CHURCH SPONSORED RECREATION (Part 2 of 2)

By Rodney Pitts

Recreation and Self-Sacrifice

In Philippians 2:29-30 Paul told the Phi­lippians to hold men like Epaphroditus in esteem “because for the work of Christ he came close to death, not regarding his life, to supply what was lacking in your service towards me.” In other words, Epaph­rodi­tus was to be highly esteemed because he was willing to risk his life for the “work of Christ!” With this in mind, I would ask: Does anyone hon­estly believe that Epaph­roditus would have risked his life for ball­games, ping pong, and pizza par­ties?!? Yet, if rec­reational activities are the “work of Christ,” are we not required to risk our lives for them? Now, I know and hope that my brethren and I would risk our lives for evangelism, edification, and benevolence. But, I know of no one that would risk his or her life for church bowling. Do you? If not, how can it be the “work of Christ”?

Recreation and the Assemblies

The assemblies of the saints are de­signed by God to edify Christians through worship of Him and study of His will. In these assembles I see all as­pects of the church’s work being practiced without pen­alty. What do I mean? Well, in the assem­bly the work of evangelism (I Cor. 14:15-17), edification (I Cor. 14:26), and even be­nevolence (I Cor. 16:1-2) are performed weekly with the blessing of God. Yet, how many would be willing to take time within the worship service to watch a Disney movie or to play a ball game? Or, how many would even be willing to take up a collection specifically for a Dis­ney movie within the assembly. I know of none, or at least very few. I wonder why recreation is so dif­ferent from these other works. If rec­reation truly is an authorized work of the Church that can be done in glory to God, then what scripture allows the other “works of Christ” to be present within the assemblies, but rejects recreation? Breth­ren, there is no such scripture!

Recreation and Fellowship

Finally, many brethren would like to justify their church sponsored recreational activities by claim­ing that they constitute biblical fellowship (KOINONIA). The New Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon and others do define koinonia as “to share.” Yet, to simply say that recreational meals, etc., are “fellowship” because Christians “share” in these activities is to misuse the word and to take it out of its biblical context. Nowhere within the whole of the N.T. are recreational meals, etc., ever described as fellowship. Such activities might be called “association” or “keeping com­pany” with one another, but not fellowship (see I Cor. 5:9, 11). In every context where the word fel­lowship is connected with the church, it carries a spiritual meaning and never refers to social activi­ties (get a concordance and look up all these verses for yourself). Also, if recreational meals, etc., were truly biblical fellowship, would it not be fellowshipping a heathen if one such person ate or played with Christians during one of the activities? If not, why not?

Also, if brethren can justify church sponsored recreation on the basis that it is “sharing,” then what are these brethren going to do with Luke 5:10? In this verse it says that James and John were “partners” (KONONOI - fellowshippers) with Simon” in their fishing business. Does this mean that since these disciples fellowshipped (shared with) each other in a fishing business that the church can now run a business in the name of fel­lowship? Isn’t it interesting that those who try so desperately to get recreation into the word fellow­ship will try just as hard to reject the church’s run­ning of a business enterprise to make money to do its works. Yet, we have a scripture that calls a business arrangement a “fellowship,” but not one single scripture that ever calls recreational activi­ties fellowship? Think about that, brethren.

Conclusion

In conclusion, I would like to say that I have nothing personally against members of the body of Christ coming together and enjoying one an­other’s company. In fact, who should Christians want to be with more? But, this is a far cry from diverting the time, energy, and funds of the church from its God-given works of evangelism, edifica­tion, and helping its needy to the man-made works of pizza parties and baseball! Surely we can all see the difference between what is truly the “work of Christ” and what are clearly the works of men. I hope and pray that these words have resulted in the glory of God and that brethren will be brought closer to a more perfect unity through their con­sid­eration and study. &

Apocalyptic Language

By Bob Myhan

The darkening of the sun, the failure of the moon to give its light, the stars falling from heaven and the shaking of the powers of the heavens are not literal references to celestial bodies but figurative references to climactic political events.

Dispensational Premillennialists delight in taking figurative language and interpreting it literally. Some even laugh when it is suggested that such is not to be taken literally. However, one can easily show from the Old Testament that such language is not to be taken literally; and that doing so does disservice to the meaning of the text.

Isaiah 13 is a fairly short prophecy of an event that has long since been fulfilled: the destruction of the Babylonian Empire, with its capital city Babylon. We will examine it briefly. The prophecy begins,

The burden against Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw. "Lift up a banner on the high mountain, Raise your voice to them; Wave your hand, that they may enter the gates of the nobles. I have commanded My sanctified ones; I have also called My mighty ones for My anger-- Those who rejoice in My exaltation." (13:1-3)

God has both “commanded” and “called forth” His angels to bring His judgment on Babylon.

Verses 4-8: "The day of the Lord" was "at hand." This certainly cannot refer to the second coming of Christ for He had not yet come the first time when Isaiah wrote. The Lord would not come personally but would come representatively in the army of "a far country, from the end of heaven," a figurative reference to a kingdom at a great distance from Babylon.

Verses 9 & 10: The ravages of war that would follow the initial attack were such that they are figuratively represented. "The stars of heaven and their constellations" would “not give their light.” The sun would "be darkened in its going forth, and the moon” would “not cause its light to shine.”

Verses 11-16: Even "the world" here is figurative for the world of the Chaldeans of Babylon. In other words, their lives would never be the same, if they survived. God would figuratively "shake the heavens, and the earth” would “move out of her place."

This is apocalyptic language for a complete "upheaval" of everyday life.

Verses 17-22: Here, Isaiah explains that it is the nation of Media that God will "stir up...against them" (against the Chaldeans, AKA the Babylonians).

The context clearly shows that Isaiah is writing of the judgment God was about to bring upon Chaldea by allowing the Medes to defeat them. True to prophecy, Babylon has been uninhabited ever since, although Sadam Hussein wanted to rebuild it.

Daniel also prophesied of this event, by the way, when he interpreted the dream of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 2 and when he read, translated and explained “the handwriting on the wall” in Daniel 5. That very night, it was fulfilled (Dan. 5:30-31).

Similar language appears in Isaiah’s description of the destruction of the nation of Edom, which sprang from Esau, the older brother of Jacob.

Notice:

All the host of heaven shall be dissolved, And the heavens shall be rolled up like a scroll; All their host shall fall down As the leaf falls from the vine, And as fruit falling from a fig tree. "For My sword shall be bathed in heaven; Indeed it shall come down on Edom, And on the people of My curse, for judgment. The sword of the LORD is filled with blood, It is made overflowing with fatness, With the blood of lambs and goats, With the fat of the kidneys of rams. For the LORD has a sacrifice in Bozrah, And a great slaughter in the land of Edom. The wild oxen shall come down with them, And the young bulls with the mighty bulls; Their land shall be soaked with blood, And their dust saturated with fatness." (Isa. 34:4-7)

Surely, no one of sound mind thinks "the host of heaven" (stars) have ever been "dissolved," literally, or that "the heavens" have been "rolled up like a scroll," literally, or that the stars have ever fallen "as a leaf falls from the vine," etc.

Again, the writer is using highly figurative (apocalyptic) language to convey to the people a message of warning and a prophecy concerning something far less terrible than the end of the universe. &