Sunday
Morning Bible Study
July
6, 2008
Introduction
For the last couple of months we’ve zoomed in on the text and have been
talking about the Ten Commandments.
We’ve looked in depth into each commandment and talked about how they
affect us today. We need to zoom back out and remember what got us here.
The book of
Exodus started in Egypt with the Israelites enslaved to the Egyptians.
We saw how God
brought deliverance to Israel as God showed His superiority over the various
Egyptian gods with the various “plagues” – things like turning the Nile into
blood, frogs, bugs, disease, and finally the death of the firstborn in every
Egyptian family.
When the people
left Egypt, we saw
how God led them into a sort of “trap”, a canyon that ended at the Red
Sea. With the Egyptian army behind them,
the Israelites had nowhere else to go but to call on God. God parted the Red Sea, the people crossed on
dry land, the Egyptian army drowned, and the people were saved.
As the people
made their way to Mount Sinai we talked about how God provided water in the
desert with Moses striking the Rock and God made water gush out of this split
rock.
After God led
them around to the backside of this mountain known as Sinai (“thorny”) or Horeb
(“desert”), and God Himself shows up.
(Exo 19:16-20 NKJV)
Then it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were
thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of
the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp
trembled. {17} And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God,
and they stood at the foot of the mountain. {18} Now Mount Sinai was completely
in smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like
the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. {19} And when
the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses
spoke, and God answered him by voice. {20} Then the LORD came down upon Mount
Sinai, on the top of the mountain. And the LORD called Moses to the top of the
mountain, and Moses went up.
It was at this point that God spoke the words we call “The Ten
Commandments”.
This was when God began to speak
and the people heard the Ten Commandments for the first time.
20:18-21 Afraid of God’s Presence
:18 Now all the people witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes,
the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it,
they trembled and stood afar off.
It’s taken us three months to get through these events but it only was a
matter of moments for the Israelites in their encounter with God.
thunderings
– qowl – voice, sound, noise; this
might be describing “thunder”, but it also might refer to the fact that the
people have actually heard God speak.
lightning flashes – lappiyd
– torch
sound – qowl
– voice, sound, noise
trumpet – showphar
– horn, ram’s horn
trembled – nuwa‘–
to quiver, totter, shake, reel, stagger, wander, move, sift, make move, wave,
waver, tremble
Keep in mind, along with the noise and light show, these people have
actually heard the voice of God.
(Deu
4:33-36 NKJV) "Did any people
ever hear the voice of God speaking
out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and live? {34} "Or did
God ever try to go and take for Himself a nation from the midst of another
nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an
outstretched arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the LORD your God
did for you in Egypt before your eyes? {35} "To you it was shown, that you
might know that the LORD Himself is God; there is none other besides Him. {36}
"Out of heaven He let you hear His
voice, that He might instruct you; on earth He showed you His great fire,
and you heard His words out of the midst of the fire.
:19 Then they said to Moses, "You speak with us, and we will hear; but
let not God speak with us, lest we die."
The people are afraid to get too close to God. They want someone to act as a “go-between”, a
mediator between God and them.
The people were absolutely freaked out at hearing God speak to them.
(Deu 5:23-28 NKJV)
"So it was, when you heard the voice from the midst of the
darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, that you came near to me,
all the heads of your tribes and your elders. {24} "And you said: 'Surely
the LORD our God has shown us His glory and His greatness, and we have heard
His voice from the midst of the fire. We have seen this day that God speaks
with man; yet he still lives. {25} 'Now therefore, why should we die? For this great
fire will consume us; if we hear the voice of the LORD our God anymore, then we
shall die. {26} 'For who is there of all flesh who has heard the voice of the
living God speaking from the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived? {27}
'You go near and hear all that the LORD our God may say, and tell us all that
the LORD our God says to you, and we will hear and do it.' {28} "Then the
LORD heard the voice of your words when you spoke to me, and the LORD said to
me: 'I have heard the voice of the words of this people which they have spoken
to you. They are right in all that they
have spoken.
God said that the response of the people was the right one. They did need a “mediator”, someone to stand
between them and God.
We need a “mediator” like these people did.
We have Jesus.
(1 Tim 2:5-6
NKJV) For there is one God and one
Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, {6} who gave Himself a
ransom for all, to be testified in due time,
Jesus is the bridge to get us to God.
We can now go straight to God.
:20 And Moses said to the people, "Do not fear; for God has come to
test you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin."
before you – paniym –
face; in front of, before; the King James says, “that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.”
fear – yare’ – to fear; to stand in awe of;
reverence, honor, respect
What’s interesting is that the people are told not to be afraid, and
yet God wants His “fear” to be before them.
There is a “wrong fear” and a “right fear”
Lesson
The wrong fear
There’s a “right fear” and a “wrong fear”.
God does not want us to have the “wrong fear”.
The phrases “do not fear” (51) and “fear not” (11) “do not be afraid” (50),
are found easily over a 100 times God tells us not to be afraid of Him.
(Isa 41:10
NKJV) Fear not, for I am with you; Be
not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I
will uphold you with My righteous right hand.'
In the New Testament we are told:
(Rom 8:15 NKJV) For you
did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the
Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father."
(1 John 4:18 NKJV) There
is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves
torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.
The wrong fear drives you away from God.
Illustration
Which
fear is the right fear?
As a
kid, when you saw the “Frankenstein” monster, you wanted to run
away. That’s the wrong fear.
As an
adult, when you see a police officer in your rear view mirror, you want
to drive correctly. That’s the right
fear.
Which
one best describes what our fear of God should be? It’s not the Frankenstein monster.
to test you – nacah
– to test, try, prove, tempt, assay, put to the proof or test
The word is used when Abraham is
asked by God to take his son Isaac and sacrifice him on mount Moriah.
Ge 22:1
Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham…
It’s used when God gave the people
food every day in the desert, the “manna”, except on Saturdays. God wanted the people to learn to trust Him
and take a day off and prove that God would provide for them if they took their
day off.
Ex 16:4 Then the LORD said to Moses,
"Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you. And the people shall go
out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they
will walk in My law or not.
Now God has shown up like never
before. These two million people have
heard the voice of God. They’ve seen the
lightning, the mountain on fire, and the smoke.
They’ve heard the thunder, the shofar,
and the actual voice of God.
God has not shown up to destroy
them. God wants to “test” them to see if
they are going to obey Him or not.
that you may not sin
Last week I made the point that “Love causes obedience”. This week it’s:
Lesson
Right fear causes obedience.
The right fear:
Drives you to God.
Helps you obey God.
Some have suggested it’s a fear “of
displeasing” God.
God said in Deuteronomy after the
people said that they wanted Moses to be their mediator:
(Deu 5:29-33 NKJV) 'Oh, that they had such a heart in them that
they would fear Me and always keep all My commandments, that it might be well
with them and with their children forever! {30} 'Go and say to them,
"Return to your tents." {31} 'But as for you, stand here by Me, and I
will speak to you all the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments which
you shall teach them, that they may observe them in the land which I am giving
them to possess.' {32} "Therefore you shall be careful to do as the LORD
your God has commanded you; you shall not turn aside to the right hand or to
the left. {33} "You shall walk in all the ways which the LORD your God has
commanded you, that you may live and that it may be well with you, and that you
may prolong your days in the land which you shall possess.
God was saying
that fearing Him properly would lead to their obedience.
Don’t think that the concept of fearing God is just a failed Old Testament
concept. We are told many times in the New Testament that we need a healthy
fear of God.
Jesus said,
(Luke 12:4-5 NKJV) "And I say to you, My friends, do not be
afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can
do. {5} "But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He
has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!
Jesus is telling us to fear God. He is the one who has the ability to send a
person to hell.
Fear can be centered around what God could do to you. LOVE for God is based on what God HAS done for
you.
When the church was born on the day of Pentecost, it was more than just
speaking in tongues …
(Acts 2:43
NKJV) Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done
through the apostles.
Paul writes that one of the results
of being filled with the Holy Spirit is:
(Eph 5:21 NKJV) submitting to one another in the fear of God.
Peter writes,
(1 Pet 1:17-19 NKJV) And if you call on the Father, who without
partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout
the time of your stay here in fear;
{18} knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or
gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, {19}
but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without
spot.
Notice how Peter connects the fear of God with our
“conduct”. Notice also how he reminds us
of what Christ has done for us.
Jude writes,
(Jude 1:22-23 NKJV) And on
some have compassion, making a distinction; {23} but others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even
the garment defiled by the flesh.
Some people will respond to the love of God. They will respond to your compassion.
Others will respond with fear – fear of “fire” (hell)
The writer of Hebrews uses the
passage we’re in to make a point.
(Heb 12:18-29 NKJV) For you
have not come to the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire,
and to blackness and darkness and tempest, {19} and the sound of a trumpet and
the voice of words, so that those who heard it begged that the word should not
be spoken to them anymore. {20} (For they could not endure what was commanded:
"And if so much as a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned or
shot with an arrow." {21} And so terrifying was the sight that Moses said,
"I am exceedingly afraid and trembling.")
The writer is
reminding us of the awesome and terrifying encounter these people had with a
holy, powerful God.
{22} But you have come
to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an
innumerable company of angels, {23} to the general assembly and church of the
firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits
of just men made perfect, {24} to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and
to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel.
The people in
Exodus came to Mount Sinai. We get to
come to Mount Zion (heaven). We have a
better mountain to go to.
{25} See that you do
not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke
on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks
from heaven,
If the people at
Mount Sinai took God seriously when He spoke on earth, how much more should be
take God seriously when He’s spoken from heaven?
{26} whose voice then
shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, "Yet once more I shake
not only the earth, but also heaven." {27} Now this, "Yet once
more," indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of
things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. {28}
Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve
God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. {29} For our God is a
consuming fire.
We may not be
coming to Mount Sinai (the Law) to be saved, but we are still coming before the
same mighty God.
There is still a
need to balance our walk with “fear”.
Lesson
The love-fear tension
As healthy Christians we need to keep a healthy tension in our lives
between the love of God and the fear of God.
It’s not “either/or”, it’s “both/and”
Illustration
We have a door
in our house that goes from the garage into our house. On that door we have a “hydraulic door closer”
. It’s one of those cylindrical things
that makes the door shut automatically.
It seems that every once in a while I have to adjust it to get it to
work just right. If I have it set too
high, the door slams every time someone comes in the door. If I have it set too low, the door doesn’t
close all the way.
Tension – balance – makes it work right.
We need that balance of “love” and “fear”.
If we operate too much out of “fear”, we find ourselves
always looking over our shoulder, worried that some little thing might
displease God, almost
becoming obsessive/compulsive about our relationship with God and operating out
of legalism rather than grace.
My favorite detective show on TV is “Monk” – a guy who has
serious emotional problems – obsessive/compulsive – always afraid of
everything. Kind of reminds me of myself at times.
Too much fear is like the garage door that slams every
time someone opens it.
If we operate too much out of “love”, we run the risk of
forgetting that God is more than just our “big buddy”, He is God almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth.
I can run the risk of letting some things slide in my life
because after all, God is my big “buddy”.
Not enough fear to balance the love, and it’s like the
garage door that never quite closes.
:21 So the people stood afar off, but Moses drew near the thick darkness
where God was.
Exodus 20:22
– 23:33 The Book of the Covenant
We start a section of scripture here at verse 22 and runs through the end
of Exodus 23.
Moses describes this section as the “Book of the Covenant” (Ex. 24:7)
This “Book of the Covenant” is going to
give more details on what the Ten Commandments are all about.
The title of this section comes from how it is described in Exodus 24
(Exo
24:4-8 NKJV) And Moses wrote all the
words of the LORD. And he rose early in the morning, and built an altar at the
foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars according to the twelve tribes of
Israel. {5} Then he sent young men of the children of Israel, who offered burnt
offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the LORD. {6} And Moses
took half the blood and put it in basins, and half the blood he sprinkled on
the altar. {7} Then he took the Book of
the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said,
"All that the LORD has said we will do, and be obedient." {8} And
Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, "This is the
blood of the covenant which the LORD has made with you according to all these
words."
The people themselves heard God speak and give the Ten Commandments.
When the people decide they don’t want to be that close to God and
Moses goes to hear more from God, we get these commandments that run from
Exodus 20:22-23:33.
These commandments are an elaboration of the things covered in the Ten
Commandments.
After Moses told the people all the things we’re about to cover in this
“Book of the Covenant”, they would make the relationship between the Israelites
and God an official contract, a “covenant”.
Then Moses will go back up to the mountain for forty days (Exodus
25-31) where he will get a copy of the Ten Commandments in stone, as well as
more detailed instructions about the worship of God – about the building of the
portable worship center the “Tabernacle”, and all about the priests.
When Moses returns after forty days, the people have already been
backsliding (Ex. 32) and we’ll read about the “golden calf”, and Moses will
break the stone tablets with the Ten Commandments. Moses spends time interceding for the people
(Ex. 33-34), spending another forty days on the mountain. Then Moses returns they build the Tabernacle,
and the presence of Yahweh shows up at the Tabernacle (Ex. 35-40).
20:22-26 Altar Laws
:22 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the children
of Israel: 'You have seen that I have talked with you from heaven.
:23 'You shall not make anything to be with Me; gods of silver or gods of
gold you shall not make for yourselves.
We’re going to get some more detail on the first couple of commandments:
(Exo 20:3-4 NKJV) "You
shall have no other gods before Me. {4} "You shall not make for yourself a
carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is
in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth
Now God puts it in perspective. He
has just spoken to them from heaven.
They have heard His voice.
Fashioning little “gods” out of silver or gold is man’s way of deciding
what his “god” is going to be like.
But now that they’ve heard God’s voice, there is no longer any place for
speculation about God.
We should no longer be making up our own silly ideas of what God is like.
All we need to do is to pay attention to what God has told us about
Himself.
:24 'An altar of earth
you shall make for Me, and you shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and
your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. In every place where I record
My name I will come to you, and I will bless you.
altar – mizbeach –
altar; based on the word for “sacrifice” zabach – to slaughter, kill, sacrifice
Sacrifices and altars were not a new concept.
The word first appears when Noah builds an altar and presents a
sacrifice to God after the flood (Gen. 8:20)
When God appears to Abram in the land of Canaan and promises to give
the land to him and his descendants, Abram responds by building an altar (Gen.
12:7)
All through the book of Genesis, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are building
altars and presenting sacrifices to God.
Moses has already built an altar, after the victory of Joshua over the
Amalekites:
(Exo
17:15 NKJV) And Moses built an altar and
called its name, The-LORD-Is-My-Banner;
But now God gives a little bit of clarification as to what He wants an
altar to look like.
earth – ‘adamah – ground, land; the name of the
first man made from the earth (“Adam”)
I find it interesting that when the pagan Gentile, Naaman, was healed of his leprosy by
Elisha, he asked to take two mule-loads of “earth” (‘adamah) to build an altar to Yahweh back in Syria (2Ki. 5:17)
It’s also interesting that in the New Testament, Jesus is known as the “second Adam” (Rom.
5:18)
The first Adam’s act of sin resulted in all of us living under condemnation
and death.
The second Adam’s act of sacrifice resulted in salvation being possible to
all men.
(Rom 5:18 NKJV) Therefore, as through one man's offense
judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man's
righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of
life.
burnt offerings – ‘olah
– whole burnt offering
peace offerings – shelem
– peace offering, requital, sacrifice for alliance or friendship; voluntary
sacrifice of thanks
Related to the word for “peace” (shalom)
and the name of King Solomon.
record –
zakar – (Hiphil) to cause to
remember, remind; to make a memorial, make remembrance
At communion we are told to do this “in remembrance of Me”.
come … and bless
–
God will respond to the sacrifices of the people if they are done in the
proper way at the proper place.
(Exo 20:24
NLT) …Build altars in the places where I
remind you who I am, and I will come and bless you there.
The Bible tells us that as a group
of believers:
(1 Cor 3:16 NKJV) Do you not know that you are the temple of
God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
The Bible tells us that each of us is a Temple of God:
(1 Cor 6:19
NKJV) Or do you not know that your body
is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you
are not your own?
Lesson
My worship brings blessing
It brings blessing to me. It brings
blessing to God.
God talks about “burnt offerings” and “peace offerings”.
A “burnt offering” was when the entire animal was burned on the altar. The animal represented you. It was a picture of consecration, of giving
yourself completely to God. It’s as if
your entire life was being consumed on the altar and your entire being is being
given to God.
A “peace offering” was a celebration of being right with God. It was having a meal with God. It was a little like “communion”.
Illustration
We live in a fast-paced culture, but some things just ought to happen
slowly. The book Final
Salute tells the story of Major Steve Beck, a U.S. Marine whose
heart-wrenching task is to inform the nearest of kin when a Marine is killed in
Iraq. Beck doesn’t just break the sad news and then leave; for several days he
may help the family through the process of the funeral. That includes
supervising the Marine honor guard that stands near the fallen soldier’s body. The
honor guard learns from Beck how to salute their fallen fellow-Marine as they
leave or resume guard with a slow salute that isn’t taught in basic training.
The slow salute requires a three second raising of the hand to the head, a
three second hold, and then a three second lowering of the hand—a gesture of
respect that takes about nine times longer than normal. Beck explains: “A
salute to your fallen comrade should take time.” Indeed, those who die serving their country are
worthy of great honor, worthy of a slow salute, worthy of extra time. To do
some things fast, just to get them done so we can move on to the next thing in
our lives, sends a subtle message of disrespect. So it is with our worship of
God. God deserves a slow salute. The Savior who gave his life for us is worthy
of our time.
Craig Brian Larson, editor
of PreachingToday.com; source: Jim Sheeler, Final Salute (Penguin, 2008);
Paul wrote,
(Rom 12:1-2
NKJV) I beseech you therefore, brethren,
by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy,
acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. {2} And do not be
conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that
you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
This is truly the “altar-nate” lifestyle. This is the blessed lifestyle.
God promises to “bless” the person who offers worship from an altar of
dirt.
Illustration
Some churches
specialize in generating emotion. The platform people are experts at moving
worshipers to laughter or tears. Attenders gradually learn to evaluate the
service in terms of the emotion they feel. In time, however, the law of
diminishing returns sets in. Prayers are offered in highly emotive style and
bathed in background music. Stories have to get more dramatic, songs more
sentimental, preaching more histrionic, to keep people having intense emotional
experiences. Such worship is often shallow, sometimes artificial, and rarely
reflective. Little attention is given to worshiping with the mind. It produces
people who have little depth or rootedness. They may develop a "zeal for
God, but not according to knowledge" (Romans 10:2). They become worship
junkies, searching for whichever church can supply the best rush.
This is Scarecrow worship: it would be better if it only had a
brain.
On the other
hand, some churches focus keenly on cognitive correctness. They recite great
creeds, distribute reams of exegetical information, craft careful prayers ahead
of time. And yet the heart and spirit are not seized with the wonder and
passion that characterize those in Scripture who must fall on their faces when
they encounter the living God. No one is ever so moved that she actually moves.
This is tragic because, as Dallas Willard writes, "to handle the things of
God without worship is always to falsify them." Those who attend such
services may be competent to spot theological error, but the unspoken truth is
they're also a little bored. Their worship is dry—it does not connect with
their deepest hurts and desires. Rarely does it generate awe or healing, and
never raucous joy.
This is Tin Man worship: if it only had a heart.
John Ortberg and Pam Howell,
"Can You Engage Both Heart and Mind?" Leadership (4-1-99)
Somehow we need
to find the balance. We need the
blessing of the heart and the mind. We
need to worship with all of us. All on
the altar.
:25 'And if you make Me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stone;
for if you use your tool on it, you have profaned it.
stone – ‘eben
– stone (large or small)
hewn stone – gaziyth
– a cutting, hewing
use – nuwph
– (Hiphil) to swing, wield, wave
tool – chereb
– sword, knife
profaned – chalal
– (Piel) to profane, make common, defile, pollute; to violate the honor of,
dishonor
Note:
The law isn’t against having cut
stones for anything, just for the altar.
Solomon’s Temple would be made of
stones that were cut in a quarry (1Ki. 6:7)
(1 Ki 6:7 NKJV) And the temple, when it was being built, was
built with stone finished at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any
iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built.
But Solomon’s altar wasn’t made of
cut stones; it was made of bronze, like the altar would be for the Tabernacle.
Why no cut stones? God didn’t want the attention on the altar, but on the
sacrifice and the God to whom the sacrifice was being made.
:26 'Nor shall you go
up by steps to My altar, that your nakedness may not be exposed on it.'
Some consider this to have been a temporary law.
At this point the garments for the priests haven’t been made yet. Who knows what a priest might be wearing
under his tunic?
Later, the garments of the priest would be quite specific, right down to
the underwear.
In Ezekiel’s Temple, there will be steps going up to the altar (Eze.
43:16-17) – but the priests will be dressed appropriately (Eze. 44:18, linen
“trousers”)
(Ezek 43:16-17 NKJV) "The altar hearth is twelve cubits long,
twelve wide, square at its four corners; {17} "the ledge, fourteen cubits
long and fourteen wide on its four sides, with a rim of half a cubit around it;
its base, one cubit all around; and its
steps face toward the east."
Lesson
The attention in worship goes on God, not me
I think that
some of us like attention just a little too much. If we’re not careful, we can fall into the
trap of worshipping in a way that makes sure that everyone sees that WE’RE
worshipping God.
Illustration
J. Vernon McGee
writes: “I have had very few real compliments since I have been a minister, but
one I remember well. When I was a pastor as a student in Georgia, I used to
preach in a church on the side of a red clay hill. One morning after the
message everyone left but a country boy. He wore high yellow shoes that
buttoned all the way, and he waited around, as timid as could be. Finally he
came up to me with tears in his eyes. He took hold of my hand and said, “My, I
did not know Jesus was so wonderful.” He wanted to say something else but he
was too choked with emotion; so he turned and walked out of the little church.
That church today is in the middle of a city, but in those days it was in the
middle of a cotton patch. I watched that country boy walk across the cotton
patch, and said to myself, “Oh God, let me so preach that people will know that
Jesus is wonderful.” That was a compliment and I have not had many like it.”