Paul Takes the Stand.

This story deals with a rather old fashioned lady, who was planning a couple of weeks vacation in Florida. She also was quite delicate and elegant with her language. She wrote a letter to a particular campground and asked for reservations. She wanted to make sure the campground was fully equipped but didn't know quite how to ask about the "toilet" facilities. She just couldn't bring herself to write the word "toilet" in her letter. After much deliberation, she finally came up with the old fashioned term "Bathroom Commode," but when she wrote that down, she still thought she was being too forward. So she started all over again; rewrote the entire letter and referred to the Bathroom Commode" simply as the "B.C.". Does the campground have its own "B.C.?" is what she actually wrote.

Well, the campground owner wasn't old fashioned at all, and when he got the letter, he couldn't figure out what the lady was talking about. That "B.C." really stumped him. After worrying about it for several days, he showed the letter to other campers, but they couldn't figure out what the lady meant either. The campground owner finally came to the conclusion that the lady was and must be asking about the location of the local Baptist Church. So he sat down and wrote the following reply:

"Dear Madam: I regret very much the delay in answering your letter, but I now take pleasure of informing in that the "B.C." is located nine miles north of the camp site and is capable of seating 250 people at one time. I admit it is quite a distance away if you are in the habit of going regularly but no doubt you will be pleased to know that a great number of people take their lunches along, and make a day of it..... They usually arrive early and stay late. The last time my wife and I went was six years ago, and it was so crowded we had to stand up the whole time we were there. It may interest you to know that right now, there is a supper planned to raise money to buy more seats.....They plan to hold the supper in the middle of the B.C., so everyone can watch and talk about this great event.....I would like to say it pains me very much, not to be able to go more regularly, but it is surely not for lack of desire on my part....As we grow older, it seems to be more and more of an effort, particularly in cold weather..... If you decide to come down to the campground, perhaps I could go with you the first time you go...sit with you...and introduce you to all the other folks..... This is really a very friendly community.....

Galatians 1:11- 2:1-10

He begins by pointing out in verses 11-12 that the gospel he preached came from Jesus Himself:

"..the gospel I preached is not something man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ." Most of us cannot make this same claim; we received the gospel from and were taught by men, though we may have received pieces of truth directly from the Holy Spirit.

At the deepest level, however, we stand alongside Paul: when we preach the gospel to our friends,

they must by an act of faith believe that what we are saying is true, just as we must make a choice to believe that Paul is telling the truth when he says that he received the gospel from Jesus Himself. We weren't there; we can't know for sure; but we choose to accept it as truth.

"modern science could not have developed without the belief that the universe is rational and knowable even though we can't actually prove that this is true."

The second lesson we can learn from this passage is that there is power in our own testimonies. Paul tells his story in verses 11-18, and it illustrates several points.

First, Paul's basic personality was the same before and after his conversion. His values changed as he grew in the character and nature of Christ, but he remained as zealous and passionate as ever. Maturing in Christ does not mean annihilating who we are; rather, it is just the opposite. As we grow in Christ, we become more of the person we were created to be when hidden gifts and capabilities are drawn out.

Second, several years passed between God's call to Paul and Paul's release into ministry. During

this time, Paul was being mentored by the Holy Spirit so that his life would demonstrate the fruit he would challenge others to exhibit. Many modern-day Christians are frustrated and begin to doubt their call when their release into ministry does not immediately follow the call. We would do well to follow Paul's example and make the most of our time of preparation.

"the agony of the call, the agony of the

wait, and the agony of the doing"?

--Chuck Swindoll says, in his book, Improving Your Serve:

"To make the value of obedience just a practical as possible, let's play 'Let's

Pretend.' Let's pretend that you work for me. In fact, you are my executive

assistant in a company that is growing rapidly. I'm the owner and I'm

interested in expanding overseas. To pull this off, I make plans to travel

abroad and stay there until a new branch office gets established. I make all the

arrangements to take my family and move to Europe for six to eight months.

And I leave you in charge of the busy stateside organization. I tell you that I

will write you regularly and give you directions and instructions. I leave and

you stay.

Months pass. A flow of letters are mailed from Europe and received by you

at the national headquarters. I spell out all my expectations.

Finally, I return. Soon after my arrival, I drive down to the office and I am

stunned. Grass and weeds have grown up high. A few windows along the

street are broken. I walk into the Receptionist's room. She is doing her nails,

chewing gum and listening to her favorite disco station. I look around and

notice the wastebaskets are overflowing. The carpet hasn't been vacuumed

for weeks, and nobody seems concerned that the owner has returned. I

asked about your whereabouts and someone in the crowded lounge area

points down the hall and yells, "I think he's down there." Disturbed, I move in

that direction and bump into you as you are finishing a chess game with our sales manager.

I ask you to step into my office, which has been temporarily

turned into a television room for watching afternoon soap operas. "What in the world is going on, man?"

"What do you mean, Chuck?"

"Well, look at this place! Didn't you get any of my letters?"

"Letters? Oh yes! Sure! I got every one of them. As a matter of fact, Chuck,

we have had a letter study every Friday night since you left. We have even

divided the personnel into small groups to discuss many of the things you

wrote. Some of the things were really interesting. You will be pleased to

know that a few of us have actually committed to memory some of your

sentences and paragraphs. One or two memorized an entire letter or two -

Great stuff in those letters."

"OK. You got my letters. You studied them and meditated on them;

discussed and even memorized them. But what did you do about them?"

"Do? We didn't do anything about them."

The biggest lesson from Paul's testimony is that we do not need to be afraid to tell our story. Even if our conversion was not as dramatic as Paul's, it was, nevertheless, supernatural and significant, and it will always be one of our most powerful tools in witnessing; how has the God of the universe interacted with your life to change and empower you?

The final lesson from this passage is that God wants us to be connected.

If You Want to Kill the Church

Never go to your church or meetings held there,

If you do go, be late, it's no one's affair.

If the weather is bad, either too hot or snowing,

Just stay home and rest, for there'll be others going.

But should you attend, be sure and remember

To find fault with the work, each official and member.

Be sure to hold back on your offerings and tithes,

The bills will be paid by the rest of the guys.

And never take office if offered the post,

But eagerly criticize work of the host.

If not on a committee you're placed, be sore!

If you find that you are, don't attend any more.

When asked your opinion on this thing or that,

Have nothing to say, just turn 'em down flat.

Then after the meeting, shine out like the sun

By telling the folks how it should have been done.

Don't do any more than you possibly can,

Leave the work for some other woman or man.

And when you see faithful ones work themselves sick,

Then stand up and holler, "It's run by a clique!"

In 2:1-10, Paul deals with his relationship with the other 12 apostles. Although he has not spent significant amounts of time with them, they have recognized and blessed God's anointing in Paul's ministry. He says this for two reasons: first, it corroborates the fact that he really did receive his gospel from Christ (since it is so consistent with the teaching of those who spent time with the earthly Jesus), and second, it affirms his connection to the rest of the body of Christ. Paul is not a lone ranger charging off on his own; he has the backing of the recognized leaders of the church.

Football in the fall. Basketball in the winter. Baseball in the

spring and summer. This pastor has been an avid sports fan all

his life.

But I've had it! I quit this sports business once and for all.

You can't get me near one of those places again.

Want to know why...

Every time I went, they asked me for money.

The people with whom I had to sit didn't seem very friendly.

The seats were too hard and not at all comfortable.

I went to many games, but the coach never came to call on me.

The referee made a decision with which I could not agree.

I suspected that I was sitting with some hypocrites -- they came

to see their friends and what others were wearing rather than to

see the game.

Some games went into overtime, and I was late getting home.

The band played some numbers that I had never heard before.

It seems that the games are scheduled when I want to do other

things.

I was taken to too many games by my parents when I was growing

up.

I don't want to take my children to any games, because I want

them to choose for themselves what sport they like best.