Mike Abendroth - Things That Go Bump in the Church: Explaining the Bibles Most Misunderstood Teachings

HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS

EUGENE, OREGON

Except where noted, Scripture quotations are from The ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Verses marked NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)

Verses marked ASV are taken from the American Standard Version of the Bible.

All italicized emphasis in Scripture quotations is added by the authors.

Cover by Dugan Design Group, Bloomington, Minnesota

Cover photo Stuart Monk / Fotolia

Mike Abendroths author photo by Paige Crane Photography

This book is published in association with The Benchmark Group Agency, Nashville, TN (benchmarkgroup1@aol.com)

THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE CHURCH

Copyright 2014 by Mike Abendroth, Clint Archer, Byron Forrest Yawn

Published by Harvest House Publishers

Eugene, Oregon 97402

www.harvesthousepublishers.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Abendroth, Mike, 1960-

Things that go bump in the church / Mike Abendroth, Clint Archer, Byron Forrest Yawn.

pages cm

ISBN 978-0-7369-5376-4 (pbk.)

ISBN 978-0-7369-5377-1 (eBook)

1. Theology, DoctrinalPopular works. I. Title.

BT77.A185 2014

230dc23

2013023653

All rights reserved. No part of this electronic publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any otherwithout the prior written permission of the publisher. The authorized purchaser has been granted a nontransferable, nonexclusive, and noncommercial right to access and view this electronic publication, and purchaser agrees to do so only in accordance with the terms of use under which it was purchased or transmitted. Participation in or encouragement of piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of authors and publishers rights is strictly prohibited.

This work is dedicated to the flocks of Jesus Christ at
Community Bible Church, Nashville, TN
Bethlehem Bible Church, West Boylston, MA
Hillcrest Baptist Church, South Africa.

Thank you for loving the truth.

CONTENTS

O ne of my most treasured possessions is an old paperback Christian book. It is somewhat battered and dog-eared and the pages are yellowed at the edges. It also has one of those awful 1980s coversa picture of a sunsetthat were so popular among evangelicals back then. Aesthetically, it has all the appeal of a dated disco album. Yet that book is a treasure.

When I became interested in Christianity at the age of 17, I knew nothing about the faith. I had rarely been to church, except for the occasional carol service at Christmas. I had read very little of the Bible. I had no idea of what theology was. Yet as I left for university, the local Baptist pastor gave me this bookpretty battered, I seem to remember even by the time I received itand my life changed forever. The book was Gods Words and the author was J.I. Packer. It was not a book of striking originality, nor one of those for which Dr. Packer would be most famous; but it did something for me that transformed my thinking. It explained basic biblical concepts in language that even I, a neophyte believer, was able to grasp.

Basic books on solid issues are a vital part of the churchs literature. It is one of the reasons catechisms were developed: to make sure that even the humblest believer with the least amount of spare time was able to learn the foundations and basic building blocks of the faith. In todays world, where fewer and fewer people even within Christian homes are brought up under solid preaching and taught basic catechetical theology, the need is even more urgent. That is why it is a pleasure to be able to write the preface for this volume. What the authors have done here is to provide a series of essays on matters of interest to the church, from the doctrine of hell to that of Christian freedom to the issue of proper local church eldership to homosexuality. The reader who takes the time to work through these essays will receive a good grounding in sound thinking about the Christian life, both doctrinally and practically.

Yet there is more to the Christian faith than simply providing contemporary explanations of Christian truth. An important element of this volume is the desire of the authors to be historically and ecclesiastically responsible. Thus, the text is replete with references to creeds and confessions, to the writings of respected men from the past, and to lessons that can be drawn from history. Readers will thus find themselves not simply connected to the Bible, but also to the church throughout the ages as it has sought to be faithful to her Lord.

Dr. Packers book still sits on my bedside table. I confess that I consult it rarely these days. But it is there as a reminder that the basics are important and that those who teach us those basics, whether directly from the pulpit or in conversation over coffee or indirectly through books and other media, fulfill an important role in the lives of Christians. This book is of a similar caliber, and I trust that in years to come readers will remember the authors and the volume with the same affection and gratitude as I have for Dr. Packer and Gods Words .

Carl R. Trueman

Westminster Theological Seminary, PA

Y ou are soundly snoring in your bed. Its late, youre exhausted, and youre enjoying a blissful dreamscape powered by REM sleep. The next moment you are suddenly awake. Your heart is pounding, your adrenalin is pumping, and your muscles are tense. You find yourself sitting upright and can feel beads of sweat forming on your forehead. The silence is palpable. What just happened? Something snatched you unceremoniously out of oblivion and into a state of high alert. Did I hear something? you ponder. Then it happens: BUMP!

From somewhere in the darkness of your house you hear another noiseunmistakable evidence of an intruder on the premises. Was that a collision into the dining room table, or a widescreen TV being dropped? Your mind races. Who is prowling around downstairs? Am I in danger?

A primal decision has presented itself: fight or flight. Which one is your gut instinct when things go bump in the night? Some long for the day they get to put their martial arts skills to the test after hours of honing their slow-motion self-defense moves in a Krav Maga dojo. Others just want to curl into the fetal position, play possum, and hope the threat lumbers away.

Whatever your instinct, you certainly would feel at least slightly more confident if you had a weapon or two in your arsenal. The requisite investigation feels more manageable while gripping a golf club or Taser gun. That is what this book is meant to be for the intellectual investigation of intimidating biblical doctrines.

Lets be frank: There are some teachings in the Bible that are intimidating. Most sane Sunday school teachers dont devote their flannel graph lessons to passages that relate to eternal damnation, loss of rewards, church discipline, and demons. We dont grow up comfortable with these doctrines. Such species of teaching sound frightening and unhelpful.

Then there are the intellectually intimidating conundrums of free will and predestination, Gods providence and concurrence, and various otherworldly terms relished by nerdy theological types and their ilk but largely overwhelming to most normal people who simply love the Lord and want to serve Him.