A Matter of Life and Death

There are crises that, in a unique way, reveal our beliefs in an immediate way. These index crises expose one’s worldview; what is right, what is wrong, and in the Terry Schiavo case, what is the value of human life? It’s difficult to sort out the real issues from the more peripheral ones because so many have said so much in the last week. Did Terry Schiavo say that she would rather die than live in a “vegetative state?” Is she aware of her surroundings (family, care-givers, etc)? Is no hope of recovery or improvement grounds for removing her feeding tube? Has the government (legislative or judicial) over-stepped its bounds? Is the sanctity of marriage under attack by those who want to deny Terry Schiavo’s husband the right to make medical decisions on her behalf? Do her parents have any legal or moral rights in this matter? Is quality of life a determining factor in whether one should live or die?

Mercy killing is not a new phenomenon in our society. Dr. Kevorkian’s suicide machine, books such as “Final Exit,” and Clint Eastwood’s Academy award winning, “Million Dollar Baby,” have all pushed the right-to-die movement forward. Terry Schiavo’s now famous case has revealed in a new and horrifying way the extent of the moral anarchy of our age. But the question that stands first in line is: “Is mercy killing ever morally permissible or justifiable (and) are there cases where it would be morally obligatory to remove a patient’s suffering?” A Christian response is necessary.

There are moral absolutes. God has established a moral creation because He is a moral Being. The Terry Schiavo story has become the occasion for a major worldview clash (Christian theism versus naturalism). The principle of life informs a Christian belief. God gives life and only He can authorize any taking of human life. Human government does not have autonomous rights. It cannot create rights. Suicide is wrong because it is self-murder. The sanctity of human life has its roots in Christian teaching. The principle of death is an issue. Death is not a friend but an enemy. The last enemy to be destroyed is death and that will happen because of the death of death in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Those who have not experienced God’s pardon of sin in Christ and who are counting on their own good works to take them to heaven are deluded. The gaping jaws of eternal separation from God in hell await those whose only preparation for physical death is a living will.

Murder is wrong. Scripture forbids the taking of innocent life of creatures made in God’s image. It is not a coincidence that many of those who want Terry Schiavo to die are also advocates of abortion on demand. The principle of suffering is vital. Suffering can be an opportunity to glorify God. Affliction can have meaning because of the meaning of Jesus Christ’s death on the cross. Joni Eareckson Tada is a living testimony how “God transformed an immature and headstrong teenager into a self-reliant young woman who is learning to rejoice in suffering.” I am not surprised that a culture of death is developing. Suffering without God is a bleak outlook.

Healing and loving care-giving are also potent factors in times of great pain. God may choose to heal. Recovery is sometimes possible and should not be ruled out. Comfort and help for the hurting are always right. Even in those cases where recovery and improvement may not be possible, merciful care should be given. And for the Christian there is always the hope of a future resurrection body when all things will be made new. The principle of precedent should guide our thinking as well. This is sometimes called the wedge principle or the slippery slope argument. The practice of so-called mercy killing sets a dangerous precedent. It all starts with an attitude that there is such a thing as life not worthy to be lived. In the words of one ethicist, “One might want to limit the breadth of the category of people who qualify for euthanasia, but once it is decided that certain people are to die, it is hard to find any logical grounds for keeping others alive.” While there seem to be some legitimate legal concerns involved in Schiavo’s case, there are those guilty of moral turpitude seeking to hide behind the skirts of a judicial process. It is possible to be legally right and morally wrong.

The confusion over which handicapped and incapacitated people get to live and those who should die is a dilemma of modern man’s own making. The inability to think discerningly and morally is due to the judgment of God (“Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts …” Romans 1:18ff). When man wants to live without God there will be nothing but the increasing loss of moral perspective. So then, is the removal of Terry Schiavo’s feeding tube a merciful act? No. What man calls mercy may not be mercy. It may be murder. But God has revealed His mercy in His Son, Jesus Christ. The empty tomb of Jesus Christ offers us our only hope in a world that views personal existence as only a matter of life and death.

Dr. Howard E. Dial
Berachah Bible Church

The Road to Easter Sunday

The days of the week are more than mere time markers. God entered into the creation of the world by way of a week of six work days and a day of rest. Man’s work week has been historically, at least where the Jewish and Christian influence has been significant, a reminder of God’s creation week.

The week of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ has forever changed the way we think about Friday and Sunday. It was on Friday that the Savior of the world finished His redemptive work on the cross. On Sunday morning Jesus came out of the grave. The first day of the week is a cherished day. It is a day of new beginnings, hope, and the promise of eternal fellowship with God. Sunday is a sweet day to Christians for all that it represents. The bodily resurrection of Jesus makes it so. But it would be good for every believer to go through what has come to be called the Passion Week. I recommend that we become very intentional about the way we think, live, and worship in the week leading up to Easter Sunday. Consider it a road to be traveled with its God-given memories and meaning. We will walk through each day according to the traditional view that Jesus was crucified on Friday, Nisan 15.

Sunday (Palm Sunday) was the day of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. The clouds of the death of the Servant of God were gathering over the city of Jerusalem, but to see and hear the crowds on that day you would not have known it. The Sanhedrin was plotting Jesus’ death. Jesus of Nazareth was Israel’s true King, but few, if any, seemed to grasp the meaning of His festive entrance into the holy city. The crowds did not understand. The disciples were ignorant. The religious leaders were angry. Jesus was in tears (Lk. 19:41-44). The crown rights of God’s Servant did not satisfy the expectations of the spiritually blind. His rights to the throne of David would have to be purchased through the suffering of His atoning sacrifice. On this Palm Sunday let’s reflect on the fact that the answer to the human problem is the defeat of sin and death, not political triumph.

On Monday Jesus returned to Jerusalem. He passed an unproductive fig tree and placed a curse on it. When Jesus came to the Temple courtyard He vented His anger at what religion had done to His Father’s house. The Lord of the temple took a whip and drove out the money changers. The cleansing of the temple was an exhibition of its kingdom intent (Hag. 2:9; Mal. 3:1; Isa. 2:2-3). At the second coming of the Messiah He will take His place in the millennial temple and the Word of God will go forth from Jerusalem. On Monday let’s pray in a special way, “Thy kingdom come.”

Jesus passed the withered fig tree on Tuesday and declared it an object lesson in faith-driven prayer. The disciples were given a vivid memory of the truth of the power of God demonstrated in the response to faith. A series of controversies marked Jesus’ day in the temple. He gave His last public discourse, and revealed important prophetic truth to His disciples on the Mount of Olives. In the Messiah’s teaching on authority and the colossal hypocrisy of the Pharisees a stake was driven into the heart of an apostate Judaism. Jesus was David’s Lord, but the Pharisees were blind leading the blind. The destruction of Jerusalem would serve as a paradigm of the events preceding the coming of the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory (Mk. 13:26). On Tuesday let’s ponder the shortness of time and the significance of the age in which we live.

Wednesday seems to have been a day of quiet. Jesus probably spent the day in Bethany awaiting His rendezvous with death. Thursday evening Jesus met with His disciples in an upper room on Mount Zion, preparing them for His sacrifice for sin and the days beyond. Heavy hearts were encouraged. The Holy Spirit was promised. The Passover meal was eaten and explained in startling terms. The bread and the wine were vivid symbols of the Savior’s broken body and His spilled blood. On Thursday let’s rehearse the glories of the gospel. Gather the family and give thanks to God for the all-sufficient, atoning death of Jesus Christ that brings us the forgiveness of sin.

And then it is Friday. Good Friday it has been called. It is good because of what was accomplished, but it was bad because of what sinful men did to Jesus. The King of the Jews was scourged for our redemption. He was pierced through for our transgressions. The physical suffering was excruciating. But the greatest horror was the judgment of God that fell upon Jesus for our sins. It had to be this way because He was opening a new and living way to God (1 Pet. 3:18; Heb. 10:19-22). It was Friday and He cried from the cross, “It is finished.” Where ever we are on Friday at about 3:00 p.m. let’s offer up praise to God for the Savior who has taken our sins that we might have God’s righteousness (2 Cor. 5:21). Then we must wait for Easter Sunday morning. You know what happened then. Let’s meet at the empty tomb.

Dr. Howard E. Dial
Berachah Bible Church

A Conference for Shepherds

On Tuesday morning March 1 Justin and Brook, Bryan and Carla, Van Edwards, and Beth and I took flight to Los Angeles, California. We attended the Shepherds’ Conference at the Grace Community Church. Upon arriving late in the afternoon we found ourselves in heavy traffic. It took us two hours to go twenty miles to our evening meal at the home of Bill and Donna Shannon. We were greeted with warm hospitality and a delicious taco salad. Early the next morning after a dawn’s-early light-run we drove to Grace Church and registered for the five day conference along with 3200 other pastors. It was non-stop from there. Our days were filled with general sessions, seminars, and frequent visits to the book store. This was not a short-term missions’ trip. It was a pastor’s briar patch (remember Brer Rabbit?). Good Bible preaching, God-exalting music, meals with friends, free books, and book stores. Preachers were born and bred for this kind of pleasure. But Van is an example that you don’t have to be ordained to enter into the love of the truth and desire to be a faithful shepherd.

John MacArthur spoke on the Book of Jude (“The Long War on the Truth”). We were reminded of the danger of spiritual terrorists who are engaged in a “relentless siege on the truth.” Subversion of the gospel message, self-fulfillment theology, and the development of the “seeker-friendly church” movement serve as a test of the doctrinal discernment of Christians. Style takes precedence over substance. Personal experience and feelings are trumping Bible exposition. Instead of contending for the faith, the church is compromising with error. Pastor MacArthur called upon shepherds to protect their flocks from untruth. The words of Jonathan Edwards ring in our ears, “In like manner should ministers travail for the conversion and salvation of their hearers. They should imitate the faithfulness of Christ in his ministry, in speaking whatsoever God has commanded him, and declaring the whole counsel of God.”

In the general session of Thursday morning R. C. Sproul delivered the first of his two powerful messages on justification by faith alone. The vital Christian truth has been a life-long passion of Dr. Sproul. In no uncertain terms the difference between the Roman Catholic view of justification by faith was contrasted with that of the Reformers. Perhaps a brief test at this point is what we need at Berachah. Is there a difference between believing the sinner is saved by faith or by faith alone? Are we made righteous at conversion or are we declared righteous? Is imputation essential in God’s work of justification of the sinner? Is there a difference between a profession of faith and a possession of faith? We must allow such questions to drive us to the Scriptures to understand, in Jude’s words, “our common salvation.”

The three to four hundred pastors’ wives in attendance were given the added delight of participating in a noon tea catered by Command Performance, the official caterers of the Reagan Library. Patricia MacArthur spoke. Beth, Brook, and Carla sat with a lady from the Ukraine. They were encouraged to hear of the changes taking place in that country under their new president. Many of you prayed for the December 29, 2004 elections and can thank God that the new administration is seeking the Christian ethic in public and private life.

I must not forget the seminars. Joe Francis, a teacher at the Master’s College and associated with the Institute for Creation Research, and Stephen Boyd, professor of Old Testament, gave an excellent examination of the claims of theistic evolution. And in case you didn’t know it, there are very few Christian colleges committed to an early earth creation interpretation of Genesis. Many Christian colleges teach that God used evolution to do His creation work. I was able to think back over my own experience with Christian fundamentalism from the 1940s to the present day. Phil Johnson, editor of many of John MacArthur’s books and long-time staff member at Grace Church, lead a seminar session entitled “Dead Right: the failure of fundamentalism.” It is possible to be right in a wrong way. The failure to distinguish between primary and secondary doctrines, the lack of accomplished theologians, and a ruthless response to fellow Christians with whom there were disagreements have all contributed to the death of the fundamentalist movement.

It was a memorable week filled with God-exalting worship, Bible-rich teaching, and warm Christian fellowship. Thank you Berachah church family for making it possible for your fellow servants and under-shepherds of God’s flock to get our spiritual batteries recharged.

Dr. Howard E. Dial
Berachah Bible Church

Am I a Disciple of His?

The blessings come when you work in the office at the church; it just cannot be avoided. God uses many sources to relate His goodness to me – someone stopping in to say “Hey,” the phone rings and it is a dear brother or sister on the other end, observing pastors as they diligently and faithfully study God's Word, working with fellow saints who are giving their time and resources to make known the great name of our Lord Jesus; I could go on and on.

Then come the papers, books, periodicals, quotations and concerns that tend to accumulate on my desk. There is more of this than I could ever read and still do my job, but every so often I cannot help myself. May you be challenged, humbled, and exhorted as you read one such printed item that came in the mail and caused me to stop and ponder my own determination or lack thereof.

From CAM International

Americans speak often about living a life of sacrifice. But do we really know what that means? The following journal entry written by a young African pastor was found among his papers in Zimbabwe after he was martyred in the bloody civil war.

"I'm part of the fellowship of the unashamed. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I'm a disciple of His and I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed. My present makes sense. My future is secure. I'm done and finished with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, or first, or recognized, or praised, or rewarded. I live by faith, lean on his presence, walk by patience, life by prayer, and labor by Holy Spirit power. My face is set. My gait is fast. My goal is heaven. My road may be narrow, my way rough, my companions few, but my guide is reliable and my mission is clear.

I will not be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice or hesitate in the presence of the adversary. I will not negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I won't give up, shut up, or let up until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, and preached up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He comes. And when He does come for His own, He'll have no problems recognizing me. My colors will be clear!”

Patti Clay, Business Administrator
Berachah Bible Church