Monday, November 01, 2010
Tinney Talk, November 2010
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TINNEY TALK, Observations By Joe Dan Boyd
ON LAITY SUNDAY AT TINNEY CHAPEL, October 17, 2010, when Joe Dan (your correspondent) was in the pulpit, preaching on the relationship between Jesus The Christ and John The Baptizer, we discussed why Bible scholars often refer to John as—apart from Jesus, Himself--“the most theologically significant person in the New Testament Gospels.”
JOHN WAS A TRANSITIONAL FIGURE linking the Old and New Testaments, standing squarely grounded with one sandal in each of those eras, going before the Lord in the Spirit and power of Elijah—one of the Old Testament figures who never died--to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. Of him, Jesus would later say that no one born of woman was greater in this life than John, who preached a stern message of repentance and introduced a form of baptism emphasizing rebirth as a metaphor for redemption.
BUT JOHN THE BAPTIZER KNEW HIS PLACE as only a witness to the Light, subordinate to the more powerful ministry, and more powerful baptism, of his cousin, Jesus The Christ. In other words, John was quite content to set the stage for Jesus, and for the later followers of Christ, all of whom would testify to His saving power—just as we do today.
IN FACT, ON THAT LAITY SUNDAY, two pillars of our Church were called forward to receive a special blessing from the entire congregation. Hands were laid on them in recognition of their new assignments as witnesses to the Light: David Stanton, about to become our Church’s fourth Lay Speaker, and Glenn Goggans, who has just completed the Walk To Emmaus, a 72-hour crash course in Christian leadership.
DAVID STANTON HAS BEEN FUNCTIONING as a Lay Speaker for most of the past decade here at Tinney Chapel UMC, the quintessential country church, but has decided to take the training, gain the credentials and make his actions official. After all, he was recently elevated to the position of Associate Lay Leader of the newly organized East District of our North Texas UMC Conference.
GLENN GOGGANS, NOW FULL OF THE HOLY SPIRIT after his life-changing Emmaus Walk, fully expects to spend the rest of that life in renewed Christian ministry to others--in the Spirit and power of Elijah, John The Baptizer & Jesus!
