An Obscene Book?

Some individuals go to ridiculous measures to try discrediting God’s word. In 1992 while living in suburban Minneapolis, I attended a memorable school board meeting. A local atheist tried to get the Bible banned in public schools because it is full of “obscene and offensive passages.” American Center for Law and Justice spokesman Jay Sekulow showed up (along with numerous Christians) and convinced the school board to reject the atheist’s complaint.

Once I received an email by someone initially protesting my YouTube video defending the Ten Commandments displayed on public property. After sending a response, this person wrote back saying, “Would you say it’s morally wrong to rape a woman? Nowhere is this mentioned in your commandments.” Look at Deuteronomy 22:25…

“But if the man meets the engaged woman out in the country, and he rapes her, then only the man must die.”

Shechem the son of Hamor, a Hivite, raped Dinah (see Genesis 34:2-7), and Amnon raped his sister Tamar (2 Samuel 13:14). In both instances, their brothers got vengeance for the rape of their sister. The Bible says in many places that fornication (any kind of sex outside of marriage) is sinful. Jesus even went on to say in Matthew 5:27, “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

This person brought up other issues (probably as more excuses to disbelieve the Bible) by writing, “Abusing children, setting fires, pedophilia, slavery... dozens upon dozens of moral concepts that we currently have laws about that are not mentioned or even worse are openly condoned in biblical accounts.” Just because a certain activity is mentioned in Scripture doesn’t mean God condones it. Specific events are recorded to show what can happen if we obey or disobey God's commandments.

Let us address this person’s concern over abused children. While Scripture does not specifically say, “Thou shalt not commit child abuse,” the Bible does instruct parents to be gentle and loving with their children…

“And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.” - Ephesians 6:4

“Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.” - Colossians 3:21

Proverbs 22:6 also commands, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Children have a special place in God’s heart. Jesus had harsh words for anyone who would cause a child to fall into sin, “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea.” (Mark 9:42)

The Bible as a whole gives man a moral standard that if followed will benefit everyone. Even non-believers have enjoyed the freedom and abundant resources available in countries founded upon the Judeo-Christian ethic. As Jesus said in Matthew 5:45, “for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.”

Christians cannot force atheists to accept the Bible as their source of moral guidance. But we should never let them stop us from preaching the word publicly and fulfilling the Great Commission.

“I will speak to kings about your laws, and I will not be ashamed.” 

- Psalm 119:46 (NLT)

The Gospel According to Horton

As a child, I read many books by Theodor Geisel, an author better known by his pen name Dr. Seuss. Some of his stories became animated TV specials. One of which was “Horton Hears a Who” (which also became a motion picture years later). Recently I found that on YouTube and watched it again.

For those of you unfamiliar with the story, Horton is an elephant who finds a dust speck inhabited by the Whos, a tiny race of people who live in Whoville. Other animals in the jungle think Horton is crazy for talking to beings they cannot see or hear. They tie him up and come close to boiling Whoville in a pot of oil. The Whos cry out in desperation, “We are here!” They weren’t heard by the outside world until a little boy hollered, “Yopp!” 

There are spiritual truths that can be gleaned from “Horton Hears a Who.” Sometimes it takes just one person to do something to usher in a move of God. Psalm 8:2 says, “Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have ordained strength, because of Your enemies, that You may silence the enemy and the avenger.” God often uses the foolish things to confound the wise (1 Corinthians 1:27).

Horton repeatedly said, “A person's a person, no matter how small,” Believers have used this phrase for pro-life causes. Sadly, Dr. Seuss didn’t approve of that and even threatened to sue a ministry for printing that on their stationary. After the author died in 1991, his widow Audrey Geisel donated money to Planned Parenthood. Unlike the Whos in Whoville, unborn children cannot cry out, “We are here!” 

Atheists think it’s crazy for talking to a Being they cannot see. Yet they believe in other unseen things like gravity. I used to question God’s existence until giving my life to Him nearly thirty years ago. So if you don’t know the Lord, cry out to Him. He knows you are there.

“Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” - Jeremiah 33:3

Flak About “The Shack”

For over a decade, one of the most popular books on the Christian market has been “The Shack.” This 2007 novel self-published by Canadian author Wm Paul Young went on to become a best seller. A movie based on the book came out two years ago. While many Christian leaders endorsed “The Shack”, some dismissed it as heresy. One reason is God the Father represented as a woman.

I haven’t read “The Shack” for other reasons. One of them is I never felt led to do so. Years ago as a young believer, I devoured many Christian books but have since focused more on reading the Bible. Nowadays, I rarely buy any books. I trust the Lord to provide what He wants me to read. Whenever someone offers to give or loan me a book, I often examine the cover, table of contents and any endorsements before deciding if it’s something to invest my time in.

So why this article about a 12-year-old book I haven’t even read? A few days ago, a Facebook friend shared a post that aroused my concerns. A prophetic ministry I respect is now selling “The Shack” on its website. That surprised me. I thought this ministry was more selective regarding the products they sell. The Facebook post also revealed Wm Paul Young wrote a book titled “Lies We Believe About God.” Reviewers have pointed out (with specific page references) it promotes universalism. 

As an evangelist, it grieves me to see professing Christians preach universal reconciliation and deny hell’s existence. So last Wednesday, I wrote a Facebook post (which I’ve since removed) warning my friends about Young’s beliefs but didn’t dismiss testimonies of those who said they got healed and grew closer to the Lord through “The Shack.” If God can use a donkey to minister to us, He can use just about anything. 

Still, some of my Facebook friends didn’t like my post. One of them accused me of slander. Bringing up a concern and disputing someone’s doctrine isn’t being slanderous. I didn’t label Young a false prophet or some other derogatory name.

Another Facebook friend said I was being hateful and it would be more “biblical” for me to address my concerns privately instead of using social media. I later noticed this man posted a meme on his page claiming “sexual orientation is not a choice.” That certainly isn’t a biblical statement. It would be similar to saying adultery and fornication aren’t choices.

A few friends suggested I read “The Shack” before making a judgment on it. That reminded me of the old saying: “You can’t judge a book by its cover.” Then again, I don’t need to read the Koran or The Satanic Bible in its entirety to know they aren’t good books. One time a friend gave me the Book of Mormon thinking it could help me witness to Mormons more effectively. I started paging through the book until the Lord told me to throw it away.

If you choose to read “The Shack”, then do so prayerfully. On his own website, Wm Paul Young has called himself a “hopeful universalist.” My hope is he studies the Bible more and corrects his theology. I don’t want to see Young’s writings mislead undiscerning readers into eternal separation from God.

“My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.” - James 3:1

A Ready Writer

I always had a knack for writing. During second grade, I was inspired by the TV show “Sesame Street” to create my own stories based on a letter of the alphabet. Apart from class assignments, I dabbled in other writing projects throughout my childhood but didn’t get serious about it until college. I wrote a few Letters to the Editor that got published nationally in Billboard magazine. That inspired me to write a music column called “The Listening Post” for Moorhead State University’s newspaper.

Seven years after committing my life to the Lord, I started writing a monthly newsletter that was eventually named “Signs & Wonders.” During a season when I briefly stopped publishing the newsletter, the Lord spoke to me about resuming it again. Later that same day, I found out someone who got saved as a result of one of my articles died a few months later. That person might have gone to hell if I hadn’t written that newsletter! Other ideas for articles led me to start a weekly blog and later daily sermonettes that I post on Facebook.

I’ve also written ten books. My first one “Evangelism 101” (later renamed “Fishing for Men”) was released in 2002. Since then, I’ve self-published nine other books mostly in a digital format for people to download. I give God all the glory for how my writings have ministered to people.

Two days ago, a friend of mine asked how I publish my books. Currently, I use Kindle Direct Publishing through Amazon. Previously I used Lulu.com. Although I’m a Mac user, I haven’t yet released anything using iBooks because they don’t allow authors to insert hyperlinks in the table of contents section.

Maybe God has put it on your heart to be a writer. If so, I encourage you to step out on that. Habakkuk 2:2 says, “Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it.” This verse is often used to encourage goal setting, but can apply to things the Lord wants us to write out such as dreams, visions, personal prophecies and revelations we need to share with others.

Before making your material public, be sure to check for spelling and grammatical errors. Despite readily available tools like spell-checking and Grammarly, I’ve seen Christian books that looked terrible and needed serious editing. Anything done for the Lord should be of high quality and excellence.

It’s also helpful to have experienced writers examine your work. In recent years when returning to the Twin Cities area, I’ve attended a group called Write Now that meets at my home church once a month. Christian writers share portions of projects they’re working on for feedback. 

Psalm 45:1 says, “My heart is overflowing with a good theme; I recite my composition concerning the King; My tongue is the pen of a ready writer.” Until Jesus returns, God will continue using writers to communicate with the brethren and those who don’t know Him. If you’re one of those He’s called to change people’s lives through the written word, then I’ll quote the exhortation the Write Now group posts at the end of their monthly announcements: “Go home and write something wonderful.”

“And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.” - 1 John 1:4

The King of Rock n Roll and the King of Kings

Today is the 38th anniversary of Elvis Presley’s death. Although I wasn’t a big fan of the singer, I can remember where I was when hearing the news about him passing away. My family and I were at a Neil Sedaka concert in Fargo, North Dakota. Neil announced from the stage Elvis died that afternoon and then sang his composition “Solitaire” (a hit by the Carpenters but also sung by Elvis) as a dedication to the late singer.

Elvis was often referred to as "The King of Rock 'n' Roll” or simply “The King,” a title he repeatedly resisted. Having been raised in an Assembly of God church, Elvis often declared there’s only one King, the Lord Jesus Christ. Early in his career, Elvis confessed to his pastor, the Reverend James Hamill:

“Pastor, I am the most miserable young man you have ever seen. I have got more money than I can ever spend. I have thousands of fans out there, and I have a lot of people who call themselves my friends, but I am miserable. I am not doing a lot of things you taught me, and I am doing some things that you taught me not to do. But no matter what I do, I don’t forget about God. I feel He’s watching every move I make. And in a way it’s good for me. I’ll never feel easy smoking a cigarette. I just don’t think those things are right for me…I just want to let a few people know that the way I live is by doing what I think God wants me to. I want someone to understand.” (From, Last Train to Memphis, Peter Guralnick, Back Bay books)

Although Elvis strayed from the faith somewhat by dabbling in other spiritual practices, he never forgot his Christian roots as he recorded many gospel albums. It’s noteworthy that apart from a Lifetime Achievement award, the only Grammys won by Elvis were for his gospel recordings.

It’s sad Elvis is still idolized so much in American culture. However, I know one man who is using that for good. Bruno Bigsley performs as an Elvis impersonator but uses it as a way to share his faith in Jesus. As the Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:22, “I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.”

It will be interesting to see Elvis praising the Lord on the streets of gold. I’m sure he isn’t singing “Heartbreak Hotel” from his heavenly mansion.

“Oh, sing to the LORD a new song!  Sing to the LORD, all the earth.” - Psalm 96:1

Copy It Right

How would you feel if you wrote a book, recorded a song, or produced a movie and someone duplicated and distributed copies of your work without permission? I’ve seen Christian artists and ministers respond differently to this. Some don’t mind because they see it as a way to get the gospel out to more people. I like what Mike Bickle says regarding his sermon notes he makes available publicly, “If you’re going to copy it, copy it right.”

On the other hand, a friend of mine was recently threatened with legal action by a ministry in response to him posting on YouTube an 18-second clip of theirs included in a video produced by another minister. I can relate to this ministry being protective of their videos made public. Certainly, I wouldn’t like it if someone posted one of my preachings if it was edited in such a way that my intended message was distorted (so-called “watchdog ministries” are notorious for doing this). However, legal action should only be considered as a last resort. 1 Corinthians 6 discourages us from suing the brethren.

Occasionally people have posted my work on YouTube without permission. Usually, I won’t make an issue about it if they use short snippets. There is a legal term called “Fair Use” which allows journalists to use portions of copyrighted work for news broadcasts, critiques, and reviews. However, I’m not in favor of people reposting my work in its entirety especially if it’s meant to make a mockery of it.

At the beginning of 2007, I uploaded a video of a minister I know giving a prophetic word for the year at a conference. Twelve months later, I deleted the video simply because it was no longer 2007. Later I discovered someone had copied my video and reposted it on YouTube with inserted comments questioning why it was no longer online. I contacted this person explaining why and asked him to remove the video. This person got defensive claiming this minister was a false prophet and threatened to write negative things against me. Since I couldn’t reason with this person, I contacted YouTube and got them to remove the unauthorized video. 

Also in 2007, I released the controversial video “Tokin’ the Ghost” featuring John Crowder (later removed at my own volition). Since then, “Tokin’ the Ghost” had been reposted in its entirety by a few individuals. I contacted each one asking them to remove it from their YouTube accounts. Most of them refused to cooperate. Once again, I contacted YouTube to get those recopied videos taken off the Internet.

Another time I posted a portion of Andrew Wommack’s TV program “The Gospel Truth” in which he interviewed historian David Barton about homosexuals in the military. David shared eye-opening information that I felt needed to be heard by more Christians. Although I didn’t receive complaints from either Andrew or David, I eventually chose to remove that video from my YouTube account plus a few featuring other ministers. Romans 15:20 tells us not to “build on another man’s foundation.” I believe men of God should share more on what the Lord has revealed to them personally instead of always echoing what other ministers say.

Romans 13 talks about obeying the laws of the land and giving honor to whom honor is due. That would include copyright laws. One ridiculous defense made by King James Only advocates is their favorite translation isn’t copyrighted. Of course, it wouldn’t be copyrighted. Copyright laws didn’t come into existence until 1710 with the Statute of Anne in the UK, 99 years after the release of the King James Version. 

Nowadays, all modern translations of the Bible have a copyright notice. Permission to use those translations in church bulletins, articles, and salable media has been granted by the publishers with certain stipulations. For those of you thinking “God’s word should never be copyrighted”, it should be pointed out the books in the Bible gives credit to the individuals God used to write down and proclaim His word.

Whether it’s a song, book, or movie; Christian musicians, writers, and producers should be properly represented and compensated. 

“For the Scripture says, ‘You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain,’ and, ‘The laborer is worthy of his wages.’” - 1 Timothy 5:18