THE NORTHERN KENTUCKY SEARCHER
"Search the scriptures: for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. " (John 5:39)

VOLUME 1, NUMBER 2, FEBRUARY 11, 2001

IT MADE ME TREMBLE

             I want to tell you about an event that happened nine years ago, yet if I close my eyes and think about it, I can still see it as plain as day.  My daughter Rachel was going to have a slumber party at our house in Louisville, and since the prospect of a house full of little girls giggling till all hours of the night did not appeal to me, Adam and I made the trip to the country.  “The country” for us is Rockcastle County where Vicky’s parents live.  

            No sooner had Adam and I arrived when we were given the opportunity to participate in something that I had never done before – we were going to burn a field.  Being from the city and having not one drop of country blood in me, that seemed a peculiar thing to do.  But they were all excited about it, so I thought I’d go ahead and give it a try.  

            When we put the first torch to that field, darkness was just beginning to fall.  All around the perimeter of that field, small fires were set, and with ever-increasing speed the small fires joined with one another until there was one continuous circle of flame all racing toward the center of that field.  After valiantly doing my duty of seeing to it that the fire didn’t “git out” and burn up the “knob”, Adam and I walked to a corner away from the fire and stood there to watch.  By now darkness had completely fallen, and standing there looking in a pattern of 180 degrees, all we could see were the flames of that fire licking up against the darkened sky.  It was a memorable sight and as it turned out, both of us were thinking the same thing – this must be what hell looks like.

            As I stood there watching the flames, various thoughts came to my mind.  For instance, “Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devils and his angels.” (Matt. 25:41)  Also, “And if thy hand offend thee, cut if off; it is better to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell into the fire that never shall be quenched: where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched….And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire: where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.” (Mk. 9:44-48)

             I am not sure if the fire in hell will be a literal fire or if that is a device used by our Lord to illustrate the pain to be suffered eternally there.  Personally, I lean toward a literal fire.  However, whatever it will be, watching the fire that night just reminded me once again how much I don’t want to go there.  I am a Christian because I love the Lord and want desperately to go to heaven when I die.  I am also a Christian because I don’t want to go to hell.  

            There is one other thought going through my mind as I write these words and think back to that evening – all the while the fire was burning, I was keeping one eye on Adam.  When I occasionally lost sight of him, my first thought was, “Where’s Adam?”  At the time he was a young fellow, naturally curious, and he wanted to get as close to the fire as he could.  It was my job, as his father, to keep him safe.  

            When our children are in our care, it is our job to keep them safe from hell-fire as well.  Children are young, naturally curious, and as they grow there are going to be times when they are going to want to get as close “to the fire” as they can.  Those of us who are parents must steer our children away from the “fire that is not quenched” even more diligently than we would steer them away from a burning field.  We will do all we can to keep our children away from an earthly fire – what about the fire that no amount of water can put out?

g.l.

“WE WILL DO THEE GOOD”  

            After spending almost an entire year at Mount Sinai , the children of Israel were preparing to embark on what they believed would be the final leg of their journey to the Promised Land.  Before leaving, Moses made the following request of his brother-in-law, Hobab.  It is found in Numbers 10:29 , “And Moses said unto Hobab, the son of Raguel the Midianite (another name for Jethro g.l.), Moses’ father-in-law,  We are journeying unto the place of which the Lord said, I will give it you: come thou with us, and we will do thee good: for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel .”

            This is perhaps my favorite statement made by Moses in the whole time of the exodus from Egypt and the time of preparation at Sinai.  It has an evangelistic feeling to it, a heartfelt desire that this Gentile would share in the marvelous blessings that Moses knew God had in store for His people.  The parallels to our situation today are many and instructive.

            First, the children of Israel were in the midst of their journey, they had not completed it yet.  Egypt had not been their home, the Sinai Peninsula was not their home.  They were on their way to the Promised Land.  So are we!  We sing a song from time to time, the first verse of which says;

            “This world is not my home, I’m just a passing thru, My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue; The angels beckon me from heaven’s open door, and I can’t feel at home in this world anymore.”

            Just like the patriarchs of old, we confess that we are “strangers and pilgrims on this earth” we look “for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God”.  (Heb. 11:13 & 10)

            Secondly, Moses was asking his brother-in-law to accompany Israel , the chosen people of God, to the Promised Land.  He was asking him to share in their blessings.   Brethren, we are the chosen people of God today, we are true spiritual Israel .  In Rom. 2:28 & 29, Paul wrote, “For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:  29 – But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.”  In Gal. 6:15 & 16, Paul made the same point.  It says, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.  And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.” 

            In Ephesians 1:3, we are taught that all spiritual blessings are to be found “in Christ”.  The only people who are “in Christ” are those who have been “baptized into Christ” (Gal. 3:27 ), and those who have been “baptized into Christ” have been added by the Lord to the church. (Acts 2:47 )  If people want to share in the blessings that God has prepared for His people, they must be part of His people, part of the church of Christ .

            Thirdly, Moses said, “Come thou with us, and we will do thee good.”   If we were to continue on in Numbers 10, we would find that Moses understood that any good they could do for Hobab would be because of the good that God did for them.  God had spoken good concerning Israel , and Moses so wanted Hobab to experience that goodness.

            You and I, as true spiritual Israel , need to offer the same invitation to all that we come in contact with.  “Come thou with us, and we will do thee good.”  Of course, we recognize as well that the good we can do for those who are lost is possible because of the good God has done for us.   We can and must give people the great invitation of the Lord Jesus Christ.  We must tell them of the salvation that is available through the blood of the Son of God.  We must open our hearts and our mouths.