WS #2 Conflicting Voices

Recent moral failures of Christian leaders are mirrored in the message of a TV commercial that is in direct opposition to an article for pastors in Christianity Today. 

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Transcript

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 Welcome to this edition of God's Word for Our World.
 
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 This series is entitled Whistle Stops on My Train of Thought.
 
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 A whistle stop is a short, unscheduled stop a train makes to pick up passengers or goods.
 
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 These are short reflections on what I've picked up on my train of thought when I suddenly stop to think about what I had just read or heard.
 
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 Maybe there's something for you to pick up too.
 
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 The magazine Christianity Today recently published articles addressing the spate of pastors and Christian workers that are falling into disgrace from inappropriate conduct and relationships.
 
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 The first article warned pastors of the words, the behavior, the dress of women they should beware of in their ministry.
 
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 This was followed up by an article that focused on the lines that pastors shouldn't cross in their interactions with members of the opposite sex.
 
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 This article listed specific things to keep in mind.
 
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 I would consider some of them as no-brainers, like “Don't be alone in your office with a woman”, of course, and ditto for being alone with a woman in a church plant, or making a pastoral visit unaccompanied.
 
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 Then there was the warning against complimenting a young woman on her appearance.
 
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 And high on the list was the warning, “Do not hug women”.
 
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 That last one's a trap for missionaries who've lived for many years in a culture where hugs are an accepted part of greetings.
 
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 Even kisses as well.
 
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 Not on the lips.
 
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 More cheek-to-cheek contact.
 
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 First right, then left.
 
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 That can get complicated when the number of kisses differs from one culture to another.
 
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 Is it two times or is it three?
 
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 I know one veteran missionary who labored for many years in one of those cultures.
 
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 He was offered a teaching position in a seminary here in the U.S.
 
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 Apparently, he put his hand on a young student's back, her shoulder, I don't know, probably an everyday innocent gesture where he had lived for many years.
 
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 She filed a complaint against him, and the administration felt obligated to terminate his teaching career, even though they didn't believe his action was morally inappropriate.
 
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 In the “Me Too” culture at its height, the female complainant was always right.
 
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 Culture plays a key role in these situations.
 
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 Why, I remember when I was 55, and I'd never been kissed by a man, that is.
 
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 But in Madeira, after the first Sunday afternoon service, I conducted a service in Russian.
 
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 One of the Ukrainian brethren was so overcome with joy at hearing the word of God in his own language, he grabbed me by the shoulders and gave me a kiss on each cheek.
 
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 Paul told the Corinthians to greet each other with a holy kiss.
 
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 That's in 1 Corinthians 16.20 and 2 Corinthians 13.12.
 
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 And if there was ever a holy kiss, I got two that Sunday.
 
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 Moving on from the Christianity Today article, I turn to a TV commercial that's been running on the cable networks, and probably others.
 
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 At this time of year, the airwaves are particularly full of advertising, gifts for her, him, the kids, the boss, fathers and mothers, husbands and wives.
 
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 When an advertiser says, “buy, buy”, he doesn't mean farewell.
 
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 He means B-O-G-O, BOGO, buy one, get one.
 
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 The ad features three or four seductively dressed, beautiful women who detect the presence of a gentleman passing by.
 
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 They describe what makes a man a gentleman, how a gentleman would act, how he would treat a woman, but it's the fragrance of his cologne that clenches it.
 
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 “If he smells that good, he got my attention,” the last woman purrs.
 
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 The obvious message,
 
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 “Lady, give your man this cologne.
 
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 It will confirm his status as a gentleman.”
 
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 And, “Men, this cologne will ensure that you attract the attention of the ladies.”
 
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 My train of thought came to a sudden halt.
 
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 The first thing the author's wife told him to put on the list of seven things a pastor must avoid, “Do not use cologne.
 
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 It sends out the wrong signal for a pastor.”
 
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 I thought of what Paul wrote to the Corinthians.
 
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 “For to God we are the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.
 
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 To some we are an aroma of death, leading to death, but to others an aroma of life, leading to life.”
 
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 2 Corinthians 2, verses 15 and 16.
 
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 That fragrance doesn't come in a bottle.
 
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 It's only available to those who walk in the presence of Christ and who continually cultivate their relationship with Him in the Word.
 
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 What I picked up at this whistle stop was a clear example of how the values of the world are in complete opposition to the values of God's Word.
 
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 Cologne or no cologne.
 
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 That was something to stop and think about.
 
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 Thanks for listening.
 
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 Listen to my other podcasts.
 
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 These Things Were Written focuses on the Bible text itself, with insights from my studies in the original languages.
 
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 You don't have to know Hebrew and Greek to understand God's Word, but you must hear and read the Bible for yourself.
 
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 Many people say they agree with the Bible but don't actually know what it says, while others disagree with what they think the Bible says.
 
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 Give Me This Mountain tells a story of our experiences of 45 years of life in Brazil and Portugal, where living by faith was more than a figure of speech.
 
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 It's based on entries from my personal journals and missionary newsletters beginning in 1971.
 
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 God bless you until we're together again.
 
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 May God keep you in His Word.