Thursday, August 15, 2013

Convictions

A preacher was interviewing with a church's Pastor Search Committee as a prospect for becoming the church's next pastor. One elderly gentleman leaned across the table toward the minister and said, "What are you convictions?" The man was shocked at the question and paused a moment to gather his thoughts then said, "Arrests but no convictions!"

You might have guessed that the candidate did not receive a call for a second interview.

Our English language has many words that have multiple meanings. An example is the word fan. On a warm day you may wish to sit near the fan so you can feel a cool breeze. But you may also take off to the ballpark because you are a fan of the local team. Think about the problem you could get into if you confused the scales on a fish with the scales on a piano!


The man-who-would-not-be-pastor in the story I made up really messed up when he confused the two meanings of the word conviction. On one hand, a conviction is the proving of guilt. On the other, a conviction is a firmly held belief. Which do you think the committee member was asking about? OK, OK, maybe both! But the prospect would have been wise to answer the question based upon his firmly held beliefs - his convictions.

What are your convictions? What do you firmly believe? Specifically, what do you believe about God, about life, about purpose, or about salvation? I can tell you what I believe and even tell you what to believe but you must really discover the options and settle on a belief yourself.

Maybe your background includes Christianity. Whether or not you call yourself a Christian, you are familiar with some of the basic beliefs of the faith. I encourage you to read the Bible and attend a Bible study. You'll learn about God, life, purpose, and salvation. And much more. Then you can decide to embrace or reject the Christian faith.

Some of you may have very little or no connection to Christianity. You could listen to someone go on and on but never understand much if we spoke with "churchy" words. Again, you can start by reading the Bible, especially the Gospel of John in the New Testament. If you don't have a Bible then send me a message and I'll send you a copy. If you want to go buy a Bible then ask for or look for "NIV," "ESV", or "HCSB" for a version that will be in a modern language. And start looking for a friend or acquaintance who is a Christian and will help you as you read the Bible. Again, if you need help with this, send me a message.

Convictions are firmly held beliefs. Whatever you believe, hold firmly to it. But how can you really make a choice about God, life, purpose, and salvation until you know what the Christians' beliefs are?

Oh, and be careful out there. I just read that the Arkansas State Police will be using low-profile cruisers so they can blend into the traffic flow. You don't want any traffic convictions on your record.

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