Nick’s Walk

The Tithe is not really for the Christian Church. Before  you declare me a heretic or grab the hot tar and feathers or pitch forks, please hear me out. What? You ask. Is there a problem with the financial cornerstone of the church? Where do I begin. 1. The tithe is not in the New Testament as an obligation for believers. 2. In the old testament, it was a tax, actually three taxes that added up to not 10 percent but 23.3 percent. 3. The tithe as a method of supporting the church didn’t become popular until the third and fourth centuries. 4. The tithe eventually became the law in order to support the state churches in Europe. 5. The tithe, like any percentage tax is regressive. It is a much bigger burden on the poor than the rich. Ten percent of a poor man’s income may cut into his food budget, for the rich man it only cuts into his excess. It’s easier for the rich to tithe and, guess who, suddenly takes over the church. 6. The tithe encourages representative ministry. I often ask people to go into prison to minister. When they refuse, which they almost always […]

There are many models for church leadership. Some  Pastor led, others by a board, still others are part of a denominational hierarchy through which power flows. None of these models is perfect. Each has problems. Last night I think I discovered a better way. Amana Christian Fellowship held the “annual” board meeting at which the place and future direction of the church was discussed. In the past, this meeting took place over a couple of days and was an exhausting, if sometimes enjoyable, retreat. Each item of the budget was wrestled with and adjustments made. Last night it took a bit over two hours to do the same thing and it could been quicker if some who were used to a two-day event had been less talkative 🙂  All decisions, including some pretty major ones, were unanimous. It was a spirit led meeting. All those present wanted what was best for the church and, more importantly, what God wanted for the church. Discussion was honest and respectful. No one left the meeting exhausted but elated and enthusiastic about the future. The pastor members of the board left feeling supported and the “lay” members left more confident than ever in the church […]

Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God,  instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.  And God permitting, we will do so. Hebrews 6:1-3 Yesterday I constructed a “Christianity in a nutshell” paragraph. It didn’t include some of the elementary items listed by the writer of Hebrews and noted in bold above. I call these items Christianity 102, things outside of the nutshell but which need to be learned and absorbed quickly after conversion. 1.  Baptism – Jesus was baptized very early in His ministry. New converts were usually baptized immediately. Why? We know Jesus didn’t need to be baptized. Baptism isn’t necessary to salvation. So why do it and why do it at the beginning. I believe it’s because it’s a sign to us and to everyone else that we’ve decided to follow Jesus. It’s a public reminder. It’s the first step in fulfilling the Great Commission. Although I was christened as a child, I decided to be baptized years after coming to Jesus. My grandson decided he wanted to […]

Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God,  instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.  And God permitting, we will do so. Hebrews 6:1-3 On Sunday our Pastor preached on “What’s Next.” I got stuck on the verse above from Hebrews and the whole issue of elementary teachings. Do we really have a grasp of the elementary teachings? What is elementary? If asked to summarize Christianity in a paragraph, could I do it. These questions worry me, because it’s so important to get the basics right. Don’t we all know Christians who love to discuss graduate level Christianity, but seem to have no concept of the basics? I’ve been a lawyer for 33 years. When encountering new attorneys I sometimes wonder what they are teaching in law school these days. These “kids” don’t seem to know how to phrase a question, deal with another lawyer or show respect to the court. They can spout complex legal theories, but have no idea about the basics. They want to win but have […]

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:35 In court, we have witnesses swear to tell “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.” In over thirty years of court room work,  I don’t recall getting the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth even once. Witnesses don’t know the whole truth. They have recollections which may approximate the truth, but they don’t know it all. In our society, we are used to fudging the truth and, finally, witnesses often just lie. Lately I have heard a lot about the truth. People want 100% of the truth. They say things like, “It is better to be divided by truth than united by error.” What does that even mean? The Christian church stands “divided by truth.” There are hundreds of denominations and sects. All of them think they have the truth. They hopefully have some truth but they can’t all have the whole truth. I pray the “truth” they have is Jesus. The truth is God hasn’t given us all […]

I have moved Nick’s Walk to a new website. You shouldn’t experience any major changes but I would appreciate your patience while I work out the kinks. Have a blessed day and Go Saints. Nick

24 Now Thomas[a]), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, 26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”John 20 I think Thomas has gotten a bad rap. We all know him as “doubting” but really he just wanted what the other guys had. He wanted to see Jesus. He wasn’t going to take someone else’s word for it.  What’s so bad about that? We talk about Jesus as a personal savior. He made a special appearance for Thomas. He showed him more than the others had seen. But, you say, the Lord said that those who have not seen but believed would […]

Should Churches worship services be designed to encourage and strengthen Christians or to appeal to and win non-Christians?   The truth is that our worship services should be geared to sinners in need of God’s rescue—and that includes everyone. We all need the deliverance of the gospel. We in church need to abandon the “us” and “them” mentality.  The gospel isn’t simply a set of truths that non-Christians must believe in order to become saved. It’s a reality that Christians must daily embrace in order to experience being saved. The gospel not only saves us from the penalty of sin (justification), but it also saves us from the power of sin (sanctification) day after day. Or, as John Piper has said, “The cross is not only a past place of objective substitution; it is a present place of subjective execution.” Our daily sin requires God’s daily grace—the grace that comes to us through the finished work of Jesus Christ. We all need to be in the Word daily. Those who are lost need it’s convicting power. Those who are saved need it’s encouragement and guidance. As a church, we are not a social club with those who have been […]