Christians

At some time during their lives, the following people have publicly identified themselves as Christian.   Inclusion in this list does not indicate approval or disapproval of the person, of their orthodoxy or lack of it, or of their actions.  Some of those listed may surprise you.  Readers are encouraged to suggest persons who should be included on this list.  This is a recurring segment in this blog.

Duccio di Buoninsegna: (b. ca. 1255-1260, Italy – d. 1318-1319)  Painter.  He worked on commission and provided paintings for churches, cathedrals, and government buildings.  Many of his works are now lost.

Frederick Fyvie Bruce: (b. 1910, Scotland –d. 1990; aka: F. F. Bruce) Biblical scholar, university professor, specialist on the life and ministry of Paul, wrote over forty books and biblical commentaries.  In his classic work, New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable?, he showed that the New Testament documents have better historical attestation than any other ancient documents.

Allan B. Bicknell: (b. ca 1890, USA –d. 1948) University professor of French, Greek, Latin, and Spanish at Bridgewater University for forty-one years (1906-0917), opera singer.    

Asa: On 6 June 2012, a pastor identified only as Asa was arrested for proselytizing in Laos.

Joseph Elliot Giradi: (b. 1964, Illinois, USA) Major League Baseball catcher anf manager. 2006 National League Manager of the Year.

Honoring Your Father

The New York Yankees professional baseball team defeated The Baltimore Orioles 7-2 last Saturday night in the American League Division Series.  The team found out on Thursday from a newspaper report that manager Joe Girardi’s father died before the Saturday game. Girardi learned of his father’s death while on the team bus travelling from Yankee Stadium to Grand Central Station for a train ride to Baltimore for the game.  Why would Girardi have continued to manage his team and tell no one of his loss?

The answer: he was honoring his father.  One of the things his father taught him was to “finish the job.”  The father, Jerry Girardi, once illustrated the principle by finishing a home plumbing repair even though he broke his thumb during the repair.

“So I thought that’s what my dad would want me to do, so that’s what I tried to do.”

Honoring one’s parents means respect in what we say and what we do.  It is an attitude, a decision for action based not only on love but also on the position of authority into which our parents have been placed by God.  It is based not only on merit, what they “deserve,” but also on direct instructions from God.

What the Bible says about what Joe Girardi did.

“Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.” Exodus 20:12

“Honor thy father and thy mother, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.” Deuteronomy 5:16

“Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” Matthew 19:19

“For Moses said, Honour thy father and thy mother; and, Whoso curseth father or mother, let him die the death:” Mark 7:10

“Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise;” Ephesians 6:2

“Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother.”  Luke 18:20

“For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death.”  Matthew 15:4

“Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother.”  Mark 10:19

“And Jeremiah said unto the house of the Rechabites, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Because ye have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab your father, and kept all his precepts, and done according unto all that he hath commanded you: 19Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not want a man to stand before me for ever.” Jeremiah 35:18-19

“My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:” Proverbs 1:8

“A wise son heareth his father's instruction: but a scorner heareth not rebuke.”  Proverbs 13:1

“Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord.”  Colossians 3:20

Jesus practiced what the Bible taught.

“And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.”  Luke 2:51

“And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.”  Matthew 26:39

Jesus Hats

JesusHats,com is a site which sells Christian baseball hats and T-shirts.  The idea is that the hats and shirts will cause someone to ask about Jesus.  This can be seen as a subtle form of evangelism; "a witness you can wear."

Whenever I visit a Christian website I always gravitate toward the statement of beliefs to see who the people behind the site are.  Dalen (Dale) Garris, of Waxahachie, Texas is the patriarch of this family-owned business.  I found that I can agree with some of Brother Dalen's beliefs and strongly disagree with some others.  This does not stop me from thinking that Jesus hats are a very good idea.

Watching

Yogi Berra (b. 1925, in Missouri, USA, as Lawrence Peter Berra) is considered to have been one of the greatest players ever at the Catcher position in professional baseball.  As a team manager he led teams in both the American and National Leagues to the World Series.  He deservedly became a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972 but, in the mind of the general public, he is best known as a mangler of the English language.  One of his most famous malapropisms is "You can observe a lot just by watching."


Malapropisms, on their faces, seem to be absurd, but sometimes they carry a grain of truth.  You really can observe a lot by watching.

"Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these." Luke 12:27  (If God takes care of mindless plants, He surely will take care of you!)

"Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace." Psalm 37:37  (Strive to imitate the finest examples of humanity.)

Go to the ant, O sluggard, Observe her ways and be wise, Proverbs 6:6 (Use the hyper-industrious insect as an example for your own life.)

Be an example for others:

http://www.openbible.info/topics/lead_by_example

An Example for Other to Imitate

http://bible.org/seriespage/mark-1-example-others-imitate

Attempts To Kill the Church

Sparky Anderson, a manager of several different American professional baseball teams continued a long American tradition of malapropisms when he said, "We try every way we can do to kill the game, but for some reason, nothing nobody does never hurts it."

What he said makes no sense grammatically, but it does make sense.  There is something about the game of baseball (my favorite competitive sport) which survives problems within the baseball community and criticisms from outside.  I believe that the unifying factor in baseball is the love for the game, for the team comraderie, for the level of artistic skill needed to successfully play the game.  It becomes an all-consuming passion for some.

Christians understand the same thing about their community and the Bible.  Christianity has withstood, and even prospered and matured, under severe intellectual challenges, criticisms and outright persecutions.  We have also fought, sometimes bitterly, over seemingly trivial matters and over some foundational and non-negotiable matters.  One of the strongest criticisms non-believers offer is the question of why there is no true Christian unity, no unanimity of belief.  (They totally fail to understand the concept of The Church, existing within the various religious traditions, but not contained exclusively in any of them.  This is the Remnant, those few who truly share the Mind of Christ, those traveling on the straight and narrow path.)

The reason the Church endures is because it is of God.  Who can stand up against His glory and power?  Who can possibly cause any damage to His People, His Word, and His Church?  

The link below is a forceful declaration about the futility of trying to harm God's Bible (and also His Church).

http://www.grmi.org/Richard_Riss/evidences/11survival.html