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Logos Ministries Incorporated
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Volume 7, Number 1 April 1999 IT'S THE PRINCIPLE OF THE THING! (This is the tenth in a series of meditations on principles one can find in the Scriptures; principles that affect the way we live and serve God.) FAITHFULNESS If you look at the events of both the Old and New Testaments, you will observe that faithfulness usually led to opposition if not outright persecution. Look at a few illustrations of this principle in both Testaments. In Acts chapter six, Stephan was accused, by false witnesses – "This man incessantly speaks against this holy place (the temple) and the Law." In Acts chapter seven, Stephan made his defense. He could have watered it down so that it would be less offensive to the Sanhedrin. Instead, Stephan told the whole truth and the members of the council were so infuriated with him that they stoned him to death. His faithfulness led to his ultimate pain. You will remember that time after time, God sent Moses to Pharaoh to insist that he let the Jewish people go out into the desert to worship Him. Though it frightened him, Moses went to Pharaoh and insisted that he let the Israelites go to worship Jehovah. At great risk, Moses obeyed. When Israel was finally allowed to leave, they eventually found themselves cornered by the Red Sea. Not only were the Egyptians closing in on them, but the Israelites rudely nagged at Moses asking if Egypt did not have enough graves so that he had to bring them out into the desert to drown in the waters of the Red Sea. Moses did what God commanded and suffered at the hands of his own people for his obedience. Jesus came to preach and teach just as the Father had commanded him. For His efforts, the Pharisees plotted against him with the Scribes, Sadducees and Herodians in an attempt to keep Jesus from diluting their power and control over the people of Israel. Because of his faithfulness, Jesus was eventually abused, falsely accused and put to death illegally because he did exactly as the Father commanded Him. In Genesis 37-50, you will find the story of Joseph. In short, he did all the right things and suffered for each one. He rightly told his father about the evil deeds of his brothers. They hated him for his goodness. Joseph rightly refused the improper advances of Potiphar's wife. For this excellent response, Joseph was thrown into prison. Joseph rightly interpreted the dreams of the butler and the baker. For all Joseph's kindness, the two officials forgot about him. At every turn, Joseph did the good, honest thing and suffered for his efforts. Look at the apostle Paul. He did as God commanded and repeatedly he suffered for that act of obedience. God sent him to preach in Macedonia. Paul did as commanded, but ended up in prison, illegally. Repeatedly, Paul was beaten and placed in prison. Daniel did what he knew to be right. He prayed to God despite the king's edict. The edict was enacted as a way to get rid of Daniel. Still Daniel was faithful and was imprisoned with the lions for his efforts. As you read this, you may have also noticed a second principle. In each of the six illustrations, the initial response was pain and suffering. Later, however, you will notice that good came out of the suffering. Moses was able to lead Israel back to the land of promise. Stephan was able to give a consistent witness to the saving grace of Jesus. Joseph was able to serve in a position that enabled him to keep his family from starvation and preserve the lineage of the Messiah. Daniel was faithful and had an impact on the leaders of a foreign country on behalf of God. Paul suffered in a Macedonian jail, but out of that pain came the strongest witness for Christ in that century. Jesus suffered, but out of it came the cross and our redemption. Think about this for a minute. Faithfulness to God inevitably lead to confrontation and pain. In our own situation, we have essentially no opposition or pain as a result of our faithfulness. Granted there are thousands, today, who suffer and die for their faith in Christ, but we are not among them. One wonders, just why that is true? As we observe the movement of history in our culture, we can see the growing opposition to the church. Should this lead to pain and persecution for us, we need to remember the second principle as well as the first. Bill Cooper I'M BACK ! On January 22, I left for the Ukraine to teach at Donetsk Christian University. I was to teach 44 class hours on the Gospel of Luke. This was for the first year class which has 65 students. I had been told that it was one of the coldest winters on record. Actually, it was one of the warmest. This created a problem. They were experiencing a debilitating epidemic of the flu. Schools in the area had been closed for about a month. When I arrived in Kiev, I discovered that my boxes had been broken into and my asthma medication stolen. I was unable to find a replacement for this medicine, so I was without it for nearly two weeks. After about a week I started coughing and it increased daily. By this time we were studying chapter 15 of Luke. I continued to get worse until I was coughing about once a minute. They took me to a local hospital where they thought I had pneumonia and wanted me to stay. The place was so dirty I declined to stay there. Another hospital also concluded that I had pneumonia and wanted to admit me. I declined and decided that I was in no condition to continue teaching. A missionary accompanied me on the trip back to Kiev where I received medical attention at the American Medical Center. and returned home as soon as they would release me for travel. I did not have pneumonia, but I did have a serious infection. They gave me antibiotics which helped a great deal. Just as soon as I arrived in Colorado, I saw a doctor who gave me more antibiotics and as I write the problem is about over. I was teaching this course from a book I had written on the Gospel of Luke. My translator had a copy of this book and he gave the final lectures from this book and gave the final examination that I had written before I went to the Ukraine. As they brought me from the apartment where I stayed during my time in Donetsk, I discovered that the entire class of 65 students lined the hall and sang to me as I moved slowly to the waiting van to go to the airport. It was an emotional moment for me. They wondered if I would ever return after this experience. I assured them that is not the way one decides on where he will serve. If they have need of my teaching, I will return, but probably not in winter. During the time that I felt the worst, I was reminded of the fact that many of you were praying for me each day. I thank God for you and your faithful support. ON TO THE PRINTER In earlier issues of this newsletter, I indicated that I was working on a study of the Ephesian epistle. That study is complete and is now in the printing process. It is now available. You will find information about it on the order blank that accompanies this letter. SUFFERING IN CALIFORNIA :-) When I returned from the Ukraine, I was invited to speak at a United Methodist men's club in Irvine, California. Ruth was going to Irvine to teach so I went with her. I spoke to the men's group who invited their wives to join them for this event. It was an excellent opportunity to share with them what God is doing at the University in Donetsk. ONE MORE As you know, I have been working on a study of the Ephesian epistle. When I went to California with Ruth, I had all day to work on my studies while she was teaching. Because of this fact, I have also been able to finish a study of the Philippian epistle. It will now go through the proof reading process and will then be ready for printing. That should be completed very soon. What a joy it has been to complete this study. STILL ONE MORE When I finished the study of Philippians, I still had time so I started a study of the Colossian epistle. This is not complete, but the study is about half finished. I will be using these studies to prepare lectures to teach a course in Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians at the seminary in Moscow. The study of Colossians will be printed in conjunction with a study of the book of Philemon which I completed a year ago. The two studies will be printed in the same book. MOVING AGAIN When we built our home in the mountains, we wanted to prepare a sign for the front door – "done moving." Well, that is not quite the case. Last October while I was in the Ukraine, Ruth was getting ready to go to York, England to teach Porcelain painting in a school there. On the way to the airport, she realized that she was seeing double. Fortunately, this was only in her long distance vision and did not affect her close up vision at all. Therefore, she was able to go on to England and teach the classes there. Upon her return tests were done and the doctor informed us that she has had a series of mini-strokes. We discovered that going from the first floor to the second floor of our home would leave her completely out of breath. We have been advised that the elevation of our home is too high for Ruth and we should move down. So, we have put our mountain home up for sale. We will then build a home in Fort Collins. We hope to be able to give you our new address and phone number in the next newsletter. Meanwhile you can still reach us at the current address and phone number. NEW OPPORTUNITIES This past summer, I was invited to meet with officials of a missionary organization called "OMS International." Their headquarters is located in Greenwood, Indiana. At that meeting, I was asked if I would help with a revision of the Biblical studies curriculum in their 15 seminaries throughout the world. This will mean additional travel for me. At the end of June and the first week of July, I will meet with the presidents of these seminaries to plan for this work. I will teach in eight or nine of these seminaries and work on the curriculum in all 15. This is a three year project and will only take a portion of my time. This is a great opportunity for me and I would like to ask you to pray with me that God will guide and help me as I seek to help focus the direction of biblical study in these seminaries in many different countries and cultures. ONE MORE TIME The Course of Study School, which meets at Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois, will be held from July 12 through August 5, 1999. I have been invited to be a member of the faculty again this year. This will be the 19th. time I have returned to the campus to teach. As in the past, I will teach a course in Bible. As you may know, this is a school for second career pastors of the United Methodist Church. The opportunities God has opened for me are demanding, to say the least. I would appreciate it if you would keep me in your prayers that God would give me the strength and guidance to do the things He has called upon me to do. |
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