Author: W. Keith Brenton

The Fourth of July

/ W. Keith Brenton / 6 Comments

Now that it’s over, and the subject is no longer quite as inflammatory by being outdated, I’d like to tell you what I believe about celebrating the Fourth, saying the Pledge of Allegiance, singing “The Star-Spangled Banner,” displaying the flag and doing any or all of those things in a church building whether on a Sunday morning or not.

I believe Romans 14. Specifically, on the point of the subject at hand, I believe verses 5 through 13.

One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.

For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. It is written:
” ‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
‘every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will confess to God.’ ” So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.

Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother’s way.

This is not a cop-out answer. I believe it is the right answer, the complete answer, the scriptural answer, the answer inspired by the Holy Spirit of God and Jesus Christ, His Son about referring to our country in worship.

It ain’t right. It ain’t wrong. Get over it, folks.

Everybody’s going to have a country. Everybody’s going to want what’s best for his/her country. That doesn’t mean that everybody wants only his own country to prosper or to know of God’s love or to be blessed. But let’s face it, the folks in every country have their own flags and their own national birthdays and their own patriotic songs and pledges and fealties and loyalties and preferences.

Israel’s leaders (and later, Judah’s leaders) prayed for God to bless their nation. God often indulged their requests – when they were obedient. And when they weren’t, He reminded them through His spokespersons that He didn’t love them any more or less than the people of the nations around them.

Singing patriotic songs at church is not essentially different from singing songs like “Come to the Church in the Wild Wood” or “Precious Memories,” which thoroughly bless some people but have no intrinsic spiritual value (other than, perhaps, an oblique reference to “unseen angels”). Some patriotic songs – “America the Beautiful,” for instance, actually contain a prayer for God’s ongoing blessing of the land and its people. They don’t include or exclude others by not mentioning them. They are what they are: patriotic songs.

And to exclude them entirely because they are not specifically worship songs to God is just silly. We’re also advised in scripture to “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs” as well as to “Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The verses sit right next to each other (Ephesians 5:19-20). They are co-equally important. Don’t give me a bunch of hooberbloob about not singing entertaining songs if you have ever been uplifted or blessed by any of the songs you’ve sung (and heard; you know you’re hearing them, too) at church. They’re meant to be entertaining to God, and above all else, to help us help each other recognize and confess His extraordinary wisdom, power, justice, mercy and love.

My advice (and that’s all it is) is to choose worship activities wisely and sparingly if they don’t express that kind of worship. We only give ourselves about an hour at best – out of the 168 that God gives us each week – to praise His name together and build each other up. Why not choose songs, pledges, oaths and symbols that express our worship as – first of all – His people; His nation … and incidentally of this nation that He seems to have superabundantly blessed?

Let’s do a few things which recognize that perception of ours and which bless people who have especially deep loyalties to this country – who may have served to defend her, or have lost dear ones who did – but let’s not go overboard with it. Keep first things first. Give honor to whom honor is due (Romans 13:7) and give glory and worship to Whom it is due (Psalm 29:2).

Let it all be done in peace for mutual edification (Romans 14:19); patriot for pacificst and pacifist for patriot.

Let all be done – eating/drinking, fasting; day-observing, day-ignoring – let all be done to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).

And, uh, please … no fireworks inside the church building!

Why Micah 6:8 is My Favorite Bible Verse

/ W. Keith Brenton / 5 Comments

He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God. ~ Micah 6:8

Micah 6:8

  • Because everyone who believes, also wants to know what God desires of them.
  • Because this verse tells us succinctly what God desires of us.
  • Because Jesus more-or-less quotes it in Matthew 23:23 – in Micah’s order. (What is faithfulness if not walking humbly with God?)
  • Because it puts in imperative language the very same principles that scripture expresses as most important: that we should love the Lord our God with heart (loving mercy), mind (discerning and dispensing what is justice), strength (walking is an activity requiring the strength God has given us), and soul (with God; communion of soul-to-Soul).
  • Because this is the way Jesus lived.
  • Because this is the way I want to live, and this verse makes it easy to keep that in mind.

That’s why.

And if that’s not enough, I could probably think of more reasons.

Man Says / Christ Says

/ W. Keith Brenton / 9 Comments

Man says, “You have to choose whether you’re a Calvinist or an Arminian … Unitarian or Trinitarian … Baptist or Anabaptist … Traditional or Non-traditional worshiper … Sunday worshiper only or worshiper on other days … weekly Eucharist observer or non-weekly Eucharist celebrant … transsubstantiaton or consubstantiation subscriber … indwelling Holy Spirit or Holy Spirit through the scriptures only vessel … literal six-day creation believer or figurative six-day creation believer … Pre-millenialist, Post-millenialist or Amillenialist advocate … Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican or Protestant Christian …” and on and on and on.

Christ says, “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.” (John 5:24)

Man says, “You have to have all the right answers, know all the right answers, and believe all the right answers.”

Christ says, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.” ~ John 11:25-26

Man says, “God’s unknowable nature is completely knowable – His unfathomable justice and mercy are comprehensible – because He has revealed them completely in the scriptures and given us reasoning powers to decrypt it there and if we all would just read the same Bible and learn Greek and Hebrew and think straight, we’d understand everything exactly right – you know; the way I think.”

Christ says, “Do not believe me unless I do what my Father does.” ~ John 10:37

Man says, “Choose my way of thinking.”

Christ says, “Choose to do, not just think. Choose to live, not just believe. Choose God’s way. Choose Me.”

I Have A Secret Life …

/ W. Keith Brenton / 4 Comments

… and to tell you about it, I’d have to come out of the closet.

The hobby closet, that is, in my garage. (What closet did you think I meant?)

This turntable, made by Walthers, is 90' and proportionally "longer" than Eureka's 75-footer.That’s where I have been trying to build – on and off for the last nine years, mostly off – my HO scale model railroad pike duplicating the Eureka Springs & North Arkansas Railway. I’ve been in there more frequently of late, finding myself drained of ideas, inspiration, energy and will to write blog posts. My creativity takes a different turn when that happens.

The hobby closet is only 4′-11″ x 11′, and occupies the southwest corner of my garage. I think it was originally intended to be a garden/potting room, so any future owners should be delighted to find the shelves I have installed all around its perimeter, just waiting to have large holes cut in them to hold plant pots. (You actually have to duck under the shelving in the doorway to get in; I’m building a loop-shaped pike.) Right now the shelves are covered with cork roadbed for my railway.

I’ve been stymied for several years, trying to find a combination of couplers and trucks (wheelsets, that is) so the scale models of the 80′ coaches can round the tight 18″ curves in the small closet and still stay coupled. A couple of months ago, I found that combination and the halted progress on laying track began again. (Athearn “Commonwealth” trucks and Kadee couplers, plus drawbar mounts for the couplers – for those of you who care.)

The next step will be to wire the track – which passes the current to the tiny electric motors in the engines, and to the lights in the lighted coaches – in “blocks,” since I’m not really interested in graduating to very expensive Digital Command Control systems. That will make it possible to run two trains from a twin power/control pack … in the case of the ES&NA, the excursion train pulled by one of two steam engines and the luncheon/dinner train led by a diesel switcher. I’ll also wire a few simple signals; plus interior lights for buildings like the depot, the Roundhouse and the former “Petticoat Junction” cottage opposite it across Mud Street.

These SW-1 diesel replicas are rare - once made by AHM and later Walthers. Now you can only find them on eBay.After that, I’ll tie down the track to its final position, making certain that everything runs smoothly – and stays coupled.

After that will come scenery to make it all look natural – like the wooded surround of Livingston Hollow, Junction, and the rest of the railway as it frequently parallels Leatherwood Creek. (I don’t have room to build the town’s water processing plant, which is a source of brief but sometimes pungent natural odors as the trains pass!)

Building and running a model railroad was something that my dad and I enjoyed doing together when I was a kid. When my Mom sold the home where I grew up after he passed away, its purchase price also covered an unmovable 8′ x 8′ L-shaped layout with handmade storage cabinetry underneath, and all the track and switches. I kept the control/power pack, and I’m using it on the ES&NA Junior.

If you have read my blog for a while, you’ve probably already guessed why I’m modeling the ES&NA. You may not know, though, that I am the anonymous author (as they all are) of the article about the railway at Wikipedia, and it features my photos. I’ve taken dozens of pictures there over the years, and harvested hundreds more from the Web. I do my homework on my prototype railway pretty thoroughly.

Passing a few hours in the hobby closet, building or painting or wiring or laying track while the rest of the family is out of the house – Matt at his job; Laura babysitting; Angi teaching, or whatever – satisfies a creative urge I can’t stifle and brings back all kinds of pleasant memories.

So … what’s your secret life? Do you have a hobby? Is there something you like to create that soothes a craving in you to imitate the creativity of the Divine Maker?

Judge. Mental.

/ W. Keith Brenton / 4 Comments

We live in a society that puts the “mental” in “judgmental.”

We’re crazy about the pleasure of judging other people. We watch denizens of Survivor vote each other off of the island; cheer or jeer the decisions made about the future careers of contestants on American Idol and The Apprentice; analyze the scheming and plotting affecting the artificially-induced love lives of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette.

We love to watch the bad guys get theirs on Law and Order, N.C.I.S., 24 and any number of other television shows with increasingly shorter names and smaller concepts. If we can’t see them caught and judged in a courtroom, we’re happy to see Jack Bauer blow them away short of trial date, because, after all, they’re bad guys and we’re only going to spend 24 hours messing with them.

We hail and worship pundits who say the most outrageous things about elected officials and political candidates (as long as we agree with them) because we’ve already judged their targets as “bad guys.” We’ll permit vested interests with enough money to air any kind of advertisement against a candidate – even if it is wholly unfounded in fact or truth – because that’s just part of the political process in which we judge the character and capabilities of those whom we will elect and later villify. We’ll even repeat the unsubstantiated claims in our conversations and on our blogs and in our tweets and Facebook posts.

We lap up any religious controversy – whether an outright sin or a simple difference of interpretation – and eagerly seize the opportunity to self-righteously condemn the “sinner” involved to the hellfire he or she deserves, clucking and shaking our heads all the way to the gallows for that poor soul’s reptuation.

And here is what Jesus has to say about what we do:

Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” ~ Matthew 7:1-2

Which is a pretty frightening thought, when you lend it a few moments and a few brain cells.

It means I’m going to be judged by God in the same way that I judge other people. (We know Jesus is talking about God here because this method of judgment is fair, God is ultimately fair, and people are not fair. Especially when they judge each other.)

Why should we not judge others? (We enjoy it so much!)

“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” ~ Matthew 7:3-5

We put the “mental” in “judgmental” because we are wholly unqualified to judge others. That’s because we are not even qualified to judge ourselves. We are not fair, objective, just, merciful or righteous. We do not see matters objectively; we see them subjectively, from our own viewpoints and not from outside of our own eyes, heads, prejudices, circumstances, environment, culture, experiences, and era. From the viewpoint of eternity, God can.

“Judge not lest ye be judged yourselves” is simply the application of the Golden Rule to the field of jurisprudence: “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” (Luke 6:31

A few verses later, Luke records how Jesus expanded on the thought: “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” ~ Luke 6:37

If there was ever a guilty pleasure we need to sacrifice on the altar of becoming more like Christ, giving up our “right” to judge would be a top priority.

We don’t need to worry that if we don’t handle judgment, then justice will never take place and the guilty will escape what is due them:

This will take place on the day when God will judge men’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares. ~ Romans 2:16

Assured of that, we can get back to the business of using our God-given power of judgment for the purpose He intended. We’ll be able to answer Jesus’ question about our petty squabbles and disagreements (as well as our self-centered sins):

“Why don’t you judge for yourselves what is right?” ~ Luke 12:57

And He will give us all the help we need in order to do so:

“The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man’s judgment:
‘For who has known the mind of the Lord
that he may instruct him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.” ~ 1 Corinthians 2:14-16

Then our passion for judging won’t head in a direction God doesn’t intend – a direction we are unqualified to take it.

A direction that will eventually drive us – and the others around us – completely mental.

Strike a blow for sanity.

Ask for His help.

Ambition

/ W. Keith Brenton / 2 Comments

I didn’t realize that The Andy Griffith Show had impacted my subconscious so deeply until I woke up this morning and remembered dreaming about ol’ Andy Taylor sharing a story with Opie’s class after school:

“I do enjoy fishing. And most of you have heard stories about big fish. But I want to tell you about the smallest one. He’s a striped bass, and I named him ‘Ernest T.’ after an acquaintance of mine, because he is not only the smallest fish in all the lakes between Mayberry and Mount Pilot, he’s the orneriest. He dashes for the bait on the hook before all of the other fish. He has a real ambition to get caught, and I’ve obliged him about a dozen times. I’ve always thrown him back, though, until this morning. This morning I couldn’t deny him any longer. I caught him and kept him and cooked him and enjoyed him for breakfast. They wasn’t much of him, but that fish was delicious. I s’pose if they’s any moral to this story, I guess it’s that sometimes when you oblige other folks in their ambitions, it turns out better for you than it does for them. And, of course, you should choose your ambitions wisely.”

I don’t remember whether I dreamed in black-and-white.

If I May Be So Bold …

/ W. Keith Brenton / 2 Comments

It’s a line from a Star Trek movie. (Big surprise, huh?)

Specifically, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, when Captain Spock’s meditations are interrupted by his C.O., Admiral Kirk – who is apologetically pulling rank to divert Spock’s ship to a crisis. Spock insists that he assume command. Kirk declines. Spock replies:

“If I may be so bold, it was a mistake for you to accept promotion. Commanding a starship is your first, best destiny; anything else is a waste of material.”

We all need – and deserve – a friend who will be painfully honest with us; who will point out to us our possible lapses in judgment – even our career choices – and be confident that the friendship will survive it.

We all need friends who are familiar enough with human courtesy to introduce their opinions with “If I may be so bold …” Even if there is no difference in rank, or race, or blood, or belief. Or if there’s a world of difference.

And we all need to be such friends to others.

What might happen if we as believers in Christ gently confronted some of our friends with a mildly-stated opinion, like:

“If I may be so bold, you seem restless; unsatisfied in your career choice ….” “… your current relationship ….” “… your spirituality ….” ?

Or asked, “Do you ever feel called to a life that is more than what you’re living now?”

Or went for broke and said, “Have I ever told you that I care about your soul as deeply as if it were my very own?”

Or even went further and admitted, “I think the choice(s) you’ve made are mistaken, taking you somewhere you may not really want to go.”

I know; I know. That’s meddling. But that’s what we’re called to do: Meddle. Not judge people, but judge their actions. Not love all their actions, but love people. We get that so mixed up sometimes.

– If I may be so bold as to point it out.

The Spirit Within

/ W. Keith Brenton / 48 Comments

Not too many months ago, I encountered a commenter on another blog who expressed doubt that Jesus’ promise of His Holy Spirit in John 14-17 was meant for anyone but His gathered disciples then and there in the upper room.

He believed the promise was not meant for us, in other words; that the Spirit of truth would counsel and comfort us; remind us of everything He has said; bring us peace; testify of Jesus in our time; or guide us into all truth.

Just them.

Just then.

Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” ~ Acts 2:38-39

Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. ~ 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 … And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, ~ Ephesians 1:13 … And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. ~ Ephesians 4:3

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. ~ 2 Corinthians 13:14 … For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. ~ 1 Corinthians 12:13

But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. ~ 2 Thessalonians 2:13 … he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, ~ Titus 3:5

And what about the whole of Romans 8? 1 Corinthians 12? Galatians 3, 4 and 5?

How could anyone read these verses, become familiar with them, know them backwards and forwards and maybe even in Greek, and still wonder whether Jesus was speaking to us about the gift of His very own, indwelling Holy Spirit?

Or believe that He would live within us only as a seal, performing no other work in us or through us to glorify God and draw ourselves and others closer to Him?

You would have to earn a doctorate in mental kinesthesiology to perform the feats of inductive gymnastics required to land that conclusion with both feet firmly planted in the pages of God’s Spirit-breathed word.

Memorial Day, 1000 B.C.

/ W. Keith Brenton / 1 Comment

“Your glory, O Israel, lies slain on your heights.
   How the mighty have fallen!

“Tell it not in Gath,
   proclaim it not in the streets of Ashkelon,
   lest the daughters of the Philistines be glad,
   lest the daughters of the uncircumcised rejoice.

“O mountains of Gilboa,
   may you have neither dew nor rain,
   nor fields that yield offerings of grain .
   For there the shield of the mighty was defiled,
   the shield of Saul—no longer rubbed with oil.

“From the blood of the slain,
   from the flesh of the mighty,
   the bow of Jonathan did not turn back,
   the sword of Saul did not return unsatisfied.

“Saul and Jonathan—
   in life they were loved and gracious,
   and in death they were not parted.
   They were swifter than eagles,
   they were stronger than lions.

“O daughters of Israel,
   weep for Saul,
   who clothed you in scarlet and finery,
   who adorned your garments with ornaments of gold.

“How the mighty have fallen in battle!
   Jonathan lies slain on your heights.

“I grieve for you, Jonathan my brother;
   you were very dear to me.
   Your love for me was wonderful,
   more wonderful than that of women.

“How the mighty have fallen!
   The weapons of war have perished!”

~ 2 Samuel 1:19-27

LOST

/ W. Keith Brenton / 6 Comments

A quick peek in from the outside

I never watched the television series Lost until the series finale last night.

Okay, not quite true. I never watched a full episode until last night. I caught part of an early one on SyFy (I think back then it was Sci-Fi Network) and there was a polar bear on a tropical island threatening marooned survivors of an air disaster, and a voice-recorded distress beacon that had been going for fifteen years, and I couldn’t make any sense of it. So I turned off the television.

This morning, a quick scan of the CNN bulletin board on the finale pretty much confirms what I expected to see: people either loved or hated the finale, even if they loved the series … and it left most perplexed and unsatisfied, even the ones who thought they “got it.”

Hey, I’m no genius. I expected to see that reaction because I’ve seen it before. When a television show like the original The Prisoner or its 2009 re-visioning has a finale like Star Trek: Deep Space Nine‘s “What You Leave Behind,” people are going to either love or hate it … because not all of the loose ends are neatly tied up at THE end.

Some folks love and embrace mystery. So they’ll love it.

Some folks can’t stand an unanswered question. So they’ll hate it.

Which brings me to a hypothesis about people and religion and Christianity in particular.

There are all kinds of people who follow Christ. People who are okay with the fact that they will never fully, in this life, understand God or have all of their questions about Him answered … and people who aren’t. We all tend to have a bias, one way or the other.

The first group of people don’t have to know everything; it’s enough to love Him and be loved by Him.

The second group of people can’t settle for that; everything has to fit together somehow into a completed puzzle that is rational and logical and makes sense.

I think the danger for the first group is the extreme that the puzzle pieces which actually do fit together – the aspects of God’s nature that are clearly revealed by the Spirit in scripture – don’t matter all that much. If they want to believe that a loving God will save everyone, or that hell is figurative while heaven is literal, or that only mental assent to Christ’s Sonship is all that is required to be called “faithful,” they’ll believe that. It’s all a mystery, anyway, and a merciful God loves us, and if we don’t have to be right about everything then why should we have to be right about anything and so what?

I believe the danger for the second group is the extreme that only certain puzzle pieces matter; the crucial missing ones – the aspects of God’s nature that are obscured by the Spirit in scripture – are all that matter. If they want to believe that a just God will save only the perfectly righteous, or that the solo works of people unaccompanied by the Spirit’s help contribute to salvation, or that mental assent to this doctrine and that are also required to be called “faithful,” they’ll believe that. It’s all right there in scripture, if we would just take the time and the brain cells to parse it all out, and a righteous God will judge us, and if we have to be right about anything then we have to be right about everything and so there!

The problem with both extremes is that God is like us – and yet He isn’t. He isn’t simply just and righteous; He isn’t simply loving and merciful. He is complicatedly, perfectly both. He doesn’t have a bias one way or the other.

So He leaves us perplexed, with some answers (but not all) and some instructions (but not a million-volume rule book) and some hints / glimpses (but not a street map of eternity).

He leaves us transfixed, staring upward at the foot of His cross, and He gives us a choice.

We can either follow our own hearts and heads; walk away, and die and be lost … or follow Him to the tomb and the resurrection and a life worth saving.