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P a g e 4 ...T h e P ortlan d ()b se r v e r...N o v e m b e r 6,1991
I Portland O bserver
Scripture o f the ‘Weet
RELIGION
S t. P a u l B a p t i s t C h u r c h
p r e s e n ts
TRACEY CAREY
IN CONCERT
C h r i s t i a n P r e a c h e r Is U n j u s t l y A c c u s e d
Love m ust be sincere. Hate
w hat is evil; clin g to w hat
is good. Be d e v o te d to one
another in brotherly love.
H onor one an o th er above
yourselves. N ever be lack
ing in zeal, but keep your
spiritual fervor, serving the
Lord. Be jo y fu l in hope,
patient in afflictio n , faith
ful in prayer. Share w ith
G o d 's people w ho are in
need. P ractice hospitality.
Ko m a n s 12: 9-13
BY MICHAEL LINDSEY
Dean of North Portland Bible College
the text for Sunday School lesson
(International Series) for next Sunday
is Acts 21:26-39. We encourage our
readers to take their children to Sunday
School this weekend make it a family
affair!
There’s only
one way to
come out ahead
of the pack.
A c c o m p a n i e d b y St. P a u l M a s s C h o i r
& s p e c ia l g u e s ts
Tracey w ill be singing ail
y o u r old favorites & m ore
Com e Jo in us For A Spiritual Renew al in Song.
Saturday, N ovem ber 9, 1991 7:00pm
8101 N. Fiske Street
Rev. Jam es C.E. Faulkner Pastor
* G ospl . i \ l . l .S.l.C. P r o b i i n o s»
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C lü is tm ö s
C c fe b -ïû U o n
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T he " P r in c e ” o f G ospel
John P. Kee
And
T he N ew L ife C o m m u n ity C h o ir
&
Romans 12:9-13
A m erican Heart
Association
Som etim es you just can ’t help it;
no matter what you do, somebody is
going io accuse you o f being a hypo
crite, or a sinner, or an undesirable
person. For Paul, the Jewish apostle of
Jesus C hrist to the G entiles, such m is
understandings were alm ost normal.
He was hauled before courts and riot
ous crow ds in Philippi, Corinth, and
Ephesus (ut least), and went through all
sorts of trials and suffering (2 Cor 11:24-
27).
In this lesson Scripture, we would
hope that the church of Jerusalem would
understand Paul a little belter. After all,
this time Paul was leading a delegation
from the various churches of the Aegean
Sea area, and together they were bring
ing a sizable offering to relieve the
suffering o f the believers in Jerusalem.
They did receive Paul and company
gladly (Acts 21:17), and were particu
larly blessed with the reports o f G en
tiles com ing to Jesus C hrist in large
numbers (v.20).
However, there was one report that
really concerned the Jerusalem church.
Jews were reporting that Paul was teach
ing the circum cize their own sons. In
other words, Paul was made out to be a
renegade, a destroyer o f his own Jewish
heritage, the worst kind of ungodly
man. This Ls the same charge laid against
Jewish Christians, or “ Messianic Jews,”
to this day.
At the church’s suggestion, Paul
dem onstrated his continued respect for
Judaism by participating in a ceremony
unseen Creator could be misunderstood-
-or even perverted on purpose? Through
out church history, Christians have been
attacked unfairly. O ne only needs to
read the Q aran’s statem ents about the
Christian church to understand how
millions of Moslems have com e to re
ject our faith w ithout exam ining the
New Testament for themselves.
T oday,C hristiansarecharacterized
as narrow-minded bigots (we believe
there’s only one way to a personal rela
tionship with God). W e’re called unsci
entific fools (for believing there is more
to life than what people can measure
and study). W e’re told that Christians
d o n ’t deal with reality (we believe in
helping people even whe there’s noth
ing in it for us). The persecution hasn’t
yet com e to beatings and prison, but we
do n ’t know when it might. And m ean
while, our Christians brothers and sis
ters in other lands are facing persecu
tion, deprivation and even death be
cause o f their public stand for their
Lord.
If any o f my readers are not con
vinced o f the validity o f faith in Jesus
Christ, I urge you to read the Bible for
yourself, and judge its contents care
fully, with an open mind. I think you’ll
find the common misunderstanding of
Christianity will simply slip away.
For us who are disciples o f Jesus,
Paul’s example gives us clear direction.
W e m ust not lose heart when we are
unfairly accused o f wrongdoing. God is
our Judge, and he is also our Defender.
How can we do better than that? And we
don’t need to lower ourselves to decep
tion, or nam e-calling, to attack the
unbelievers’ views. Our calm confidence
in Christ is often our best defense.
For further reading, I suggest: Church
History in Plain Language, by Bruce L.
Shelley (Dallas: W ord, 1982).
in the Temple, involving a vow of
purification for several Jew $h “ broth
ers.” He was not making these reli
gious rites a condition of salvation or
fellowship; he was simply conforming
to the Jewish way of honoring the Lord
in worship.
So that’s why Paul was in the Temple
in Jerusalem when he was spotted by
some Jew s from Asia (v.27). They as
sumed that Paul had to be violating
Jewish law, by bringing a Gentile named
Trophimus into the Temple (v.29). That
was an offense which brought an
immediate death p cnally-and even the
Romans would not stand in the way of
execution in a case o f violation of the
sacred place. The Jews from Asia hated
Paul, and were quick to spread the
worst possible slander about him. And
before it was over, Paul was a prisoner,
scarcely escaping death at the hands of
a mob.
It is really not hat unusual for a
Christian to be misunderstood, and
m isrepresented, for the cause o f Christ.
The early church faced several false
charges, and as a result mobs and po
litical leaders across the Roman Em
pire martyred hundreds o f Christians.
Historians tell us Christians were ac
cused of immorality, o f cannabalism ,
and of atheism! They were called
immoral, because they were secretive
about their meetings, and greeted one
another ‘‘with a holy kiss.” They were
accused of cannabalism , because in
their secret cerem onies they said they
ate someone’s body and drank his blood.
They “ had” to be atheists, for they did
not worship gods you could see—and
worse yet, they w ouldn’t worship the
emperor, even as a symbol o f loyalty to
the Empire.
Do you see how our ethic of love,
our L ord’s Supper, and our faith in the
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(503) 287-0261
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Mollery Avenue
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P ow er through J esu s Christ in
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"Come to m e all you w h o are
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Them e: W h atever you're going to do
fo r th e Lord, do it n o w
5211 N. W illia m s P o rtla n d , O r. 97217
■ r a
Study Phone: 2 8 9 -1 9 1 1
Pastor. Rev James CE. Faulkner
503/281-2836
D e n ise P Bell. P ostor
Inter-racial C o n g re g a tio n
8101 N. Fiske Avenue
Portland, Oregon 97203
Family Owned and Operated
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Serving the City of Portland
for over 37 years
In xtour hour of need
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