Burns Church of Christ

Lacrimation is science’s fancy word for crying. Did you know that almost all mammals shed tears, but humans are the only creatures on this earth that shed tears because of emotion? Our culture tells us that “big girls don’t cry” and that crying is for sissies, not men, but that’s not what Scripture teaches.

Science says that the shedding of tears is beneficial. Doctors say that tears are cleansing—providing an exit for your body’s toxins. Ophthalmologists know that tears cleanse and lubricate your eyes. Psychologists say that a “good cry” is a psychological release, a catharsis that helps you deal with your emotions. It makes me wonder why we avoid it so much!

John tells the story of Jesus raising his beloved friend Lazarus from the dead. His family is very upset by his death, and people say all sorts of things to Jesus: “If you had been here, this wouldn’t have happened!” In the midst of all of the turmoil and pain of loss, we find the Bible’s shortest verse: “Jesus wept” (John 11:35). The Bible goes further to say that he was troubled or grieved in his spirit.

Many things may have triggered Jesus’ tears that day: seeing his friends and family hurt, witnessing disbelief, or just understanding the consequences of sin in a fallen world. Regardless of the reason, our savior was human enough to cry. He had a heart vulnerable enough to feel pain, and he wasn’t afraid to show it.

We need to be more like our Savior. We must be willing to put down our armor when we love and be willing to have our hearts broken. C. S. Lewis once compared the human heart to concrete: it isn’t soft and pliable very often, and once it sets, it is nearly impossible to form again. May we work to keep our hearts tender!

Jesus said, “It is finished.” John 19:30

When you look at the life of Jesus from a human standpoint, you might conclude that his life was a failure. From a purely human standpoint he didn’t do much.

He never traveled more than a few miles from his hometown. He never wrote any books. He never painted any pictures in giant cathedrals. He might have built a good yoke for oxen that fit well, but they are long gone and almost forgotten.

He never ran for public office. He never owned large portions of land. He never had thousands working for him in a business. He never invented something that made medical or aviation history.

He was a simple Galilean peasant who changed the world. More books have been written about him than any other in history. More cathedrals have been erected in his honor. More political systems have been affected by his followers and his teaching. More travelers have carried the word of this man to more places on the earth than any other. More pictures and sculptures have honored him than any man in history.

At the end of his life he uttered the simple phrase “It is finished.” That phrase speaks volumes. He accomplished what he came to do. He died that man might have a chance to live. His life was the greatest success of all time. His life and death is still making a difference in this world and is making a huge difference in my life and yours

It looked as if his ministry was a failure but he lives and that is all we need to know. I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. (John 17:4)

A time to plant and a time to uproot Ecclesiastes 3:2

Gardening is always fascinating to me.  This time of the year I enjoy the fruit of the labors of many gardeners.  Ripe tomatoes make any meal go better.  Radishes are some of the first fruits of the spring garden.  They take only about one month to get ready for a veggie plate.  If one plants asparagus it will be four to five years before you get an editable veggie.

Many of us are restless and impatient when it comes to planting and harvesting.  We like the radishes and lettuce that grow up quickly and are ready to eat in one month. These are the ones is our churches who are concerned with getting fruit at the expense of patience.

Many in our churches are interested in getting on with the fruit and have little patience with those who are carefully challenging them to think and study.  Old ideas seem to be easier to hold on to than the challenges to study to show yourself approved by God.  The Pharisees of Jesus’ day were satisfied that their understanding of scripture was right and they refuse to be challenged by our Lord.

Today we are faced with new challenges to the truth of God.  We can sit back and throw rotten tomatoes or we can get into the fight and live as no other and think as God would have us think.  We can find safety in old forms and patterns or we can study again the mighty truth of God and learn His will for us.  We can find our garden full of radishes and weeds and have no abiding fruit for the masters’ table.

We must return to the principles of divine truth and teach them in their contexts if we are to have an active and dynamic faith.  Now is the time for us to sow and water and pray that the Lord of harvest will give the increase. It is time to plant!

By the time you read this, our summer campaign will have been completed for several weeks. We will have met and studied with many of our readers-and we hope you were one of them! Our door and our hearts are always open to you. We don’t want to be strangers to our neighbors; come by any time, or if you have a specific need, give us a call and we’ll be glad to help wherever we can.

In the meanwhile, how about a spiritual check-up? It’s good to look inside and see how you’re doing.

•  My Spiritual Heart: Do you “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind”? (Matthew 22:37) Jesus said that this was the first and greatest commandment, and that all of the rest of the commandments of scripture are based on it and the second commandment to love your neighbor as yourself.  Do you have a passion for God-and the things of God? Is He real to you? Love produces obedience, by the way. Jesus said, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” (John 14:15) Based on your lifestyle, is it evident that you love God?
• My Spiritual Mouth: Do you pray early and often? We communicate with the ones we love; God is not different! Paul said that we should “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). He told the church in Philippi “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication, let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6). Is prayer a natural part of your life?
• My Spiritual Ears: God speaks to us today through his inspired word-the 66 books of the Bible. Are you quiet long enough to listen to those words? Do you have a hearing disorder that keeps you from listening to him? Do you have selective hearing which picks and chooses scripture to suit you – rather than God? We believe “All scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
• My Spiritual Hands: How do you spend your time? It’s good to relax, it’s necessary to work, it’s important to be with you family-these are all biblical teachings – but the Bible teaches that nothing is more important than the kingdom of God, and all of our other priorities circle around this chief goal. We serve-as Christ served! As the old song says, “We’ll work ’til Jesus comes!”

We hope that you’re spiritually healthy. There’s certainly more to spiritual health than we could put on this check list! We haven’t talked about the importance of real and meaningful faith, the necessity of confession, the totality of repentance, or the beauty of our new birth in baptism-and these are all absolutely necessary!

Don’t like your answers to these questions? Do you have questions of your own? Come see us-and we’ll be glad to help point you towards the Great Physician we know and love.

You who believe in the name of the Son of God . . . May know that you have eternal life.  1 John 5:13

“I’m afraid to die”, says Bobby. “I wish I didn’t have that fear but it is real and I have it deep in my soul.”  Bobby has read the scriptures time and time again about the assurance that we have in Christ.  His religion is not totally performance based but there is a little bit left in him.

Bobby goes on to say, “I can’t imagine what God will do with a skunk like me.” It is easy to argue from scripture that salvation is by grace. The death of Jesus secured our forgiveness and his resurrection assures us of victory over death.  Our own baptism placed us in his family and the same power that raised Jesus from the death worked in us as we were buried with him and raised with him from the grave of water. 12 Having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. (Colossians 2:12)

But all arguments fail because this is not a logical decision but an emotional one.  All arguments fail to convince one when the decision was reached emotionally rather than logically. Logical argument cannot change the emotional mind.

Sometimes there is some emotional event in the past that still controls one’s thinking in the present.  Until this is overcome one will continue to act on that buried emotion.

When one is saved by the grace of God all sins are gone and forgiveness is ever occurring. Whether we think clearly about the subject does not change the fact.  We are saved and God will today welcome us into His heavenly home.

Jesus brings salvation down to us and when we are covered by his blood, there is no fear in death.  “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” It’s good to believe it and to feel it.  Whether we feel it completely or not it is still real.  I Corinthians 15:57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Sycamore Church of Christ has announced the topic for this year’s Bible Bowl competition in Cookeville. We will be studying the gospel of John from the New King James Version! Check back soon for more information!

Thank you to everyone who worked so hard to make our 2009 Revival and Campaign a success. The teams from Burns and from all over the southeast (Tennessee, Missouri, Mississippi, Alabama, and Texas) knocked on over 2,500 doors. The seed of God’s word has been planted all over, and we know that as we and others water, God will grant the increase.

Here’s what we did…

• Summer Revival: It is a revival because we want to bring new life back to the Burns community. It’s obvious that even in this economy, our town is continuing to grow. We want to make sure the town’s numerical and fiscal growth is outpaced by it’s spiritual growth. Join us for five special preaching sessions
  • “But what does Jesus say?” Wednesday, June 17th at 7:00pm
  • “The Gospel by Grace through Faith” Thursday, June 18th at 7:00pm
  • “Born Again of Water and the Spirit” Friday, June 19th at 7:00pm
  • “Almost Persuaded” Saturday, June 20th at 7:00pm
  • “The Power, the Pain, and the Price of the Cross” Sunday, June 21st at 10:00am
• Here’s a postcard invitation to our revival

Look below for all of Eddie’s sermons from the revival:

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The Power, the Pain, and the Price of the Cross (Eddie Lawson): (Revival 2009) by Guest Speakers on June 21, 2009.

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God's Amazing Grace (Eddie Lawson): (Revival 2009) by Guest Speakers on June 20, 2009.

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Born Again of Water and the Spirit (Eddie Lawson): John 3:1-17 (Revival 2009) by Guest Speakers on June 19, 2009.

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The Gospel by Grace through Faith (Eddie Lawson): (Revival 2009) by Guest Speakers on June 18, 2009.

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When he came to his senses, I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Luke 15

The road back to the Father’s house is long and hard.  It is filled with doubt and despair.  It depresses and decomposes.  It works on every part of the human creation.

Physical, spiritual and emotional reconditioning requires one to address each area.  When one leaves the Father’s house and goes into a far country. He is “aching for a breaking”.  He may not end up feeding hogs but the pigpen will await.  Living away from the Father’s house is not that easy.  Some can drift for years and not reach the bottom. The time will come when all must face the ordeal of the Father’s house.  What will is be then?

Rejuvenating one’s spiritual life involves at least these two things: 1) returning to God’s primary desire for my life, 2) listening for God.  The prodigal remembered the father and listened for him.  He followed that still small voice all the way from the pigpen to the Father’s house.

Sin can black out the Fathers’ will in our lives. Many can live with little or no attention to their true spiritual nature.  The soul can be starving to death and the rest of the human creation seems to work okay.  However, nothing will totally satisfy until we find our connection with the Father.

The man who knows his sins is greater than one who raises a dead man by his prayer. He who sighs and grieves within himself for an hour is greater than the one who teaches the entire universe.  He who follows Christ, alone and contrite, is greater than one who enjoys the favor of crowds in churches. - St. Isaac the Syrian

New Summer Bible classes begin tonight! Here’s what you have to look forward to:

Sunday Morning at 9am:

Auditorium: Glenn Buffington “Grace and Works”

Downstairs: James Hinkle “You and Your Bible”

Wednesday Evening at 7pm:

Auditorium: Jerry Hall “Great Passages of the Bible” (Gospel Advocate quarterly)

Downstairs: James Hinkle “The Minor Prophets”

Bible Bowl 2009 will begin in July with a study of the Gospel of John from the New King James Version.

Hope to see you there!

      It has been my privilege to spend about a month in New Zealand teaching students the Bible and training them to be church leaders.  This has been a special ministry for me for about twenty years.

      The training school where I teach is in Tauranga, New Zealand.  There are students from all over the South Pacific, Australia and Asia. This year we had students from New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, Pakistan and Fiji.  These students will go back to their homeland and culture and be lights for Christ in their own neighborhoods and communities.  We believe that this is the best way to do world evangelism.

      While in New Zealand I get to work with several former students and I was able to preach every Sunday I was there. The Lord’s Church has struggled in the South Pacific but is beginning to make progress.  There as several church plants and more will become a reality as our students get going in their communities. Most of the churches in Fiji and New Zealand are now led by our students.

      On another topic we are about ready to knock every door in Burns.  Our campaign begins June 10^th. Campaigners will begin arriving on Wednesday night and the door knocking will begin on Thursday. Glen Buffington is in charge of all organizational matters.  He has worked to get ready and many of you are on his team.  This effort will require that all of us “give of our best to the Master”.  From food to washing baptismal garments to cleaning the building to greeting new members, much is to be done.  See Glen if you have not already volunteered.

      Thanks to Matthew who preached in my absence. There was not a beat missed when I was gone.  We are much blessed by having Matthew and Leslie on our team.

      This weekend is our “couples’ retreat” at Joe Wheeler State Park in North Alabama. Jeff and Pam have planned a great retreat and all who attend will be blessed.  We will be down in our attendance with so many gone.  Sit close and sing as loud as you can.