire Charles." And that was it. "Fundamental?" to the depth. "Baptist?"to the core. "Gospel preacher?" only as a fundamentalist would be.But, you know what? You do not need to be a fundamentalist, or a Baptist to exhibit thesame characteristic. It’s really not a Baptist syndrome. Many Pastors have this disease."Are you angry, Charles?" I am angry at the damage that some preachers have caused inthe lives of their church staff. Far too many good men and women have been greatlyincapacitated by the jealous actions of the Pastor. I hear about this more often than I wishto.Fundamental preachers, Reformed Covenant preachers, no title preachers, it’s not yourchurch. It’s not your people. God gave you to the church according to Ephesians 4:12 "forthe building up of the body of Christ" and not to get jealous; resentful; distrustful with yourchurch staff, but to build them up and help them be successful in doing their ministry. IfPastors have the privilege to work with someone who loves ministry, then let him work, lethim be successful."Charles you are reverberating, ( 1. To resound in a succession of echoes; 2. To have aprolonged or continuing effect: Those talks with his teacher reverberated throughout hislife. 3. To be repeatedly reflected, as sound waves, heat, or light.) or writing as if you aremad." You bet I am. Infuriated (not quite that bad) with some preachers, but not with theLord. I still love the Lord and love ministry. I love His church.CharlesProof and Truth proofed by Charity WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 07:31PM (-05:00)

Saturday, August 26, 2006fundamentalism.........20's to early 2000.....

The term "Fundamentalism"is a term that was not coined by Independent Baptists, oreven a Baptist! (Now that was a real shock to my Baptist System.) Could the term includeWBF, BBF, IBFI, GARB, how many other groups, Falwell’s, Hyle’s, Roberson’s, BobJones’s, etc. ?

LEARNING WHAT A FUNDAMENTALIST IS............ August 22, 2006 post.

In the Evangelical Dictionary of Theology by Elwell he makes this statement aboutFundamentalism:30

"A movement that arose in the United States during and immediately after the First WorldWar in order to reaffirm orthodox Protestant Christianity and to defend it militantly againstthe challenges of liberal theology. "

. "The earliest phase involved articulating what was fundamental to Christianity andinitiating an urgent battle to expel the enemies of orthodox Protestantism from the ranksof the churches in the 1920's."

I did not realize that it was the northern Presbyterian Church in 1910 that affirmed fiveessential doctrines regarded as under attack in the church. These were affirmed again in1916 and 1923.Elwell points out that on this same parallel track, "premillenarian Baptists andindependents founded the World’s Christian Fundamentals Association in 1919, withWilliam B. Riley as the prime mover." The premillennialists tended to replace the miracleswith the resurrection and the second comming of Christ, or even premillenarian doctrineas the fifth fundamental.

In the Baptist Watchman-Examiner, the term was used by Curtis Laws, in the 1920's.Then the Baptist John Roach Staton called his newspaper "The Fundamentalist" in the20's.

The Presbyterian scholar J. Gresham Machen disliked the word, and only hesitatinglyaccepted it to describe himself, because he said, "it sounded like a new religion and notthe same historical Christianity that the church had always believed." Machen called thisnew idea in the churches "religious liberalism", but later he followed the more popularfashion of calling it "modernism."

The early 20's fundamentalists felt they could not regarded any one a Christian whodenied the traditional formulations of the doctrines of Christianity and who would createmodern, naturalistic statements of the doctrines.

It seemed that the issue was not only over the view of the identity of Christianity, but wasalso over a method of doing theology and a view of history. Fundamentalists believedthat the way doctrines were contrived in an earlier time were true and that the modernattempts to reformulate them were bound to be false. This was in the 20's, and it seemsthat there continues to be this thought to reformulate the way scripture is viewed into the21st Century. The idea the fundamentals were unchanging. Which still is the idea today,"keep the landmarkes."Southern Baptists were the stronghold of the fundamentalists in the 20's , and a lot ofnew independent churches were spreading across the South and Midwest.

During the 30's and 40's new denominations were jumping up in order to carry on the truefaith in purity. GARB, the PCA, BPC, and CBAA were formed in the 30's. They desired torepresent true Christianity based on the literal interpretation of the Bible. Then here iswhat happened in these groups and here is where "separation" came into focus. Thesegroups came to believe that in order to keep true Christianity pure, they must "separate"from any association with liberals and modernist views. So Fundamentalism was nowbridged "with separation a separatist practice while preserving the fundamentals of thefaith."

As I remember, my dad Everette Whisnant went to Wake Forest University, a Southern 31

Baptist School in 1922-1925, and then later the Bible Baptist Seminary in Fort Worth,Texas. He started one of the first fundamental independent Baptist churches inLynchburg and in Roanoke, (as I am told), but I don’t remember him as a "separatist"fundamentalist.

Elwell pointed out that in the 40-s 60's (the book was in its 4th edition in 1986), that theFundamentalists and "Evangelicals" were the two camps took on a special meaning.While the Fundamentalists took on the personal morality issues of the day and separatedthemselves from the rest of society. And the other camp wanted to retain fellowship withthe orthodox Protestants . And in the 40's this group called themselves "Evangelicals"Footnote: I used to say we are not Protestants we are Baptist.) Fundamentalists believedthey were more "faithful to Bible-believing Christianity" and "more militant against churchapostasy." But I can’t remember my dad like that. Bob Barber in Danville, Virginia, wasmore like that at the Baptist Tabernacle. He was great at fighting the evils of the day. IBFwould opposed Billy Graham and would not read "Christianity Today." But as a trueFunny they would not agree with each other as to what was truly Christian living.

Then in the 80's and I am sure today, the Fundamentalists, the likes of my friend still,Jerry Falwell, and the late Jack Hyles, and Pat Roberston, Lester Roloff, to name a few.This group of fundamentalists really believe they possess true knowledge of thefundamentals of the faith and that they therefore represent true Christianity based on theauthority of a literally interpreted Bible. After all, they have the KJV 1611 Bible. I knowJack Hyles. I was in his church and school, and they certainly believed they were torepresent Christianity to the world.

So that is where I got my fundamentalist attitude. Good grief. My father-in-law said"Charles you are not happy unless you are in a fight." I loved fighting something. It wasmy belief that I had a duty to fight Satan-- we are in a battlefield not a flower bed. Youhad better believe that the KJV was the very and only Word of God, and you better haveThursday Night Soul Winning Visitation, and you don’t go to movies or smoke Camelsand you darn well better have a white shirt and tie on. Amen was in. Oh thoseEvangelicals just do not have it all together. Oh me. GROW BY LEARNING......

Today, I want to be an agreeable, friendly, pleasant, respectable, well-bred, harmonious,Fundamentalist. Maybe more like the 20's guys. I know I want to be more like my dad."Oh you have got to be kidding!!!" say my colleagues and friends, and my wife, andfather-in-law and my good friend pastor Dewayne Prosser.

While I like the "fundamentalist" tag, maybe we should have a prefix. Like "the purecompassionate-fundamentalist" or ½ Funny & ½ Evangelical. Generally I am pre- in mypositions. But I am not pro-active when morality comes into view.

I had an associate pastor who said I had quit preaching. "Why would you say that,brother?" He said, "Charles, you have quit preaching on sin-- like long hair, short skirts,movies, playing cards, etc." A real fundamentalist knows how to leave them, knows howto whip them, knows how to give a good old-fashion, storm-stomping sermon. LesterRoloff, Gerald Fleming, Harold Sightler, and Bob Barber were very good at that. If youcan’t come to church and get your shoes shined you haven’t been in church, right?

I have no plans to become a Presbyterians or join Schuller, or Osteen, or start aCovenant Reformed Church, but I would like to .....................

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Proof Read and Truth Conscious Charity WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 04:17PM (-05:00)

Sunday, August 27, 2006THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING "TRUTH-DRIVEN

"Our concerning truth is an invevitable expression of our concern with God. If God existsthen He is the measure of all things, and what He thinks about all things is the measureof what we should think. Not to care about truth is not to care about God. To love Godpassionately is to love truth passionately. Being God-centered in life means truth-drivenin ministry. What is not true is not of God. What is false is anti-God. Indifference to thetruth is indifference to the mind of God. Pretense is rebellion against reality and whatmakes reality is God. Our concern with truth is simply an echo of our concern with God."John Piper so well put it. Truth.

Fundamentalist, Evangelicals, Bible Believing Christians believe Truth about God, HisSon Jesus Christ, and His Spirit, the Holy Spirit are found in the Written Word, we knowas the Holy Bible.

You will not find a Baptist Preacher who will deny that the Bible is the very word of God. Igrew up listening to J. Vernon McGee, and Oliver B. Greene. They both had this gift ofteaching the Word of God, chapter by chapter. Oliver Greene would only use biblicalillustrations to express the meaning of the text. To my ears in those early years of my life,they were teaching from the Bible the very word of God. What I was hearing was theexplanation of the text. I really fell in love with reading the Bible. To know Jesus Christ,His Words, His Works, comes from the Bible. In our church, my dad would give teachersHarry R. Ironside's book on Hebrews to use as a guide in teaching the Book of Hebrews.That was the purpose of going to Bible Baptist Seminary.

I wanted to know how to know what God was saying in the Bible. It's called "principles ofbiblical interpretation." I wanted the skill in understanding, interpreting, and applying theBible as a preacher/teacher. I wanted to learn the techniques useful in understandingparticular facets of the Bible. This process was called 123 Hermeneutics.

Before you can preach/teach you should know what God is saying about the subject.How did McGee know what Romans 1 was teaching? How did Ironside know themeaning of Hebrews. I had no clue. I could read his books. I loved reading, Spurgeon,Greene, McGee (pre-Seminary days).

I really did not know what I should know to understand the Bible. I did after all have aScofield KJV Bible. While in Seminary I did buy "The New Analytical Bible" published byJohn A. Dickson.

Bible Baptist Seminary. The Seminary was a Bible and Baptist Seminary. In the threeyears I attended the Seminary, there was no question that the Bible was taught by somegreat professors. I was definitely taught what the professors believed the Bible wasteaching. But I was never taught how they knew what the Bible was teaching. So I was inthe same position after seminary. I didn't know how Spurgeon knew what he preached. Iknew what these great men believed, but I wanted to know how they knew the truth of theWord of God. 33

Part Two later today......

Charles E. Whisnant August 27, 2006

Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 06:52AM (-05:00)

Monday, August 28, 2006PREACHING: THEOLOGICAL AND EXPOSITIONAL

"Our concerning truth is an invevitable expression of our concern with God. Not to careabout truth is not to care about God." John Piper.

To know the truth about the Word of God has become a "passion" with me. A John Piperword. But the desire to know the truth about the Word, came by listening to JohnMacArthur. Learning the truth from these two men, I have been challenged. I have readand heard John MacArthur preach for over 26 years so I do know a little about what heteaches. As for Piper, it's been only in the last few years. MacArthur seems to have anauthoratative manner of teaching the word, and Piper wants to teach the Word"passionately." Hmmm.

Let me get back to yesterday's post. "The importance of being "TRUTH-DRIVEN".

Having graduated from Seminary in 1969 I believed I was really ready to reach the Worldwith the Gospel. Drawing upon all my knowledge and experience I started out in theministry of preaching the Gospel in the local church. From 1970 to 1982 I had theprivilege of working in several churches. In those years I was a rather good independentfundamental Baptist preacher.

The problem happened in 1983 when I traveled to Sun Valley, Calif. to attend theShepherd's Conference, Grace Community Church, with John MacArthur and Staff. Mythinking about preaching, ministry and the Bible changed for ever.

Returning back to Altoona, Kansas, my flight was delayed in the Denver Airport inColorado. I bought a book at the Shepherd's Conference titled "Toward ExegeticalTheology: Biblical Exegesis For Preaching and Teachng" by Walter C. Kaiser, Jr.

I read the entire book of 250 pages while delayed in the Denver Airport. I called Charity totell her I was delayed in Denver, and to tell her I was very very mad. "Charity, I have justlearned I do not know how to preach or how to really build a sermon from scratch."

At the Shepherd's Conference I was introducedto the idea of Expository Messages. Whatwas that! That's not what I knew as fundamental Baptist preaching.

"I have preached my share of forgettable sermons. I know the agony of preparing amessage and then having preached it, feeling that I knew naked nothing about thepreaching art. " Haddon W. Robinson. I knew exactly what he was saying.

Fundamental Baptist Preaching as I had learned was nothing like exegetical preachingthat was Biblical Truth Driven and Theologically Correct. Generally, I preached sermonsthat were ignorant of the content of the Scripture. (a general statement)34

I did not understand that preaching was to be theologically correct, nor that it wasnecessary to preach from the text of Scripture. Preaching was to be different thanteaching a Sunday School class. I could read Ironside, Spurgeon, Greene, DeHaan, andothers' teaching. To me preaching was not to be theological, nor teaching the meaning ofthe text before me. It was to present the gospel to get someone saved.(Footnote: I did not want to preach what was not bibical, of course)

Oh my, the more I read Kaiser's book, the more I was in crisis. I did not have the training,nor the tools to preach an expository sermon.

I was really embarrassed. I had been preaching a lot of "junk food." All kinds of artificialpreservativess and all sorts of unnatural substitues. "But, but...", I said, "could Jack Hyles'sermons be "junk food?" After all, over 7,000 people hear him preach on Sunday. Thesermons I preached sounded really good. I was loud, funny, entertaining, illustrated, sin-fighting, like any good Jack Hyles' Sermon.

Hyles Anderson College certainly did not teach expository preaching techniques. And youknow that was the idea. Theologically correct preaching was not the purpose ofpreaching. The college is teaching the the same philosophy today.

Soul Winning, KJV, Separation, the Blood of Christ, the Second Coming. Topicalsermons only. Hyles had 50 topical messages and put scriptures with them.

This is the norm today in many churches. Preaching is not to be teaching. Preaching isnot to be theological. Preaching is to be light, clear, simple, and gospel in content.

I believed in those days, that to enter the pulpit with the power of the Holy Spirit was notnecessarily in the content of the message, but in the form of how you preached themessage.

I always had this nagging discontent with this style of preaching, but when you are taughtthis method from youth, and in Bible colleges you believe it's the biblical way to preach.

The Shepherd's Conference replaced the Sword of the Lord's Conferences, and theSouthwide Bible Conferences, and the Pastor's School, and from 1983 the new processof preaching began.

In the next post I will address this process of changing my style of preaching.

Charles E. Whisnant


Tuesday, August 29, 2006PREACHING THEOLOGICAL AND EXPOSITIONAL 2These posts are coming from mypersonal experiences and encounters. The adventures and the places and the peoplethat I mention in these articles are from my personal experiences and they reflect myindividual perspectives. They reflect my thinking at the time of the events. This is my 35

pilgrimage. It is my journey. It’s an honest opinion, it is biased, it’s an effort to give acommentary on how events in my life precipitated my thinking about life and how to doministry, how to preach and teach God’s Word, how to be a pastor or work on a churchstaff, and the ability to know how to learn the doctrines of God.How do you develop life’s perspectives? In the mid seventies, eating breakfast withCharles Tremendous Jones, he said this: "You are today what you have been becoming.You will be the same in five years as you are today, except for the people you meet andthe books you read." James Combs while at Hyles-Anderson College in class said, "Thebest way to learn is from those who have already learned them." While in Bible BaptistSeminary, Raymond Barber said, "The best way to learn is by the school of hard knocks."He also said upon asking him how he was able to preach a great sermon. "Charles, find atext and ask the Holy Spirit to give you a sermon."I think I like James Combs’ advice the best.: "Learn from those who have gone beforeyou and have learned already." And as a matter of fact, Charles "T" Jones is right andRaymond Barber is right, also.Nonetheless, you do learn from those you give attention to. As a child I was a copy of mydad--what he did, his attitude toward others, how to do ministry, what he wore, how heacted --I tried. How he treated my mother is how I try to treat Charity. So far I haven’t hadto change my views on marriage but about ten times. (That would be a post in itself) It’slike preaching, you could spin off on another subject other than the one you were on.You know the old saying, "Watch out-- going to Bible College could almost ruin you." I setaside what I had learned from my dad and started absorbing what was taught in BibleCollege. I took notes in every class (BCWP i.e. before Corel WordPerfect) and typed onthose old typewriters-- remember? I joined Dr. Wayne Martin’s church, and I took notes ofevery one of his sermons (still have them today). I could preach a rather good WayneMartin sermon. Taking notes of sermons was my thing.When the professors would say to buy these books, I did. I wanted to know what theyknew and how they knew it. I wish today that I had had enough sense in those days torealize what was going to be necessary to become a good theologian and preacher andpastor. I was influenced by those who taught me, as it should be.I had tried to become the kind of preacher and pastor as I had learned in Seminary. From1969 to 1978 that was the model. Wayne Martin’s sermons and Earl K Oldham’s attitude,and Jerry Falwell’s church approach. Then I developed the Jack Hyles’ mentality from1978-1983. By the way as a reference, I did learn a wealth of good doohickeys from allthose who I had sat under. I have little regret-- the experience was part of God’s trainingfor me. His grace is so magnificent.Then we arrived at the Shepherd’s Conference in Sun Valley, California in 1983 andagain in 1990. Ministry and the thirst for the knowledge of the Word of God changedforever. A whole new world of Bible opened up to me. I am still bathing in thewonderment, and amazing grace of God. I was in total shock for a week. I never heardsuch teaching as I heard in that conference.As there are Jerry Falwell, haters, and Jack Hyles haters, I learned there are a lot of JohnMacArthur haters today. But in the last thirty years, having read most of MacArthur’ssermons, I am confortable with his points of view.Now back to the delay at the Denver Airport in October 1983, reading Walter C. Kaiser, Jr‘s. book "Toward An Exegetical Theology" Biblical Exegesis for Preaching and Teaching.Here is a statement by Kaiser: "Nowhere in the total curriculum of theological studies hasthe student been more deserted and left to his own devices than in bridging the yawningchasm between understanding the content of Scripture as it was given in the past, andproclaiming it with such relevance in the present as to produce faith, life and bona fideworks." (pg 18)]Piper would say I am sure, as he has preached the last " hundred years" in the book of36

Romans, preach the Biblical Words, but bring it passionately to light the glory of God, totoday’s listeners. I have listened to John MacArthur for years and I have yet to get tired ofhow he is able to hold his listeners’ attention for fifty five minutes.Kaiser, said this: "There is a loud call for preaching that is totally Biblical in that it isguided by God’s Word in its origins, production and proclamation."Kaiser was rather upset with the Biblical and theological education. "We have toleratedvarious forms of mediocrity in preaching and exegesis for too long now."Now we come to page 23 in Kaiser’s book....... I was devastated, humiliatedoverwhelmed, to name a few adjectives. After just 23 pages I was subdued. Never had Iread anything like this.Thus I was determined to come back to First Baptist Church, and begin a research onhow I could become one of these Expository Preachers. So, I called Jack Hyles. Justkidding, folks.In 1984 John MacArthur made a series of videos on "Expository Preaching" - seven videotapes. I bought them, listened to them, and made notes. I wonder if the manuscript ofthose tapes are on the web? 1984 was for me pre-Internet days.The Shepherd’s Conference gave me a list of books that I should have for expositorypreaching. But, but.. they are not Baptist!Out with Hyles and in with MacArthur. Oh my, that really created for me a lot of troublewith the brethren. "Charles, John MacArthur is not a Baptist."I now must give up my secret at this point. There was no earthly way that I could preachin the manner that Kaiser explained, nor how John preached., nor John Stott, or Martin-Lloyd Jones. They were not Baptist to begin with.But with fear and trepidation, (I got that word, Charity, on my own, thank you),uneasiness. I came back and prayed. I announced that I was going to begin preachingwith a new procedure for me. I was going to stop preaching topical messages and startpreaching/teaching from a book in the New Testament, verse by verse. Of course therewas not a single member of the church had ever heard of that before.So beginning in the fall of 1983 thru 1989 I preached over 250 messages from the bookof Matthew. This oozed out very slowly, because I was still trying to learn how thisprocess of preaching was done. This was pre- Internet days. So I was able to joinMacArthur’s sermon tape club. There you have it. My secret is out. For the next sixteenyears I was a member of the sermon tape club. I know what John MacArthur preachedevery Sunday for over fifteen years.Over the next year, I had to buy the books that would help me teach the Word of God.Kaiser said in 1980 "For a large segment of the Christian Church it is a truism to say thatBiblical expositon has become a lost art in contemporary preaching." What would Kaisersay today?How did First Baptist Church react to this new approach to preaching? Our associatepastor knew that I had become a heretic of sorts. One member thought that I had quitpreaching altogether. One family quit the church because they said I had quit preachingthe Gospel. One said I was no longer spiritual because now I was in my study for hoursstudying, and I was using notes which proved I was not spiri filled. Evangelist Bob Smithsaid, "Charles, if you would spend the time you spend studying out Soul Winning, youcould build this church." Other preachers thought I had left the Baptist and joined theEcumenical church.You might wonder, did I survive after this change......... The next post.Charles E.WhisnantCharity Whisnant, truth-proof view my profile at the end of this blogger:Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 07:49PM (-05:00)

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Wednesday, August 30, 2006REACTION TO EXPOSITORY PREACHING.

Our good friend Michele e mailed me back to say, "I don’t buy that at all." she didn’tbelieve I got all my messages from a tape. So there is some clarification I need to makeon this point.In those early days, I used MacArthur's method of developing a message. I did listen toJohn’s tapes. I used to think that you just got up on Sunday Morning and ask the Lord fora sermon, and between home and church the Holy Spirit gave you one. Really, ask anygood non- expositional preacher. Ask my best pastor friend DeWayne Prossor. Kiddingabout DeWayne That is not biblical preaching though. Charity said, "Charles you neverbelieved that, don't tell Michele that." True, of course, but that is what many preacherswould like you to think that they just get a message from the Holy Spirit, without muchstudying.So why did you change your style of ministry and method of preaching?As early as 1974 when I listened to John MacArthur’s tape from Ephesians 4:11-16, theprinciples of the text were planted in my mind. And now having gone to the Shepherd’sConference, and reading the Walter Kaiser’s book "Toward An Exegetical Theology." Thetime was right.Another reason for converting styles was this nagging feeling that this was the best wayof conveying what God was really saying in His word to His believers. The whole idea ofpreaching was to tell the people what the Bible was saying about being saved, and livingaccording to God’s purpose. I was preaching what I believed the Bible was saying aboutbeing saved and living holy lives. The only problem was, too often what I was preachingwas what I believed the Bible was saying. But too often the passage of Scripture that Iused had little or nothing to do with what I was preaching.. I was using more illustrationsfrom life than I was saying what God was saying. I would come up with a sermon Ibelieved would be a help to the people, and then I would try to find a passage of scripturethat would fit the sermon.Here is what Walter Kaiser, Jr said, "The listener is often not sure whether the word ofhope being proclaimed is precisely that same Biblical word which should be connected tothe passage being read." That is, what was being preached doesn’t sound like what theywere reading in the passage of Scriptures. Kaiser points out "every sermon which aspiresto be at once both Biblical and practical; it must be derived from an honest exegesis ofthe text and it must constantly be kept close to the text.MacArthur said "the goal is to have men of God to proclaim the Word of God effectively,so that nonbelievers can be evangelized and believers can be equipped to do the work ofthe ministry." John said, "The only authority that a preacher has in his preaching , is theauthority of the Word of God." I always believed what I had been preaching for sometwenty years was from the Word of God.John R.W. Stott pointed out "now everybody has his own opinion and his ownconvictions, and considers them just as good as the preacher’s." (Between Two Worlds)He pointed out, "‘to preach’ has come to mean to give advice in an offensive, dull,meddlesome manner." Many of the people who are sitting in the pew are saying - silentlyif not aloud - "who does he think he is? My opinion is just as good as the preacher’s." Andyou know what? That is precisely right.When I preached, it was my opinion about what I believed the Bible was saying about sin.Example: My children shouldn’t go to the High School Senior Prom. It was my opinionthat Becky should not wear blue jeans, to church or anytime. That poor girl did not go toher Senior Prom, nor did she wear blue jeans until she was out of high school. (Beckygave her permission for me to tell on myself.) Now tell me, what chapter and verse did I38

find that opinion in?I had a lot of opinions about how to be born again, how to live a Christian life, and I wasgood in expressing those opinions, which I really believed to be Biblical. The onlyproblem I saw that I had, was I couldn’t always find the text to go along with the opinion.Thus it seemed to be my opinion rather than the Bible’s command.Thus, from the time I began teaching the Bible in its context of Scripture, my purpose wasto the best of my ability to keep my opinions to myself while I was preaching. I said I tried.What was the reaction of the church toward expositional preaching?.Our church’s associate pastor was very critical of the idea of studying extensively for amessage. He was very faultfinding when I used notes from the pulpit. I preached from afull manuscript. He was a product of his training as well. Many church people believe apreacher should preach from his spirit and without notes, that is called "spirit anointed." Iremember while in Seminary I was trying out to become pastor of a church. They foundout I used notes and said, "we do not believe preachers should use notes."So subsequently after six months in the Gospel of Matthew, Marvin thought the time hadcome that I leave the church and he had spoken to several members about thatpotentiality. I really believed we were going elsewhere the following week.As all this dramatized out, the members of the church graciously were for us staying asPastor. I think they did not want to lose Charity, but also I believe they were beginning tolike hearing the teaching of the Word of God.I explained to them why I was preaching from the Scriptures–why I was only trying to saywhat was in the text that was before them. I was trying to show them what the Word ofGod was saying, rather than what my opinion was. I think Michele, Allen and Toni,Beverly and Kay Alana and Christy and Mabel, Regina (to name a few who were therewhen I started to preach expositionally) really believed it. Thus we were able to preachthe next Sunday. Amen..Charles E. WhisnantCharity F. Whisnant, proof readerPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 08:05PM (-05:00)

Thursday, August 31, 2006THE CHANGE OF STYLE OF PREACHING----------------------------------------------These posts are coming from my personalexperiences and encounters. The adventures and the places and the people that Imention in these articles are from my personal experiences and they reflect my individualperspectives. They reflect my thinking at the time of the events. This is my pilgrimage. Itis my journey. It’s an honest opinion, it is biased, it’s an effort to give a commentary onhow events in my life precipitated my thinking about life and how to do ministry, how topreach and teach God’s Word, how to be a pastor or work on a church staff, and theability to know how to learn the doctrines of God.-----------------------------------------------"The preacher's God-given responsibility is to deliver accurately and effectively to hislisteners what the Holy Spirit meantwhen He inspired the writters to pen Scriptures.Anything short of this is not expository preaching and falls short of fulfilling the divinemandate to "preach the Word" (2 Timothy 4:2. To communicate accurately and effectivelyis the most fulfilling service that a person can render to others."Robert L. Thomas

Why is it important to preach/teach in this manner.

Preaching, as I understood the procedure in those first years, changed dramatically.Preaching as a sixteen year old, certainly was not with any thought of what I really knew 39

about the explanation of scripture. I definitely did not see any kind of theology within thesermon. But again I didn’t see anything wrong with the way I was preaching either. Thereare many preachers today who preach that identical way. So why would I presume Ineeded to change?

The purpose of this series of commentaries is to lay out the process that I have comethough over the last 26 years of ministry. As I have said, the first twenty years were withinthe panoramas of ideas that I comprised. in my mind. But as I said, after going to theShepherd’s Conference, My view of how I should preach the Word of God changed. Andafter reading Kaiser’s book, I knew that I could not do that in the manner that he wasteaching.

What were some other convincing statements that caused me to believe I should preachthis in this manner?

Puritan commentator William Gouge (1575-1653) said this about the duty of a minister:"Ministers are to imitate God, and, to their endeavor, to instruct people in the mysteries ofgodliness, and to teach them what to believe and practice, and then to stir them up in actand deed, to do what they are instructed to do."Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892) added to Gouge remarks:"It is among uninstructed flocks that the wolves of property make havoc; sound teachingis the best protection from the heresies which ravage right and left among us."The Master’s Staff said this:"To provide wholesome spiritual nourishment for God’s people from the Word."John MacArthur’s review of preaching patterns said this:"Specifically, evangelical preaching ought to reflect our conviction that God’s Word isinfallible and inerrant. Too often it does not.. "John Calvin said this about preaching:Preaching is not only the explication of Scripture, it is also the application of Scripture."Just as Calvin clarified Scripture word by word, so he applied the Scripture sentence bysentence to the life and experience of his congregation."

Here are a few things I understood about this expository preaching.

It’s the method of how you preach. Expository preaching focuses predominantly on thetext or texts under consideration along with its context. This could be called, "contextualpreaching."Ex. Matthew 1:1-6, Ephesians 2:8-10 That is, rather then preaching on a topical thought,you make an explanation of the text. You are explaining the verses. You are setting forthits meaning, and explaining what is difficult to understand, and make appropriateapplication. And when you use the KJV, this process takes quite awhile.

You read a portion of Scripture to the audience, and then you actually develop amessage that gives the meaning of that text. And what the text is instruction the audienceto do, that is what you preaching. The sermon follows the flow of the passages ofScriptures

In other words, you start the sermon with the idea that you are going to explain thepassages of Scripture that you are reading to the audience. Rather than having a sermonthat you say what you want to say, and then try to put scripture with the sermon. This isboth biblical and practical.40

Whatever I say the Bible teaches, I am to used the Bible to establish it. Its not justrambling comments and off hand remarks about a passage, it’s a clear understanding

Charles E. Whisnant


Friday, September 01, 2006THE JOURNEY IN DEVELOPMENT OF MY THINKING ABOUT BOOKS

The purpose of the next several articles is not to give any detail about how to preachexpositionally. But how I arrived at trying to understand how I was to start in the process.I am still growing by leaning in this procedure.Having read Kaiser’s book on this kind of preaching, and having heard MacArthur’s videotapes, I knew I could never do this without help. So I began to learn who I could trust togive me the information I needed to complete this project. MacArthur gave us a list oftechnical books we would need. Haddon W. Robinson also was helpful.I had really never heard of these "technical" books. Was it cheating, or bamboozling, ormisappropriating to learn what the KJV said from some technical book. I remember Icouldn’t even pronounce the word "technical." What would Dr. Roy Johnson say, if heknew I was going to buy some of these technical books. The former pastor of our churchsaid, "I only need the Bible to preach from." That really made me feel bad, you know, thathe was smarter than I was. I am sure it’s a shock to a lot of members, that I could not getthe KJV. Sorry, folks.I thought the whole purpose of going to Seminary was to learn how to do thispreaching!!!!!It’s like you have committed a crime if you were to really study the Bible to learn whyMatthew wrote the Gospel of Matthew. Preachers like to come up on to the platform andget behind the podium and say, "This morning on the way to church the Holy Spirit gaveme a sermon." That is really Holy Spirit powerful preaching they say. But as for me thosedays were over September 1983.But first I had to learn how to preach in this new way."The distinguishing mark of expository preaching, also called Bible exposition, is thebiblical interpretation communicated through the sermon." The expositor must teach hisaudience the meaning of the text intended by its author and understood by its originalrecipients.My first work as an expositor (teacher) I decided to start with the Gospel of Matthew. Theidea that I had was to start with Matthew and continue thru to Revelation. However, myplans were changed. Matthew on Sunday Morning Romans on Sunday Night, and ICorinthians on Wednesday Night.Again reading Kaiser’s book. "Is the meaning of a text to be defined solely in terms of theverbal meaning of that text as those words were used by the Scriptural author? Or shouldthe meaning of a text be partly understood in terms of ‘what it now means to me." thereader and interpreter?"I had often heard people say, "Charles, I have my own idea of what the Bible means?" "Ithink Matthew 5 thru 10 means this." I have been amazed over the years how many 41

interpretations have come out of one verse. Haven’t you? "Where is what I think Paulmeant when he said..." I would say, " how do you know," "I just think Paul meant this,that’s all I know."Allen Nunnenkamp asked me one Wednesday Night, "Charles, why are there so manydifferent opinions about what the Bible says?" Why are there so many different points ofview about the Bible?I came to understanding "there is only one meaning for every verse in Scripture." Doesthis mean that Paul had only one thought, or meaning in mind when he wrote Romans?Is it possible for us today, to understand what Paul meant when he wrote Romans? Andthe answer is, we should be able to. How? That is the question.The term used for this was "exegesis" which is designed to determine meaning.. You areto examine the details of the passage set before you.. Why was Matthew writing thisbook? Why did Paul write Romans?

Therefore, to get equipped for this work, I began to buy some books to help mecomprehend the task before me. When I came to the platform and stood behind the pulpitand opened the KJV Bible, and read Matthew chapter one, or Romans chapter one, Idesired to be ready to clearly preach what God had in mind when he had Matthew andPaul to write the books.Thus, the journey began in this new "expository preaching." And it’s still a journey. I amstill learning and growing in this ministry of teaching the Word of God.

Posted by Charles E. WhisnantTruth read by Charity Whisnant

Next Article will talk about books needed for preachingPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 04:53PM (-05:00)


A PITCH FOR USING TECHNICAL BOOKS IN PREPARING FOR A SERMON"ALMOST ALL OUR WISDOM, JOHN CALVIN OBSERVED, CONSISTS OF TWOPARTS:"THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD AND OF OURSELVES (Institutes of the ChristianReligion) But, as Calvin’s subsequent reflections made clear, neither part of thisknowledge exists in a vacuum. The two are closely intertwined, and the Word of Godwhich makes this knowledge possible touches every aspect of life.Footnote: I have had a copy of the Calvin’s Institutes since I was the pastor of MadisonBaptist Church in 1972 (860 pages in small small print).What I have discovered since 2004 is the wide systematizing of Biblical Thinking amongpreachers, theologians, scholars, and professors. Fundamentalists were separatists. Ithink that meant not only were you to separate yourself from the world but also fromanyone who had a different point of view. Thus you stayed in your own camp of Biblicalthinkers. (A treatment of that subject would be good).From 1962-1982 I was in this camp of fundamentalist thinkers. From 1983-2003 I was intwo camps of biblical thinkers. Fundamentalist and the John MacArthur’s Camp. (I saidyes, both camps.)Since December of 1962 I have joined in the collective enterprise of digging up andbuilding. I Corinthians 3:10 "According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as awise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundations and another buildeth thereon. But letevery man take heed how he buildeth thereupon." (this point is for another blog.} But hereonly to say, there have been so far three phases of the building up. 1962-1982, 1983-42

2003, and 2003-presently. Is there a third camp? There is, but I am just reading in theircamp.But since 1962 I have buried myself in the process of digging up the collective knowledgeof a number of men. I have always believed that I personally must glean from a collectivenumber of materials and books in the work of the ministry."BURY YOURSELF IN A DICTIONARY AND COME UP IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD. "This improbable-sounding piece of advice of the late Sir Edwyn Hoskyns contains awisdom born of experience.I think too often as preachers, when preparing a message, we ask the wrong person. It’snot the preacher we should ask what to preach and say. Rather it’s: "What is the writergetting at?" "Why did he say this?" "Why did he put it like that?" "What lies behind thatremark that Paul has just made?" So when we move away from our thinking and askwhat was Paul’s thinking, we begin to see things in a new light. Believe me you do. I wasever in astonishment when I discovered the world of these books I have listed below.There is no substitute for individual initiative. One has to study the Bible for oneself. Buton the other hand, it is a co-operative endeavor. One cannot, I personally believe, dowithout the work of others in unearthing facts and bringing to light insights which wouldotherwise be lost. But paradoxically enough, it is only when others have done this kind ofwork that one can see the truth in it for oneself.Personally I owe a special debt of gratitude to a whole lot of folks who have done what Icould have never accomplished I appreciate those who researched the Word of God andput the results in volumes of books. My prayer has always been for the Lord to guide myweak mind to the right work, that I might build a biblical foundation of preaching andministry.The books listed here were used in the technique, and method, or procedure if you will,how I began to learn how to study and compose an expositional message.THE BOOKS LISTED BELOW ARE FROM BY PERSONAL PASTORAL TEACHINGLIBRARY. FROM 1980-1996. The books will reflect the way my thinking was cultivated.LINGUISTIC AND GRAMMATICAL ANALYSIS HELPSAids to help examine the details of the passage:My favorite: :Linguistic Key to the Greek New Testament: Fritz Rienecker/Cleon RogersThe Interlinear Greek-English N.T. Nestle-MarshallLEXICONS: to help find definitions of a word., root meanings, identification of somegrammatical forms, a list of passages where the word occurs, classification of its use inits various contexts and some illustrations that help give color to the word.I used: Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament.A Critical Lexicon and Concordance to the English and Greek N.T. BullingerThe New Brown-Driver-Briggs-Gesenius Hebrew-English LexiconCONCORDANCES Sometimes it is essential actually to study a word in the passagewhere it was spoken or written. To determine the meaning of words through usage, aconcordance is essentialIf you do not know Hebrew or Greek: you can still learn:My favorite: Wigram - The Englishman’s Hebrew and Chaldee Concordance of the OT.Wigram - Englishman’s Greek Concordance of the New Testament, with Strong’sTo study the theological significance of OT words used in the NTGRAMMARS Meaning does not come from words alone. Words must be understood asthey are used in phrases, clauses, sentences, and paragraphs.A study of syntax examines how words combine to render meaning, and grammars assistus in that study of how words are formed and put together in sentences.Example A.T. Robertson’s Grammar of the Greek NT in Light of Historical Research.WORD-STUDY BOOKS These books provide the exegete with insights into words andgrammar. A.T. Robertson’s Word Pictures in the NT 43

The Complete Word Study N.T. KJV Compiled by Spiros Zodhiates From Matthew thru Revelation in the KJV....Words in the text numerically coded to Strong’s Greek dictionary, Introduction to eachbook. Exegetical Notes. Grammatical Codes on the text. Lexical Adis. GeekConcordance. Translations Reference Index. And Strong’s Greek Dictionary.One Volumn 1300+ pages. OutstandingBIBLE DICTIONARIES Background and biographyCOMMENTARIES A teacher of the Scriptures need teachers. When I taught Romans, Ipurchased commentaries on Romans, while in Ephesians, I stayed in Ephesians. Readas an Ephesian. They tell me that not every author knows all the truth. Well maybe thereare a few who may. What is funny in 2006, when I taught Revelation, I had over 60 bookson Revelation, and they all were authors who believed that Revelation was yet future. Itwas not until 1996 in general and 2005 in specific that I knew and read those authorswho believe otherwise.There are several good N.T. commentaries that I used on a regular basis:The New Testament Study Bible The Complete Biblical Library Editor Ralph HarrisThis Library has sixteen volumes. 1986-19961 The Textus Receptus as the basis text of the Interlinear2 Greek Text in Greek, Grammatical Forms, Transliteration, Translation , an assignednumber (5,000) Greek-English Dictionary3 Verse by Verse Commentary4 The KJV is shown in boldface type and then more than 60 other versions show variousways the Greek of that phrase may be translated.The John MacArthur’s Commentaries which came about as a result of his preaching. Andin 1980 he had not even started this seriesAn American Commentary of the New. Testament Edited by Alvan Hovey1881 , my dad and mom used this set, and I used it first in 1962What I have recognized and discovered from 2004, you acquire books that reflect yourtheological point of view. 99% of all the books that I have purchased and have hadinfluence over my thinking have been books that I have agreed in theological view points..BASIC EXEGESIS AND HOMILETICSTRANSLATIONS You need help with the KVJ 161126 Translations of the Bible Curtis Vaughan General Editor

Charles WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 02:12PM (-05:00)

Sunday, September 03, 2006 A LITERAL AND SPIRITUAL POTLUCK EXAMPLE

"If preaching starts and ends with the sermon on Sunday, and it is distributed toindividuals as portable property to be taken home in notes or a cassette tape, it cannothelp but be the means of fostering interpretive violence. Because it will inevitably put thetext at the disposal of the listening or speaking subject's own structure and agenda. Theviolence comes when we put our own meanings or agenda onto Scripture. The violencecomes when the preaching of the Word separates us as individuals over against oneanother armed with the interpretation we want because we do not come together inmutual submission to discern the Scripture’s meaning for our lives today. If preaching isto avoid this violence, it must foster communal practices among us that allow us to submitto one another in the work of the Spirit to interpret the Scriptures. We do this not as a44

democracy, but as a Spirit filled community where we submit to each other’s authoritativegifts. Of course, to even think of doing church this way requires a new imagination." DaveFitch. Pastor/Professor. Pastor of the Life on the Vine Chrisitan Community in Chicago,for goodness sake.. And he was asked to give an address at the Trinity EvangelicalDivinity School, no less.I left Bigelow Church this morning, having listened to Dr. Frank Tallerico preach fromGalatians 2:11-16. I could have picked up a cassette tape made by our sound tech BobBender, Jr. and the notes provided for each member. But I didn’t need to do that. HolyAnger there was interpretive violence? I didn’t have to pick up a cassette tape and replaythe message at home. As I was sitting on the second pew just a few feet from him, theviolence in my mind, surely Dr. Tallerico could see the anger oozing from my face as heexplained the text from his NASV!!!!!!! Did you know Dr. Tallerico has never asked for mywell trained theological viewpoint for the interpretation on any passage that he is about topreach on Sunday Morning. Nor has he to my knowledge asked any of the other elders inthe church. Who does he think he is Dr. Jack "KJV" Hyles?I need to submit to Dr. Tallerico the paper written by Dr. Fitch on this subject." Dr. Fitchsaid. "If you are to avoid this violence, it must foster communal practices among us thatallow us to submit to one another in the work of the Spirit to interpret the Scripture." Idon’t even think he looked at me for approval as he spoke. Dr. T said, "What was theissue that got Paul so uptight, and led him to this scene with Peter?" I sure could havehelped him out! Dr. T said Paul was uptight (He should have used "agitated".) "And Pauladdressed their hypocrisy." But the KJV said "dissimulation" not hypocrisy. Then he goton verse fourteen. Paul saw that they walked not uprightly, according to the ‘truth of thegospel." Here Dr. T could have had some help, from my many years of pastoralship andtraining in theological Greek linguistics. If my "authoritative gift" had been asked, I wouldhave said. That phrase "they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel.""Walked not uprightly" is a present action indicative. "they were not walking on thestraight path towards the truth of the gospel." Dr. T used this verse "to show how aperson is saved that is at the issue.." I might have suggested when you are not walkingon the straight path, it could possibly mean, they were going to the outdoor theater, andgoing to the Galatia Brew and Beer Pub. And some of them were going over to hear DrSimon who is in the Emergent Movement. And that some of the men were not coming toworship with a suit and tie. That is not walking straightly upright. And Dr. T tells us theBiblical idea of how a person is saved. What can I say.I mean Dr. T "let go of expository preaching for preaching that "funds imagination."Well, I think I will e mail this to Dr. T. and maybe he will get the hint of my "interpretiveviolence". But now that I have said all this, I do feel rather good.I am going to suggest this point: We need to have "a collaborative friendship tounderstand and engage the emerging post-Christian culture" We need to engage in "aliteral and spiritual potluck" at the Brew Club next Wednesday for lunch. But Dr. is anReformed Italian, so I am not going to hold my cup for Brew (coffee).See what happens when you don’t have church on Sunday Night..........


Monday, September 04, 2006A DEFENSE, AN ARGUMENT FOR THE USAGE OF TECHNICAL RESEARCH BOOKS.

Today in the 21st Century, books seem to be less used, and the CD software is in. Mostof the works in books are not on the InternetAll these volumes were bought while I was Pastor at First Baptist Church, in Kansas. 45

1980-96.

THEOLOGICAL STUDY OF THE NEW AND OLD TESTMENT WORDSAn Expository Dictionary of O.T. / N.T. Words W.E. VineTheological Dictionary of the N.T. Bromiley

THEOLOGICAL DICTIONARY OF THEOLOGYEvangelical Dictionary of Thelogy Walter A. Elwell 1200 entriesThe New International Dictionary of the N.T. Theology Colin Brown, editorFour Volumes: Outstanding theological work. Each entry is arranged under thealphabetical order of the English terms which serve as a focus for the articles on keyGreek words. There is a discussion of the word in secular Greek. Then a discussion ofthe word and related terms in the O.T.THEOLOGICAL WORKBOOK OF THE OLD TESTAMENT Two volumes by Harris, Archer Jr. and WaltkeCHRISTIAN THEOLOGY SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY Millard J. Erickson L BerkhofSYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY SET TOWARD AN O.T. THEOLOGY Lewis Sperry Chafer Walter C. Kaiser, Jr

STUDY BIBLESDickson’s Analytical Bible, and DictionaryThe Hebrew-Greek Key Study Bible - Spiros ZodhiatesWords are given the Strong’s numbers, the grammatical notation is given. And manywords are given explanation by Spiros.Several works I bought while pastor at Madison Baptist in Minford Ohio in 1972. At thetime I had really no clue as to the significance of the work by these great men:THE EXISTENCE AND ATTRIBUTES OF GOD Stephen Charnock (1628-1680)THE BODY OF DIVINITY An EXPOSITION: Thomas Watston JOHN’S CALVIN’SCHRISTIAN INSTITUTEThe idea in this linguistic and grammatical analysis, is not a goal of itself, but rathershould LEAD TO A CLEARER UNDERSTANDING OF THE PASSAGE AS A WHOLE.It’s called moving from synthesis to analysis and back to synthesis.Biblical preaching/teaching is, by explication, the assignment of bringing about achallenge between people of the 21st century and the Word of God. The idea of exegesisis to discover that Word and its meaning in the 1st century. The assignment ofpreaching/teaching is to know well both the exegesis of the text and the people whomthat Word is now to be spoken again, as a living Word for them.As a footnote: Exegesis simply means "What did the Biblical author mean? It’s thehistorical investigation into the meaning of the Biblical content." So what is the process ofdoing this assignment?I do not recall this process being taught in Seminary in 1966. Fundamentally a task thatshould have been the first course taught to the student.I am thankful that the Lord directed my attention to John MacArthur in the 80's. I reliedheavily upon his material during the process of learning the process of expositorypreaching.Without any question or apology, MacArthur formed my grid in the process of preparing asermon. But I never was satisfied just to take MacArthur’s word on any text, the joy waslearning how he arrived at his conclusion. The task of discovery was what I enjoyed.These books were recommended at the Shepherd’s Conference.46

LINGUISTICS & BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION: Peter Cotterell & Max TurnerOLD TESTAMENT EXEGESIS: Douglas StuartNEW TESTAMENT EXEGESIS: Gordon D. FeeThroughout the analysis and synthesis, therefore you will ask: ‘Exactly what is the biblicalwriter talking about?" You get a possible subject, then you take the subject you haveback through the passage and relate it to the details. Does the subject fit the parts?Is your subject an exact description of what the passage is talking about?

Footnote: What I have recognized and discovered from 2004 is that you acquirebooks that reflect your theological point of view. 99% of all the books that I havepurchased and have had influence over my thinking have been books I have agreed intheological view points. What do these references books offer? To the serious personwho wants to study the Word of God with a closer understanding of the teaching of theBible. There will be a concise discussion of meaning and use of the key terms of theBible . Why do we really need these reference books to get the meaning of the Word ofGod? Because the work of knowing the Bible is not a work of one man. First I think, theBible is the revelation of God. God has used the Bible to reveal Himself in the Scriptures.Secondly, this revelation of God was given to man over a period of many hundreds ofyears. It was expressed in ancient languages. It employed the thought-forms of vanishedcivilizations.In order to understand the meaning and significance of Scripture, it is imperative tounderstand the meaning and use of its language against the background of its historyand social structures.It was said of John Calvin: (learned this in the last few years)"How energetically Calvin, having first established what stands in the text, sets himself tore-think the whole material and to wrestle with it, till the walls which separate thesixteenth century from the first became transparent! Paul speaks, and the man of thesixteenth century hears. The conversation between the original record and the readermoves round the subject-matter, until a distinction between yesterday and to-daybecomes impossible. If a man persuades himself that Calvin’s method can be dismissedwith the old-fashioned motto, "The Compulsion, or motivation, or drive, of Inspiration," hebetrays himself as one who has never worked upon the interpretation of Scripture." KarlBarth said this of John Calvin.The goal of biblical study-- like that of expository preaching - - is an understanding of thetext which enables its message to speak directly to the readers or hearers in hiscontemporary situation.In this process there are two main stages characterized by the term exegesis andhermeneutics.Hermeneutics is concerned with reflecting on words and events from the past andinterpreting their significance for us today. However, before this may come about theremust be the prior stage of exegesis, the clarification of words, phrases, clauses, andsentences as their authors intended them to be understood and as they would have beenunderstood by their original hearers.It is the exegesis of biblical terminology that is the primary concern why we need thesebooks.These textbooks, references books endeavor not simply to analyze, classify andcatalogue, the most important words that occur in the New Testament. They also seek totrace the meaning and use of words in secular Greek, the Septuagint and other versionsof the O.T. uses by the early church in the N.T. period, comparing them with the Hebrewof the O.T. In many of these works done in these reference books they have taken intoaccount the use of the words in the Dead Sea Scrolls, and writers like Philo andJosephus. Then they have been very careful to examine the NT writers themselves in 47

order to ascertain the precise shade of meaning which each work attached to the wordsused.How do you do this? By learning from those who have been gifted to do the research foryou. I will tell you, I am thankful for the work of these men who have taken the time to dothis kind of work.To understand the Scripture one needs an understanding of: History, Geography, andArchaeology in the times of the writing of the Scriptures.With all the above thoughts in mind, and I hear men say, "I only use the KJV to preachthe Word of God!" Who are they trying to impress?Some folks might say, "Charles, who are you attempting to impress?" Many people in ourchurches really believe that the preacher doesn’t have to work hard to prepare for asermon. Just read the scripture and talk. Yes! Once upon a time, I thought as a preacherthat God would send you a manuscript on Saturday.(kidding) Then later I thought, now Ihave the Internet I will ask God to e mail me each week.Tiger Woods won his fifth consecutive golf event today. First Baptist Church in Altoona,has a new pastor.Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 05:06PM (-05:00)

Tuesday, September 05, 2006HOW DO YOU KNOW YOU HAVE BEEN CALLED INTO MINISTRY BY THE LORD

In some recent blogs the question has been raised, "Has God rung your phone!" "HasGod given you a Call to Preach?".Let me go back to 1962 while living in Roanoke, Virginia. I was fourteen years old and inmiddle school eighth grade. We were asked that school year to think about our life’swork. What would we like to become when we finished school. We were to write a paperconcerning a career. Of course at fourteen you don’t really know. I had this thought aboutbecoming a sport’s announcer. I also thought about going into drafting, maybe going toVirginia Tech.I don’t remember when the thought came over me, but I had this intrinsic thought aboutministry.It seemed to me, that I might like to preach. Where did that came from? I at the time hadno clue, except it was really strong on my mind.I had been going to church since birth. Mom played the piano, and dad preached. Atfourteen, I had not missed a single Sunday in my entire life. Church and Sunday Schoolwere our life. Dad and mom were totally involved in ministry and it was their life 24/7.Everything I knew to this point about ministry was good.When the time came for me to give my report in school. I decided that the report would beon a career in Sportscasting. Just before I gave my report, the boy that sat in front of megot up and said, "I want to be a preacher." For some reason, I was really embarrassed. Inmy mind I felt that I wanted a career in ministry, but was embarrassed to mention it. Thatboy was not afraid to say what he wanted to be.So my ninth grade school year classes were geared toward the career in sportscasting,or possibly in drafting. I did like the classes. The ministry was still on my mind, but I hadno intention of acting upon those thoughts.Then in 1963 I entered Jefferson High School. I tried out and made the football team andbasketball team. I enjoyed sports in the summer, playing softball and trying boxing.That year at church, Fred Henson was my new Sunday School Teacher. I remember inhis classes he was teaching First Corinthians 3:10-16. I still remember the text in 12:"Now if any man build upon this foundation , gold, silver, and precious stones, wood, hay,48

stubble, every man’s work shall be made manifest; for the day shall declare it, because itshall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is." Fredexpounded upon these verses for several weeks. And during that time, my heart andmind was set on preaching and learning God’s Word and building a foundation upongold, silver, and precious stones.I remember shortly after this that I talked to dad about preaching. In December 1963, dadasked me to teach the teenagers. Ron Taylor, who was teaching the class, enlisted in theArmy and went to Viet Nam. I was glad that dad asked me. Dad said that he had seen mydesire to learn God’s Word, and said that I was always studying, and that I was reading alot of books in his library.Here is what I know. I enjoyed teaching. Then I remember reading "IN HIS STEPS" andwas so convicted that I said, "Dad, I would like to preach Sunday night." And dad saidOK. In shock I said OK. So I began to preach in dad’s church for the next several years. Ithen began to be asked to preach in youth rallies in other churches. This was the greatestjoy in my soul. For the next twenty-seven months I was preaching and teaching everyweek.I knew this was going to be my life’s work. There was no question of that desire for sure. Iwas so into this ministry that it took precedent over anything else I was doing. They toldme I was good playing football, and softball, and basketball. I was even in the schoolband, but my thoughts were on learning the Bible. And I couldn’t concentrate on playingsports and playing in the band.Dad was always careful about pushing me into ministry. As a matter of fact, he was veryquiet about this. He let me preach and teach to see if that is what I desired to do. Idecided I would go to Seminary at Arlington, Texas.I told my girlfriend since the 10th grade that I would go to Seminary and then we wouldget married when I finished school. But first I wanted to get my training to preach andlearn the Bible.My dad had a heart attack in 1964 and for a time was unable to preach, so I oftenpreached for him. He finally got better and preached, but in February 1966 he hadanother heart attack and died in two weeks. The members asked me to become thePastor of the church. I was no Spurgeon who pastored at 18. I said I needed to go tocollege for more training.After my father died, I was asked by Rev Gene Arnold of the Fellowship Baptist Church inRoanoke, Virginia to come and work in the Youth Department. He asked me to preach onthe church’s radio program, and then some at the church.So did God call me to into His service? Here is what I can say. I was doing what my heartand mind, and soul and desire were telling me to do.I desired to build upon a foundation that was going to be gold, silver and precious stones.And I fully believed that this foundation was the Lord’s Work.There was this mental and spiritual tug on me then, and in these forty plus years, the tughas never left. There is no greater joy than following and knowing the Lord.CharlesPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 07:33PM (-05:00)

Wednesday, September 06, 2006HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED WHY CHURCHES CHOOSE PASTORS AND WHYPASTORS CHOOSE TO GO TO A CHURCH?

Have you ever wondered why churches choose pastors and why pastors choose to go toa church?Dr. George Norris had a class during the summer at BBS on practical circumstances that 49

we as students should know about if we were going to be preachers. Many of thestudents had just been saved two weeks before their pastor sent them off to college.

Dr. Norris invited a dozen of us students to his church on Saturdays to teach us somethings we would need to know about ministry. This was not even a school class. This wasa free services by a great man and theologian and pastor.One of these lessons was on visitation.(this is a fundamental term for visiting people intheir homes sometime during the week or on Thursday night ( This also could be a termwhich means "Soul Winning.") "Do you men know how you are going to build the churchthat you are going to pastor?", Dr. Norris asked. This was in 1965. As an efficientlyseasoned student I was to speak up and say I knew. So we were sent out into thehighways and byways in the community around the Gideon Baptist Church of Fort Worthto enlist people, or take a survey as to who we could get as prospective members. Thisgave me an opportunity to show my stuff.The following Saturday, in our class, Dr. Norris commented on our project of gettingprospective members. He said "I want to give you an example how not to take a survey."And he used me as an example. I guess I was not ready for the pastorate.This was a life savor for us, because as a whole we were really clueless.. I do rememberthat he did encourage us to start a church from scratch. I wish I had taken his advice.This was the norm for fundamentalism. Start a church. Ask God where He wants you togo, and go, start knocking on doors, win souls, and hang out a sign and go to it. Amenbrother.There have been many very successful men who have accomplished this tasksuccessfully. And this is wonderful. My father-in-law Robert "Bob" Temple started theVictory Baptist Church in West Portsmouth, Ohio.Instead of starting a church in Roanoke, Virginia, where I thought about, I took the adviceof my and Charity’s friend Linda Clark Shelton., and we went to Wooster, Ohio, as aYouth Pastor. As a side note. In spite of that suggestion, we have remained life-longfriends. Her mom and dad Richard and Elizabeth Clark have also been wonderful friendsfor nearly forty years.After fourteen months, we left Wooster and went to West Porstmouth, Ohio. So whatdoes the Lord have for us to do now? We pondered this question? How are you to knowhow to discern God’s will for your life? I am after forty years trying to learn the answer tothat question.This time I didn’t ask Linda Clark. Rather we heard that there was a church in need of apastor in Minford, Ohio. I remember driving over to the church and looking into thebuilding to see if we could see what the attendance was. You do that you know. If I recall,they had twelve to come to Sunday School that Sunday in June of 1971. "Lord are youcalling us to this church?" What was I thinking? What was the presuppositional equationthat I am to use to know God’s will?I was totally clueless as to what I was doing. I knew I could preach, but that was about it.Who knew the history of this church? I was to learn this church was 150 years old andhad a history of short term preachers. But I didn’t know that when I accepted theirinvitation to preach at this church. As I found out soon, this was a GARB church, whichwas deacon run. I was certainly not prepared for this church governmentSo why would God direct us to this church, and why would God direct the people tochoose me as their pastor? I have yet to figure this out! But it’s like when you are married,it’s no longer a matter of God’s will, you are in this for eternity. Sorry, Charity, but you areattached with me until we die.Would you believe, before the month wasout, the members wanted me out. How is it thatthey prayed that the Lord would direct them to the right pastor, and they believed that Hehad, and when the pastor comes, they are ready to vote him out in the first sixth months50

he is there.How is that possible? How do people discern God’s will? I actually think people aregenuinely stupefied about this issue of God’s will. Here the church had twelve in churchthe Sunday I arrived, and in six months we had over ninety. And they asked us to leave.A vote was taken, and would you believe they said that the vote was in our favor. So westayed. Maybe we should have prayed about that decision. For the next three years, wereally had a very fruitful ministry.Today, the church is doing rather good. Some thirty years later, Randy Barkley is stilldoing the work of ministry, the bus ministry that is. He is one of the rewards of ministry inthat church.How do you know the will of God for ministry, when to stay and when to leave?

We will continue to look at this question in the next post.Thanks to those who have make comments, via e mail...

Charity proof read, and truth check, and to Alan Harris: Charity did checked the spelling.Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 07:44PM (-05:00)

Thursday, September 07, 2006WHY DO CHURCHES CHOOSE PASTORS AND PASTORS CHOOSE TO ACCEPTTHE INVITATION TO COME PT 2

I will write this article established upon my own personal experiences. I recollect theseevents in my own personal encounters. As a whole many churches are clueless as toprocedure that they should pursue in commissioning a Pastor. And I am not so confidentabout us as preachers that we do not have the identical problems.It has been my experience, that if I am to submit a résumé, I have to tailor make it for thekind of church that I am sending the application to. If I know the church is a KJV onlychurch, I am in trouble. If the church is known as a "free will" church, I am in trouble if Iaddress this issue. If this church is a soul winning/altar calling church, I am in trouble.You get the point. You might say, what is wrong with a free will, KJV, soul winning/altarcalling church? Nothing. I was raised in one of those independent fundamental Baptistchurches. But if you have changed your view points, then there will be problems. I knownot to give a résumé to a Presbyterian or a Methodist church.I have been told by some, that if you want a church, you need to make sure that yourrésumé reads good, address the right questions, is crisp statements . In other wordsdon’t be real honest.I have had some to tell me, you don’t need to mention that you are not Southern Baptist,nor GARB, or WBF, BBF, etc. You don’t need to mention that you are not KJV only.. Youdo not need to mention that you are an expostional teacher. You do not need to mentionthat you are not a door to door soul winner. And that you preach doctrinally rather thanthe fuzzy feeling kind of talking. And I am not to mention that I teach the Doctrines ofGrace, as are Spurgeon’s point of view. Just wait unto they get you as their pastor andthen share with the church.I often hear this statement: "We are seeking the pastor that God would have this churchto have, not necessarily the kind of pastor we would want" While that is a greatstatement, and one that is correct. The fact is, generally the church is not really lookingfor God’s man to do God’s work. The church is looking for their idea of what they wouldlike for God’s man to do in that church.When I accepted the pastorate at Madison Baptist, and First Baptist, or even the twoshort term pastorats of Southern Baptist Churches, the first response to our coming were 51

near disastrous, some were catastrophic. Well that point was overstated.I remember in asking the pastor’s search committee of the two SBC, "Did you pray thatGod would lead you to the pastor that He would choose." And both times they said, "Yes"Than I said, "Then why have you rejected the leadership of the pastor, whom youbelieved the Holy Spirit lead you to bring to this church?" They had no answer. Whomissed the leading of the Holy Spirit, the church or the preacher?I have read a few questionnaires. I am amazed at the questions that are asked! I am notsure that most address the biblical idea of a Pastor. I Timothy and Titus give us thequalification for a Pastor/Elder. Those alone are the best set of qualifications that achurch could follow in seeking the kind of minister that God would want for their church.And I am not sure a questionnaire answers those qualifications.So why is this procedure of selecting a pastor or staff minister so hard?Of course, the churches that are already in existence are a product of their training fromthe previous pastors and leaders.. Churches are today what they have been becoming.All churches have their idea what makes a great church. Unfortunately the church body ismade up of people with dozens of different opinions as to what makes a good church anda good minister. The local church body of members usually is a collection of asmorgasbord of folks with as many convictions as there are people in the church. Thereis rarely a First Corinthian 1:10 congregation: ""Now I beseech you, church members, bythe name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, but that there be nodivisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and inthe same judgment." (I don’t thank Paul was speaking of Baptist Churches do you?)When you ask the membership what they would like to see in the next Pastor?. There willbe as many ideologies as there are members. The membership will designate a pastorsearch committee, to search in their behalf and then when the committee submits to themtheir choice, more frequently than not they will say no. The praying of the SearchCommittee and the Membership is as if they are praying to two different Gods. Which isof course impossible.I have seen this process many times. Within a few months of the new preacher’sintroduction into the church, the church is prepared to see him depart. Generally I alwaysthink, they called him, rather than the Holy Spirit. I also hear the new preacher say, "TheHoly Spirit called me to this church." Yep! That might be true, but the membership willsay, it’s time for you to leave.I can say this same thing, in this process that the Pastor of the church selects anAssociate. Staff member. I have been employed by the Pastor, and then asked to leavewithin fourteen months, when the church desired me to stay. My mother said to me,"Charles if you are successful, as a youth pastor, you can be sure he will find a way tofire you" She was 99.9% correct.Too often I have been tooooooo electrified in going to a church to minister, enamored bythe size of the church building or the salary either as a staff pastor or the pastor. And toooften the result has not been very enjoyable.I have been often asked "How did you know that the Lord really wanted you to go to thatchurch?" My answer is generally this: "Give me a year and I will let you know if it’s beenthe Lord’s will to be here."What would make you say then, "This has been the Lord’s will that I came to First BaptistChurch of Altoona, Kansas. I have said: The Nunnenkamp/Heaton/Alana Families, TheBarnhart Family, The Busby/Frye families, The Cornwell Family, to name just a few.I remember when our associate pastor questioned my staying at the church as pastor,Allen Nunnenkamp said "Since Charles has been here as Pastor I have been saved, mywife baptized and my family been saved........" And he named reasons why he was gladthat I came as Pastor.By the way I could use the same formula for Madison Baptist Church, after 30 years since52

I was pastor, there are still some good folks still active members of that church.How do you know it’s the Lord’s will to go to a church, and then you are fired by thePastor. If the results turn out to be men and women who have ministries like Alan Harris,Dave Greegor, Bill Rinehart, David Critcher, Randy Webb, Teresa Mills. To name a few.If the Lord can use a servant, even in a very small way, to accomplish His glory, then it’sHis will for that servant to be there.I Corinthians 2:10 "But God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit: for the Spiritsearches all things, yea, the deep things of God."


Friday, September 08, 2006GENEALOGICAL DATE OF THE WHISNANT’S FAMILY.

Guillaume beget Jean and Jean Beget Estienner and Estienner beget Francois, andFrancois beget Philip Peter, and Philip Peter beget John Adam, and John Adam begetPhillip, and Phillip beget John, and John beget Ephraim, and Ephraim beget Marcus andMarcus beget Lloyd Polycarp and Lloyd beget Everette, and Everette, beget Charles,Donald, and Ellen, and and Charles beget Eric, Becky, Chad, and Kyle.... First WhisnantChapter 31:1-13

Raymond C. Whisnant, provided the Whisnants with wonderful genealogical data. Wecan go back 436 years. From Switzerland, to Germany, to Philadelphia, to NorthCaroline, to Virginia, to Kansas, now Ohio.My great-grandfather x 10 Guillaume Visinand lived in Maracon, Canton of Vaud,Switzerland before 1570. (9) Jean Visinand lived in Corsier, Switzerland, married & had 7children. (8) Estienner Visinand married to Andreaz Daunet & 3 children (7) FrancoisVisinand, lived in Switzerland, but lived in the French speaking region. Married JeannieRamus & five children. Were winemakers . (6)Philip Peter Visinand (Wisenant)Edenkoben, Germany, 1684, Moved to Philadelphia, USA in 1731. Married Anna Neff. &six children. They were members of the Reformed Church (5) John Adam Whisenhunt,(Whisanant) born in Hassloch, Germany, moved to Lancaster Country, PA, then toLincoln County, North Caroline in 1749. Married: Anna Barbara & 8 children. (4) PhillipWhisenhunt (Wisanant) born in PA in 1736 moved to NC. Served in the British Armyduring the American Revolution. Married: Mary Bohelier & eight children. Phillip had ason who took the last name spelling of Whisnant in 1769; (3) John Whisenhunt born in1736 (seven children) (2) Ephraim Whisenhunt born 1775. farmers. Married: CatherinePlantena & 5 children. (1) Marcus Eph Whisenhunt born in 1841-1903. Married: SinaHahn & 8 children. Lived in Hickory, N.C.. My grand-father Lloyd Polycarp Whisnant bornin 1883. Married: Minnie Caroline Abernathy. He was a contractor, painting buildings.Died in 1943 Then my dad Everette Thomas Whisnant born in1903. Attended WakeForest U. in 1922-25. Married: Pauline Greene. Their children were Charles, Donald andEllen . A Baptist Preacher/Pastor in North Carolina, and Virginia. Dad died in 1966. Hisson was Charles Everette Whisnant born in Virginia in 1947. Married Charity Mucha in1969 our children Eric born in 1971 in Ohio, daughter Becky born in Texas in 1976, andChad born in 1980 and Kyle born in 1984. both in Kansas..A brief history from the Whisnant’s.

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Saturday, September 09, 2006CHARITY, WIFE AND MOTHER, PASTOR'S WIFE, HOW DOES SHE DO IT?How doesCharity deal with her husband, children, and ministry, outhouses! I was telling Charity,"This blog is about our ministry over the last forty years. The last thirty-seven years it’s aministry that has definitely involved our whole family." So often we hear about thepreacher or evangelist, but little about their wives and children.As I was telling Eric about the purpose of this blog and "Eric, you need to read this post."Eric said, "Dad I have lived it." What he was saying is "I’ve been a part of this family forthirty-five years." And Chad was the one who really encouraged me to write this stuffdown.I am not sure where Charity learned to be a wife, a mother, and a Pastor’s wife, but fromthe reports from her husband, children, and church members, she has been a modelexample. (*I learned from my grandmothers, mother and mother-in-law and other godlywomen in our churches.)MY MOTHER PAULINE GREENE WHISNANTBefore I address Charity’s role in this ministry, let me say an insufficient amount of wordsabout another wonderful example of a mother, and pastor’s wife-- my mother. There arenot enough words that I could describe the beauty of my mother.Why does it take children to become adults before they can see how wonderful theirmother was when they were kids? From the beginning I was always a dad’s son. He wasmy life as a child. I modeled my whole life around dad, but it was mom who gave me life,and character and love.Mom must have been a Christian early in life. She was even going to be a preacher inthose early years, and she would have been a good one, too. When she met my dad as ayoung girl, she was already studying the Bible at College. Mom starting playing the pianofor dad in his tent meetings in North Carolina.... and she played the piano for the next fiftyyears.Mom taught me Bible stories that I still remember today. When I am preaching and thereis a story in the text, I have flashbacks of the story in my mind, the way mom used toteach.My dad was on the radio for a number of years, and mom was very active with dad . Shewas a distinguished writer and an excellent singer. (When I get my research completeabout dad and mom I will write a better article) Mom was like Charity-- never grouchyabout going wherever dad went. And dad was always going somewhere, pastoring thischurch and then another church, or starting this church, and then moving to another city.And mom would go with him.I must have been my dad’s child. Because since we have been in ministry, we havemoved a dozen plus times over the last thirty-seven years. Charity doesn’t know howlong we will be in any given church. As I look back over the years, it was just acceptedthat where the Lord called we would go. When we left a church to go to another place,Charity just went.YELLOW CORVAIR MONZA, HAWKIN'S GROCERY, In 1968 I was the youth pastor at achurch in Fort Worth, and dating Charity. "Charity I think we will go to Gideon BaptistChurch" "Okay." Charity said. And it’s been that way most of the time. ‘Honey, I think wewill go to Wooster Baptist Temple (Ohio) to be the Youth Pastor. Linda Clark (Shelton)said it’s a good church. Charity said, "Okay."54

The year was 1970. Charity had a 1965 yellow Corvair Monza and we took off from FortWorth to Wooster. Before we arrived, there was no heat in the car, and the brakes hadgone out by the time we pulled up into the church’s parking lot. It was really cold andsnow was on the ground. We found out that the preacher cut our salary in half evenbefore we started. I worked part time at Hawkin’s Grocery Store for a while, until I feltlead to quit and work at the church by faith. The next week, Charity tells me she isexpecting a child. ERIC BORN DURING A BLIZZARD In February, in Wooster we had ablizzard, and wouldn’t you know it Eric was born on the 10th in 1971 in the middle of a bigsnowy blizzard. (*Charity’s note: Charles took another job with a man in our church,knocking down an old Amish barn. He did not have suitable clothes for the freezingnorthern Ohio weather, but he went everyday to provide for our family.) Then a couplemonths later, I tell Charity, we need to leave. "Where are we going?" Charity said. "I donot have any idea!" That always sounds good to a wife and mother with a tiny baby.So off we go to West Portsmouth, Ohio, in March 1971 and thanks to her mom and dadwe had a place to stay. We stayed over the Pizza Shop, where her mom and dad owneda pizza business. Eric learned to sleep over the sound of pizza pans banging below.FIRST PASTORATE AND THE CHURCH'S OUTHOUSE AND THE DEACON'SOh! A job! I checked out several churches in the area, and finally decided to try out atMadison Baptist Church in Minford Ohio, not far from West Portsmouth in June of 1971. Itwas a decent cinder block building, no running water, and two outhouses in the back. (*That is where the Lord taught me a valuable lesson while painting the outhouse fences.Sharon Vest painted the men’s fence and I painted the women’s fence. I was "MissPicky" and was determined to do a perfect job. Sharon got the job done an hour before Idid. So what if there were some paint drips on the grass! Once it was mowed whatdifference did it make? LESSON: You don’t have to be a perfectionist about everything.Do the best you can and in some areas, Good enough is good enough.) And twelvepeople voted for us to come to pastor, and they were willing to pay me five dollars aweek. Plus a house that was owned by one of the deacons. So Charity and I and Eric goto Minford.WHY CHURCHES CALL PASTORS, AND WHY PREACHERS GO TO THE CHURCH?Really, things were going well for the first six months. Charity got a job at her aunt Betty’spizza shop, and I took Eric in his baby carrier and set him on the front pew of the churchwhile I preached on Wednesday night. Thanks to Sharon Vest and her mom and dad,Everett Vest, for taking care of us for the next few years. GOODYEAR ATOMIC PLANT,SHARON VEST By June 1971 the deacons wanted us to leave the church, and when thechurch members said no, the deacon’s family left and kicked us out of their house. How’sthat for ministry, and at your very first pastorate. Why preachers stay after something likethat, I have little or no clue. "Now what, Charles?" Charity said, I think. Here we have thisfour month old boy and no place to live! (*During this time, the Holy Spirit blessedMatthew 6:19-34 to my beginning to learn & grow to trust the Lord to supply our everyneed.) I got a job driving the Minford High School Bus. Then in the summer I became aninsurance salesman for Mutual Of Omaha.. Charity started to work at the GoodyearAtomic Plant in Piketon. And Sharon Vest took care of Eric. We found a house in Minfordand were there for a three years.. Then we moved into Portsmouth. Really we had agood ministry at Madison for three years. We have had some life-long friends from thatchurch, even today we rejoice that the church is doing great.Now let us see, Fort Worth, Wooster, West Portsmouth, Minford, Porstmouth, all in threeyears. Charity is still dangling in there. Do you wonder why preachers’ wives wouldn’t liketo leave their husbands? Why they wouldn’t encourage their husbands to get into anotherprofession? CHARITY'S CHALLENGESWhile I was having a great time preaching, not realizing the hardship this was on Charity.What I didn’t realize was that the difficulty at the church, was precipitating Charity’s 55

emotions. Although I was overlooking plenty of the challenges at the church, Charity wastaking all this personally. Charity was never going to get personally involved in thechallenges with the people. Often in churches, the pastor’s wife will try to run interferencefor the pastor, and cause more trouble. Wives leave their husbands or harass them untiltheir husbands leave the ministry. And in many cases, do you blame them?This was our third stop in ministry, and many more yet to come, but at this point Charityand Eric were doing okay, and we are now getting ready to discover the next place ofministry the Lord has for us in 1974. That will be for the next time...... IS THERE AMESSAGE HERE?Is there a message here? How could we have averted all this in the first place? What kindof training could we have taken that would have avoided our experiences?What kind of advice would I give young preachers and his wife about ministry? What kindof advice would I give preachers before they accept a call to a church to be their pastor orbe on the staff?How should Bible Colleges and Seminaries and churches give advice to new preachershow to contend with ministry in churches?I was totally clueless about pastoring people I guess. I definitely believed I was equippedto do ministry, and I wish somehow we could have been able to communicated better.What I can say is this. Many of the ideas and planning that I had hoped to see happen atMadison, and was the cause of unsettledness, subsequently after I left, those very thingswere implemented by the church.I can’t say that I really believed the Lord wanted us to go or not to go to Madison BaptistChurch, or any other church we have been to. The issue was that I wanted to be inministry and preach the gospel of Jesus Christ.I had hypothesized, not really, I imagined I was prepared for ministry because of thesuccess we had in my father’s church. I had seen my dad and mom, they were anillustration of good parents. And dad was a prototype pastor. My mom was a great momand pastor’s wife. Even to this day, I believe that.

This article’s events ended June 1974. Charity and I were still married. Eric is three yearsold. Charity is working still at the A Plant. My mother and sixteen year old sister havecome to live with us. And I am looking for a place to nevertheless minister in anotherchurch.

*Charity's comments


Sunday, September 10, 2006WAYS PAUL DID NOT PREACH WHEN HE CAME TO TOWN

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1Th 2:3 For our exhortation was not of deceit, nor of uncleanness, nor in guile::4 But aswe were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not aspleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts.5 For neither at any time used weflattering words, as ye know, nor a cloke of covetousness; God is witness::6 Nor of mensought we glory, neither of you, nor yet of others, when we might have beenburdensome, as the apostles of Christ.:7 But we were gentle among you, even as anurse cherisheth her children:8 So being affectionately desirous of you, we were willing tohave imparted unto you, not the gospel of.ESV 1 Thess. 2:2-83 For our appeal does not spring from error or impurity or any attempt to deceive, 4 butjust as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, notto please man, but to please God who tests our hearts. 5 For we never came with wordsof flattery,as you know, nor with a pretext for greed—God is witness. 6 Nor did we seekglory from people, whether from you or from others, though we could have madedemands as apostles of Christ. 7 But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mothertaking care of her own children. 8 So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were readyto share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you hadbecome very dear to us.1A OUR EXHORTATION WAS NOT BASED ON A DELUSIONS: 3a James 5:19-20He did not allow for sloppy preaching: 2 Timothy 2:15He did not manipulate the Scripture for homiletical elegance.He did not twist the Scripture to fit his alliteration.He preached the Scriptures as the text set them forth.Jas 5:19 Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him;:20 Let himknow, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul fromdeath, and shall hide a multitude of sins.2Ti 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to beashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.2A OUR EXHORTATION WAS NOT FROM ANY IMPURE MOTIVES OR PRACTICE 3b1 Thess 4:7He preached spirtiually clean. Isa 52:11Water flows through pipes and if the pipe is rusty, the water may flow, but there will bediscoloration and sediment and the water will taste of the pipe,.Water will taste of the pipe.The Gospel needs to flow from a clean, right, holy human channelWhen the messdenger is false the message will not taste right.

1Th 4:7 For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.Isa 52:11 Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch no unclean [thing]; go ye outof the midst of her; be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the LORD.

3A OUR PREACHING WAS NOT IN GUILE, FULL OF TRICKS. 3cPaul ws not two-faced. He was and believed what he preached4A HIS PREACHING WAS NOT DESIGNED TO PLEASE MEN: 4bHe did not deliberately antagonized people, nor go out of his way to offend people.But it wasn’t Paul’s ambition to plese men. Gal. 1:10One of the occupational hazards of the ministry is criticism.Thin skinned men don’t need to apply....You can not get people to like you. Eph. 6:6-7Eph 6:6 Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the willof God from the heart;:7 With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men:Ga 1:10 For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet 57

pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.5A HIS PREACHING DID NOT CONTAIN FLATTERING WORDS. Vs 5 Acts I corin 2:1-5, 2 Peter 2:3 Romans 16:17-1The preaching of Paul did not in any manner take advantage of the people.He did not use crowd psychology, nor swaying people.He did nothing to gain the upper hand for his own personal needs.He stated the facts, told the truth, compliment people honestly, reported accurately andthat is honest and flattery1Co 2:1 And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or ofwisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.:2 For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.:3 And I was with you inweakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.:4 And my speech and my preaching [was]not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and ofpower::5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.2Pe 2:3 And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise ofyou: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumberethnot.Rom 16:17 Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offencescontrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.18 For they that are suchserve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fairspeeches deceive the hearts of the simple.6A HIS MINISTRY WAS NOT USED AS A HIDDEN WITH FALSE PRETENSE vs. 5bThere was no cover up of aim to gain moneyThere was no pretext. Acts 20:33, Luke 12:15 Col. 3:5Rather Paul was content in mind, in heart. 2 Corin 1:23, Rom 1:9 Rom 9:1

Ac 20:33 I have coveted no man's silver, or gold, or apparel.Luke 12:15 And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man'slife consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.Col 3:5 Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication,uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which isidolatry:2Co 1:23 Moreover I call God for a record upon my soul, that to spare you I came not asyet unto Corinth.Ro 1:9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, thatwithout ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers;Ro 9:1 ¶ I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in theHoly Ghost,

7A HIS MINISTRY DID NOT SEEK HONOUR FROM MEN. 6aIt is spiritual suicide for any servant to seek glory. Isa 42:8 Psa. 29:2you give the Lord the Glory, the credit and the praise that is due to Him.It is not our due, nor our glory. Psa. 115:1 John 12:42-43Isa 42:8 I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neithermy praise to graven images.Ps 29:2 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in thebeauty of holiness.Ps 115:1 Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy,and for thy truth's sake.Joh 12:42 Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but becauseof the Pharisees they did not confess [him], lest they should be put out of thesynagogue::43 For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.58

8A HE DID NOT SEEK PRAISE OF HIS MEMBERS 6bHe did not come to be gush over. Jer 45:5 Matt 6:33He didn’t seek any credit and glory any plaudits any adulation from you.Glory, recognition, credit came from Christ

Jer 45:5 And seekest thou great things for thyself? seek [them] not: for, behold, I willbring evil upon all flesh, saith the LORD: but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in allplaces whither thou goest.Mt 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these thingsshall be added unto you.

9A HE DID NOT DESIRE TO BE KNOWN 6cThis is by far the most tempted.....The desire to be known, to have prestige, to be famous, to hae top billing #1 draft pick. 1Corin 4:6Yes we want people to think well of us, not overestimate us.Most never sell themselves short. We sell other people short. Phil 2:6-71Co 4:6 And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and [to]Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think [of men] above that which iswritten, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another.Php 2:6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God::7 Butmade himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made inthe likeness of men:10A HE DID NOT USE HIS POSITION TO MAKE DEMANDS 6dHe could have thrown his spiritual weight around but he didn’t. (Tent-making)

11A HE WAS A GENTLE AMONG THE PEOPLE vs. 7 I Tim 2:23-262Ti 2:23 But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes.2Ti 2:24 And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all [men], apt toteach, patient,25 In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if Godperadventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;:26 And [that]they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by himat his will.


Monday, September 11, 2006WE ARE THE CONSEQUENCE......... OF WHAT? OF WHO? OF WHAT MOVEMENT?

How do you know that your last forty-five years have been within the will of God? Howcan you believe that "you have fought a good fight, you have run a good race?" Can youhave some assurance that even this day you are running a good race for the Lord JesusChrist?How in all our failures and sinfulness that occur in our life, can we still have a sense thatwe are doing the purpose of the Lord? Even when you desire to be sufficiently holy inyour love for the Lord?When I look back over the last 44 years since1964, in my mind I have pleasant thoughtsabout the work that the Lord has allowed us to do.

The path that Charity and I have trekked (Star Trek) I unquestionably believe wasperformed in the best reasonable motives that we knew at the time. 59

We are a product of our peers before us. Our actions have to come from somewhere, wehad to be taught by somebody. We are a product of those before us who have taught us.We are the result of both the custom and the essence of what we were taught. I am aproduct of my dad, first of all, he was my model. I am a product of the Youth Camps Iwent to every summer for years. Bob Levin, evangelist who brought home the need forChristians to be holy and right before God. Lester Roloff gave me a sense that the Wordof God was the most important book to read. M.R. DeHaan, radio program gave me asense of application to the Word of God. Oliver B. Greene was a daily in our home onradio for most of my early teen life. I was thrilled when I was able to meet him in person.Those historical fundamentalists were the best example that I could have ever had.I saw ministry and Christian living through the eyes of those great giants of the faith. Icertainly wanted to be an illustration of what I believed they characterized. Their voicesare still in my head as I write this article. I am eternally indebted for their influence in mylife.

I remember hearing Evangelist Wayne Swearingen preaching on "I Am Crucified WithChrist." It changed my life totally. Bob Harrington, when he first began preaching gave methe excitement for Christ that still rings in my heart and soul today. Bob Barber, and hisdad, were a great influence in my early years. They modify my life’s thinking andbehavior.When I arrived as Pastor at Madison Baptist Church, I was well equipped to be a greatpastor. This was the idea that we were led to believe. It’s my personal belief that thoseecommendations of church ministry would have achieved good success. Sometimes thefight exhausts your spirit and body.After resigning the church in June of 1974, we prayed for our next journey.Maybe too often in this down period of time, your decision making might be a littledifficult. Now at this point we had little knowledge as to what we were going to do.Charity’s dad suggested that we help him. Consequently in July of 1974 we becameYouth Pastor and Minister of Education.Springing back from Madison’s experience, we began a ministry at Victory BaptistChurch, in West Portsmouth. The church was completing the last stages of a new churchbuilding. Forthwith the building was finished and the congregation began to grow. BobTemple and I were a good team. In just over a year of ministry later the church had grownto over 200 people. Bob and I were doing what we were taught in Seminary and thechurch was growing and folks were being saved. The Sunday School was teaching andtraining young people and adults, and reaching out in the community to reach boys andgirls on the bus ministry. .Charity and I were training teachers how to be teachers andwere developing a great youth department and Sunday School. This church was beingblessed, visitors were coming every Sunday. In over a year the youth department hadover two hundred first time visitors. We were seeing the hand of the Lord on this place. .Isn’t it funny, amusing, hilarious, whimsical, humorous (not really) that good resultsshould bring about an appreciative church body of Believers. This was not to be theposition of many of the people in the church. When the church body has the idea thatthey possess the spiritual ability to discern what is good for the church leadership, thatsupersedes that of the leadership, then the fellowship is distracted from doing the work ofthe ministry.

Following a series of comments from discontented members, I decided to resign myposition in the church. Why do we do that? How do we see this action being the will ofGod? Personally I do not believe the will of God was for me to resign. Yet the church said"Well, if that is what you desire, it’s okay we us." It was wrong in my opinion, but mythought was, if I am the trouble in this church I would resign. I was hoping that the church60

would say otherwise, this was not to be.I resign and Charity tell me she is pregnant.. Has this not happened before? I must saythis event became the lowest point of my ministry. I was just one step away from saying,"Lord, I give up!"I do not understand what kept me functioning in ministry. I know at this depressed point Iwas ready to bail out altogether..... defeated, disappointed, disillusioned, disheartened.Humbled.Writing this today, my emotions are swelling up in me. The emotions of that day are aslively in my spirit as then. Why? If there had been failure in the performance of my work, Icould have lived with that. If there had been personal moral failure, or I had abusedCharity or Eric, then I could have lived with it. But that was not the argument.Parents of the young people were essentially the cause of the discontentment with mywork. This has always been the cause. Parents are the number one problem, whether it’swith the school, the ball team, or the church youth department. This point in itself couldengender a whole long post.At this point many preachers, and young pastors, quit and leave the ministry all together.Discouragement sets in and you just want to say, "forget this."

As I write this article, knowing what is about to occur in the coming year of 1975, is noteasy to remember. 9/11 all over again.So when do you know it’s time to quit? You do take ministry personally.

Isa 40:31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew [their] strength; they shall mountup with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; [and] they shall walk, and notfaint.

It’s never, never time to quit! It may be time to quit a church, but it is never time to quitserving the Lord.


Tuesday, September 12, 2006THE INWARD FORCE IN ONE’S SPIRIT THAT KEEPS THEM GOING

In October 1975, after resigning Victory Baptist Church, and having not been invited topastor a church in West Carrollton, Ohio (The vote was 48 to 49). I was absolutely at a 61

point that I was resolved not to continue to do ministry.For some reason, which I can’t remember, I left for Fort Worth, Texas. I went alone,leaving Charity and Eric in West Portsmouth. Charity had a great job at the A Plant. Iwent to seek a secular job and to find a place to live. Where was my head?. Those earlymonths in Texas were no pleasure. I will forgo some of the unfortunate happenings thattook place early in 1975. I secured a good job and a place to stay in Grapevine, Texas.Charity left a good job and she and Eric flew to Texas to join me. On February 10th 1976Becky was born, on Eric’s 5th birthday. For the fun of it I obtained a second job. Twoforty- hour jobs.Truly at this point in time, I was just satisfied to work at a secular job. And the reason Iwent to church was that I had a continued streak of a lifetime of not missing church.Otherwise I might have just stayed home.Bob and Lenore came down to visit us and see their new granddaughter Becky. Whilethey were there, Bob went to FBC of Haltom City , and he knew the pastor, Bro.M.M.Mosley. Bob mentioned to Bro. Mosley about my circumstance. That week M. M. Mosleycame over to our apartment and simply asked, "Charles will you preach for me SundayNight?" To this point, I really had no thought of ever preaching again.Now the question becomes "Should I have taken a review of my belief that God had leadme to preach and work in ministry?" {Other than finally coming to FBC in Altoona, KansasI would say that I should have terminated this mission.} Scripture says "Examine yourselfto see if you are of the faith!" Could this not also be for ministry as well?Those words "Will you preach for me Sunday Evening?", hit me straight in my spirit, andwithout thought I said, "Yes." What had I done? That was an instantaneous response.That was an instant healing of spirit.That following Sunday Evening I parched in the First Baptist Church. The Pastor askedme to come over to visit with him. That week I found the opportunity to visit with him, andhe said, "Bro. Charles, I need a Minister of Education." "But at this time I can’t pay you."What was I thinking here. I have two full- time secular jobs, eighty hours a week, and Bro.Mosley wants me to be the Minister of Education. What was he thinking, what was Ithinking?"OK Bro. Mosley, when do I start?" I am speculating what have I done! Have I misplacedmy mind? "You can start this week" was the reply.Bro. Mosley said, "Bro Charles, I want you to organize our whole Sunday School, andteach our teachers." I think Bob Temple must have told him what we had done at VictoryBaptist Church.For the next six months we were privileged in working for the church. I had a great time inre- organizing the whole Sunday School program and teaching the teachers. Bro. Mosleywas supportive 100% in our work in the church.Today September 12, 2006 I called to speak with Bro. Mosley, and his wife answered thephone, "Mrs. Mosley, I am Charles Whisnant, I was the Minister of Education of yourchurch in 1975"Only thirty-one years ago. Do you remember me.? And after a while she did, And thenshe said that Bro. Mosley had passed away in February of this year. He was 83 years oldand still preaching at the church. His youngest son, who is a year younger than I ispastoring the church. He is now with the Lord, and I remarked to Mrs. Mosley, "The Lordused your husband to speak to my spirit and as a result I was not a drop-out in ministry."One in ten men who are in ministry will not be in ministry in ten years from now.While in Grapevine, I really had two good jobs that I enjoyed working. Had I now foundmy place to work? This could be really good.Sometimes you wonder why you make the decisions you do in this life. I still shake myhead in wonderment at some of the decisions I made. After all I was 28 years old andCharity was 27. We had two children. I was smart, intelligent and perspicacious. No, not62

really, but I just couldn’t get this idea of preaching out of my mind. We had a wonderfulsix months, and my spirit was again lifted up. Ready for the next assignment. Wereceived a call from Dr. Thomas Leatherwood, Mansfield Baptist Temple.

Ohio State #1 in Football NASCAR the Chase in on Viewed and corrected by my lovelywife.


Wednesday, September 13, 2006PLEASANT VALLEY RANCH AND THE BLIZZARD OF 1976.HOW DO YOU KNOW YOU HAVE BEEN CALLED BY THE LORD TO PREACH ANDBE IN MINISTRY?

Charles Spurgeon gave several ways to examine if you have really been lead of the Lordto be in the ministry. From Spurgeon’s book: Lectures to My Students, which I have readseveral times.1A There will be an "intense, all absorbing desire for the work."2A There will be an "aptness to teach and some measure of the other qualities needfulfor the office of a public instructor... If a man be called to preach, he will be endowed withthe ability, which he will cultivate and increase."3A There will be "a measure of conversion-work going on under his efforts."4A There will be "as a needful proof of your vocation that your preaching should beacceptable to the people of God.... God usually opens doors of utterance to those whomhe calls to speak in His name." * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * *LOOKING BACK ON MINISTRYI am not sure if returning to those yester years is a benefit or not (The Lone Ranger) I amcertainly delighted I am on this side, rather than on the other side ready to enter into thenext phase of life.THE YEAR 1976 LIVING IN GRAPEVINE, TEXAS.I left off yesterday with the statement" I was smart, intelligent and perspicacious" I wasjust being humorous. That word "perspicacious" means "keen and smart" But afterthinking through this post today, and talking to Charity, I need to find an antonym forperspicacious which is stupid. I was twenty-seven years old, I should have been smartenough, experienced enough. Nevertheless the idea of getting back into ministryovercame any negative thinking. 63

We received a call from Dr. Tommy Leatherwood, from the Mansfield Baptist Temple inMansfield Ohio. "Charles, I would like for you to come to Mansfield and be on our staffand be the Camp Director of Pleasant Valley Ranch." Now that was exhilarating to thinkwe were invited to come to Mansfield.KNOWING WHEN TO GO AND KNOWING WHEN TO STAY! Sometimes I think there isa problem with this process that we go through in the ministry. When you are anIndependent Baptist you are indeed eccentric, an individualist, a non-conformist, and self-reliant And it seems most of the time a maverick, and I am not talking about JamesGarner.I have two great jobs that I am working at, and the work at FBC in Haltom City is goingvery well. I love preaching and teaching, but when I get this call from T.L., I am ready tomove.Looking forward to the possibility of working as a Camp Director it seemed at the time agreat opportunity for me, looking backward on this opportunity it was an experience ofboth hurt and blessings.HOW DO YOU KNOW WHEN IT’S THE LORD’S DIRECTION TO ENTER INTO A NEWOPPORTUNITY OF MINISTRY? Should I have stayed in Grapevine Texas?. Bro. Mosleystayed at FBC in Haltom City until he died in 2006.Sometimes you are in the position to make a decision and in that moment you make achoice that you fully believe is right. However, when you get into that ministry, youcertainly think differently. I had always prided myself in thinking I could make gooddecisions. You would think by now, I would have had little confidences in any decisions.Just note the decision to go to Wooster, or Minford, or even Victory. While I would saythey were very good ministries, in the final analysis or upon the examination orinvestigation of the events that were to follow, you would say, "Why did I believe I was ledto go there?"What are the evidences that would make any sense that you made right choices?Humanly speaking?John MacArthur says, "To know the will of God, sometimes it’s after you have been therefor a while that will determine His will." If you look at the ministries at Wooster, Madisonor Victory, you would conjecture the ministries were very successful. But then uponfurther examination, because I left because of the will of the Pastor, or church members,you would say differently.I have said, "I will leave, but it’s not the will of the Lord that I do." I did not really want toleave any of those ministries. Too many good things happened while in those ministriesnot to think we were in the Lord’s will for our lives.Why after a near collapse of the belief that I was to be in ministry, did I jump back into itat FBC of Haltom City? I am glad I did because my confidence was raised back up to thepoint I believed the Lord wanted me in ministry again. And this time I was leaving on myown free will.So now we are going to move to Mansfield, Ohio, with little money for gas, or moving. Wewere leaving a good job, a good ministry, and a good place to live.... we move toMansfield.When we arrived at Mansfield, we discovered that we were going to live in the upstairsthat was in the gym on the Ranch. We learned that our salary was about $50.00, and Iwas going to have to go to work another job as well. Thank the Lord for Adam Giess, whogave me a job in his business of siding houses. This was going to be a very difficultministry from the first day I arrived to the day I left the Camp Ministry.At the time I had little reason to comprehend this was going to turn out an awful ministry.To me at the time, this was an experience of a life time. This was a large, respectedchurch, a pastor well admired by many, and I was personally appreciative to be workingfor him and the church. And as a matter of fact in spite of the experience, I still love T.L.64

and the church. I had the time of my life, preaching at the church and sitting on theplatform with some great preachers. I thought I was on the top of the world in ministry.The ministry of being a Camp Director was short lived due to the fact that T.L. left thechurchFollowing Bro. T.L. leaving the church after twenty-five years of ministry, we stayed in thechurch and were asked by the next Pastor, Richard Folger to teach the Young SingleAdult Class. While we continued to work for Adam Giess, we had a wonderful timeteaching the young adult class. Randy Webb, was in our class. He was a young man whohad a great desire for the ministry at the camp and has to this day, been a good friend.He has some good stories to tell. The Lord has taken him through the fire and back, buthe keeps fighting back, and we are thankful for him and his family.Charity has put up with me now for seven years, (1969-1976). We have moved a numberof times, from Fort Worth, to Wooster, Ohio to West Portsmouth, to Minford, toPortsmouth, to Grapevine, Texas, and to Perrysville, Ohio and now Mansfield, Ohio. Andwe are still 28 years old. Oh Lord.....Now we have been in a lot of places in houses and apartments. Oh my! At the Ranch wemoved from the ranch’s gym building to the old ranch house. In the winter of 76-77 thesnow was the worst in Mansfield’s history. We were snowed in for a month. During oneblizzard we lost all heat in the house. Thinking we could hold out for a while in the house,we gathered all the blankets we could to keep warm. We would have died had it not beenfor the caretakers on the Camp, who were able to secure some heat and we stayed withthem. Thank goodness we survived the snow. Eric was six and Becky was a year old inFeb 77.With all this said, if My God, in His Wisdom and Will, has Chosen this experience for usfor His Glory, then we will give Him glory.Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 07:05PM (-05:00)

Thursday, September 14, 2006PLEASANT VALLEY RANCH AND COLLEGE AND CAREER CLASS

The experience as Camp Director at Pleasant Valley Ranch, in Perrysville, Ohio

Since I had worked with youth for years, and having been to church youth camp manytimes, I was looking forward to this ministry. PVR was a ministry of Mansfield BaptistChurch, and this was their first year in this ministry. We were on the ground floor and Iwas their first Camp Director. All this was a real challenge indeed for us.Shortly after arriving at the Camp, Charity and I were able to go to THE WILD’S, a youthcamp ministry in North Caroline. Ken Hay was the director. We had a wonderful time for aweek of training in the camp ministry.Our first Ranch Schedule was for the summer of 1977, on this 278 acres of land andplenty of wooded area for trails and hiking and evening campfires. We spent a lot ofhours planning for a great summer of camp.I personally enjoyed hiking in the wooded area of the Ranch and helping set up the CampSchedule. The Ohio World Baptist Fellowship started using Pleasant Valley Ranch astheir main camp. That first year, Troy Todd was the director and he directed the camp forthe next twenty plus years.My brother Don Whisnant, scheduled a week of camp for his youth group. He was aYouth Pastor at Calvary Baptist in Rittman, Ohio. We had a great week.Dave Adams and his wife Becky, whom I went to High School with in Roanoke Virginiacame down to the Camp with a group from Liberty Baptist College.One of my camp buddies was Randy Webb, a young man who really loved the camp life. 65

He and I had a great time around the camp fire. Randy is now in Mississippi, and we arestill good friends. Randy was one of my main assistants when I was teaching the YoungSingle Adult class at Mansfield Baptist Temple.

One of the most gratifying experiences that we had was teaching the College and CareerClass I still have a paper that we published, we called "The Searchers" One of the articlesI had was:

• ARE WE GROWING AS CHRISTIANS?Learning to believe His WordLearning to trust His DirectionLearning to see His working in our livingLearning to plant seeds (love, time, concern, money) that will reap eternal resultsLearning to thank Him for blessingsLearning to live by God’s eternal principlesLearning to live this life that will resemble the life in the Kingdom of God

•Our class staff officers were: in April 1978Sunday School - Frank Donato Unit/Outreach -Randy WebbActivity/Mission - Steve Donato and Debbie Faugle Secretary - JoAnn PWe averaged about thirty each Sunday, and what joy we had teaching and workingwith each one of the young men and women.

•Ministry to this age group is critical if you want to see them continue in church.Those in their 20's then and now in 2006 drop out at a 90% rate.


Thursday, September 14, 2006CHURCH NEWS PUBLICATION , BASEBALL CARDS, BASKETBALL CARDS,NASCAR CARS, AND WHEATIES BOXES

I really enjoy collecting and keeping stuff, I guess. I have enjoyed accumulating baseballcards from my earlier days. Collecting baseball cards started before I was a ten yearsbecause I was always a baseball fan -- the New York Yankees, always. Mickey Mantle,Bobby Richardson, Tony Kubek, Yogi Berra, Don Larson, Bill Skowron Tom Tresh, ElstonHoward, Roger Maris, Hank Baur, Bob Turley, Whitey Ford, Ken Boyer, Casey Stengall. Ihad all their cards. Yes I had the #311 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle. The #254 1951Bowman Mantle..... And those from 1957 to 1966. That was the year I went to college.When I went away to college, I left Danville, Virginia and went to Arlington, Texas. I leftmy cards with mom. Actually at this point, I was more interested in Bible College thanbaseball cards. Mom had moved from Danville to Portsmouth, Ohio. I really never gavemuch thought about those cards. Sometime later, mom said she had kept all those cardsfor years, but then one day she just threw them away. This is a true story. Remember,Charity does the truth research on these articles.When I was pastoring Madison Baptist Church, I read in a magazine a list of the top 100Sunday Schools in America. I had this idea of writing these churches to ask for some oftheir material. I wrote over 100 churches, and you know, over 85 churches sent me their66

church weekly or monthly papers. They kept on doing this for years. I carefullyalphabetized and categorized all these papers. Over the next five years, there were over16,000 papers. When we moved to Cedar Lake, Indiana, Charity had just had enough ofthis, and she set all these papers outside for the garbage collector. And in a day theywere all gone. That was the end of all those church papers.If I was not collecting papers, I was collecting books. Yes, I carefully alphabetized andcategorized all of them, at FBC in Altoona, I had over 3000 books. When we werenewlyweds, our earthly possessions consisted of our clothes, dishes and pots and pansand thirty-two boxes of books! I also kept just about every piece of paper that I printed inAltoona, and kept them in file folders. Did I think there was going to be a Whisnant Librarysomeday? I had over 200 folders each containing material of Sunday School and Churchprograms. I left almost all of those books in Altoona. I did keep my technical andreferences books.When I left Altoona, I had 100 plus three ring 1" & 1 ½ " binders with Bible and studylessons. All carefully arranged and identified.

In 1995, I rediscovered collecting Baseball and Basketball cards. In one of my earlierposts I tell the story of my trip with Chad to the auction where I bought a mint of baseballcards. And I believe the story mentions why I re-entered the collecting of cards. I washooked on collecting. Kansas City at this time had a lot of great Sport Card Shops. Eric,Chad, and Kyle liked going to these places to seek out the latest cards. For the first time Idiscovered what was inside a Wal- Mart or K Mart. Prior to this I would usually sit in thecar while Charity would go into the stores. Now I checked out the Baseball Cards.. Wecouldn’t take a trip without looking for a place that sold sports cards. We looked for FleaMarkets. Every time we would come to Portsmouth to visit Charity’s mom and dad, on theway out of town, we would stop and buy a box of baseball cards.My friend Allen Barnhart, who was a member of our church in Altoona, Kansas, had ahobby of racing cars on a dirt track. Allen also was a big Dale Earnhardt, Sr. fan. Thusbegan my enjoyment of NASCAR and Dale Earnhardt, Sr., and my collection ofNASCAR.If I remember correctly, I was in a grocery store in Fredonia Kansas, and I saw aWheaties Box that had Dale Earnhardt, Sr. picture on the box.or it might have beenMichael Jordan..... the beginning of collecting Wheaties Boxes. I collected a few while inAltoona, but it was when I arrived in Lexington, Kentucky that the collecting of NASCARand WHEATIES BOXES really began.What started out as a very small collection of memorabilia, a few Wheaties Boxes,several 1000 baseball cards, which could be stored in our apartment’s closet grew whenwe moved to our house on Ashland Avenue, I was able to have my own Sport’sMemorabilia Room. (I wish I had the ability to put some of the pictures I have on theseposts, but I don’t.)During this period of time, ( which I will at a later time write about) , I started collectingmemorabillia. Mostly NASCAR 1/64 or 1/24 die cast cars. Wheaties Boxes, and StartingLineup Sports Figures, and Sports Cards, and Hot Wheels, and Sports Magazines. (I didhave two part- time jobs to fund my little habit.... along with my full time job.)By late 1999 I had over 300 Wheaties Boxes. Truth. All carefully cataloged. I hadcollected 100's of 1/64, 1/24 NASCAR’S cars. Many Starting Lineup and HeadlinersAction Figures. My room was filled from ceiling to floor. Products that have NASCARdrivers on them I collected. Also, Kellogg Cerael Boxes with Sports people on them Icollect.I guess I should tell the WHEATIES BOX story. In Dec 1999 Charity had gone to Kroger’sand while she was checking out, she saw a lady who was Lexington Herald-Leader staffwriter. She was buying a box Wheaties. Charity mentioned to her that I collected 67

Wheaties boxes. Beverly Fortune said, "I am doing a story about hobbyists collecting,could I make an appointment to visit with your husband about his collecting?" Would youever believe Beverly came and spent the next two hours visiting with me about mycollection.On Saturday, January 15, 2000, in the Lexington Herald-Leader’s Home & GardenSection of the newspaper was a full page picture and article about my WHEATIES boxesand NASCAR model cars and memorabillia. Lexington Herald-Leader has a circluation ofover 500,000.Would you believe that in the next six months, this story had gone out over the AP wire allover the United States. Yep. I received phone calls from all over the United States.Letters and pictures from people who collected Wheaties.In our move to Portsmouth, I had to rent a rental truck just for the memorabilia., and alibrary of books, papers and three ring binders.

What really caught my attention about this collecting was these posts I am writing. I wastelling Charity, "I have the church paper from FBC in Haltom City, Texas (Ft. Worth)where I was mentioned as the Minister of Education in 1975. And I have the papers fromMansfield Baptist Temple where I was Camp Director at Pleasant Valley Ranch.A few years back, I mentioned to my sister Ellen Samples, that I would like to get myMaster’s, she said that Dallas College would give credit for service rendered in ministry.Ellen suggested that I put together a binder that substantiated the places that I hadworked. So I went to work on this project and was really able to do that. From when I wasYouth Pastor at Roanoke Baptist Temple in Virginia in 1964 thru today, I can validatechurches where I have worked.So, just in case there is a Whisnant’s Library, I will have some papers to furnish at leastone room. Well, I could have all my binders of church and Bible study work. Thecollecting of sermons on cassette tapes. My stamp collection. My library books. Mybinders of Sports cards, etc. and my historical Scofield, and Dickson Bibles. And the1986 .IBM computer.Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 08:22PM (-05:00)

Saturday, September 16, 2006WHY WE SHOULD BE MOTIVATED TO STUDY AND LEARN AND SHARE?

Why should we be motivated to study and learn? We need first to have the rightmotivation as to why should you study and read? Many a good man has fallen prey tofalse compulsions and thus has lost the real or full benefit of ongoing study. For onething, your continuing study should not be motivated by the desire to gain a certainprestige. . . . Don't fall prey to that. The goal of learning is knowledge, not a status. . . .Butat the same time, sharing what you know is immense helpful to others. One motivationthat ought to persuade your study is simply the desire to comprehend. To learn the truth.To capture true and useful knowledge. There are very few times when it is okay to begreedy in life; but in learning we ought to be "greedy" to learn, because truth is God's andwe ought to want to know it. Don’t let others say, "I am dumb, I am humble for Christ."Don’t let others make you feel bad for your knowledge of truth and study. Charles"Tremendous" Jones said "The most tremendous experience of life is the leaningprocess. The saddest time is when a person thinks that he had learned enought."Additionally, we ought to be encouraged to learn in order to be a help to the body ofbelievers. Not occasion have I seen Christian ministers who, by much study, consideredthemselves very sophisticatedand "above" the average churchgoer. But not very often..But the faithful shepherd studies precisely to be a help to the people of God, however68

humble they may be. We want to learn in order to be serviceable to the body of Christ’sbelievers. Toward the same thoughts , you ought to be motivated to learn in order to behelpful to other ministers and churches. Study and read and learn so that you can be ablessing to other Gospel ministers and Bible teachers. Your knowledge is potentially ahelp and encouragement to fellow ministers wrestling with a precise area of knowledgethat they don't know so well as you. I ask Rick Warner to fill me in with his latest projecthe has been working on. He has a precise area of knowledge in his field that isstimulating. Thanks for sharing Rick. I spend some time with my brother-in-law Herscheland my sister Ellen Simpson on our vacation, and they shared the technique knowledgeabout health that was very beneficial. Not only so that you can teach your people if youpastor a church and teach a class and bear witness yourself, but also to help otherministers who don't know as much about what you now know.Maybe you'll become an expert in the Puritans, like J.I. Packer, not only so that you canbe edified through that excellent material, but also so that you can disillusion others of theconsiderable and negative mythology which encompasses this whole field of study, andintroduce ministers and other Christians to the goldmine to be found in those writings.You get my point. Be motivated to learn in order that your learning may bless the biggerbody of Christ. [All of us] can learn and bless others too. How? Ray Pritchard sends out aweekly e mail, even after he resigned as pastor, he continues to send a weekly sermon,and what he is doing. Love that. What I love most about blogging is learning what othermen are learning and studying. There is not a day that I do not log on to monergism.com.John H does a great job directing that web. Their blog Reformation has outstanding menwho write daily, what a job but what a blessing. I love teampryro.blogspot Phil Johnson’ssite. Thanks for sharing. All these people bless others with their learning. Now it's time foryou to do the same. Read up. Learn. Become a blessing and encouragement. Thanks toRandy Webb for sharing with me. Thanks for Marty Stevicks for sharing with me, andothers. Thanks to my brother Don Whisnant who shares a daily thought. (Now I mightadd here that sharing what you have been learning, rather than nonsense stuff. )So my e mail is if you have learned some new ideas, doctrine, theology, health, churchministry, etc. please share. And thanksThus, why should we investigate and learn, and comprehend? For God's glory, for ourgrowth inthe knowledge of His truth, for the blessing of the church, and to be anencouragement to other ministers and teachers . There are definitely more incentives tostudy than these. But take these as meaningful .idea for you to share what the Lord haslaid on your heart to learn.CharlesPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 06:45AM (-05:00)

Sunday, September 17, 2006SUNDAY’S NUGGET: HOW TO DISCOVER GOD’S PRINCIPLES

"More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also thanhoney and the honeycomb." Psalms 19:10

While I was pastor/teacher at First Baptist Church in Altoona, Kansas 1980-1996 I wrotethis article as part of a booklet that we gave out to our members. I have always taught,every lesson I teach, every message I preach, has a truth and a principle that you shouldbe able to write down in a sentence or two. There is a truth and a principle we need todiscover and live by.Imagine that you are a prospector searching for gold in the Nevada mountains. You’rekneeling in the pure water of a shallow stream. With your wide, saucer-shaped pan you 69

scoop up sand and pebbles from the stream bottom. Slowly, shake the pan in a side-to-side rhythm. The wet contents gently slip back into the clear water. The pan is nearlyempty when you see it. Trying to contain your emotion you move the pan ever morecarefully until you know it is the real thing; a huge gold nugget! You pick it up andexamine it closely. It is real! You’ve discovered gold!Well, back to reality! You’re not a prosecutor and you probably will never discover gold inNevada or anywhere else. You feel disappointed, but here’s some good news: You candiscover something more valuable than gold. What is it? Principles. That’s right.Principles.A principle is a central truth of God’s Word. It is fundamental to the way God wants us tolive. It is an underlying, essential truth upon which we can make proper decisions, buildour lives and enjoy the blessings of God through obedience to its teaching. Out of eachprinciple, other truths are derived. It is like a rich vein containing countless nuggets. Todiscover a principle is to discover an unlimited source of spiritual wealth. Mining from itwill make you rich in the things of God.Here is how you can discover God’s principles:LEARN TO IDENTIFY PRINCIPLES:The Bible is full of truths. But not every truth is a principle. The best way to understandthis is to take a good look at a Scripture passage which reveals one of God’s principle.An excellent example is in Galatians 6:7,8. These verses say: Ga 6:7 "Be not deceived;God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. Ga 6:8 For hethat soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spiritshall of the Spirit reap life everlasting."In these two sentences, God tells us a lot. But there is a central theme to what He has tosay. That central theme is the principle of sowing and reaping.The principle says simply: What you sow (spiritually), you will reap (spiritually). Everythingin these verses underscores this one basic truth. You can probably see this principle veryclearly. This principle works in nature. You sow beans you do not reap corn. You getbeans. You will reap exactly what you have sown. It is impossible for the opposite tooccur, for God has so ordered the physical world. He has established definite physicallaws governing the physical realm and definite spiritual laws governing the spiritualrealms. These spiritual laws are His principles."Things change." Principles are eternal and unchanging. Things may change from theexamples given in the Bible events, but the principles are unchanging. The customs maychange but the principles behind the customs do not change.What we need to ask to identify God’s principles is : What is the main thing God issaying?(What is the underlying basic truth He is communicating?) Every time you read God’sWord, search for an answer to this basic question?Sometimes the truth is right on the surface, sometime the verse only gives a "nugget" andsometimes you really have to search for the truth, but it’s there if you study and dig it out.Therefore every message that is presented by the Pastor and Teacher, there is a truthestablished and a principle to be applied in our Christian life. You should in a sentence ortwo establish the truth and the principle. On your notes you should write down that truthand principle and begin to work it out in your life.A TRUTH is God’s Word about something, and the PRINCIPLE is the way in which wecan see it work out in reality.When you discover one of God’s principles, you have found something really valuable.Don’t lose it. Perhaps you have heard of the old prospector who found a fabulously richvein of gold in the western United States, back in the day of the great old gold rush. Hebecame so excited that he ran off hurriedly to stake his claim. In his excitement he forgotto mark the spot of his discovery. When he returned from the assay office, he couldn’t70

relocate the place of his big find. Every crack in the mountain looked the same to him.Often, this same thing happens to Christians who discover God’s principles. They fail tomark the spot, and when they return to a portion of God’s Word to dig out more spiritualtruth, they can’t find the "vein" God revealed to them.There are several essential steps to take after discovering a Biblical principles. FIRST:mark your Bible in the exact place of your discovery. Your discovery marker can be astar, an asterisk, or any other simple mark you prefer, a highlighter would be good. Belowthe "discovery marker," write a key word or phrase which identifies the principle.SECOND: write a brief description of the principle. Carefully select the wording andrecord what the principle means to you and how it applies specifically to your life. THIRD:prayerfully agree with God to live according to the principle He has revealed to you.FOURTH: check up periodically to make sure you are living the principles you havediscovered and have committed yourself to live by. Knowing God’s principles withoutliving them is like living in poverty when you have unlimited reserves of cash in the bank.

•THUS KEEP IN MIND THESE THINGS:1B LEARN TO IDENTIFY PRINCIPLES: Know what you’re looking for.2B EXPECT DISCOVERY Be positive when you search the Scripture, or listen to amessage.3B STAKE A CLAIM; Make God’s principles your own. Record them, claim themthrough obedience, invest them in your life. You’ll become spiritually wealthy.

Start today

Charles & Charity Whisnant


Sunday, September 17, 2006THE CALVARY BAPTIST CHURCH STORYPART ONEWe are enjoying our ministry teaching at Mansfield Baptist Temple, while working withAdam Giess Siding Company I received a call from Willie Weaver, Pastor of CalvaryBaptist Church in Connersville, Indiana. I do not remember where he got my name.Charity and I traveled to Connersville, and visited with Willie at a restaurant. While wewere there, he hired us to come to be the Youth Pastor, Bus Director, and Children’sChurch Director.As we drove up from Mansfield and drove on to the Church’s parking lot, we were justamazed at how big the church building was. Calvary Baptist was started by HerbertFitzpatrick in 1947. When Bro Fitzpatrick was a teenager, he was in my dad’s church.When he left Connersville, he went to Maryland, and pastored the largest church inMaryland.Also Bro. A.V. Henderson was Pastor of Calvary for a few years, then he pastored theTemple Baptist Church in Detroit, Dr. J. Frank Norris’s former church.So this church had a great history up until just before we came. The church buildingswere large. At one time this church had over 1500 in attendance. Just before we came,there was a split and another group started the Connersville Baptist Temple.But as we pondered moving to Connersville, and working full time, with full time pay, wewere in awe. It was a great church, good pay, and an excellent ministry with the youth.As Youth Pastor, we were responsible over the Jr Hi, and Sr, Hi, and the College andCareer. 71

We had a great staff from the church: M/M Bill Newkirk, M/M Andy Pitcher, M/M CharlieCox and M/M Bob Milligan, and M/M Mel Martin.in our Youth Department.In our Bus Ministry we had a great staff: M/M Charlie Cox, Jim Zornes, Mike Baker,Hubert Wilson, Diana Crist, Randy Resnick, and M/M Mark Melhorn. There were fourbuses and three vans.In our Children’s Church Ministry we had a great staff: M/M Ray Lester, Mrs. VernaBrunner, Linda Bandy, and assistant was my lovely wife Charity.How could you not think that this would be a wonderful ministry? Our Senior High Classwas in the Dome Building. This was a beautiful dome like room where you really couldhave a nice size church. I cannot tell you how awed I felt merely to be working in thisministry.It’s only as I review this ministry today, that I am still confused as to what went wrong. Iwould rather review some of the good events that happened while there. At least from mypoint of view.

The church had just been through a bad church split. The youth were angry because ofthe split. And thus to gain their respect was rather hard. Some of the kids were ratherdisrespectful in class and on church outings.As a church staff, we met daily at the church, and talked over the ministry. I really wasglad we were working at the church.We were in charge of the Bus Ministry, and I must say we didn’t seem to do very well.Certainly nothing like at Gideon Baptist Church, where we were very successful. I amrather in the dark about why we were not very successful. But we still had over seventycoming on the buses and our goal was set for one hundred and twenty-five.The church did not have a Children’s Ministry when we arrived at Calvary. We wereseeing a lot of families leave after Sunday School and not staying for church. Webelieved the way to increase the worship service attendance was to have a goodchildren’s program.This was the most successful and fulfilling ministry that we had. We invited Garry Wadewho was in Seminary with us to come, Garry was Children/Bus Director at Thomas RoadBapist in Lynchburg. Va. Garry stayed with us, and we learned about the Children’sMinistry. He was just outstanding.We began to establish a Children’s Ministry, first by building a puppet set. We actuallybuilt a small set of buildings. We bought some double-wall cardboard 6'x4' and build atheater screen. This set covered the length of the dome. We called this ministry: "TheBackyard Church." I am not sure why. We had puppets, which we made. My personalfavorite and the star of the puppet ministry was O.D. Dragan. I was the voice behind O.D.Charity was the front person who talked to O.D. We had a bakery, candy story, toy story,a jail, and a couple other buildings.Mel Martin was an electrican and he set us up with all kinds of lighting and sound. Wehad the state of the art sound and lighting for the time. This was a first class Children’sMinistry.Over 80 kids came each week and we had such a wonderful time in this ministry.Attendance topped over one hundred several times.In the mean time I was the Youth Pastor as well. The name we took was "The YouthAction Ministry." Our spring goal was 100 and we reached 100 young people in our YouthAction Division. We also had a good Word of Life Program. We would meet at theMilligan home for the Word of Life Club. We had several all nighters. Once the youth wentto Indianapolis for an all nigher. I believe we took two buses and over 50 kids. We went tothe Red’s baseball games, we took nearly 100 kids. Activities were great and many wouldcome, but on the other hand when we had any kind of Bible fellowship we would haveAlan Harris show up and maybe Teresa Mills would too.72

End of Part One:

Proof read, spell check, by Charity WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 11:23PM (-05:00)

Tuesday, September 19, 2006THE CALVARY BAPTIST CHURCH STORY PART TWOYouth Ministry, Bus Ministry, and the Children Church Ministry

I decided to cut down on the activities and have more Bible studies. That didn’t go oververy well at all. I started a Sunday Evening Bible University. That went well. I think threeshowed up.I remember I was rather uncompromising. We had an roller skating event, and Irequested that the girls not wear jeans (which I had been told was church policy.) Neardisaster for sure. Then the music was not to be rock and roll. That was really bad.Parents really got on my case.

Our Sunday Morning Sr Hi class was really neat. Mr Charlie Cox was just wonderful inleading the singing, and was a good teacher and Thelma Martin was just wonderfulsinging. Really the program was first class. I enjoyed teaching from the Bible each week.We had the "Cross and the Switchblade" motion picture one Sunday, we had 95 youththat Sunday. One of my last Sunday’s there, we put on "Star Wars....." The GreatGalactic Adventure" That week we had over one hundred and forty kids.We had a great baseball team. I think. This was the college and career class youngpeople. Andy did a great job. We had a Word of Life Basketball Tournament, and we wonfirst place, local, and then went to State. First class event.I am told that many of the kids just didn’t get it. They were not ready to hear spiritualteaching. I wonder why, they had had Life Action Group come. They didn’t like the kind ofactivities that included the spiritual. Games and play they loved. They were not into thespiritual at all.One of the contractors in the church, built for Charity and I a new house That had neverhappened before.. . And before the grass grew in the yard we had the youth over for anactivity. It had rained and when they left, the new carpet was full of muddy footprints. Butour hearts were with the youth, and we enjoyed them coming to our home. One of themembers helped us get a car. What was really great was Andy would say "Charles, allstaff can have free food at my Dairy Bar." Bill said "Charles, staff can have their drycleaning done free." And a carpenter and his son built me a beautiful book shelves in myoffice at the church. What a place for sure. What a group of magnificent members.What a wonderful staff of people...Gene and Linda Bandy -- what a couple-- we lovethem and their kids. I understand Gene and Linda are pastoring in Arlington Texas, now. .I enjoyed preaching on occasion at Calvary. One of my best original messages Ipreached at Calvary. I appreciated preaching on the pastor’s radio program when hewent on vacation.Apparently Willie was under pressure from some few parents about the style of ministrythat we were having. I will introduce here, parents have always been the number onecause of trouble in our ministry.

I could write a whole article on this subject. PARENTS DISRUPT THE EFFORT OFWORKING WITH THEIR YOUTH. From our first ministry with youth, in 1964, a parentwent to dad, and complained about something I said to her daughter. My dad, said, "I amsure Charles had a good reason to say what he did to her." That slowed down the 73

complaints.

On more than several cases, teens would later say to me, "Charles, I know my parentswere upset about your methods of working with us, but, you were right and it wasneeded, thank you." That statement has been in about every church where I was pastoror youth pastor. My son Eric was thinking about youth ministry, but when he had to dealwith parents, he thought maybe he shouldn’t be a youth pastor.Sensitive preachers and sensitive parents have been my demise. So whether in churchlife, the public school or at work, or playing sports, parents really get annoyed at thosewho are working with their kids. I remember coaching T-Ball..... parents. I was a JuvenileProbation Officer, and parents were the number one problem with their kids. Coaches,teachers, youth pastors, juvenile probation officers. etc, really have a job when it comesto working with children. And I have been all those people. I have four children, andbelieve me I was not always a good parent when I thought my kids were getting a baddeal.It’s very dangerous to be a Youth Pastor, believe me. Parents and Pastors. If one doesn’tget you the other will. If you offend a Pastor’s wife or one of his children, you need topack your clothes and leave.I recall being invited into the Pastor’s office one day. I thought, " I have been here a year,I might be getting a raise." When I got in the office, the Pastor said "Charles, don’t youthink it’s time for you to be a pastor of your own church?" What a surprise.I walked down the steps and out the door, to our car, and said "Charity, would youbelieve, Willie wants us to leave." We left in the next few weeks without a word toanyone. I am not sure if anyone had a clue why we left. You did that in those days. Butsince that time, I have never permitted myself to allow a pastor or a church to do that tome again. If I have done wrong I will admit it and take the responsibility, but when I havedone my best to fulfill my responsibilities as a pastor or youth pastor, I will not and havenot left without saying why.Just this last year one grown lady who had been in our youth class said to me, "Charles,why did you leave our church?" "I have wondered for all these years." I told her.I have on purpose and at the request of Charity in these posts tried to leave out the partsthat have been hurtful. I have tried to protect the guilty. I have tried to emphasize thegood parts of the ministry, because I believe we have had a reasonably remarkableministry.I certainly have not desired that the Lord would have changed the events and churcheswhere we have ministered by his sovereignty or providence. Too many of our dearfriends have come as a result of the ministries that the Lord has allowed us to have. Iwould not be willing to give up anyone of them.Well, maybe Alan and Angie and the three boys.....Just kidding! Let me tell you aboutthem.... Alan was the one who came to the Bible Studies in Connersville and he went withme to the Youth Rallies. After graduating from college, Alan came to our church where Ipastored at FBC in Altoona, before he was married. After he was married to Angie, andbefore any of their children were born, they were coming to minister to our church. Morefolks were saved and believers were strengthened as a result of Alan and Angie’sministry than any other evangelist, in the sixteen years I was there. They have beenfaithful to the Lord and ministry for all these years, and are steadfast in their resolve toserve the Lord.So what if you have a little hardship, lose your new home, have to leave your friends,have no place to move, no money coming in, no job, have no clue where you are goingand what you are going to do. ... and have to leave without anyone really knowing whyyou left.*Charity’s note: The Connersville newspaper carried a daily question & answer column by74

Billy Graham. At the end of our year in Connersville, Dr. Graham answered one lady’squestion with wisdom that has encouraged me many times over the years. He told herthat her security was not in where she lived, or in her husband’s income or where heworked. Her security rested in God Himself, who has promised to supply all her need,according to his riches in glory, by Christ Jesus, her Lord......and to that I say,"Amen. Godis faithful."Would you like to know what we did after leaving Connersville, Indiana.... you won’tbelieve it...These thoughts are mine. Not necessary those whom I worked for or with. Written Posted by Charles E. Whisnant September 15, 2006 ( an all day project, finishedat 10:00 p.m.) Checked by Charity at 8:00 p.m. Will be posted as part two on TuesdaySeptember 18th .Charity will check this on Saturday. She worked 12 hours at the Bakery today. She istired, resting, and will be up at 4:30 a.m. in the morning to go to work.)


Wednesday, September 20, 2006WHY SHOULD YOU LEAVE TOWN WHEN YOUR ARE FIRED

When Charity and I, and Eric and Becky left Connersville, Indiana in 1979 when we hadjust bought a new home, bought a new car.. We were asked by the pastor to get out oftown (we were fired). What is interesting, as I look back upon this event, why would wesell our home and leave town. Why didn’t we just continue to live in the city and secureanother job and wait for the Lord to open another door of ministry? . Why did we think wehad to leave town?One reason was: the philosophy at the time. You left a church when you resigned or werefired and. you departed town. It is still the philosophy today. That is why I used the term"get out of town" because that is what you did. "Here is two weeks pay check if you getout of town" in other words. The pastor desires you to not only quit your position, butleave the church, and then depart town.And I will say, they want you to quit your position rather than saying you were fired. Samestory in the secular world. It looks better on your next résumé if you quit. Then they wantyou to write a letter to the fact that you resigned. The reason many pastors want you toleave the church and town is so you will not tell others what really happened.We certainly believed there were no real reasons we should leave the church in the firstplace. . Just because the pastor said he didn’t want us to work in the church, why did wethink we needed to leave the church and leave town. Certainly most people in the churchdid not want us to, and they didn’t understand why we were leaving. I wonder whatreasons the pastor gave? "Oh, he resigned."This was the way of thinking for a long time with us. I remember being on staff at SouthallBaptist Church in Danville, Va. The pastor said, "Charles, I will give you two weeks pay,and you leave town." Why, I wondered, my mother lived in Danville. He had his son, tohave me a nineteen year old to sign a paper saying his dad treated me well. What iswrong with preachers like that? It’s an experience that could have possibly put you out ofthe ministry.When I was at Wooster, Ohio, and I felt forced to resign, I left the church and moved outof town. It seems we were always leaving town. Today I wouldn’t do that. As soon as I lefttown, the pastor of the church resigned. The Pastor wanted to leave the church and he 75

wanted me to leave, too. And the people in the church had no clue. I am certainly gladthat those in the church have remained our dear friends over the years. Richard andElizabeth Clark, and their daughter Linda Shelton, who now is married to a great guy,Mike, and two great young adult children.. I could mention many more.We departed Wooster, Ohio having no idea where we would go, or what we would bedoing at the time, we just moved to Portsmouth, Ohio. We loved the church at Woosterand we loved the town, but because of the pastor we felt that we needed to leave. Iguess being 24 years old you are not very smart in these matters..Secondly, why you leave town. You want to find another ministry. I guess if the churchacross town would offer you a position on the staff you might stay. You so desire to servethe Lord in ministry that you seek another place of service.There should be course in seminary: "WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU GET FIRED BY THEPASTOR" Unfortunately I didn’t have that knowledge, and my father had died thus I didnot have someone to help me figure this out.Of course some times you just want to get out of town. The experience was so bad, youjust want to remove yourself from the church and town altogether. But generally Charityand I loved the churches we worked in to this point of ministry. Secondly, Charity was sohurt over this matter, that she did not want to be in the church or go back to the churchand even go into the town.As I have said, this is my experience, and not necessarily anyone elses. The Pastoralways seems to say nice things about you when you leave. "Bro Charles and Charity areleaving us, they are going to another ministry," is frequently the comment they will make.Generally, to the surprise to the members. "Charles, why are you leaving us." And youwould say, "Well it’s the Lord’s will." When you know it’s really not.Pastors I have worked with, have been okay to Charity and me after we have left. Ofcourse we don’t see them either, very often. Today I might not be so polite but be candidenough to say something about this matter.In the secular world you don’t quit until you have secured another job. Also you haveunemployment if you get fired. Did you know that does not happen when you work for achurch? We never have received an unemployment pay after leaving a church So youare on your own. Churches are free not to pay into unemployment, even when theycould. But they don’t. I am speaking of the churches I have worked in. .And it’s been my experience that the Lord has always taken very good care of us in theseexperiences. Our pride and feelings are hurt, bruised, and crushed. But as ourexperiences have proved, "The Lord worked out all the details."I had a way of saying "Their loss." And in most cases they did lose. The pastor wouldleave, the youth would leave, members would leave. Who loses here. The church. Youwould think if the pastor thought I was the trouble, the church would increase after I left,but that has never been the case.But the Lord has always taken care of us. Amen. And has always taken care of the pastoras well.Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 07:22AM (-05:00)

Thursday, September 21, 2006WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU LOSE YOUR JOB?

WHY SHOULD YOU LEAVE TOWN WHEN YOU LOSE YOUR JOB Part 2 Hyles-Anderson College and First Baptist Church, Hammond, Ind A continued series #44When I came down those stairs at Calvary, and came out to the car, "Charity, we aremoving, I just received word from the Pastor, he asked me to leave the church." We had76

no conceivable idea where we would go? Moving was not in our future plans. Lookingback I would not have moved? At lease until I knew where I was going and had a job.So what do we do? We took the summer as I remember, and went to Portsmouth Ohio,and stayed somewhere, and we had a couple of Vacation Bible School programs tomade ends meet.How I view going to Hyles-Anderson College and FBC, when Jack Hyles was the pastorI am not quite sure how it happen, but my brother Don said we could stay with him untilwe found a place. He was living in Indiana. We decided to move . Good grief. For amonth our family and Don’s family lived together. I was looking for a secular job to work.And then I say, "I think I need to stay spiritual." and so I enrolled in Hyles-AndersonCollege, for a Pastors Refresher Course and in the program for a Masters of Education.I was able to find a job at a public school, as a security guard, worked all night. we founda house in Ceder Lake Indiana, near the college. I was working all night, going to collegeduring the day.HOW WAS IT GOING TO COLLEGE AT HYLE-ANDERSON?There was no greater thrill at the time, then being in college again. This time I wasmarried and had two children. I was thirty-one and a bit more mature and had a betterview of the college.One of the best classes I took was the Christian Education class. Every day we had astaff member of the First Baptist Church come and present their ministry. Every ministryat FBC was presented to us. For example: Church Secretary. "Before you hire a asso.Pastor hire a church secretary. " A church secretary will help you more than any otherperson to help build the church.I took this advice when I went to FBC of Altoona. The best person I had wasCecilNunnenkamp. She was the best. We were taught at Hyles to write a letter to allvisitors and there was a form letter. But Cecil would personalize a letter to every visitorswe had and it was as if I wrote it. People would thank me for the personal letter, and I sayyou are welcome. In fact Cecil wrote it. For the next fourteen years plus, she wrote a betnearly a thousand letters. That is just one example of how good she was. Thanks Cecil.This course at the College was a practical things that you would do in the church.How to start a Nursery. How to write by-laws. How to start a Music Choir. How to build achurch building. And few more dozens practical idea. And you were able to implementthem in the work of the church. Jack Hyles did have a written book that had a lot of theseidea in. I used many of them at FBC in Altoona.While there were no theological classes at Hyles-Anderson, but practical courses. I lovedevery minute that I was there. I was caught up in the excitement of the moment.The college was more practical in nature than theological.

WHAT ABOUT GOING TO FBC IN HAMMOND?What a great experience to go to FBC on Sunday Morning. We lived about forty milesfrom the church. The church was downtown Hammond, and we had to part sometimesblocks way. But it was worth every step back to the church.Seven thousand people in one setting was just excellent. Sunday School, Worship andSunday Evening were the highlight of our week. Bar none Hyles teaching and preaching,there were none better than he was. I was definitely caught up in the ministry there.September 25, 1926—February 6, 2001 Jack Hyles.....FBC had drive-in Sunday School and church, then the bus churches, A B C D and ESunday School and Church. By the end of the day FBC had over 22,000 in SundaySchool. It was diffentely exhilarating.I was defiantly caught up in the moment in other places I have been, but never at FBC orHyle-Anderson. I never said, I wish I wasn’t here, because I really love it.Eric went to the Hammond Christian School, and I believe he like it, for a third grade. 77

Becky was three and stayed home with mom. I ask Eric about his days in Hammond, Hesaid, "It was just a way of life, and I didn’t know anything of way." He didn’t know therewas another way to life as we did I don’t think we did either.Hyles was in control, he had a love for people for sure. If anything Hyles taught me wasto love people. He preached hard against sin, yes, but he also loved them.I had one class at Hyles-Anderson on how to get a job and fill out an application for a job.I was able to get a job at Pulman Standard, and worked on the Amtrack Train, sleepercar. I must say that was some experience.But as any other place we have lived, I was always wanting to move and be apastor/teacher of a church. I was making for the first time some good money, enjoyingliving there, loved the church and love the school. So why move?My brother Don, was searching for a church to pastor, and had at this time five churchesin which he was invited to come. "Charles, would you like to go to Altoona, Kansas to tryout for a church?"Jack Hyles counsel people every Thursday and Friday, he said about 144 people perweek. So I made an appointment to visit with him. I arrived at the church one Thursdayevening, and was given a number and a 3x5 card to write my concern. Jack came to theroom, he said " #102" I really walked into the room, he was in his short sleeves rolled up,and for the next fifteen minutes, I believe he and I were faced to faced in conversation.He read my card and question and then said. "Charles I believe you should pastor achurch, you really do not need to be here."Written by Charles E. Whisnant, Experienced by Charles, Charity, Eric and Becky (3months)


Friday, September 22, 2006A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PURPOSE OF THE ARTICLES ON THE BLOGA Brief Note of Remembrance: My dad Everette T. Whisnant, was born on September 21,1904.The reason for the blog "Growing By Learning" is to journal or chronicle some of theevents in our ministry. I believe I am today what I have experienced over the lifetime ofministry. I have tried to chronicle them chronologically which means, you would have tostart from the beginning of these blogs. But each article is complete in the time frame.I have also with in the series inserted some concerns about the ministry. I haveincorporated some articles about preaching itself, and about preachers and theirbehavior.These journals, posts I have written, have been from experiences I have lived through.They have expressed some of the events which have occurred. Generally they are frommy point of view, and not necessarily from Charity’s, even though she has read them,corrected the spelling and grammar, and made sure they are truthful, and sometimes hasinserted her thoughts * about the events. And my three sons and one daughter have theirviews about them too.What I have tried to express in these experiences are the concerns I have with theministry as a whole. These are commentaries. They will recount the ministry itself, someto express the experience itself, and some musing as to why I left the ministry at thechurch.I have addressed each event with honesty, I have attempted not to embarrass or evenhumiliate myself, my family or any of my co workers, as much as can be reasonable. By78

God’s grace I have tried not to express with anger what I have expressed about theexperience, but the truth as I perceived it.I have also written these commentaries in the hope that others might be blessed, andpossibly helped. But overall they are merely my story as I recalled them. A real reminderhow the Lord is gracious to us sinners, to even allow us to be His "dear children."

If I have repeated myself, it’s because, it’s what I do when I preach/teach. While I do takethe ministry seriously, I don’t take myself so seriously.None of these events have moved me from my love for my wife, and children, and theLord Jesus Christ. In most cases, they have strengthened me in my love for the Lord, andfamily.I often think, okay, so if I were able to skip the experience let’s say in Wooster what wouldI have lost out on. What if I had not gone to Madison Baptist Church to pastor? What if Ihad not pastored First Baptist Church in Altoona?AN EXAMPLE:Today I enjoy Reformed Theology. I have not embraced perhaps most of their teaching,but I would have never learned it, had it not been for the fact I had departed PortsmouthBaptist Church. Two reasons, after leaving PBC, (which I didn’t want to do) RichardLemaster gave me his Gateway Computer. I did not have one capable of supporting theInternet. And I would have never gone to Bigelow Church (which they don’t know what todo with me), and I want to leave, but I like it so well) I would have never known FrankTallerico, who has introduced me to the Reformed Theology Especially the Doctrines ofGrace, from which I have learned so very much. In the last three years, I have had awonderful time daily studying the Word of God, and from those who know the Word ofGod. I have spent hours studying, reading, writing, learning that I would have never hadthe time to do but for the previous experiences.Each path that we have taken, has given us some great experiences of life and ministry.Whether they were bad choices or right choices, the Lord has turned them unto His glory,I pray. We certainly have gotten blessed beyond any deserving.

What I have tried to express in these experiences are some concerns I have with theministry as a whole. Some to detail the ministry itself, some to express the experienceitself, and some thoughts as to why I left the ministry at the church.I have tried to chronicle events in order of their events, but that hasn’t always been thecase. I have tried to address the problems of being in ministry. I have tried to be honestfrom my point of view. I would like to know the viewpoints from the pastors and peoplethat I have worked with. That might be scary for sure.I am not embarrassed or even humiliated. There have been some wonderful experiencesin every place I have had the opportunity to serve. Have I been embarrassed yes, have Ibeen humiliated, yes. But I have a short term memory in the humiliation department.While I might remember a lot of the events, I focus mostly on the good things thathappened.Posted by Charles E. Whisnant September 22, 2006 Check by Charity Whisnant,September 21, 2006Series Personal Ministry: #45


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Saturday, September 23, 2006THE GOAL OF THE CHRISTIAN WALK IN MINISTRY

In our natural life our significance alters as we unfold in the Christian life. The goal isgiven at the inaugurating of our Christian life, the beginning and the end are the same,viz., Our Lord Himself. We embark with Christ and we end with Him. "Until we all attain tothe stature of the manhood of Christ" or "unto the measure of the stature of the fullness ofChrist." (Ephesians 4:13) It’s not our proposal of what the Christian life should be. Theimpression of the Christian life is to do God’s will, not to be productive, not to win thewhole world, or even those in your town. We will be productive and we will win the lost inour town, but that is not our aim. Our aim is to do the will of our Lord.Most of my Christian life, I have tried to be productive, useful, and all the synonyms Ihave listed, here that I got out of Dictionary.com.Definition: valuable Synonyms: advantageous, all-purpose, applied, appropriate,beneficial, brave, commodious, convenient, effective, favorable, fit, fruitful, functional,good, handy, helpful, instrumental, meet, of assistance, of service, of use, practicable,practical, pragmatic, profitable, proper, propitious, purposive, salutary, serviceable,subsidiary, suitable, suited, toward, utile, utilitarian, workaday, worthwhileYet the purpose of life’s achievement should be to show the behavior of Christ to thosewith whom we have worked. What do I mean? In light of this series that I have beenposting , (some forty-five now.) I must remember to show the character of Christ in myperformance, attitude and thinking. This reads good, but in reality, the principle is difficult.And I must admit I have often failed.As I note the work of Jesus Christ on earth, as he traveled in and out of villages andtowns and cities, he seemed never to be in a rush whether he was persecuted orblessed. He did not get in a hurry to leave town when he was persecuted nor did heseem to continue to stay when he was appreciated. Which is to say, neither appreciationnor lack of appreciation turned Him one "hair’s breadth" away from His purpose to go upto Jerusalem. He seemed never to get discouraged. His purpose was to reach HisFather’s will, that is upon the Cross.I must still remember that in those places we have been appreciated, admired, andaccepted we must give thanks. In those places we have been fired, failed, faltered, askedto leave and not asked to teach or preach or minister we must not stay disheartened. Wemust not get discouraged. You think that is easy? Was Jesus’ life easy?


Sunday, September 24, 2006BUILD A BELIEVER - Ephesians 4:13

While the Pastor at Madison Baptist Church our weekly church paper this article:• If we do God's work in God's way at God's time with God's power, we shall have

God's blessings and the devil's curse.• The World is not looking or waiting for a new definition of the Gospel, but for a new

demonstration of the power of the Gospel.DEFINED CHRISTIANITY

• A very simple but very sublime thing: to live in time and for eternity under the eye ofGod and by His steps.80

How much more would a few good and fervent men effect the ministry than a multitude oflukewarm ones!


Monday, September 25, 2006WHEN IS THERE A LEGITIMATE REASON TO DISMISS A STAFF MEMBER Part One

I know this sounds unbiblical because we have heard unbiblical wisdom. What we wantto believe and what is biblical could be two different opinions. Because we have heard solittle biblical preaching that what we believe is not from the Bible.When many fundamental preachers do not believe that they need to really study the Bibleitself, but pray and ask the Holy Spirit to give them understanding apart from a substantialstudy of the Word, then you are going to get unsound teachings of what Godforeordained.Thus many of the actions of some pastors are based upon their belief that they candismiss a staff member without Biblical accountability or even church accountability.The issue today is: Getting fired, dismissed, asked to resigned by a church or pastor fromthe staff.When I ask Charity "Why do you think (and I will mention a preacher) fired us?" Andevery time she has an answer. "He didn’t like what you vocalized, or what you said youbelieved, or he did not like your opinions. And she is always quick in her mind, just whatshe is talking about. It is true what she said.A few examples of my behavior that Charity said I was dismissed:

• "Remember the jokes you made about the preacher, he did not like it."• You wouldn’t let the preacher’s son go on that trip with the young adults."• "I am a six- point Calvinist: I believe in soul winning.• "Remember the pie in the face activity"• "Those comments you made about me when you preached that sermon."• "You wouldn’t go to the Sunday School Class"• "You cashed that $50 check"• "You get excited and get loud and press your ideas."

My question is? Was the reason for discharging me Biblical or personal? What are theBiblical grounds for discharging someone from the ministry? The list for dismissal from a position on the staff generally are personal in nature ratherthan spiritual. I will give a small list of good reasons for removing someone and severalreasons when dismissing one is wrong.

BUT THERE ARE GOOD REASONS TO FIRE SOMEONE: (I am thankful I have notbeen guilty of)1A Today it would be, getting on the Internet and viewing pornographic material.2A Sowing contention among the membership3A Failing to be submissive to the programs of the church body.4A Commit any sexual sins or adultery or "come out of the closet".

There are RIGHT reasons to terminate one’s employment. Legitimate ways:Synonyms: accepted, accredited, acknowledged, admissible, appropriate, authorized,canonical, certain, cogent, consistent, correct, customary, fair, front door, genuine, 81

innocent, just, justifiable, kosher, lawful, legit, licit, logical, natural, normal, official,orthodox, probable, proper, real, reasonable, received, recognized, regular, reliable,rightful, sanctioned, sensible, sound, statutory, sure, true, typical, usual, valid, verifiable,warranted, well-founded

But there are WRONG ways too

Antonyms: illegal, illegitimate, inadmissible, inapplicable, intolerable, irrelevant,unallowable, unfair, unjust, unsuitable, wrong, bogus, counterfeit, fake, phony, spurious,unauthorized.

I believe you get the point on both the synonyms and antonyms...... don’t you.?I have no argument if the reason for dismissing someone, in the secular world or churchministry was legitimate.

All the reasons why Charity believes the preacher wanted me to leave are not genuinereasons for dismissal.

Furthermore, the same reasons goes for leadership in the church to deny you leadership.It must be a genuine reason. Here are some wrong reasons. In my personal cases.SOME OF THE REASONS ARE A LITTLE EMBARRASSING

1. Jealousy.(the underline true reasons)2. In your view you believe he is a threat to your ministry or church.3. You do not like his personality (most likely most places)4. You FEEL, or presume he has done things wrong5. Parents are coming to you and complaining about the direction and way he is doing

ministryEnd of Part One.... Corrected by Charity Whisnant, Lived by both of us.


Tuesday, September 26, 2006WHEN IS THERE A LEGITIMATE REASON TO DISMISS A STAFF MEMBER Part two Continued from Part One6A "You are a loose cannon ready to go off" 7A "Your personality does not fit thepersonality of the Senior Pastor."8A " I really like this one: "Charles, you need to learn to be humble."9A "Charles, your preaching is too passionate for us."DO YOU READ ANY BIBLICAL REASONS IN THE ABOVE LIST?The above list is a truthful opinion, based upon particular actions that I haveexperienced.. But its been my experience that preachers will not give you the realreasons.Here are some reasons I have received from preachers, and or church leadership8A I believe you should have your own church.9A You are not going the direction of our church10A Well, if that is what you really want to do11A That is great. (Wooster) The pastor was happy that I was leaving.12A "You are not doing a good job here at the church"Fortunately I have genuinely resigned because of good reasons, and the church or the82

pastor didn’t want me to.... few I might add. Madison, FBC Haltom City, Mansfield underFolger, FBC Altoona, Gideon. And I might have been wrong in resigning, as well.

1. A I left several churches because I was offered an income to be on the staff atanother church....(Leaving FBC Haltom City, and Mansfield)

2. I believed I had accomplished all that I could. (Madison, FBC, Lusby Mills)A WORD TO CHURCHES AND OR PASTORS ABOUT THIS MATTER OF HOW YOUARE TO HANDLE A STAFF MEMBER.

1. You do not have a right to mistreat any member of your staff.2. Do not lie to them. Tell them what the church expects of them.3. Be honest in your dealing with them.4. Treat them with the same respect that you would want to be respected.5. If you have a disagreement with them, sit down and have a two way discussion6. Keep an open communication. Don’t go a week and never speak to them.7. Their success will mirror back on you.8. If they are successful, give them credit and be thankful.9. Do not keep them guessing as to how you think they are doing, tell them regularly,

like weekly or at least monthly.10. When you do not like what they are doing , do the same, tell them regularly, don’t

wait until you fire them.11. If you have to dismiss a staff member, be honest, don’t lie. Don’t give a false

reason.12. A Don’t ask them to resign if you are going to fire them anyway. Or at least give

them the option to choose, if that is what you want.13. A If you are trying to save your own hide, and you know the church is not going to

like it, then don’t fire them.14. Don’t be untruthful to the church. If you can give a correct reason why, then there is

no problem.15. Churches and Preachers have destroyed more lives. EVEN IF THERE IS SIN,

YOU are still under Galatians 6:1.I have read, heard, and seen young couples be totally destroyed in their spiritual desire tocontinue in ministry, due to the actions of the pastor and or church..

SO WHAT SHOULD YOU DO WHEN YOU ARE ASKED TO LEAVE THE STAFF?

1. Turn it over to the Lord. By knowing this... if God has called you into ministry, youwill survive it.

2. If you maintain the belief that you gave your best effort, believe it and rest in thatfact.You well get mad, believe me....So walk out of the office, or the church, and do thefirst two suggestions, quickly.

3. If you are given an erroneous reason: I would and have presented my case:4. I would say, "I don’t accept your reasons as being correct, and when I leave the

church, I will mention the reasons you gave to the membership."5. Do not resign if you are asked to, rather then be dismissed. You are not going to

get unemployment one way or the other.6. Do not say, "It is the Lord’s will that I leave this church". Only unless it’s true.7. Don’t give up. Don’t beat yourself over the head. Pray for wisdom.8. But at the same time, once it’s all over with, in time, healing will occur, and then you

will be able to return to the church for a visit. I suggest if you were wronglydismissed, forgiveness is in order for your sake and your family. And if theopportunity comes, I would attend a service in that church. 83


Wednesday, September 27, 2006SHALL NOT BE MOVED Part One

This is my fifty article in this series of my personal journey in ministry.Let me express, "I haven’t been moved" Remember the song "I shall not be moved?"We’ve sung that song for years. I never contemplated a thought that I would everwithdraw faraway from what I was doing in ministry. When. reading my life’s experiencesone might think, "Charles, why are you still desiring to continue in ministry?" The answeris rather simple. In every place where the Lord has allowed me to serve Him in a ministry,it’s been for Him, and about His glory..

Only since moving to Portsmouth have I even contemplated the thought that I have hadenough. Yet while thinking that, I continue to believe that if the Lord will give me a call toserve Him, I would welcome the opportunity.This idea of "serving Him" is so implanted in our thinking as fundamental Baptists. Somuch so that we believe it’s the most important deed in our life. And when we are notserving the Lord in our calling, we believe we are out of the will of God.Therefore, our mindset is to get into a church ministry. And if you are not currently in aministry you feel like you look like a fireman without his uniform on, going to a fire. Whenyou go to a pastor’s fellowship meeting, or if you attend a church service it’s on yourmind. You are inundated with the thought, "I should be peaching or teaching this morningrather than just sitting in this church pew".You are ever seeking the right place and in the right way to serve the Lord. And youalways think that the Lord will put you in the right place to serve Him. When you get aninvitation to come and work in a church ministry, be on a church staff,. you are "on cloudnine". The joy that comes over you is better than when the New York Yankees win theWorld Series. Which they might do in 2006!It’s so overwhelming when you are hired on the pastoral staff, that you do not even thinkabout the pay, the work load, where you are going to live, what you wife thinks, thecondition of the church, all that at the time doesn’t matter.You are willing to work for nothing, live in a house that is almost unliveable, have yourwife upset. The church is in a real spiritual disaster, the town is literally run down, and thepeople in the church have just seen five preachers quit or fired. And just the last Sundaybefore you came, the attendance was twelve. The church building is in a mess, it couldbe there is no running water. It could be the building has five different kinds of pews inthe building.You are certainly willing, if you drive on to the parking lot of the church, and see atremendous building that covers almost a block. You see a dome building that is going tobe the youth ministry’s building. And you are going to get a immense salary. That will getyour blood flowing. Or you see a new building being built that will seat 400. You are readyto win the world to Christ in the next year.Then you are just as determined to drive fifty miles one way to preach on SundayMorning. You need to preach. It doesn’t matter that you are going to be paid $50.00 justto get to preach on Sunday. Even if it’s a Southern Baptist Church.You just don’t have good comprehension when it comes to "doing ministry." You lose allperspective-- you go brain dead. "What have I got myself and family into?" Here I am onthis 250 Acres of land on this camp ground. What could possibly go wrong."Shoot" (as the lady on the TV com says) "Shoot" this is the greatest time of your life, you84

are even willing to work another job, just to get to preach and pastor a church. You areeven willing to be a housekeeper in a nursing home for twelve years to preach and teach.(I would do it again)You arrive in town after driving 1000 miles, your car has no heat, and the brakes aregone, and you have a few dollars in your pocket. But you are still upbeat. Your wife is sobewildered. You just see serving God as the main thing. You meet the Pastor, and hetells you, "I am sorry but we can’t pay you as we said, and I am planning to leave as soonas I can get another church."We have driven a 1000 miles several times in this journey to places to serve. You don’tsee the past, you don’t see the negative. Are we crazy or what? Don’t ask Charity.You begin to feel like a football player on Sunday, or Monday. You get concussion whenyou are hit so hard that it knocks you out. You are hit every time you get the ball and startrunning down the field. You get carried off the field. But while you are being carried off thefield, you are thinking, when will I be able to play again. You go to rehab. Come to think ofit, I need rehab..I do wish I had been like my friend C. L. Fuqua who has pastored one church over 40years and still is at the church. I wish I was like Jerry Falwell who has pastored TRBC for50 years. Or Troy Todd or Roy Maple who have pastored their church for nearly fortyyears. I envy these great men, but for some reason, its was not to be. ( I could have beenat FBC now for twenty six years, but I left) Maybe a lack of spiritual brain power, orsomething

Morten Anderson, who is 46, said, "They were to take blood out of me, and dust cameout of me" after being out of football for three years. Football kicker for the AtlantaFalcons 2006.That illustrates what I think is going to happen when I finally get a call to try out to pastora church.But that is still there: "I am still waiting for that call."But I now have a different perspective on this idea of service.



"I SHALL NOT BE MOVED" THE EXPERIENCES vs THE EMOTIONSPart TwoHOW SHOULD YOU RESPOND THEN TO THE NEWS THAT YOU HAVE BEENRELEASED FROM YOUR JOB ON THE STAFF?WHAT HAS THE EXPERIENCE TAUGHT ME ABOUT THIS MATTER OF MINISTRY?experience:1: the accumulation of knowledge or skill that results from direct participation in events oractivities; "a man of experience"; "experience is the best teacher" [ant: inexperience] 2:the content of direct observation or participation in an event; "he had a religiousexperience"; "he recalled the experience vividly" 3: an event as apprehended; "asurprising experience"; "that painful experience certainly got our attention" v 1: go or livethrough; "We had many trials to go through"; [syn: undergo, see, go through] 2: havefirsthand knowledge ofstates, situations, emotions, or sensations; "I know the feeling!";"have you ever known what it means to have lost a dad?"; "I lived through ministry" [syn:know, live] The feeling of emotions and sensations as opposed to thinking; involvement inwhat is happening rather than abstract reflection on an event. 85

Another definitionActive participation in events or activities, leading to the accumulation of knowledge orskill: a lesson taught by experience; a minister with experience in youth ministry . Theknowledge or skill so derived. An event or a series of events participated in or livedthrough. The totality of such events in the past of an individual or group ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------Experience is a great teacher of wisdom. Someone said, "you can pray for wisdom, butGod doesn’t give it under your sheets." Oh, that must have been me. Wisdom is receivedone way by experience. When you have lived through a series of events as I have yougain wisdom about ministry. I have participated in many events that have provided mewith knowledge about ministry.I have never stayed inactive in the search for knowledge about the Bible, aboutpreaching/teaching, about the how to of ministry, about how to stay fit for the work thatyou believe the Lord has called you to do. I have never been satisfied that I know enoughto stop learning.Experiencing getting dismissed from your position on the church staff, whatever theposition is, be it a Senior Pastor, or a Youth Pastor, or even a Building Supervisor, youare not to panic or become paralyzed by this experience, but to let the experience teachyou. What I have learned, you will wake up the next day, and discover that the Lord willstrengthen you and you will discover that the Lord is already planning your next place ofministry.What can get me into trouble is the belief I know how to do "God’s Work in God’s Way."(Reading John MacArthur’s book will give you that information)In all these years of ministry, how is it that you can still say, "I shall not be moved?" Thatis, give up! Retire from! So many good men and women, will decide that they need to findanother line of work. This year alone there will be 1000 good people who will find anotherline of work.When you have had such a great history in ministry as I have, and you sense the Lordhas truly given you the ability to do the work He has called you to do, you sense He stillhas His hand upon you.I am sure if I were writing a sermon I could easily put scripture to my thinking, but I amnot writing a sermon today.It’s the emotions that will drive you out of ministry. Don’t you think? Out of control feelingswill cause you to want to quit, some experiences will cause you to question your calling.You do get physically shaken sometimes when you have these events happen to you.When do you allow your emotions to play the bigger role in your life than it should? Everyexperience has its toll. Experience or emotion.But in those early years, the idea of getting out of ministry never occurred to me. I justsaid, "Well, where is the Lord going to take us now." Why did I have that kind of mindset?Experience of ministry was not usually from an emotional, temperamental, focus. (Therewere times though that the experiences of ministry were emotional.) (Victory Baptist) Ijust accepted the fact and made plans to move to the next place of service. I sometimesfelt like Paul, he was not always welcome in town, and was asked to leave town, becausehe was doing what the Lord had directed him to do. Paul never quit. He didn’t evenchange his methods. I don’t think he ever changed his message, or his way of ministry.Paul really believed he was doing God’s Work in the way God had directed him to do it.Paul wasn’t trying to find better methods of doing his work. I really have not talked to Paulabout this matter. The principles that Paul used in his day are still effective today.Methods may change today, and they should, but principles should not.So with the mindset that the principles of ministry do not change, I am inclined to thinkthat how I developed the work of the ministry in any church I worked in were okay. Andwhen the outcome was good, I was indebted.86

How the church or pastor thought was generally secondary. What made me resign wasgenerally personality rather than the principle I was using for ministry. Thus I knew I couldstill preach, teach, and work with youth so I was not discouraged. I believed they werewrong and stupid., sorry I mean misinformed.I believe it’s because men do not have the priority in my thinking. In every place, nomatter how short the time, the Lord, has shown His blessing upon us. I can’t view anyplace of ministry as a failure. From my own point of view, I have seen the hand of theLord upon what He was doing in that place of service.EMOTIONS:An intense mental state that arises subjectively rather than through conscious effort andis often accompanied by physiological changes.a psychic and physical reaction (as anger or fear) subjectively experienced as feeling andphysiologically involving changes that prepare the body for actionan affective state of consciousness in which joy, sorrow, fear, hate, or the like, isexperienced, as distinguished from cognitive and volitional states of consciousness.Any of the feelings of joy, sorrow, fear, hate, love, etc .and usually accompanied bycertain physiological changes, as increased heartbeat or respiration, and often overtmanifestation, as crying or shaking.-------------------------------------------------------------------------Jack Hyles, preached: "Never make a decision at midnight." Good emotions or even bademotions can damage you if you don’t think cognitively about the issue before you.Someone else said, "Don’t quit your job on Monday"You can get caught up in themoment, or the experience and make decisions that you shouldn’t.

• It’s been my experience, {before reading John Piper} the emotions that I feel in allof life’s experiences are present at the moment of the experience. First there is thehuman emotion that is expressed with hurt and disappointment. Some emotions areautomatic responses I have no control over at first. I think these are normal. But theemotions that follow are important. Generally, the Holy Spirit gives in my spirit thecomfort and assurance that I need to continue in ministry. I might be crying andshaking and my heartbeat might be increased, but within my spirit there is a joy andpeace that passes all understanding.

"It is very difficult to put emotional experiences into words." John Piper says.How can it be possible that when you have an emotionally shocking experiences, not tobe shocked? You can’t for sure.Every time I walked away from a church ministry, I already had in mind the next place Iwould be serving the Lord. Why? A reasoning ability to think back at the greatness of theLord and His capability to fulfill His purposes. The Scriptures are filled with this principle.There you have this long post. But it’s not as long as one of my sermons.Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant September 27, 2006.Read by Charity Whisnant at 9:20 p.m. after working 10 hours. Thanks Sweet Heart.Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 09:24AM (-05:00)

Friday, September 29, 2006A DESCRIPTION OF THE EFFORT I HAVE PUT FORTH IN MINISTRY

• In his Lectures to My Students, Charles Spurgeon left virtually no stone unturnedwhile impressing the need for private integrity which leads to public credibility uponhis college students. From prayer to "keeping the tools sharp," to the work of theHoly Spirit, to the ways in which a pastor/teacher might use his voice, Spurgeonunderstood and emphasized that ministry leads us to a total investment of ourselvesinto the work of the ministry. 87

• I have never not tried to serve to the best of my capability.

When I was Youth Pastor at my dad’s church, (my dad was born on September 21, 1904)(I deeply am sad that he died and I was unable to continue working in the church). If Ihave any disappointment in ministry it’s that I could not have continued to work with dad.)I was at the top of my "game" working as a Youth Pastor in 1963-66. It is notable enoughthat we used the same "game plan" at several churches thereafter. The program that Ihad developed at RBC in 1965 was discipleship at its best. While I was active in HighSchool, in sports, football and basketball, I was still very active in the youth ministry at thechurch. We were actually active all week with the kids.The strategy of work that I developed at RBC was carried with me throughout ourministry. My work ethic was developed when I was at RBC. Now I was not aware of allthis, "but for the love of the game" was the reason for the work. When you are in love withthe Lord, and you sense the call of ministry to teach and preach, it seems natural to putyour best effort into your work. In those days, working with my dad, was the ultimateplace to work. He was always supportive and helped me in every way possible toaccomplish the goals of ministry with the church and youth. This was my objective when Iwas pastor, to work with and support those who were working with the youth.The principle holds true in any ministry, at any time, when the church, the pastor andyouth pastor can be on the same page of effort, you will have success in ministry. I haveseen some good youth ministries in a few churches over the years and even in the 21stcentury, no less.I hear from time to time from former youth students saying "the best youth department wehad was when you and Charity were at our church." I appreciate that very much, becauseI loved the youth as much as the ministry itself.When I went to Wooster, Charity and I spent hours with the youth of the church. Theywere our life on Sunday as well as during the week. Our home was always blessed with anumber of youth during the week. We spent hours developing programs, schedules,procedures, and principles of ministry This process continued at Calvary Baptist Church,Madison Baptist Church, Victory Baptist Church and then First Baptist Church.In every church we worked hard to develop a youth ministry that would strengthen andencourage the youth in the Lord Jesus Christ. The objective was always discipleship. Theteaching of God’s Word was always priority over activity. The teaching of the Word andteaching them how to know the Word was always the first priority. From Southall BaptistChurch in 1967 to FBC in 1990's we desired to help the youth love the Word. We werealways giving Bible assignments for the youth to do during the week.While we had some great activities, my main purpose was to teach them the Word ofGod.

• The goal was to see those who professed Christ to become true believers. Wewanted each youth to become a Christian who loved the Lord and lived for Christ intheir daily lives; and if the Lord called them into ministry, they would be ready toanswer the call.

We never had Saturday at the Beach, or downtown Soul Winning. We never tried to seehow many we could see saved. We never felt that Camp experience was the best sign togauge the level of Christian commitment.We were not only interested in seeing them come to Christ and attend Sunday School,but also the Worship service, and Sunday evening as well. We generally had as many onSunday evening as we would in Sunday School.We kept our youth busy in the Word. One assignment I remember was "Outline the bookof Matthew." Once I gave a Dickson Bible to the person who did the best job giving the88

overall view of the Bible.Several of the young men and their girlfriends (later to be their wives) went to BibleCollege, and they said to me later, that their working in their church youth departmentprepared them for Bible College. And those men and their wives are today still in ministryand pastoring churches.One young man who was our piano player at sixteen, became a song writer in Nashville.One young man who sung specials in our class, became an evangelist, and for overtwenty-five years with his family has served the Lord.One of my objectives in our youth department was to have the youth involved in everypart of the program. My objective was to have them conduct the class. We gave themreal responsibility in the ministry. We trained the leaders and then they would train others.I think what we tried to do was to give them a real love for the Lord and the love to workfor the Lord.I have just touched on a brief description of the work with youth and adults in thisministry.

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant Proof read by Charity Whisnant #52


Monday, October 02, 2006WHAT SPECIFIC ROLE WOULD I EXPECT IF WERE AN ELDER?

I was asked last week about the position of church elder. What specific responsibility doyou see your roll to be. I have never been a lay church elder. Having been senior pastorand associate pastor, and youth pastor. Presently I do not have any position in a church.Baptist generally do not use the term Elder, but it’s a biblical position. But the church Iattend now is not a Baptist church but does have elders.These points below are how I understand the role of a lay elder and that of the paidelders. (Pastor, Associate Pastors)While I believe elders are part of a whole working together to accomplish the objectivesof the church, yet I would say each has a specific role in the body of Christ. Like the roleof the deacons, each having a specific responsibility.If any elder or deacon is going to accomplish the objectives they wish to see fulfilled, it’sgoing to be built upon their influence and ability.. We can sit in a eldership meeting and 89

plan all these objectives, but the ability to accomplish them will be by our competenceand our capability to stimulate the membership to do the work of the ministry. If you don’thave that, the plans will stay on the paper never getting done. It’s called ‘leadershipinfluence."What I would hope I could bring to the leadership and the members of the church is anenergetic approach ( the method used or steps taken in setting about a task) in doing andto stimulate the church body to the work of the ministry.Over the years I would say, I have been better at stimulating people to do the work of theministry rather than doing it myself. If you can’t get the membership to believe they needto be a part of the work of the ministry, all the plans you put on paper will stay there. Soyou need a fresh approach with this task, which I would like to try as well.I have had some success in stimulating those who are in positions of leadership, liketeachers and deacons, and workers in the church.

1A Respect. I know you have to earn the position. I believe an elder needs the respect ofthe membership and leadership. If they don’t see that I would be a good elder then Ishouldn’t be one. The church body needs to see that I would be the kind of person thatwould bring something to the church that would be helpful.2A An elder has the spiritual welfare of the church as his responsibility. That is an elder’srole in the church, (1) a lay elder has the responsibility to see that all ministries of thechurch are fulfilling the objectives of the church. (2) a pastoral elder is to fulfill his specificposition. As a youth pastor, or music pastor, etc. (3) the Pastor of the church, one who isteaching and preaching has the responsibility to preach and teach the Word of God, in away that will build up the believer, and to preach the whole gospel of Jesus Christ.

3A An elder is one who is able to view the ministries of the church in a way that he is ableto give insight, discernment, wisdom, intelligence, understanding, awareness,apprehension for the work of the Lord.4A An elder should be one who is viewed as a person who has spiritual understanding,one who can interpret Biblical principles into application for the welfare of the church.5A An elder should be known for his love for the membership and their spiritual welfare.6A An elder is an elder not necessarily for his intellectual education, but for his acuteability to know the spirit of the Lord. Also for his ability to lead others to know the spiritand will of the Lord.7A An elder is not only to be a good teacher in the class room or podium but a goodteacher of men as well.8A An elder should be a person whom the church body respects enough to believe hehas walked with the Lord, has a spirit that is genuine, and has love for the Lord and thechurch body.9A An elder should be able to make determinations for the good of the whole church,without the influence of any one member of the church itself.10A An elder should realize he is a servant. ]11A An elder is willing to risk doing the best for the church, rather then worrying aboutwhat might happen if he does act in the best interest of the church.12A An elder has the God-given ability to lead and direct and guide the church into doingthe work of the ministry.Footnote: All this with the understanding of the Biblical qualification:

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant @ 7:00 p.m. Proof read by CharityPosted Monday October 02, 2006Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 07:36AM (-05:00)

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Monday, October 02, 2006FAMILY, WORLD MISSIONS AND JOHN MACARTHURThis past weekend Charity and I were in Lexington, Kentucky visiting our boys. All threeboys live in Lexington. Eric and his wife Leslie, Chad and Kyle. They are all doing good,working and we had a great time. I mentioned to Chad, at lunch that because of hissuggestion I write about our experience in ministry. I have now written over fifty articles.Charity also was able to see her good friend Susan Lugar. Susan and her husbandDennis live in Southaven Mississippi, and they are working for NICSS (Network ofInternational Christian/ Oasis International Schools. Dennis presented his ministry onSunday at the Ashland Avenue Baptist Church in Lexington Ky. The church had their2006 World Impact Conference. The idea according to Pastor Dave Prince"I hope that each of us is personally challenged and motivated to better impact the entireworld with the gospel."David then said "When we can be satisfied with Christian activity without seeing peoplecome to Christ from every tribe, tongue and nation, our hearts have grown cold to thevery faith we profess." He then quotes Horatius Bonar from his classic Words to Winnersof Souls."

• " If the heart is really set on such an end, it must gain that end or break in losing it.He that saved our souls has taught us to weep over the unsaved. Lord, let that mindbe in us that was in Thee! Give us thy tears to weep; for, Lord, our hearts are hardtoward our fellows. We can see thousands perish around us, and our sleep neverbe disturbed; no vision of their awful doom ever scaring us, no cry from their lostsouls ever turning our peace into bitterness."

We were told in this service Sunday that there are 6,500 unreached people groups in theworld that have less than 2 percent of the population that are evangelical Christians. Thatis a total of 3.4 billion people in these unreached groups.What role our churches have in this world mission is one that should be addressed, I amsure.

John MacArthur on TVWhat a joy I had last night to see and listen to my Christian Hero John MacArthur onDirecTV. This is the first time he has been on TV. He was his usual great self. He spokeon the Will of God.

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant Monday October 03, 2006Checked by Charity WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 09:01PM (-05:00)

FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH ALTOONATuesday, October 03, 2006WHEN I CANDIDATED FOR PASTOR: FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, ALTOONA, KANSASAs I said I visited with Jack Hyles in his church office, and as a result I decided to take mybrother’s suggestion and visit Altoona, Kansas. Don had sent a résumé to First BaptistChurch and he suggested that I go in his place. Boy, did he miss out on a great place togo.Now it’s February 1980. Outside there is three feet of dirty snow on the ground, in CedarLake Indiana, just a few miles from Chicago Ill. It’s cold and a typical day in the Chicago

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area."Charity what do you think about going to Altoona, Kansas to candidate for a church?""Honey, this was 26 years ago you know!" Charity mentions.Three feet of snow, and about 900 mile trip in an old car! Sure that would be great, dear.I remember looking on a map (this was before mapquest.com) and was looking for thecity of Altoona, Kansas. I had to get a magnifying glass-- the dots were getting smallerand smaller. Then there were no dots. Altoona was a town okay, and there were just over500 people. In Wilson County there were 40 sq miles and 10,000 people. Just great, Ithought. Now I know why Don wanted me to go to Altoona.First Baptist Church in Hammond, had an attendance that was 20,000, I wonder what theattendance in FBC i n Altoona was? Funny. Well, the church was downtown on MainStreet, just like FBC of Hammond.After a few phone calls I made the decision to go to Altoona. Charity was just thrilled.After all, we had Eric age 8, Becky was 3 and she was three months pregnant with Chad.Just great.From Ft. Worth, Texas, to Wooster Ohio, West Portsmouth, Ohio, to Minford, Ohio, toPortsmouth, Ohio, to Grapevine, Texas, to Mansfield, Ohio, to Connersville, Ind, to CedarLake, Ind, then to Altoona, Kansas. Let’s see, I don’t think many basketball players in theNBA have been traded that much. This is going to be our tenth stop on this journey, andwill last for sixteen great years. But the first couple months you would have never thoughtso.Charity really wasn’t all that happy about moving to Altoona. When we arrived in Altoona,Kansas that February 1980 around 2:00 a.m. on Saturday morning, we meet the couplethat had invited us to come. We got up that morning and got dressed and went to thechurch. I had my three piece suit on, Charity was dolled up, and Becky had her beautifuldress on and Eric was dressed in a suit and tie. You would think we were going to FBC inHammond. As we walked in, oh boy. Here were farmers in farm clothes. We did lookstrange.I preached, about an hour, and we had dinner, and then I met with the men of the churchto see if we were coming back! I did about everything I could to discourage them in thismatter. But every thing I mentioned that I would like for them to do, they agreed.Everything that I suggested that I would do, if I came, they agreed. I really tried to getthem to say no. But to no avail, they asked me to come back. The vote was 10-0 I think.Great crowd that Sunday, somewhere around thirty five, I think. I was to understand laterthe attendance had averaged about seventeen.I couldn’t say no, and Charity cried. The kids didn’t have any idea what was going on. Iwas thirty-two years old , and I should have had better judgment in this matter. But wecame anyway.I discovered after our arrival in March 1980, that some in the church were not members.The adult Bible teacher was from the Holiness church, the song leader was having aMormon class in his home. The previous preachers were good men, but didn’t stay verylong. This church was as malfunctional as a church could be. At least I thought so. . Thebuilding was pieced together with old stuff from here and there. There were at least fivedifferent forms of chairs and pews. But at least they had bathrooms at this church.As a matter of fact, the people were really great and loving people, they just needed agood pastor to pastor the sheep of the church.Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 07:37AM (-05:00)

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Wednesday, October 04, 2006THOSE FIRST FEW MONTHS AT FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, ALTOONA, KANSAS PartTwoHaving come from Jack Hyles church, I was set to go. I came in with the idea that I couldchange this church into a real Independent Baptist FBC Hammond Hyles Church. Yep,this is true.I made a few recommendation that I though would help the church. (1) All workers andteachers should be members of the church (2) I would lead the church and not thewomen. (3) I would preach the fifth Sunday of the Month rather than having a fellowship.(4) Leaders should not be having Mormons in their home for classes . Just a few changesyou know.After about a month, there were a few who didn’t like all these ideas. There was a stir inthe flock of sheep. Yep. Charity was ready to leave. I was ready to leave. I don’t knowabout the kids.The adult teacher didn’t understand why he had to join the church, the song leader didn’tunderstand why he could not have Mormon classes in his home, and the youth workerscouldn’t understand why they had to be accountable to the Pastor. I was in shock ofcourse.So I believe we called for a meeting, and we had a rather good turn out for this meeting. Imade a speech: "I have come to Altoona, believing that you believed the Lord wanted meto pastor this church. I am here believing this also. Altoona is only a small town of 500people, and a small county. I don’t need to stay here, $50 dollars a week is not enoughfor me to stay. (I was making 10 times that at Pullman Standard.) If you don’t want me tobe the Pastor of this church, and lead this church as I believe the Lord would desire, thanwe will leave, no problem."I had just came from the great FBC of Hammond, Ind. I had seen and studied the ministryof that great church. You would think that would have given me some ability to lead achurch. I had studied from the Thomas Road Baptist Church, in Lynchburg, Va. I had asuitcase full of ideas and thoughts to bring to the church for church growth. I really was inshock that some of the folks just didn’t get it.I asked for those who disagreed with me, to voice their opinion and say what was on theirmind.I was ready to leave for sure, and so was Charity. I believe there was a vote taken, I can’tremember, but anyway, more wanted to follow the leadership of the pastor than theleadership of those few who were in charge before I came. So those people left, and therest stayed. So we stayed for the next sixteen years. And we are very thankful for ourwonderful time there.Those who stayed were willing to put up with me, and my preaching and leadership.Even Mrs. Ethel York, whose husband was the original deacon of the church stayed, andwas a real a pain. Well, she kept me in line for the next few years. She was a great ladyanyway. The teacher left, the song leader left, the deacon left, and women left, the youthworkers left...... goodness was anyone left. Why did we not leave?So what is the problem here, Lord?. Hasn’t this been done before. Like Madison BaptistChurch in 1971? Had I not learned any skills of leadership in nine years? Why am I notadequate in this role as pastor? Why am I getting people all agitated? Please don’t askCharity! . It’s actually not in the plan..After all I was using some of the learning and training, I received at Hyles-AndersonCollege. I really believed that these principles were very good.What I learned the next few years about these excellent people in Kansas is they werejust like anyone else. Well in some cases they really did outshine other folks I hadknown–they were very patient with me. 93

SO WHAT WERE SOME OF THE PRINCIPLES WE WERE TRYING TO DO IN THOSEFIRST FEW YEARS.What did I think when I came to FBC in Altoona: that I could be a good preacher/pastor tothe people in this church? What had I learned that would equip me to do a reasonablygood job?While this church was twenty five years old, you would have believed the churchmembership would have been well seasoned for church life. I have made the comment,that the church membership is as only as good as they have been discipled by itsleadership.I liked a challenge to undertake the responsibility of a local church body and see spiritualgrowth and extend their the knowledge of the Lord. When I first came to FBC, I think Ihad the desires to try to build a church that the Lord would be pleased with. As I havesaid previously, you are only as good as what you have learned.What I had learned in Hammond was great, but I wanted to regulate, or temper some ofthose things I didn’t think were going to work at FBC. I wanted to see growth in number,of course, but in truth I realized that in Altoona, the attendance was not going to be large.Having visited the surrounding towns. (Fredonia and Neodesha) I learned that there werealready a number of good Baptist churches that were doing a rather good job in theirtown. Thus I decided to work with those whom the Lord would give is in the area ofAltoona.I realized that before we could grow, we needed to do some work on our physicalbuilding. Our first project was to get some new pews.I believed some of the practical suggestions that I learned at Hyles were good. I believe Ihave already mentioned some of those things I put into effect at FBC.Drafted and Posted by Charles E. Whisnant October 04, 2006Checked By Charity F. WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 07:02AM (-05:00)

Thursday, October 05, 2006TOZER WROTE: "FAILURE AND SUCCESS: TUNE THE STRINGS

part three: Those first months at first baptist church, altoona, kansas

"Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the layingon of the hands of the eldership. Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them,that your progress may be evident to all. I Timothy 4:14-15"Now as I look back to those yonder years, those first few months as Pastor of FBC inAltoona, Ks.Tozer wrote: Failure and Success: Tune the Strings. Which describes those in ministrythat have been gifted, but have to confess total failure from year to year! He mentionsChristians who have not exercised their spiritual gifts, and talents and capacities. Tozersays they have yet to exercise the discipline of girding up the mind and spiritual potentialin order to make the necessary progress in the Christian lifeTozer thinks they have abilities but they are not disciplined. "They have a fine mind but itis not sustained . He is like a man with a treasured Stradivarius violin that has never beenput in tune. He has never taken time to sit down and tune that priceless instrument,therefore he gets no melody and harmony from it."Success or Failure in ministry is often viewed differently. You could be successful as aYouth Pastor and be fired. And you will encounter the concept that you are a failure.You can be successful and get lazy in your preparedness. You can get lazy to maintainthe discipline that helps you become successful The reverse is true, you can have failure,94

and then become discouraged and stop the discipline of girding yourself up to disciplineyourself to successful ministry.. You can think you are successful and stop the process ofgrowing in your giftedness, and in your field of ministry.But living the Christian life, as well as in any field of work, you continue to disciplineyourself to learn and grow.

I WILL LIST TEN DISCIPLINES I HAVE DISCOVERED I NEED TO REMEMBER1. Never quit working to become the best you can be.2. Use what you have to do your best-- don’t wait to get the best before you use it.3. When you have failure, real failure or perceived failure, don’t quit.4. Not letting someone else make the decision whether you have success or failure.5. Examine your motives to see if they are Christlike in nature.6. Never walk into a church, without checking out the class rooms, the pastor’s office,

the secretary’s office, the print office, pick up a church bulletin, and any informationthat you think you can use in the future.

7. Never assume any thing. Just because someone says something, doesn’t mean it’strue.

8. Always acknowledge you need to continue to discipline your mind to learn.9. I have discovered that I only know about 1% of what I think I know.

10. Generally my wife is right. Check her out for information and feelings about ministry.I am sure there are many more disciplines I need to continue to check out daily.

NEVER GET DISCOURAGED WHEN YOU ARRIVE AT A CHURCH.

Now the Whisnant’s have been in Ceder Lake Indiana, I have a two jobs in the secularworld. My son Eric is in a great Christian school. I am having a blast going to Hyles-Anderson’s College, some 3000 students, and we love FBC of Hammond, a church of20,000. It’s addictive for sure.

We arrived for ministry in Altoona, Kansas. It was a church with about twenty people in atown of 500 people. (twenty attending , membership was higher) Once it was a veryprosperous town, but now it’s run down.. The church building needed a lot of work.. Theparsonage was very old, and the salary is about 80% less than what you were getting.You learn that the last five men who came to check out the church left as early as theycould.. Mrs. York recorded those events very well.

My first point of view when I arrived in Altoona, those first few months, much changed inthe next year.

You arrive and discover that, for the most part, you have little in common with the peoplein the church. I am totally a city person, in a totally farming environment. I don’t fish, hunt,shoot, pick corn, or drive a Chevy or Ford truck. I wear a three piece suit and do not wearfarmers’ bib overalls. I preach from the Bible for an hour, and the content is full oftheological significance.

The people are used to very lay terms and fifteen minutes sermons. I take notes to thepulpit, and they are thinking, "what is he talking about" And none of these people arereally Kansas Rednecks! I thought maize was short corn. I didn’t know what soybeanswere. I had no idea what alfalfa was-- well I knew he was that boy on the Little Rascals.Oh I could go on this same line I am sure for another page or two. But you might get theimpression of what I am saying.

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I was a take charge person. Let’s get this project done now! Consent to doing it right andthe best that is reasonable. I am in your face with the truth as I know it. Here are theplans for growth and getting the building up to standard. Shall I go on? I sounded like afootball coach who has taken over as coach for Kansas. I said, "we will have a record ofnine wins and one loss, (to Ohio State) in the next year." Funny.

I am now the pastor of a twenty five year old church program that has averagedseventeen people in those years. They topped out with thirty-five people one year whenthey had a group of people who were a split from another church. And I am going to bringthis church program up to par in the next year. This church has had how many coaches,oh preachers? Ten I believe. What did I know that they didn’t know!

When you attend the Hyles Pastor’s School several times, and the TRBC SuperConference, you will get this disorder. "Hyles Growth Disorder".

Maybe if I had gone to Roanoke, Virginia, or coached Virginia Cavaliers Football teamwhich has eleven assistant coaches and say "next year we will be nine and one," thatwould be possible. Maybe if I had pastored a church in Roanoke like Fellowship Baptist, Icould believe an attendance of over 500 plus.

The people in FBC Altoona would say, "Charles, this is not FBC in Hammond, this is notHammond, Indiana. You are thinking bigger than we are." You are reaching over ourheads with all your teaching and preaching and ideas." .

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant

Checked by Charity Whisnant


Friday, October 06, 2006DETERMINING THE SITUATION AT FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH

• The gospel is: you are more sinful and flawed than you ever dared believe yet youcan be more accepted and loved than you ever dared hope at the same timebecause Jesus Christ lived and died in your place." Tim Kller on the

• Gospel.

Part four The training and experience of some seventeen years I was bringing to FBC tousefor the glory of the Lord, to build His (Christ) church, to win folks to the Lord.

One of the first sermons I preached at FBC was "God’s Victory Gardens." Mrs. ElizabethDennison really loved that message. God will give us victory in our church if we allow theLord to guide us, and we are obedient to His will.

I was wondering why people were not coming to church. Why after twenty-five years theattendance was as low as it was? Those in the church in those first few months weregood people. We had some good folks who loved the Lord, and I think they were wantingto see people saved and the church to grow. We had some talented couples in the96

church, too. I don’t know that I saw any major concerns with the people when I first came.I believed they were going to be ready for leadership and some direction that would bringabout growth.

Any action that I took was with the belief that those in the church were ready to work andaccomplish our objectives. Naturally you are going to use ideas that you have beentrained to do. I thought we were doing rather well in our approach to ministry.

This church was your normal small town church, good people, who had come to thischurch for some time, and had several pastors. As is in these small churches, the pastorshad to work in a secular job to make a living. The pastors loved the Lord and mostly theirtraining was self taught. The orginial pastor said, "I just use the Bible, and preach fifteenminutes." And that is what he did. As a footnote, he was present at the churches 50thanniversary. That does say something about his love for the Lord.

I would think that the folks believed "What are we doing wrong? We love our little churchfamily, and we are happy with how things are going." I think. They were happy with afifteen minute sermon, lots of singing and good fellowship! Come to church on Sundayand go home until the next week.

I love keeping records about results. (I left all my records there when I left the church).There were few recorded records, except the ones that Ethel York had. I do think therewere over fifty plus members. But most never came in the last ten years.

Then I came. Change, as I knew, was not easy and most of the time not wanted. "Let usalone, we are doing just fine, stay out of our lives." We have a small group in a smalltown and that is the way we like it. But I have contended that these folks were a productof the leadership that was in the church. The church body does not go any further than itsleadership.

When we arrived in Altoona, Marvin Mann was in the church, he had been a pastor. Hewas asked to pastor the church before I came, but he didn’t want to. But when I came, hestayed and we asked him to be the associate pastor, and teach the Adult class. He wentto college at Baptist Bible Seminary in Springfield. Much like Bible Baptist Seminary inArlington. So generally we were of the same mind set. All was well those first two years.Because I was a Hylesite in my approach and preaching. Marvin really supported us, andhe helped the people in the church to learn how to take care of the pastor.

Naturally, we wanted to see people saved, and baptized and see the church grow,spiritually and in attendance. You would have thought that the best way to have peoplecome to church was through the Bus Ministry. FBC in Hammond was bringing in 10,000on the buses. Chicago had 1 million people too. We didn’t have a bus or van. And Ithought that we needed trained workers and teachers to see us do a good job.

By this time of our ministry I was not excited about promotional programs just to getpeople to come to church once. I thought the best way was through the preaching, not alot of promotions. Yet we did have some in those early years.

What I believed we needed to do to have a good ministry, was at first not well received inthose first few months. (I have addressed that issue in another post). Once those issueswere confronted and changed, and the first group of people left the church, we began tosee the church body come together. 97

We were only in the first phase of ministry at FBC. What I was doing and thinking was aresult of Seminary in Arlington, and Hyles. And for awhile we really were doing quite well.What I failed to understand was the folks in Altoona, Kansas were not ready for change.They were not used to strong leadership. And I changed all that. I was looking forchange. They were just happy to be in a church service.

Like many churches that are small, you have the core group who stay no matter whathappens, and then you have others who will come and leave. You always have a groupof folks who like to control and rule. Always.

I had the mentality that Christians lived a certain way. Like your typical fundamentalindependent Baptist preacher, I couldn’t preach a sermon that did not address some sinthat I believed needed to be corrected. Much of the preaching was not Bible but what Ibelieved the people should be doing and living and acting.

I wanted to be in charge. I wanted to control the whole program of the church. I wantedgrowth, and to see people saved. But I also realized that this was Altoona, Kansas asmall town. I knew that was not going to happen overnight, if ever.

I thought if I preached hard enough, long enough, and planned enough, we would see agreat church for the Lord. I began to put out a nice church paper weekly. I startedrecording my messages each week. I tried to visit the folks regularly. And I wanted to tryto get the church building up to par as to its appearance. I invited some missionaries tocome and share their love for the Lord. I had some good groups of singers from somegood colleges to come. This was really quite good. We were rolling I believed. We had ayearly revival. We had VBS for the kids.

I believe I am correct, we had at least one new person to come to our Sunday Morningservice for the next two years. Several people were saved and baptized and joined thechurch. Our attendance was growing on Sunday morning.

But in those early days, well years, I was rather, straight forward in my approach. I amtold I didn’t have a lot of charm. I spoke sometimes loud, and talked before I thought. Imade decisions based upon what I believed was right, even if it made some people mad.

One of many examples: I was asked by a couple if I would pray at the Senior High Prom.I said I couldn’t, and that our children would not be allowed to go. That was not wellreceived, as you can imagine. Then there was the Hyles dress code and long hair code.That really was a problem for years. But we had some great lovely people who werepatient with me over the years. They loved Charity I guess, and didn’t want to lose herfriendship. But I thought all this was normal for fundamental preachers.

The members really took good care of us. There was no question that they loved us.Even in those first few years. They were willing to try anything I would suggest.

At the very start, I had to work at another job. I started working at Hillcrest Nursing Home,in Fredonia, and for the next ten years I enjoyed working there. I went through threeadministrators and about 100 employees, and hundreds of wonderful senior citizens, thatI dearly loved. And even a few employees came to church. Regina Nobert, one of thesweetest members we had, came and was saved.

I guess I could go on and on, telling some great blessings from the Lord, and some of the98

dumb things I tried, and the love the folks gave Charity and me and the kids, but I willclose this out for a while.

I would like to thank those beginning years members: Mrs. Elizabeth Dennison, Wilfordand Ethel York, Bernard and Doris Morton, Mrs. Bernice Fail, Allen and Toni Barnhart,Marvin and Phyllis Mann, Allen and Cec Nunnenkamp, Jim and Marilyn Farmer, AlanaDouglas, Christy Heaton, Mike and Nancy Nunnenkamp, Pete and Mabel Lour, LucilleMorgan, Donna Cornwell., Royce and Loretta Lockhart, David and Pam Lockhart, Joeand Sue Costen, From March 1980 to about July 1982.

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant October 5th 2006 Posted October 6th 2006 Checked byCharity Whisnant


Tuesday, October 10, 2006THE ISSUE OF HUMILITYHow do we know if we have this Christian Grace?Part One by Charles E. Whisnant

• humilitya prominent Christian grace (Rom. 12:3; 15:17, 18; 1 Cor. 3:5-7; 2 Cor. 3:5;Phil.4:11-13). It is a state of mind well pleasing to God (1 Pet. 3:4); itpreserves the soulin tranquillity (Ps. 69:32, 33), and makes us patient undertrials (Job 1:22). Christ hasset us an example of humility (Phil. 2:6-8). Weshould be led thereto by aremembrance of our sins (Lam. 3:39), and by thethought that it is the way to honour(Prov. 16:18), and that the greatestpromises are made to the humble (Ps. 147:6;Isa. 57:15; 66:2; 1 Pet. 5:5). Itis a "great paradox in Christianity that it makeshumility the avenue toglory."Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary

Humility as to do with a state of mind well pleasing to God. What I believe it means is onehas a sense all we are and know is from God and for the Glory of God. I believe it’s aboutthe Glory of God, rather than our glory.

Is it about thinking you are nothing, knowing, and acting like you are nothing? I don’t thinkso at all. Does it mean you act like you are a dummy? No. Does it mean that you give theidea that you know nothing about the subject at hand? No. Does it mean you give theidea to others that you have little ability to accomplish the task? No.

Does it mean you don’t get excited about what you would like to do or say? No.The perception of one who is humble is one of observance, not necessarily one of reality.

What should one observe in a person in whom true humility does exist?

It is a state of mind well pleasing to God. It’s a mind set that recognizes Christ is thesupreme purpose of all that we do and think. It’s a mind set, that transforms into thebehavior of a person who is said to be humble. Acts 20:19 Serving the Lord with allhumility of mind"

1 Peter 5:5 ¶ Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be 99

subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, andgiveth grace to the humble.

John Gill speaks this to mean: "his is a grace which shows itself in a man's thinking andspeaking the best of others, and the worst of himself; in not affecting places and titles ofeminence; in being content with the lowest place, and patiently bearing the greatestcontempt; in not aspiring to things too high for him, always acknowledging his ownmeanness, baseness, and unworthiness, ascribing all he is, and has, to the grace andgoodness of God, whether it be gifts of nature, providence, or grace: and this is abeliever's clothing, not the robe of his justifying righteousness before God, but is aconsiderable part of his inward garment of sanctification, which is in the sight of God ofgreat price; and makes a large show in his outward conversation garments before men,and renders him lovely and amiable: it is an ornament to him, which is precious with God,and recommends him to the esteem of men, and the religion and Gospel he professes,and his profession of it "

"it may denote the retaining of this grace in constant exercise, so as never to be withoutit; and to be clothed or covered with it, is always to have it on, and in exercise, in everyaction of life, in all our deportment before God and men, in all public and religiousworship, and throughout the whole of our conversation, in the family, in the world, or inthe church."

Acts 20:19 Serving the Lord with all humility of mind,"being conscious to himself of his own weakness and insufficiency in himself for suchservice; no ways elated with those excellent and extraordinary gifts bestowed upon him;ascribing all his success to the power, grace, and Spirit of God; treating no man withcontempt and disdain; nor lording it over God's heritage, or claiming a dominion over thefaith of men; nor seeking honor nor riches for himself, nor even what he had a just rightunto, a maintenance from the people; but labored with his own hands, and to his own andthe necessities of others:" John Gill.

Serving the Lord with all humility of mind, i.e. you are conscious yourself of your ownweakness and insufficiency in yourself for the ministry that the Lord has called you to.When the Lord does give you success, then you need to say, the Lord gave the increaseand the ability, and the empowerment, to accomplish the Lord’s will. CEW.

We have enough failures in our life not to get proud in ourrself. There is success from theworld’s point of view that is not to the glory of Christ. There are ministries that appear tobe successful that I believe are not for the glory of the Lord.

The issue seems to be when someone asks you about your ministry or life. What do yousay? "Oh, I am nothing, it’s all what the Lord has done!" Is that being humble? No.

Is asking John MacArthur to give us some insight into the ministry of Grace to You, orGrace Community Church, or himself, is it humility to say, "I had nothing to do with thepurpose and plan of God, He did it all" To a degree that would be right. But to give aShepherd’s Conference Workshop to 400 pastors/teachers would be right too. But when Italked with John, he seemed to have a pleasant spirit. He took time to talk to me, justbefore he preached that evening. As a matter of fact he let me hold his Bible and view hisnotes for his sermon. Great experience.

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Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant October 05, 2006Checked by Charity Whisnant October 10, 2006


Wednesday, October 11, 2006PART TWO HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVE THIS CHRISTIAN GRACE ofHUMILITY by Charles E. Whisnant

To have a spirit of humility I believe would be to be veiled over with a spirit of gratitudeabout what the Lord has seemed to have done in your life and ministry. Acknowledgmentof the fact the you know in your mind, it’s the Lord who for His glory has given evidenceof His blessings upon the ministry in which He has called you to perform.

When I have written these almost sixty articles, I confess that I have nothing to glory in.But to say that I am a nobody just might be true, but it’s not an act of humility Thepurpose of even writing them has been an act of humility. (Or stupidity, absurdity,senselessness, incompetence) For in reality they show a lot of weakness on my part.When you have been in as many places and worked for a lot of churches and pastors, asI have, it should indicate you have a behavior problem or some kind of difficulty withministry.So when you are asked about your life’s work, and you put them down on paper, or WordPerfect, it’s not a lack of humility that you do so. I have with purpose written what I havecomprehended to be true. I have not tried to lift up myself in anything that I have done.The truth of the facts are, in analogy with other pastors/teachers/writers, etc. I would rateabout dead last. My life words and work pale in comparison with most people. But thatitself is not humility to even to say that.I AM JUST A PEA IN A POD, "there is little real humility coming through that sarcasm,mockery, or humor"HUMILITYI believe the course that my life has taken me over the last fifty eight years has been witha lot of humility, and absurdity, and incompetence, and stupidity, and that also it is filledwith failures and successes. I have done some of the most irresponsible things in thiscourse of life, but on the other hand from the time of my salvation, I have had aconsciousness that was Godward.My mind set has always been with the view point of the presences of Christ in all I thinkand do. I generally view the events in my life as the results of choices I have made I havealways tried to do what I believed the Lord would want me to do. There was lack ofwisdom, maybe, but nevertheless a choice that was made with the Lord in mind.I love sharing what the Lord has put on my mind, it’s a mind set that has been there since1963 when I was a Youth Pastor at Roanoke Baptist Temple. I have always wanted toteach and share what I have learned. It’s imbedded in my mind. It’s a chip that wasplanted there by the Lord I believe. I learned to share and to disciple and teach not onlymy self but others.I love to be seen with a Bible in my car when I go to the drive thru. When I go to church Ilove to carry a notebook. I cannot take trip anywhere without three or six binders ofarticles. That doesn’t mean I am not humble. Some think you should be subdued,debased, embarrassed if you think someone else thinks you know something.As a matter of fact few people in ministry believe you know anything. Why should they!You need to be a John MacArthur, or John Piper, or a Charles Swindoll. I am glad they 101

write books and have tapes of their sermons. But the Lord in His wise counsel haschosen me, Charles E. Whisnant, to be His servant, and to do and be as He has chosen,and I have tried to be that kind of person. No less or no more. I don’t think moreexceedingly of myself than what you see. I desire to be the best that I can be, to know asmuch as I can learn. Admiration? Only in the fact that I have never quite quit, or given up.Humility might be, knowing yourself as you truly are, but never letting others see yousweat, agonize, or perspire, boast, exaggerate, glory in your failures or success.Humility might be, embracing how God made you, and accepting the role in life that youbelieve is what the Lord has mapped out for you.Humility might be to show grace in life’s events.

• "I know that whenever God chooses a man for the ministry, and means to makehim useful, if that man hopes to have an easy life of it, he will be the mostdisappointed mortal in the world. From the day when God calls him to be one of hiscaptains, and says to him, "See I have made thee to be a leader of the hosts ofIsrael," he must accept all that his commission includes, even if that involves asevenfold measure of abuse, misrepresentation, and slander. We need greatersoul-exercise than any of our flock, or else we shall not keep ahead of them. Weshall not be able to teach others unless God thus teaches us. We must havefellowship with Christ in suffering as well as fellowship in faith. Still, with all itsdrawbacks, it is a blessed service, and we would not retire from it. Did we notaccept all this with our commission? Then we should be cowards and deserters ifwe were to turn back. These castings down of the spirit are part of our calling. If youare to be a good soldier of Jesus Christ, you must endure hardness. You will haveto lie in the trenches, sometimes, with a bullet lodged here or there, with a sabre-cuton your forehead, or an arm or a leg shot away; where there is war, there must bewounds, and there must be war where there is to be victory." (C. H. Spurgeon)

• "I cannot agree with those who say that they have 'new truth' to teach. The twowords seem to me to contradict each other; that which is new is not true. It is the oldthat is true, for truth is as old as God himself" -- Charles Spurgeon

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant October 08, 2006 Checked by Charity


Thursday, October 12, 2006WHAT HAPPENS NEXT WILL BE ACCORDING TO GOD’S TIMING AND PURPOSE.Part OneGod’s eternal plan will be fulfilled in a timely manner and according to God’s eternaldecree and purpose. He has already established His purposes for all eternity.He will bring about the salvation of all His elect, which was established before thefoundation of the world. He will return and establish His Earthly Kingdom in His alreadyplanned time. The end of time and the beginning of Eternity is already set in His plan. Heis not slack in His promises or in His already designed purposes for mankind and Hisglory.This is called by theologians as God’s Decreed Will and has to do with His purposes andplans. These plans will not be changed or hindered from their accomplishments. God’sDecree will be sovereignly fulfilled.So what happens next will be according to God’s timing and purposes speaks of HisEternal Purposes. For example the Rapture or the Second Coming.

The purpose of this article is to address: How do we know God’s will in the102

responsibilities of the church?Let’s review the Wills of God before we get into the issue of God’s Will and Purposes forthe Local Church.

• THERE ARE THREE MEANINGS OF THE WILL OF GOD1A Sovereign decretive* will, the will by which God brings to pass whatsoever Hedecrees. This is hidden to us until it happens.(*Having the force of a decree; pertaining to a decree.)

• 2A Preceptive* will is God's revealed law or commandments, which we have thepower but not the right to break.(*Of the nature of or expressing a precept; mandatory. Giving instructions;instructive)(*Of, relating to, or expressing a rule or principle that prescribes a particular courseof action or conduct)

• 3A Will of disposition* describes God's attitude or disposition. It reveals what ispleasing to Him.(*The power or liberty to control, direct, dispose) (state of mind)

GOD GUIDES us first through his Word, then through our heartfelt desires, then the wisecounsel of others, and then our circumstances. At that point we must rely on our ownsound judgment…… . God gave each of us a brain, and he expects us to put it to gooduse.- Bruce K. Waltke, Finding the Will of God

R.C. Sproul said this about the Will of God"The Bible is deeply concerned about the will of God---His sovereign authority over Hiscreation and everything in it. When we speak about God's will we do so in at least threedifferent ways. The broader concept is known as God's decretive, sovereign, or hiddenwill. By this, theologians refer to the will of God by which He sovereignly ordainseverything that comes to pass. Because God is sovereign and His will can never befrustrated, we can be sure that nothing happens over which He is not in control. He atleast must "permit" whatever happens to happen. Yet even when God passively permitsthings to happen, He chooses to permit them in that He always has the power and rightto intervene and prevent the actions and events of this world. Insofar as He lets thingshappen, He has "willed" them in this certain sense."

It is the godly person who meditates on God's law day and night. While we seek to be"led" by the Holy Spirit, it is vital to remember that the Holy Spirit is primarily leading usinto righteousness. We are called to live our lives by every word that proceeds from themouth of God. It is His revealed will that is our business, indeed, the chief business of ourlives.

With this background in mind let me try to address this matter of seeking God’s will for thelocal church. Is there a difference between seeking God’s will in a matter, and let’s seehow God works out His purposes for the church."

When we say, "We are seeking God’s Will in this church matter." What does this mean.?"We are praying that the Lord will give us the right pastor for this church." What does thismean, and how does God accomplish His will for this request? Does this mean that theman that comes to the church is really God’s choice?

"What is the will of God in this particular, unique situation in which we find our selves in?" 103

Said another way.....

What does it mean when one says "we will wait and see how the Lord’s will will workout?"In Part Two On Friday....Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant October 11, 2006 Checked by Charity Whisnant Posted10-12-06


Friday, October 13, 2006WHAT IS THE PRINCIPLE THAT WE SHOULD USE TO DETERMINE GOD’SWILL?Part TwoDo we just wait and see how God is going to work out His will? That is, we just go aboutour daily activities and planning and then just wait and see how God is going to get itdone? Are there biblical scriptures that will guide us to discover the will of God in thismatter in our church?Is there a difference between waiting on God to act sovereignly in our church, or do weseek to know how God want us to act?Does God have a determined will for a local church, that will be and that alone willhappen? No. His will is often not obeyed. His determined will cannot be thwarted orstopped by anything. And a lot of behaviors, actions and decisions that are made in thelocal church are not God’s reveled will for the church.God is sovereign over all things and yet disapproves of many things? How is this? God’sWill of Decree, or Sovereign WillJohn Piper points out: "The will of God: it is God’s sovereign control of all things. We willcall this His "sovereign will" or His "will of decree." It cannot be broken. It always comesto pass. Daniel 4:35There is another will of God: in the Bible is what some call His "will of command, orpreceptive will" His will commands us to do His will. . We have His commandments. Thisis the will of God we can disobey and fail to do. I Thess 4:3, God very specificcally nameswhat he commands us not to do. Sexual immorality. But so many do not obey. I Thess5:18 the command is "To give thanks in all circumstances:, this is the will of God." Butmany do not do this will of God.

• God’s will of decree or His sovereign will shall come to pass whether we believe init or not. His preceptive (giving instructions) of command can be broken, and isevery day.

God could, if He desired to, stop any event of human beings if He willed. He is sovereign,but for reasons we don’t understand, He doesn’t.His sovereign will is invincible, and His preceptive will of command, His givinginstructions can be grievously broken.The church leaders need then to have a discerning spirit, a mind that has beentransformed by the renewal of their minds. Their minds need to be set upon the Word ofGod in order to know the will of God.In order to discern the revealed will of God and then do them, requires Romans 12:2. Donot be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind., that bytesting you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable andperfect."It would seem here in this verse to say sometimes we discern God’s will correctly and104

other times we miss it. And it’s going to test us to know God’s will. So we can miss thewill of God in matters of the church. And I would say often that does happen.A renewing reconditioning refurbishing, revitalizing replenishing of mind, to know theWord of God reveals the principles upon which to make a decision that is in the will ofGod.God does not tell us who we are to marry. God does not tell us what color to paint thechurch building. We are not told what to call Bible Study, Sunday School or DiscipleshipHour.God doesn’t point out who is to be a deacon, or teacher, or elder, but He does give usenough principles in the Scriptures to help us discern His will. It’s not necessarily waitingto see how God will work out His will. It’s God who is letting you discern His will throughthe principles He has set forth in the Scriptures.What is necessary is that we have a renewed mind, that is so shaped and so governedby the revealed will of God in the Bible, that we see and assess all relevant factors withthe mind of Christ, and discern what God is calling us to do. We are just not going to hearGod’s voice saying to do this or that.God’s aim is a new mind, a new way of thinking and judging, not just new information. Wedo not need new information to determine God’s will, we need a new mind which is fixedon God.If we are going to know and obey God’s revealed will, we are going to have to have aChrist like mind. We need our hearts and minds to be like Christ. Make a tree good andthe fruit will be good. Matthew 12:33.And we need the Holy Spirit to lead us into Christ-exalting truth and work in us truth-embracing humility, in order to obey God’s revealed truth.Most of what we do and our actions are not premeditated, they just spill over from ourmind. Attitudes, thoughts, actions are generally spontaneous. Thus we need to have arenewed heart and mind that what spills out will be the mind of Christ.Would finding God’s will for a pastor of a church be more important than, let’s say,seeking a career? Are we to look for hidden clues to what God wants? Are we to try togather all the information we can and make up a composite picture and make a decisionbased on a judgment as to what He appears to be saying at a particular time?God is not asking us to discover His arrangement for the next decision we are going tomake. It’s not the "horoscope mentality" Let’s see if we can find some elements in theBible that would give us an idea of what to do.

• GO TO THE WORDGod’s will is not a "Tom and Jerry" game. We are to go to the Word of God "which isable to build you up." 2 Timothy 3:15-17 Paul tells Timothy, know the Word which isneeded for growth and ministry. Finding God’s will is a matter of understanding HisWord.

You just do not wait for God’s will to be accomplished for your life or the life of the church.I have often said that knowing God’s will is hard work. When you are a good student ofScripture you generally become good sound decision makers. And understanding God’sWord, from the KJV is hard work. It’s a life long process, and after nearly fifty years ofreading the Bible I have yet to complete the course. But I do believe I have gained someability to know God’s will.Who do we consider excellent and godly people in our church? Those who haveevidently lived out God’s will with all its satisfaction and fruitfulness. And we discover thatthey are those who have been indefatigable, hard-working, unconquerable students ofScripture-- with a passion to understand it correctly.

• Unquestionable in this pursuit of biblical understanding is the commitment to obeyGod’s will. Study is not simply for the purpose of appreciating doctrine in the 105

abstract. The energetic searching for biblical truth, the daily meditation on the Word,and the striving for sound interpretation are useful only if compelled by a yearning toplease the Lord, and submit to His wishes.

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, October 11, 2006 Checked by Charity Whisnant October12, 2006 Posted by Charles E. Whisnant, October 13th 2006


Saturday, October 14, 2006 WHAT IS THE PRINCIPLE THAT WE SHOULD USE TO DETERMINE GOD’S WILL?FOOTNOTE: A PERSONAL APPLICATION Part ThreeSo can we conclude that more often than not, we miss the directive will of God. We missthe principle God has clearly stated in Scripture which would lead us to know His will.And He will allow us to make those decisions which are sometimes wrong. Sometimes Iwould say they are not the best choices to make, maybe not necessarily a wrongdecision.I remember in FBC in Altoona, Kansas, a missionary husband and wife, Russ and RoseHanson, came through Altoona, drove to our home, and came to the front door on aSaturday afternoon. Russ came up to the door, and said, "Are you Pastor Whisnant?" Isaid, "Yes." "I am Russ Hanson, a missionary. I wonder if you would like me to presentmy work to your church on Sunday?"And in a moment of time I without hesitation said, "Yes." They had their own mobilehome, and they parked behind the church and spoke on Sunday Morning. They becomeour dear friends for all the time we were in Altoona.My point. Sometimes to know the will of God, you need to have a mind that is set onobeying the Spirit of God, and keenly aware of what God is doing around you.In this instance, and I might add, not in all cases like this, I responded with my spirit. Toooften we struggle with the "if we should’s" rather than the leading of the Spirit.If you believe God is working in your local church, and He is working out His purposes,and it’s in His timing, then if someone like a Russ Hanson, comes to your local church ona Saturday Night and asks to speak to your church on missions.... Then my questionwould be, do you really believe God is working out His purposes in His time? You say,"What happens next will be according to God’s timing and purposes..."My question then is, "Do you have the mind that will allow you to see a Russ Hanson asbeing God’s timing and purposes for His local church?" Because Russ and Rose over thenext few years proved to be in God’s timing and purpose for our church.I didn’t have to wait three years to have the discernment of God’s will in this matter. Aquick mind set that is focused on the will of God, will be able to made decisions like that.John MacArthur speaks on the subject of doing God’s will. He says, "If you are living inHis righteousness, then you can do what you want." That is, if you are doing all that theLord is asking you to do, your desires and will and wants will be to do the will of God. Youwill have developed a mind that is like Christ. I have heard John say, "Where my mindends and Christ’s mind starts are close." That is, he has so put his mind in the mind ofChrist that he thinks Christ.Sometimes you instinctively know.If the folks in Corinth had checked out Paul, and checked on his background, he wouldhave never been invited to speak at the church. We don’t trust the Lord as much as wetrust in a goggle search.106

When your mind gets off the Lord and on men, you will get confused about the will ofGod. "Well let me check you out first, let me see if you are going to be a fit for our church,let’s pray about this matter for the next few months. In my opinion you may have thusmissed the right timing of God’s purpose He had for your church.I was not so sure then, I didn’t know the why’s. But in an instant I made a decision, a trustof my spirit that the Lord was in this matter.I have always said, "Why can’t the Spirit of the Lord just tell us, if this is the right man."Why do we need to spend a year or a year and a half in searching for God’s man. Why abackground check, a FBI search. Are we asking the secular world to confirm God’schoice. If we are, then I believe God is not in it.You do all the goggle search you want on a person, but that is not the way to find God’swill for His purpose for the church. I believe it’s possible that God in His time can bring tothe local church the person He desires to be one of the pastors of the church, before thechurch even knows they will soon need a pastor. The Lord has already set in place theman He wants in that church. But because the church has not a clue of the working ofGod in their midst, they will go out and search for a year for someone, whom they believeis God’s will, and hire him, and then within the first year, realize that they might havemade a bad decision. Growing in the understanding of God's Word is a process thatcontinues in our life time.Sometimes even before I finish a post, my understanding ischanging about the wonderful work and work of Christ.Continues part four on MondayWhat John MacArthur says about hiring a preacher for your church.Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant October 12th 2006 Proof-read Charity 10 12-20 Posted10-14


Monday, October 16, 2006WHAT IS THE PRINCIPLE THAT WE SHOULD USE TO DETERMINE GOD’SWILL?DECISIONS IN MINISTRYPart FourMONDAYDECISIONS IN MINISTRYMy experiences in ministry have been interesting for sure. I have had to make decisionswhere to serve in ministry.In those churches that I have served as Youth Pastor, Minister of Education, or Pastor,can I say they were the Lord’s purposes and plan for my life and for the church itself? DidI and the leadership of the churches seek to discover and know the Lord’s will? Whatwere the factors that the leadership of the church used to determine who they believedwas the Lord’s will? Was that even a thought?I have often said to leadership and members of churches: "Have you really prayed andsought God’s will in this matter of me coming to serve in your church?"I mean in several churches within three months the leadership and members weresaying, "I think we made a mistake." I have said at times "I think I made a mistake incoming to the church!"The leadership would say, "Yes we have prayed and have asked the Lord for guidance."Well... as I often say, "Then you should accept who the Lord brought to your church toserve you."In other cases the church and leadership would say, "We have selected someone else tobe our pastor, or Associate Pastor." Then they will say, "We believe the Lord has led usto this person." Then what happens within a year or more that Pastor is gone. So if the 107

Lord’s will was for that man to come, why in a short time does he say, "I believe it’s theLord’s will that I leave."Can the Lord’s will be confused? Can the Lord’s will be disregarded? I personally believethis is often true. First, all of us are impaired spiritually.We say when some ministry position doesn’t work out. "It was the the Lord’s will, He is incontrol." And we move on to the next adventure in our lives. We and the church believe itis all because the Lord purposed it to happen. But is this really true? Can we say in everycircumstance God’s will was accomplished.? Can God’s purpose be accomplished but atthe same time His "preceptive* will was not? God’s purposes will be indeedaccomplished. Even when we continue to disobey His commands. or fail to do Hisexpressed rule or principle that prescribes a particular course of action or conduct.On several occasions, I believe the Lord has moved us into a position to be used in achurch, before the church knew they were going to need a Pastor. How often have Ipreached "The Lord will send to our church those whom He chooses to help usaccomplish His purposes for this church." A Sunday School teacher, a choir member, apiano player, a gifted person in some area. And we accept that. But when a ministercomes to a church and joins, and then the need comes up, the church leadership willoften look somewhere else. Could they have overlooked God’s choice and will?John MacArthur has said (not a direct quote) "We need to have the ability to see whatGod is doing around us, and then join Him in that work." That is we need to discover Hiswill for us and the church and then do it. But we want our will to be God’s will.I think I should join the American Psychiatric Association Division of Religious Ministers.*"A Preacher Jumps off the Golden Gate Bridge after Two Classes and taking thePrescribed Drug."*After a preacher was hired to be the youth pastor of FBC by a margin of 13 votes, thepastor and his family moved six hundred miles to this church. After six months several ofthe longest tenured Sunday School teachers didn’t agree with him. He was teaching andacting contrary to what they agreed with.They as a group went into the young people’s room and dismantled all the work whichhad gone into making the class room youth friendly .The young youth pastor was so distraught that he became ill.He checked into a counseling center and they prescribed some drugs to help himovercome this illness.That very week due to an after affect of the drugs he found himself on the Golden GateBridge.End of his life, end of story." Does God require us to know His preceptive will? He haswritten His express rules and principles that prescribe a characteristic direction of actionor conduct to fulfill His will.It’s not a wait and see action. "Let’s see how the Lord is going to work this process out."Because if the Lord works out something, it’s going to be right

• . Let me give an example of this: When I resigned as Pastor of FBC, in our searchfor a new pastor, we learned thru another pastor friend DeWayne Prossor of ayoung man who would be good. And within a month we had a visit with this youngman, and he became pastor of FBC, for eight years. Good choice. I believesometimes the Lord can do such things.

Pulpit Committees have a place in this process I guess, but generally they are mixed up,have their own biased points of view of what the church needs, and more often then not,fail to follow God’s prescribed principles and directions. And church members as a wholehave less ability in this process.*Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 08:30AM (-05:00)108


WHAT IS THE PRINCIPLE THAT WE SHOULD USE TO DETERMINE GOD’S WILL?DECISIONS IN MINISTRYPart FiveTUESDAYLet me bring to an end of this post with John MacArthur’s answer for a church getting aPastor.Question:If you had to speak to a member of a pulpit committee out in the future, for your sons,your grandsons, what kind of time commitment would you encourage them to set asidefor a pastor-teacher to be able to devote his time to preaching, teaching, studying theWord of God?John MacArthur's AnswerYou know what I would say to that? That’s a great question, and you know what I wouldsay to that committee? I would say, "You find a nice apartment for this guy and his wifeand his family, and you pledge six months to him, and you let him come, and six monthslater, you decide." That’s what I would say. That’s a contractual thing. You’re not going tojust rise and fall on a few "sugar-stick" sermons and give this guy hope, and then chewhim up and spit him out in little pieces as soon as he says something that the oldest andlongest tenured Sunday School teacher doesn’t agree with. It only takes one of thosekind of guys to destroy a young man’s ministry. It’s all about turf, and it’s all about thepastor preaching something that you’ve been teaching the opposite in your class and youjust got exposed, and you’re not happy. Or, somebody moved your power base or madeit a little smaller or whatever—it’s amazing.I would say, I think the worst way to candidate people for a church is to have them fly intotown, ask them an afternoon’s questions, have him preach three sermons, and then havethe people vote. It’s ridiculous. What do the people know? They don’t know. Why wouldthey even be involved? I think the leaders of the church need to get together and theyneed to say, "We think this man could be a candidate, and we’re going to have him come,we’’re going to find a place for him to live that’s furnished, and we’re going to put himthere for six months, and we’re going to see if this is a relationship made in heaven ornot." When the six months is over, you sit down in an amiable way. The people knowthey’re not stuck, he knows he’s not stuck; it’s a period of evaluation, etc. He’s fullysupported, he’s cared for—and there would even be a bridge from then out, if necessary,until he could find another place.This idea of churches picking pastors—the most crucial decision they have—and they doit when they don’t have a pastor, which means they’re leaderless! They appoint this adhoc committee of people who all have different criteria, they bring in this poor guy with allkinds of high hopes, and then just chop his legs out from under him, and make himbecome some kind of warrior who has to defend his family and his children and his ownintegrity in a battle that rages. I just think we need more time than that to find out whetherthis is going to really work. During that six months would be the time, behind the scenes,when that potential pastor would hammer out doctrinal convictions and say, "This iswhere I’m going to go if I’m going to be here. I’m going to show you why I’m going to gothere. It’s not about preaching a sermon on this or that you might like—everybody can dothat—it’s about here’s what I believe, here’s the direction I think this church needs to go,here’s what we need to do, here’s what needs to be put in place." You don’t say that toeverybody; you don’t say that to the whole congregation; you say that to those who are inresponsible leadership, and you find out if their hearts are knit with you, and that’s theway you’re going to go."Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, Friday October 13, 2006 Posted October 17, 2006 109

I am sure that most people who are in church leadership (those churches that I havebeen a part of) believe they are diligently seeking the Lord’s will, and they are doing tothe best of their ability to accomplish God’s purpose and will for the local church. Theirdecisions are made with the best interest of the body of Christ.


Wednesday, October 18, 2006WHAT IS THE PRINCIPLE THAT WE SHOULD USE TO DETERMINE GOD’S WILL?The question is:IS EVERY DECISION THAT LEADERSHIP MAKES GOD’S WILL AND PURPOSE? WEDNESDAY We continue this series today, and for the rest of the week.In view of God’s sovereignty, can any decision be made that is not God’s will? Can anyaction that we make be outside of God’s purposes and plan for our life? Do we aspastors/teachers need to teach on subjects telling our members to walk according to thewill of God for their lives? If their walk is going to be in the will of God anyway?Is any decision made by mankind, outside the control of a sovereign God?Is there not a contradiction at certain points between what God commands and says Hedesires and what He actually wills? Sin for an example is totally prohibited, yet apparentlyGod wills for it to occur! (If your position is that God has granted everything that occurs.)I was over at oldtruth.blogspot.com the other day and the discussion was about thissubjectQuoting RC Sproul . . .

• I began [a seminary class by reading this from] the Westminster Confession: God,from all eternity, did, by the most wise and holy counsel of His own will, freely, andunchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass. I stopped reading at that point. Iasked, "Is there anyone in this room who does not believe the words that I justread?" A multitude of hands went up. I then asked, "Are there any convincedatheists in the room?" No hands were raised. I then said something outrageous:"Everyone who raised his hand to the first question should also have raised hishand to the second question." http://www.oldtruth.com/blog.cfm/id.2.pid.484

We read this statement and say " unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass." Sodoes this mean that His will is always done? That God in some sense foreordainswhatever comes to pass is a necessary result of His sovereignty.

It only declares that God is absolutely sovereign over His creation. God can foreordainthings in different ways. But everything that happens must at least happen by Hispermission. If He permits something, then He must decide to allow it. If He decides toallow something, then in a sense He is foreordaining it. Who, among Christians, wouldargue that God could not stop something in this world from happening? If God so desires,He has the power to stop the whole world.110

• Is there is one single molecule in this universe running around loose, totally free ofGod's sovereignty, then we have no guarantee that a single promise of God willever be fulfilled. Perhaps that one maverick molecule will lay waste all the grandand glorious plans that God has made and promised to us. If a grain of sand in thekidney of Oliver Cromwell changed the course of English history, so our maverickmolecule could change the course of all redemption history. Maybe that onemolecule will be the thing that prevents Christ from returning. ...

• Without sovereignty God cannot be God. If we reject divine sovereignty then wemust embrace atheism. This is the problem we all face. We must hold tightly toGod's sovereignty. Yet we must do it in such a way so as not to violate humanfreedom. ]

• Of God's Eternal Decree"God, from all eternity, did by the most wise and holy counsel of His own will, freely,and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass: yet so, as thereby neither isGod the author of sin, nor is violence offered to the will of the creatures; nor is theliberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established".reformed. org/documents/wcf

"RC Sproul, like Calvin, does not see the wisdom of God in allowing for human individualfree choice." says: Peter Y. Woo, Biola Univ. I ask .."so is this true?" Charles E. Whisnant

"I believe that whether we are speaking of God's decretive (active) will or His permissive(passive) will, both work together to bring about what He has ordained. In that sense weare safe in saying nothing occurs He hasn't ordained or that He hasn't willed to takeplace, or not take place, such as the case may be." covenantcorner.blogspot.com DavidMccrory

This is rather deep to digest so I will post the last half of this post on Thursday. Wecontinue to study this issue, How do we know how God is in control? By what means isGod in control? Tune in Thursday.

Next week we will return to our pastoral ministry at First Baptist Church, Altoona.

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant October 13th Checked by Charity 17th Posted 18th


Thursday, October 19, 2006• Unquestionable in this pursuit of biblical understanding is the commitment to obey

God’s will. Study is not simply for the purpose of appreciating doctrine in theabstract. The energetic searching for biblical truth, the daily meditation on the Word,and the striving for sound interpretation are useful only if compelled by a yearning toplease the Lord, and submit to His wishes.

WHAT IS THE PRINCIPLE THAT WE SHOULD USE TO DETERMINE GOD’S WILL?DOES GOD FOREORDAIN EVERYTHING?Application not based on solid interpretation has led Christians into all kinds of Confusion.Part 5b Note 5 from yestersday...Peter Y. Woo disagrees with SproulRC Sproul is wrong. "God foreordain everything" does not include every movement ofevery electron in the minds of Satan and the demons. He does foreordain a certaindegree of us making decision and choices, yet He can predict history. This apparent 111

paradox is illustrated by physics, where light particles are intractable individually, yetoverall obeys some statistical laws of diffraction, etc. RC Sproul, like Calvin, does not seethe wisdom of God in allowing for human individual free choice. That makes the wooingof our hearts to trust Jesus and be saved, all the more praise worthy. We noncalvinistshave greater appreciation of God's wisdom and power than that of a watch maker. Goddecrees things, but not necessarily microscopically. That is wisdom.Peter; If you think about what you said, it is not logical.If God knows something in the future, but yet does not know the movements of say, theelectrical mind particles with any certainty, then He can not be said to be sure of thefuture for if there is to be true certainty, then all the intrincities that make that certaintycertain must also be known for certain. And for that to happen One must be able to besovereign over those intrincities by making them happen whether directly by fiat orindirectly by law. "Non calvinists" only see the wisdom of the supposed freedom of manchoosing, but not the sovereignty of God in all things. For Man to be free in the sense youare saying leaves God not in total control but in actuality leaves Man or natural law incontrol.This is why God does not woo our hearts, but draws our hearts as one would draw water.To woo our hearts makes it possible that no Man would allow himself to be wooed, thusmaking the blessed sacrifice of Christ accomplish nothing but to damn all men , whichwould be a waste since we were all damned to begin with.If I claim to be certain beyond a shadow of a doubt, which of course is impossible, then Imust know for certain, with no chance of change, that all the elements that would come topass must come to pass.Now does He do this as the game is played or was it foreordained? It has to beforeordained for God to be God. Yes, our choices play into this ordination in some way,and there may be free choices within the foreordination, but yet in the final analysis , itmust be controlled by God. Posted by: Fred on Tuesday over at oldtruth.co

• I understand God is sovereign. In that sovereignty God allows or permits what everhappens. Does that mean that what He permits He approves?Does God allow us to make decisions that are not His Will, but allows us to do thosethings He does not approve of?In making a decision for a church elder, do we seek to discover God's will or do wewait and see how God is going to work it out? And how do you think God is going towork this out?Posted by: Charles E. Whisnant on Friday, October 13, 2006

Charles:I don't think the bible says anywhere that God forfeits his sovereignty by yielding it tomen. I know that you didn't use those words, but that's in effect what the case would be.And if it were the case, there is no way that God could have orchestrated the Cross tohappen. One "decision" of man, one maverick Molecule as RC Sproul said above, couldruin God's plan. Instead we find passages such as Ephesians 1:11 in which God is saidto work ALL THINGS, etc. We also have examples like this one from Acts 4:27-28, whichhelp us to understand that He is doing more than just "permitting" and "allowing": "...fortruly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom youanointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples ofIsrael, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place."Posted by:Jim from OldTruth.com on Friday, October 13, 2006

DO WE REALLY NEED DOCTRINAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE BIBLE112

• There is no danger of inconsequential doctrine; the real threat is an undoctrinalattempt at application. Application not based on solid interpretation has ledChristians into all kinds of confusion.

We see that there is much to be said about this point of view. But it’s a good topic for usto learn. Doctrine for a Christian is like gasoline for a car. God in a sense is a mystery.Yet God has revealed Himself to us through the Word, and He has written down Doctrineto help us with living life. For every experience that we encounter in this daily life, there isa prescription from the Word of God that will address the situation

• So our question within this series has been: HAS GOD DIRECTED THEDIRECTION THAT WE HAVE TRAVELED?. HAVE WE BEEN IN THE WILL OFGOD? IS THERE BIBLICAL EVIDENCE TO THE FACT THAT GOD HAS BEEN INCONTROL OF ALL THE EVENTS.

We all say, "God you are in control, we pray that you would direct, guide, give wisdom,bring to yourself your own unto salvation...yes, but do we really believe God is in thatmuch control?

\Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant October 13th Checked by Charity October 16th Posted19th


Thursday, October 19, 2006 Quoting Bruce Shelley..."Theology comes from two Greek words: theos, meaning God, and logos, meaning wordor rational thought. So theology is rational thought about God. It is not identical withreligion. Religion is our belief in God and our effort to live by that belief. Theology is theattempt to give a rational explaination of our belief: it is thinking about religion."Now I willwatch the rest of the St. Louis and New York baseball game........Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 08:17PM (-05:00)

Friday, October 20, 2006WHAT IS THE PRINCIPLE THAT WE SHOULD USE TO DETERMINE GOD’S WILL?DO WE REALLY NEED DOCTRINAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE BIBLEpart sixThere is no danger of inconsequential doctrine; the real threat is an undoctrinal attempt atapplication. Application not based on solid interpretation has led Christians into all kindsof confusion.I will sum up this series today.It’s true that God is internal. This is to say, God’s presence and activity are within nature,human nature, and history, which is our original topic (remaining within; indwelling;inherent, internal.). It’s true that God’s immanency means that there are points at whichthe gospel can and does approach the unbeliever. God in His time can and doesapproach an unbeliever and causes him to believe the gospel story. There will be aninstant in time in which man will be sensitive to the truth of the gospel story. But at thesame time, evangelism aims to find those moments and direct the central idea to them. Ifthis is correct, does God do this also with believers in making His purpose come about? 113

While we will use every available technique of modern learning to accomplish God’spurpose,it is God at work even when not doing it directly. For example, it is God’s workwhen by means of the use of medical knowledge, and the skill of a doctor, a sick personis brought back to health. The knowledge in any field of work, is part of God’s generalrevelation. So we prayed that our daughter would get well after forty days in the hospital.God answered that prayer through the hands of Dr. Hagihara, her surgeon. We will nevercease to be dependent upon His working.. That is, we could never disregard prayer forHis guidance or for His special intervention.I understand that God decides that certain things will take place in our lives. The mappingout of God does not force men to act in definite ways, but renders it certain that they willfreely act in those ways. Eph 2:10Do people do what they do because God has decided that this is exactly how they aregoing to act, or does God first foresee what they will do and then on that basis make Hisdecision as to what is going to happen Calvinists believe that God’s decision hasrendered it certain that every individual will act in particular way. And of course Arminianssay that God allows and expects man to exercise the will he has been givenAs I try to understand this process of God knowing all things, He not only knowseverything, but He causes all things to be as they are to be. The human mind just cannotfully understand that. Every action of mankind from here to eternity is already known byGod. We are led to believe that every action of mankind and every action of nature is anaction that God not only knows but also controls.In other words. God’s purpose will be done, we know that. There are two different sensesof God’s will as we are learning. Different theologians use different words to describeGod’s Will;. but either way, His will and His purposes are absolute..There is God’s specific intention in a given situation, what He decides shall actuallyoccur. An example would be His gift of salvation. There are also times, and I would saymany times, when God wills to permit things to happen that God does not desire tohappen. God, I believe, will allow on occasions, for us to choose freely a sinful course ofaction. I think as I have said in this paper, that God will allow a church or/and leadershipto make a wrong decision. It’s not God’s intention that a Preacher goes into sin, that isnot His desire, yet He allows it to happen. He allows mankind, by their own volition toobey or disobey His wishes.. Why He does this we do not know. By choosing not tointervene to prevent the act, He is actually willing that it take place.Then if God has already rendered certain what is to occur, is there any point in ourseeking to accomplish His will? It’s often a point of view about evangelism. So whyshould we evangelize if it’s going to be a foregone conclusion? Good question, as I oftenhear.. His plan whereby He saves a person may well include that our witness is themeans by which an elect person will come to saving faith. And secondly, we do not knowin detail what God’s plan is. Thus we should carry on based on what God has proclaimedis His Will, or desire.Our activity and the divine activity are not mutually exclusive. We have no basis forlooseness, indifference, or resignation in the face of the fact that God is at workaccomplishing His goals. God’s providence includes human actions.We are not just to sit back and wait to see God’s purposes fulfilled. God wants eachchurch to have elders, deacons, and leaders, and see sinners come to Christ as Lord andSavior. We are not just to sit and wait for it to happen, but to engage in the biblicalprinciples of bringing these to pass.Just because we are Calvinists in position, and believe in God’s sovereignty over allthings, and there is the absolute that God will and does execute somethingIT IN NO WAY EXCUSES US FROM GIVING OURSELVES DILIGENTLY TO BRINGINGABOUT ITS ACCOMPLISHMENT.

114

God brings about His purposes and plan, and He does so by commissioning the meansto those ends, which includes human actions.

It is hard to summarize in a few words what God accomplishes, or does. This is blogging.

Maybe we could use the word "allow" rather than permit. Because my understanding is,God’s Will will be accomplished. But there are some things God desires of mankind thatdo not happen. God could at any time step in and prevent any action of mankind, yet hedoes allow those actions to happen. He can decide to allow a person to choose a sinfulcourse of action against a believer, or a believer doing that which is not God’s desire forhim to do. (sin). While I believe God is always in control of every situation, He does nottell a person to sin. I don’t think His sovereignty is defaulted if he allows sin to happen, orbad judgments to be made. His eternal plan cannot be affected by mankind. Acts 14:16Romans 1 Matthew 19:8 2 Chronicles 32:31 and Psalms 81:12-13

• Acts 14:16 Who in times past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways.• Matthew 19:8 He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts

suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so.• 2 Chronicles 32:31 Howbeit in the business of the ambassadors of the princes of

Babylon, who sent unto him to enquire of the wonder that was done in the land, Godleft him, to try him, that he might know all that was in his heart.

• Psalms 81:12 So I gave them up unto their own hearts' lust: and they walked in theirown counsels.13 Oh that my people had hearkened unto me, [and] Israel hadwalked in my ways!

•My point is? God’s desires for mankind in general, are at times not obeyed. But Hestill supervises, oversees, controls, manages all things unto His glory.Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant October 13th and 14th Proof Read By CharityWhisnant. Posted 20th


Sunday, October 22, 2006 GROW IN LEARNING BLOG SITESOME BRIEF REMARKS OF THE PURPOSES OF THESE COMMENTS ABOUTMINISTRY

So our question within this series has been: HAS GOD DIRECTED THE DIRECTIONTHAT WE HAVE TRAVELED?. HAVE WE BEEN IN THE WILL OF GOD? IS THEREBIBLICAL EVIDENCE TO THE FACT THAT GOD HAS BEEN IN CONTROL OF ALLTHE EVENTS. HAVE WE BEEN FAITHFUL IN THE WORK OF THE MINISTRY?We all say, "God you are in control, we pray that you would direct, guide, give wisdom,bring to yourself your own unto salvation...yes, but do we really believe God is in thatmuch control?We could have the attitude that says, "Why even review the past, it’s all been in thecontrol of a sovereign Lord.." Or "Why bother thinking about it, because it’s the past!"This blog has developed into an on going chronicle of my past ministries. I used to spenda lot of time telling the story of our past ministries. I would always be funny in thecharacterization. 115

Generally, the past was the past, the events were just events, places where I servedwere just that. While I never really felt I finished the task I would have loved to, but it wasthe past.But it seemed that every time I would rehearse this story, I would sometimes getdepressed, and finally I said, no more, let the past stay in the past, good grief.Well, then comes this blogger. The first article I wrote was my résumé. I sent the blog tomy kids, and Chad tells me, "Dad, why don’t you put all this in print, and go into detail."And so I thought, okay how do I write these? I wanted to be positive, yet be honest. Idon’t want to sound like a sore loser, or a bragger, or point fingers. I didn’t want to get outmy frustration either.Then I thought maybe I could help others through my experiences, how do deal withministry. This I hope I can do in the process of this journey we have traveled over the lastforty years.Because really, as I look back, the experiences at the time were done with totalenjoyment and challenge. I was not thinking negatively or wondering how things weregoing to turn out. I just worked hard, and just did the best I could. What happened wasgenerally a surprise to me. I always believed that I would be in that ministry for a longtime. I never thought of the next place I would be. I NEVER looked forward to anotherministry while I was in that current ministry.Generally, I left a church, with the idea, "Okay, Lord where to next." "Ah, I did my best, it’sto the next place." So I didn’t give much thought at the time as to why all this happened.You can’t correct the past, you can only improve for the future.So in writing these comments on the ministries I have had the wonderful joy of working in,I trust I can demonstrate a correct picture, an honest one, and maybe be a help to me,and others who might go into the ministry.I always thought I could do ministry, have never had the attitude "Oh my, what do I do."So the air was, "I know my work." Some have taken my attitude as arrogant, and not veryhumble, which has never been my attitude. Basically, it was just the opposite.Even today after all these years, some still think that I need to learn humility. I have beenasked to learn humility. Well, if they only knew, how dependent upon the Lord I really am.But I do not believe you need to act dumb and talk like you don’t know anything, or walklike Erkel. Some call me a smart mouth, or a smart aleck. Which I don’t believe I ameither....I have a weird sense of humor.Check your spiritual health, examine your daily activities, believe your report that is withinyou.. Listen to others, but in light of your spirit. You know in your spirit if you have pleasedthe Lord. And if you have, keep going.So I will try to present a commentary that is fair and balanced. And try to keep an attitudethat I really was glad to be in that place at that time, and loved the people and loved thechurch.

Drafted Charles E Whisnant October 19th 2006 Proof-read by Charity WhisnantPosted October 21stPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 09:18AM (-05:00)

Monday, October 23, 2006THREE YEARS STUDYING THEOLOGYSO WHAT HAVE I LEARNED IN THE LAST THREE YEARS!Following my last ministerial work here in Portsmouth Ohio, I was blessed with a newerGateway computer as I have said before. I elected to have AOL as my Internet server.This was my first time on the Internet.116

Thankfully, I was in a spirit of learning. I was listening to Calvary Chapel Network ofchurches on radio. Each program had a web site. I had this idea of viewing each website. This idea led to a search of all the churches on the Calvary Network. There wereover 600 churches at the time, and in about a year I had researched all these churches.What an experience. I would download a homepage of the churches that I would like. Ihave three three-ring binders.Within this search, one church site had several links that they recommended. One suchlink took me to Expository. org. . And when I went on this site, they had links to sometwenty other links. And each of those links had other links. I am still today, after threeyears, still linking to links. One of the links:

Contend for the Faith: An Apologetics and Theology Resource Page by Matt Perman andJustin Taylor A fine collection of articles, most by these two men associated withBethlehem Baptist Church and John Piper. An Apologetics and Theology Resource PageChristian Growth & Theology Links.

PHIL JOHNSON’S BOOKMARKS....This site sponsored by Phil Johnson has 100's of links, and literally I have yet to get all ofthe links

I began to download certain articles and placed the articles in three-ring binders. I believeI had about ten binders at the end of the first year. From all these sites.

Monergism. comBeginning in early 2004 I was directed to monergism. com John .W. Hendryx This site isdevoted to the Reformed point of view. But it also has other points of view as well.On this site they had a list of topical index. From Abraham to John Calvin, from grace toSpurgeon Election to Free Will. And each topic like Election had several hundred articleson the subject.

I was asked to do a study on the Doctrines of Grace in our church for the DiscipleshipClass. So I went to the topical study of the Doctrines of Grace.. To my surprise therewere 255 articles. I was in shock to see so many articles. I decided to start to look at eachone and to read them. Then I thought, why don’t I just download the ones I really like.And thus I started. I am still working on this project.Then I went to about thirty other topics. This has been a major joy of study. I starteddownloading some of the articles and putting them in three ring binders for futurereferences and study. 30 binders x 200 pages = 6,000 pages (just the theological topicsbinders)I was glad to discover printpal. com because the ink for the printer was 80% less thanbuying them at Wal-Mark or K-Mart. Then Sam’s had reams of paper at a veryreasonable price. I also was able to find some specials on binders as well. The onlyproblem has been I have used up four Epson printers Today I am using a Lexmark 611. Iam glad printers are very cheap.What is interesting, pre 2003 all my information came from reading books. Books weremy life in ministry. I read and studied for most of thirty years. I thought I was well readand rather informed on the Word of God. All my sermon preparations were by readingand studying books. And all my sermons were hand written on folded typing paper. Over4,000 manuscript sermons, hand written. What I could have done if I’d hadmonergism.com for those years.While I had some of the books that are now on the Internet, it’s really good to be able to 117

print them and read and study them.Now monergism.com has the Covenant Reformed Theology, which I was not reallyknowledgeable of before I started reading the articles on this site.To name a few of the writers on Monergism.comThe Reformers:. John Calvin, John Owen, Jonathan Edwards, R.L.. Dabney,. ThomasBoston, Martin Luther, Richard Bacters. Then others, Charles Spurgeon, John Gill,Octavius Winslow, A.W. Pink, George Whitefield. Current men:, John Piper, JohnMacArthur, Jim Elliff, John Reisinger, R.C. Sproul, James White, John Murray, JamesBoyce, and many more.Predominantly I have studied from this point of view. Covenant Reformed Theology. Iagree with the position on the Doctrines of Grace, but that is about all that I would agreewith.All this study has affirmed my belief in my preaching style while in Altoona, Kansas.When you study different views you can strengthen your view or change it. Whileteaching for sixteen years in Altoona, and preaching expositionally you preached from thestandpoint of teaching the meaning of the text. I studied to understand the text, more thanI studied the doctrinal issues. While I taught doctrinally, my focus was on a practicalinterpretation.What I have discovered in these doctrinal studies, I realized that I was generallydoctrinally correct in what I preached. Or at least, from my point of view. And as I learn, Iam allowing myself to change my point of view.

• What are some of the different and agreeable points of view?1A I preached primarily from the New Testament, using the Old Testament forexamples of a New Testament principle. What I am learning is that CovenantTheology says that the Old Testament is as necessary to preach as the NewTestament.

• 2A When I taught in the Old Testament, I would try to tell the story that was in thetext. I taught Genesis and Isaiah in Sunday School, Proverbs and Daniel onWednesday. What Covenant Theology teaches is the Old Testament is to be taughtwith Christ in every verse. Christ-Centered Preaching. Redemptive-HistoryTeaching. Every sermon is to be Christ-centered, gospel-centered from either theOld or the New.

• 3A I taught the book of Revelation in Roanoke, Va.,. Minford Ohio, and Altoona,Kansas, and started at Second Baptist. My perspective is that Revelation is futureprophecy. The Covenant Theology states that Revelation is unknown. Severalviewpoints are held, of which I do not agree with any of them.

• 4A Covenant Theology teaches the Redemptive Historical Theme. That is Christ isthe reason for the whole purpose of the writing of the Old Testament. They teachthat Israel and the church are the same in nature. Thus, they do not see Israel todayas having any significance.. I do not agree.

• 5A I had never really read any of the Confessionals: The Westminster Confessionand Catechisms were written (1642-1647), any of the London Baptist Confession. Inever knew how they fit in.

• 6A I had never understood the Reformation Period or what that had to do withReligion.

• 7A I had never really read John Calvin’s The Institutes of the Christian Religion• 8A Reformed Baptist? Are you kidding? Fundamentalist, Independent Baptist. I

discovered there are some good folks that are not Baptist. While I am still a Baptist,I go to a non- Baptist church.

• 9A MOST SIGNIFICANTLY I have come to understand the Sovereignty of God andthe Providence of God. I have come to better comprehend the Doctrines of Grace

• 10A Sola Scriptura: Solus Christus Sola Gratia: Sola Fide: (Faith Alone)Soli Deo118

Gloria: What? I have never heard of these before this study.I taught the idea,believed the principles, but now understand them better.

• 11A Covenant, Reformed Folks have a real problem with Dispensationalism.I have gained a better understanding of this position. I still believe the Israel in theO.T. is not the Church in the N.T. But I believe salvation in the Old is the same as inthe New. I still am "pre" everything, Pre-Tribulation and Pre-millenial..

• 12A Some believe in Covenant baptism, infant baptism, that is. I don’t. Somebelieve all the gifts are no longer necessary today.

• 13A But what I have learned is to learn from those who may not hold my personalposition,. because it seems we have more in common than areas we disagree.

• 14A The glory of God is preeminent. His glory is foremost in everything.• Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant 10 21 06 Proof Read Charity 10 23 06


Tuesday, October 24, 2006Satan's Secret Script: The Slow but Serious Slide of Scripture-less Servicesby mdeverMark Dever points out a statement from David Well's book "Above All Earthly Pow'rs"David made a statement in the book about the centrality of the Word in the weeklycongregational sitting which is worth pulling out and considering.

How central was God's Word to your service this past Sunday? How central was it in thesermon?Here's what David says: "This Word of God is the means by which God accomplishes hissaving work in his people, and this is a work that no evangelist and no preacher can do.This is why the dearth of serious, sustained biblical preaching in the Church today is aserious matter. When the Church loses the Word of God it loses the very means by whichGod does his work. In its absence, therefore, a script is being written, howeverunwittingly, for the Church’’s undoing, not in one cataclysmic moment, but in a slow,inexorable slide made up of piece by tiny piece of daily dereliction."" David Wells, AboveAll Earthly Pow’’rs (2005), p. 9.

http://blog.togetherforthegospel.org

• When Charles H. Spurgeon died, Joseph Parker wrote a tribute to him that waspublished in The Times of London. What do you suppose Parker regarded asSpurgeon's most outstanding feature? It was Spurgeon's unbending commitment,throughout his entire ministry, to the same doctrines he had preached at the start.Parker wrote:

• "The only pulpit name of the nineteenth century that will be remembered is nolonger the name of a living man. His simplicity, his constancy, his stand-stillness,won for him, through many difficulties, a unique and invincible position in ChristianEngland. Mr. Spurgeon had but one sermon, and it was ever new. Other youngpreachers are naturally great in the treatment of Biblical narrative and anecdotes.They can handle drama better than doctrine. Mr. Spurgeon boldly went at once tothe deepest and greatest themes. At nineteen he preached to countless thousandsfrom such texts: "Accepted in the beloved"; "No man cometh unto me except theFather draw him"; "And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace."Some men have never ventured to take those texts even after a lifetime of service.Mr. Spurgeon took them at once, as the very seven notes that made all God's 119

music, and he did so by Divine right and impulse. As he began, so he continued: henever changed; he never went in quest of the fourth dimension or of the eighth note;his first and his last were one.That great voice has ceased. It was the mightiestvoice I ever heard: a voice that could give orders in a tempest, and find its wayacross a torrent as through a silent aisle. Very gentle, too, it could be, sweet andtender and full of healing pity.

•"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding inthe work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in theLord" (1 Corinthians 15:58).Phil Johnson October 24, 2006

In preaching the Word, teaching the principles and truths of the text is the most importantwork of the pastor/teacher. When even your enemy can say, "He was faithful to theWord," you have.

If I have in Christ accomplished any thing, the one thing I would want to be known ashaving done well. "He taught the Scriptures, he was not afraid to take on any text to studyand preach."

Drafted by Charles E. WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 02:43PM (-05:00)

Wednesday, October 25, 2006HOW ARE WE TO VIEW THE PAST IN THE LIGHT OF THE PRESENT?THIS IS ONLY WITHIN MY EXPERIENCEpart oneI am glad to say there are many great church ministries that are doing a wonderful workfor the Lord. Amen. Thus I am not talking about those churches. I study healthy churchesand glean from them. Large churches do not mean they are necessarily Biblically healthy.Small churches are not necessarily unhealthy either.In my experience, the Lord has seemed to be pleased in His providence to direct metoward churches that are not always very healthy, and they need some healthyleadership.While I have been in some churches that are large, from 300 to 1000, (not counting FBCin Hammond), generally I have worked in or have pastored churches from 12 to 300. So,I have been in the smaller churches.We have now written some seventy articles looking at the past ministry experience,.whichhas been rather a stimulation of spirit and mind. I am not sure there has been anysignificance or importance in this endeavor, other than Chad my son thought this wasgood therapy for me.I have enjoyed putting down some of the experiences. I have come to the understandingthat I have loved the work of the ministry.What I have tried to understand about these last forty years is "have these experiencesbeen to the glory and purposes of the Lord? Has the Lord been glorified, and has Hepurposed the direction that I have been lead over these forty years?"I often say, from a personal consideration, the ministry was frequently an abbreviatedministry that was not a fulfillment of the goals and objectives that I believed should haveoccurred.The Apostle Paul could stay a few weeks in Thessalonica and accomplish God’spurpose. I have found that ministry today takes a while to accomplish a strongfoundation..What I have thought as I glance back through the maze of ministries and the positions120

that I have enjoyed, the people that I have met and the young people that I have workedwith, it has been extraordinarily worth every moment.While no place where I have served would we consider to be a failure of effort, and evenbelieve there has been some degree of success; nevertheless, I believe there was somuch yet to be accomplished had we stayed longer. . .It seems that most of the places I have served there was some form of hardship or thechurch had been hampered from effective ministry. When we arrived to begin ourministry, or shortly thereafter, it seemed that there was a need to help bring the ministryinto a more healthy position. (As a footnote: Generally the churches didn’t feel they wereunhealthy.) My objective was to help develop a good foundational ministry that wouldbring about the best results. The enjoyment of initiating a new philosophy of ministry inthe church was certainly a good objective. For example:

• At Madison Baptist - Having a pastor for more than a year, and paying the pastorAt Wooster - A youth ministry developed - Team Leaders both SundayMorning/Night

• Calvary Baptist - A great Children’s Church Ministry.• FBC - Altoona - Eldership Ministry, Training Faithful Christians -• Victory Baptist - Sunday School Ministry, and Youth Ministry• Portsmouth Baptist - Re-establishment of a Sunday School.Ministry.

Some of the churches I happened to be in, I would describe as dysfunctional. Biblicalministry was missing. In a few churches there were workers who loved the Lord, butlacked spiritual leadership. I have said this must have been my mission from the Lord.

I would like to believe the Lord’s mission was to provide the leadership necessary to getthe church healthy. And in the case of Madison, and FBC, I believe this wasaccomplished. I was the pastor in these two churches for the necessary time toaccomplish the task. Both of these churches are today doing very adequately in ministry.Both churches today are still small churches in very small towns (less than 500), but bothare doing very well. But when I went to these churches they were functional but nothealthy. I enjoyed the task of helping provide the leadership to bring the church into acondition for ministry.

I have from my youth enjoyed the leadership role and enjoyed the development ofministry. I enjoyed training men and women and youth for ministry. I have enjoyedlearning the different styles of other ministries. Let me give a few places as an example:

CHURCH MINISTRY

• Thomas Road Baptist Church - Lynchburg Super Conference• First Baptist Church - Hammond Pastor’s School Sunday School Teaching Material

Church Office Work, Visitors,• Basic Institute of Youth Conflicts Bill Gothard• All Day Ministers Seminar for 12 years Bill Gothard• From 1983 & 1990 Grace Community Church - Shepherd’s Conference - Van

Nuys, Calif. (FBC Altoona) My preaching style of Expositional teaching The style ofchurch government

• Calvary Chapel - Chuck Smith -2003• Purpose Driven Church - Rick Warren 2002-2003 Have a reason and purpose for

ministry• Southern Acres Christian Church - Lexington Ky 1996-2002• Ashland Ave Baptist Church - Lexington - 1996-2002 121

• 9 Marks of a Healthy Church 2005 Mark Dever• Several Online Ministries I have studied.• George Norris, Gideon Baptist Church 1968-69- Practical Pastor’s Work• Robert Schuller, really, in the early 1980's. Sunday School Ministry

Drafted Charles E. Whisnant 10 16th & 24th Proof Read Charity 10-24,25 2006 Posted25th


Thursday, October 26, 2006HOW ARE WE TO VIEW THE PAST IN THE LIGHT OF THE PRESENT?part two

Biblical Principles do work, principles I learned as a youth still are good. BiblicalPhilosophy will work. John MacArthur’s point: Doing God’s Work in the God’s Way willproduce God’s Purposes.

Ways in which to implement those principle varied over the years. And I believe you cantake these principles and work within the belief system you have. As an example, thePurpose-Driven Church principles in general are very good. A church should bemotivated by Biblical principles. You don’t have to agree with every point, but you canadapt them to your church.

Traditional principles vs. biblical principles often conflict. When you attempt to set upBiblical principles in a traditional church, there will be a parting of the ways. Often there isa period of disagreement and often people get upset with change. Where there isyieldedness to those principles there will be a healthy church. Sometimes personalitydoes get in the way of success. Sometimes my own personality was a problem, andoccasionally the principles get in the way of success.

I have this unique way of agitating the established format of the church’s traditionalmethods of doing church. An unhealthy church sometimes needs a shot in the arm. Theyneed a new diet for operation. They often need a new mind set of Biblical thought. Andthis is always offensive. For an example: "We stopped having Sunday School two yearsago, because we couldn’t get anyone to come," a former teacher said. When I suggestedthe reason that happened, they were offended.

Often the church body is more protective of traditional methods, and they do not desire tochange them, even at the expense of failure. Some people are willing to let the churchcompletely die before they would think of having a drum set in the church or allowanother Bible translation.

• For exampleI really loved the work I did in two Southern Baptist Churches, to work within theSouthern Baptist model. I enjoyed the effort to get all parties working together. Whathurt me was the few people who were really against anything I was doing. TheSouthern Baptist model is good, it’s the implementing of those principles that is thedifficulty. I worked out a plan that I believed would bring all the groups together, andI believe would have. But there was an element within the church body that was seton defeating the plan. The leadership was tired and some quit the church and122

others didn’t want to buck the older people. Then when I left, they left. Thosechurches had a history of discontent. The problems of the church were there yearsbefore I came and were there after I left. Since 1929 one church has beenestablished, and today of the recorded 489 members, only fifty come.

The Biblical pattern of leadership for the church is the Elders, and the church is to followthat leadership. Often there is poor eldership leadership and poor church membershipunderstanding of the purpose of the church. Fundamental Baptist Churches likecongregational rule. They want to vote and have a voice in every decision the churchleadership is going to make.

Fundamentalists, Evangelicals, Southern Baptists, Independents, Bible Churches,Reformed Churches all have some of the same problems. . Some are healthy churchesand some are dying a slow death.

I have been a part of the World Baptist Fellowship - Arlington Texas. GARB - Ohio andKansas, Southern Baptist - Kentucky, Non-Denominational - Ohio. All these churcheshave people that are about the same, good people. It’s usually not the label, it’s thetraditional mind set and its leadership.

I have been rather unsystematic here in this article I know. I am trying to get a handle onthis subject. I’ve jumped from thought to thought, sorry. My point is to figure out thepurpose of forty years of ministry. The purpose has been within the providence of God. IfGod has been glorified, and up lifted and the Gospel has been rightly presented, then thereal purpose has been accomplished.

I truly today, am satisfied with the last forty years of ministry. Should I be?

I keep saying, my choices of churches were believed to be right, but the end results werefrequently viewed as not right. (Why would I have gone to Second Baptist; why would Ihave left FBC; why would I have wanted to go to Calvary?) Unless all this has beenunder the providence or foresight of a sovereign Lord. I really am glad the Lord allowedus to go to each place we went. I learned valuable lessons in each place..

But, to be honest, I would like to do God’s will better, learn more, and do a better work forthe Lord.I am satisfied if I can sum up all this ministry as all within the control of the Lord.

P.S. The subject of his posting was "How Are We To View The Past In The Light Of TheFuture?

In other word, looking back what would I do different? First, I can’t go back. Secondly, Icouldn’t change the pass anyway. Thirdly, God took us at the point we were in and usedus for His glory. Fourth, Yes I would do some things differently in light of betterunderstanding of church ministry. Fifty, I would continue to preach the same style,Expositional teaching.


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THREE YEARS IN BIBLICAL THEOLOGY on the InternetIn October 2003 I logged on to AOL Internet For the first time I was finally on theInternet., Thanks to Al Gore for the Internet. Or was it someone else?

I confess I don't know why I am posting is article on the Internet and the WWW. But atleast it might be interesting. Or at least for me.

Tim Berners-Lee was the man leading the development of the World Wide Web (withhelp of course), the defining of HTML (hypertext markup language) used to create webpages, HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) and URLs (Universal Resource Locators).The history of the Internet dates back to the early development of communicationnetworks. The idea of a computer network intended to allow general communicationamong users of various computers has developed through a large number of stages. Themelting pot of developments brought together the network of networks that we know asthe Internet. This included both technological developments and the merging together ofexisting network infrastructure and telecommunication systems.Originally intended to share data between a few universities and government agencies,the Internet today allows connectivity from anywhere on earth and beyond——The Internet is the worldwide, publicly accessible network of interconnected computernetworks that transmit data by packet switching using the standard Internet Protocol (IP).It is a "network of networks" that consists of millions of smaller domestic, academic,business, and government networks, which together carry various information andservices, such as electronic mail, online chat, file transfer, and the interlinked Web pagesand other documents of the World Wide Web.HTMLVannevar Bush first proposed the basics of hypertext in 1945. Tim Berners-Lee inventedthe World Wide Web, HTML (hypertext markup language), HTTP (HyperText TransferProtocol) and URLs (Universal Resource Locators) in 1990. Tim Berners-Lee was theprimary author of html, assisted by his colleagues at CERN, an international scientificorganization based in Geneva, Switzerland.I was lucky enough to invent the Web at the time when the Internet already existed - andhad for a decade and a half. If you are looking for fathers of the Internet, try Vint Cerf andBob Kahn who defined the "Internet Protocol" (IP) by which packets are sent on from onecomputer to another until they reach their destination."The DESIGN of Internet was done in 1973 and published in 1974. There ensued about10 years of hard work, resulting in the roll out of Internet in 1983. Prior to that, a numberof demonstrations were made of the technology - such as the first three-networkinterconnection demonstrated in November 1977 linking SATNET, PRNET andARPANET in a path leading from Menlo Park, CA to University College London and backto USC/ISI in Marina del Rey, CA."David Clark, of MIT's LCS, is another one I can point to who put in the work in the 1970swhich made the Web possible in the 1990s.Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn used, in making IP, the concept of packet switching which hadbeen invented by Paul Barran.The Internet ('Net) is a network of networks. Basically it is made from computers andcables. What Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn did was to figure out how this could be used tosend around little "packets" of information. As Vint points out, a packet is a bit like apostcard with a simple address on it. If you put the right address on a packet, and gave it124

to any computer which is connected as part of the Net, each computer would figure outwhich cable to send it down next so that it would get to its destination. That's what theInternet does. It delivers packets - anywhere in the world, normally well under a second.The Web is an abstract (imaginary) space of information. On the Net, you find computers-- on the Web, you find document, sounds, videos,.... information. On the Net, theconnections are cables between computers; on the Web, connections are hypertext links.The Web exists because of programs which communicate between computers on theNet. The Web could not be without the Net. The Web made the net useful becausepeople are really interested in information (not to mention knowledge and wisdom!) anddon't really want to have know about computers and cables.Contrary to some common usage, the Internet and the World Wide Web are notsynonymous: the Internet is a collection of interconnected computer networks, linked bycopper wires, fiber-optic cables, wireless connections, etc.; the Web is a collection ofinterconnected documents, linked by hyperlinks and URLs. The World Wide Web isaccessible via the Internet, as are many other services including e-mail, file sharing, andothers described below.The World Wide Web Tim Berners-Lee in 1989 he invented the World Wide Web, aninternet-based hypermedia initiative for global information sharing. while working atCERN, the European Particle Physics Laboratory. He wrote the first web client (browser-editor) and server in 1990.Through keyword-driven Internet research using search engines, like Google, millionsworldwide have easy, instant access to a vast and diverse amount of online information.Compared to encyclopedias and traditional libraries, the World Wide Web has enabled asudden and extreme decentralization of information and data. Many individuals and somecompanies and groups have adopted the use of "Web logs" or blogs, which are largelyused as easily-updatable online diaries (Which is the reason I starting blogging.)Ironically, the abbreviation "WWW" is somewhat impractical as it contains two or threetimes as many syllables (depending on accent) as the full term "World Wide Web", andthus takes longer to say. Well there you have it.Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 12:50PM (-05:00)

Saturday, October 28, 2006YOU MIGHT SAY I HAVE BEEN AN "INVETERATE" MINISTER

A brief footnote:"Behavior to motivate a response from God is legalism; behavior that is enabled by Christis grace. "Don WhisnantGracePoint

"INVETERATE" FROM DICTIONARY.COM

Charles E. Whisnant

"Inveterate" means adj.

• Firmly established by long persistence, deep-rooted, of long standing.• Fixed in habit by long persistence, confirmed, habitual.

I have been an inveterate Christian minister, just ask Charity. Ever since we have beenmarried, I’ve been getting up early in the morning, studying the Word, reading books, andgoing to work at a secular job, and then doing the ministry of preaching and teaching as 125

well, for over thirty years.

But during the last ten years I have gotten a little out of hand. (1996-2006) It started outwanting to spend time with the boys, (1993) just collecting baseball and basketball cardswhile we lived in Kansas. Then we moved to Lexington KY in 1996. Eric was out ofcollege, Becky was in college. Chad was in the 11th grade and Kyle was twelve, still athome. And I was not pastoring, which is another story in itself. Somehow I got caught upin this sports collecting again. I am not a video game person, never have played gameslike that at all. So I became a collector of sports memorabilia. I believe this was asubstitute for what I really wanted to be doing, which was ministry. Anyway, for the nextfive years I was a collector. Then we moved in 2002 and came to Portsmouth Ohio.Actually, during this current time, I have not really been very active in collecting, but I dohave a few habits that I continue to do with what collection I already have. But it onlytakes up a very small amount of time.

Example of this inveterate: Always setting up sports displays:

• Arranging the Scottie Pippens Starting Line-Up and Cards, and magazines.• Displaying the Dale Earnhardt, Sr. 1/24 Goodwrench Monte Carlo Wheaties Car,

and the 1/64 series of cars, and the Earnhardt’s Wheatie Boxes, and a number ofcards, and magazines. I particularly like the life size Earnhardt, given to me by AllenBarnhart.

• Showing off the LEXMARK 1/64 die cast metal latest Hot Wheel/Lightning CollectorCars. Brian Williams, sales rep for Lexmark and husband to my niece April,graciously gives me every new car that Lexmark comes out with. Sorry I am notselling them.

• Parading a number of Wheaties Boxes that I collected of sports figures, fromMichael Jordon, to Tiger Woods. The Wheaties are good to eat as well. Thisrequires a weekly visit to the store to see if there is a new Wheaties box.

• Exhibiting a number of the Hot Wheels, a fine collection of the 2004 Series of carson sheet-rock. Always seeking the new "Dodge Tomahawk" or "Rebel Rides" bikes.Because Eric likes bikes, I have a nice exhibit of bikes from Hot Wheels. And Kylegave me a stand that will display over 120 1/64 cars. I have a collection of HotWheels modifications, three different looks to the same car. Of course there are the1999-2003 series.

• Flaunting my display of Jeff Gordon’s cars, cards, Wheatie boxes, shirts, books andmagazines, etc.

• Strutting the many Starting Lineup is a pleasure. From Babe Ruth, Michael Jordan,Dale Earnhardt, Barry Sanders, Cal Ripken, Jr., Wayne Gretzke to name just a few.

• Featuring an excellent display of sports memorabilia on shelves, which I have madeand arranged. Plus there are a number of three ring binders full of sports cards.

• I am an inveterate clipper of newspapers sports articles, which I cut and paste, anddisplay them on cardboard posters. I have done this since I was a teenager. Ericsaves the Sports Sections of USA Today for me.

• From the newest US Postage Stamps to the latest 50 states quarters that arespotlighted.Pictures of the family, in frames, in binders, in albums, are arranged on walls, athome, work or at church

MY LOVE OF ORGANIZING: USING BOOKCASES AND FILE CABINETS HASALWAYS BEEN DEEP-ROOTED

126

• I was an inveterate book collector for many years. As a teenager in my father’s bookstores I fell in love with books. Going to the school/college/church/local Library hasalways been deep rooted in me.

• First thing I would do when going to a new church was to set up my bookcases ofbooks.

• At Calvary Baptist Church, several men built me a wall to wall bookcase.• At First Baptist Church, Kurt Nunnenkamp, made me an attractive 2" thick wall to

wall bookcase for the pastor’s office. .• At Second Baptist, Ray Polly spent hours making me an immaculate looking 7'x5'

book case for the pastor’s office.• Nearly every place I worked and lived has been noticeable with book shelves full of

books. Church or home, there were book cases. It is still the same today.• Book cases are also used to hold three ring binders too. I look for bargains on

notebooks. I bought fifty 1 ½ " notebooks for .25 cents each (they were $3.78). I’malways looking for a binder.Some examples of what goes into these binders.:

• Binders full of church documents.• Binders for ministry related material• Personal sermon manuscripts: Daniel, Revelation, Isaiah, Proverbs, I Peter, 1

Thessalonians,• Shepherd’s Conference Notebooks 1983, 1993, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006• IBYC and ADMS, Gothard Notebooks 1978-1990• Biblical Counseling Notebooks• Sports Binders.

In the last four years (2002-2006) as I have written, I am an inveterate Internet browser,98 window-shopper, monergism.com web site visitor daily. I am an inveterate Corel WordPerfect Suite 8 visitor daily. So over the last three years these bookcases have beenfilled with the notebooks and three ring binders as follows: Some major projects:

• DOCTRINAL/ THEOLOGICAL NOTEBOOK BINDERS 2003-PRESENT• ARTICLES FROM SOME GREAT WEB SITES 2003-PRESENT• SERMONS FROM GREAT MEN OF THE PAST AND PRESENT 2003-06• BLOGGING ARTICLES. 2006• A YEAR’S WORK IN LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT OF A CHURCH AND

BIBLE STUDY MINISTRY at PORTSMOUTH BAPTIST CHURCH. 2002-03• SIX MONTHS STUDY OF THE DOCTRINES OF GRACE FOR TEACHING TWO

MONTHS ADULT DISCIPLESHIP CLASS AT BIGELOW CHURCH 2004There you have it, folks. Good grief. What will I think of next?

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant October 28th Proof-read by Charity 28th Posted 28th


Monday, October 30, 2006ALL DAY MINISTERS SEMINAR - BILL GOTHARD TEACHERWhat did I believe was necessary to be an effective preacher and pastor?

I have been a little side-tracked from our intended purpose of talking about our journey inministry, but I believe the last several weeks have been important for our discussion.We left off with our arrival in Altoona, Kansas in 1980 (10/04/06 #58) 127

I am not sure how I was introduced to the Basic Institute, but I remember going to my firstSeminar. Monday thru Saturday. I was in shock on Monday thru Thursday. By Friday andSaturday I was in awe of the material I had just heard. And for the next twelve years I wasvery much a part of the ministry.Much of what I taught on Wednesday nights, and in Bible Study came from the material Ilearned from the Seminar and All Day Ministers Seminar.I still today believe much of the material for practical ministry.What did I believe was necessary to be an effective preacher and pastor

Sadly, I have not kept up with IBYC and Bill Gothard since 1990, so I am not really awareof the ministry and have not attended any seminars since 1990. Thus, I cannot speakabout any events after 1990; but I will say, I will stand by any material used from 1978thru 1990. I would still use the material today as much as I did at First Baptist Church inAltoona, Ks.I went to their site today, and they are doing well as I understand. They still have BasicSeminars.Today you have those men who have live blogging from a conference. I took notes fromthe seminar and then came home and from my hand-written notes wrote a rather goodset of notes, which I still have today.The material from the All Day Ministers Seminars was different from any Seminar I hadgone to. The material presented by Bill was not your conventional material for Churchministry. So when you first heard the principles set forth you questioned them.When you had time to study the material, you realized how good they were. Over theyears many of the thoughts were put into operation.THE BASIC INSTITUTE OF YOUTH CONFLICT SEMINAR September 1978 was our firstexperience with Institute of Basic Youth Conflicts.. I attended my first Seminar inIndianapolis, Indiana, my second in Wichita, Kansas in 1980, another in Tulsa, Ok. in1983, and then the Advanced Seminar in Atlanta, GA.In 1978 my father-in-law Bob Temple and I went to our first All Day Ministers Seminar,and the first one Bill had. There were less then 500 preachers present from 9 a.m. to 4p.m.The last Seminar I went to there were over 3,000 men.

HERE ARE THE SUBJECT MATERIALS AT EACH OF THE SEMINARS I ATTENDEDTHE ALL DAY MINISTERS SEMINAR......

In September 1978 in Chicago Ill.

• Building ten basic convictions through your messages• Basic questions of divorced people• How to meet the seven basic needs of a minister’s wife• Seeds of disintegration

In March 1979 in Detroit MI

• Seven Basic Needs of a Husband• Answers to the real question of a broken marriage• Basic questions to determine root causes• Facts and fiction about Homosexuality

September 1980 in Kansas City MO

• How to make your church a source of power128

• Why the church has lost its influence• How to make your worship service a source of spiritual power• How to bind Satan and build a "hedge" of protection around your church and family• How to overcome the power of temptation• MEN’S INSTITUTE - CURRICULUM• How to use precise questions in personal conferences to build spiritual maturity• How to prepare sermons that change lives.

September 1981 in Kansas City MO.

• Five dangers of spiritual leadership• Defilement of listening to evil reports• How to overcome the power of sin• HOW TO IDENTIFY SPIRITUAL GIFTS• Seven requirements for a father to be a successful leader• Dealing with discouragement

September 1982 in Kansas City MO

• Seven steps of overcoming sinful habits• THREE SCRIPTURAL WAYS TO APPROACH CHURCH DISCIPLINE• How to build without borrowing• Biblical teaching on Divorce and Remarriage• Misunderstood facts on separation of church and state

September 1983 in Kansas City Mo

• Seven ways to take when you receive criticism• Twenty aspects of financial freedom• Six purposes, keys to fulfillment in a marriage relationship• Ten reactions of a wife in a marriage• HOW TO TEACH SONS AND DAUGHTERS TO ‘STAND ALONE’• How to recognize and resolve the special dangers surrounding the Pastor’s children

September 1984 in Kansas MO

• SEVEN BASIC ASPECTS OF FEEDING THE FLOCK• Essential character qualities of Christ• A STUDY METHOD OF PSALMS• A METHOD OF STUDYING SCRIPTURE• TRAINING FAITHFUL MEN• SCRIPTURAL PRINCIPLES FOR EDUCATION

September 1985 #8 in Kansas City MO

• ADVANCE TRAINING INSTITUTE• HOW TO TRACE SURFACE PROBLEMS• SEVEN PHASES OF A GODLY COURTSHIP• Meaning of the Wedding Covenants• Recognizing the potential of building lives for God’s Kingdom• Teaching of our children by God’s Wisdom• BASIC PRINCIPLES OF MUSIC EVALUATION

February 1986 In Kansas City MO

• WISE COUNSELING TO USE TO GIVE LIGHT IN DIFFICULT SITUATION -MEDICAL RESOURCES. 129

• How eating habits of SHEEP reveal important insights on MEDITATION

February 1987 #10 in Kansas City, MO

• Pastor "BURNOUT" How to keep from "Burnout"• How to meet the needs of the 2nd born.• Making melody in your heart - 6 hours of music/story behind songs.• NON-OPTIONAL PRINCIPLES OF LIFE• Financial Freedom Video• Reactions to God’s Truth

Training level is different.• Getting people to see truth

1988 #11 in March 1988 in Kansas City MO

• TEN STEPS IN SETTING UP A YOUTH MINISTRY• How to Work with the elderly Christians• How do inherited traits affect the intensity of the temptation we experience• How to evaluate your child• How to conquer lust and habits• How to know God’s will for daily decisions

1989 In March in Kansas City MO No. 11 and my last one.

• Ten unexpected causes of Church splits and how to avoid them• Fruits of a Disciplined Life• HITTING THE MARKS - Video. Seven Principles• HOW TO TEACH OBEDIENCE FROM THE WORLD OF THE DUCK - Video• Principles Behind Life Changing Messages - Charles Stanley• Music Evolution• How to answer questions on Dancing.• The fruit of a disciplined life• How to evaluate "civil disobedience"

SOME OF THE GREAT AND WONDERFUL BOOKS FROM THE IBYC MINISTRIES

• The Pineapple Story• The Eagle Story• Rebuilder’s Guide• Men’s Manual Vol One• Men’s Manual Vol Two - Financial• Character Sketches Vol. One, Two and Three• Life Notebook

SOME OF THE SUPPLEMENTARY ALUMNI BOOKLETS

• The Key to Freedom Under Authority• Our Most Important Messages Grow Out of Our Greatest Weaknesses.• Be Alert to Spiritual Danger.• The Moral Conditions• Why Did Rome Fall?• Understanding the Winds of Adversity• The Unexpected Enemy of Justice and Mercy• Conquering Impossible "Mountains"• Applying Basic Principles130

• Is It Right to Try to Legislate Morality?• THE SECRET OF SUCCESS• The Overlooked Requirements for Riches, Honor and Life• Humility and the Fear of the Lord]• Understanding the Biblical Foundations of Marriage• How to Understand Humanism• How to Stand Along• How to Make an Appeal• How to Conquer Slothfulness• The Rebuilder’s Guide

MAJOR PROJECTS Manual

• Basic Leadership ManualThe Advance Leadership Guide ManualThe Basic Church Ministry Guide Manual

•Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant October 28th Proof Read by Charity October 30th


Tuesday, October 31, 2006SHOULD CHRISTIANS GO TO THE CINEMA?

HOW SHOULD A PASTOR/TEACHER RESPOND TO THIS ISSUE?

There are certainly many other things Christians can do that are worse than watchingmovies at home or in a Cinema. Cable TV can be far worse than a movie. Music, drugs,alcohol, sex.It’s scary how your experience with movie going was just like mine. Movies in the 50'swere not really so bad either. I went to one movie in 40 years, and not more than ten inmy life. My kids go all the time. (I am respond to another blogger on this issue)

True believing Christians can and should do what their hearts desire. It’s pure legalism tosimply conduct oneself in a manner that is not in character with their inner spirit. If yourconduct or performance is in any way out of guilt to fit in with fundamentalism it is purelegalism. But if there is a bona fide hunger for righteousness that will glorify the Lord, thenyour conduct or performances or appearance is godly and not legalism.

What I preached about Christian behavior, I believed was correct. Christian conduct in alost world is necessary. Our conduct should reflect a Christ-like character. But ourbehavior is not to be legalism but must come from the genuine heart of love for Christ’sglory.

It’s pure legalism on the other side as well for the non-fundamentalist who says it’s okayto wear jeans or shorts and preach on Sunday, go to movies, dance, watch movies anyplace. If you conform to that just because you want to fit in, it’s still legalism.

Can I personally go and see a Star Trek movie and not feel guilty? Personally I can’tbecause of my background. Is it biblically wrong to go? I don’t think so. Is it going tocertain movies that make going to a Cinema wrong? Are you a better believer if you see 131

"The Legend of Zorro" 2005 rather than "Kill Bill, 1 and 2" ? On Cable or at a Cinema?What if I say I like both movies? Of course, I like the "Duel" Dennis Weaver movie. Or the"Fugitive" with David Jantzen or Harrison Ford. Did I go to the Cinema to see them? No.But on Cable I have. Is there a difference?

Now how should I as a pastor/teacher approach this issue? How did I?I don’t feel guilty in teaching/preaching biblical godliness or standards (some call thislegalism)I don’t feel guilty in the position on Biblical standards I put on myself, or my family whilethey were living at home. But I never taught any biblical standards that I didn’t believewas right.Up until 1983 I truly believed my responsibility as a pastor/teacher was to teach biblicalgodliness and practical Christian behavior for believers, on a regular basis. A truefundamentalist preacher mindset.I still believe what I have always believed. The difference is my approach to any subjectin preaching expositional preaching. Rather than preaching/teaching my point of view ofChristian behavior, my approach was to teach the scriptural approach to Christian living.What I learned from John MacArthur was that the pastor/teacher’s authority was only toteach the Word. The preacher has no authority outside of preaching what the Scriptureteaches, and he is to teach the scripture as the scripture teaches within the context of thetext before him. Ouch! I had to disregard hundreds of good sermons because of thischange of opinion.I started on a Sunday Morning in the book of Matthew and Sunday Evening in the book ofRomans. And I was determined to start from chapter one verse one and teach throughthe New Testament. I was determined to only say what the text was saying within thecontext of the Book.I would study and teach the meaning of the text, primarily, then make application of thetext only after make an effort of showing the meaning of the text.

I remember after several months, I had not mentioned once, going to movies, long hairon men, short dresses on women, and kids going to dances or getting drunk with beer, orusing drugs, and don’t listen to Rock n’ Roll music. Some of the members were saying Ihad quit preaching altogether. I had quit preaching on sin. I had lost my focus, and hadleft fundamentalism altogether. I had quit preaching and starting teaching.

My responsibility was to dispense the Scripture as it was taught, and then let the HolySpirit teach each person the application of the principles set forth in the Scripture. Thatwas hard at first, because I wanted to say, "Look here folks, live this way, do this anddon’t do this, dress this way, etc." It was hard to step back after I preached and say,"Lord, it’s your turn." But I learned that the Lord could do a lot better job in changingpeoples heart than I could. And when the Lord convicts a person to live godly its notlegalism. What was even more difficult was to quit being the Holy Spirit in the invitationtime. To believe the power of change in one’s life was the power of the Word, was lifechanging. I could just relax and allow the Lord to change people in His time, and in Hisway.Legalism is the pressure to please God with certain kinds of behavior to gain favor withHim. It’s worst when you want to please men with your behavior rather than the Lord.

What is so hard is to keep your own opinion to yourself. I have been good giving what Ibelieve. Does the Bible actually say "Don’t go see a movie at a Cinema, don’t see amovie? Only see certain movies?The members of our church thought we were genuine Christians who really love the Lord.132

They believed we tried to lived what we taught. They believed our behavior was in linewith what we preached on Sunday. And we really tried to be honest, real, and obedient tothe will of God for our lives and our family’s life.As long as I was a pastor/teacher I would not do a lot of things I knew were notnecessarily sinful.I didn’t want to go to a movie. I didn’t want to drink a beer. Most of what I personally didwas out of a strong biblical conviction. I believe as a pastor/teacher you have aresponsibility that you don’t have if you are not. I believe you should live and behave asan example.

Culture today has changed. Example, there was a time that women wore dresses andmen wore a suit and tie to church. Today in our society everyone dresses like they wantto. No one says, "Christians wear outfits that are different than the rest of the people"What has changed, the principles in the Bible or society? It all depends if you are aFundamentalist or a Reformed Christian. So what sets our standards? The culture?Nevertheless, our approach should be formed from a biblical mindset. What is hard isallowing a person to discover from his own personal conviction of behavior from anencounter with the Lord. When the Scripture is silent we need to be silent. If the Scriptureis clear about certain behavior, we need to address it clearly.I should not tell a person not to go to a Cinema. I could tell then to be careful what theyput before their eyes on a huge screen. I could tell them to be careful of the message thatis coming across in the film. I could say be careful how you entertain your mind and time.I could say be careful how you spend your time and money and the friends you are with. Icould say, realize what you are watching is from a world view and not from a Christian-biblical point of view, be careful what you believe as truth.Personally I am still a legalist in my mind from years of legalist preaching. I still can’t sit ina theater and not feel guilty. But now I realize it’s okay. Did I really say it’s okay?Generally, I really just don’t want to go.Drafted 10 29 06 by Charles E. Whisnant Proof read by Charity and posted October 31,2006Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 07:09PM (-06:00)

Wednesday, November 01, 2006'WHAT THE THE GOSPEL?part oneBut the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached untoyou." I Peter 1:25WHAT IS THE GOSPEL? Scriptural Versespart oneThe next few days, I will address thetopic: "WHAT IS THE GOSPEL?"I preached/taught at the First Baptist Church in Altoona,Kansas in 2006 on the topic, "WHAT IS THE GOSPEL?" Matthew 4:23 And Jesus wentabout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom,and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.Matthew 9:35 And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in theirsynagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness andevery disease among the people.Matthew 11:5 The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed,and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached tothem.Matthew 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for awitness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.Matthew 26:13 Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in thewhole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of 133

her.Mark 1:1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God;Mark 1:14 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching thegospel of the kingdom of God,Mark 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye,and believe the gospel.Mark 8:35 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his lifefor my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.Mark 10:29 And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man thathath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands,for my sake, and the gospel's,Mark 13:10 And the gospel must first be published among all nations.Mark 14:9 Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughoutthe whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her.Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel toevery creature.Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach thegospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance tothe captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,Luke 7:22 Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and tell John what thingsye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed,the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached.Luke 9:6 And they departed, and went through the towns, preaching the gospel, andhealing every where.Luke 20:1 And it came to pass, that on one of those days, as he taught the people in thetemple, and preached the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes came upon him withthe elders,Acts 8:25 And they, when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, returnedto Jerusalem, and preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans.Acts 14:7 And there they preached the gospel.Acts 14:21 And when they had preached the gospel to that city, and had taught many,they returned again to Lystra, and to Iconium, and Antioch,Acts 15:7 And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them,Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, thatthe Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.Acts 16:10 And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go intoMacedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel untothem.Acts 20:24 But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, sothat I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the LordJesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.Romans 1:1 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto thegospel of God,Romans 1:9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son,that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers;Romans 1:15 So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are atRome also.Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of Godunto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.Romans 2:16 In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christaccording to my gospel.Romans 10:15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How134

beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings ofgood things!Romans 10:16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hathbelieved our report?Romans 11:28 As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but astouching the election, they are beloved for the fathers' sakes.Romans 15:16 That I should be the minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministeringthe gospel of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable, beingsanctified by the Holy Ghost.Romans 15:19 Through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; sothat from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel ofChrist.Romans 15:20 Yea, so have I strived to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named,lest I should build upon another man's foundation:Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 01:26PM (-06:00)

Thursday, November 02, 2006WHAT IS THE GOSPELPart Two Scriptural ReferencesScriptures: Next What is theGospel? How are we to preach the Gospel? Romans 15:29 And I am sure that, when Icome unto you, I shall come in the fulness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ.Romans 16:25 Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, andthe preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was keptsecret since the world began,1 Corinthians 1:17 For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not withwisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.1 Corinthians 4:15 For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye notmany fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.1 Corinthians 9:12 If others be partakers of this power over you, are not we rather?Nevertheless we have not used this power; but suffer all things, lest we should hinder thegospel of Christ.1 Corinthians 9:14 Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospelshould live of the gospel.1 Corinthians 9:16 For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: fornecessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!1 Corinthians 9:17 For if I do this thing willingly, I have a reward: but if against my will, adispensation of the gospel is committed unto me.1 Corinthians 9:18 What is my reward then? Verily that, when I preach the gospel, I maymake the gospel of Christ without charge, that I abuse not my power in the gospel.1 Corinthians 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preachedunto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;2 Corinthians 2:12 Furthermore, when I came to Troas to preach Christ's gospel, and adoor was opened unto me of the Lord,2 Corinthians 4:3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:2 Corinthians 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them whichbelieve not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, shouldshine unto them.2 Corinthians 8:18 And we have sent with him the brother, whose praise is in the gospelthroughout all the churches;2 Corinthians 9:13 Whiles by the experiment of this ministration they glorify God for yourprofessed subjection unto the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal distribution unto them,and unto all men; 135

2 Corinthians 10:14 For we stretch not ourselves beyond our measure, as though wereached not unto you: for we are come as far as to you also in preaching the gospel ofChrist:2 Corinthians 10:16 To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you, and not to boast inanother man's line of things made ready to our hand.2 Corinthians 11:4 For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have notpreached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel,which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.2 Corinthians 11:7 Have I committed an offence in abasing myself that ye might beexalted, because I have preached to you the gospel of God freely?2 Corinthians 4:3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:2 Corinthians 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them whichbelieve not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, shouldshine unto them.2 Corinthians 8:18 And we have sent with him the brother, whose praise is in the gospelthroughout all the churches;2 Corinthians 9:13 Whiles by the experiment of this ministration they glorify God for yourprofessed subjection unto the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal distribution unto them,and unto all men;2 Corinthians 10:14 For we stretch not ourselves beyond our measure, as though wereached not unto you: for we are come as far as to you also in preaching the gospel ofChrist:2 Corinthians 10:16 To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you, and not to boast inanother man's line of things made ready to our hand.2 Corinthians 11:4 For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have notpreached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel,which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.2 Corinthians 11:7 Have I committed an offence in abasing myself that ye might beexalted, because I have preached to you the gospel of God freely?Galatians 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into thegrace of Christ unto another gospel:Galatians 1:7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervertthe gospel of Christ.Galatians 1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto youthan that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.Galatians 1:9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospelunto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.Galatians 1:11 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me isnot after man.Galatians 2:2 And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospelwhich I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest byany means I should run, or had run, in vain.Galatians 2:7 But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision wascommitted unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter;Galatians 2:14 But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth ofthegospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the mannerof Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do theJews?Galatians 3:8 And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen throughfaith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations beblessed.Galatians 4:13 Ye know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel unto you136

at the first.Ephesians 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospelof your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spiritof promise,Ephesians 3:6 That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, andpartakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:Ephesians 6:15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;Ephesians 6:19 ¶ And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open mymouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,Philippians 1:5 For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now;Philippians 1:7 Even as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in myheart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel,ye all are partakers of my grace.Philippians 1:12 But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things whichhappened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel;Philippians 1:17 But the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel.Philippians 1:27 Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: thatwhether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye standfast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;Philippians 2:22 But ye know the proof of him, that, as a son with the father, he hathserved with me in the gospel.Philippians 4:3 And I intreat thee also, true yokefellow, help those women which labouredwith me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other my fellowlabourers, whosenames are in the book of life.Philippians 4:15 Now ye Philippians know also, that in the beginning of the gospel, when Ideparted from Macedonia, no church communicated with me as concerning giving andreceiving, but ye only.Colossians 1:5 For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard beforein the word of the truth of the gospel;Colossians 1:23 If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved awayfrom the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to everycreature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;1 Thessalonians 1:5 For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power,and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we wereamong you for your sake.1 Thessalonians 2:2 But even after that we had suffered before, and were shamefullyentreated, as ye know, at Philippi, we were bold in our God to speak unto you the gospelof God with much contention.1 Thessalonians 2:4 But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel,even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts.1 Thessalonians 2:8 So being affectionately desirous of you, we were willing to haveimparted unto you, not the gospel of God only, but also our own souls, because ye weredear unto us.1 Thessalonians 2:9 For ye remember, brethren, our labour and travail: for labouringnight and day, because we would not be chargeable unto any of you, we preached untoyou the gospel of God.1 Thessalonians 3:2 And sent Timotheus, our8 brother, and minister of God, and ourfellowlabourer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you, and to comfort you concerningyour faith:2 Thessalonians 1:8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, andthat obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:2 Thessalonians 2:14 Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the 137

glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.1 Timothy 1:11 According to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which wascommitted to my trust.2 Timothy 1:8 Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me hisprisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power ofGod;2 Timothy 1:10 But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ,who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through thegospel:2 Timothy 2:8 Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from thedead according to my gospel:Philemon 1:13 Whom I would have retained with me, that in thy stead he might haveministered unto me in the bonds of thegospel:Hebrews 4:2 For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the wordpreached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.1 Peter 1:12 Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they didminister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached thegospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angelsdesire to look into.1 Peter 1:25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by thegospel is preached unto you.1 Peter 4:6 For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, thatthey might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.1 Peter 4:17 For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if itfirst begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?Revelation 14:6 ¶ And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having theeverlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, andkindred, and tongue, and people,

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, Posted On November 02, 2006 Blog No. 80Gospel <2098Philippians 1:27 " Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel <2098> ofChrist:that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs,that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mndstriving together for the faith of the gospel <2098>;"


Friday, November 03, 2006WHAT IS AT THE HEART OF THE GOSPEL?part three

INTRODUCTION:

Having listed the verses that mention the word GOSPEL in the last two articles we knowome to the topic: WHAT IS THE GOSPEL?

The gospel that is introduced to unbelievers has eternal consequences. If it is the truegospel, it can direct men and women into the everlasting kingdom. If it is a debauchedmessage, it can give unsaved people misleading hope while bequeathing them to eternal138

damnation.

While I love theology, and study the doctrines of God this issue is not for us only. This isan issue that every solitary pastor/teacher and lay individual must understand in orderthat the gospel may be appropriately announced.

It doesn’t matter if you are a quote "Fundamentalist", "Evangelical", "Independent", or anyof the other brands of religion, you need to know how to present the Gospel of JesusChrist to the unsaved.

• Mark 1:1 ¶ The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Romans15:19 I have fully preached the gospel of Christ; 2 Corinthians for the gospel ofChrist, and when a door was opened unto me in the Lord, 2 Corinthians 10:14: forwe came even as far as unto you in the gospel of Christ: Philippians 1:27 ¶ Only letyour manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ:

• The gospel that Jesus Christ proclaimed was a call to discipleship, a call to followHim in submissive obedience, not just a plea to make a decision or pray a prayer.

WHAT IS THE GOSPEL?

part one

(This lesson was taught at the First Baptist Church, Altoona, Kansas 2006)

I believe the Gospel's Work has produced the saving work of God in the lives

of many who came to FBC 1980-1996

What is the Gospel? Just ask the typical American fundamentalist the question. Here iswhat you are likely to hear: "Believe in your heart that Jesus died for your sins and youwill be saved." You will hear: "I want to go to a church that the preacher will preach theGospel?" Now these are those who have been saved for years. So why do they want togo to a church that will preach the gospel?

Well this study has led me to research the question: What is the Gospel? I looked at my"Online Bible disk" to view the verses on "gospel." (The last two articles)

• Note the book of Mark: and Jesus summarizes His preaching while on this earth:• Mark 1:14-15 "Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee,

preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, andthe kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel."

"Repent and believe the gospel?" Does Jesus here say "Repent and believe in Jesus?"What Jesus was saying is that people ought to repent and believe the gospel that "thetime is fulfilled" and "the kingdom of God is near." In other words , when Jesus preachedthe gospel, He was preaching "the gospel of the kingdom." Note

• Matthew 24:14 And this gospel <2098> of the kingdom shall be preached in all theworld for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come

Jesus was saying then, that the gospel is preaching the kingdom of Christ, kingdom ofGod (in other verses) which was breaking into this present world through the life, death,resurrection and ascension of the Messiah. The gospel, then, is the message of the 139

Kingdom. Repenting and believing is the means by which we are included in the gospelstory of God’s work throughout history.

God is redeeming for Himself a people out of a fallen world: we enter into the gospelstory by grace through faith alone.

• Paul points out in Romans 1:1-6"Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospelof God, 2 (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,) 3Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of Davidaccording to the flesh; 4 And declared to be the Son of God with power, accordingto the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead: 5 By whom we havereceived grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for hisname: 6 Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ:"

Here in the text, the gospel is the work of the Son. A descendent of David, and installedas King -Son of God - by being raised from the dead. His reign as king was vindicated bythe resurrection, and his kingdom is justified as the rightful Israel. As a result of thisGospel story, we are "called to belong to Jesus Christ.

Here is an interesting thought. We think of the Gospel as "the way of salvation." JohnMurray in his book "Redemption Accomplished and Applied, gives us this idea: He usedthe term "redemption accomplished’ to refer to the work of Jesus Christ in history topurchase our salvation. What I have being learning is "the history of salvation" which iscalled historia salutis. — what has God done objectively throughout Biblical history toaccomplish the redemption of the world and of His people. The historical history ofsalvation is found in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. Starting from Genesis 3:15 "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed;it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."

The term "redemption applied" Murray is referring to how the redemption purchased byChrist becomes real in the life of the believer.

The Theologians have also called this the "way of salvation" (ordo salutis) i.e. the order ofhow God subjectively saves us in our individuals lives. This study has been a part of mystudy for several years now.

Would you say, that what you have heard the most about what the Gospel is has been"The Gospel is repent and believe and be baptized." Right.What I have been learning is that the Gospel has several aspects. The term "historiasalutis" Latin for "the history of salvation." The term describes the gospel as the work ofGod in history to redeem God’s people for Himself. The word "gospel" literally, "goodnews" appears first in the OT in Isaiah 52:7

• " How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings,that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation;that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!"

This text Isaiah’s prophecy looked forward to the time when the Messiah would lead Hispeople out of exile in Babylon into a restored kingdom of Israel. The context of thisgospel, good news message as described by Isaiah is "Your God reigneth!"

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• Ps 93:1 The LORD reigneth, he is clothed with majesty; the LORD is clothed withstrength, [wherewith] he hath girded himself: the world also is stablished, that itcannot be moved.

• Ro 10:15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, Howbeautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidingsof good things!

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant July 2006 Proof read by Charity November 01, 06Posted 11-03-


Friday, November 03, 2006WHAT IS AT THE HEART OF THEGOSPEL?part four Part Two of this lesson Itaught at First Baptist Church in Altoona,Kansas 2006While these verses speak of Israel’sdeliverance from exile, (Isaiah 52:1-6). Thegreater aspect of this text is speaking to theNew Testament when we see it fulfilled int h e r e d e m p t i o n w h i c h s h a l l b eaccomplished by Jesus Christ who hasbecome our Kinsman-Redeemer by meansof His incarnation and His atonement.

In the NT note Mark’s remarks about the Gospel.Mark 1:1 The beginning of the gospel <2098> of Jesus Christ, the Son of God;Is this the gospel of Jesus Christ, or the gospel about Jesus Christ, or the gospel thatJesus Christ preached? Well, Mark is recounting the story of Jesus Christ preaching thegospel about Himself.Note the work "The beginning of the gospel". When was the beginning of the gospel?Now here is where I want to study a little deeper and have a greater understanding.Reading this text, it would seem at first glance that the beginning of the gospel begins atthe beginning of Mark.Note Mark 1:2 Mark quotes from Isaiah 40:3. It seems then that the Gospel of JesusChrist, the Son of God, is as it is written in Isaiah the prophet.

The ongoing story in which the Gospel of Mark is located.....has its roots in divinepromises of liberation of Israel from bondage of exile as this is related by the prophetIsaiah..The hope that Isaiah gave the people in Isaiah 40 was hope of deliverance from thebondage of exile. This was not only from the current exile that Israel was in but a realexile from the bondage that would take place through the work of Jesus Christ in His life,death and resurrection, whereby He inaugurated the kingdom of God, which we live withthe hope of His return, when He will fully bring about the New Heaven and New Earth.Believers can partially experience that reality in the church today as members of the "newcreation" 2 Cor 5:17.

• Tim Keller says in his paper "What is the Gospel?" 141

"The Gospel is that Jesus died and rose for us. If the historical events of His life didnot happen, then Christianity does not ‘work’. For the good news is that God hasentered the human ‘now’ (history) with the life of the world to come."Thus the Gospel is the life of Jesus Christ, lived, on our behalf, both in His activeand passive obedience, including His death, resurrection, ascension and session atthe right hand of God Himself.

So Tim Keller says, "The term gospel" and Jesus Christ are treated as synonymous. Todeclare the gospel and to declare Jesus is the same thing." "Jesus does not bring thegospel - He is the gospel—because the gospel is that God has broken into history andaccomplished everything necessary for our salvation."

Now you will note also that the gospel is often referred to as "the gospel of the kingdom"(Luke 16:15, Matt 4:23 and 24:14) The gospel is the message about the Kingdom of Godentering into this world through the ministry of Jesus Christ on our behalf.Then the question becomes, how does one enter into this kingdom:?

• Matthew 18:3? And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, andbecome as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.How do I become a part of the new creation?

• 2Co 5:17 Therefore if any man [be] in Christ, [he is] a new creature: old things arepassed away; behold, all things are become new.What must I do to be saved?

• Ac 16:30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?• Well the answer: "Repent and believe the gospel". Mark 1:15.

So the question we bring up is this:How does the Gospel become real in our lives? i..e. The topic of redemption applied.

The application next:

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, June 2006 First Baptist Church, Altoona, KansasApproved by Charity Whisnant, November 01 06 Posted Nov 04 2006


Sunday, November 05, 2006HE IS THE FIRST AND THE LAST, AMENHe is the First and Last,The Beginning and the End!He is the keeper of Creation and the Creator of all!He is the Architect of the universe andthe Manager of all times.He always was, He always is, and He always will be ...unmoved,Unchanged, Undefeated, and never Undone!He was bruised and brought healing!He was pierced and eased pain!He was persecutedand brought freedom!He was dead and brought life!He is risen and brings power!Hereigns and brings Peace!The world can't understand him,The armies can't defeat Him,The schools can't explain Him, and The leaders can't ignore Him.Herod couldn't kill Him, The Pharisees couldn't confuse Him, and The people couldn'thold Him!Nero couldn't crush Him, Hitler couldn't silence Him,The New Age can't replace Him, and"Oprah" can't explain Him away!He is light, love, longevity, and Lord.He is goodness, Kindness, Gentleness, and God.He142

is Holy, Righteous, mighty, powerful, and pure.His ways are right,His word is eternal,His will is unchanging, and His mind is on me.He ismy Savior,He is my guide, and He is my peace!He is my Joy,He is my comfort,He is myLord, and He rules my life!I serve Him because His bond is love,His burden is light, and His goal for me is abundantlife.I follow Him because He is the wisdom of the wise,the power of the powerful, the ancientof days, the ruler of rulers, the leader of leaders, the overseer of the overcomers, and isto come. And if that seems impressive to you, try this for size.His goal is a relationship with ME! He will never leave me,never forsake me,nevermislead me,never forget me,never overlook me andnever cancel my appointment in Hisappointment book!When I fall, He lifts me up!When I fail, He forgives!When I am weak, He is strong!When Iam lost, He is the way!When I am afraid, He is my courage!When I stumble, He steadiesme! When I am hurt, He heals me!When I am broken, He mends me!When I am blind, Heleads me!When I am hungry, He feeds me! When I face trials, He is with me!When I facepersecution, He shields me!When I face problems, He comforts me!When I face loss, Heprovides for me!When I face Death, He carries me Home!He is everything for everybody everywhere, every time, and every way.He is God, He is faithful. I am His, and He is mine!My Father in heaven can whip the father of this world.So, if you're wondering why I feelso secure, understand this...He said it and that settles it.God is in control, I am on His side,and that means all is wellwith my soul.Everyday is a blessing for GOD Is!I love the Lord and thank Him for all that He has done in my life;Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 01:48PM (-06:00)

Monday, November 06, 2006WHAT IS AT THE HEART OF THE GOSPEL part fiveHow the Gospel is Applied to Us We use the term "redemption" to express salvation. That is, one becomes a Believer, aChristian, is born again. So how is "redemption" applied in the life of an individual? Weuse the term "ordo salutis" (the way of salvation) which is the process by which anunsaved person becomes saved. We are not going to address this topic here, but have inother papers. But Romans 8:28-30 gives us the process by which a person becomes aChristian.Why is the Gospel so important to preach? Because we see that all human beings areincapable of entering into the kingdom of God on their own – that is, for us it is impossibleto merit our own salvation. We are wholly dependent upon the graciousness of our Godfor our salvation in every step along the process described in Romans 8.We learn that the Christian life is not of "putting confidence in the flesh" (Phil 3:3) orseeking to "establish our own righteousness" (Rom 10:3-4) Rather it is about dependenceupon the merits of Christ in accomplishing our salvation through His active and passiveobedience. And that is in the story of the Gospel.Preaching the Gospel? It’s the Christian Life. It’s both about redemption, the saving of usas individuals (Romans 8:1-17) but also about the redemption of those in the world (Rom8:18-25)Our salvation is in light of a greater story......the work of God throughout history toredeem the elect.

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"Preaching the Gospel" then is the way in which we communicate the work of Christ toothers, so that the story of their lives might be found within the grand story of God’sredemption.

• We read the story of those who were saved........from Noah, David, Abraham, Joel,Jeremiah, and then Matthew, Paul, and then Martin Luther, and Charles Spurgeon,and then Michael Nunnenkamp, Beverly Frye, and Brett and Laura Busby andKay........ Alan and Toni Barnhart, etc.

• These and other Christians become included in a grand narrative in which our livestell the story of His glory and His redemption. Rather than our own abilities andefforts to rise above our circumstances to establish a righteousness of our own."Gospel-centered living" then is the way life looks when lived inside the kingdom ofGod - that upside down kingdom in which "the first will be last and the last will befirst," the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give His life as aransom for many. (Mk 10:45.)

May I come to a conclusion: Generally when we think of the Gospel, we think howindividuals can get right with God and get saved. The term is "redemption applied."

Well the story of Jesus in history is "redemption accomplished." i.e. what we must believein order to be saved. And the story of Jesus is how our redemption was accomplished bythe work and words of Jesus Christ. It’s the story of how God is redeeming a people forHimself to live in His New Heaven and New Earth. It’s the story of the glory of God. I thinkthat we should put the emphasis on :"redemption accomplished"

You know the Gospel is not just for unbelievers. Paul found it necessary to preach theGospel to the church at Rome. (Rom 1;15) Paul said "be reconciled to God" in 2 Corin5:20. The problem with every being, Christian or non-Christian, is sin. The only solutionfor the problem of sin is the Gospel. Therefore every Christian’s conversation ought to bea gospel-centered conversation.

Really, Christians need to evangelize each other as much as the lost. All of us, even asChristians, tend to get lost in our own stories and become blind to the grander story ofGod’s redemption.

We all get lost in our circumstances and seek to establish idols in our hearts in place ofthe living and true God. We anguish and seek to find ways to hide our pain and make lifeseem "okay" rather than trust in Christ.

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, July 10, 2006 Proof-read by Charity November 01, 2006Posted November 04, 06 2006

• Repentance is not incidental to the gospel. What is the gospel, after all, but a call torepentance (Acts 2:38; 3:19; 17:30)? In other words, it demands that sinners makea change—stop going one way and turn around to go the other (1 Thess. 1:9).Paul’s evangelistic invitations always demanded repentance: "God is now declaringto men that all everywhere should repent" (Acts 17:30). Here’s how Paul describedHis own ministry and message: "I did not prove disobedient to the heavenly vision,but kept declaring both to those of Damascus first, and also at Jerusalem and thenthroughout all the region of Judea, and even to the Gentiles, that they should repentand turn to God, performing deeds appropriate to repentance"" (Acts 26:19–20,144

emphasis added). Repentance is what leads to life (Acts 11:18) and to theknowledge of the truth (2 Tim. 2:25). Thus salvation is impossible apart fromrepentance. John MacArthur


Tuesday, November 07, 2006FIVE ESSENTIAL DIMENSIONS OF THE GOSPEL MESSAGE.Our topic "What is at the heart of the Gospel."Is the Gospel message just for unbelievers to hear? When someone says, "I go to achurch where the preacher preach's the Gospel." What do they mean?

John Piper addressed this subject in his messageWhy Expositional Preaching is Particularly Glorifying to God

• The gospel is a message about historical events: the life and death andresurrection of Christ——summoning us to open them with thorough expositions oftexts.

• · The gospel is a message about what those events achieved before weexperienced anything or even existed: the completion of perfect obedience, thepayment for ours sins, the removal of the wrath of God, the installation of Jesus asthe crucified and risen Messiah and king of the universe, the disarming of the rulersand authorities, the destruction of death——all of these summoning us to openthem with thorough expositions of texts.

• · The gospel is a message about the transfer of these achievements from Christ toparticular persons through our union with Christ by faith alone apart fromworks——which summons us to open for our people the nature and dynamics offaith by the exposition of dozens of texts.

• · The gospel is a message about the good things that are now true about us as theachievement of the cross is applied to us in Christ: that God is only merciful to usnow instead of wrathful (propitiation), that we are counted righteous in Christ now(justification), that we are freed now from the guilt and power of sin (redemption),that we are positionally and progressively made holy (sanctification)——all of whichsummons us to open these glorious realities for our people week after week withthorough expositions of texts.

• · And finally the gospel is a message about the glorious God himself as our final,eternal, all-satisfying Treasure. "We . . . rejoice in God through our Lord JesusChrist, through whom we have now received reconciliation"" (Romans 5:11). Thegospel we preach is ""the gospel of the glory of Christ who is the image of God." Ifour gospel stops short of this goal——enjoying God himself, not just his gifts offorgiveness and rescue from hell and eternal life——then we are not preaching ""thegospel of the glory of God in the face of Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6). Our ultimategoal is knowing and enjoying God. As we saw in the beginning of this chapter, thatis why we were created——that God might share with us the knowledge andenjoyment of himself. This is what it means for him to love us. This is what the crossultimately obtained for us. And this too, by every text of Scripture——all of it inspiredby God to awaken hope in his glory7——calls for the richest exposition that ourpeople may be fed the best and highest food of heaven.

The Gospel message is about God's good news about how He is able to redeem the lost.What I have learned is the Gospel message includes the total story of how Godaccomplished this great salvation.

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Wednesday, November 08, 2006SHAI LINNE, TED HAGGARD, AND LORDSHIP SALVATION, JOHN PIPERWEBLOGS, BLOGGERSPart OneThere are a few who might be saying, "what does Pastor Charles think about the currenttrend in our Christian Church Culture." I did say a few! But they are very importantpeople.I said to Charity, "I might be dangerous today, if I were the pastor/.teacher at someFundamentalist, or Evangelical church." It’s been ten years since I was at FBC, five yearssince I was at my last pastorate, and a few years since my last staff position. And all thiswas before my experience of the Internet, and before blogging or weblog.How would I today use blogging as a means of communicating with the membership andthe community?WHAT IS A BLOGGER?Blogger.(someone who maintains a weblog) A blog is a website where entries are madein journal style and displayed in a reverse chronological order. Which is why if you wereto go to my first posts, or thread, you would have to go back to August 07, 2006, someseventy posts back.Online diaries and journals went from 100 in 1997 to 50 million in December 2005.The term "blog" is a contraction of "Web log." "Blog" can also be used as a verb, meaningto maintain or add content to a blog. Thus in August 07 2006 I started my first blog"GROW BY LEARNING."The modern blog evolved from the online diary where people would keep a runningaccount of their personal lives. Most such writers called themselves diarists, journalists,or journalers. A few called themselves escribitionists.The term "weblog" was coined by Jorn Barger on 17 December 1997. The short form,"blog," was coined by Peter Merholz, who jokingly broke the word weblog into the phrasewe blog in the sidebar of his blog Peterme.com in April or May of 1999. This was quicklyadopted as both a noun and verb ("to blog," meaning "to edit one's weblog or to post toone's weblog").http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BlogBlogging combined the personal web page with tools to make linking to other pageseasier —— specifically permalinks, blogrolls and TrackBacks. This, together with weblogsearch engines enabled bloggers to track the threads that connected them to others withsimilar interests.

Bloggers began to provide nearly-instant commentary on televised events, creating asecondary meaning of the word "blogging": to simultaneously transcribe and editorializespeeches and events shown on television. (For example: Tim C is blogging live from the4theGospel event . Real time commentary. It’s sometimes referred to as "liveblogging."You can learn live how the conference is going and what the speakers are teaching.

THE BENEFIT OF BLOGGERS

• Today I log on the Internet and hit a number of good blogs: Kinds of blogs:.• Theological Bloggers: These are articles about theological positions "Lordship

Salvation versus "Free Grace." "Doctrines of Grace."146

• Personal Opinion Bloggers: Those who are not pastors but have a theologicalbackground

• Pastor/Teachers Bloogers: Those who deal with pastoral issues, preaching/teachingpoints of view.

• Various Bloggers: Political, Music, News• Fundamentalist, Evangelistic, Church Ministry Bloggers.

EXAMPLE::

• "Old Testament scholar Dr. Eugene Merrill has written a new book that belongs onevery pastor's bookshelf. In today's blog, Dr. Albert Mohler reviews "EverlastingDominion: A Theology of the Old Testament." This came by way of e mail, and I justclick over to the blog. Great.

• By now you have heard of the scandal involving Ted Haggard. Reaction to thenews has ranged from sympathy to disgust, from support to condemnation. Themedia has dedicated a lot of attention to this story, though they seem to be writingabout it as just another news story rather than something that is somehow bigger ormore significant than any other story. Watchbloggers are out in force, likehomeschool moms at a book sale, swarming and trampling. To this point I haverefrained from mentioning the issue for reasons related primarily to my own lack ofsanctification. But I feel now that I can speak out with some legitimacy

• "A Rugged Cross, a Glorious Gospel, and the Ted Haggard Scandal"• Arminianism: Semi-Pelagianism? Phil Johnson’s web site• The People Clapped, He Sat Down, and the Fundamentalists Went Wild. For those

who have been following this, I want to provide a brief update. You others, read theoriginal post first and then come up here for more!

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant November 06 Proof-read by Charity 11 -7 Posted 11-07


Thursday, November 09, 2006SO I HAVE DISCOVERED THE BLOG.... I LIKE TO THINK, THUS I BLOGSHAI LINNE, TED HAGGARD, AND LORDSHIP SALVATION,JOHN PIPERDaily you can get up-to-the-moment opinions, comments, news and thoughts from anumber of Christian bloggers. They are excellent sources of good information. At themoment of an event, or happening, there is a current blogger who will comment on theevent.Get a good cup of coffee, and you are ready to read and write.On most of these blogs you can post a comment on the post’s subject. And the dialogthat can occur in one post provides an excellent source of learning as well.So if I want to know what John MacArthur thinks on an issue, I can learn that by going toPulpit Magazine. And if I want to learn what others are thinking about what JohnMacArthur is thinking I can go to Pulpit Magazine. Blogspot. . If I want what the Christiancommunity is saying about "Lordship Salvation" or "Fundamentalism" I can click on a siteand learn. If I want a theologian’s opinion on a current cultural issue I can go to AlMohler.

NOW WITH ALL THIS INFORMATIONAs a pastor/teacher, my objective was always to teach. I enjoyed keeping the 147

membership informed on the current issues of the time. Of course, I loved reading. Now Ican read blogs, as well as books; but books usually are out of date on issues once thebook is printed. What I would do with all this information if I were a pastor/teacher wouldbe entertaining for sure.

WELL TODAY I AM NOT IN A PASTORAL/TEACHING POSITIONTo a degree this could be an advantage, because I don’t have as many people to please.I can address any issue without worrying about losing members. Currently I am writing ajournal of our ministry experiences. I can be honest as to what I believe were the eventssurrounding the ministry. Charity is saying, "Do you really want to say that?" And I willsay, "Yes."Certainly there are those men whose voice is much greater them mine, that is for sure..There are those who write 100% better than I., but this blogging has been a personalendeavor. It’s been a personal journal that I have been willing to put on the Blogger.. Ididn’t know at the time when I started that all you blog and post is on the www. That couldbe interesting. Just put in my name in the SEARCH-Goggle and you will find where I havecommented on other weblogs. That is scary"And its true "I may well be inconsequential in the scheme of things." But in thepredetermined thought and plan of God, none of us are "beside the point" individuals."Charity said, "Who said this?" I said "me." She said, "I like ‘none of us are beside thepoint."

So what have I learned about Christian Hip Hopper (if that is possible) and "LORDSHIPSALVATION," and Ted Haggard?The questionShould Bethlehem Baptist Church, John Piper pastor, have invited a Hip Hopper to singin the worship service?Should Ted Haggard of New Life Church, which he founded, agree to resign as pastorbecause of "sexually immoral conduct"?The issue of salvation: is it "faith alone" and "repentance"?What I discover by reading others keeps me in a balanced view of my own opinion. Nexttime let’s talk about these matters.What would I say to our membership at First Baptist Church today?Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant November 06, 2006 Checked by Charity 11/08Posted 11/09/06Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 06:18AM (-06:00)

Friday, November 10, 2006SO I HAVE DISCOVERED THE BLOGPart Three in this SeriesEach day in a twenty four hour interval, with billions of people all over the world, think ofall the happenings that take place! Many of us may think, "I may well be inconsequentialin the scheme of things." But is that true?We might get up in the morning and say, "This day is going to be another insignificantday in the overall design of things."

1. When John Piper asked Shai Linne hip hop artist to sing at Bethlehem BaptistChurch one Sunday Morning, what was he thinking at the time?

2. When Ted Haggard, pastor of the church he started, New Life Church, in ColoradoSprings, Colorado, with over 14,000 in membership, gradually admitted topurchasing methamphetamine and the services of a male prostitute.... What was hethinking? Did he think that his behavior would be "inconsequential in the scheme of148

things?3. When John MacArthur, long time pastor of Grace Community Church in Van Nuys,

California wrote the book "The Gospel According To Jesus Christ" in 1988, whatwas he thinking? Did he think that the book would have little importance in theChristian realm. "

"And it’s true that "I may well be inconsequential in the scheme of things", but in thepredetermined thought and plan of God, none of us IS "beside the point" individuals."Charity said, "Who said this?" I said "me." She said, "I like ‘none of us is beside thepoint." charles e. whisnant

These three occurrences over the last several weeks have made the headlines. One hasmade the national media spotlight. All three events have made the blogsphere, and theweb sites.

So do any of these I have mention have any real significant meaning in the life ofindividuals? Are they going to affect our churches as to how they will worship? Are theygoing to change opinions of individuals about pastors and ministers? Are they going tohave any effect on what pastors/elders will think about their own ministry?

Should pastors/teachers/ministers even address these issues? What if a member of ourchurch would say, "Pastor Charles, would you approve if Shai Linne would come andperform in our worship services?" What would I even say? Michele what would I havesaid?

Would I want to address the Ted Haggard situation? It’s been on the news. I would saymany of our members have heard about this. They certainly have heard about JimmySwaggart.

What if a member picks up the book "The Gospel According to Jesus Christ" and readsthis by John MacArthur:

• "Salvation is by grace and has nothing to do with human works. But the onlypossible response to God’s grace is broken humility that causes the sinner to turnfrom his old life to Christ. The evidence of such a turning is the willingness to submitand obey. If disobedience and rebellion continue unabated, there is reason to doubtthe reality of a person’s faith" (TGATJ, page 113)

Pastor, do you believe that my husband is saved? How are you going to answer the wife?

What if a member comes and asks, "Pastor, how can we know if your personal life is trulyright with the Lord? And how should we as believers respond to those who are accusedof actions that are sinful?"

When I was pastor at FBC in Altoona, and when a national Baptist TV pastor wasdivorced from his wife, the church he was pastoring said he could continue to pastor thechurch. Several members asked me, "Pastor Charles, would you resign if you weredivorced from Charity?" And I said kidding, "No, I wouldn’t have to. She would kill me.""Divorce never, murder, maybe," she is always saying. Right dear?

I am not necessarily fundamentally reformed, but I am not necessarily the samefundamentalist I once was either. (Quick to make judgments and to make statementsinstantaneously without thinking it through.) I understand that I can’t undo forty years of 149

ministry, and for the most part I wouldn’t anyway.

I have opinions, and I normally express them. Over the years they have been ratherclear.

I love to read, and there are enough resources that will address all these issues. Ofcourse, a book will soon come out on these subjects. Christian periodicals will alsoaddress these issues, and they have been a part of my reading for years. Also preacherswill address these issues, and I will listen to their tapes. Then there are those who are onradio, CDR for example that will address these issues. Of course there is the Bible. Andthen there is Ron Brown. (He is a long time good friend)

I will address Ted Haggard next, then Piper, and then Lordship Salvation.

Written by Charles E. Whisnant 11-09-06 Proof-read by Charity 11-09 and posted 11-10-06



THE TED HAGGARD STORY or SCANDALThe lesson we need to learn is:I hope to provide some lessons we need to learn in this blog.... read on.

What bloggers have done, almost the instant that an event happens, they will post it.They will make comments For example: Posted by fundyreformed.wordpress

• "I was saddened to hear of the Ted Haggard fall this past week. And I must confessthat when it became apparent that he was guilty, for a short while I may havesneered at him. But before long God gave me a prayer that Christ would be exaltedin all of this. I believe that prayer is being answered, and Christ’s glory is being seeneven in this sad scandal"P.S. What I have learned, if you write something, you better be ready to be quoted.Then there are responses to the article. So you get several perspectives andviewpoints.Now after reading several articles on the blog. For example: Albert Mohler’s blog orhis web site, you get another perspective I can trust .

Also what I have found very beneficial are those blogs that link you to other articles thatspeak to the issues. For example: John Piper had an article: "Ten Potential Pitfalls andProposed Ten Protections against them:" now that was very helpful.

The Ted Haggard’s exposure has been one that a pastor/ teacher/ and a minister shouldpersonally look upon with great observation.

Rather than judge Ted (whom I have never met), I should examine my own life andbehavior.As a minister it is our charge to call sinners to repentance. It is our charge to call150

believers to holiness and sanctification. Too often there are secret life styles ofpreachers, that go un- detected for years. I would think that would certainly be disruptivewith his call and discredit his ability to lead others. But I am afraid this occurs too often.

• He quotes these verses:Ps 32:1 ¶ <<[A Psalm] of David. Maschil.>>. 3 When I kept silence, my boneswasted away Through my groaning all the day long.4 For day and night thy handwas heavy upon me: My moisture was changed [as] with the drought of summer.[[Selah:5 I acknowledged my sin unto thee, And mine iniquity did I not hide: I said, Iwill confess my transgressions unto Jehovah; And thou forgavest the iniquity of mysin. [[Selah 6 For this let every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thoumayest be found: Surely when the great waters overflow they shall not reach untohim"

This behavior, you would think, would not happen to evangelical or fundamentalpreachers, would you? Sadly this kind of behavior happens every day. We only hear ofthe big time guys. I always said "I am glad I am a little guy. If I fall, it won’t make thenational media. Local media would be bad enough."

And generally this kind of life-style happens to those whom you would least expect. Ipersonally can name a few. I was totally shocked.

What this does for me? A quick check up of my own behavior. Some of the verypreachers that I would not suspect are the very preachers that are living a secret life ofsinfulness.

As you read the blogs you certainly get different points of view: For example:

• "It's time for evangelicals to rethink their priorities, re-examine the evil fruits ofpragmatic and market-driven "spirituality," and retool their own movement. Betteryet, Christians with a concern for the glory of God and the authority of Scriptureshould renounce the latitudinarian-style movement contemporary "evangelicalism"has morphed into. It is a hopelessly mixed and muddled multitude. The fashionablebrand of NAE/Christianity Today-style "evangelicalism" actually abandoned historicevangelical principles long ago, and hasn't taken a firm stand for biblical andevangelical doctrine for some time. The current scandal is only a symptom of thatmuch deeper problem" Phil Johnsonhttp://teampyro.blogspot.com/2006/11/thoughts-on-todays-scandal.htmlAnd there were 82 Responses to Phil’s post. Here is an example:

• Assuming he is guilty, I guess we throw out the baby with the bath water and allevangelicals are heretics because of this one man's fault. For that matter allfundamentalists are equally heretics because of the recent downfall of Dr. Bob Grayat Trinity in Jacksonville. When will we all stop this nonsense and understand thatthis man's sin or the sin of others is not a valid argument for their church ordenominational strategy. I expect better arguments from team pyro against marketdriven strategies.

• This is a great exchange of views. The Poster will risk what the Postee will say inresponse.

Tim Challies remarked on his .com Titled "THE SCANDAL"• "And then realize that, as we explored earlier this week in a discussion about total 151

depravity, there is really no difference between you and Haggard or between myselfand Haggard. We are all totally depraved with our sin extending to every aspect ofour being. There but for the grace of God go I. There but for the grace of God goyou."

• I can only imagine the pain of having to sit in front of my children, my wife, andanswer questions about whether or not I have had sex with a man or admitting that Ipurchased illegal drugs. It's horrible. It's terrifying.

•And there were 148 comments from his readers.... here is an example:"...um, tears are the first reaction to your post. Not for Mr. Haggard, but for me. I cansearch a dark heart as well my brother. I'm sickened as your are, and over joyed atthe reality that my destiny (and Haggards) depends on the Holiness of another!Praise God! . And praise God for this line in your post, "that I would continue to fillmy heart with His Words of life". Oh that news like this would only drive us all harderinto the word."

• And who and what are ministers themselves? Frail men, fallible, sinning men,exposed to every snare, to temptation in every form; and, from the very post ofobservation they occupy, they are an easier target for the fiery darts of the foe. Theyare not trite victims the great Adversary is seeking, when he would wound andcripple Christ's ministers. One such victim is worth more to the kingdom of darknessthan a number of common men; and for this very reason their temptations areprobably more subtle and severe than those encountered by ordinary Christians. Ifthis subtle Deceiver fails to destroy them, he cunningly aims at neutralizing theirinfluence by quenching the fervor of their piety, lulling them into negligence, anddoing all in his power to render their work burdensome. How perilous is thecondition of that minister then, whose heart is not encouraged, whose hands are notstrengthened, and who is not upheld by the prayers of his people! It is not in his owncloset and on his own knees alone, that he finds security and comfort, andennobling, humbling, and purifying thoughts and joys; but it is when they also seekthem in his behalf, that he becomes a better and happier man, and a more usefulminister of the everlasting Gospel! --Gardiner Spring

What should we do about all of this? PRAY FOR OUR PASTORS!!!SO WHAT ARE SOME LESSONS WE COULD LEARN FROM THIS TRAGEDY?

Drafted Charles Whisnant, Check by Charity


Tuesday, November 14, 2006SO WHAT ARE SOME LESSONS WE COULD LEARN FROM THIS TRAGEDY?The lesson we need to learn is:Bloggers have their idea of lessons needed to be learnedfrom this sinfulness behavior of Ted Haggard: (and many others)

1. That we are every inch as sinful and imperfect and intentional and depraved asHaggard; perhaps more so.

2. A CHRISTLIKE MAN WILL HAVE A CHRISTLIKE FAITH.3. If ANYONE says they are above this kind of sin, may God grant him/her a tiny view

of their heart that they may see their need for Christ Jesus on a daily basis.4. The fear we should have is NOT that we would fall into the same sin, Tim.5. The fear that we should have is that you are correct, that whether that sin manifests152

itself or not we are really still just as sinful in the core of our hearts as Rev. Haggard6. While we are always to be growing in grace, we are always to be reminded of the

presence of and battle with indwelling sin.7. Who said "simul justus et peccator" i.e. simultaneously justified and sinful.8. The church, New Life Church, did not cover up or make excuses, acted swiftly and

honestly and has not made light of the scandal.9. We shouldn’t conclude that church members should expect anything different from

their pastor, since we’re all sinners.10. I think churches should consider hiring godly men who lead holy lives, rather than

looking for good men who have oratorical gifts. Too often the godly men are run outof their pulpits so some cool, media personalities can be put in their place.

11. I have read a lot about the "grace principle." Grace does forgive us.But grace is something more. Grace is what provides us with the power forgodliness.

12. I read this statement: "We are all just like Ted." Then we are all in trouble. Mycomment is the salvation that is given to us by Christ does not leave us "just likeTed." Romans 8:3-4

13. We need to check what kind of faith we think we have that we believe will keep usfrom sinful behavior. Many have a misconstrued faith.

14. "Within each of us there is a herd of wild horses all wanting to run loose." WallaceHamilton wrote.

15. "Like a river that breaks its levy, that drive that leaders have, often strays into areasof excitement and risk that can be dangerous and destructive. Gordon MacDonald

16. Have you noted that the truth of a person’s life, comes out little at a time.17. There always seems to be a series of disclosures, and admissions are slowly

coming. Why? Maybe he is lying to himself, or cannot face the truth of his behavior.18. Even though you are a power leader, you are just as lowly as the person who

cleans the very church you started. Perks and privileges, the honor, have all gone.Because you might think you deserved them.

19. A lovely wife, and five children. They will suffer as much.20. Sexual temptation is where we are held least accountable and where we can fall

fastest.1. I had a rule while I pastored: Under no circumstances, to ride alone in a car with a

female other than my wife or an immediate family member2. I did not counsel a woman in a closed room . And Charity generally did this.

I would not hug women, or put my arms around them. I did not hug.3. I would not focus on the external looks, or read anything into behavior toward me.

What would I do if Ted Haggard walked into First Baptist Church and I was thepastor and was preaching that Sunday? I would be rather surprised. I would not publicly humiliate him. (That has alreadybeen done.) I would teach the message that I had already planned to preach. Iwould trust the sovereignty of God that the message would be the one God plannedfor Ted to hear.

What would I say to Ted Haggard if he came to Charles E. Whisnant for counseling? Orany one else.

Many times in my father's church, fallen preachers came to our church, there were five toseven preachers and their family in our church. They came for healing, physical, andspiritual.

You might ask "Why would those who say they are believers, get caught up in this kind of 153

behavior? Why didn’t their faith prevent their crimes and sinfulness? I don’t want to writea sermon here, but we as preachers certainly have preached on this topic a number oftimes.

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant 11-09-06 Proof Check by Charity 11-13-06 and Posted11-14-06



‘WHAT IS THE REQUIREMENT FOR SALVATION?Part OneSO IS THERE A GOSPEL THAT IS A FALSE GOSPEL?‘‘‘‘The John MacArthur’s Lordship PositionvsThe Lou Martuineac’s Position‘‘‘THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JESUS CHRISTORin defense of the gospel‘‘‘‘Both sides tend to believe that the other is a "false gospel."

MY SYNOPSIS CHRONOLOGY OF THE PRESENTATION OF THE GOSPEL,{A briefoutline or general view and a record of events in the order of their occurrence}If I introduce the gospel to a lost, unsaved person at church, in my home, or somewhereelse, what am I going to tell him how to be saved. Could I use any of the more popularmaterial to show a person how to be saved?Should I be concerned about how I present the gospel to him, or more concerned to seethe result of presenting the gospel?

WHAT IS TRUE CONVERSION?Having preached for some forty years, you believe you have correctly presented theWord of God in a truthful manner, and you have not preached a false gospel.

It seems if your position theologically is based upon the sovereignty of God, and that Godin His sovereignty has the final say as to who has been born again, and that He in Hiswisdom has chosen those who will be saved then that is a comfortable belief. That is, inthe end, it’s the Lord’s decision as to who comes to be saved.On the other hand, if you believe that man has the final word as to his own fate andsalvation, it could be a little unsettling. If one’s salvation hinges upon a rightunderstanding of the Word of God as he hears the Word preached, that too is a littleunsettling.Also, if the presentation of the Gospel has to be perfectly presented for one to be saved,that too could be a little unsettling.From my early years in ministry and preaching as a teenager in youth revivals, and myown church, the method of presenting the Gospel was rather simple. In the process I154

gave little thought of the results of the preaching, and did little follow up on those who"made a decision" for Christ in a revival.

My first church I pastored for three and half years, I presented the Word of God in amanner that I believed was correct biblically, and there were those who came and "weresaved." I certainly did not question their salvation. For the most part those who "madedecisions" were believed to be genuine conversions. The conclusion was that they wereborn again. Based upon what I presented as the gospel, they were saved.Then ten years later at our second church I was pastoring, our focus onpreaching/teaching became expositional in nature. As we taught through the book ofRomans for five years, our understanding of salvation and the means where by one was"saved," changed.

• We began to look upon the result of ones "decision" to be saved. We started to viewone’s attitude and thinking, and behavior in relationship to his desire to be aChristian.

• What changed was, we didn’t seem to accept someone’s "decision" to become aChristian, at face value. We might have at the moment accepted the decision thatthey were making to become a Christian, based upon our presentation of the gospelof being born again.

Based upon what we preached and presented to them, the "how" to be born again waswhat we believed to be correct. As I remember (1980-1996), I didn’t mention thatsalvation was by the "five "solas". Grace alone, faith alone..... the alone’s were never apart of the presentation. In the sixteen years I was the pastor/teacher, I don’t think Imentioned those terms. But I taught those ideas.

What I did was to teach verse by verse the book of Romans in 1984 and then in FirstPeter in 1995-96 . One of the opening statements I made from I Peter chapter One.

• Reading 1 Peter 1:1.... that is to say, God has chosen us, sovereignly, by Hisunaffected, divine will. Strictly on the basis of His own free sovereign grace.

• He predetermined to set love on certain people, from all the world, and they are theelect. That is the nature of our election. {Sermon 60.4 page 46 from my manuscript.}

I also addressed this "Election" when I preached from Ephesians: When you teach wordby word, you are going to have to deal with this sovereignty issue.

• Then upon reading John MacArthur’s "The Gospel According to Jesus Christ" in1989, the Lordship position became a factor in my thinking.

"The gospel call to faith presupposes that sinners must repent of their sin and yield toChrist’s authority."

That, in a sentence, is what "lordship salvation" teaches"

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, Proof Read by Charity 11-14-06 #91


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Thursday, November 16, 2006WHAT IS THE REQUIREMENT FOR SALVATION?Part TwoSO IS THERE A GOSPEL THAT IS A FALSE GOSPEL?‘‘‘‘The John MacArthur’s Lordship Position vsThe Lou Martuineac’s PositionMY SYNOPSIS CHRONOLOGY OF THE PRESENTATION OF THE GOSPEL,{A brief outline or general view and a record of events in the order of their occurrence}PRESENTING THE GOSPEL WITH A VIEW TO CHRIST’S LORDSHIPWhat changed in my teaching was to present the text in its context as clearly as I could.To give as clear an interpretation of the portion of scripture as I could, and then I steppedback as it were, and said "Lord, I have done my best in presenting the Word, now it’syour turn." That was my invitation.

So the Lordship position combined with the Doctrine of Grace, known as Calvinism:

• Calvinism teaches that salvation is initiated by God, not by man (John 6:44). It iswholly a work of God in which He imparts new life to the spiritually dead sinner(Eph. 2:1-10). Conversion––which includes regeneration, faith, andrepentance––occurs in a moment of time, in which God creates a new spiritual life.Thus, according to the reformed ordo salutis, regeneration has causal priority overfaith and repentance. This is simply a way of showing that God initiates salvation,enabling and empowering the sinner to believe and repent. Like Jesus toldNicodemus, "Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (John3:3).

So the evolution was:

• A gospel Roman Road presentation sermon and invitation and inviting people tocome to Jesus and receive Him by faith. Every service was ended by giving a"invitation for someone to be saved." Whether the message was on salvation or not.(1964-1982)

• In teaching expositionally, verse by verse, the passage of Scripture set before me.And then at the end of the message, we had prayer, and generally a brief time thatanyone could respond. I did not give any appeal at all for any response. (1983-presently).

So the question to me is in the method of preaching and the appeal for someone torespond to the Word of God.

• First method of "preaching the Gospel of Salvation and then giving an appeal forthe lost to be saved.. Secondly, the method of teaching the Word of Godexpositionally and within the message give an appeal to be obedient to the teachingof the Word.

Now my concern has become this, did those who sat under my ministry in those firstyears receive adequate teaching of the Gospel that would have brought them to a trueconversion to Jesus Christ?And the identical question is on the other hand, when yousimply teach the scripture as it is before you, and then you simply trust the Lord, that Hein His sovereignty will bring to Himself those whom He will.

Several observations from these two methods of preaching or teaching and the"invitation."156

• There certainly was no reference to "Lordship Salvation" position in the first methodof presenting the Gospel.

• And the second method was decisive in the manner when referring to the Gospel ofSalvation of making Christ your Lord and Savior. Coming to Him in personal trust toworship, love and serve Him.

Now again I ask, were people saved in using both methods? If in either case, peoplewere saved, why would I prefer the second method versus the first method?

1. No altar call at the end of the services vs. five verses of Just As I Am.2. Expositional preaching versus topical.3. Preaching the content of the text only , i.e. without necessarily always bringing in a

salvation message versus hitting sin every sermon.4. Teaching the scripture, rather than an emotional, theatrical preaching style.5. Teaching the idea of the sola’s. Rather than "you made a decision for Christ."

Yet I would hope that neither approach is "false gospel," and that God has the ability ofsaving His elect in either format.

Now we come to the present 2006. What do I understand now about:

• The presenting of the Gospel message.• In giving an invitation to receive Christ as Savior, and Lord.

AN EXAMPLE OF PRESENTING THE GOSPEL:

• I heard Paul Harper preach at Bigelow Church several times. He is from England,and he is very theatrical in his preaching. His preaching is topical in form. But what Ilearned is that within the message he would insert and gave an invitation to receivethe gospel into their lives. He would do this several times, "open your heart to thevoice God." That was the invitation.

• Frank, the pastor at Bigelow Church, here in Portsmouth, is an expositionalpreacher. He teaches from the Old and the New Testament books. He will addresswhat the chapter and verses are teaching. And there is no invitation given at the endof the services. What I have noticed of late is that in the messages Christ willbecome a part of the message itself. Every message will bring in Christ at somepoint.

Part Three Next

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant Proof-Checked by Charity 11-15 06 #92Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 06:24AM (-06:00)

Friday, November 17, 2006WHAT IS THE REQUIREMENT FOR SALVATION?Part ThreeAGAIN WHAT IS A PERSON TO UNDERSTAND IN ORDER THAT HE MAY KNOWTHE ANSWER TO HIS QUESTION:"What must I do to be saved?" and that he has beenborn again.

MY SYNOPSIS CHRONOLOGY OF THE PRESENTATION OF THE GOSPEL,{A brief outline or general view and a record of events in the order of their occurrence}

CONTINUED FROM PART TWO 157

TWO POINTS OF INTEREST HERE WITH PAUL AND FRANK:

• Paul Harper will present the Gospel in the message, and give a request that thosewho are not saved would open their heart to the Lord.

• Frank T will present Christ in the message. He will specifically point out thatsalvation is by grace "alone" and faith "alone." There is no invitation, but the weeklyLord’s Supper.

Today I would continue to preach the text as I have, yet I believe that within the messageI would present an invitation to respond to the spirit of God.

Now the question is again: "How would I state the invitation, what would be the specificwording .

How can I, as a preacher, present a clear biblical presentation of the Gospel that is a"true gospel." Do I advocate "Lordship Salvation" or "Free Grace Salvation."

A Baptist pastor here in Portsmouth said to a group of us. "How do you present thegospel to a lost man?" Well, I have been doing this for a number of years. Had I beenwrong?! Had I made the assumption that some were saved, when they weren’t? That isundeniably frightening. Did I bring about "false conversions"?

HOW MUCH DOES AN UNBELIEVER NEED TO KNOW IN ORDER TO KNOW HE HASBEEN SAVED?

• Often it’s "will you take Christ as your Savior." Will you bow your head and pray aprayer asking the Lord to forgive you of your sin and change your life and come intoyour life." Would that be correct? Could a person truly be saved?!

• The lordship position, however, does not teach salvation by works. But it doesteach that anyone who has been truly saved, at the very moment of salvation, isgiven by God a supernatural love for the Savior (John 8:42). And that the love of thechild of God will evidence itself in good works (John 14:15).

I asked this question to Lou, and Nathan (Pulpit Magazine)

• When a saved person has been "born again," what has the person done? If Ibelieve salvation is given to a spiritual dead person, or a lost person and he is bornagain by grace alone, through faith given to him by Christ, at what point has theperson done something? Are we talking about the result of salvation that a personresponds to been born again? Does a lost person have to respond by his faith,given to him by God? When does a lost person sense repentance? Does contrition,or repentance take place after the born again conversion or before his coversion, orperhaps at the same time?

• Often in speaking to an individual or even while preaching, I will bring out "To beborn again, is by the Spirit of God, and occurs in the lost person when the HolySpirit open the mind of that person, and that person will understand, his need of aSaviour? Does all this happen all at the same time? He is saved,forgiven, adopted, infused into Christ, and justified all in a single moment. Then, if Imight use that term, the now saved person, is totally aware of his need of salvation,and a saving Savior, and thus as a result of this work of Christ within him, repentsand is willing to submit himself totally to the Jesus Christ as His Lord and Savior.

• I thank the question is, will the lost person who has been saved, by grace, result inleading that person toconfess Jesus Christ as his Lord, and this leads to repentance of sin and rebellion158

toward God?• I really think this is serious discussion.•

Charles Whisnant on the Pulpit Magazine November 15, 2006 @ 11:43 p.m.Lordship sees Christ’s once-for-all substitutionary sacrifice on the cross as the only andfinal payment for sin, and as the only and final means of salvation. It is salvation by gracealone through faith alone in Christ alone. The faith of the New Testament, however, is notmere lipservice. It is instead a repentant faith that comes to God on His terms through Hisenabling, with an empty hand and an open heart. To forsake our sin (which 1 John 3:4defines as "rebellion") is to be willing to submit to Him. To forsake our pride (as thePublican of Luke 18 did) is to also forsake our own selfish, rebellious agendas and self-worship. And to forsake idols to serve the living and true God (as the Thessalonians did[1 Thess. 1:8-9]) is to cease from false worship and begin worshipping God (cf. Exod.20:3; Mk. 12:30). It necessarily includes love and devotion.Presenting the Gospel with a view to Christ’s Lordship

1. Those who come to God for salvation must believe that He is (Heb 11:6). God hasrevealed Himself, His nature, His work, and His words exclusively in the Bible. It isthe God of Scripture we are talking about.

2. Secondly, we must present man and his sin. Man is out of fellowship with God (Isa59:1-2), in rebellion to God (Eph 2:1-2), under the judicial wrath of God (Rom 1:18;3:23) because he is a sinner by nature (Ps 51:5) and choice (Ps 51:4). Man rejectsGod’s rule over him choosing a god of his own making (Rom 1:18-25). Sin is arejection of God’s person, his rule, his law, his authority, and his provision. Sinnersdo not believe or trust God.

3. Third, we present the Lord Jesus Christ and His Provision. First, we present thatJesus is Lord (Rom 10:9-10) which means that Jesus is God and has the authorityof God (Col 1:15-19). Second, Jesus is Christ (Matt 16:16). Not only does Hepossess all of the authority, power, and prerogatives of God, but He is also theAnointed One of God, the One chosen to be the means of salvation for all whorespond to Him with repentant faith. His cross work is complete, finished, and totallysufficient as the payment for man’s sinfulness and the imputation of perfectrighteousness (1 Cor 15:1-4; 1 Jn 2:2; Rom 4:4).This is all a matter of grace (Titus2:11). Man does not deserve such provision (Eph 2:8-10). A sinner’s good works orhuman merit does not commend him to God in any fashion.Pointed out by Michael Harding

The question we need to ask, and its not wrong to ask the qustion "How do I believe Iwas born again, and became Christian Believer, ?" What was the event that I believe Iwas saved?

Drafted and Posted by Charles E. Whisnant, Proof check in part by Charity Whisnant #93


Saturday, November 18, 2006How Faithfully Must Christians Persevere?"How much obedience is enough? Twenty percent? More? Less? How do we quantify ourobedience?"WHAT IS THE REQUIREMENT FOR SALVATION? Part Four1 John 5:10 ¶ He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in him: he thatbelieveth not God hath made him a liar; because he hath not believed in the witness that 159

God hath borne concerning his Son.Salvation is not something we do. Salvation is a person - Jesus Christ. If we are IN Him, itis a settled matter. What happens when you tag yourself as a "Calvinist". You bring alongall that goes with that term.Over the last forty years I would say I have not questioned my born again experience. Icertainly have examined my life in light of the great gift of salvation given to me in ChristJesus. This self examination is not to determine if I am saved. I know I am savedbecause the Spirit within me affirms this in my spirit.Maybe because I have preached for so many years on this subject of salvation, I haveexamined myself as I preach. I don’t go to bed each night wondering if I am saved.I believe you can have assurance of your new birth in Christ. When I preached, Igenerally taught the principles of Christian living. My thoughts were that I certainly knewthat my performance will never measure up to the height I would love.. My performancewas never in the view of earning my salvation. That is impossible to accomplish. But outof a deep love for the Lord, I desired and was willing to serve Him the best I could. Ialways wanted to do more.When I was saved, there was a change in my thinking, even at seven. At least mythinking became willing to listen to my dad preach from the Bible Certainly I didn’t knowany theology, but I knew I wanted to be obedient to my dad and to obey his wishes forme. What he believed, I believed. If he said this is what the Lord would have me to do, Iwas all to willing to do.I do think there are a lot of groups of people who really believe they are going to Heaven,but from my understanding of the Bible, they are not going. On what assumption do Ijudge that on?Most people who believe in a Heaven, believe they are going to heaven when they die.Some do not believe in a life after death. There are those who have all kinds of ideasabout what Heaven is going to be all about. Three-fourths of all people in the world arenot of the Christian Biblical mind set. But they believe in God. The Jews, Muslims, etc. allbelieve in a god or God. And they believe that they are going to the same HeavenChristians are going to. Well, some groups do.How many, even in America, believe that they are a Christian, because of a decision thatthey made in a fundamental church, or even in a Catholic Church, or in a Lutheran orMethodist church Even at a Billy Graham meeting, how many have made a decision, andmost really believe they are saved and have little fear of not going to heaven.Of course, as Christians, we believe only our viewpoint of salvation is the right view. Allthe various groups within our Christian sphere have different points of view.I know it’s our responsibility as preachers to teach the truth of the Word of God. If anyteaching we should know that is correct, it should be God’s plan of Salvation for His Elect.

There are believers and preachers who have different views of the way a personbecomes a Believer.

1. One group will say, you need to earn your way into heaven.2. Another group will say, you are saved when you put your faith in Jesus Christ,

believe and be baptized. Simply : believe by faith in Jesus Christ. Simply pray thesinner’s prayer and you are saved.

3. Other groups will say, it’s not by any works, or words, but by grace alone.4. Some groups say you need to be saved and baptized.5. Some say you need to join their church and obey their laws and perform their

rituals.I had one man to tell me, "I am an atheist, but I will go to heaven, because I wassprinkled when I was a baby." Uhhhh that is a good one, and I believe he really believed160

that.

Another person will say, "I was saved in church when I was seven, and was baptized, yetI have not gone to church my entire life." I went forward in a Revival or a Billy Grahamtype meeting.

SO HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVE TRULY BEEN BORN AGAIN?

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, 11-17 Proof Check by Charity after working

at Union Mills Confectionery 11 - 18 - 06


Monday, November 20, 2006WHAT IS THE REQUIREMENT FOR SALVATION?Part fiveSO HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVE TRULY BEEN BORN AGAIN?From part four:Here is a great divide in thinking.

• If a person has made a decision for Christ at any time in their life, they are saved.• If a person has been baptized he is saved.• If a person lives right and goes to church he is saved.

Well, it is surley possible that any of the above folks could be saved but if they are restingupon the outward actions only for their salvation, there would be a need to examine theirthinking.

I personally believe, salvation is a gift from God. I believe that He in His wisdom savesthose whom He in His wisdom saves. He brings those whom He wills to be saved toHimself. Personally, I do not believe that God leaves that decision up to man to maketotally on his own.

I do believe that many made a decision that they would like to be saved, until theyrealized what that means. I have given the plan of salvation to many, who went rightalong with what I was saying and even prayed the prayer. But they were not saved. Why?Good question. But in many cases they really didn’t believe what they were doing. AndGod hadn’t opened their heart unto salvation.

Of course, you could ask the question, if a person went forward in a service as aresponse to the invitation of the preacher, and prayed the sinner’s prayer, why wouldn’tthey become saved? Most people would think every one that is saved in a revival in thePhilippines, or New Zealand, or Mexico are going to be saved. Some believe everyperson who walks the aisle in a Billy Graham meeting is going to be saved. I only wishthat every person would be saved.So if they have the mind to be saved, why then aren’t they. Some believe they are. Theysay, it’s not a matter of what happens necessarily after this event, that you are saved. Ihave had mothers say of their adult children. "My son was saved when he was five?" Andher son has not been in church since he was a child. I think many do what they believethey are told to do to be saved, but are not saved. 161

"But the idea of "saving faith" apart from good works, is ridiculous. The saved man is nota perfect man; but his heart's desire is to become perfect, he is always panting afterperfection, and the day will come when he will be perfected, after the image of his oncecrucified and now glorified Savior, in knowledge and true holiness."We cannot be savedby or for our good works, neither can we be saved without good works. Christ never willsave any of His people in their sins; He saves His people from their sins." CharlesSpurgeon

"There is no one who can live in sin,——drinking, swearing, lying, and so on,——who cantruly declare that he is one of the Lord's chosen people."Charles H. Spurgeon

http://teampyro.blogspot.com/

A SALVATION THAT IS BIBLICAL IN CHARACTER IS A GIFTED OF GOD BY HISWONDERFUL GRACE. BY WHICH GOD SAVED US FROM HIS WRATH AND GIVESUS A NEW NATURE. THIS IS CALLED "BORN AGAIN." THE NATURAL RESULT INTHIS MAN’S NEW LIFE IN CHRIST WILL BE AN REPENTANT HEART OF HIS OWNSINFULNESS. AND THERE WILL BE A WILLINGNESS TO BE OBEDIENT TO THEWILL AND PURPOSES OF GOD. WE COULD CALL THIS THE LORDSHIP SALVATIONPOSITION. FAITH, REPENTANT, OBEDIENCE. THESE ARE EVIDENCES OF APERSON BEING BORN AGAIN IN TO CHRIST.

[Charles E. Whisnant]

A WILLINGNESS TO TURN FROM SELF’S ITINERARIES AND BE COMPLIANT TOTHE WILL OF GOD. THIS BEHAVIOR WILL START TO OCCUR AT THE MOMENT OFTHE NEW BIRTH EXPERIENCE. ITS CALLED THE CHRISTIAN LIFESTYLE. THEFOCUS OF LIFE WILL BE AS "WE ARE HIS WORKMANSHIP CREATED IN CHRISTJESUS UNTO GOOD WORKS." Ephesians 2:10. THE TERM IS LORDSHIPSALVATION.

{Charles E. Whisnant}

1. WHEN DOES THIS BEHAVIOR START IN THE LIFE OF A PERSON WHO HASBEEN BORN AGAIN? AT THE MOMENT OF SALVATION.

2. HOW MUCH OBEDIENCE WILL THERE NEED TO BE IN ORDER FOR APERSON TO BE SAVED?

3. HOW MUCH OF HIS PERSONAL LIFE HAS TO BE FOCUS ON BEINGOBEDIENT TO THE LORD JESUS CHRIST? 10% 20% 90% 100% 110%?

4. HOW MUCH EFFORT DOES A PERSON GIVE IN LIVING LIFE? HOW MUCHTIME DOES A PERSON GIVE IN HIS OWN PURSUIT, CHASE OF HIS OWNLIFE’S GOALS?

5. CAN A PERSON BE SAID TO BE SAVED, IF HE DOES NOT GIVE 100% OF HISEFFORT IN THE LIVING A CHRISTIAN LIFE?

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant Proof Checked by Charlity Whisnant


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Tuesday, November 21, 2006WHAT IS THE REQUIREMENT FOR SALVATION?Part sixSO HOW DO YOU KNOW IFYOU HAVE TRULY BEEN BORN AGAIN?

How Faithfully Must Christians Persevere?"How much obedience is enough? Twenty percent? More? Less? How do we quantify ourobedience?"

1 John 5:10 ¶ He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in him: he thatbelieveth not God hath made him a liar; because he hath not believed in the witness thatGod hath borne concerning his Son.Ver. "10. He that believeth on the Son of God, as a divine person who came in the flesh,and obeyed the law, and brought in everlasting righteousness, and obtained life andsalvation for men: he that with the heart believes in him for righteousness, and eternallife, He being the Son of God, truly and properly God, and so is able to save all thatbelieve in Him."John Gill’s thoughts , but I put this in its final form.With this next statement you need to stop and think through each statement:

"hath the witness in himself;" of the cause, need he stands in of Christ, and of theacceptable appropriate, fulness, and excellency of Him..The Spirit of God edifying:

• him into the foulness of his nature,• his feebleness to do anything spiritually good,• his inability to atone for sin.• The insufficiency of his righteousness to justify him before God;

and influencing him that nothing but the blood of the Son of God can cleanse himfrom sin.

Only Christ’s sacrifice can atone it, and Christ’s righteousness justify him from it, and thatwithout Jesus Christ he can do nothing.

Witnessing also to:

• the mastery of Christ blood,• the completeness of His sacrifice and satisfaction.• The excellency of His righteousness,• The energy of God ‘s grace and strength.

So man comes to have such a witness in himself, that if ten thousand arguments wereever so artfully formed:

• in favour of the accuracy of human nature,• the power of man's free will, and• the sufficiency of his own righteousness,

and that witness in himself against

• the sacrifice and righteousness of Christ,• the dignity of His person, as the Son of God,• which gives virtue to Christ’s blood, sacrifice, and righteousness, 163

• they would all manifest nothing to him, Christ would be proof against them.And therefore he would immediately receives into him the testimony God gives of HisSon, of the glory and excellency of His person, and employs it in himself..

I know I am a child of a KING., the LORD of LORDS.

Salvation is not something we do. Salvation is a person - Jesus Christ. If we are IN Him, itis a settled matter.

• Ephesians 1:13-14 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth,the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealedwith that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until theredemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

• 2 Corinthians 1:22 Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit inour hearts.

• Romans 8:38-39 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, norprincipalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nordepth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God,which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

• John 8:47 He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not,because ye are not of God.

• John 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me drawhim: and I will raise him up at the last day.

• John 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:• 1 John 5:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the

Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe onthe name of the Son of God.

The issue before us in this discuss is:

The sinner’s role in salvation. How much does God redeem the elect?What happens at regeneration? Is the believing sinner really born again?Is our old nature really dead. "crucified...that we are no longer slaves to sin?Are believers really "partakers of the divine nature?"Are those who are "in Christ, really a new creature?"Can we say that as new believers that we are free to live righteous?"Is there a call for the unbeliever to repentance?Does repentance add something to the biblical doctrine of salvation by grace throughfaith alone?Is obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ part been born again?

"How Faithfully Must Christians Persevere? "This statement was what Charles Ryriewrote:

These last six threads have been as a result of reading the posts over at Pyromaniacs.Phil Johnson started the thoughts, then Nathan Busenitz (personal assistance to JohnMacArthur) These articles appeared also on the Pulpit Magazine, an online magazine ofthe Shepherds’ Fellowship. The issue was LORDSHIP SALVATION.

In 1988 John MacArthur wrote the book "What Does Jesus Mean When He Says, "FollowMe"?164

"The Gospel According To Jesus" I brought the book in July 1989. And I have read thisbook several times. The principles set forth by John MacArthur became the position that Itook while the pastor/teacher at First Baptist Church, in Altoona, Kansas.

John MacArthur points out in his book: "This is the purpose of salvation: to transform anindividual completely. Genuine saving faith changes a person’s behavior. , it transformshis thinking, and it puts within him a new heart." (p. 96)

So these last six articles I have posted have been a result of over twenty posts and some1000 comments that have been made. And I have down loaded them. (Some 400pages).

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant


Wednesday, November 22, 2006WHAT IS THE REQUIREMENT FOR SALVATION?Part SevenHow Faithfully Must Christians Persevere?"How much obedience is enough? Twentypercent? More? Less? How do we quantify our obedience?"Just how faithful must a Christian be?A FOOTNOTE:

• The general purpose of this "GROW BY LEARNING" BLOG has been for thepurpose of writing my journal of how I have grown by learning. I have tried to writemy thoughts of events that have happen in our family life and ministry. In thisjourney I have grown in maturity, (well maybe) and in the knowledge of the LordJesus Christ. I have tried also to record the development of thought about ministry.The development of preaching and teaching.

• Generally I have just written for the express purpose of my family. Along the way,now only three months into this journey and ninety six posts, there are a few morewho from time to time drop by "GROW BY LEARNING." For the present its still mypurpose to write about my journey, and my growth in the Christian life. Periodically Iwill address an issue that I think would be neat to think about, but again its from myperspective, and has been part of my experience in life and ministry. I have tried tomake this Blog "GROW BY LEARNING" how my personal thinking has moved anddeveloped over the last fifty years.

• One of those perspectives that I have dealt is the topic of "Preaching the Gospel."If there has been an issue in my ministry its been over "Preaching the Gospel." Theissue of what does the Bible teach about "salvation." How does a person become aChristian. And how do you know if a person really has become a Believer. The issueis how you preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

• And in these last seven Blogs, or threads, or articles I have tried to address myperspective, and how I have arrived to my understanding on this issue. I am surethis issue will take more then seven articles, but I will try to enter weave this issue inwith articles as we go along.

Today I want to continue to address the issue Just how much do we as Christian have tolive like Christ in order to be said "He is a Born Again Christian."

I will refer you to the link below that will address this issue. The article is from this link.Phil Johnson over at "PyroManiacs" 165

http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/11/17/how-faithfully-must-christians-persevere/ PhilJohnson

These last seven posts have been as a result of the Pulpit Magazine’s Nathan Busenitzarticles. Though this issue has been a part of my personal journey in ministry for overforty years.

The following article is taking from John MacArthur’s book, an excerpt from Faith Works:The Gospel According to the Apostles (189-92).I will post this article in Part One and Part Two. (For the sake of the length)

PART ONE"After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to Hiseternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you" (5:10).

Can you grasp the magnitude of that promise? God Himself perfects, confirms,strengthens, and establishes His children. Though His purposes for the future involvesome pain in the present, He will nevertheless give us grace to endure and persevere.Even while we are being personally attacked by the enemy, we are being personallyperfected by God. He Himself is doing it. And He will accomplish His purposes in us,bringing us to wholeness, setting us on solid ground, making us strong, and establishingus on a firm foundation. All those terms speak of strength, resoluteness.

The Problem of Quantification (to determine or express the quantify of:)Inevitably, the question is raised, "How faithfully must one persevere?" Charles Ryriewrote,

• So we read a statement like this: "A moment of failure does not invalidate adisciple’s credentials." My immediate reaction to such a statement is to want to askif two moments would? Or a week of defection, or a month, or a year? Or two? Howserious a failure and for how long before we must conclude that such a person wasin fact not saved? Lordship teaching recognizes that "no one will obey perfectly," butthe crucial question is simply how imperfectly can one obey and yet be sure that he"believed" . . .?

. . . A moment of defection, we have been told, is not an invalidation. Or "the true disciplewill never turn away completely." Could he turn away almost completely? Or ninetypercent? Or fifty percent and still be sure he was saved? . . .

Frankly, all this relativity would leave me in confusion and uncertainty. Every defection,especially if it continued, would make me unsure of my salvation. Any serious sin orunwillingness would do the same. If I come to a fork in the road of my Christianexperience and choose the wrong branch and continue on it, does that mean I was neveron the Christian road to begin with? For how long can I be fruitless without having alordship advocate conclude that I was never really saved? (So Great Salvation 48-49,emphasis added).

Part Two: Next

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant 11-20-06 (Charity is working at the Bakery) ThanksgivingA record number of pies. Over 200 pies and over 150 dozens rolls. Debbie and Charity,Pauline, Tammy, Rich and Sonda have worked hard this last week. My little part is in theclean the floors and making flyers.166


Friday, November 24, 2006WHAT IS THE REQUIREMENT FOR SALVATION?Part EightPart Two of John MacArthur's Just how faithful must a Christian be? "Ryriesuggests that if we cannot state precisely how much failure is possible for a Christian,true assurance becomes impossible. He wants the terms to be quantified: "Could he turnaway almost completely? Or ninety percent? Or fifty percent . . .?" To put it another way,Ryrie is suggesting that the doctrines of perseverance and assurance are incompatible.Astonishingly, he wants a doctrine of assurance that allows those who have defectedfrom Christ to be confident of their salvation.There are no quantifiable answers to the questions Ryrie raises. Indeed, some Christianspersist in sin for extended periods of time. But those who do forfeit their right to genuineassurance. "Serious sin or unwillingness" certainly should cause someone to contemplatecarefully the question of whether he or she really loves the Lord. And those who turnaway completely (not almost completely, or ninety percent, or fifty percent) demonstratethat they never had true faith (1 John 2:19).

Quantification poses a dilemma for no-lordship teaching, too. Zane Hodges speaks offaith as a "historical moment."" How brief may that moment be? Someone listening to adebate between a Christian and an atheist might believe for an instant while the Christianis speaking, but immediately be led back into doubt or agnosticism by the atheist’sarguments. Would we classify such a person as a believer? One suspects some no-lordship advocates would answer yes, although that view goes against everything God’sword teaches about faith.Jesus never quantified the terms of salvation; he always made them absolute. "Sotherefore, no one of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his ownpossessions" (Luke 14:33); "He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy ofMe; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me" (Matt. 10:37);"He who loves his life loses it; and he who hates his life in this world shall keep it to lifeeternal" (John 12:25). Those conditions are impossible in human terms (Matt. 19:26).[Even those who want to make these statements of Christ apply to a post-conversionstep of discipleship don’t solve the dilemma of their absoluteness.] That does not alter ormitigate the truth of the gospel. It certainly is no excuse for going to the other extremeand doing away with any necessity for commitment to Christ.Ryrie’s comments raise another issue that is worth considering. It is the question ofwhether lordship teaching is inherently judgmental: "How long can I be fruitless withouthaving a lordship advocate conclude that I was never really saved?" Zane Hodges hasmade similar comments: "Lordship teaching reserves to itself the right to strip professingChristians of their claims to faith and to consign such people to the ranks of the lost"(Absolutely Free 19).Certainly no individual can judge another’s heart. It is one thing to challenge people toexamine themselves (2 Cor. 13:5); it is entirely another matter to set oneself up asanother Christian’s judge (Rom. 14:4, 13; James 4:11).But while individual Christians must never be judgmental, the church body as a wholevery definitely has a responsibility to maintain purity by exposing and excommunicatingthose who live in continual sin or defection from the faith. Our Lord gave very explicitinstructions on how to handle a fellow believer who falls into such sin. We are to go to thebrother (or sister) privately first (Matt. 18:15). If he refuses to hear, we are to go againwith one or two more people (v. 16). Then if he refuses to hear, we are to "tell it to the 167

church" (v. 17). And if he still fails to repent, "let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax-gatherer"" (v. 17). In other words, pursue that person for Christ as if he were utterlyunsaved.This process of discipline is how Christ mediates His rule in the church. He went on tosay, "Truly I say to you, whatever you shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; andwhatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, that if two ofyou agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by MyFather who is in heaven"" (Matt. 18:18-19). The context shows this is not talking about"binding Satan" or about praying in general. Our Lord was dealing with the matter of sinand forgiveness among Christians (v. 21ff). The verb tenses in verse 18 literally mean,"Whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you looseon earth shall have been loosed in heaven." Our Lord is saying that He Himself workspersonally in the discipline process: "or where two or three have gathered together in Myname, there I am in their midst" (v. 20).Thus the process of church discipline, properly followed, answers all of Dr. Ryrie’squestions. How long can a person continue in sin before we "conclude that [he] wasnever really saved?" All the way through the discipline process. Once the matter hasbeen told to the church, if the person still refuses to repent, we have instructions from theLord Himself to regard the sinning one "as a Gentile and a tax-gatherer."The church discipline process our Lord outlined in Matthew 18 is predicated on thedoctrine of perseverance. Those who remain hardened in sin only demonstrate their lackof true faith. Those who respond to the rebuke and return to the Lord give the bestpossible evidence that their salvation is genuine. They can be sure that if their faith is realit will endure to the end—because God Himself guarantees it."I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect ituntil the day of Christ Jesus (Phil. 1:6). And "I know whom I have believed and I amconvinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day" (2 Tim.1:12).John MacArthurhttp://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/11/17/how-faithfully-must-christians-persevere/On Next:THE EARLY YEARS OF HEARING THE GOSPEL PREACHED

Drafted by Charles E. WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 09:00AM (-06:00)

Monday, November 27, 2006MY SYNOPSIS CHRONOLOGY OF THE PRESENTATION OF THE GOSPELA brief outline or general view and a record of events in the order of their occurrence}THE EARLY YEARS OF HEARING THE GOSPEL PREACHEDI certainly remember my early childhood days growing up in a pastor’s home. Every dayseemed to be filled with church ministry activity. Our house was one of the first Bed andBreakfasts. Some family, some preacher and wife, some friends, some evangelistseemed to be eating breakfast with us. The conversation around our house was aboutchurch evangelism, church growth, and Christian discipleship.Dad was always in a dialogue with an evangelist, or missionary, or pastor about theministry of the local church. They would talk about what the Bible had to say aboutcurrent issues of the day. In those days, we didn’t have a television, and I remembersitting listening to those conversations .This is how Donald and I learned to play church. In our preteen years we lived next doorto our church. Our play time would be going over to the church to play Sunday MorningChurch. I would preach and give an invitation and Donald would lead singing and would168

get saved during the invitation. So the altar call, or invitation was a part of our life. ThenDonald and I would switch roles.Dad’s preaching always seemed to draw people to Jesus Christ. I had a very healthyrespect for Jesus in those early years. I was always conscious of the power and authoritythat Jesus Christ had. I was as aware of the presence of Christ in my life as I was withthe presence of my dad and mom. They didn’t need to be where I was, but I knew theywere there. There were few actions I ever took that I first didn’t think, "What would Jesusdo, and how would dad react."The gospel preaching of my dad had an early affect upon my life. The energy with whichhe lived had an affect upon me for life. I felt if I could live like him and preach like him thatwould be my life’s goal. Then I turned twelve.The Gospel I heard in my father’s church was : The truth? I can’t remember. It was 1966since I heard him preach his last sermon.What I remember is my dad’s preaching was topical. My memory of my dad’s sermons isgone. I can’t hear him preaching in my mind. There are some recorded sermons of dad,but I have no idea who would have them.What I do remember was people coming forward in the service and that they werecoming to be saved. One illustration was my friend Melvin Gray, as a teenager I wasteaching the Youth Class, and Melvin was a young adult who became a great friend ofthe family. One Sunday Night in our church service, I was standing beside Melvin, andwhen we had the invitation, he walked forward that night because he wanted to be saved.And for the next few years that I was in Roanoke, Virginia, Melvin’s life was changed.There were many like Melvin who were saved. Twenty years after my dad died we wentback to Roanoke, for a Roanoke Baptist Temple/Whisnant’s Reunion. The number ofpeople and families that were there was amazing. They told stories of how they came toChrist as a result of the ministry that dad had in Roanoke. It was just astonishing.The reason our home was always filled with friends was because they were friends whowere saved, humanly speaking, because of the preaching of the gospel by my dad.In 1998 I received a phone call from Asheville , North Caroline. The family that was onthe line said, "Is this Charles Whisnant, whose dad was Everette Whisnant?" I said yes."Well this is Mrs Grady Harden. Your dad started a church here in 1940's and our familywas saved. We lost contact with you and your family after your dad died. I want you toknow that the church is still doing good and people are still being saved."I loved going to Red House, Virginia, when I was still at home. The Arrington family livedthere, and dad and mom would go to visit them at least once a month. Why? Dad wasused of the Lord to see there whole family come to know the Lord. There were I think sixchildren, and they were all saved as well as their mom and dad. Irene, and May andAnn,Linda, June, the three girls, started a singing ministry, and even today they are stillsinging. They were our first girl friends as kids. June married a young man, and he is anevangelist. Forty years later the children of that family are still singing and serving theLord.When the Gospel of Jesus Christ is preached, and God brings people to Himself and theyare saved, the result will be that they will become believers for eternity. Those that aresaved will become obedient to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, even if they don’t know whatthat position says.Dad did not preach doctrinal messages that I can remember. The simple Word wastaught. I know his library was filled with doctrinal books, (I have some of Spurgeon’sbooks that he had, so I know he knew the Word.)My point of this is: In those days, the effectiveness of dad’s preaching must have worked.The method of an altar call, or an invitation must have worked in those days, at least indad’s church.I will finish this part next.Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant 11 - 24-06 Proof Checked by 169

Charity WhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 07:54AM (-06:00)


MY SYNOPSIS CHRONOLOGY OF THE PRESENTATION OF THE GOSPEL,{A briefoutline or general view and a record of events in the order of their occurrence}THE EARLY YEARS OF HEARING THE GOSPELPREACHEDPart TwoAGAIN WHAT ISA PERSON TO UNDERSTANDIN ORDER THAT HE MAY KNOWTHE ANSWER TOTHIS QUESITON?"What must I do to be saved?"TODAY NOVEMBER 28TH IS MY100th Article.I don’t remember dad talking about how many were saved on Sunday or in a tent revival.That didn’t seem to really concern him. He didn’t seem to be concerned with numbers,but he did have real genuine love for people. People loved dad, especially those whowere in our church and those who had been in his church in another town or state.

• One other story: Fate and Zelda Spencer in Hildebran, North Carolina. Fate was adrunk, and he came to a Tent Revival that my dad had in that town. He came onenight with a gun to kill my dad for preaching, but that night he came and he wassaved. For the next thirty plus years was dad’s best friend. His whole family came toknow the Lord. Some of my best memories are when we visited them in their home.They were dad’s best friends. Dad had a lot of best friends. About once a year Fatewould call and say "Everette, why don’t you come down this week and I will get theboys a pair of shoes and buy you a new suit." That was the pattern for a number ofyears. And we love the girls June and Sue.

I don’t remember the sermons, nor remember the invitations. But I saw the result of thework of the Lord. Dad would be 102 years old this year. I know that the Lord does thesaving, but I know it’s by the means of the preaching of the Gospel. Dad must havepreached a great message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

• Well, maybe another story. Dad loved Tent Revivals. In those days a Tent meetingcould last up to a month or more. One place was Amelia, Virginia. I remember thatRevival. For over a month, dad would preach during the week and then come backto Roanoke and preach at the church. We would stay in a home for the week, andthen drive back to Roanoke on Saturday night. I can remember playing in thesawdust on the ground. I still have a vision in my memory about that place, and dadstanding up there preaching, and then seeing people come forward. For years laterwe kept up with folks that were saved.

Whatever Gospel message Dad preached, it worked. The Lord saw fit to use my dad tosee some folks come to know the Savior. What was great about this is that many becamefriends of ours for a long time.

• Maybe one other and I will quit. Lynchburg, Virginia. Dad pastored a church there,and after dad moved to Roanoke, he would return to Lynchburg at least once amonth. One of our friends was a funeral director Mr. Tomlinson who was in chargeof the Lynchburg Cometary. We would go and visit. Don and I would visit the graveseach trip. The family was saved when dad was the pastor of the church inLynchburg. (Macel Pate Falwell was the pianist in dad’s church when she was just ayoung girl.)

What ever the Gospel that dad preached it worked. Amen.• Okay, another story: The Unroe family, who was saved in a Tent Meeting in some170

town. The family had several girls. One was named Judy Unrow, and she was mygirlfriend. The family would come up to Roanoke and sing for us. Judy asked me tomarry her when I was sixteen years old in a letter she had written. I asked momabout this matter and she was not too happy with that at all.

Well I better quit for tonight. Charity is in bed, she is asleep with the light on and herglasses still on and the book on her lap. Sometimes the book is in her face. She hasworked since 5:30 this morning until 6:00 p.m. tonight. She deserves a rest. It’s nice thatThanksgiving pies are only once a year!

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, and Proof Checked by Charity Whisnant and I called mymother Pauline who lives with my sister Ellen in Texas..

• Mom is 84 years old and I asked mom about the events that imention above and she remember the people and places.

• My sister Ellen who lives in Texas, e mail me to tell me that mom liked to rememberthese days.

My point is: Even if you didn't know about Lordship Salvation, I believe that Christ will stillbe your life style. A Christian will be know as someone who Knows Christ and wants tobe just like Christ.Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 08:41AM (-06:00)

Wednesday, November 29, 2006WHAT IS THE REQUIREMENT FOR SALVATION?THE EARLY YEARS OF HEARING THE GOSPELPREACHED

• My dad’s ministry lasted as far as I know nearly forty years. Donald and I were bornin Lynchburg, Virginia in 1947, 1948. Dad was pastoring there. Then we moved toRoanoke in 1950 and lived there until dad died in 1966. Preaching the Gospel ofJesus Christ was dad’s life. It seemed that we were in church all the time. Dad waspreaching revivals, or he was preaching in the Gospel Tent Meetings. The onlyGospel I knew was the kind that dad preached. Quite simple in terms, but I believe itwas right. So how do I know? By the result of the preaching, and the evidence ofthose who were saved.

• I realize that the Gospel of Jesus Christ never changes. People have been savedthe same way from the beginning. By the grace of God, by faith in God, and bytrusting God in obedience to do His will.

• I am still working out in my own mind, how this process took place with Adam,Noah, Abraham, Moses, Joshua, David, Isaiah and Jeremiah and Nehemiah andEzra, and Samuel. When I have the answers I will write an article. "How werepeople in the Old Testament Saved?"

• Are people saved today the same way that people were saved in my dad’s day?Well, the answer to that is simple: YES.

• If I remember one thing about the preaching in my early days, there was a lot saidabout "repentance." I understood that for a person who wanted to be saved, therewas a need of repenting of their sins, and obeying Jesus Christ in all that Christasked us to do and be.

• It seems over the years, preachers have gotten away from preaching repentance,and obedience. It’s more "just believe by faith and you will be saved."

• I have finally woke up to the fact that there are people in this world who are not 171

Baptist. (Well, in the last thirty years). I think the Hell fire has gone out of a lot ofpreaching today. I think a lot of "repentance" has been removed from a lot ofsermons preached.I remember at FBC I spent a lot of time talking about "salvation." I would point outthe results of one who has been saved. If you have believed on the Lord JesusChrist, here is what will happen.

• Today people will turn to Television and here a lot of religious teachings that arefalse. But to the unbeliever they do not see any different in Joel Osteen’s preachingand Paula White’s teaching than they would mine. So as a pastor I need to be clearfrom Scripture to point out what the Gospel is, and how God brings one to a savingknowledge of Himself unto salvation.

What must a sinner do to be saved?

To this question, we answer as Peter did in Acts 2:38, "Repent;" and as Paul and Silasdid in Acts 16:31, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ." We echo the words of Romans10:9, "If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that Godraised Him from the dead, you shall be saved." To confess (willingly acknowledge andaffirm) Jesus as Lord (meaning God, the sovereign Ruler of the universe—Php. 2:10)involves both allegiance and worship. And to believe in your heart (meaning trustingcompletely in the sacrifice of Christ on the cross) involves dependence. Saving faithnecessarily includes both of these elements: allegiance (or affection, devotion, andworship) and dependence (or wholehearted trust). The sinner must turn from his sin,which 1 John 3:4 defines as lawless rebellion, and turn toward Christ. To "turn from" is torepent. To "turn toward" is to believe.

A repentant faith, then, is what God requires.

As Paul described it in 1 Thessalonians 1:8-9, saving faith evidences itself in a turningfrom idols to serve and worship the living and true God. "turning from idols" includesturning from the idolatry of self-love. "Turning to serve God" necessitates giving Him firstplace (Exod. 20:3; Mark 12:30). To claim to have turned to God, and yet remain inrebellion to Him, is to deceive oneself. Or as the apostle John said it, "If we claim to havefellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth" (1 John1:6).

Repentance, then, is essential to our evangelism.

This is why Jesus Christ commanded His apostles to preach a message of "repentanceand remission of sins" to the unbelieving nations (Luke 24:46-47). Peter, in evangelizingthe Jerusalem crowds, commanded his hearers to "Repent therefore and be converted,that your sins may be blotted out" (Acts 3:19). The apostle Paul, in his evangelisticsermon on Mars Hill, said that God "commands all men everywhere to repent" (Acts17:30). He later said, in his evangelistic sermon to Agrippa, that his message to bothJews and Gentiles was "that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befittingrepentance" (Acts 26:20) And he did this because Christ himself had commissioned himto do so, "that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those whoare sanctified by faith in [Christ]" (v. 18). Free Grace advocates may assert that it is notnecessary to include repentance in our evangelistic presentations. The Word of God(from these verses and others) says otherwise. What God commands and Christcommissions, we must do. (Contributor Nate B)ARE WE CALLED TO SALVATION /AT THE SAME TIME CALLED TO DISCIPLESHIP?172

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant 11-15-16 2006 Proof read by Charity Whisnant Posted11-17-06Saved under file 00 11 15 06


Friday, December 01, 2006SO HOW SHOULD THE PASTOR/TEACHER PRESENT THE GOSPELContinue Seriesin the Matter of Presenting the Gospel of Jesus Christ

• How were some of Adam’s family saved? He did live 930 years. How was salvationpresented to them, as well as to the others in the Old Testament. Noah was given120 years to build the Ark. In those 120 years was he preaching the "Gospel ofJesus Christ?" Did he give a Boat Call? Genesis 6:8 "But Noah found grace in theeyes of the Lord." All the others "I will destroy." In Genesis 7:1 God said unto Noah," I see righteous before me in this generation." Noah was 600 years old in the yearof the Flood. Noah lived by faith in a corrupt generation. Hebrews 11.

• Are we to say those on earth at the time of Noah all died? Yes. Were any of thoseliving at the time of the Flood "saved?" Good question.

• If all natural descendants of Adam are spiritually dead, and if the only way they canbecome spiritually alive is through regeneration then the Old Testament saints hadto be regenerated in order to become spiritually alive. If only those who arespiritually alive can manifest spiritual life, and if the Old Testament believersmanifested spiritual life, then Old Testament believers must have been spirituallyalive. I think!

• My point is in the presentation of the Gospel? Did Adam, did Noah, preach/teach aswe do today? There were no churches as we know them today. I don’t think thename of Jesus Christ was ever mentioned by name. I do not think that the Crosswas mentioned either. Or at least I do not find the text which would say that. So howwere they saved? I do not have a detailed plan of salvation to give that strictlyapplies to Old Testament saints. I do not even feel that it is critical for us today tounderstand in full detail the way they came to God. Yet they were regenerated, hadfaith and believed the promises of God.

• Hebrews 11 tells us "by faith." Then in verse 13, "they were persuaded of thepromises made to them, and embraced them, and confessed that they werestrangers and pilgrims on the earth."

"Faith" saving faith:

• Is an assurance of a testimony: 2 Thess 1:10.• Is a certainty of truth from a sense of glory and excellency John 20:29• Is an expectation of a truth, that you have a spiritual taste for what is divine. Luke

12:57• The object of this faith is Jesus Christ. Mark 1:15. Includes a knowledge of God and

Christ. 2 Peter 1:2,3.• Is a conviction of the promises . Hebrews 11:1

If Noah was 600 years before the Flood, how old was he when God saved him? Andwhat kind of impact did he have in those years before the Flood? The whole human racewas totally corrupted. Why?

My point of these articles has been to try to discern the manner in which the Gospel was 173

presented.

I am humbled as I study, and research this topic of Preaching the Gospel Biblically. If youwant to be really humbled, just study and read others’ exposition on this subject.

If you want to be humbled, just have Charity check your article. But that is necessary inmy case.. (That was a side bar comment)

The Gospel preaching that my dad preached in the 1930's thru 1966 I trust to be theGospel of Jesus Christ unto salvation.

The Gospel preaching that I have preached from 1965 thru 2006 I trust to be the Gospelof Jesus Christ unto salvation.

While it’s true that I might word differently the presentation of the Gospel, it’s still theGospel. I believe dad and I had within our preaching of the Gospel the right elementsnecessary for saving faith. While I never heard Lordship Salvation from my dad, hepreached it never the less. He preached that those who God saves will be His disciples.Their life will show by faith the glory of Christ. I don’t think dad believed every one whocame forward in an invitation were saved. He believed those who came forward andpresented them selves to Christ as their Lord and Savior were saved. The evidences oftheir being born again was a new spirit within them.

Today in the 21st century, what has changed is the mass media. There has always beena Benny Hinn, a Joel Osteen, a Rick Warren, a Billy Graham, a Jack Hyles presentationof the Gospel. The Fundamentalist preachers have preached a gospel that is easybelievism. By that I mean, "Believe and be saved."

The preacher in his quest of bringing people into the Kingdom, will often ignore what hemight really believe. Fundamental preachers are good telling people what to do and notto do. Movies, dances, cussing, long hair, short hair, and shorts, etc. They definitelybelieve a Christian should live like Christ. They believe a Christian should come toChurch ob Sunday Morning, Night, Wednesday, Soul Winning, Bus Visitation, and teacha class, and give money to the church.

Yet many of those who they say are saved, don’t do any of the desired actions expectedof good Christians. Why is that? They are not saved, born again, regenerated, justified,sanctified. Oh!

I believe in our zeal to see people saved and baptized, we fail to rightly present thegospel of Jesus Christ.

The gospel of Jesus Christ. Now there is another topic.

Drafted November 30th 2006 by Charles E. Whisnant Proof Check by Charity 11-30-06


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Does Scripture Teach A Church Should Provide Bible Study Sunday Classes for Childrenand Adults?If we are to be faithful stewards of the ministry God has granted us, we must workdiligently to cultivate a ideology for ministry that is both essentially critical and thoroughlybiblical.Consider the following questions:*

1. What should propel the ministries at said Church, any of the particular ministry?2. * Are there different approaches I can take to have an meaningful ministry?3. * How do we evaluate a potential ministry opportunity4. * How do we cultivate a ministry that is biblically-driven?

Does Scripture Teach A Church Should Provided Bible Study Sunday Classes forChildren and Adults?Charles E. WhisnantAre we past the idea of having a Sunday, Bible Study Time in our culture today? Due tothe effort of getting people to attend church in general, churches have offered options.There is the Saturday Night Service, the early Sunday Morning Worship Service. Andthen you have three options on the kind of Worship you want to attend. Some churcheshave youth worship on Sunday Evening.Are the Christians, and/or parents, in our churches so busy with their lives that they donot have time to serve the church in the area of teaching children and youth?Are parents not wanting to attend an extra hour for Bible Study?Is Sunday School outdated today in our society and church life?Charity’s dad Bob Temple, Sr, and I went to Grace Baptist Church in Marion Ohio for theOhio WBF lunch and meeting with ABC president David Bryant. Great meeting by theway.I asked Bob about the Sunday School. He said, "If you don’t go after people, you oftenwon’t get them." If you don’t encourage people to go and invite people they won’t."Sunday School for Baptists has been the means for many years of reaching new people.Bob and I talked about Sunday School and what is necessary to have a good SundaySchool, I will relate this in another post later next week.In the last three years I have been out of the loop, you might say. That is to say, I havenot been employed by a church to work in the area of Education. Therefore, I am notreally sure of the condition of Education in our churches in 2006. Most Baptist churcheshave Sunday School, but I would say they are struggling. (I am thinking of the churchesin the Portsmouth area.) Reading the church paper of Grace Baptist Church of Marion,Ohio, they had 200 for worship and130 for Sunday School.But I have over the last 40 years been involved in the ministry of Education. Morecurrently I have been involved in the development of Bible Fellowships for Adults andSunday School for children and youth. (2001-2003). Most recently I have reorganized aSunday School program that was shut down due to so few attending. We were ablewithin six months to reorganize the Children’s Sunday School and Adult Bible FellowshipClasses. I have several portfolios on Christian Education in the Local Church.

I can only speak of the current church I attend. From my understanding, there is a needfor work in this area of Children’s Bible School. They have a very good Discipleship Hourfor two adult classes.

1. Do we really need to provide a time for Bible Study?Several churches in our area have AWANA at times other than on Sunday Morning.So could this be a substitute for Sunday Morning Bible Study? 175

2. Do those in leadership feel that Bible Study is no longer necessary in thephilosophy of their church ministry?

I do not have the answers to those specific questions. Maybe I should research that out.

NEVERTHELESS, the question is: SHOULD THE CHURCH PROVIDE A SPECIFICTIME TO TRAIN AND DISCIPLE THEIR MEMBERSHIP AND FAMILY?

In my opinion, I believe the church should provide training in discipleship to all ages in thechurch body. Why? I will review this in the next post, thread, article.

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant 12 01 06 Proof read Chariy 12-01 06 Part One


Sunday, December 03, 2006WHAT IS THE BIBLICAL BASIS FOR A BIBLE FELLOWSHIP (SUNDAY SCHOOL)PartTwo

1. Genesis 1:26-28 God is a being who exists eternally in community. People aremade in God’s image

2. Genesis 2:18 Lack of community is not good for us. Procreation providesopportunity for community beyond husband and wife.

3. Genesis 46:8-24 The nation Israel was organized by tribes and by clan, providingcommunity

4. Psalms 133 Unity is good and pleasant. God bestows his blessings where it exists.5. Matthew 22:37-40 We are to be in relationship first with God and then with other

people.6. Mark 3:13-19 Jesus appointed the Twelve for fellowship (that they might be with

Him) and for commission (that He might send them out)7. John 13:34-35 People will know that we are Christ’s disciples by the love that we

demonstrate to one another.8. Acts 2:41-47 The early church met in the Temple courts (large group) and in homes

(small groups).9. Acts 4:32-35 People in the early church were one in heart and mind, sharing all

things in common.10. Galatians 6:2 We are to carry each other’s burdens, so fulfilling the law of Christ.11. Ephesians 4:1-32 The body of Christ demonstrates unity in diversity.12. Philippians 2:1-4 We are to be one in the spirit and purpose, and put the interests

of others ahead of our own.13. 1 Peter 4:8-10 We are to serve one another using our spiritual gifts.14. Hebrews 10:24-25 We are to spur one another on to love and good deeds, meet

together, and encourage one another.

It seems that Christians universally agree that the Bible commands fellowship. Asmembers of the Body of Christ we have been given great responsibility for oneanother. Some of the biblical commands are:· "Love one another" John 13:34· "Live in harmony with one another" Romans 12:16· "Comfort one another" 2 Corinthians 13:11176

· "Serve one another" Galatians 5:13· "Bear one another's burdens" Galatians 6:2· "Teaching and admonishing one another" Colossians 3:16· "Encourage one another" 1 Thessalonians 4:18· "Build one another up" 1 Thessalonians 5:11· "Exhort one another" Hebrews 3:13· "Stir up one another to love and good works" Hebrews 10:24· "Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another" James 5:16

These are not just guidelines to live by when believers gather together. These arecommands that we must be proactive in obeying. All of these commands are given withthe assumption that we will be spending time together. In fact, we cannot obey thesecommands unless we are regularly gathering together (Hebrews 10:25).

I believe the benefit of the Bible Fellowship, Bible Discipleship Hour, the Children’s BibleStudy, etc is for the purposes as stated above. In a small group, believers have anopportunity for fellowship, shepherding, and ministering to one another in a personal way.

I believe it’s more then just sitting in a class and hearing another sermon. It’s a great timefor shepherding one another in the Christian life.

It’s a time that should exist to encourage spiritual growth through a nurturing contextwhich includes a number of things. For example, love, learning, leadership and using ofspiritual gifts.

Spiritual growth does not take place in a vacuum, rather, it is fostered and encouraged bythe interaction found in a loving relationship.

Spiritual growth is more of a "team sport" than an "individual sport." God made us toflourish in a fellowship setting. For each of us to reach our maximum spiritual potential weneed the help of other people.

For the serious believer, being involved in a Bible Discipleship Fellowship time, is not anoption. No one in his/her mind would embark on a mountain climb alone, likewise no oneshould embark on the journey of the Christian walk alone.

So these churches keep doing what they've always done. And for the most part thepeople in them do not have deep, spiritual, transparent and authentic relationships withanyone.

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant 12 01 06 Proof Checked by Charity Whisnant

The numerous classes are designed for the growth and edification of the believer,thereby strengthening the Church through education. Dealing with topics from how tomanage a budget to how to defend Christianity to other belief systems. Classes will aidyou in your daily walk with Christ.

Does Scripture Teach A Church Should Provided Bible Study Sunday Classes forChildren and Adults?

• They are NOT to PRIMARILY be a stopgap for the loss of members andattenders!Pastors and church leadership are continually looking for ways to keeppeople from leaving their church - it's called "closing the back door". Assimilation is 177

a key concept in church growth seminars. Church growth experts tell us that thereare three primary factors that ensure a newcomer will stay in a church. Thesefactors are friendships, a ministry, and a small group. "Remember, new people needto sense that they are needed and the best place for this to happen is smallgroups." Unfortunately the Bible doesn't talk about assimilation. It assumes that theregenerate will be baptized and joined to the local church. In fact, a "convert" thatdidn't join a local church or get actively involved was unheard of in the NewTestament. The emphasis on assimilation and "keeping" people is misplaced. TheBible never commands us to do anything to "keep" people! We are so worried aboutattendance and getting people to return to a service that we forget the responsibilitywe have to minister to them. And sometimes being ministered to isn't fun orpleasant. So using small groups as member retention or member assimilation isunbiblical. It might be a nice side benefit, but I reject it as a model and I hope youwould as well. Don Fields from "The World From My Window."

•Extra stuff proof read by my lovely wife, Charity Whisnant, 12 02 06

The issue is doing what is biblical, rather than trying to get people into church, or trying toget people to stay in church. We go about doing church as directed by the Word, andallow the working out of those principles in the life of the church body.

• But as I have seen over and over, leadership will spend more time, walking on atight rope, trying not to offend some old deacon, or member. "Charles, you mightcreate havoc if you go about change like you are talking about." What else is thatbut caving in to the old deacon or member. They are not interested in doing God’sWork in God’s Way, they are concerned about not offending the music people andthe big givers in the church.

• "Well, we are not interested in getting a crowd in church." "We want to do ministrythat is biblical." Okay! I don’t disagree with those statements. Okay, do the Lord’sWork in the Lord’s Way. At the same time, it is not wrong biblically to desire to seepeople come to Christ and see new people come to Worship and Bible Study.

• I have never seen such poor quality leadership in some churches. They certainlytry, but they would rather die a slow death than do it right. I really don’t believeleadership tries to fail, they try different ideas all the time. Maybe I just think theyneed someone who knows how to accomplish their own objectives.


Monday, December 04, 2006A BIBLE IN EVERY ROOM IN MY HOUSE

Part One

"I believe that by my own reason or strength I cannotbelieve in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him. Butthe Holy Spirit has called me through the Gospel,enlightened me with His gifts, and sanctified andpreserved me in true faith."----- - - -Martin Luther

God’s grace is given every day for all of us, because sin and temptation come upon all178

believers each day. We as believers need a fresh supply of God's wonderful grace eachmoment each day. We can't just rest upon what we received even Sunday at Worship.Christ the Lord brings us daily His strength to help us understand the evil of sin and thestrong hold of temptation upon us. Your nearest friend is not the TV, (close) music, orNASCAR (ha! wait, that is getting close).I want a Bible in view in every room at my house. Why? It’s a reminder that whentemptation comes I have the Word close.If we understood the dynamics of the heart and the deceitfulness of sin, we would makesure that a Bible would be as close as our remote to our Play Station or TV or Radio.There is something about even seeing a Bible that causes me to stop and say, "This isChrist the Lord’s Word. He is holy. I am his child. Obey Him." To this day, I don’t putanything on top of my Bible. I want a quick availability to open its pages to get a wordfrom the Lord.We need an understanding of what sin can do at anytime in our life. We might go months,or years and say "I am not tempted to sin in this manner." And before we know it, we arein that sin that will destroy or ministry, our family, or job, or life. Few ministers live to fail.Few Christians desire to fall into sin that will destroy their life. But it happens each day.Consider what Thomas Brooks wrote in 1660. He knew it:Whom do I have in heaven but You? And I desirenothing on earth but You. My flesh and my heartmay fail, but God is the strength of my heart, myportion forever." Psalm 73:25-26The true Christian seeks God as his choicest and chiefgood. God is a perfect good, a solid good. That is aperfect good--to which nothing can be added; that isa solid good--from which nothing can be spared. Sucha good God is, and therefore He is chiefly to be sought.God is a pure and simple good; He is a light in whomthere is no darkness, a good in whom there is no evil.The goodness of the creature is mixed, yes, that littlegoodness which is in the creature is mixed with muchevil; but God is an unmixed good. He is good, He ispure good. He is all over good. He is nothing but good.God is an all-sufficient good. Augustine said,"He has all--who has the Haver of all."God has in Himself . . .all power to defend you,all wisdom to direct you,all mercy to pardon you,all grace to enrich you,all righteousness to clothe you,all goodness to supply you,all happiness to crown you.God is a satisfying good, a good that fills the heart andquiets the soul. In Him, I have all. I have all comforts,all delights, all contentment. As the worth and value ofmany pieces of silver is to be found in one piece of gold,so all the petty excellencies which are scattered abroadin the creatures--are to be found in God. Yes, all thewhole volume of perfections, which is spread throughheaven and earth--is epitomized in Him. No good belowHim who is the greatest good, can satisfy the soul. A good 179

wife, a good child, a good name, a good estate, a goodfriend--cannot satisfy the soul. These may please--butthey cannot satisfy.Ah! that we should seek early, seek earnestly, seekaffectionately, seek diligently, seek primarily, and seekunweariedly--this God, who is the greatest good, thebest good, the most desirable good, who is--a suitable good,a pure good,a satisfying good,a total good, andan eternal good."Whom do I have in heaven but You? And I desirenothing on earth but You. My flesh and my heartmay fail, but God is the strength of my heart, myportion forever." Psalm 73:25-26 Drafted by Charles 12-04 06 Proof Read by CharityWhisnantPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 04:51PM (-06:00)

Thursday, December 07, 2006A BIBLE IN EVERY ROOM IN MY HOUSEPart TwoMy grandmother Minnie Whisnant offered me $5.00 if I would read the Bible through inone year. I did not know at the time, what that meant. I only saw $5.00 in my mind. This isin 1960. I was too young to understand this.It was like the time I said to Eric my son and Shawn Barnhart I would give them a dollarfor every chapter in the Bible they would write down. That didn’t get past one chapter.I did take my grandmother’s offer, and I did in 1960 read though the old Bible in a year.And for the next many years that was my daily reading, reading the Bible.In Seminary my first year we had to read Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers andDeuteronomy I believe three times in our class with Dr. Earl K. Oldham. Now there was achallenge to be sure. I believe the test at the end of the year was over 200 questions.In Seminary 99% of all the classes were Bible.. They taught us the Bible. They didn’tteach us how they knew what the Bible said. (which would have helped). It was more likepreaching than teaching, but it was good nevertheless.But the Bible was foremost in my training. Of course Fundamentalists say, preachers andteachers only need the Bible to preach and teach. Well that is good if you know yourBible and you need to know how to interpret your Bible.My first bible was a Scofield Bible. And I used it to teach for years. I loved marking myBible, not a page in the Bible was not marked in pencil, pen or colored red or blue.When I went to Seminary I was introduced to the Dickson Bible, a great study bible forstudents. That was my source of study for years, and yet even today.Then in the 1980's I bought a Zodhiates’ original and complete system Hebrew-GreekKey Study Bible. I have used two of them.Then in 2006 my children bought me my first MacArthur’s Study Bible. Chad and Ericdrove up from Lexington to bring it for my fifty-ninth birthday. (Also, we got to see Chad’snew car and went out for dinner with them.) I have my father’s Thompson Chain Bible,and I have my mothers’ Pilgrim Study Bible.I have to preach or teach with my Bible open, of course I have my notes beside theBible..I was glad when I finally learned that the best way to preach was chapter by chapter. I felt180

that this method was much easier to do. You knew each week what you were going topreach. You didn’t have to think very hard on a topic, because you knew what book youwere going to be in.I remember when peaching in Altoona, Kansas, I started with the Gospel of Matthew. And255 sermons later I finally finished. Each week, verse by verse, and Eric said, "Yes, wordby word, and periods and commas. "Bible reading has always been a challenge. John MacArthur had a method of reading theNew Testament. Reading a section for a month, and in three years you would have readthe NT in this manner. I thought that was very good.

From my middle teens, the Word became a part of my daily activity. As a Christian I wastaught that a Christian was one who believed God and obeyed Him, and wanted to learnabout Jesus Christ. I was taught that the Bible was where we discovered the ways of Godfor the believer. We would know all that Jesus Christ has done, and will do.Reading the Scriptures was like knowing the mind of Christ. To know the Word was toknow the Lord. Philippians 2: says "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ." Weare to have the mind of Christ if we are going to be like Christ.From early in my life, wanting to know what the Scriptures meant was a major part of mylife. I would spend hours reading and studying the Bible the best I knew how.My first study was in Galatians. I used my dad’s Bible and study notes and books in hislibrary to study verse by verse. I still have the spiral notebook of printed notes. Readingand studying the Word gives you a wonderful foundation for the Christian life. It gives youa Biblical world view. You discern what is around you by what you understand about theScriptures.When I was asked to teach the teenagers in our church, dad said "Charles take a book inthe Bible and study and teach the Word." Good advice. I still today have notes fromPsalms, and Revelation. Dad believed that the Bible was the book we studied from.The Bible was always to be visible while teaching, but dad would say you need to studythe scriptures diligently. Use the resources available to you, and then take notes., Thenwhen you teach, teach from the Word, so that your students will learn that the Bible is theresources of learning about Christ. But he would say "Your students need to know thatyou study to know the Word."Too often preachers want you to think they don’t need to study, that they just get thesermon from the Lord. That is a false idea to begin with. You need to study the Word. TheBible is written in a way that requires study. The Bible is given for us to know Him andwhat He is sayingDrafted by Charles E. Whisnant 12 06 06 Proof Read by Charity 12 07 06Becky was able to visit Alan and Angie Harris and the boys on Sunday. They are goinggood. I was glad to make contact with Doug V Heck this week. Charity and the crew atUnion Mills are getting ready for the Christmas rush. I understand from Beverly inAltoona, that they had 16" of Snow last week.

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.Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 08:44AM (-06:00)


How to Interpret the Biblepart one

Having a Bible in every room, and in my office, and even in my car, is normal for me. Butyou also need to know how to read the bible, and understand the Bible. Today I will giveone way of learning to understanding the Bible. Later another method.

How many times have you heard someone say regarding the Bible, "Everyone has theirown interpretation" or "That's your interpretation, not mine." Little do they realize thatsuch comments are in direct conflict with what the Bible says about itself:

Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by theprophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but menspoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. 2 Peter 1:20,21

What most people do not realize is that over the past 2500 years, specialists in the"science of meanings" have developed eight basic rules of grammatical interpretation,which provide a standard set of rules for consistent interpretation of literature. They applyequally to legislative and theological language. They are the basis of all critical analysisand are used by interpretive scholarship. When properly used, they insure that the readerwill always derive the precise meaning intended by the original writer.

The 8 Rules for Grammatical Interpretation

1. The Rule of Definition: Words have definite meanings which are to be taken in theirliteral or idiomatic force, and the grammatical setting. Meaning is not be determined byeach individual interpreter. The interpreter should conscientiously abide by the plainmeaning of the words.

2. The Rule of Usage: Words and phrases have usages which are affected by cultural,traditional, national, social considerations. Authors write to a specific audience in theusual custom and vernacular of that audience. Interpreters are not to insert their ownnotions upon the literature, but rather to seek understanding of the usage that existedwhen the literature was written.

3. The Rule of Context: The meaning of a word, phrase, sentence, or paragraph must bederived from the context. Many words and phrases derive their meaning and force fromthe connection in which it stands. Therefore there must be a careful consideration of thatwhich comes before and after.

4. The Rule of Historical Background: The historical background, including the mannerand customs of the day enables the interpreter to understand what circumstances andevents influenced the thinking of the author. The writing was for real people, in realsituations, in the real world. The interpreter must pay close attention to these facts asthey cast light on the understanding of the literature.

5. The Rule of Logic: Interpretation is merely logical reasoning. Literature should be182

interpreted by a rigid application of the laws of language and grammatical analysis.

6. The Rule of Precedent: Precedent is something previously done or said that serves asa guide for future rule or example. Words and phrases which have a known usage shouldbe interpreted in that historical and grammatical context.

7. The Rule of Unity: Documents are written as a whole. Interpretation of any of its parts,must be done with consideration to consistency with the whole.

8. The Rule of Inference: Inference is a fact reasonably implied from another fact. It is alogical consequence, a conclusion drawn from a given fact or premise, a conclusiondrawn from evidence. Interpretive conclusions, regarding things not specifically stated,are allowable if they are logically consistent with the other rules of interpretation.

5 things of Which to Beware:

1. Beware of . . . Fanciful, complex, unique, novel interpretations which were not availableto the hearers/readers of the day.

2. Beware of . . . Eisegesis: An interpretation that expresses the interpreter's own ideas,bias, or the like, rather than the meaning of the text.

3. Beware of . . . Basing an entire doctrine or concept on one passage.

4. Beware of . . . Not interpreting a text literally, as much as possible. The only exceptionis when the meaning is obviously allegorical, metaphorical or figurative.

5. Beware of . . . Any new insight or interpretation that is not consistent with the rest ofscripture.

There is a simple poem which has served many well as a simple guide for Bibleinterpretation:If the literal sense,Makes good sense,Seek no other sense,Lest you end up with non-sense!

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant 12 08 06


Sunday, December 10, 2006How To Interpret the Bible: Useful Hermeneutical PrinciplesPrinciples of Bible Interpretation- "Grammatico-Historical Method "This method ofinterpretation focuses attention not only on literary forms but upon grammaticalconstructions and historical contexts out of which the Scriptures were written.

Interpretation of Scripture will never be an exact science. The beliefs we bring to the text -our theological presuppositions - will inevitably color our interpretation to some degree. In 183

fact, "pretended neutrality" - the attribution of bias to one's opponent while implying thatone is theologically neutral - is an exegetical fallacy as potent as any otherThe Challenge of Understanding the BibleApplying sound principles of hermeneutics seeks to answer these sorts of questions:· Who was the writer?· To whom was the writer writing?· "Is the use of a particular word, grammatical construction, verb tense, etc., significant inthis instance?"· What is the cultural, historical context?· What was the author's original intended meaning?· "How was the text interpreted by the author's contemporaries?"· Why was he saying it?Hermeneutics is a technical term derived from the Greek n)rmeneu=ti/koj(hermeneutikos)meaning "the science of interpretation," In biblical terms "especially the branch oftheology dealing with the principles of exegesis." The science of understanding amessage or complete thought, especially that which is communicated through writtentext. In other words, hermeneutics seeks to know how to interpret the actual intendedconveyence of a messageHermeneutics involves establishing the principles for our understanding any part of theBible, and then interpreting it so its message is made clear to the reader or listener. Itinevitably involves exegesis, which is the process of examining the actual biblical text asit came from the hand of its writer to discover how he communicated God's truth.The goal in applying the principles of hermeneutics is to "rightly handle the word of truth"(2 Tim. 2:15), striving to accurately discern the meaning of the text.Hermeneutics can be defined as the linguistic and literary principles used to interpretscripture, and includes the discovery and understanding of these principles.Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who . . . correctlyhandles [rightly divides] the word of truth. (2 Timothy 2:15)How to Interpret the Bible No. 2

An overview of the process for interpreting a passage of scripture.

• Read the passage and the entire context. This context could extend for pages.• Consider the culture of day when this passage was written. Put the passage into

its proper historical perspective.• Consider the theme of the particular book that the passage occurs in. Consider the

writer, the time period and the culture of the people.• Look for evidence of typology, symbolism, allegory and figures of speech. If none

of these exist, then interpret the passage literally.• We must remain in prayer and be willing to be instructed by the Holy Spirit

because understanding comes from God, not solely from our use of reason.• No one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received

the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand whatGod has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by humanwisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritualwords. (1 Corinthians 2:11b-13)

• A word of warning. As even a quick investigation into the many doctrinal variationsdemonstrates, we simply cannot develop dogma, doctrine, and moral teachingunaided -- we require Divine assistance. But merely calling upon the Holy Spirit toassist us in interpreting sacred scripture is insufficient. Many well-meaning, Spirit-filled theologians have attempted this over the centuries, but their doctrines allcontradict one another.184

You will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God's household, which is thechurch of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth. (1 Tim 3:15)

"If every man has the right, and is bound to read the Scriptures, and to judge for him selfwhat they teach, he must have certain rules to guide him in the exercise of this privilegeand duty. These rules are not arbitrary. They are not imposed by human authority. Theyhave no binding force which does not flow from their own intrinsic truth and propriety.They are few and simple." Charles Hodges

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant 12 10 06


Monday, December 11, 2006METHODS OF INTERPRETATION:In the Book of RevelationYour method of interpretation will give you your approach to how you teach the book.

Allegorical: View

• This method started in Alexandria in the third century with Clement and Origen whohad a tendency to spiritualize the entirety of the Scriptures, whether plainly symbolicor not. Thus, in the book of Revelation, a non-literal meaning is also assigned toeverything, especially the "thousand year" mentioned six times in Revelation 20. Idon’t agree with the position. This allegorical position influenced the churchthroughout its history, including the preterist and historical views of Revelation dueto its amillennial approach.

IDEALISTS or SYMBOLIC VIEW

1. A branch off this would be the Symbolic View: which believes that Revelationportrays the continuing conflict between the forces of good and evil throughout theentire span of human history. And this view is designed to give encouragementvoice since at the end the good will triumph.

PRETERISTS VIEW

1. Credit the Jesuit Alcasar who died in 1613 for this view. The symbolism is confinedto conflicts endured by the early church. This means that everything in the book ofRevelation happened by about the end of the First Century and that John waswriting about the events of his own day. The book of Revelation, therefore, becomesmore descriptive than predictive. This view, meaning they "favor the past." Theypresuppose that most if not all the prophecies of the Book have been fulfilled and/orpertain to what was happening in the first century. This view says what happened in70 A.D. in Jerusalem with the fall and destruction of the Temple and Nero was theAnti- Christ.

2. Thus, the main point of Revelation was to encourage the Christian underpersecution. Thus Revelation becomes just historical and didactic, giving us onlyexamples of being faithful.

My thinking is, if Revelation is prophecy, and Revelation was written after the destruction 185

of Jerusalem how could Revelation be prophecy?

Historical View

1. This view started, it is said, in the 13th century under Joachim of Floris (1202) andportrays Revelation as a template for principles of history. It is a panoramicdepiction of the history and future of the Church. All the events in human historycould be viewed in the Book of Revelation. Since Revelation is a view of all ofhistory over the last 2000 years, it’s a beautiful way of encouraging Christians of anyage.

Futurist

1. This view asserts that Revelation is about the details and order of future eventsimmediately preceding the Second Coming. This view states that none of the eventsof Matthew 24 took place in 70 AD. And the seals, trumpets, beasts, and Antichristare still to come and will appear in the last days of human history Thus, the book ofRevelation has yet to be fulfilled. This view also states that Israel and the church aredistinct in God’s plan.

Open View

1. This sounds good, but how much of it is really possible I am not sure. This viewsays you engage the text with careful exegesis, uninhibited by theological prejudice,with an inductive process and come with open minds to discover God’s lessons forus.

I have said that when I taught Revelation to the Youth at Roanoke Baptist Temple inRoanoke ,Virginia, in 1965. I said it when I taught Revelation at Madison Baptist Churchin 1973. I said this when I taught Revelation at First Baptist Church in Altoona, Kansas,twice. 1980's and 1990's And again in 2001.

And truly when I taught this in FBC of Altoona, I really tried to teach the text verse byverse. Rather than trying to get a crowd and play up the seals and the Anti-Christ, I triedto view the book as it was written. I believe the events in the Book of Revelation has notyet happen.

I realize that our preconceived ideas will form our opinions and usually not what the Wordactually says.

I desired to reveal the truth of the book inductively, applying the literal interpretation (if thegenre allows), historical and grammatical exegesis and not mere human speculationsand traditions.

But the truth is, we really are human and all we know and see comes through our fallenfilter made from depravity. I can’t see Revelation without seeing Dr. Marr in 1950's and60's at the Baptist Tabernacle in Danville Virginia. I can’t see Revelation without that bigchart he had across the church front. Then I can not view Revelation without viewingOliver B Greene either. I have read over 100 books on the Revelation. Then in 1990 JohnMacArthur’s teaching on Revelation sealed my conviction of how to teach Revelation.

And since 2003 I have studied and read many articles and papers on the other views andhave not been convinced at all to their points of view.186

Notes of Reference:1A Spiros Zodhates footnotes on Revelation in the Hebrew-Greek Key Study Bible2A John MacArthur’s Study Notes on Revelation3A Articles from Monergism.com4A School of Interpretation by Frame-poythress5A My own studies from more than 100 books, and booklets.6A Eschatology, The Last Things monergism.com

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant 12 11 06 Proof Read by Charity Whisnant 12 11 06


Tuesday, December 12, 2006CONGREGATIONAL CAPACITY AND LEADERSHIP AND CHURCH SIZE DYNAMICSThe Dynamics of Small Church MinistryThe Driving Forces Behind the Attitude Toward Church GrowthBiblical Pattern for theChurch and Its Congregates‘DOING CHURCH ON PURPOSE"Part One of FiveWhy some churches grow and others stay the sme.I will focus first on the small church dynamics:]

• the motivating or driving forces,• the pattern or history of growth, change, and development in any field.

the aggregate of motivational forces, both conscious and unconscious, thatdetermine human behavior and attitudes.

INTRODUCTION REMARKSI have pastored four churches with attendance less than 200. So this would qualify me asa small church pastor. I have been on church staff of churches with attendance between500 and 1000. And I was a member of FBC in Hammond Indiana for a short while. Manyknow they had the largest Sunday School in America. So I know the mega church aswell.

Too often I have looked at the small church through the observations of a large church.The dynamics of a small setting in a small town are different than a large church in alarge city.

In almost every church the members will say, "Charles, we are a small church, and wedon’t do things like a big church does." And I would say, "Why not?" Of course they didn’treally know why, and at the time I didn’t know why either.

I always thought a small church, in a big town or city could always grow. I thought a smallchurch in a small community also could grow. I am talking about an established smallchurch from 10 to 100 years old.

The first church I pastored was over 120 years old and never had more than fifty prior tomy becoming pastor. The church in Altoona Kansas, was 25 years old and topped out at25 people. The church in Lusby Mills, Kentucky, was a SBC and 100 years old, andtopped out at 40 people. The church in Princeton was the second oldest church, butevery time the church approached 200 the church split. There are four churches in the 187

city that have attendance over 200 that were a split off this church.

So what are the dynamics of these churches and like churches that causes them to enjoythe status of being small?

I didn’t realize there was a good answer. I have learned that there is some sameness inall these churches. They all have some of the same dynamics, conscious andunconscious, that determine human behavior and attitudes in all these small churches.Think of that!

This week I was given information of a church that the pastor left after about six months.A church that I was asked to try out for. This has happened too often in the last four yearssince I have been in Portsmouth Ohio. Small churches like to stay small. And that iseither a conscious or an unconscious dynamic of the small church setting.

A minister who has an idea of a large church mentality generally cannot stay long in achurch that has developed the small church attitude. Sometimes a small church is smallbecause of its dynamics, and normally they will not come out of that mind set thoughsometimes they will. This can happen only after learning why they are of that smallchurch mind set.

You would have thought as much as I read books, and articles, and go to conferencesthat I would have learned sooner these determined factors.

Let me just mention something before I get into the dynamics of the small church. Thereare times when you change the dynamics and due to the low population of the town, orcommunity the attendance will vary in size. There are reasons why they don’t grow evenwhen they desire to grow. We will mention some in this article as well as we go along..

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, Proof Read and Lived Through by Charity Whisnant


Wednesday, December 13, 2006The Dynamics of Small Church MinistryPart Two of FiveWhy couldn’t I have made FBC of Altoona, Kansas go from 17 average into FBC ofHammond, Indiana to 20,000? Why couldn’t I see Lusby Mills in Kentucky go from 12 intoan Ashland Avenue Baptist Church, of Lexington, Kentucky of 1000? I had ideas that Imight be able to! There were reasons for sure, and we will address these in this paper.Every church body has a level that they will reach in attendance and there is a dynamic.There is a determined factor built into the church body that causes the result inattendance and growth.

The larger church setting has an entirely different set of compelling attitudes than a smallchurch congregation.When I went to Ashland Avenue Baptist, they didn’t want to settle for 500, or 700 or even1000 people, they never did. When I was Youth Pastor at Calvary Baptist Church inConnersville, they would not have settled for 400 people nor even 600 people. When Iworked at Southern Acres Christian, their whole idea was growth. It was the same way at188

Mansfield Baptist in Ohio , and Haltom City in Fort Worth The mind set of the leadershipand membership was growth.What is not different? I have discovered that all churches have people. Some are young,some are old, and some are really, really old! Some are men and some are women.Some are bankers, farmers, salesmen, secretaries, landfill managers, doctors, nurses,housekeepers, housewives, postal workers, school teachers and telephone repair men,brick layers, workers at K Mart and waiters. Think of that. Some folks make $100,000 andothers $15,000. There are all kinds of people in all churches. Single, married, wishingthey were married, divorced, widows, single mothers, retired folks. There are manydifferent backgrounds as to family heritages. You get the idea.I would say, "You know the people in FBC of Altoona, are as righteousness as anypersons I have ever met in any church I have worked. They are as gracious, wonderful,intelligent, as in any church where I have been on staff. " As a matter of fact, they aresome of the best people in the world.So why are we talking about growth or numbers if we have all these great people in ourchurches?Aren’t Christian people the purpose of our churches, no matter the number that comes?I read this statement: ‘CHANGE IS INEVITABLE; MISERY IS OPTIONAL."I would say "CHANGE" would be the number one reason for growth or lack of growth.If all congregations kept the same members, stayed the same size, retained the sameminister for 50 years, same staff and elders, and always had the same well-known set ofissues, the church life would be easy. But it would be also fabulously boring.Change in a sense is going to happen anyway. It is not an alternative. So many peoplewant to live without any change. We can no more live and not have change than we canjump without feeling the impact of gravity. TO LIVE IS TO GROW AND TO GROW IS TOCHANGE. Therefore to live is to change, and any thought that we can avoid change inlife is pure illusion.I have learned that people actually study church as an academic subject. Students havetheir college thesis on this subject. One student title was : "Congregational SizeDynamics and How One Congregations’s Transition Was Made Easy" He was a studentand not a pastor/teacher or even a deacon, or elder. He will learn, huh!In Seminary I took a course in "ECCLESIOLOGY" the study of the local church. Dr. EarlK. Oldham was the teacher. We were learning what the church is and then how a churchis supposed to look. We studied methods of church and Sunday School growth. Ofcourse we didn’t learn the challenges we would face as we tried to bring health andgrowth to our churches.What I should have done, but didn’t, was to establish my own ministry and start with anew group of believers. That would have helped 100%.There are "consultants" who actually study church growth. They study these churches,large and small, to see what makes up the influential dynamics in the church body. Thesize of the church will give us a clue as to the attitudes of the membership and itsleadership. Understanding the makeup of the leadership and membership gives us abetter idea of how to do ministry in that church.While the purpose is to see growth in our church, meaning a greater awareness inevangelism, we need to learn why some church ministries do not succeed throughout ourchurches. And why it is that some experienced preacher can be very effective in onecongregation and ineffective in another.Why do one quarter of Protestant congregations have fewer than thirty-five in attendanceat their worship services. Our culture today seems to like the small, family, friendlychurch.The nice little country church in Lusby Mills had invited me to come and pastor this 100year old church. This church had over a hundred members, but most of them never came 189

to the church. They had called the office at Ashland Avenue Baptist Church to requestsomeone to come and preach. Ashland Avenue was a church of about 1500 members.Charity was a receptionist/secretary at the church. The Pastor and Leadership had adesire to see the church continued to grow. So it was normal for me to think, this churchin Lusby Mills also had a desire grow. But I was totally wrong. Drafted by Charles E.Whisnant Proof Read By CharityPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 12:32PM (-06:00)

Thursday, December 14, 2006The Dynamics of Small Church MinistryPart Three of FiveI had my theories about why churches like Lusby Mills didn’t really desire to grow, but theprinciple seemed a little far out at the time.

Now I understand that the operating principles that had enabled Ashland Avenue to growmight not have been possible for the smaller church in Lusby Mills, but the biblicalprinciples were the same. People, Money, Time, Staff, Population, etc.

The Importance of the Ideology

SOME COMMENTS ON WHY SMALL CHURCHES IN GENERAL LIKE TO STAYSMALL, And why otherwise successful Pastors more often than not cannot break thecycle of the small church mentality.What happens in these churches that creates the atmosphere of a No Growth ChurchMentality. A no growth church mentalityUntil you understand that there is a reason why churches are the size they have becomeyou will set yourself up for leadership blunders and missteps. Shall I stop and mention afew that I made in a few churches because I was blinded to the implication of church size.A Neutralized View of a Church’s SizeIn the larger church, as in Ashland Avenue Baptist, they had the people, the time, theleadership, and numerous programs to help them accomplish their objective goals.Whereas Lusby Mills didn’t have the resources.Most people have their own idea of the size church that they would like to attend onSunday. It’s a size-culture preference. They have the idea that the size church they preferwill meet their spiritual need better than another size church in the area. So you havepeople looking for churches that meet their idea of what a spiritual, biblical church lookslike. You also have pastors who have the same mind set, they see the church as beingspiritual if it’s a certain size.For example, some people believe that the Senior Pastor needs to visit and care for allthe older members of the church. Well, that is great in a small church setting of 150 orless, but not very probable if the church is over 200 or say 800 people. One pastor couldnot do that.Another example would be at Mansfield Baptist or Calvary Baptist, we had at least fourfull time Pastors on staff. Also there were another six or seven support staff to take careof the many facets of ministry. We were able to increase the quality of ministry. As aYouth Pastor I had a full time salary (well in some churches the salary would be viewedas 1/4 times) but I could spend my entire time with the youth. In a small church as pastor,I had myself or volunteers.THE VERY NATURE OF THE SMALLER CHURCH SETTINGSmall churches like to keep their money in the bank and not spend it. Larger churchesseem never to have enough money to operate on. The larger church will use190

organizational techniques from the business world, and often times might become tooresults-oriented and focused on quantity outcomes (attendance, membership,stewardship)The small church by its very personality will give inexperienced, domineering,opinionated, members far more power over the whole body. In Lusby Mills one 80 yearold man who had been a deacon since 1939 controlled the church. In a larger church,such as FBC in Hammond, there is no way one or a dozen people could affect theoutcome of a church. But a half dozen women at a small church could affect the outcomeof any decision.In a smaller church everyone knows every one, you know. When a family member of thissmall group expresses strong opposition to the direction set by the leaders or pastor ,that small group’s misery can hold the whole congregation hostage. If they threaten toleave, or withhold their money, the majority of the people will urge the leaders todiscontinue their project. One church that I pastored, the average offering was over twothousand dollars a week. And in a Sunday’s time, the offering was down to less thanseven hundred dollars. And the leaders said, "Charles, I think you should put theattendance board back up."In a small church setting you can’t get a complete consensus from a group of 50 to 150,about which kind of Sunday School material to use, or what direction the church shouldgo with the music. And it seems in a smaller church, it’s a rule that everyone in thecongregation must be kept happy. You know old brother Smith and his wife must be kepthappy. You can’t take a new initiative without hurting someone’s feelings so you just givein and do nothing. Unless you are brave enough to lead and to confront childish membersin spite of its disagreeableness There has to be another way to accomplishthe.objectives!Every church thinks they know the right size church. They have their idea what sizechurch will be spiritual and biblical in nature. "Well Christ had his church in Jerusalem at120, that is the right size." Right, of course, the disproportionate concept of what Christdesires from the church. I don’t think Christ is against numbers or growth in any church,no matter how large a church becomes. First Baptist, Hammond, was no less spiritualthan Bigelow Church of less than 150 people. Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant 12 09 06Checked by Charity Whisnant

A sign that your church is biblical and spiritual is not by the size of your church. Its a signof your theology.


Friday, December 15, 2006 The Dynamics of Small Church MinistryPart Four Two of FiveIn smaller churches the whole membership is asked to voice their opinion and vote onevery issue, have you noticed? In the larger churches, there is no way that can happenon every issue that comes up. One church I pastored they voted to see how far theywanted the Church Van to be driven on any youth activity. The first of each month was achurch business meeting and each member could voice his request and it could be votedon. ."I think church should start at 10:45 a.m. And since it was a "member in goodstanding" it was voted to start at 10:45 a.m. or was it 6:00 p.m..? That would neverhappen in a larger church. At FBC in Hammond there was a business meeting, but any 191

decision was quickly passed by the deacons.Why all the complexity in the different size churches:The larger the church, the less members have in common. The larger the church thegreater number of families, different backgrounds, and ideas. In a smaller church youhave small groups and they seem to all know each other. They all know each other whenthey come into Union Mills to buy a wonderful tasting apple pie made by my wife Charity.She also knows those members who come into the bakery. In a larger church you reallydon’t stop to think if one family or two families will disagree with the mission of the church,in a smaller church you always ask that question.Thus, in smaller churches policy is decided by many, and ministry is done by a few. Inlarger churches ministry is done by many, and policy is decided by a few.In a smaller church, everybody thinks they have a say in what the policy is going to be. Ina larger church they know they have little voice in the policy of the church.In smaller churches communicating could usually be done by word of mouth and it wouldbe okay, not in a larger church. Smaller churches like it that way. The friendly church, youknow. In a larger church you could go for a year and never know who is sitting beside youin worship. Of course that could happen in a smaller church too, but not often. It didhappen at Bigelow. Charity and I did not realize who this couple was, but they knew us.If some outsider comes to a small church, and the musicians are mediocre in quality, itwill generally distract from the worship. But also in a smaller church, since you know themusician and you love that person, you just overlook the lack of giftedness. We wereblessed at FBC in Altoona to have two very gifted pianists.. The problem was not themusicians, it was the preacher in our church!.Here is a new thought: Smaller churches do not change speedily. They experience lessturnover. Same old members in the church since 1939, you know. And they feel powerfuland essential and important, so they don’t leave the church. And the leadership will say,what does old member 1939 think about us having an AWANA Club? That would neverhappen in a larger church.Also in a smaller church the leadership (one) and maybe several deacons, don’t want tolose members. And they will allow these individual to control the majority. One personcan control what the rest of the church would like to do, but he is a good giver, so theywill not do what is best for the many. Once at FBC, the deacon said, "Mrs. Dennison willnot want to give up her old pew, she has been in that bench since 1959." In view ofgetting new pews, they didn’t want to hurt her feelings. They would not have voted to getnew pews if Mrs. Dennison didn’t want them. That would never have happen at Mansfieldor Calvary Baptist. Thank goodness. And it didn’t happen at FBC either, because Mrs.Dennison purchased the first new pew!.Have you noticed too, that in larger churches, a few make the decisions and there aremore in ministry; and in a smaller church, the many are making the decisions and few areworking.The smaller the church the more the members want to control the church. To be amember of a small church is to be a voting member. To be in a larger church,membership doesn’t mean your single vote is all that important.Everybody wants to have a word about every decision. The leadership is concerned thatevery member won’t like the decision made, but they don’t want conflict by the powerfulfew.I missed this principle altogether. I often offended everybody. In that way, I wouldn’t justtry to please the few. But I don’t recommend this in most churches. Because it onlyworked in one of four churches.In smaller churches the members think the pastor should open the church door forservices and stay until the service is over and lock the door on his way out. Or the pastorthinks he needs to turn the lights on and check the air conditioning. In a larger church that192

would never happen. Praise the Lord.

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant December 09 2006 Proofread by Charity Whisnant


Saturday, December 16, 2006The Dynamics of Small Church MinistryPart FIVE of FiveI have pastored four small size churches (under 200) I have worked in churches from500-1200. There is a difference. Knowing the difference dynamics helps to develop yourin your ministry. And all four at the beginning wanted to say small in size. And there wasa reason for their belief. In smaller churches you could have a few Sunday Schoolclasses, they could all be in one class as far as they are concern. Children and Adults..Thank goodness at FBC Altoona we had a graded Sunday School. The reason for fewclasses is few workers want to be committed to teaching. Which was not the case atFBC. We had teachers who taught almost the entire time I was pastor of the church.Once a teacher they wanted to stay a teacher. Once a piano player, always a pianoplayer in our church. (right Beverly) same for teachers: (right Charity, Mabel and Michael)Some smaller churches are small because they can not afford to pay for a professional orskilled minister. They may have a pastor who has little or no leadership skills. They mayhave a pastor who has no desire to see growth in the church membership. Sometimesthe pastor is in total control of the ministry and the people just leave without sayinganything. One preacher I know stayed twenty five years, and over 200 people left thechurch in that time. That church stayed small, really small.Some members of a smaller church feel threatened when they see the church grow insize. They see the new members and are suspicious of their motives. When new peoplecome in to the church and join and they are placed in to leadership, they are upset.Too often when a new pastor comes into the church and mentions growth, the membersattempt to maintain the status quo or even decrease the size of their congregation. Oftenwhen the new staff worker or new pastor hints that the church is not spiritually healthy, hesuggests that the church is in a recession. If the church is not fulfilling its biblicalcommission, and he suggests that their behavior and thinking is hindering the spread ofthe gospel, their reaction is one of disbelief. They are shocked and offended at such athought.For the pastor to suggest that they need to move away from the past if they are going togrow, is an issue that will create friction. He needs to acknowledge that the work done inthe past, for sure, has made the present possible, but they need to move ahead to seegrowth.In this paper I was trying to give the dynamics of a smaller church. 193

A FOOTNOTE:There is always the exception to all these principles, conscious and unconscious, thatdetermine human behavior and attitudes. The size of the church has a great significanceon the minister and the ministries of the church. Size has an enormous impact on how achurch functions. I have heard this for years.Moving a smaller church to the next size church will take change. It will take theleadership’s ability to teach biblical truth in such a way that the membership will desire tosee change. It will take the leadership to see some of these dynamics and adjust theireffort.Maybe if the pastor/teacher can teach biblical principles to the membership and bepatient, the Lord might see fit to change the attitudes of the congregation about growinginto a healthy church. Maybe two in four churches he can.Our spiritual condition requires nourishment. Though the avenues through which we arefed are many, we can pretty much sum our diet up with the following five activities:PRAYER, BIBLE STUDY, WORSHIP, FELLOWSHIP and SERVICE.That a church is smaller doesn’t mean it’s more or less holy or worldly. It doesn’t meanthey are more biblical in how they do ministry. It doesn’t mean that they are smallbecause they do things right. But you can have a smaller size church and be all the rightthings. But if you have any of the dynamics I have mentioned in this paper, you do nothave a healthy church.(You know you are a red neck small church if.....)If your church is controlled by: (or)powerful peoplepoor leadershipprograms that are outdatedpleasing peoplepresumption of the probability of correct beliefpastor controlledpersonality ledpersonal opinionsphilosophy of worldlinesspresuming you are spiritual with less peoplepetrified of conflictplagued by fear at the idea of changeproverbial traditionspresumed theological knowledgepolarization groups (breaking up into opposing factions)policy shoddinesspopular trendsporcupine mentality (sticky situations are avoided)prehistorical educational materialsprescribed non-biblical legalistic rulesyou have two outhouses in back of the churchpersist in placing the nursery in the back of the churchpianos in your church hasn’t worked for yearspivoting (relying) on own your own internal leadershipparochialism Limited thinkingpast history drivenpatriarchal families controlledpragmatic thinking rather than on theological principlesposters of missionaries letters dated 1989 so what if it is 2006pulpit still has bulletins from three years ago.194

preacher tells red neck jokes from the pulpit (Dr. David Bryant)professional pastors are viewed as less spiritual

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant on December 08 2006 Proof check by Charity Whisnant12-10-06


Monday, December 18, 2006IF GOD IS SOVEREIGN, WHY DO ANYTHING?You might be tempted to say "it's meant for us to have the size church we have, " "Wehave the size church we do, because it’s the outworking of God's plan which He decreedin eternity." So you might then say, "Why should I do anything that might accomplishsomething different, God has already decided what will happen." Of course you would bewrong! That is a little strong statement. We just sit back and do nothing! Do you mean tosay, you know what God has done in eternity? Do you mean to say, "God has meant forus to have our size church ." Therefore, you just rest in what you are doing and let Goddo the rest, by His sovereign will!! Is it a right view of God's sovereignty? Or is it"fatalism?" I don't believe in "fatalism?" Which is? Fatalism teaches, I am told, "that nomatter what you choose or do, things will turn out the same." The belief that your choicesdoes not really affect what will happen, that is fatalism. (The doctrine that all events arepredetermined by fate and are therefore unalterable.)"So I choose to just let God in His sovereignty do as He will do anyway," you say. That ispure fatalism. I have the size church I have because that is the size God chooses us tohave. Have you known preachers who say, "It’s the sovereign will of God what hashappened in our church." I mean, they have twelve people in Sunday School and twentyfive in Worship, and four on Sunday Night, and Wednesday night is shut down. And thepastor said, "It’s in the hand of a sovereign God." Could this be pure fatalism, and amisunderstanding of the sovereignty of God? Indifference. If God decides everything thatwill happen, I will stop making choices that might not be God's choice, I will leave that inthe hand of God. Haven't you just made a choice? You made a choice not to make achoice. To use God's sovereignty as an excuse or reason, for the size church you have,(or really anything else) is a wrong view of God's sovereignty. You have the size churchyou have because of choices you make. Drafted as a e mail but thought I would put use itas a thread today. Charity checked this one out. Thank goodness. The reason we havethe size church we have are often for the reasons whe have chosen.Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 11:04AM (-06:00)


STATEMENTS THAT PREACHERS MAKE ABOUT OTHER SERVANTS OF THEGOSPEL "Nothing is clearer than 2 Timothy 3:16-4:2. If I ever want to hear "Well done,good and faithful servant" I will have to preach the word––just as it is clearly revealed,and without compromise. I must strive prayerfully and by God’s grace to keep it frombeing tainted by my culture." wrote Jim Harris over at Pulpit Magazine.You know he is 100% correct. When was the last time you were at a Pastor’s Conferenceand heard a preacher get up and say, "I have no idea if what I am about to say is true,but I am going to preach tonight about sin. " Few, I would suspect, if any. 195

Most preachers I know, think what they know is correct, or they will not preach on thesubject. They may say there are several opinions on this topic, like the Rapture, or theGreat Tribulation, but they have their idea what they believe.What I have learned over the last few years, that I didn’t know, is that there are a lot oftheologians and teachers that totally disagree with my position on just about every thingthat I believe. That was a total shock to my belief system. How could that be true?For the first thirty years of my teaching ministry, I was quite confident that what I wasteaching was 100% correct, well at least 80% possibly correct.I would have never preached a single sermon that I really believed was not biblicallycorrect. The people who heard me preach for years believed what I was preaching to becorrect biblically.What many, I would suppose, didn’t believe was maybe how I applied the principles that Iwas preaching. For example: I believed all Christians should read out of the KJV. Ibelieved that certain music styles were not necessarily wrong but should not be played inchurch worship. And the big one, when people came to worship they should look theirbest. My wife and four children could mention several other ideas that they woulddisagree with.I have certainly done my share of pointing out the error of others who didn’t hold my viewpoint. I thought it was my pastor/shepherd’s responsibility to share information about theerror of other preachers, organizations, and ministries. Except for ones I really liked Iwould be silent on.I didn’t realize just how many theologian do not accept the book of Revelation asProphecy.I have always believed, (still do) that the events in Revelation have yet to happenPremillenial, Pre-Tribulation, and Israel is not the Church. I never knew that others held adifferent point of view. Can you imagine that. Where was I..... in a theological cave? No,just reading my good KJV Bible.There are an equal number of theologians who do not hold to dispensationalism. I didn’tknow there were several forms of dispensationalism. I believed there were seven. Buttoday I would get laughed at by many if I were to preach that pont of view.Well, not only doctrinal teachings of the Bible are in question, but how we view theapplication to those doctrines.I didn’t know there are some churches that are not Baptist Churches. Think of that! Well, Idid of course, but we were told that they were not real churches. And if they were notWBF Baptist churches they were not real churches either. What a shock to learn that wasnot the truth.So what is the truth of this whole matter."[They] are wrong in their practice of separation. Separation is a Bible doctrine. Thismeans they are off-base doctrinally on separation. Music is a doctrinal issue and theirmusic is wrong"fundyreformed.wordpress.com is quoting. It’s not Bob’s position, but it’s the position of somany.My children have believed I have always been wrong on my viewpoint of music. Howcould it be, when I went to all the Basic Institute of Youth Conflict for over fifteen years?I should say this, I remember walking out of a service in a church, because I didn’t likethe music. Even though the preacher was one of the best teaching preachers in the state.Well, I could write several of those stories. But I don’t want to embarrass myself any morethat I already do quite well anyway.I didn’t know that some churches (not Baptist Churches) believe in infant baptism! Thereare theological terms for those who hold that position and terms for those who do nothold that idea. But I discovered that in both sides of this issue, they believe salvation is bygrace in the Lord Jesus Christ!196

Confession is good for the soul. Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, Proof Read by CharityPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 11:16AM (-06:00)

Wednesday, December 20, 2006STATEMENTS THAT PREACHERS MAKE ABOUT OTHER SERVANTS OF THEGOSPELPart Two So how do you learn the REAL TRUTH! What is the Biblical teaching on Truth?What is truth about living life. Listen to Dr. Wayne Dyer. Who? Ask Charity. Really hedoes say a lot of good common sense things. But is it true?How often when I was the pastor/teacher at FBC that visiting preachers would say,"Charles, you teach correctly, but you need to be more Baptistic." So to be correct youneeded to be Baptist!I had made the comment that there are some preachers who are not Baptist who couldpossibly be saved and go to heaven. That went over well with the brethren.I remember when I introduced the teaching of John MacArthur to our church. Of coursethey didn’t know who he was, but if I liked him they would. Boy, did we have some verywonderful people.But outside our church, once the pastors found out I liked MacArthur, I was in realtrouble. Of course that has never really bothered me a whole lot, to be in trouble withother preachers.My father-in-law thinks that is my calling–to see just how much I can get other preachersriled up.SO WHAT IS TRUTH? WHAT IS THE BIBLICAL FORM OF TRUE CHRISTIAN LIVING?Every body has their own idea of what a true Biblical Christian looks like and acts like,and believes, don’t they? Isn’t God great to allow so many of us to believe a little bitdifferent on this and still be a Believer. Thank the Lord.Of course, I am almost afraid to tell people what my theological position is. (That really isnot true.) But I am afraid to say that my position is totally 100% correct.For example, over the last month, there have been some good debates. LordshipSalvation vs. Free Grace. The Emergent Movement is a new debate today. Separationdebate. The form of Worship debate. Fundamentalism vs. Evangelicalism.Postmodernism. The Cultural debate. Then the debate over John Piper and JohnMacArthur as well as those in the Emergent Movement"Postmodernists are generally suspicious of rational and logical forms. They especially donot like to discuss truth in plain propositional terms." MacArthur quote in his book comingout in the spring. That ignited a great debate of terms. And it got me studying this issue.

One of the favorite topics on the evangelical agenda these days is how the church should"engage the culture." Do Christians need to imitate the boorish aspects of a quickly-decaying civilization in order to remain "relevant"? Some evidently think so.:" MacArthuragain made this statement."We keep hearing from evangelical strategists and savvy church leaders that Christiansneed to be more tuned into contemporary culture." Well, I have heard that statementmany times in different forms. Of course fundamentalists think you need to keep the oldlandmarks, or you have fallen prey to the culture. John MacArthur has said a lot aboutthis issue of engaging in the culture. But our Baptist friends think he is wrong because heis not a Baptist, and when Grace Church might use a different form music than the fundythat they think like"MacArthur is a hypocrite who has an electric guitar shaped beam in his own eye.""I hope everyone here agrees that such a statement is not only overstated, but it ispatently unkind. It is a gross exaggeration and misrepresentation of John MacArthur. But 197

it makes life easy. Just paint your opponents the darkest shade of black you can––that’llmake you look white on any account." Bob Haydon over at FundyI have discovered that just about every preacher, Christian leader, every pastor, whoholds to the truth as he knows it, will have a different slant on that truth, and a differentidea of how that truth is fleshed out. Is not the Lord so good to give us the option to havedifferent points of view on the same truth.

Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant, proof ready Charity 12 19/20 2006Posted by Charles E. Whisnant at 08:27AM (-06:00)

Friday, December 22, 2006THE NIGHT SANTA DISAPPEAREDThe Electric Train DerailedPauline Whisnant (mymom)

Though I do not have emerging scenes of dancing sugar plums in my head when itcomes to Christmas memories, or any such fantasies, I do have memories of multicolored seasons of Christmases past.There was the Christmas at school when Santa came to visit all of us mountain kids.Imagine that! Of course, that was the one and only time. I thought it was pretty amazingthat he chose to include us in his schedule. I guess we made the "good" list that year.And I know it was truly St. Nick, because I took great notice of the characteristics we allknow give away the secret. Yelp…it was that fluffy, snow white beard and that belly thatwas like a bowl full of jelly. They were the real deal!! I guess the fact that he never visitedus again tells you where we fell on the list thereafter….the naughty category. So I can tellyou first hand, you better watch out!!!While I don’t remember receiving many gifts over the years from Santa, I do rememberthe year of his last appearing at my house. My brother Ray and I were all excited aboutwhat we might find that Christmas morning. As we made a dash to discover ourtreasures, nothing greeted us but an empty chest and disappointment. Dad being thelogical mountain man that he was had a great explanation….we no longer believed inSanta so Santa no longer landed on our roof top with a bag full of toys. We still don’’tknow who told Dad we no longer believed in that jolly old man. I can’t imagine who wouldspread such horrible rumors especially that time of year. No one to this day hasconfessed. They definitely were on my naughty list that year and have so remained.Fast forwarding to memories after I left home at 16: I do recall Santa coming back aroundfor visits. I guess my children and grandchildren never got on that black list. I tend to thinkSanta just got soft in his old age and lightened up on children during those "developing"personality years. He must have been reading Dr. Spock’s books. Then, too, maybe heenjoyed hearing me quote "Twas The Night Before Christmas".Then there was the year Santa tampered with my oldest son, Charles, who was veryyoung at the time. Santa had the nerve to come to our church of all things and tellCharles that he would bring him an electric train for Christmas. I tried to explain toCharles that this gift was not possible, but he insisted that it was true because after allTHE MAN himself spoke it with his own lips with the list in hand. How does a mother winwith Santa? And, yes, Santa showed up but with NO electric train. And I know for a factCharles was on the nice list that year. It just goes to show you that Santa is human afterall. Either he needed to get a new list manager or it was the beginning of Alzheimers. Iknow some snotty little naughty kid got my son’s electric train that year. It makes youwonder about that list, doesn’t it? While I don’t think Charles ever had to have therapyover the misfortune, I know I have needed it over the years. And if you are in this familyand have never heard this story before, you now KNOW the truth about Santa.198

With all this in consideration, I decided it was best not to expose my daughter Ellen, theyoungest in the family, to Santa. After all he was on "my" naughty list. (And all along youthought it was because she fell off the piano bench, Charles.)Her dad was great at playing Santa. He almost had her convinced there was a Santa theyear he left a Santa doll that played music under the Christmas tree. The doll itself wasNOT the mystery but HOW it was playing music. For the longest time…and really evenuntil this very day she was (is) not able to figure out how that Santa was singing whenshe arrived at the tree in the wee hours of the morning while the rest were all nestled intheir beds.Ellen then carried on this Christmas tradition with my granddaughter April. And besidesApril’s teacher told her Santa was really Satan with the letters just changed around (so itwas not all my fault). Then I started getting a little soft as I seasoned along with age…andI thought it might be nice to bring Santa back into our lives. So I invited him over to ourhouse for April to meet. He came a looonnnggg way at my request. And he was the realdeal let me tell you…I know because I saw the white fluffy beard (well, it was turning alittle grey by this time). He arrived right on time. And with one look, April’’s heart dartedfaster than she did to the back of the house, not to return until we promised Santa was nowhere to be found. I am telling you, he should have never fouled up and delivered thatelectric train to the wrong house.Feeling bad ever since, Ellen has left warm milk and cookies with the help of her sonStephen for Santa every Christmas Eve. She thinks once he came and got them as shesaw with her own eyes foot prints in snow coming from the chimney. And that has beensince she’s lived in snowless Texas so you know something’s up with that!!! Besidessomeone has been eating those cookies and drinking the milk. FYI it appears Santa likesOreos best. Then again Stephen does love Oreos. Hummm..Now that the fourth generation of females arrived with Miss Ella this year, it will beinteresting to see what her Christmas tradition will be one day.I am not sure what April’s posture is with Santa since she last saw him at my house manyyears ago. And I do not know what her sons, Reid and Cole think of him. You’d have toask her. I think I heard her say once one of the kids cried when they saw him or wouldnot go near him. It’s evidently in our DNA.We continue to stay on the nice list, this I know. And someone continues to deliver gifts tous every year. And I continue to quote "Twas The Night Before Christmas". I think afterall, I really do believe. Besides I know what happens when rumor gets out that you don’’t.So my lips are sealed.Really though, I have had many wonderful heart filled Christmas seasons. Those with myhusband Everette while he was here on earth, and those with my children and theirchildren and their children!! Who needs Santa when you have family? And besides I don’tthink he ever made good on that electric train.Seriously though, I am greeting you with this letter of some of my Christmas memoirs andtrust that your heart will be filled with the warmth of the love of Christ this 2006 season.Celebrating His Birth,Mom, Grandma, GG, Pauline Written by by sister Ellen, as told a million times by mymother Pauline Greene Whisnant Mom's point of view, my view nextPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 06:16AM (-06:00)

Friday, December 29, 2006When we encounter what we perceive as a failed expectation of a desired result, whatshould be our mood, or state of mind.Desired conclusionsOf course my life verse has always been Philippians 1:21 "For me to live is Christ, to die 199

is gain.""For to me, to live is (to experience and manifest) Christ and to die is gain (to experienceand manifest Christ even more)." - Philippians 1:21 (my brother’s point of view)I have desired much in the flesh, to see accomplished many things, because I havebelieved I could be a source of help or blessings.Many times I have been disappointed because of my own expectations. Too often I haveviewed them as failed desires, because I did not see the accomplishment of that desire.(The desired conclusions failed to materialize)Too often in the flesh we often find ourselves in a mood of unhappiness. Which could bedescribed as a mood of emotions, which could lead to depression (refers to a state ofunhappiness, or sadness). As a result of what we believe to be an unfortunate incident orevent, or choice, or even an expectation we believed would happen.That seems to happen with regularity, that is, a desired result, of what you prayed for,wished for, hoped would happen or what you might even worked hard for would happen.One might, as I have, work literally a whole year on a project and have great expectationsof a desired result, and it fails to work out as you had desired in your mind. My brothercalled this "failed expectations."As humans with fleshly baggage (sinful reactions) we can become sorrowful, downcast,cheerless, even distressed. I could add, not satisfied, displeased, or even discontented.So how do we correct this mood? (refer to a state of unhappiness or sadness)Personally, I believe the reaction is human. But to stay in the mood is sinful as well asdestructive. There are fleshly ways of dealing with the mood of feeling the failure, themisery, or unhappiness, but often are very destructive as well.Psa. 2:12b "Blessed are all they that put their trust in the Lord." I Peter 2:3 (after readingverse 2) "if so be you have tasted that the Lord is gracious."We need to quickly "taste (experience) and see that the Lord is good" Bringing our focusand attention back to the presence of the Lord. It’s called 'Practice the Presence of theHoly Spirit.""For me to live........?" What is your reason for living? If your reason to live is Christ, thenHe will provide.Over the last five years since living in Portsmouth Ohio, there have been some reallygood experiences that have been so satisfying. And there have been experiences thathave been really disappointing to the family.God is not so trivial that he defines sin in the context of contemporary culture (whichwould necessitate the standard of right and wrong being in continual flux). Rather, Hedefines sin as anything that demeans His infinite beauty and glory (which supersedesculture). Worldliness, whether we want to admit it or not, goes much deeper than what isculturally acceptable; worldliness goes to the heart of the issue ... our hearts."Once youbegin to define (set rules) what is OK and what is not OK, you lose. Drafted by Charles E.Whisnant December 26, 2006 Proof Checked by Charity 29thPosted by Charles E. Whisnant at 09:33AM (-06:00)

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