The Bartimaeus Blog 2020.23

Bartimaeus Baptist Temple Posted on by

Blessings to you, loved ones.  My prayer for us this week as that we can find peace through the Prince of Peace.  We are to be peace makers, spreading the message of good news of Jesus Christ to a hurting and divided nation.

I’m writing to you this evening with a heavy heart.  The past week has seen an eruption of misunderstanding, hatred, and violence that has been burning just under the surface for many years.  We all have our opinions about where it comes from and who is at fault.  This wasn’t the first and it won’t be the last unless something changes.  I feel an obligation to address it in some way. There are many things I could say, but nothing anyone can say will fix it.

Turn on the news or spend a few minutes online, and you’ll see diametrically opposed views on what is happening, why it’s happening, and what to do about it.   everyone is trying to talk over everyone else, and it seems no civilized discussion is possible.  That pretty well describes any issue you care to name these days.  If we could hold a public execution for that officer tomorrow, some might feel better for a while, but it would not solve the problem.  We could bring in the military and lock up all the rioters along with those who egg them on, but that won’t heal the wounds.  Justice demands that the wrongs be righted, but consequences only control behavior.  The problem we have is in our hearts, and no politician and no government can do anything about that.

As I contemplated what bit of wisdom I might share regarding current events, the Holy Spirit brought to mind Paul’s words from 1 Corinthians 2:1-5.  Verse 2 reads, “I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.”  Paul was a learned man.  He could have come into that city armed with intellectual arguments to prove the truth of what he was saying.  There would be a place for that, but if he had begun there, he’d have lost them.  They didn’t have the background for any of that to even make sense.

I have my own opinions, and it is taking a conscious effort for me not to express them  right now.  There is much wisdom from the pages of scripture that could be applied to this situation, but without a foundation, it will do little good.  That foundation is Jesus.  It doesn’t matter how many laws we make.  It doesn’t matter how many people we lock up.  We can put cameras on every cop and every corner, but none of it will get to the root of the problem.

The only way things really get better is when the change comes to our hearts.  There’s only one person who can do that.  His name is Jesus.  As His church, we must get back to that message.  We need to get busy spreading the plain simple truth that Jesus died to safe us and that following Him is the only way to find peace.  He arose, and He lives!  He will give us life again if we will only let Him in.  We don’t need more laws.  We don’t need more speeches.  We don’t need more protests.  We need Jesus.  Only Jesus.

I want us to take some time to pray on Sunday for our city and for our nation.  We will pray for peace.  We will pray for unity.  We will pray for revival.  We’ll ask the Holy Spirit to lead us in doing our part.

Love y’all!

Larry

The Bartimaeus Blog 2020.22

Bartimaeus Baptist Temple Posted on by

Blessings to you, loved ones.  Here’s your last minute update.

This will be our 4th week back, but it still feels like we just got started.  Maybe it’s just because we’re happy to be out of our houses.  I paid a visit to the Potts’ home on Monday since I had the day off.  With everyone they have living there right now that covered about half the church.  🙂  Keep them in your prayers.

I got to hear from Shelly while there about what God has done in her life recently.  Linda asked her to share her testimony with us tomorrow and I think you will be encouraged by the change in her.  Ordinarily we would have a meal together since this is a 5th Sunday, but we thought it best to allow a little more time for folks to feel comfortable being together before we did something like that.  Right now the plan is for something around the July 4th holiday.

I’m going to share with you from one of those passages of scripture that always puzzled me,  It takes place right after the nation of Israel is split into the ten northern tribes under Jeroboam and Judah in the south where Solomon’s son Rehoboam remained king.  Jeroboam wanted to cut any ties to Judah, so he set up idols for the people to worship rather than have them going back to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices.  God sent a prophet to speak against Jeroboam’s altar and predict its eventual destruction, even giving the name of the person who would do it generations later, King Josiah of Judah.

The prophet does what he is sent to do, but then he gets sidetracked.  God told him not to eat or drink in that place and to go home by a different route than he came.  This was probably for his protection.  But along comes another prophet who tells him that God has given him new instructions and he should join the old prophet for lunch.  So the younger man disobeyed God and paid for it with his life.  Certainly there’s a lesson there, but nothing that isn’t illustrated elsewhere in scripture, so why this story, and what’s with the odd behavior of the lion that killed him?  The story is in 1 Kings 13 and we will read just verses 16-22, but to put the event in context you should read all of chapters 12 and 13.  Let’s see if we can solve the mystery and learn a few good lessons along the way.

See you there.

Love y’all!

Larry

The Bartimaeus Blog 2020.21

Bartimaeus Baptist Temple Posted on by

Blessings to you, faithful family and friends.  My prayer this week is for your strength and comfort.  May you stand firm in your faith, resisting the devil and choosing the life of the Spirit.  Here’s what’s coming up.

It was delightful to see everyone again who made it last Sunday.  We are still missing a few, but I trust that God will bring us all back together at one time soon.  There was a lot of sharing during the prayer time and I am happy to say we are beginning to see some of those prayers answered in the ways we hope for.  We can also take encouragement from the lesson that Linda gave us.  When we change our question from “Why is this happening to me?” to “How can this be used for Your glory?”, we are in a place where God can do great things.

I did open up the conference line for a while, but since no one called in and I would need my phone for other activities, I disconnected after our PRAYER TIME.  We’ll continue to post to Facebook and the Web site as we have done for the last couple of years, but I won’t be opening the phone line going forward unless there is interest.  Maybe it’s something we should just do , but I need a volunteer willing to host the line.  My stack of hats is about to fall off.

When next we meet, I want to talk to you about temptation.  We all face it.  All too often we give in to it, but is that unavoidable?  Not if we believe what God’s word tells us.  There’s a promise in 1 Corinthians 10:13 that says when we are tempted, God will provide a way out.  He doesn’t do the tempting, but He remains in control.  You can be assured that when you face a temptation, God has given you a way out.  The question is, “Will you take it?”  First, as always, we’ll look at the context for this verse.  Then I will share with you some truths about temptation and some strategies for triumphing over it.

Keep each other in your prayers.  There’s always plenty over on the Praise and Prayer Requests page if you would like to jog your memory.  I am sometimes a little vague on purpose to protect people’s privacy, but if you have been in the services it will help recall the details.  Keep in touch and encourage each other.

Love y’all!

Larry

The Bartimaeus Blog 2020.20

Bartimaeus Baptist Temple Posted on by

Hello, beloved family and friends.  I pray this finds you well, drawing closer each day to your Father in Heaven who loves you dearly.  I am pleased to bring you this report on what’s happening at our little church with a big heart.

Last week was our first time back in the building since the shelter in place orders were given in March.  Almost everyone who could come did, and it was such a joy to be together again!  I hope they’ll loosen restrictions at the nursing homes soon, though we want to be sure those who live there will be safe.  Kelvin is eager to rejoin us.

I owe an apology to those who tried to dial in through the conference line that we said would remain available.  I did not consider that if no one was dialed in except me, there would be hold music.  That would have been disruptive to leave playing while the service continued, so I hung up the line upon finding no one had dialed in right at starting time.  I have turned off the music as well as name announcement, so we will try again this Sunday.  Unless someone else lends their phone to the cause, I may have to discontinue it before the message begins, but you can find that through Facebook or from our podcast once I get it posted.

You’ve heard the phrase, “opposites attract.”  we say it because it seems so often to be true.  Howe many couples do you know who are so different from one another that you wonder how they got together?  I think God has something to do with that.  Those opposite traits often complement each other, making the whole greater than the sum of the parts.  I certainly feel that way about my relationship to Linda.  I have to know that if God really wanted me here at BBT He’d have used something else, but I know that He used Linda, and barring such intervention I would never have ended up here on my own.

But there is one thing that makes a couple truly incompatible, belief.  I say this with caution for obvious reasons.  Many Christians are in such relationships for a variety of reasons.  I am not suggesting that they should get out of them in cases of marriage or even business contracts.  In fact Paul addresses marriage specifically in 1 Corinthians 7:12-16 and says one should not.  What a terrible reflection on the Lord that would be!

Our text will be 2 Corinthians 6:14-20.  This passage is often used to discourage marriage between Christians and unbelievers.  It certainly does have that application, but that’s not the subject Paul is writing about here.  Let’s look at the context and see what he is really saying.

I look forward to seeing all of you again.

Love y’all!

Larry

The Bartimaeus Blog 2020.19

Bartimaeus Baptist Temple Posted on by

This Sunday is mother’s Day.  I hope we all have plans to make our moms feel special.  They certainly deserve it.  Something else special is happening at BBT.  We’re coming back!  I am so excited!  We understand if you don’t feel comfortable doing that yet, and we plan to open the conference line for at least part of the service.  We’ll broadcast the message live on Facebook as we have done for the last couple of years, and of course we’ll put up the audio podcasts.    This is where our currently small number helps us a bit.  There’s plenty of room for sitting apart from the people you didn’t come with.  We encourage everyone to wear  a face covering to protect those among us who may experience more serious consequences should they catch the virus.  Remember that a healthy person may not even show symptoms and yet be contagious.

I have to credit my lovely wife with the idea for this week’s message.  I’ll admit, at first i didn’t see it.  The text comes from exodus 2;1-10.  If you grew up in Sunday school, you know the story.  The Israelites were living in Egypt after Joseph arranged to provide for them there during a famine.  Over time their numbers grew, and the Pharaoh became afraid of them.  So he made them slaves and ordered the death of their mail children.  When Moses was born, his parents concealed him as long as they could.  Then his mother put him in a basket and placed in in the Nile.  A daughter of the king found them there and took him as her own, setting the stage for God’s next mighty act some 80 years later.

Now to me that doesn’t read much like a heroic act.  It is part of the history, but what is noble about abandoning your baby, even if god did turn it into something good?  Then I remembered that the author of Hebrews considered what Moses’ parents did an act of faith (Heb 11;23.)  What did I miss?  Come find out!  This part of the story doesn’t even give her a name, but this mom changed the world.

I really hope you will come.  I understand caution and we’ll conduct ourselves accordingly, but there comes a point when the response to the threat is no longer in proportion to that threat.  The debate on that subject is likely to rage for months if not years, but meanwhile life must co on.  We can’t cower in our homes forever or the consequences of that will soon be far more devastating than the virus would be.  Be strong and courageous!  Trust God and live life!

Love y’all,

Larry

The Bartimaeus Blog 2020.18

Bartimaeus Baptist Temple Posted on by

Warm greetings, loved ones.  The weather’s heating up, and so is everything else as we begin to show signs of going back to normal.  I really wanted to go back to church this week, but from an abundance of caution and the very real possibility that I would not be able to go myself due to work duties we decided to wait another week.  So we will go virtual at least one more time.  We’ll keep the format the same as last week.  The conference line will be used during prayer request and Sunday School and everyone can participate.  When the message begins I’ll start the Facebook Live session and put the conference line on mute.  You can stay on and listen through the phone or switch to the video feed if you like.  we will open the line back up for fellowship at the end.

Do you Know who you are?  That sounds like a silly question.  Unless were injured in a way that severely damages our memory, we’re all pretty sure we know the answer.  But who we are is more than a name.  It is more than what we do, how we’re made, or how others see us.  All these things contribute to our personality in some way, but we are more than the some of these parts.  Yet for many of us, these things have been allowed to define us.  We have found our identity in what we can or even in what we cannot do.  we have found it in family connections or the lack thereof.  Sometimes we have let others define who we are for us.

Our creator has much to say on this topic.  He tells us who we are without Him, and that’s not something we want to be.  He also tells us who we are after we become His, and that, my friends, is the good news I wish everyone could understand.  Sadly, many Christians don’t know this.  They’ve been taught to think of themselves as the same rotten sinners they were before being saved.  Baptists love to say that we’re just sinners saved by grace.  Indeed we were sinners saved by grace, but see the difference in those two phrases?  The second one is past tense!  When God saves you, you are not a sinner anymore!  Yes, you will still sin.  We’ll battle the flesh until we die, but when you retain your identity as a sinner instead of a saint, you set yourself up for failure.  After all, if you’re still a sinner, you can’t help it.  You’re doomed to keep on sinning and you can never be free.  But that is not who you are!  You are a new creature!  When Jesus took over your life, you were reborn.  You are a child of God.  You have been sanctified, bought with the blood of Christ, and cleansed from all unrighteousness!  Don’t insult your Heavenly Father by calling yourself a sinner anymore.  Stop telling Jesus that His sacrifice wasn’t good enough.  We’re going to read from 2 Corinthians 5:15-18.  I hope you’ll be encouraged to live the life befitting your identity as a child of the almighty God, maid a joint heir with His own son Jesus, and entrusted with the priestly mission of reconciling humanity to Him.

I look forward to connecting with you tomorrow.  God willing, this will be the last completely virtual session.  The tentative plan is to resume normal services next week on May 10.  Edith called me today, ready to come back.  She has a cell phone with limited minutes and does not get on Facebook, so we have missed her.  With the number of people we have suffering from conditions that may compromise their ability to fight off the infection, we will ask that you keep distance between family groups and wear a mask if you can.

Love y’all!

Larry

The Bartimaeus Blog 2020.17

Bartimaeus Baptist Temple Posted on by

Good morning everyone!  Ok, it may not be morning before you read this, but it’s morning somewhere right?  🙂  According to what I’ve read, we could meet in person if we really wanted to.  I sure do, but I’m also concerned for the welfare of those among us who are less healthy.  We’ve decided to wait at least a couple more weeks.

Last Sunday was great!  we had more participation from membership than we have had since going virtual.  People are figuring out how things work and we’re smoothing out the rough spots.  We are still missing a few, but hopefully they will join today.

We are going to try something a little different this week.  Instead of opening up the Facebook live session right at 2:30, we will use the conference line only until it is time for the message.  This should cut down on the feedback problems we have been having with people trying to be on both the conference line and the Facebook page at the same time or in the same room.  Anyone who doesn’t have the conference line number can contact one of us directly or through the church sites.  If I’m able to limit the audience, I’ll put it in the Facebook event as well, but don’t count on that.

Have you ever felt excluded.  i would be surprised to learn that anyone hasn’t experienced this at some time, but I think it’s safe to say that people with disabilities face it more than most.  The world just isn’t designed for us, even with recent efforts to make accommodation.  Anything that makes one different can be a cause of too much or too little attention.  How much deeper does the pain go if you think that God excludes you too.

Sadly, some churches can make us feel this way.  It’s not just the garden-variety discrimination we’ve come to expect.  We’re told that we are the way we are because we don’t have enough faith.  we become targets for those who are convinced they can fix us and then told it’s our fault when it doesn’t work.  I’d much prefer that you ignore me.  Thank you.

Churches are never going to be perfect.  They are full of people after all.  But what are we to do when even God seems to reject us?  Many people have stumbled over a verse from Leviticus 21:21 forbidding any priest with a defect from offering sacrifices to Yahweh.  I’ll confess, it bothered me too.  I guess I have to admit it still stings a little, even though I have a better understanding now.  What I want to share with you is how God led me to that understanding and showed me a truth that I will cherish for the rest of my life.  It came from a simple verse in Matthew 21:14 which says, “And the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them.”  What a picture of redemption!  Jesus would soon complete that redemption with Himself the perfect high priest and the perfect sacrifice.  We’re all born defective.  Whatever our physical condition, we have a fatal condition called sin.  Jesus is the only cure.  We may have to wait for glory, but  our bodies will eventually be restored.  Of far greater importance is the restoration of our hearts.  You are not excluded.  You are loved!  Jesus illustrated this by letting those into the temple who were normally kept out and healing them.  There’s much more to say about this and I hope you’ll be able to join us for the complete message.

Love y’all!

Larry

The Bartimaeus Blog 2020.16

Bartimaeus Baptist Temple Posted on by

Blessings to you, loved ones.  I am sitting here working out how long it has been since we have been together.  If I’m counting right, this will be week five.  I pray that everyone is holding up alright.  I’m glad that we are hearing that things are going to start returning to normal.  I’m so thankful for the technology that has allowed us to maintain some level of contact, but there is just no substitute for in-person community.  Even so, we can take the new tools we have used of necessity and employ them going forward when that face-to-face contact just isn’t possible.  I don’t know yet when we will meet again in our building, but it shouldn’t be too much longer.  This is one time when our small numbers will work to our benefit.

Last week, we talked about the hope we have because Jesus rose from the dead.  It is every bit as essential to the gospel message as His death on that cross.  In the resurrection we have hope of salvation.  We can know that He is working everything together for our good.  We anticipate the day when these broken-down bodies get replaced by new ones.  We can look forward to an eternity spent with our loving creator.

But what happens while we’re here?  I think the Lord has a message for us today from Acts 1:6-11.  Here, Luke gives us an account of what happened just as Jesus was taken up into Heaven.  Imagine being one of the disciples on that day.  You’ve already seen so many amazing Miracles that you can’t remember them all, and most amazing of all is the man you know was tortured and crucified just over 40 days ago is standing in front of you.  There’s no doubt anymore of who He is.  You think you understand it all now, and wonder if now is the time for Him to finish what He started and restore your nation, something you’ve hoped for all your life.

But not so fast!  When asked, Jesus says in effect, “none of your business.”  “There’s more for you to do, and I’m going to give you the power through the Holy Spirit to do it.”  Then, up He goes!  We’re told that the disciples stood there looking into the sky.  no doubt they were awestruck at what they had just seen, but I think they might have been wondering, “What now?”  Their leader has been taken from them.  The Holy Spirit is coming, but they don’t yet understand what that means.  So, there they stand, staring up at the point where they last saw him disappear into a cloud.  How long that lasted we don’t know, but it would seen not long before the angels made an appearance.  They had just one question, “why do you stand looking into the sky?”  Jesus already promised He would be back.  Meanwhile, the disciples had a mission to complete.

When things get tough, we have a tendency to look back longingly at the way things used to be.  When something is lost that we think we can’t live without, we can focus on that thing to the exclusion of all others, missing out on the life still going on around us.  Now I get that this is not a very good analogy when it comes to Jesus.  After all, we really can’t live without him, and we don’t have to.  We have the Holy Spirit.  But God was doing something bigger than they could ever have imagined, and Jesus’s  temporary departure was part of the plan.  I’m sure I’d be right there with them.  After all, they were in the presence of the risen Lord!  They had given up everything to follow Him.  He had been their teacher and their friend.  This had to be a difficult transition for them.  So God sent the angels to remind them that He would be back and to prod them on to the next phase of His grand plan.  They obeyed, they prayed, the Holy Spirit came, and the world was changed forever!

All of us right now can probably look back on times that seemed better.  We had our health.  WE had more money.  Our loved ones were still with us.  Our relationship with god seemed stronger.  We could buy toilet paper.  🙂  But let’s not stand here staring off at what once was.  Let us instead embrace what is.  Let us continue to seek the Lord, learn to hear His voice, and do what He has told us.  I believe that great revival is possible, if we His people will only humble ourselves and pray, turn from our sins, and seek His face.

I hope you can join us today for our virtual service.  We’ll be live on Facebook and we will have the conference line open for those who would like to interact more easily during prayer and fellowship times.  If you don’t have the number, contact us and we will share it with you.  Here are some tips for making the call go more smoothly.  At the beginning and end of the call, all lines will be open, but it is still best to keep your line muted unless you want to talk.  this reduces background noise and interference for others on the line.  *6 mutes or unmutes your line, or just use the function on your phone or headset.  If you want to watch on Facebook while on the call, turn your device volume down to prevent the delayed echo from feeding back to the call.  Speakerphones can also cause the problem with echo, so keep them muted unless you are talking.

Talk to you soon.  Love y’all!

Larry

Praise and Prayer Requests from Sunday Service of April 12

Bartimaeus Baptist Temple Posted on by

Rejoice with us and pray with us.

The Terrells had a good week.  I have been encouraged this week as I think about the good that God is doing.  Priscilla celebrates her spiritual birthday today.  Debra’s mom is doing better.

Pray for Kimi.  They think the issue is with her gall bladder and the doctor is supposed to contact them tomorrow.  Pray for all of those in our body facing health challenges.  Pray for Lois Marie, Cathy’s cousin in Georgia.  Her cancer hasn’t grown, but hasn’t shrunk either the docs want to wait 3-4 months then check on her again. There will be o treatment until then.  Pray for the Sarah McClellend family, another cousin in GA who lost her husband last weekend.  Pray for the Riggs family.  A lady Cathy worked with lost her life suddenly last Thursday.  Keep Jerry Gibson in your prayers.

Pray for each other and stay in touch this week!

Larry

The Bartimaeus Blog 2020.15

Bartimaeus Baptist Temple Posted on by

Happy Resurrection Day, friends and family.  My prayer this week is that we can find joy in the hope that comes from knowing that our Lord lives, and that soon He will make all things new.  We may all be separated in our homes, but we will be together in spirit as we join in celebration tomorrow.

I enjoyed hearing from a few more of our regulars last Sunday.  I an looking forward to hearing your voices again tomorrow.  We’ll keep the same format that we have had the last couple of weeks.  I hope you can stick around and chat after we’re done.  Contact us if you want the dial-in information.

Here are some tips for making the call go more smoothly.  At the beginning and end of the call, all lines will be open, but it is still best to keep your line muted unless you want to talk.  this reduces background noise and interference for others on the line.  *6 mutes or unmutes your line, or just use the function on your phone or headset.  If you want to watch on Facebook while on the call, turn your device volume down to prevent the delayed echo from feeding back to the call.  Speakerphones can also cause the problem with echo, so keep them muted unless speaking.

I encourage you to take a few extra minutes tomorrow to reflect on what it means that He died for you and rose from that grave.  One way to do this could be to have a communion service with the members of your household.  You don’t need anything special.  any food and drink elements will do.  It’s all about your heart.

All this week I have been thinking about our present situation, and the significance of what we celebrate this Sunday.  It’s going to  be very different than what we’re used to.  Churches are usually fuller than usual as those who do not attend regularly want to come for this day.  This year, the buildings will largely remain empty.  There will be no pageants, no fancy clothes, and children’s activities will be much smaller in scope.  Yet our hope is not diminished.

The whole of the gospel message hinges on the truth of the resurrection.  Without it, there is no hope.  Without it, we have believed a lie.  But we know that He is risen!  This is the source of our hope.  With this hope we can rejoice even when our circumstances give us every reason to despair.  With this hope we know that God is going to work everything out for our good.  With this hope we look forward to the day when our bodies are changed and sickness and disability is no more.  With this hope, we eagerly anticipate the day when Jesus returns to set the world right and we will join Him for eternity.

I also think there is reason to hope in our current circumstance.  I believe the God is going to bring much good from this evil virus as well as the evil done under its cover.  Families are spending time together.  Parents are finding out what their children are learning.  We’ve had much of the time wasting inanities our society provides stripped away, leaving us time to contemplate what really matters.  We are faced with our mortality and economic hardship.  These things tend to make us look for answers.  As followers of Jesus, we have those answers.

Across this land, God’s people have been praying for revival.  Consider the meaning of that word.  It’s root means life.  To revive is to return life.  In other words, a resurrection.  I believe we could be on the cusp of the spiritual revival that we’ve all been asking for.  Let us be ready when the call comes.  Declare with boldness tomorrow and forever, He is Risen!

Join us tomorrow at 2:30 on Facebook or on the phone.

Love y’all!

Larry