Category: All Articles

You Can Know You Are Saved

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Theology

–April of 2005

You Can Know You Are Saved

The Reformers contended that a man can know that he is justified by grace through faith in the atoning work of Jesus Christ.  Samuel Wesley’s dying words to his sons John and Charles were “the witness, son, the witness; that is the proof of Christianity.”  Wesley’s own heartwarming experience at Aldersgate convinced him that a man can have a clear knowledge of the salvation experience.  In his sermon, “The Witness of the Spirit,” Wesley defines the testimony of the Spirit as “An inward impression on the soul, whereby the Spirit of God directly witnesses to my spirit that I am a child of God, that Jesus Christ hath loved me and given himself for me, and that all my sins are blotted out and I, even I, am reconciled to God.  “Wesley later in life, after many years of developing thought on the subject, made it clear that the objective witness of the Spirit may dim or fade in relation to a person’s mood, emotions or physical condition.  However, he contended to the very end that a many can know that he is saved, and that justifying faith will bring a sweet calm to the heart, enabling the believer to rest in the arms of Jesus.  Hence, historic Methodism still has at its heart the truth that “all men can know they are saved.”

On one occasion, when Wesley was visiting Bristol, the bishop of Bristol, Joseph Butler, endeavored to stop Wesley from preaching.  Their dispute centered around the doctrine of assurance.  The bishop contended such a doctrine was not true to the Scripture of the teachings of the church.  This happened sometime in the late 1730s.  Thirteen years later, as the bishop lay dying, he approached his death without the assurance of salvation.  He called for his chaplain and told him that he was afraid to die.  The chaplain encouraged him with the thought that Christ is our Savior, but the bishop plaintively asked, “How can I know that Christ is my Savior?”  Some forty years later as Wesley lay dying, the words that fell from his lips were these, “The best of all is, God is with us.”

Bishop Kern notes the startling contrast between these two dying men.  There is the “sun-lit certainty of Wesley’s experience and the shadowed insecurity of a bishop’s soul.”  The bishop “could prove the existence of God by analogies from nature but did not know Him in the peace of an inward mystical and redeeming fellowship.”

I’m so grateful that I can sing with Wesley, “My God is reconciled; His pardoning voice I hear, He owns me for His child, I can no longer fear; With confidence I now draw nigh, and ‘Father, Abba Father’ cry.”  Can you sing that verse with me?

Great Preachers

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Church, Ministry

–March of 2005

Great Preachers

I was comfortably settled in at my writing desk preparing to polish off the rough draft of an article I had written for this issue of the Revivalist, when all of a sudden my pen refused to write another word about the subject at hand.  Instead, it wanted to write about some of the great preachers I have known.  The shift in focus could be attributed to the fact that I had just returned home from the funeral of one of the greatest orators in the holiness movement, and I was still thinking about his life and preaching ministry.   Nevertheless, the subject has been on my mind for months, so I gave in and let my pen have its way.

As a preacher, a student of preaching, and someone responsible for the training of preachers, I have had a keen interest in what makes for great preaching and great preachers.   Though notable scholars and great preachers have written numbers of books on this subject, I feel the need to add my observations with a list of the characteristics of some of the great preachers I have known.  This is not a list about good men, good pastors or good leaders.  It is not an exhaustive list.  It is strictly a list of the characteristics I have observed in men that I consider to be great preachers.

1. They are men who have had an encounter with God that marked their lives forever.

For some it was their conversion, while for others it was the point of total surrender and heart cleansing.  For others it was their call to preach.  The issue is not so much when or how they had a life-altering encounter, but that it had indeed happened.  Like Moses, they had a burning bush encounter with God, or like Jacob they met him in struggle.  However it happened, their encounter with God marked them forever and left them with the firm conviction that for them is was “preach or perish.”

2. They are men of strong belief and firm convictions.

Armed with the conviction that they speak for God, they speak with authority and certainty out of a well-developed belief system, which is based solidly on the principles and convictions of the Word of God.  They don’t care whether they speak the company line or not.  They care nothing about being politically correct.  They don’t look the crowd over to see what message fits best.  They speak for God!  We are plagued today with mild-mannered men who have developed the art of almost saying something.  They never draw a line in the sand or speak of absolute truth.  You never know where they stand on anything!  Not so with the greats.  They are men who give no uncertain sound.

3. They are men with big souls.

H.E. Schmul was a man that characterized this as well as any.  He could embrace others that didn’t agree with him on every jot and tittle.  He knew what he believed, was secure in what he believed, and wasn’t afraid to embrace his brother who was a little to the left or right of him. Though he didn’t personally identify with the more mainstream groups, he didn’t just cut them off or de-Christianize them.  J. Wesley Adcock, R.G. Flexon, L.D. Wilcox, R. G. Humble, V.O. Agan, and Robb French were all men of this caliber.  Robb French imposed upon himself some very rigid convictions, but never made others feel spirituality inferior for not doing the same.

4.  They are men with a great capacity and love for all of life.

They are men who walk the narrow way without being narrow minded.  They are not so focused on the world to come that they miss the beauty of the world that is around them.  L.D. Wilcox loved the symphony and attended it often.  He also had a great love for growing flowers, especially roses.  Dr. Dale Yocum was a great lover of science.  He was at home gazing at the constellations or talking with the animals.  H.E. Schmul loved traveling and was extremely knowledgeable of Civil War History.  Millard Downing never lost his love for farming and farm animals.  Larry Smith is quite knowledgeable of antiques and architecture.

5.  They have inquisitive minds that have been developed by constant learning.

They are well read in the Bible, theology, and history.  They have read some of the great literature and the classics.   They stay abreast of current Christian thought.   Their reading has prepared them to speak forcefully to the issues of contemporary life and the current trends in theological thought.  Richard Taylor, Dennis Kinlaw, Larry Smith, and Bobby French are examples of this.

6.  They know how to tell a good story.

They understand the value of a good illustration and know how to tell it with great effect.   Millard Downing, Standley Kendall, Paul Lucas, and R.G. Flexon perfected this art.  Richard Taylor uses illustrations with the most precision of any I have heard.  His stories always enlighten and make the point well.  Great preachers know that the difference between the right word and almost the right word is the difference between a lightning bug and lightning.

7.  They preach the Bible—all of it.  They are not “one stringed” preachers.

Some preachers are always on a “crusade” for their personal agenda.  Great preachers understand that they are Ambassadors for Heaven and that they must speak the whole counsel of God.  Great preachers don’t just ride a hobbyhorse or seek to be known for a single emphasis.  H.E. Schmul said to me once, “Avery, I am not just a ‘holiness preacher.’”  He went on to explain that there was more to preach than the doctrine of entire-sanctification (though he firmly embraced it, preached it effectively, and saw it as central in redemption).  He admonished me to preach all of the great themes of the Bible.

8.  They maintain their individuality and preach out of their own personal gifts and strengths.

Almost every time Larry Smith preaches in chapel he says apologetically, “I’m not an expositor, or a firstly, secondly, and thirdly preacher.  I’m just an exhorter.”   Yet, when Larry lets God use him, just as he is, I know of none that can equal his eloquence and depth.    J.W. Adcock had a photographic memory and could quote his sermons verbatim with great effect, while R. G. Humble, V.O. Agan, and R.G. Flexon read every word of theirs with the same great effect.   Millard Downing had no equal in illustrative story telling.  His ability to use words to graphically describe biblical truth made his ministry both captivating and powerful.   L.D. Wilcox was not a captivating speaker, yet his ability to take a profound theological truth and make it understandable to even children was his strength, and he worked effectively from that vantage point.  Great preachers are comfortable with their style and use it for God’s glory.  If you ever heard O.W. Willis, you could never forget the cadence of his speaking.  Men like Bud Robinson and August Leulf turned speech impediments into a means of captivating an audience.   R.E. Carroll would occasionally punctuate his preaching with a piercing shout.  As unconventional as it may have been, it added something to his ministry.  Wingrove Taylor stands a still as a statue, speaks in a conversational tone, and alliterates every line.  All of these men are very different, yet all very effective.  God needs individual personalities to pour his truth through!

9.  Their ministry is marked by the optimism of grace.

Great preachers are like the tide; they lift people.  The story is told that when the great Scottish preacher, George Matheson, begin to preach in Edinburgh, an old lady who lived a dark, dirty cellar moved to an apartment in an attic that was light and airy.  When asked about her move she said, “You cannot hear George Matheson preach and live in a cellar.”  The ministry of great preachers can be summed up in words spoken about Job, “Your words have upheld him who was stumbling, and you have strengthened the feeble knees.”

My life has been blessed by the unique contributions of many great preachers.  It is my prayer that the young men of tomorrow’s pulpit will allow God to use them to make their unique contribution to His Kingdom.

Divine Enemy Number One

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living

–Winter of 2005

Divine Enemy Number One

The Proverb writer gives us a list of seven things that God hates.  First on the list is, “a proud look.”  A further search of scripture will yield another list of about a hundred verses describing God’s utter contempt of man’s pride.  One of the more descriptive verses is found in James 3:6 where one translation reads, “God stiff-arms the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

 Why is God so angry with pride?

The reasons are ample, but the one that tops the list is the fact that pride is the complete anti-God state of mind.  Pride arrogantly sets up man as his own master.  It breeds enmity between God and man, as well as between man and man.  Pride destroys meaningful relationships and leaves misery in its wake.    As C.S. Lewis poignantly observes, “It was through pride that the devil became the devil.”

Though the Bible has so much to say about pride, few of us readily admit to having any problem with it.  In all my years of ministry, I can recall only a handful of people that ever acknowledged struggling with pride.  In my own spiritual journey, I too found it difficult to face up to any problem with pride.  I believe we don’t talk much about it because its manifestations are so subtle we don’t always recognize it.  Consider a few ways that pride manifests itself and ask God if these are a problem in your life.

  • Proud people have a need to always be right.
  • Proud people focus on others failures and tend to be highly critical.
  • Proud people tend to be argumentative especially with those in authority over them.
  • Proud people are more interested in being heard than in hearing.
  • Proud people are angry people, irritable, impatient, and usually have a demanding spirit.
  • Proud people lack a submissive attitude.  They tend to be controllers.
  • Proud people are defensive of their actions and not easily corrected.
  • Proud people tend to be self-righteous and highly exclusive of other Christians that are not of their own stripe.
  • Proud people find it difficult to discuss their own spiritual needs.  They would rather cover up their sin than confess it.  Most proud people feel they have no need to ever repent of anything.

If you are struggling with pride acknowledge it and repent of it.  James 4:10 says, “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and He will lift you up.”

The Light Still Shines

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Holiday, Theology

–December of 2004

The Light Still Shines

“The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness could not extinguish it.” (John 1:5)

In a great piece of music, the composer often begins by stating the themes which he is going to elaborate in the course of the work.  That is what John does in the opening of his gospel.  Light is one of the great words upon which John builds his testimony of Jesus.  John describes Jesus as a light that has come into the world to light the life of every man.  Another one of John’s key words is darkness.  John saw a darkness in the world that was very real and very hostile to the light.  This darkness represents evil.  Sinning man loves the darkness and hates the light, because the light exposes their wickedness.   John takes these two themes and shows their natural opposition.  He portrays a universal battleground where the forces of dark and light are arrayed in an eternal conflict.   The light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot extinguish it.  The darkness seeks to eliminate the light of Christ—to banish it from life, but the light will not go out!

This conflict is played out in the pages of sacred history.  The Old Testament lets us witness everything from individual struggles with evil to heavenly warfare for the soul of a Nation.  In the New Testament this conflict emerges with intensity around the cradle of the incarnate Christ as the forces of darkness unleash Herod’s sword in a futile attempt to eliminate the light.  The ultimate battle, however, was staged on the Cross of Christ.  The rulers of this age and the powers of darkness thought if they could only nail Christ to the cross that darkness would win once and for all.  They thought the crucifixion of Christ would be the ultimate defeat and their final triumph.  In fact, it proved to be just the reverse.  Out of the darkness of his death came the blinding light of His resurrection victory.  The light of this good news exploded out of the confines of Palestine and across the known world like a quickly spreading flame until, in a few decades, the gospel had impacted every major population center of the Roman world.

The powers of darkness responded with persecution and torture.  But wild beasts and boiling oil couldn’t put out the light and the blood of the martyrs only fueled the flame.  When persecution from without did not succeed, the forces of darkness turned inward and awful darkness settled down over the church.  But out of the heart of that darkness, reformation fires began to burn and the light prevailed.  Every counter move by the forces of darkness to extinguish the light only brought revival fires that would break out and save lives, transform nations, and change the course of history.

The darkness has used all sorts of political ideologies, human philosophies, and false religions to advance its cause.  But the light always breaks through to enlighten the mind and hearts of men.  Alumnus Rick Hutchison told recently of standing in the front yard of Nikita Khrushchev’s summer home and holding Easter morning services.  As the sound of Christian hymns lifted toward heaven, Rick couldn’t help but think of the irony of the situation.  He was preaching the gospel in the front yard of the atheist dictator who declared he would bury Christian America without a shot.  Another alumnus, Rodney Jackson, e-mailed me the story of how he was able to give a Bible to an Iraqi woman while he was serving in Iraq.  He watched the tears of joy run down her cheeks as she expressed appreciation to her American liberators, but he knew that what he had given her would bring a greater liberation and drive the darkness and despair from her empty eyes.

As you gather with friends this Christmas season, light a candle and lift your voice in praise for light has come into the world and the darkness has not and will not overcome it!

Fences

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Theology

–November of 2004

Fences

Americans have long had a love affair with fences.  A leisurely drive through almost any neighborhood will reveal miles of fencing.  Fences give us protection and security.  They keep small children from straying out and trespassers from coming in.  They give us a sense of ownership and control over small parcels of real estate we call our own.

The Church too has had an appreciation for fences.  Early religious leaders had a practice they called, “fencing the Law.”  These fences were erected to keep people from transgressing God’s commands.  In more recent times we have called these fences by a variety of names, such as prudential regulations, lifestyle standards, general rules, and personal convictions.  Whatever we call them, their purpose is to standardize religious behavior, simplify obedience, and encourage habits that reinforce godly lifestyles. Their ultimate goal is to prevent violations of God’s Word. These fences are such a natural part of our religious landscape that we hardly notice them.

Fences Can Serve a Valuable Purpose

The teachings of the Bible require interpretation and application.  We must take the truth of scriptural commands and biblical principles and make them applicable to daily life.  The biblical command to, “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy” must leave the pages of scripture and work its way into our life.  Denominations take this command and formulate general rules about the Sabbath for their members.  Churches create manuals with membership rules that provide guidelines for honoring the Sabbath.  Individuals develop personal convictions as to how they will respect the Sabbath day.  These fences are erected around the commandment to instruct us in honoring it as well as to prevent us from transgressing it.

Another example is found in the biblical principle of modesty.  The Bible doesn’t tell us what to wear, but it does teach us to dress modestly.  Spiritual leaders develop guidelines to define and demonstrate this principle.  As people follow these guidelines, they have an assurance that they are honoring the principle and not transgressing God’s Word.  This is important for young Christians, as they often need things spelled out in concrete terms so they can understand and comply with the Word of God.

Furthermore, fences can be helpful in minimizing ambiguity.  People do not work well in a state of flux; they like to know what to do and what not to do.  This knowledge gives them a sense of security.  Fences can also guard us in areas of personal weakness by highlighting potential danger that for others might be a harmless activity.

The Danger of Fences

  In our zeal to build fences that serve to keep souls in the straight and narrow way, we can fall prey to the dangers that abound in humanly devised fences.  One of the first dangers is an inconsistent application of scripture.  Sometimes this is caused by relying on proof-texts that do not square with the whole counsel of God.  For example, some people are extremely focused on the biblical passages regarding the tithe, and somehow miss the host of others that deal with the overarching principles of stewardship.  They take a false security in giving their ten percent and sense no guilt at all for failing to follow the biblical teaching that God owns it all and we are but stewards.  In other cases, they build on a solid biblical truth but fail to apply it to the totality of life.  For instance, there are those that apply the biblical prohibitions against worldliness to what they wear or do not wear, and then proceed to be as greedy, grasping, and materialistic as the man who does not even know God.  What about those who speak out against defiling the body with tobacco, alcohol, and drugs and never mention the sin of over-indulging in food until obesity harms the body, shortens the life, and blights the testimony?

 Another danger is erecting fences based on preference and taste rather than principle and truth.  This is a slippery slope indeed.  I’ve listened to spiritual leaders deride young people over the praise and worship music they listen to.  They tell them it is shallow, repetitious, and has more entertainment value than worship value.  While these criticisms have some validity, these same leaders attend Southern Gospel concerts put on by shallow, worldly performers, highly talented in vocalizing light weight lyrics, gifted in dispensing one-liners that poke fun at the Church and the “Man up stairs,” who have mastered the art of taking their hand clapping foot stomping congregation on an entertaining, emotionally thrilling journey from laughter to tears.  It seems to me that both young and old need to put principle back into their music choices.

Fences become extremely dangerous when they are endowed with Divine authority and made equal to the Word of God.  This can lead to division in the Church, create disdain for others who do not see it as we do, and breed judgmental thinkers.  For example, there seems to be a renewed concern in the conservative holiness movement over facial hair on men.  When the conservative holiness movement emerged over a hundred years ago, the leaders were amazed to see God blessing clean-shaved men in their meetings.  This shift highlights the importance of not giving changing cultural fads the authority of scripture.  Generally, fences have to do with the application of sound Christian disciplines and should not become issues that divide the church or condemn a brother.  Fences may differ from one culture to the next, from one section of the country to the next, and from one century to the next.  Fences may change, but the biblical principle they reflect never changes.

Fences are wrong when they become a higher priority than people.  Jesus had a major confrontation with the Pharisees over this issue.  They had laid down such strict fences for Sabbath observance that they prohibited acts of necessity and deeds of mercy.  When Jesus healed the man with the withered hand on the Sabbath day they were so infuriated they began to plot his destruction.  Jesus made the priority of people clear when he said, “The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath.”

Finally, one of the most subtle dangers of fences is that they can become a substitute for a living vital relationship with God.  If all there is to the Christian life is just making sure we stay within the fences, then all we have found is a dead way.  The true Christian life is a living way that can only be lived through the power of God’s Spirit in a journey marked by faith.  Fences may direct us to God, but they cannot make us holy.  They may aid us in living a Spirit–filled life, but they are not the source of that life.  In fact, the deeper we grow in Christ, the more we assimilate biblical truth into our lives, and the more sensitive we become to the voice of the Holy Spirit, the less need we should have for fences to keep our feet in the narrow path toward heaven.  Sadly, some people measure the depth of their spiritual experience by the number of fences still needed in their life.

I am thankful for the fences that have helped me grow in grace.  They have protected me from unnecessary temptation and harm.  These fences have been my friends, but they have never been my focus.  I have endeavored to join with the Hebrew writer in, “Fixing my eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of my faith.”