Shepherd’s Corner

The Truth Matters

Mike Elliott John 18:37-38: Then Pilate said to him, "So you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world--to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice." Pilate said to him, "What is truth?" Romans 1:18: For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. Ephesians 4:25. Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. We live at a time when our society wants to redefine truth. We are told that there are many truths and that my truth may not be your truth. When a Christian says that he believes there are absolutes and Truth is not just what one says it is, he finds himself branded with derogatory

epithets. Society has come a long way in its descent from holding truth and speaking the truth. Equivocation and outright lies by public figures are not even newsworthy. As I write this article we are faced with a famous news anchor that has been found to be a liar. So far, he has not been fired – only suspended without pay. There was a time when people that reported the news were held to a very strict code. It seems that ”The Truth” does not matter anymore. Here are some euphemisms that are commonly used to put a spin on our flirting with the truth: We stretch the truth. It is a half-truth. We are telling stories. It is a fiction. We tell a fib. The story is full of holes. We tell white lies. We bluff. It is a myth, fairy tale, or tall tale

You need to define what the meaning of “is” is.

He was flirting with the truth. That is their spin or “take” on the story. Do we want our textbooks or teachers to lie? The post-modern philosophy often taught in our schools and universities holds that there is no such thing as absolute truth – that truth is relative. Our post-modern society says that this is okay -- that is, until it crosses certain lines. When we go to court and the witness swears on a Bible to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth, we expect that witness to be held in

Vol. 10, No. 3 – March 2015

contempt of court if he or she is untruthful in testimony. You want the doctor that will be operating on you to be telling you the truth. We want the engineers designing buildings and bridges to be truthful and believe the physical laws. It is not a reassuring thought that post-modern notions of truth and ethics are all too often normative in the education process of such key individuals. Is this a problem for the church? Are we guilty of “flirting with the truth”? Do we tell someone that we will do something and then not follow through? Can we be counted upon to be “as good as our word?” Ephesians 4:15: Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into Him who is the head, into Christ. Colossians 3:9: Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices. Do you make promises to your spouse and children and then not keep them? We don’t have to teach our children to lie. We may contribute to the problem when we make exceptions about being truthful or not dealing with a situation that brings the truth into question. I love watching my granddaughters. They bring me great joy; that is, until I watched one of them lie to her father. It was to avoid getting in trouble for doing what she knew she should not have done. I have to say, to the credit of my son, the lie was dealt with more harshly than the original transgression. It is in our character to lie and we need to learn to be truthful. We need the Spirit of God to remind us, as children of God, that we are expected to be truthful. John 8:44: You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own

character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. All of our Christian faith is based on THE TRUTH. Much of the revelation is absolutely unbelievable if taken without the belief in the truthfulness of God. The Apostle Paul said, Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not raised: And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not. For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. [I Corinthians 15:12-19] If we believe the truthfulness of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we, in Christ, should be the most truthful.

Special Announcements Notes from the Board Here is information on recent Administrative Board actions. Periodically we will try to use the Oracle to let the congregation know what is happening. Items completed: 1. A donation of $1500 to Joel Gonzaga, evangelist with T.I.M.E. for Christ in Mexico, was completed.

2. The Board has supported the Willards for six months as they transition back to life in Canada. That support will end effective February 28. The Board will evaluate possible support in the future as future ministries materialize. Those wishing to continue their support of the Willards in transition can make non-tax deductible contributions which the church will forward to them. 3. Pay increases of 2% of salary were approved and implemented for the pastoral staff. 4. The final draft of the amended constitution is ready for publication. 5. Funds are being collected for the mission trip to Mexico in May. An outstanding group of workers has volunteered and plans are being finalized. Items discussed with action pending: 1. A Sunday School curriculum is being developed for the children’s Sunday School classes. Pastor Dennis and Pastor James are working on writing the curriculum in coordination with Mark Johnson, Sunday School Superintendent. 2. The Board is discussing ministries the new building can be used for in addition to those identified when the building needs were first proposed. 3. With the advent of the new Sunday School classrooms in the new building, changes to the church library to make it more useful to the congregation were discussed. 4. A possible mission trip to Dallas is being explored by Pastor James. --------------------------------------------------- Here’s a look at upcoming Sunday evening services for the next five weeks:

March 1 Communion March 8 Neil Burleson - New Tribes Missions March 15 Dave Burleson March 22 Jews for Jesus – Vladimir Mitnitsky March 29 Q & A -----------------------------------------------------------

Here are some important dates of upcoming events in our Church ministry: February 27-28 Ladies Retreat March 27-29 Youth Retreat (His Hill - Comfort, TX) April 17-18 Men's Retreat (Slumber Falls Camp and Retreat Center) May 23-30 Mexico Mission Trip ---------------------------------------------------------- Ladies Retreat: Sign-up sheets for the Ladies Retreat are on the table in the foyer. Please sign up for both attending and the craft of your choice. There are samples of the 5 different craft options on the table. This year’s speaker is Jan Hoobyar, a gifted conference speaker and mother of Lori Hyde. The Friday evening (Feb 27) session starts at 7 p.m. and goes to 8:15 p.m. The Saturday sessions begin at 9 a.m. and go to 3:30 p.m.

Bible Quiz Question of the Month Whose mother would bring him a coat every year when he worked in the temple? Answer to March Quiz: Three angels named in the Bible are Michael, Gabriel, and Satan

Facts and Figures Missions Giving Month of January $ 14,800 Calendar Year 2014 to date 14,800 Building Fund Balance $ 138,893

The Library Corner In this issue of the Oracle, we review some of the many children’s books in our library. These books can bring joy to your young ones while teaching good values, so stop by and check out a book or two to read to or share with your younger children. Cinderella is a large picture book, beautifully illustrated by John Patience, who makes the familiar story come to life to the joy of little girls. The Selfish Giant is a story not to be missed by small children. All the children would like to play in the giant’s beautiful garden, but he forbade them. So it was that when spring came to the rest of the country it did not come to the giant’s garden, for there were no children there, only snow and frost. One day the children crept into the garden through a hole in the wall. The trees were so glad to see the children that they blossomed. The giant’s heart melted when he saw a small boy crying because he could not climb a tree. When he lifted the little boy into the

tree springtime returned, because the giant had learned his lesson. Woof Goes to School. Danae Dobson wrote this story when she was twelve years old. The story was inspired by stories her father, Dr. James Dobson, told as he drove them to school and about town. He submitted the little story to Word Publishing and Danae became the youngest author ever published by that company. This story is just the right length for a bedtime story. Uncle Arthur’s Storytime. These true children stories are written to help children develop positive character traits and Christian values. Questions and activities follow each story. There are three volumes of different Uncle Arthur stories in our library.

[Reviewed by Barbara Davis]

Service Times and Church Activities Sundays Sunday School 9:30 – 10:30 a.m. Regular Sunday Worship 10:45 a.m. Evening Worship 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. During the Week AWANA Wednesday 6:30 – 8:00 p.m. Prayer/Bible Studies Wed. 7:00 – 8:00 p.m. *Ladies Fellowship Thursday 9:30 Men’s Bible Study I Sat. 6:45 - 8:30 a.m. Men’s Bible Study II Sat. 8:30 – 10:30 a.m. *Ladies Fellowship meets on the second and fourth Thursdays of each month.