All Things to All
People
By looking at the words of the Bible in their Greek or Latin context it will be easy to see that almost ALL of the world will always be involved with that which is anti-christian and destructive of morality and manhood. The remnant concept from the flood onward proves that "many are called but few are chosen." Holy Convocation is h4744 Miqra.
4397. malak, mal-awk´; from an unused root meaning to despatch as a deputy; a messenger; specifically, of God, i.e. an angel (also a prophet, priest or teacher):—ambassador, angel, king, messenger.
Therefore, you simply cannot attract those who are seekers after any kind of performance such as that of the Scribes and Pharisees whom Jesus called hypocrites by pointing to speakers, singers and instrument players.
Trying to be like the world to attract the worldly will assuredly work: it will not attract those of faith or of the truth. This, like all ceremonial legalism to disable the "school of the Bible" is likewise pagan and of the flesh:Plato Georg [513a] and so therefore now, whether it is your duty to make yourself as like as possible to the Athenian people, if you intend to win its affection and have great influence in the city: see if this is to your advantage and mine, so that we may not suffer, my distinguished friend, the fate that they say befalls the creatures who would draw down the moon--the hags of Thessaly; [note] that our choice of this power in the city may not cost us all that we hold most dear. But if
you suppose that anyone in the world can transmit to you such an art as will cause you
[513b] to have great power in this state without conforming to its government either for better or for worse,
in my opinion you are ill-advised,Plat. Gorg. 513b to have great power in this state without conforming to its government either for better or for worse, in my opinion you are ill-advised, Callicles; for you must be no mere imitator, but essentially like them, if you mean to achieve any genuine sort of friendship with Demus the Athenian people, ay, and I dare swear, with Demus son of Pyrilampes as well. So whoever can render you most like them is the person to make you a statesman in the way that you desire to be a statesman, and a rhetorician;[note] Socrates alludes to the popular theory that the practice of witchcraft is a serious danger or utter destruction to the practicer.
Commentary: Tas Thettalidas: the Thessalian women were very skilful in sorcery and poisoning. They stood in close relation to the night-goddess Hecate; hence people ascribed to them the power to draw the moon from the heavens. Strepsiades says in Ar. Nub. 749 gunaika pharmakid' ei priamenos Thettalēn | katheloimi nuktōr tēn selēnēn kthe. Cf. Hor. Epod. 5. 45 quae sidera excantata voce Thessala | lunamque caelo deripit. For this, however, the goddess exacted punishment, for Suidas says hai tēn selēnēn kathairousai Thettalides legontai tōn ophthalmōn kai tōn paidōn (v. l. podōn) steriskesthai. eirētai epi tōn heautois ta kaka epispōmenōn hē paroimia. Cf. also Plin. N. H. XXX. I. 2 (6). Aristophanes' designation of them under the name pharmakis, while it implies that their art consisted in the manipulation of drugs, does not limit us to that view, because Herodotus, vii. 114, uses the verb pharmakeuein in speaking of the sacrifice of white horses by the Magi to the river Strymon.
Rev. 18:21 And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.
Rev. 18:22 And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee;
Rev. 18:23 And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.
G5331 pharmakeia far-mak-i'-ah From G5332 ; medication (“pharmacy”), that is, (by extension) magic (literal or figurative):—sorcery, witchcraft.
Rev. 18:24 And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.
| Pythian
1
For
Hieron of Aetna Chariot Race 470 B. C. [1] Golden lyre, rightful joint possession of Apollo and the violet-haired Muses, to which the dance-step listens, the beginning [sema] of splendid festivity; and singers obey your notes, whenever, with your quivering strings, you prepare to strike up chorus-leading preludes. The Phorminx was the instrument of Apollo or Apollon |
|
| FIRST MARK: The
sounds of Apollyon's lyre and muses--dirty
adulteresses. The Phorminx was the instrument of Apollo or Apollon anti-psallô , A.play a stringed instrument in accompaniment of song, a. elegoisphormingaAr.Av.218 . Aristophanes, Birds Chase
off drowsy sleep, dear companion. Iliad 1. So he spoke, and
the goddess, white-armed Hera, smiled,
Elelizô1
[epic lengthd. form of helissô] I. to whirl
round, Od. 3. generally, to make to tremble or
quake, id=Il.:--Pass. to tremble, quiver, id=Il. II.
Mid. and Pass. to move in coils or spires, of a serpent,
Eleleu eleleu, or doubled
eleleu eleleu, a Alal-azô battle cry nikên alalazein shout the shout of victory, S.Ant.133. 2. generally, cry, shout aloud, Pi.l.c., E.El.855; esp. in orgiastic rites, A.Fr.57; of Bacchus and Bacchae, E.Ba.593 (in Med.), 1133, etc.; ôloluxan hai gunaikes, êlalaxan de hoi andres Hld.3.5 . Dionysus [585] Shake the world's plain, lady Earthquake! Chorus Oh! Oh! Soon the palace of Pentheus will be shaken in ruin. 1 --Dionysus is in the halls. [590] Revere him.--We revere him! --Did you see these stone lintels on the pillars falling apart? Bromius cries out in victory indoors. Dionysus Light the fiery lamp of lightning! [595] Burn, burn Pentheus' home! Chorus Oh! Oh! Do you not see the the fire, do you not perceive, about the sacred tomb of Semele, the flame that Zeus' thunderbolt left? [600] Cast on the ground your trembling bodies, Maenads, cast them down, for our lord, Zeus' son, is coming against this palace, turning everything upside down. II sound loudly, psalmos d' alalazei kumbalon alalazon1 Cor XIII. If I speak with the languages of men and of angels, but don't have love, I have become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal. THIRD MARK: Sema 5. token by which any one's identity or commission was certified, min ereeine kai êitee s. idesthai Il.6.176 , cf. 178; s. lugra, of written characters or symbols, ib.168; mark, token on the lot of Ajax, 7.189; so, device or bearing on a shield, by which a warrior is known, freq. in A.Th., as 387, 404, E.El.456 (lyr.); of the seal set on a box, tônd' apoiseis s. S.Tr.614; mark made by an illiterate person, PMasp.163.37 (vi A.D.). Regularly appears with: kuôn Sêmeion 2. sign from the gods, omen, S.OC94; ta apo tôn theôn ; wonder, portent, LXX Ex.4.8, al.; s. kai terata Plb.3.112.8 , Ev.Matt.24.24, Ev.Jo.4.48, cf. IPEl.c., D.S.17.114; phobêthra kai s. ap' ouranou Ev.Luc.21.11 ; esp. of the constellations, regarded as signs, duetai sêmeia E.Rh.529 (lyr.), cf. Ion 1157.
Polybius 3. 112 both sides were daily taking place, the city was in a state of high excitement and uneasiness; the people dreading the result, owing to the disasters which had now befallen them on more than one occasion; and foreseeing and anticipating in their imaginations what would happen if they were utterly defeated. All the oracles preserved at Rome were in everybody's mouth; and every temple and house was full of prodigies and miracles: in consequence of which the city was one scene of vows, sacrifices, supplicatory processions, and prayers. For the Romans in times of danger take extraordinary pains to appease gods and men, and look upon no ceremony of that kind in such times as unbecoming or beneath their dignity. FOURTH MARK: Sign of disolving the ekklesia or church: Kathair-eô to s. to take it down, strike the flag, as a sign of dissolving an assembly, And.1.36; to tês ekklêsias 3. of sorcerers, bring down from the sky, selênên Ar.Nu.750 , Pl.Grg.513a.
V. less freq. like the simple hairein, take and carry off, Id.6.41, cf.5.36 (Pass.). Cf. kathairô. |
|
| Aiôr-eô: hoti
ton
charaka hairêsousi excited them to think
that, tossed, carried to and fro Charax, of those who trust
in a 'broken reed
Is. 36:6 Lo, thou trustest in the staff of this broken reed, on Egypt; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust in him.
by words, hence, praise, extol, E.Heracl.322, etc.; ai. logôi to exaggerate, D.21.71. Rom 15:1 WE then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Areskos (g700) ar-es'-ko; prob. from 142 (through the idea of exciting emotion); to be agreeable (or by impl. to seek to be so): - please. II. areskos, ho, the staff borne by pornoboskoi [brothel keeper] on the stage, Poll.4.120. Latin: Placeo to please, to be pleasing or agreeable, to be welcome, acceptable, to satisfy (class.). 1. In scenic lang., of players or pieces presented, to please, find favor, give satisfaction: scenico placenti
Airo (h142) ah'ee-ro; a prim. verb; to lift; by impl. to take up or away; fig. to raise (the voice), keep in suspense (the mind); spec. to sail away (i.e. weigh anchor); by Heb. [comp. 5375] to expiate sin: - away with, bear (up), carry, lift up, loose, make to doubt, put away, remove, take (away, up). |
|
| [13] But those whom Zeus
does not love are stunned with terror
when they hear the cry of the Pierian
Muses, on earth or on the
irresistible sea; [hossa de mê pephilêke* Zeus,
atuzontai*
boan] |
|
| Atuzomai distraught from
fear, bewildered, be amazed, distressed, terror or
amaze, shortness of breath. Boê shout, murmur of a crowd, of things, roar of the sea, sound of musical instruments, auloi phorminges, salpingos, |
|
| [15] among them is he who lies in dread Tartarus, that enemy of the gods, Typhon with his hundred heads. Once the famous Cilician cave nurtured him, but now the sea-girt cliffs above Cumae, and Sicily too, lie heavy on his shaggy chest. And the pillar of the sky holds him down, | |
Click For an Index of Rubel Shelly Sermon Reviews.
This sermon has been called to our attention and understanding its errors is important because it is being used as authority to "I will do anything it takes to get new church members."
We will review some of the statements but not the entire sermon. Dr. Shelly begins:
Rubel Shelly: "In her newspaper cartoon space, Nancy was jumping rope in rhythm to this: "One, two, Velcro my shoe; three four, automatic door; five, six, computer chip." Her playmate interrupted her and said, "Nancy, that's not the way the rhyme goes." "I know," she said, "but these things have to be updated from time to time."
Dr. Shelly uses the word "Post Modern" in this sermon which means that the gospel is seven facts about Jesus but "doctrine" is just the interpretation of the apostles who, as Leroy Garrett notes, did not agree. Click for the "updated" gospel.
The full sermon by Dr. Rubel Shelly at Woodmont Hills Family of God may be read by clicking here for the Faith Matters version. However, you are going to miss the first rung of the ladder unless you take time to read the sermon and then read the rest of the story from the Bible.
The proof-text:
Rubel Shelly: "Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings (1 Cor. 9:19-23).
Paul meant that he would do nothing which would offend any person: he did not become a drunk to win the drunks; he did not become like the homosexual to found a homosexual ministry; he did not violate the Sabbath to be like the Gentiles; and he did not worship "like the Jews" in order to win the Jews.
This is clearly absurd: the Christian walk is counter-cultural. It does not win friends or influence people other than those who will hear the gospel call in the evangelists "fishing net." It does not make believers out of music-destroyed music idolaters by providing more Rock music. It does not promote divorce by praise a famous singer. It does not try to win the Jews by making their beyond-redemption experience at Mount Sinai into a pattern for Christian worship and community.
Paul could be like the Jewish clergy and receive a priest's wage. However, Paul said:
But I have used none of these things: neither have I written these things, that it should be so done unto me: for it were better for me to die, than that any man should make my glorying void. 1 Cor 9:15
For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel 1 Cor 9:16
For if I do this thing willingly, I have a reward: but if against my will, a dispensation of the gospel is committed unto me. 1 Cor 9:17
What is my reward then? Verily that, when I preach the gospel, I may make the gospel of Christ without charge, that I abuse not my power in the gospel. 1 Cor 9:18
For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more. 1 Cor 9:19
To use this passage Dr. Rubel Shelly needs to give up his salary and go out as an evangelist who is never, by Paul, authorized more than the daily dole of food and subsistence of the temple servant, priest or soldier. But, I cannot fly high and send the kids to college if I "become as much like Paul as possible." That is fine: you are excused. Jesus cannot use and does not want evangelists who are not willing to devote their lives like Jesus and Paul. Many, many of Dr. Shelly's "audience" cannot send their kids to college.
Dr. Rubel Shelly concludes that:
Rubel Shelly: "First, Paul wanted people to
........... know Christ so badly that he took the initiative to
........... know and be like others as much as possible.
That is what happens when you "proof-text" and forget the "before" and "after" of Paul's message: if you want to win the world you will have to be subservient to all the world. One can be subservient to a drunk without becoming a drunk.
However, Dr. Paul said just the opposite of Dr. Shelly:
And be not conformed to this world: but ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God. Romans 12:2
The ancient Gospel of Thomas' view of Jesus:
56 Jesus said, "Whoever has come to know the world has discovered a carcass,
and whoever has discovered a carcass, of that person the world is not worthy.
To see how the women of Hebrews 11:35 and Jesus refused to be anything like the world knowing that they would suffer Click Here
Many competent preachers have addressed this issue and we quote the following:
"Alfred Martin introduces this section of Scripture with extremely accurate insight when he says,
"This paragraph has been widely misunderstood and misapplied,
as though Paul were endorsing partaking of other men's sins in order to make a good impression on them.""It is a fact that many leaders of today's megachurch growth movement and many leaders of parachurch evangelistic organizations use this portion of Scripture to support their philosophy that
"One must become like the unsaved in order to reach the unsaved for Christ."
"However, Martin emphasizes that instead of embracing this attitude, "Paul was saying that he had tried to work with people on their own level and to give as little offense as possible in order to procure a hearing for the Gospel." Paul certainly did not become a law unto himself, nor did he pretend to act or live like the unsaved in an effort to evangelize them. The issue here concerns the amount of offense inflicted upon those who know not Christ.
Rick Warren of Saddleback Community church says:
"We made a strategic decision to stop singing hymns in our seeker services. (p. 285); We have attracted thousands more because of our music. (p. 285); Saddleback now has a complete pop/rock orchestra. (p. 290); Use more performed music than congregational singing ... (p. 291) (emphasis on entertainment); The ground we have in common with unbelievers is not the Bible, but our common needs, hurts, and interests as human beings. You cannot start with a text ... (p. 295); Make your members feel special ... they need to feel special. (p. 320,323)
The object is not to "know and be like others as much as possible" but to preach the gospel with absolutely no compromise but without deliberately doing things he would know in advance would offend everyone in his "old" religion and "sow discord among brethren."
The preaching task must give as little offense as possible by adding rituals to "enhance" the power of the Spirit Christ. A "musical worshipt team" for instance, to lead people into the presence of God would deliberately practice "the idolatry of talent" and not be "all things" to spiritually-minded people.
"The late Dr. Charles R. Erdman, professor of practical theology at Princeton Theological Seminary at the turn of the century, also refutes the evangelism philosophies of modern day pastors, evangelists and church growth experts in his exposition of First Corinthians. Apparently, even in Erdman's day, Christian leaders were quoting the apostle
Paul's statement "I am become all things to all men" and using such scripture to support their questionable evangelism techniques.
Erdman says, "By this phrase Paul means exactly the opposite of what it means in common speech today. He does not signify any weak compliance with the wrong actions and immoral practices of others.
He is not approving the maxim: 'When in Rome do as the Romans do.'"
No, Paul knew that to be a friend of the world is to be an enemy of God. He knew that God is holy, His Word is holy and that all believers are to be holy and separated from the world unto the Gospel of Jesus Christ. FOUNDATION Magazine
Nevertheless, Dr. Rubel Shelly at Woodmont Hills Family of God (in black) preaches and promotes this opposite view and less-pragmatic "pastors" use the Biblical reversal to use questionable means to introduce questionable "worship" practices.
By doing an exactly opposite interpretation the conclusion is that that one needs to spend the Lord's money and sow discord among brethren in order to provide a venue for Rock, Rap, Country Music, Contemporary Christian Music (an oxymoron). One may even model sharing pulpit with an AIDS afflicted preacher and proposing ministering to prostitutes.
The defense, in the interest of church growth, is that we "must become all things to all men."
But the interpretation is the exact opposite of what Paul (who might have been confused in the new Post Modern theology).
And that interpretation has to even cut verses in half.
Rubel Shelly: "Many churches in America are either dead or dying because they don't know what Nancy knows. They either aren't aware that we have undergone radical change in the United States that is only now picking up a full head of steam or want to pretend they aren't affected by them. The changes in my parents' lifetimes from simple Model-T carburetors to computerized fuel-injection systems or from crude medical treatment without antibiotics to organ-replacement surgeries will seem incredibly slow when compared to what is ahead for us in the next ten years.
Why is it that people are willing to pay more for a Model-T with a carburetor than for a new, 2000 model ford with fuel injection? It is because some things increase in value with time. The same Spirit whose name is "Jesus of Nazareth" empowers the same Word He suffered and died to give to mankind as the Mind of Christ or the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 2). The church and its mission is not a product of time and human evolution.
Nor will the gospel ever have a "mass appeal" and when one boasts about large numbers it is not the gospel of Jesus Christ which is always offensive to most people.
The "burden" Jesus came to remove was the super-speed of the Jewish clergy which He replaced with "rest besides still waters." The "lust" people have in their hearts is not for hyped-up "worship services" but for the nostalgic peace of a true worship service in the country church with no "staff" or theatrical performers.
WE propose some reasons for the demise of the establishment church which is well recognized by Mormons and Catholics who depend heavily upon the tithe and ponder the impact of the internet as the people's way to bypass the money changers to get free sermons and songs.
First, is the rise of the internet. This little device allows you to "contribute" a $1,000.oo to your self to get on line. Then, rather than listen to $1,000.oo sermons made up of complaining stuff about the preacher, you can research original resources which the preacher has never heard about.
Second, increasing literacy leads people to reject the Lord-Serf notion or Father-Child or Clergy-Laity distinction and grasp that Christianity disposed of all clergy classes. Furthermore, democracy allows people to approach God "in spirit" or in mind without going to "the holy place" where "worship" is chained to the pulpit and where God "appears" at His exclusive "venue."
Third, the realization of the blind leading the blind has lead many to escape the dominant pastor and "his" programs into small, true, first-century-like "family" groups where 100% of the "poor box" goes to the poor.
You see, the Model-T still works without an Auto-Computer-Electronic-Alignment-Fuel injector-Factory trained "Minister of Fuel Injectors." And you could sing "At the foot of the old rugged cross" without a Musical Worship Facilitator.
Rubel Shelly: The church that survives, thrives, and changes lives will be the church that knows how to respond to its time and place. It will understand its culture and respond appropriately to it. It will not adopt its culture, but it will comprehend it and engage it. It will not conform to its culture, but it will enable its members to respond to it with the compassionate heart and perceptive mind of Jesus Christ.
The preacher uses the word "church" in the sense of "plant" or institution. The demise of the institution does not mean the demise of the church. Any scheme to pave over more of God's free grass and build "temples" and "theaters" is an attempt to build a purely secular institution. Lord Jesus Christ the Spirit or Full Deity (Col. 2:9) changes lives and we had better go, uproot weeds, plant and water and get our bodies and our "venues" out of His way.
Fads come and go and the entertainment fad will fail.
To get ready for the next assault upon Scripture, grasp that God or Deity is pure or Holy Spirit. He appeals to the human spirit or mind and never to the "body" through body worship rituals. In the left-out part of the proof-text Paul will define the clergy worship of the concision alongside the pagan "dogs" or homosexual priests of pagan goddesses. At the same time, he defines a converted Jew's worship as "in spirit" and in Christ.
Therefore, to claim that the church must be culture-sensitive is to believe that God is culture-sensitive and therefore must change with the times. Unfortunately, the modern culture of Rock and Rap has radically revised ethical and moral culture by a restoration movement of sexual "worship" in the religion of the secular state.
The "seekers" assuredly will look for aid to the external but perishing body:
And when they had found him on the other side of the sea, they said unto him, Rabbi, when camest thou hither? John 6:25
Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled. Jn.6:26
Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed. Jn 6:27
Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jn 6:28
Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. Jn 6:29
They said therefore unto him, What sign shewest thou then, that we may see, and believe thee? what dost thou work? Jn 6:30
And the Jews murmured.
The Jews wanted the Eternal God in human clothing to advance from the Law of Moses to the Greek, theatrical worship of Dionysus -- the "wineskin" god. And to evaluate His generation which He had no intention of accommodating to He used a parable as contemporary as next Sundays musical worship performance--
To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: Matthew 11:16
We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.' Matthew 11:17
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.' Matthew 11:18
The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and "sinners." ' But wisdom is proved right by her actions." Matthew 11:19 (That means: "you are liars.")
Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. Matthew 11:20
Jesus could have joined the clergy of Jerusalem which, like most priesthoods, was plagued with homosexuality and laziness. By singing and dancing while they piped, Jesus might have "been all things to all people." Instead He denounced them. The Feast of Tabernacles was a religious festival focused on music but Jesus refused to go up in a public sense while the theatrical performers -- including the elders -- were dancing in the streets and worshiping water and light.
"The Greeks were intoxicated with fine words; and to them the Christian preacher with his blunt message seemed a crude and uncultured figure, to be laughed at and ridiculed rather than to be listened to and respected. (Barclay, William, First Corinthians, p. 19-20)
This is why He, like Amos of the musical festivals of his day, pronounced woe upon Jerusalem (Hagar, Egypt, Sodom type) by making them worse than Tyre as Lucifer's male agent called: "the harp-playing prostitute." Lucifer is bi-sexual so "S/he" played the music "wanting to be remembered as a male."
Woe unto thee, Chorazin woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. Matthew 11:21
But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you. Matthew 11:22
And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. Matthew 11:23
Jesus didn't become all things to all people by "going with the flow" because He understood that the needs of the human soul do not change with the efficiency of carburetors. Nor shoulld we learn theology from Nancy.
They were mad at John the Baptist because they had hoped that he "wore soft clothing" where soft means the clothing of a male homosexual.
Therefore, body worship will move people away from Spiritual living by substituting that which appeals to the sensual appetites. And that which is aroused by "Contemporary Christian" or Rock or Rap appeals to the senses of sexuality and not spirituality.
1 Corinthians 9:19-22 Rubel Shelly: A plausible case could be made for the following thesis: To the degree that Christians allow ourselves to be out of touch with the books, magazines, movies, music, videos, Internet, and other media of our time, we are either too timid with the gospel (i.e., afraid it cannot withstand and answer the spirit of our age) or blatantly unfaithful with it (i.e., unaware of the issues that must be confronted by the message of Jesus Christ). Perhaps the truth is not so severe, however, and we have just thoughtlessly cocooned ourselves from the world to the degree that we have assumed that the old methods of communicating the gospel are sufficient for this time and place.
The old method was "go into all the world." I suppose it is natural but not scriptural to try to make ourselfes into "located traveling salesmen" for Christ.
While God gave us the right to get in out of the rain, it would be difficult to find a more fitting symbol of a cocoon with everyone locked into the spun fabric of secular songs and sermons than the mega-church. Adding Rap and Rock and the effeminization of theatrical performance will bind the silken threads tighter and tighter. Did you know that the only way to get the silk into a usable garment is to boil the worm in hot water? All of the proposals in this sermon are directed at building "venues" which are cocoons. The only way to allow the "worm such as I" to survive is to reverse course and begin an urgent "unspinning" of plans and programs invented out of our evil culture.
The evil conditions which the preacher wants to correct have often been created by the unbiblical notion of a preacher or surrogate father leading the "family" in the first place. The cure for a disease is not to patch on more "body parts" to demonstrate "life" and to feed the virus, but to apply the medicine of the Great Physician to remove the virus.
Rubel Shelly: Whether the true analysis is positively sinister or carelessly naive, we have to wake up quickly to the biblical mandate about engaging our world. God did not tell us to build edifices and wait for lost people to come to us. He told us to figure out ways and means of going to the lost in order to establish credibility, teach the gospel, and offer them the opportunity of eternal life.
Ah! That is the dilemma of every generation: how to go into all the world by having the world collect in our house.
Yes, I remember Jesus saying something like that:
And he said unto them, Go ye into the city, and attract the masses to your "venue." Engaging their world will allow you (if you should accept the assignment) to preach the gospel to every creature in your venue who identifies with your culture.. Mark 16:15
He that believeth and is baptized not shall be saved; but he that believeth not (and is not baptized) shall be damned. Mark 16:16
No. That is not true either.
Then why is the proposal to build more "venue" for Rock and Rap? That is what Jesus said: "Go into all the world and preach the gospel" and baptize believers for the remission of sins. While the mega-churches are collecting their thousands to prove that their approach is superior to the others fighting for turf, the world will have produced millions or billions.
Rubel Shelly: The clearest place in Scripture where this mandate is articulated is in the writings of Paul. He is a living model of the process in which we must be engaged.
Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings (1 Cor. 9:19-23).
Paul never compromised or watered down the demands of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Dr. Shelly has defined a culture-dependant "core gospel" of seven facts about Jesus Christ. There simply are no demands in this new gospel. He lists the essentials here.
Rubel Shelly: Yet this text makes it clear that he was committed to the removal of every unnecessary obstacle to its communication. And he saw his most likely "unnecessary obstacle" as himself. He was bright enough to know that his tendency would be to so insulate himself from cultures that were foreign to him that he would be completely ineffective in breaking through to them with the gospel.
You don't "remove unnecessary obstacles" by adding unnecessary obstacles. Sectarians divided the early Restoration Movement by adding that which they did not believe was necessary but it would divide the church but keep the collection plates filled.
Jesus said nothing about "breaking through" but "go and preach." And Paul's emphasis was not upon baptism and church organization but preaching the gospel which was God's power to break through. Those who believed the gospel would naturally demand baptism in order to have their sins remitted.
A more noble approach condemns such rejection of the power of the Word "as it has been delivered to you."
"The philosophy of many religious leaders is that the believer must use the music of the world, the dress of the world, the language of the world or the entertainment of the world to reach the world for Christ.
Yet this philosophy of evangelism is completely contrary to Scripture and cannot be supported by Scripture,
especially by First Corinthians chapter nine.
"Several points must be noticed within the context of this chapter concerning Paul's method for evangelism.
First, Paul gave up his rights when it was necessary in order to proclaim the Gospel to the lost.
He never gave himself additional rights to act like the world or partake of the pleasures of the world for the sake of the Gospel.
Those who teach that a believer has the right to use the world and act like the world for the sake of evangelism completely misunderstand Paul's purpose and method.
Paul said he "made [himself] servant unto all, that [he] might gain the more" (v. 19) and then explained how he did this in the next few verses.
To the Jews, he became "as a Jew." When Paul was in the company of Jews, he refrained from doing anything that would offend them, even though he had the liberty to do those things. Gromacki mentions that "[Paul] did not alter his message or his morals. He was both firm and flexible at the same time." Again, Martin says, "It is as though Paul were admonishing that
if you want to give a testimony for Christ to an orthodox Jew,
you don't begin by serving him ham for dinner." Matt D. Costella FOUNDATION Magazine, Jan-Feb 1999
A modern church having received a NEW VISION of the Lord's Supper thrugh NEW GLASSES proposes the revival of the ancient, pagan Agapae or love feast. Another church takes the Lord's Supper in the midst of a Barbecue lunch. Sure: to be "evangelistic" to Jews and Muslims you MUST have swine flesh in your teeth when you eat the Lord's Supper!
Unfortunately, the rise of the unlawful priesthood in these latter days has led to the belief that the gospel depends upon the preacher.
Christianity has always been counter-cultural. Therefore it does not depend upon assimilation of the culture to work. The fatal error of the Israelites was to try to get too close to the culture of prostitution
AND Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab. Numbers 25:1
And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods. Numbers 25:2
And Israel joined himself unto Baal-peor: and the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel. Numbers 25:3
Now, let's look at the Proof-Text: All proof texts have a context:
Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 1 Corinthians 9:19
Paul said nothing about making himself a Rock Star to gather the applause of the people. He did not speak in tongues to prove his inspiration. He did not sing and play instruments to attract the theatrical performers who had the same reputation in all history as today. Rather, Paul made himself a slave to everyone. That is the meaning of a minister who is discredited when he attempts to become a master.
Paul gives the right to support only to the Apostles. He had a right to be fully supported because He was on a mission from Christ and could not support himself as every priest was supposed to do when not on duty. He was not forced to be a leather worker but he could not set the example and demand his rights.
Those who preach the gospel have a right to live by the gospel. If the gospel is just the "core" of seven facts about the gospel then the preacher who takes a wage is forced by honesty and the Great Commission to preach it and get off the payroll. However, Paul gives this right to support to the evangelist whose job involves the gospel and not "church growth." The right to pay still applies only to the normal "apostle" which means "a preacher who is sent out as a herald."
However, Paul gave up this right to cut the legs out from under the "many" in Corinth demanding that Paul's "doctrine" was not worth a pay.
Therefore, he became a Jew to the Jews and a Gentile to the Gentiles by becoming a slave or subservient to any person. When the preacher assumes a clergy role He is nothing to no one.
So, Paul becomes a slave and not a performing master.
To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 1 Corinthians 9:20
Paul would not have to compromise to keep the Sabbath but he would not allow circumcision if it was to keep the law. He was a slave to the Jews but not to the law. A legal example would be if the fellow volunteered to help a Jew get his cow out of the ditch on the Sabbath. Paul would not however offer the cow as a burnt sacrifice just to make friends with the Jew. The effect would be just the opposite of cultural accomodation: it would prove Paul crazy or insincere.
To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. 1 Corinthians 9:21
Paul would never, never join in a Gentile "barbecue" of pork even though he could do so. To be a slave to the Jews he would not deliberately violate the law of the Jews. He would not perform some vow as a cultural Jew in front of a Gentile.
To the Thessalonians Paul laid down the law: "if you don't work you won't eat." This was said to the "many" who claimed to speak for Paul because no one else claimed the support of the congregation. While as an apostle he could claim the "daily dole" of food owed to the priest while on duty, he became a slave as a leather worker to be an honest worker to honest workers. When they worked, he worked and when they were free he preached.
Therefore, Paul became a worker to reach the workers: he would not become a prostitute to reach the prostitutes.He would not attend a pagan temple and engage in ritual prostitution just to make friends of the prophetess.
To the weak I became weak (feeble), to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. 1 Corinthians 9:22
Paul would not dance and prance around the pulpit and appeal to the rich and powerful and morally decadent in a "service" which contained people who are terror-stricken about how they are going to pay the medical bills. He would not spend 1/4 million dollars on an ancient Jewish festival of, by and for the rich and famous when the poor get chicken soup instead of gospel.
The goal of Paul's slavery was the chance to preach the gospel:
And this I do for the gospels sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you. 9:23
That would automatically exclude a quest for numbers.
A For Instance
To literally become an "all things" could not exclude becoming a god -- or get ones assignment as a Christ:
When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, "The gods have come down to us in human form!" Acts 14:11
Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes (Mercury) because he was the chief speaker. Acts 14:12
The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them. Acts 14:13
This WOULD have included instrumental music but with the worship of Zeus it was held unseemly to use music to worship a MASCULINE God.
Now, here is the ideal place for Paul to participate with the prostitutes, homosexuals, women prophetesses, musical worship teams and some good old Rock (a vulgar, sexual word) and Rap:
But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: Acts 14:14
Remember how Joseph rushed out of the presence of the prostitute queen?
Paul was not going to accommodate to paganism but put his very life at risk to be counter-cultural. The idea that Paul would have to merge his gospel message into Greek culture is truly outrageous:
Men, why are you doing this? We too are only men, human like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and everything in them. Acts 14:15
So, you see, the gospel includes telling people to turn away from pagan rituals where music is the mind-altering and attracting power.
So, you see, Paul didn't lie to affirm these people's religion just so he could preach the gospel which would, sooner or later, have to repudiate their musical idolatry.
What would worship of Zeus involve? Click to see the Abomination of Desolation in th Jerusalem Temple.
This would have been an animal sacrifice with lots of instrumental music -- just like the Jews. Surely it would do no harm if the people looked up to Paul and Barnabas. Isn't that exactly the goal of collecting the most charismatic gurus and applauding them? Isn't this worshiping the performer as these people wanted to worship Paul's performance?
Might be good for a hundred baptisms! Do it Paul. You said that you would become anything to win converts! This was similar to what Paul condemned in Ephesus and Corinth:
Euripides Helen notes:
Chorus
When she made an end to banquets for gods and the race of men, Zeus spoke out, appeasing the Mother's gloomy wrath: "Go, holy Graces, go and with a loud cry take from Demeter's angry heart her grief for the maiden; and you,
Muses, with song and dance." Then Kypris, fairest of the blessed gods,
first took up the rumbling voice of bronze and the drum with tight- stretched skin; and the goddess smiled, and received in her hand the deep-toned flute, pleased with its loud note
Euripides Ion I am ashamed before the god of many hymns, if he, the sleepless night watcher, shall see the torch procession on the twentieth day, beside the springs with lovely dances, when the starry sky of Zeus also joins in the dance, and the moon dances, and the fifty daughters of Nereus, in the sea and the swirls of ever-flowing rivers, celebrating in their dance the maiden with golden crown and her revered mother;
where this vagabond of Phoebus' hopes to rule, entering upon the labor of others.
You who turn to music and sing in discordant hymns our beds and the lawless, unholy loves of Kypris, see how we surpass in piety the unjust seed of men. (This is Rock)
Let the song recant and let discordant music go against the beds of men!
The descendant of Zeus shows his ingratitude, when he does not breed children for the house in common with my mistress; showing favor to another Aphrodite, he has found a bastard child.
You made burnt offerings that were neither right nor holy,
in the chambers of the gods, and you have incurred the wrath of the great mother, child, by not honoring her sacrifices.
Oh! Great is the power of dappled fawn-skin robes, and green ivy that crowns a sacred thyrsos, the
whirling beat of the tambourine circling in the air, hair streaming wildly for the revelry of Bromios, and the night-long festivals of the goddess. . . . You gloried in your beauty alone.
So, if you are going to become all things to all people and open your temple as a "venue" to Rock, Rap and theatrical performance and performers, how about a great animal sacrifice with the Musical Worship Teams? I am sure that you could attract a lot of seekers.
No. Paul didn't say that he would become everything but "everything which was consistent with the gospel". He said that he would become a slave "for the sake of the gospel." And he knew that when he preached the gospel they would tar and feather him and ride him out of town on a rail. The people still wanted to worship him but:
Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. Acts 14:19
Isn't it obvious to anyone who has ever read the Bible that the Jews hated Paul and they followed him around to discredit him and to murder him. If he became a "Jew buddy" then they would like him. If he let up the pressure on circumcision or keeping of days or saying that Jesus was their Messiah they would not have persecuted. Therefore, this does not mean what the dancers and prancers think that it means.
So, this is what Paul meant: I will even become a dead man in order to preach the gospel and uphold my own honor by telling people that idolatry is idolatry.
Paul could have become a silent man: no harm in letting then be sucked in as seekers. I can tell them the truth after we have put them through a twelve step program.
Paul totally alienated the Corinthians and there is no evidence that they ever got over it when Paul condemned the "uncovered prophesying" by the women which is clearly "singing with instrumental accompaniment." He condemned their speaking in tongues and said that he wouldn't even do it in church.
So clearly Paul is stating that he will offer up his body as a living sacrifice without considering the race of the people in order to preach the gospel. He never pulled his punches when it came time to say: "I have some good news and I have some bad news."
However, Paul was very clear that you cannot violate the rules of the race and get the prize even if you have outrun everyone:
Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Acts 9:24
I am going to skip the condemnation of evangelistic outreach by an appeal to the preacher's personal inability to make it work as others can with ease.
You must understand that in the Post-Modern world which the Dr. has subscribed to, the "core gospel" consists of seven facts about Jesus. All of the rest is interpretation:
Rubel Shelly: Outside the essence of the gospel,
there are other features that reflect our history and consensus interpretations of the larger biblical message.
And in that interpretation--
Dr. Shelly says that there is:
Rubel Shelly: A Time to Be Like Other People
First, Paul wanted people to
........... know Christ so badly that he took the initiative to
........... know and be like others as much as possible.
But Jesus said:
I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. John 17:14
My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. John 17:15
They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. John 17:16
World is:
Kosmos (g2889) kos'-mos; prob. from the base of 2865; orderly arrangement, i.e. decoration; by impl. the world (in a wide or narrow sense, includ. its inhab., lit. or fig. [mor.]): - adorning, world.
Kosmokrator (g2888) kos-mok-rat'-ore; from 2889 and 2902; a world-ruler, an epithet of Satan: - ruler.
The Judas bag carried mouthpieces for a flute and stolen money. The word is from "speaking in tongues" and "of the world."
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Ephesians 6:12
The "world" is the domain of Satan. "Cosmos" in English means "harmony" and music was the superstitious way of controlling the world. When you let elements of the world or that which is not commanded in the inspired Word of God, you open the door for Satan to come in. Contrary to this, Paul wrote:
Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you,
in the holiness and sincerity that are from God.
We have done so not according to worldly wisdom but according to God's grace. 2 Corinthians 1:12Paul thought of his Christ-given words as the instruments of God's grace.. To use unholy methods to teach Spirit or Word or Grace would not be spiritual or ethical and it would just backfire and bring contempt.
Paul, even though he is treated as just improperly interpreting the "gospel," clearly said that he would not bring the discordant Rock and Rap which is clearly of the sexual world:
For though we live in the world,
we do not wage war as the world does. 2 Corinthians 10:3
(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) . 2 Corinthians 10:4Greek: Hoplon (g3696) hop'-lon; prob. from a prim. (to be busy about); an implement or utensil or tool (lit. or fig., espec. offensive for war): - armour, instrument, weapon
"the watchmen, who patrolled the streets for the repression of common crime, were charged with the additional duty of exorcizing the dreaded powers of the air and of darkness, which went about like roaring lions seeking what they might devour.
To accomplish this object the night watchman wielded spiritual weapons of two different sorts but of equal power; he range a bell, and he chanted a blessing." (Frazer, James George, Folk-Lore in the Old Testament, Macmillian, p. 423, 1923)
The Hebrew also uses the same word for weapon and instrument because an instrument is a weapon of unChristian warfare:
Hebrew: Keliy (h3627) kel-ee'; from 3615; something prepared, i. e. any apparatus (as an implement, utensil, dress, vessel or weapon): - armour ([-bearee]), artillery, bag, carriage, / furnish, furniture, instrument, jewel, that is made of, * one from another, that which pertaineth, pot, / psaltery, sack, stuff, thing, tool, vessel, ware, weapon
Paul's demand that the voice as an allowable "instrument" to render Psalms as we make melody in the heart by definition excluded lifeless instruments or carnal weapons:
Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. Ro.6:13
By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the instrument of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, 2Co.6:7
In his first letter, which likely had no effect on Corinth's destructive "worship," Paul had conpared their songs and sermons and prayers out of their own spirit to fighting a battle with a lifeless (carnal) instrument:
If even lifeless instruments, such as the flute or the harp, do not give distinct notes, how will any one know what is played? 1 Corinthians 14:7
Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well,
for they hear your words but do not put them into practice. Eze.33:32
Therefore, Paul is saying that waging war with lifeless musical instruments is wrong or wasted because those who hear will listen as God said, like one listening to the song of the prostitute with absolutely no intention of putting the words into practice.
And Peter and John disagreed with Dr. Shelly's advice: "know and be like others as much as possible."
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, 1 Peter 1:1
Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world,
........... to abstain from sinful desires,
........... which war against your soul 1 Peter 2:11Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 1 Jn 2:15
Rubel Shelly: He didn't set up shop and wait for them to come to him. He went where they were and talked to them in language they could understand. "I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some," he said. Just what does that mean?
That is a fact and you can no more be a "located evangelist" than you can be a "located traveling salesman." But why would you accept that biblical commission of Jesus Christ and create a "venue" for rock, rap and contemporary Christian music (again, we say, an oxymoron)?
Rubel Shelly: Paul was Jewish by birth but cosmopolitan in lifestyle by virtue of education and travel. As he moved freely in the Mediterranean world and contacted Jews and Gentiles, men and women, rich and poor, educated and uneducated, he respected and acknowledged everything he encountered that was either holy or redeemable to the Lord.
Paul didn't go sauntering around the Greek-Roman world: he was obedient to the mission Jesus gave him to go preach. I just don't know that he affirmed something just because he thought it redeemable.
Rubel Shelly: Things that might not have been to his taste or liking,
he nevertheless affirmed for the sake of having something in common with them in order to reach them with the gospel.
What practical forms might this have taken for Paul?
I suspect he went to barbecue socials with Gentiles, though he had been trained to be kosher all his life.
Paul never ceased being an ethnic Jew and eating or not eating pork was never an act of worship. It was most likely commanded because eating pork was dangerous. However, one sincerely doubts that Paul would take a nibble of ham even in the privacy of his home any more than a Christian would nibble from the wineskin because of its evil influence.
It might be pretty silly to suspect that Paul would eat pork with Gentiles when, in view of Romans 14, he would not do anything to offend a weak brother or the Jews who would make up part of the group in Rome. Remember that Paul was not a libertine to do "whatever it takes" to suck in the seekers. Nope.
Paul said that he was a slave and a slave abstains from every appearance of evil or divisive practice.
Because the goal is to approve of or to add instrumental music in some of its "venues," it is important to understand that to follow Paul's rule one would be a slave and refrain from instrumental music knowing that it would sow discord among brethren. If one still honored Paul's "interpretation" or "doctrine" one would have an absolute command not to use instruments.
Paul would preach a sermon against music as a tool of warfare or pagan magical practices but Paul would never in the interest of his sacred trust ridicule and discredit anyone who would refuse to try to worship God with a mechanical device such as sounding gongs and tinkling cymbals.
Again, a more rational and scholarly explanation is that:
To the Jews, he became "as a Jew." When Paul was in the company of Jews, he refrained from doing anything that would offend them, even though he had the liberty to do those things. Gromacki mentions that "[Paul] did not alter his message or his morals. He was both firm and flexible at the same time." Again, Martin says,
"It is as though Paul were admonishing that if you want to give a testimony for Christ to an orthodox Jew,
you don't begin by serving him ham for dinner." Matt D. Costella FOUNDATION Magazine, Jan-Feb 1999
If Paul was caught eating pork his total influence with the Jews would be destroyed. Therefore, we believe that Dr. Shelly is just flat wrong in "just preaching the core gospel" and daring to suggest that Paul would eat pork to attract the Gentiles any more than he would attend the Pagan, sexual worship just to attract the "prostitute prophetesses."
Then the statement is made and then an attempt to prove:
Rubel Shelly: "And I know he worshiped with and even participated in ritual purifications with Jews long after he had left all that personally (Phil. 3:4b-9; cf. Acts 21:20-26).
Paul would have grasped that ritual purification concerned ONLY the body and not the Spirit--it is not called worship. Jesus laid the foundation that the NEW PLACE of worship was in the spirit and truth.
Jesus and Paul put the worship IN THE SPIRIT. God set up spiritual worship and SCRIPTURES to be a MARK against false preachers:
Beware of dogs (Catamites-the musical worshipers), beware of evil workers, beware of the concision. Phil 3:2
For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. Phil 3:3
Because that thou mayest understand, that there are yet but twelve days since I went up to Jerusalem for to worship. Acts 24:11
And they neither found me in the temple disputing with any man, neither raising up the people, neither in the synagogues, nor in the city: Acts 24:12
Neither can they prove the things whereof they now accuse me. Acts 24:13
But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets: Ac.24:14
Well, we have shown that the first interpretation of "Biblical doctrine" which is up for grabs to interpret for the modern, Post-T-Model world, is just as contradictory and as wrong as you can possibley be.
What is the object? Well, Paul told the Corinthians, and I paraphrase, "you are so wise but I know that fools love to be foolwed."
This has been:
Part One: Dr. Rubel Shelly at Woodmont Hills Family of God (i.e. "church of God") uses 1 Corinthians 9:19-22 and claims: First, Paul wanted people to know Christ so badly that he took the initiative to know and be like others as much as possible.
This is totally antithetical to the fact that Jesus and Paul demanded that were are in the world but not of the world. There is nothing spiritual to be gained from like-the-world musical worship or a ministry to prostitutes or sexual Rock and Rap.
Part Three: Dr. Shelly at Woodmont Hills Family of God uses Acts 21:20-26 to prove that Paul worshiped with and like the Jews when he assisted several men in taking vows at the temple.
Counter added 1.03.05 11a 2472
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