Monday Morning Scattershooting

Monday Morning Scattershooting while wondering if Plato says that the unexamined life is not worth living, what if the examined life turns out to be a clunker as well?

    I happen to like comic books.  And yes from time to time I have been known to slip a comic book quote in my lessons.  So don’t think too low of me when I tell you one of my principals of ministry comes from Batman.  When Batman is asked to be part of the Justice League he agrees on one condition, “Gotham comes first”.  Now being that the Justice League deals with worldwide crisis and Gotham is in the world so one could argue that he could be doing things with the Justice League all the time and still be taking care of Gotham, but that isn't what he meant.  

  “Gotham comes 1^st” means that his primary role is Gotham’s protector and he won’t let other thing keep him from that role no matter how important.  I try to keep a “Gotham comes 1^st mentality in regards to my home congregation.  There are lots of good works that I as a preacher can be involved in.  I will try to be a help to them as long as “Gotham comes 1^st”.  Many preachers get so involved in other things (gospel meeting work, writing, boards, higher education, etc…) that they neglect the work at home.  Do those things but make sure that your primary responsibilities are taken care of.  You can’t fulfill your ministry in absentia. 

    I often times hear people justify the baptism of very young person by saying if they have doubts later they can just get re-baptized. There is no such thing as re-baptism. Either you were baptized according to scripture with the pledge of a good conscience towards God, or you just got wet with no spiritual consequences. We are not doing our young people any favors by giving them reason to doubt their conversion. 

   If a young person desires to be baptized, I ask them to fill out a question and answer book on the subject. If they can’t commitment to a little homework, how can they then make a lifelong commitment to Christ? Then I try to ask them question that are not the ones they are used to. If a kid has set through services for ten years, there is a good chance they can tell you all about the steps of salvation. But they need to know more than just repeated phrases.  Rob Whitacre tells the following story to show that difference:

 “Johnny,” said the preacher, “I want you to listen to this story very carefully.”

Let’s say you, a baby, and I took a car ride together. During our trip there was a terrible accident and we all died. Where do you think the baby would go and why? Where do you think I would go and why? Where do you think you would go and why?

Each of these questions are designed to make an application of sin and salvation as taught in the Word of God. These questions about Johnny make it personal. Anyone can repeat facts, but only when one understands the facts, can one answer those questions correctly.

  Only if the child has a complete understanding of the decision they are making, do I baptize them. After I do, I ask them to write themselves a letter explaining to themselves the exact reason why they made this choice. I tell them to be completely honest and I will never look at the letter. I will seal it up and keep it filled away. If they ever have any doubts, I will send it to them so they can read exactly what they were thinking.  I've seen many a kid anguish over their salvation because they look back unsure of the commitment they made. This can help them know what they were thinking.

    Finally, a man is sitting on a bench next to a dog in the grass, when a younger man walks by and asks him if his dog bites.  The man says, “"No, my dog never bites anyone."  The younger man reaches down to pet the dog, when all of a sudden; the dog lashes out and bites his hand. "Ow! What the wrong with you, screams the younger man, "You said your dog didn't bite!".  The man responded, "...That's not my dog."