Bible

Robots, Arrogance and The Gospel

/ Rev. Evan Dolive / 3 Comments

People and corporations are in the business to sell you something. Commercials and advertisements flood our radios, TVs and until you install a good pop-up blocker, the internet as well. These items could be anything from sales at Lowe’s to the new tacos at Taco Bell to IRS Tax advice to newest diet craze on the market today. Since the advent of the telephone, marketers have tried to entice people over the phone with special deals and people calling at inopportune times. It even got so bad that the government had to make a National Do Not Call list with punishments for violators.

With the rise in the modern computer, calling thousands of people at one time with the same message has become the norm. While this is helpful for evacuate purposes and such, it has however been used by politicians in recent years. Politicians have set up recordings for people to get ‘robo called’ to inform people of voting day and that their opponent voted to give five-year old guns and make the Cornish game hen the new national bird.

Until recently, I had never heard of ministers using this technology to promote their ministries. My friend in Nacogdoches (yes it is spelled correctly) posted on Facebook that he had received a robo call from Prophet Manasseh Jordan.

Here is a transcript of the robo-call.

” *CALM FEMALE VOICE* Hello, this is Manasseh Jordan Ministries. I’m one of the Prayer Closet Guards, and we are about to place your name in the Prophet’s Prayer Closet, but we noticed some of your information is incomplete. Please call 800 234-9071 within the next 24 hours, or press 0 to be transferred so we can complete your information and Prophet Manasseh can start praying for you *SUDDEN VOICE CHANGE, MALE* To be removed from this list, please call 1 800 318-7853, that again is 1 800 318-7853.”

Some general questions/observations:

  • why is it harder to be removed from the mailing list than it is to be added?
  • Why the sudden voice change from female to male?
  • How did they get my friend’s name and number?
  • What will happen after 24 hours if they do not contact them?
  • What is a Prayer closet and why does my friend need to be in it?
Is this the type of ministry that is advocated for in the Bible, robo-calling people and hoping that they give you their information so you can receive more information?
By just doing a quick Google search one will find a plethora of information and reviews of the Prophet. According to Web of Trust, a user community that rates websites on vendor reliability, trustworthiness, privacy and child safety, they rated the Prophet’s website as “Very Poor.” Now is this because people do like what he is promoting or is this because people on Web of Trust dislike Christianity? I’m not sure…
Of course my friend had his own opinion about the Prophet; he recently wrote:

At best, he represents enthusiastic but uneducated preaching, mixed with the danger to arrogance. At worst, pure scam.

Is this what Christianity has come to? Is this image that TBN ministers and tele-evangelist have today? Has Tammy Fay Baker and Robert Tilton (Just to name a few) ruined the cause of reaching people in their homes with the gospel message (even though at times I disagree with what they have to say)?

Is the most effective way to propagate the gospel message, by robo calling random people?

Is that what Christ advocated when he gave his Great Commission?

I get it… he wants to spread the message of Christ to all people in all places and I commend him for his faith but why does he need to solicit people randomly?

This type of in your face Christianity especially with the back story of needing money is what turns people off to the Gospel message.

A general rule of thumb for ministry is if politicians use it to get people to vote for them, it may not be an effective tool.

People are looking for community, they are looking for connections. Sure people do connect with ministers on TBN even to the point where they support them financially but that was their choice and no one hounded them on their personal phone under the guise of personal ministry care.

For me, I do not like it when on a minister’s site or a church’s site the “special message from the pastor/prophet” takes me to a video where the said pastor/prophet is asking for money. Where’s the message there? The video below makes it seem like a Ronco infomercial. I was expecting him to tell me about low easy monthly payments and 100% money back guarantees… no such luck. (Also if you watch the video about every 30 seconds there is a beep… the fire alarm needs a new battery :D)

Ministry is too important to leave to our new robot overlords.

So the next time you receive a phone call from an unknown number… it might be Prophet calling.

It’s your choice whether or not to answer.

In Christ,

Rev. Evan

You And I Aren’t So Different

/ Rev. Evan Dolive / 6 Comments

Here is my latest article for the Orange County Record.

It’s a common question.  It’s is a question that comes up in the most general and basic of conversations.  You could be at a party for a friend, meeting someone for the first or in the chair getting your haircut.  The question arises: “What do you do for a living?”  For most people when they answer question the response is one that is met with probing or clarifying questions, not when I answer.

You see when I tell people what I do it strikes fear in their heart, I tell them: “I am a minister.”  All at once a wave comes over their face as if they are shocked that a minister would come out from behind the pulpit and Bible commentaries to venture out into the world of sinners and commoners.  Eye contact lessens as if people don’t want me to peer into their soul and see them for who they truly are.

Generally people immediately begin to tell me about their religious preferences and experiences.  If the person I am speaking had not interjected what I call “God talk” yet, they promptly add it to the conversation.  They will tell me about their minister’s sermons from the previous Sunday to prove to me that they were listening and that his/her teaching was effective.  Someone actually turned on the Bible on CD while I was receiving a haircut.

Once someone inquired about my job and told them that I was a minister.  They told me about their lack luster church attendance.  This person in particular had stopped going to church because the service in the church she was attending was not connecting with her on a deep, spiritual level.  If she had just told me that part of the story I would have been fine and we might have continued our conversation about her religious experiences or maybe abandoned that track and began a completely new conversation.  Rather she began her conversation by informing me “I really don’t go to church that much, I mean I am not a devil worshiper or anything like that but I just don’t care for the service at my church right now.”   Since when did not going to church for Christians become devil worshipping in a minister’s mind? Is that the dichotomy that exist– Worship God or you are a devil worshiper?  Is this is perception that people have of ministers?   Do people really think that I am a perfect, pious, self-righteous, judgmental person who goes from place to place condemning people for their lack of faith and church attendance?

Sadly that is an accurate description of about one percent of the ministerial population, but not me.

Ministers are human beings; we are people just like you.  We go to the store, we shop online, and we try to make ends meet month to month.  Ministers have taken on as their call or duty to ensure that the message of Jesus Christ is promoted and propagated in the world.  Yes many ministers are educated in theology, divinity and pastoral care, but knowledge of the Bible and having good skills in the pulpit does not make one perfect.  Yes ministers are seen as the spiritual leaders of their congregations but to place the label of perfection places a great weight on minister’s shoulders.

Ministers don’t walk around singing “The Old Rugged Cross” and quoting scripture, rather ministers have to find a way to get the kids to soccer practice, homework completed, dinner on the table and make that two hour evangelism committee meeting on top of writing a sermon, making visits and calls.

Am I perfect? No, far from it and I don’t claim to be.

I listen to music other than gospel (gasp!)

I make mistakes just like everyone else. (double gasp!)

I sometimes don’t pray as often as I should. (heretical gasp!)

Does this make me a less effective minister?  I don’t think so, but it does make me human.  Christ came to the Earth to restore people to wholeness and mend people in their brokenness.  Nowhere in the Bibles does Christ command his followers to be perfect, rather he understands that humans are flawed individuals seeking completeness.

So the next time you see a minister tell him/her that you hope they are well and not too stressed, especially during the holy times (Advent/Christmas and Lent/Easter).  Don’t try to impress them with your knowledge of Bible verses or church history.  Don’t treat them any differently than you would treat anyone else.

So as you can see, you and I aren’t that different after all.

Sermon- “What Does This Mean?” Pentecost 2012

/ Rev. Evan Dolive / Leave a comment

Sunday (Pentecost 2012) I preached a sermon entitled “What Does This Mean?” based on Acts 2:1-12.  You can listen to the sermon by clicking the link below.

Sermon Link

In Christ,

Rev. Evan

And You Wonder Why People Aren’t Christians: Part III

/ Rev. Evan Dolive / 1 Comment

I didn’t think I would be writing another one of these post for while.  But Christians are giving Christians a bad name… again…

For some reason unknown to any one but him, Pastor Charles L. Worley of Providence Road Baptist Church in North Carolina took to the pulpit to speak on President Obama’s recent statements affirming same-sex marriage. Now North Carolina was in a big debate regarding this issue and in a statewide vote denied same sex couples the right to marry; no doubt that was fresh on his mind when he came to service.

A little over a week ago I posted an audio clip from Pastor Sean Harris who advocated to hit your children if they “acted gay.” You can read (or re-read it here).  While Pastor Harris’ comments were out of line, Pastor Worley’s comments leaves Pastor Harris’ comments in the dust… Why?  Worley advocates murder.

In the video posted below, Pastor Worley goes on a two-minute rant about homosexuals, the President and what his solution to the “gay problem.”  In the video he says,

“I had a way I figured a way out…a way to get rid of all the lesbians and queers. Build a great big, large fence 150 or 100 mile long – put all the lesbians in there. Fly over and drop some food. Do the same thing with the queers and the homosexuals. And have that fence electrified until they can’t get out. Feed them and you know what in a few years – they’ll die out. You know why – they can’t reproduce.”

On a personal note, the video was extremely hard to listen to.  Not only does he advocate for a group of people to be killed he is doing it from the pulpit in a church which is supposed to be a holy place AND has the audacity to say this comes from God.  At one point he says that the Bible is “again” it and that God is “again” it.  Also, what is disheartening is that fact that members of his congregation were “amening” and agreeing with what he had to say.  Glad they are practicing that love of Christ… glad they love all people just like God loved them dispite their faults.  If (as some say) all sins are equal in the eyes of God then why are they stratifying this particular sin?  Which is it Pastor Worley and the members who agree of Providence Road Baptist Church in North Carolina?  Are all sins equal or does God have a “Top Ten” list of the sins one is not to commit with homosexuality at the top?  Why are you trying to make disciples in your image of God?

Pastor Worley I believe you and I (and millions of other people) are reading different Bibles.  Jesus Christ (the one you are supposed to be following) never called for the murder of a group of people just because they were different and didn’t think the say way he did.  History lesson: Hitler did that… so… think about that…

Christ being the compassionate person that he was sought out the ‘other’ to be in relationship with him/her to tell them that God still LOVES them for WHO THEY ARE.  Don’t believe me?  Check out your Bible… there are more passages about loving your neighbor and being the hands and feet of God than there are about homosexuality being wrong.

Trust me… actually don’t… look it up for yourself, you might learn something. 🙂

You can watch the video below… if you want… as well as a member trying to defend her pastor’s position on CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360.

In Christ,

Rev. Evan

If You Want To See The Gospel Put Your House On The Market

/ Rev. Evan Dolive / 2 Comments

2255 1936 DeSoto AirFlow For Sale
As I have written previously, we are in a transition point in our life here in Orange. The future is not as clear as we would like but we are optimistic. Part of this process is listing our house on the market to be sold. If you ever had to sell your home, there are a myriad of things that you put up with but a suspecting buyer might not. Some of things were small fixing a piece of carpet that was coming up to larger tasks like fixing a gate and laying sod over an area where our old above ground pool once resided.

My story though starts a few days ago. Knowing that the house was officially for sale, we knew/hoped potential buyers would want to stop by and take a peek. One of the biggest projects we have is laying sod in the backyard. One of the problems that we were having is that I no longer have a truck to haul the sod from the grass farm to the house. My neighbor who has a nice Silverado (Texas Edition of course) told me that if I ever needed him to pick up the sod he would get and drop it off at the house. I took him up on his offer. So last Thursday, he went to the grass farm and picked up a half pallet of Saint Augustine sod. There was one little problem, I had a doctor’s appointment that afternoon. Generally when I go to the doctor I have good luck and do not have to wait too long to see the physican, this time was not one of those times. I guess that since I had to be somewhere in a decent amount of time, the doctor’s office decided to make me wait and wait and wait.

My wife called me while I am playing the waiting game and told me that our neighbor had come to the house and was laying the sod down with three other neighbors. When I was finally relinquished from the bonds of the doctor, i made it home only to find that they had finished laying the sod, even though I didn’t order enough. My neighbors were still there, working on the fence post that was leaning which made it hard to open and close the side gate properly. They were digging and digging and digging, trying to get this post out. Since there were four people now trying to get one stubborn post out, one of the neighbors decided to go to his house and get his hedge trimmer. He began trimming the holly bush out front of the house and even began to weed eat under the bush. He mowed over the hedge clippings to make them smaller to fill in a hole from from pipe work in the front yard. And that was just the beginning.

Within a span of three days- two posts were straightened and cemented, another half pallet of sod was laid, tiles were pulled up and news one were put down, boxes were moved, surfaces cleaned and numerous trips to Home Depot and the trash can– all done by a group of people seeing a need a acting on it. In the time since the intital work, smaller jobs have been completed around the house, all with the sole focus and intent of serving another human being.

This my friends is the embodiment of the gospel.

This is the essence of what Jesus Christ came to Earth to do, to be and promote. Christ came to start a new way of understanding and embodying the nature of God. No longer will God be somewhere in a distance place in the cosmos or even in the Temple in Jerusalem. No, Christ came to show that God is present in laying sod, moving boxes, cleaning windows, laying tile, pouring grout and the many many other things that needed to be done so that our house will be in tip-top shape for potential buyers.

Because of their actions my faith has been strengthen. A group of people over the span of a couple of weeks have shown me what it means to be the community of God. Not a word of Jesus Christ was mentioned, no prayers were said, no angelic choirs singing, but God was present.

I pray that I am able to show the gospel in such an impactful way someday.

May we all pray that prayer.

In Christ,

Rev. Evan

(“For Sale” available under the Creative Commons Attribution License 2.0 at http://www.flickr.com/photos/bsabarnowl/3998894081/)

Misuse of Scripture #420

/ Rev. Evan Dolive / 2 Comments

This past Friday was April 20 or 4/20.  There is a subculture in US in which April 20 is designated as a day to consume marijuana.  (Learn more here).  People took to public places and online communities to promote the day and ‘celebrate’ in their own fashion.  I thought it was quite bold of them to openly and public profess their love and admiration for weed.  I guess Snopp Dogg made a career centered around is music and love for pot so why not celebrate it, huh?

Friday afternoon my youngest sister (a college sophomore) posted this tweet.

Naturally this peaked my interest.  She informed me that people on Facebook were claiming that the Bible promoted the consumption of marijuana.  Which Bible did they chose?  Genesis 1:29… which reads

Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.– NIV (2011)

People in the 420 movement enjoy the more fluid language of the ye ol’ King James Version which reads

And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.

(They seem to like it because of the word “herb.”)

I’m not trying to insight a debate on the legality or the morality of smoking pot or anything like that, but I do want to open the door up to discussing the use of scripture in this scenario.

It’s no big surprise that Christians from all backgrounds look to the Bible to help them understand God’s interaction in the world.  The problem that I have is when the Bible is used in such a narrow sighted way.  I don’t see people who use this particular verse to further their pot smoking views rolling up oregano or rosemary and smoking that.  No, rather they have found their herb or choice.  If this passage is true they all of plants even the ones that cause allergic reactions in people (poision ivy/oak /sumack) should also fall under the umbrella of herbage.  Why this one verse, why this one seed-bearing plant?

Generally when people are picking and choosing laws and rules to follow or not to follow in the Old Testament they don’t normally go to Genesis 1:29.  Rather they choose something from Leviticus or one of the Ten Commandments. Where is their call to action and celebration about the proper treatment of animals and sacrifice rituals?  Where is the party being held about not wearing mixed fiber clothing or not consuming pork or shellfish?  Maybe the people at www.godhatesshrimp.com have it right…The Bible has been used for and against every major issue that one can think of so I guess I really shouldn’t be surprised that people have taken to the Bible to promote pot.

To look to the Bible to find a ‘ethical’ way to smoke weed at 4:20pm on 4/20 is a gross misuse of the Bible.  Genesis 1 tells of how God created order out of chaos, brought light to the darkness and organized the world into the place it is today.  To pluck out one verse for this reason tramples on the story and what it stands for.

In Christ,

Rev. Evan

Misconceptions About Christians: Part I

/ Rev. Evan Dolive / 6 Comments

Below is my latest article in the Orange County Record.

Being a minister, I am often asked why more people are not Christians. Sometimes this question comes from a person struggling with the notion that there are others who do not believe in Christ. Others ask this question because they see the decline in the particularity of the Church.

Whatever their reasoning, the question is asked out of love for their faith.

To be honest there really is no clear cut answer; this is something the Church has struggled with for centuries. But it seems like today this predicament is on the minds of Christians of all walks of life. People leave the faith or are not interested in Christianity for various reasons. Maybe they had a bad experience with a particular minister, maybe they could not ‘wrap their brain’ around a particular theology, maybe they were told that their beliefs were wrong or that their questions were not valid. For whatever reason the fact of the matter is that the Church itself does not hold the cultural and societal significance that it once did. I do not know if it ever will be that way again—a sobering thought for a young minister like me.

There are a lot of misconceptions about Christians today and I want to explore some of them over the next few weeks.

I believe that the “Achilles heel” of the Church are Christians themselves. Mahatma Gandhi is quoted to have said “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” If we claim to be followers of Christ, then why aren’t people experiencing the presence of Christ when Christians are around them? There seems to be a disconnect between what is professed in sanctuaries around the world and what is actually followed through with by fellow Christians.

So what are the misconceptions about Christians?

Misconception #1- Christians have to read the Bible literally. – The Bible is the foundational document of the Christian faith and has been the focal point for millennia. However, the way that it has been read and interpreted varies greatly. The Bible has been read by billions of people and each person has taken something different from the text.

How much are we limiting the Bible and the power of God to reveal Godself through the pages of scriptures if the Bible is limited to one interpretation? If there was one way to read the Bible then all of the churches should be on the same page. But the last time I checked this is not the case at all. Many people who believe in the literal interpretation of scripture often do not all agree on how that looks in actuality. First Corinthians states that women should cover their heads in worship, but a small fraction of Christian women actually do this. If the Bible is to be taken literally then how to do you know what to take literally and what not to take literally? Obviously one cannot take Jesus’ parables literally because they are stories in help get across a main point. What about the commandments on how to treat slaves? What about the dietary laws in the Old Testament? Not many Christians have ever sold all they had as Christ stated was a requirement to enter the Kingdom.

Does this mean that the Bible is unimportant? No, but the way that one person interprets the scriptures may be completely different than the way another person interprets the scriptures and the shocking part is they both might be in the same congregation. Too often all Christians are labeled as literalist and this is flat wrong. Some of the most famous and prolific Christian thinkers did not take the Bible literally. Maybe some people believe that women should not hold a leadership position in the church, others do. Some people believe that world was created in six days and others do not. They are both reading the same scripture, following the same Christ but see the Bible in completely different ways. Does this mean that one is wrong and the other is right? No, it just means that they see the experiences of the faithful of God printed in the pages of scriptures in ways that speaks to them.

Next week, I will continue this series on the misconceptions about Christians. I would welcome your insight and feedback. You can contact me at evandolive@att.net.

Markings

/ Rev. Evan Dolive / Leave a comment

In my office I have a small, blue Bible with my name imprinted on the front of it in silver letters.  It was given to me by my now wife in 1999; we were 16 years old. Its falling a part, from about James to the end is in about 3 different sections.

This Bible has been on trips in this country and around the world.  Over the years I have read along with ministers during the scripture readings, I have read portions of the Bible myself and have marked important and meaningful passages along the way.

These particular passages spoke to me in a variety of different ways, so much so that I had to remember it so I could return to the familiar passages to find that sense of connection and God’s presence in my life.   Companies have created special pens, pencils and hi-lighters made specifically for those wafer thin pages of the Bible.  Sometimes when I pick up that blue Bible I find passages marked that make me stop and think “what was going on in my life that would make me want to mark that?”

Throughout our lives there are specific and certain ‘markers.’  These points on our time line of life are highlights (and sometimes low lights) in our life: Times when God drew close or when God seemed absent, times of joy and times of sorrow, times of transition and times of stability.  All of these experiences culminate into a conglomerate that is our faith.  It is the markers of our lives that make the picture of God, the picture of faith, the picture of community.

I sometimes get asked if writing or marking in the Bible is appropriate.  Sometimes people point to the verse in Revelation that reminds the reader not to add or subtract from the book as a commandment from God not to tarnish the sacred pages.   I do not believe that was John’s intent; for starters the Bible as we know it today was not complied until many, many years later, so if anything John was referring to book known as Revelation itself.  God’s word is something that is holy but also tangible.  God’s presence with us has to be lived out; it has to be in our ‘markers’ of life.

If you hi-light or underline in your Bible, go back through and see what you marked.  Maybe those verses will trigger a memory (good or bad) or maybe it will be comfort for you.  Either way the fact of the matter still remains that the Bible is a way that the faithful of years past has been able to share the stories of God to the next generation.  The Bible speaks to us and continues to speak to us, day after day, month after month, year after year.

So go ahead, mark away… mark the times when you encountered God through the sacred pages.

In Christ,

Rev. Evan