Just
A
Thought
II
By: Dr. Bob Gray
Copyright Bob Gray, Sr 2010.
Published by Bob Gray Sr. at Smashwords
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All Scriptures are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
DEDICATION
In 1957, as an eleven-year-old boy I attended the First Missionary Baptist Church of Kalamazoo, Michigan. My mother took my two younger brothers and me to Sunday school and preaching. Our pastor was Marvin Owen. He was a fiery preacher who made the Bible live with his preaching. I was an introvert and found it very difficult to engage in any kind of conversation. Pastor Owen went out of his way to get to know me and our family. I will never forget the day he came to our house; as I was in the backyard play¬ing, he approached me and asked if he could talk to me. We sat down at a picnic table, and he began to talk to me about whether or not I was going to Heaven. He seemed so concerned about me. He was a man of compassion!
The next Sunday night the pastor preached a red hot sermon on Hell. I went to the altar, but I did not trust Christ. I went home and told my mama on the stairway to my room that I was not saved. I told my mama that I was afraid I was going to go to Hell if I died. She began to weep, pointed to my room and asked me to please go into my bedroom and ask Christ to save me. I heeded what she said and went into my room. I knelt on an old throw rug next to my wooden post bed and began to beg Christ to save me. I did not know what I was supposed to say, but God saw me reaching out to His Son for salvation. I believe many people at a church invitation time are really saved the moment they say “yes” to Jesus, be¬fore they even arrive to the altar.
I would like to dedicate this book to Pastor and Mrs. Marvin Owen. Pastor Owen is in Heaven, but his dear wife is still living as of the writing of this book. I want to say thank you to Mrs. Tommie Owen for supporting her husband for those many years of pastoring. It is not an easy task to pastor, but I am saved and serv¬ing God because this dear couple allowed God to put them into the ministry. Thank you, Mrs. Owen, for loving your husband and allowing him to serve his Lord for those many years. Mrs. Gray and I are very grateful for your sacrifices.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I want to thank my dear wife of more than four dec-ades. Your love and support have allowed the bless¬ings of God to come not only on our family, but also on our ministry. Lee Ann, I realize you did not marry a pastor; you married an accountant. Yet, your flexi¬bility has allowed both of us to adjust successfully. Our four children and ten grandchildren all owe you a debt. Thank you for your faithfulness in spite of ill health.
I want to thank my dear mother, who, as of this writing, is ninety-five. Mama, I owe you a debt I will never be able to repay. I promise you I will not let the wonderful truths you instilled in my life die. I love you!
I want to thank my dear children for their love and loyalty to our Saviour Jesus Christ. Kim, Bob, Karen, and Scott, you have displayed wonderful grace and courage in light of being in the spotlight. Sometimes it was good and sometimes it was not so good, but you have never wavered in your love for your families and for the souls of men.
I want to thank the dear members of the Longview Baptist Temple for their love and loyalty throughout these twenty-seven years. You have stayed by your pastor in the good days and the bad days. I will for¬ever be grateful.
I want to thank the dear staff of LBT. You have been so faithful in your labors for the souls of men, and I owe you a debt of gratitude.
I want to thank Mrs. Connie Vazquez for the many hours of labor over this manuscript. You have pro¬vided encouragement and an expertise that has proven to be invaluable to this book.
I would be amiss if I did not give acknowledgement to one of the hardest working staff ladies I have ever met in my life. Mrs. Diana Ayres has been a faithful and loyal staff member for almost twenty-six years. Your fiscal integrity and work ethic is unsurpassed.
Then may I say a special thanks to my Saviour. Anything that anyone in the family of God accom¬plishes in life is because of the mercy and grace of our Saviour.
CONTENTS
A FRIEND OF PUBLICANS AND SINNERS
PUBLIC SCHOOL DEATHS ARE AT AN ALL-TIME HIGH
ETHICS ARE FOR CHURCH MEMBERS TOO
FUNDAMENTALS MAKE THE FUNDAMENTALIST
THE WALL, THE GATES AND THE WATCHMAN
THE BIBLE TEST FOR SPIRITUAL MATURITY
NEW AND IMPROVED OR OLD AND PRESERVED?
SEVEN ATTRIBUTES OF AN ACHIEVER
A Quick Drive to Texas
It is hard to believe that twenty-seven years have passed since my first trip to Texas. During the sum¬mer of 1980, I was pastor of the Faith Baptist Church of Bourbonnais, Illinois, where I had been privileged to serve for four years. Don Keck, one of our dea¬cons, had a nephew who had trusted Christ as his Saviour, but was heavily into drugs. I suggested to Don that his nephew be taken to the Roloff Homes in Corpus Christi, Texas, for help. Evangelist Lester Roloff ran an exceptional program for young men who were trapped with addictions. Don and his nephew agreed to go, and Don asked me to go with them to Texas. I was reluctant to go and even tried to get someone else to take them, but to no avail.
On Sunday, July 13, 1980, I picked up my converts for church as usual. I dropped them off at the front door of the church and drove around to the back of the auditorium to park my car by my office door. Mrs. Gray and I would routinely meet in my office and have a word of prayer together before Sunday school. That morning, when I entered the office and we started to pray (please remember I am not a “spooky-type” Christian), God moved on our hearts in an unusual way like never before. When we finished praying, I asked my wife, “What in the world is going on?”
She said to me, “Either this is going to be the big¬gest day of our lives or the worst day of our lives!”
On Monday, July 14, 1980, I packed for the long trip to Texas. Although my daughter Kimberly and son Bobby both wanted to go with us, we could not take both, so we decided Bobby would travel with us. Little did we know how that simple decision would influence this trip.
We arrived at the Roloff homes late Monday night and stayed two nights before starting our trip back home on Wednesday morning. We stopped at a res¬taurant in Lufkin, Texas, to eat breakfast. While we were eating, Bobby asked how far it was to Garland, Texas, and asked several questions about Dr. Jack Hyles’ ministry in Garland. After a few minutes, he asked if we could visit the Miller Road Baptist Church. I mentioned that we had just enough money to get us back to Illinois, and we needed to be back for the Wednesday night service. Don Keck said that he would like to see where Dr. Hyles had pastored also; since we would never be back there again, he wanted to take advantage of the opportunity. So, with Don’s credit card, off we went to visit Garland, Texas. I phoned the office and arranged for one of the staff men to conduct the Wednesday night service.
When we arrived in Garland, we drove by the Miller Road Baptist Church and toured the facilities. Then we drove by the Lavon Drive Baptist Church in Garland, where we noticed that a youth conference was in progress. One of the speakers was Dr. Tom Smith. Dr. Smith had been the first pastor of the church I was currently pastoring. I was surprised and thrilled, and I suggested that we attend the service and hear Dr. Smith. The service was great. After-wards, I approached Dr. Smith and Dr. Gary Coleman and introduced ourselves to them. Dr. Smith remem¬bered me and was very gracious.
The next day, after attending one of the day ses¬sions of the conference, Dr. Coleman invited me to lunch with him and Dr. Smith. Because Don and my son wanted to go back to the motel and rest, I went alone to lunch with the preachers. On our way to a barbecue restaurant, Dr. Smith mentioned that Longview Baptist Temple was without a pastor. Dr. Terry Smith, Tom’s brother, was the pastor who had been used of God for over nine years to build a great work in Longview, Texas. Everyone at Hyles-Anderson College had heard and known of Dr. Terry Smith.
The moment Dr. Tom Smith mentioned that the church was without a pastor; God spoke to my heart and told me that I was going to be the next pastor of the Longview Baptist Temple. I did not know until later that at that very moment Don Keck began to weep at the motel. When my son asked him what was wrong, he told my son that he had just lost his pastor.
After lunch, I went back to the motel, not knowing what Don Keck had said to my son Bob. We packed and started for home. While traveling on I-20 East, I mentioned that I would like to visit the Longview Baptist Temple since it was on our way. Not another word was spoken for the rest of the trip. When we arrived in Longview late Thursday afternoon, we checked into the Contessa Inn, and I went to find the church.
I arrived at the church in time for the weekly visita¬tion night. I met Dane Matney and Buddy White at the door, and they gave me a brief tour of the auditorium. While we were standing in the foyer, Dane turned to me and said, “God just told me that you are going to be our next pastor!” God really spoke to me then—my heart was leaping out of my chest! They asked me if I knew Jim Newton, the interim pastor. Jim and I had attended Hyles-Anderson College together and graduated together. I asked if I could talk to him. They took me to an office where I called Jim at home. He graciously came to the church and spent some time with me. During that conversation, he said that I should talk to the deacons about candidating for the pastorate. Again, I was shocked at what was tran¬spiring. I agreed to do so, and an appointment was set up for Friday night at seven o’clock.
We extended our stay at the motel, and I met with the deacons on Friday night. They quizzed me for several hours. Before I knew it, it was ten o’clock. I was so wrapped up in what was going on that I forgot that I had not talked to my wife since Wednesday. When I called Mrs. Gray, I said, “You are not going to believe what is happening!”
She said, “Yes, I know. God is moving us to Texas! We have already started packing.” I asked how she knew. Her reply was a simple one, “God told me!”
The following Sunday, July 20, 1980, I taught Sunday school and preached at Longview Baptist Temple in the morning and evening. Before going to the pulpit Sunday morning, I asked God to verify His call. Honestly, that is a ridiculous thing to do – but I did it anyway. I asked God to have someone who had never attended Longview Baptist Temple before walk in off the street and walk the aisle for salvation. I preached, and absolutely no one walked the aisle at the beginning of the invitation. Finally, at the end of the invitation, a man from a back section walked down the aisle and received Christ as his Saviour. When I talked to him about his coming, he told me that he was driving by the church and, for some inexplicable reason, pulled in to attend the church service. Wow!
On Monday, we left for home. Hardly a word was spoken on our trip home. When we were about fifty miles from Bourbonnais, we stopped at a restaurant where I called my assistant pastor. He met me at the Hen House Restaurant, and I told him what God was doing and that I was going to resign to pastor in Texas. I told him that I was going to recommend him to be the next pastor of Faith Baptist Church. We ar¬rived home on July 23, just in time for the Wednesday night Bible study.
The following Thursday, July 31, our whole family drove to Longview, Texas, to candidate. We arrived Saturday, August 2, and met with Jim Newton at the Bonanza Restaurant for a meal. Jim then took us to his brother’s house to spend the next two days.
I preached both Sunday morning and Sunday eve¬ning on August 3. On the same Sunday night, we had a church-wide question-and-answer session.
The following Sunday, August 10, a pulpit commit¬tee from Longview traveled to Bourbonnais. They flew back home on Sunday afternoon, and the chairman of the pulpit committee, D.A. Smitherman, recom¬mended to the church that they extend an official call to us. They voted with seventy-six percent in favor of our coming to pastor. The constitution required a ma¬jority of seventy-five percent. On Sunday morning, August 24, I met with the deacons of Faith Baptist Church and told them of God’s will. I preached that morning, and then Don Keck told the congregation what he had seen and that he knew it was God’s will that I pastor the Longview Baptist Temple of Longview, Texas.
That Sunday night, our family went to the First Baptist Church of Hammond, Indiana, for church. Dr. Hyles stood to preach and announced his sermon on “How to Keep From Making the Wrong Decision.” Our family sat there frozen and listened intently to every word. He gave me seven ways to check decisions. We sat there and sighed in relief as we passed mus¬ter on each point. Then, when he related that he had been voted in as pastor of the First Baptist Church with an overwhelming seventy-six percent of the votes, we all shouted “Amen.” What a relief!
I preached my first sermon as pastor of the Longview Baptist Temple on August 27, 1980. We were so excited that we forgot to join the church the first two weeks we were here.
The first Sunday I had nine converts down the aisle for baptism: three blacks, three Mexicans, and three bus kids. However, the chairman of the deacons was not very happy with the type of people I was bringing in, and he had a few words to say to me about it. I was determined to win as many people to the Lord as I could, regardless of who they were. At the end of 1980, we had 402 professions of faith with 232 of those following the Lord in baptism.
During the first three months of 1981, we had over five hundred baptisms. It was remarkable what God was doing. During this time, I became acquainted with Dr. Howard Hall of Shreveport Baptist Temple in Shreveport, Louisiana. He eventually became a close friend. He asked if I would meet with him and his staff to teach them what we were doing so successfully in the areas of soul winning and baptisms. We met with his staff at what would become our first Soul-Winning Clinic. In the fall of 1981, we conducted our second Soul-Winning Clinic for area churches. Fifteen pastors came, and we conducted sessions for them. We have hosted twenty-seven national Soul-Winning Clinics since then.
At the end of 1981, we had 8,324 people saved out on the streets, with 2,148 of those walking the aisles making public professions of faith, and 1,312 of those following the Lord in baptism. What a miracle we were experiencing! Our attendance has grown from a low of 159 to an average of over three thousand in these twenty-seven years. As of this writing, we have seen over one million souls come to Christ through the per¬sonal soul winning of our dear people. What a miracle work in a relatively small city in East Texas! To God be the glory! JUST A THOUGHT!
A Friend of Publicans And Sinners
The first five books of the Bible, which are called the Pentateuch, chronicle several important events of the early history of mankind. They tell us of creation, the flood, the Passover, the wilderness wanderings, and other important events. They tell us of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and other Biblical patriarchs. They discuss the Ten Commandments and the Tabernacle. Much of the history of mankind since the Garden of Eden is covered in these first five books of the Bible.
Obviously, these books are a very important part of the Bible. Whom did God choose to inscribe His Words in this important part of the Bible? Who was this man—a man widely acclaimed as the greatest man in the Old Testament, and maybe the entire Bible? Who was this man? He was Moses—a murderer! That is right—a murderer penned the Pentateuch! In the early days of his adulthood, he killed an Egyptian man. While it is true that he was not a serial killer, Moses, the author of the first five books of the Bible, was still a murderer!
Consider the man who penned fourteen of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament—more than half of the New Testament. This man presented to us in the book of Romans all of the great doctrines of the faith. In I Corinthians, he warned the church in Corinth about their carnality and their failure to mature in the Christian life. In his second book to the Corinthians, he defended the ministry of the Gospel.
He wrote to the Galatians, telling them to return to preaching the Gospel of grace. He wrote to the church in Ephesus and told them that they should live in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. He wrote to the church in Colosse and told them Christ is better than the Law, the Sabbath, the Tabernacle, the Temple, the Covenant, the Priesthood, the Holy Days, and the Holy Seasons.
Who was the man given the responsibility of writing most of the books in the New Testament? Like Moses, he was also a murderer! He was Saul of Tarsus, later named Paul. Before he was saved, he persecuted and killed Christians.
It is amazing that God used two murderers to pen much of the Holy Bible. Oh, my! I can hear you Pharisees mumbling under your breath. Frankly, if Moses and Paul were alive today, you would have a hard time allowing these men to be members of your local church. And you certainly would never agree with God’s decision to allow them to pen parts of the Holy Bible. You would have had to split from God on this one.
One man penned most of the Psalms. He was called a man after God’s own heart. He was the man whom Paul described as “a man who served his own generation by the will of God.” Who is this man who penned most of the Psalms, and who served his own generation by the will of God? Who is this man who was called a man after God’s own heart? His name is David. Who is this man named David? Another mur¬derer! He had Uriah killed after David committed adultery with Bathsheba.
The first book of the New Testament was penned by a man named Matthew. Who was Matthew? He was one of the twelve disciples, but before that he was a publican. He was a robber. He was a cheat. He was a thief. He was the local director of the IRS of his day, a man who used his position to cheat the people. You would think God could have chosen someone from the local seminary in Jerusalem to pen the very first book of the New Testament!
It seems to me that God should have chosen some¬one trained for the ministry to write the first five books of the Bible, most of the Psalms, or fourteen of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament. I am afraid that God’s choice is going to make Him look bad to His people. The very thought of the first five books of the Old Testament being penned by a mur¬derer will certainly hurt God’s PR program. This really looks bad!
You never would have allowed your daughter to date any one of these men. Let us suppose that Moses had been nominated for the deacon board—a murderer on the deacon board? If you had been a member of the church at Thessalonica, you would not have voted for Paul. Why? He was a murderer. Cer¬tainly you would not have voted to use David’s new songs or to recite the Psalms he penned. After all, he was an adulterer and a murderer!
When our resurrected Lord made His first appear¬ance, He did not show Himself to John the Beloved, Peter, or James. He chose to make His first appear¬ance to a woman—none other than Mary Magdalene, a woman who had once been a harlot, and who had once been possessed by seven devils. He could have chosen any number of people, even His own mother. However, He chose to make His first ap-pearance to a woman, once fallen, who was later saved by His grace. He appeared first to Mary Magdalene to shut the mouths of the critics.
In Hebrews 11, that great Hall of Faith chapter, I read of many great heroes of faith. I find, however, only one woman mentioned in that chapter of heroes. Who is that woman? None other than Rahab the harlot! There are many great men and women in the Old Testament who are not mentioned in Hebrews chapter 11. Yet, Rahab the harlot made the list, while others did not.
I read the genealogy of Jesus, and I find that three women are mentioned in His genealogy—Tamar, Ruth, and Bathsheba. Who was Tamar? She was a tainted woman, a woman with a questionable past. Who was Ruth? She was a heathen woman from the land of Moab. Both of these women were fallen women with a sinful past. Who is the third? Bathsheba! Bathsheba? The woman who bathed on her housetop and provoked David to commit adultery with her and later kill her husband!
There is a story in the Bible about David’s six hun¬dred mighty men. These men were chosen by God and by David to be King David’s bodyguards. These men marched around the palace when David was king. Can you picture them? These men—wearing freshly pressed uniforms and highly polished boots, flashing glistening sabers—each and every one guarding King David with his very life.
These men stayed with David during Absalom’s re-bellion. David told these men to stay at the palace because he was leaving the throne; he refused to fight his own son. These men refused to stay. They said, “Whether it be life or by death, where the Lord our king is, there will thy servants be also.” These men laid aside their glistening sabers, the neatly pressed uniforms, and the highly polished boots; with old, ragged clothes they followed King David down to Mahanaim. They said to David, “We did not volunteer to be the king’s bodyguards; we volunteered to be your bodyguards. We did not give our allegiance to the palace; we gave our allegiance to you.” They chose to stay with David through his trials and victo¬ries.
Finally, the war was over and David’s forces had won the war. David went back to Jerusalem—to the palace, the throne, his royal robe, his crown, and his royal scepter. Once again, those six hundred men had their uniforms, their glistening sabers, and their polished boots. Once again, they guarded David in the palace.
Who were these courageous men? Who were these loyal men? Oh, I know who they were; they must have been trained men, graduates of the West Point of Israel. No, they did not attend the West Point of Israel. Oh, then they must have been men highly trained for warfare against the Philistines, the enemies of God. No, they were not.
Wait a minute! These were not even Jews. These were not even part of the twelve tribes of the chosen nation of Israel. These were heathen men! These were Philistine men! They had been the enemy! Yet they became trusted bodyguards of the king.
David gave a little speech on his deathbed. While he was dying, he listed the names of his mighty men. He spoke of their feats of valor. Who were these mighty men? Yes, they were sinners who had been enemies of David at one time. Yes, they were heathen and pa¬gans, but they had given themselves to God and to David.
It is interesting to look at the list found in Hebrews chapter 11. Noah is mentioned in this chapter. A preacher of righteousness, you say? The one who built the ark, you say? Let me share some gossip about Brother Noah. Did you know that Noah got drunk? Yet, in the New Testament God did not call him “Noah the Drunk,” or “Noah the Nude.” He called him “Noah, a preacher of righteousness.”
I keep on reading Hebrews chapter 11 and I find Abraham’s name mentioned. Abraham? This was the man who went down to Egypt because there was famine in the land. He left the will of God. He followed money. While he was out of the will of God, chasing money, he hired a little Egyptian girl to work for him as a maid. When he returned to Canaan, he took the Egyptian maid with him. Guess what he did? Abraham got this girl pregnant! Oh my! I imagine that you Pharisees are having a heart attack over this situation. Abraham had an illegitimate child named Ishmael who was the father of the Arabs. The prob¬lems we are experiencing in the Middle East today are direct results of Abraham’s sin.
John Mark was a quitter and a “mama’s boy.” Yet, John Mark stood by Paul while Paul was in prison. When John Mark was an older man, Paul gave him another chance.
In John chapter 4, we read about the greatest per¬sonal soul winner in history. Would you like to know who that soul winner was? She was a woman who had been married five times. When she was saved, she was living with a man without being married. Within a few hours of her salvation, she brought the entire town to Christ!
The greatest revival in all of history was held in a town called Nineveh. The evangelist was a man named Jonah. Jonah went up and down the streets crying, “Repent! Repent! Repent!” Everybody re¬pented, and the whole town donned sackcloth and ashes. Not only did everyone in town get saved, but also every person repented.
Who was that great evangelist? Seventy-two hours before, he had been running from God, and he ended up in a fish’s belly. However, the Bible says that God came to Jonah again.
I see a man preaching. Wow, what a sermon! I see three thousand people walking the aisles and getting saved. Who was this powerful preacher? This great preacher cursed Jesus just fifty days before he preached this great sermon. Just fifty days ago, he denied Jesus, the faith, and his church. Not only that, but just fifty days ago he went fishing naked!
It is amazing that Jesus associates Himself with sin¬ners, and—more than that—the worst kind of sinners, if there is such a category! It is amazing to see how Jesus can reach down and take a sinner, cleanse him, and make him useful for the glory of God! Jesus loves sinners.
Please do not misunderstand me—I am not advo¬cating adultery, drunkenness, nudity, murder, or any other kind of sin, including gossip. All sin is wrong. God punishes people for sin, but He does not give a life sentence. I am, however, advocating our rescuing the perishing and restoring the fallen! By the way, the biggest condemnation God ever gave to anybody in all of the New Testament He gave against you Pharisees.
God is telling us that when we are saved, our sins are washed away. God chooses to let us know that people who have plunged to the depths of sin can still be used of God. Dr. Bob Jones Sr. often said, “God has nothing but crooked sticks to use!”
You may not love sinners, the fallen, and the hea¬then, but Jesus does, and His Heavenly Father does! You may not want to use someone who has been rescued from the pits of sin, but God wants to use anybody who will give himself to God.
Please listen to me. I do not care what you have done, come to Christ, and God will use you again. You may not qualify to pastor or to be a deacon, but you can qualify to go soul winning and be used by God.