Building Barriers in an Immoral Society

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Building-Barriers-in-an-Immoral-Society BUILDING BARRIERS IN AN IMMORAL SOCIETY
PRINCIPLES TO PROTECT YOU AND YOUR CHILDREN FROM IMMORAL HARM
by: Allen Domelle

Unless your head has been buried in the sand, or you have been living under a rock somewhere, there is no doubt that you have heard or seen the sad stories coming out of the Penn State sex abuse accusations. It seems that the alleged atrocities keep coming out to the point that one wonders how anyone could not see it. Then you have the stories coming from Syracuse University about another assistant coach who allegedly abused young children for many years. When these stories first broke, I believe that most people were shocked that such terrible things were happening at state universities.

During the time of these scandals, we also had the accusations coming out about one of the men running for president. When the story of impropriety first hit the news, it seemed like it was a feeding frenzy to see if there were other accusations out there as well. It didn’t take long for more women to start alleging that this man had been inappropriate with them. It finally came to the point that he had to suspend his campaign because he felt he could not keep people focused on his message. Though this man adamantly denied any of the accusations, the fact that these unproven accusations could destroy a person’s dream is alarming.

As these stories continued to unfold, I told my wife that one of the problems in the secular world is that they have built no barriers to protect themselves from accusations or improper actions. When preachers set standards for their church, these standards are not to make people miserable, but they are there as barriers to keep rumors of immorality and immoral actions from destroying you, your family or the church. Anybody who has not built barriers for themselves and their children are setting themselves up to be part of a tragic story like those mentioned above.

BristoriaBaptistCrawford Song of Solomon 2:15 says, “Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes.” In the Scriptures, it was common for a man who had a vineyard to build a hedge about it to keep the wild animals from destroying it. This hedge was normally a bush with thistles that worked like barbed wire. Whenever a wild animal tried to get through the hedge, they would be poked by the thorns, which kept the animals from coming in.

However, God warns us about the “...little foxes, that spoil the vines:…” Too often we are concerned about the big fox, when it is the little fox who finds a way through the hedge. Many times the animals would constantly gnaw at the hedge to form a little hole so the little foxes could get in. Once these little foxes got in, they would destroy the whole vineyard. As little and insignificant as these little foxes seemed to be, they were the greatest danger to the husbandman’s vineyard.

This is why the husbandman would have to periodically inspect his vineyard to make sure that there were no holes forming in his hedge where the little foxes could get through. The husbandman didn’t want to allow the little foxes to destroy his investment in that vineyard. He knew that one little fox could do much damage to a vineyard that he worked so hard to maintain.

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FOUR THINGS YOU NEED IN FINDING GOD’S WILL
by: Dr. Steve Heidenreich

I want to thank God for soul-winning people. A soul-winning pastor and a deacon came by our country farmhouse on a Thursday night and led my wife to Christ. They then returned on the following Saturday morning to lead me to Christ. Those will be the greatest days of our life. We should always remember those days to keep us excited through the years of living for Him! We were blessed to have a pastor lead us in our Christian growth. After going to church and following the Lord in baptism, we were able to...{READ MORE}

IT’S NOT OVER UNTIL IT’S OVER!

2 Samuel 23:5, “Although my house be not so with God; yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things, and sure: for this is all my salvation, and all my desire, although he make it not grow.”

May I pen these words to all of the imperfect people? May I write these words to those of you to whom everything has not turned out as you had wished or hoped? May I intrude into the world of those of you who have not lived up to your own expectations? May I dedicate this article to those of you for whom things have not turned out as you dreamed and planned?...{READ MORE}

IS YOUR LIFE A MASQUERADE PARTY
by: Sandy Domelle

Masquerade parties go back to the 17^th century with the purpose that people would show up wearing costumes and masks to hide who they were and keep people guessing until the end of the party.

In recent months, as I have helped different ladies, two common sayings I hear are...{READ MORE}

IT’S TOO HARD FOR ME
by: Cindy Crutcher

I married my high school sweeheart! He was my prince charming and I couldn’t wait for our “happily ever after.” Almost 32 years ago, I was expecting my first baby (I was 21 years of age at the time). It was an exciting time. I had dreams of her being the “perfect little child.” I could hardly wait for...{READ MORE}

BE CAREFUL, YOUR TONGUE CAN WORK THROUGH YOUR FINGERS!
by: Bette Owens

When we think of gossip, we think of the phone or whispering; but how about texting, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Faithout, Lifespace, Fundamental Forums or any social networking or so-called Christian networking? Now our tongue isn't the only member that can...{READ MORE}

TRUSTING GOD WHEN YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND HIM
by: Tim Trieber

One of the foundational principles of any relationship worth having in life is that of TRUST. Relationships cannot thrive and flourish into what they could be or should be without trust. Take into consideration what the following relationships would be like if trust were absent:

Marriage - The Bible tells us in the book of Proverbs that, “...the heart of her husband doth safely trust in her.” Standing at the altar, you trusted and still do trust, that the vows your spouse made will be kept, as does your spouse with you.
The Parent-Child Relationship - The child should trust that, though Mom and Dad are not perfect, they are doing what they believe is in the best interest of their child.
The Employer-Employee Relationship - When an employer reviews the résumé of a perspective employee, undoubtedly he will ask himself whether or not this individual is trustworthy. {READ MORE}

DOCTRINE AND HISTORY ARE IMPORTANT
by: Gregg Nash

Famed 19^th Century Baptist preacher, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, firmly believed the following:

We believe that Baptists are the original Christians. We did not commence our existence at the Reformation, we were reformers before Luther or Calvin where born; we never came from the Church of Rome, for we were never in it, but we have an unbroken line up to the Apostles themselves.

Indeed, before the end of the 19^th Century, virtually all Baptist historians believed that the Baptists began in the time of the early church. Of course, some non-Baptist historians disagreed, but interestingly, some non-Baptist historians have agreed, including Methodist historian John Clark Ridpath, who wrote the following in the 19^th Century: “I should not readily admit that there was a Baptist church as far back as 100 A.D., although without doubt there were...{READ MORE}