The Modernist Preacher

The Modernist Preacher
He was an ordained minister, But modern in his views, He preached his fancy doctrine To people in the pews.
He would not hurt their feelings, What'er the cost would be, But their smiles and friendship And compliments sought he.
His church was filled with wicked souls That should be saved from sin, But never once he showed the way, Or tried a soul to win.
He preached about the lovely birds That twitter in the trees The babbling of the running brooks, The murm'ring of the seas.
He quoted fancy poetry That tickled list'ning ears; When sorrow came to some, He tried to laugh away their tears.
His smooth and slippery sermons Made the people slide to hell The harm he did by preaching Goes beyond what we can tell.
He took our Holy Bible, And preached it full of holes, The Virgin Birth, said he, Can't be believed by honest souls.
The miracles of Jesus And the resurrection tale For educated one like us, Today cannot avail.
We're living in an age, said he, When wisdom rules and reigns, When man's intelligence is great And superstition wanes.
He said, we're all God's children Who live upon this earth, No message of salvation, No need of second birth.
His coat was bought with money That he had wrongly gained, For through his lying sermons His wealth he had obtained.
He was just like the soldiers That watched at Jesus' grave, For money in abundance, To them, the people gave.
It was all theirs, by telling What was a sinful lie --- A resurrected Savior, They too, were to deny.
The day at last had come For the minister to die, When to his congregation, He had to say good-bye.
His form lay cold and lifeless, His ministry was past, His tongue with all its poison Was hushed and stilled at last.
His funeral was grand, He was lauded to the skies They preached him into heaven Where there are no good-byes.
Upon the lonely hill, Underneath the shady trees, His form was laid to rest In the wisp'ring of the breeze.
A tombstone was erected With the words; "He is at rest, He's gone to heaven's glories To live among the blest."
His body now is lifeless, But Ah! His soul lives on, He failed to enter in Where they thought that he had gone.
The letters on the tombstone Or that sermon some had heard, Could not decide his destiny, 'Twas not the final word.
He still had God to deal with, The One who knows the heart; While others entered heaven, He heard the word, "Depart".
He pauses for a moment Upon the brink of hell; He stares into a depth Where he evermore will dwell.
He hears the cries and groanings Of souls he had misled, He recognizes faces Among the screaming dead.
He sees departed deacons Which he once highly praised, Their fingers pointing at him As they their voices raised:
"You stood behind the pulpit, And lived in awful sin, We took you for a saint, But a serpent you have been."
Accusing cries -- he hears them. "Ah! you have been to blame, You led us into darkness When you were seeking fame.
"You preached your deadly poison, We thought you knew the way; We fed and clothed you, We even raised your pay.
"You've robbed us of a home Where no tear-drops ever flow, Where days are always fair And the heavenly breezes blow,
"Where living streams are flowing, And saints and angels sing, Where every one is happy, And Hallelujahs ring.
"We're in this place of torment, From which no soul returns; We hear the cry of lost ones, We feel the searing burns;
"Give us a drop of water, We're tortured in this flame, You failed to preach salvation To us through Jesus' name."
The preacher turns in horror, He tries to leave the scene, He knows the awful future For every soul unclean.
But there he meets the devil, Whom he had served so well, He feels the demon powers, They drag him into hell.
Throughout eternal ages His groans, too, must be heard -- He, too, must suffer torment He failed to heed God's Word.
He feels God's wrath upon him, He hears the hot flames roar, His doctrine now is different, He ridicules no more."
The Baptist Challenge - May 1998

My Journey

"And there they preached the gospel." Acts 14:7 In this passage we read of the first missionary journey. In Acts 13:2 Paul and Barnabas answered the call of the Holy Ghost and went forth preaching in every town. They were following the example set forth by Jesus Christ himself in Mark 1:38 "And he said unto them, Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also: for therefore came I forth." Paul and Barnabas went forth preaching "Jesus saves" unto every town. They led many souls to the Lord, also making many enemies in the process. In the town of Iconium they preached in the synagogue and many of the Jews and Greeks believed. (Acts 14:1) There were many, however, who wanted this "Jesus problem" to go away. The unbelievers formed an angry mob and prepared to find Paul and Barnabas to stone them. Paul and Barnabas were "made ware" of the mob (Acts 14:6) and fled. What they did next really stirred me. They did not "lay low", they did not hide out and just try to "blend in". They preached the gospel despite the obvious danger they faced. This kind of boldness is sadly lacking today. There are areas of the country where people still revere the things of the Lord. Sadly, the northeast is not one of those areas.

For years I put more trust in my "own" abilities (given to me by the Lord, something I have finally given the Lord credit for) in business to lead me where I should go. I am blessed to have a very good job that pays me well and treats me great. Well, the Lord has other plans for me. On October 18, 2008 I finally surrendered to the call of the Lord to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. I realize that I have a lot to learn before I can go off and plant an independent fundamental Baptist Church, but I have been placed in a great church where I have grown exponentially in my faith and Bible knowledge. Pastor James Wiley has taken me under his wing to mentor me and through Church Hill Baptist Institute I am learning at an even faster pace. I wish to preach with the boldness of the early church in the book of Acts. America and especially Maine need this kind of bold preaching. What we don't need is more churches that offer a "back rub" or a "feel good about where you are" message. What we do need is the boldness to proclaim the gospel to all corners, converting unbelievers and teaching believers to live a holy, separated life devoted to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
This blog will chronicle my journey from businessman to preacher, from living for myself to living for the glory of God, from faith in me to faith in the Lord for all things.
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33

The Loss of a Great Man

We recently had the "homegoing" service for Mr. Robert Gowell (a.k.a. Mr. Bob). Bob was the kind of man that always greeted you with a smile. He was the type of unselfish man that would recognize a need and act on it. Despite the fact that he was not a monetarily rich man he would seek ways to bless others. I was told that on Thursday, just two days before his passing, he showed up unannounced at someone's house with a snowblower. He had fixed the snowblower up, made sure it ran perfect and gave it to the family as a gift. That was Bob being Bob. The Lord has used Bob in so many ways. As you walk around Church Hill Baptist Church you will see Bob's fingerprints on almost every square inch of the building. Many families at church also report that Bob's fingerprints are in their houses. Bob was a great example of using your talents for the Lord. We will miss Mr. Bob, but don't feel bad for him. He has gone home!