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lbert Einstein did not humiliate an atheistic professor by arguing the existence of God. At least, theres no credible record of him doing so. Oh sure, you can find him quoted on the internet as having done so. But then, you can also find Elvis Presley delaying a comeback until President Obama is out of office. If Im lying, Im

dying. Im sure some well-meaning creationist started the story about Einstein way back in the day, perhaps not even meaning for it to be taken literally. And now thousands of Christians, hungry for someone from the scientific intelligentsia to validate their views, have grabbed hold of the story like a Titanic victim grabbing a life preserver. But dubious stories are not a proper foundation for a belief in God. Thats why the Biblical authors appealed so frequently to eyewitness testimony. One of the Lords closest friends wrote,

For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty (2 Peter 1:16). Paul
pointed his readers to more than 500 witnesses of the resurrection, most of whom were still alive (1 Corinthians 15:6). Lies could not have withstood the scrutiny under which the First Century Christians lived. Building a dubious argument for Jesus does more harm than good. So please, do due diligence in investigating some new, exciting case for Christ. After all, the word of Christ itself is sufficient to inspire belief in any reader who is open to its truth (John 20:31). Why distract from the message with fables? HH

ospel meetings have fallen somewhat out of favor in my lifetime. In generations previous, it was not uncommon for churches to gather nightly for two or even three weeks for the purpose of glorifying God; tents were rented and erected in the parking lot to accommodate the overflow of visitors. The climate in the modern day is different, though. An increasing number of our neighbors are irreligious, expressing little or no interest in committing even an hour or two to spiritual purposes during a week, let alone four or five nights in a row. Worse, our own members are increasingly erratic in their general church attendance, which naturally translates into mediocre attendance during a week-long meeting. Other commitments to work, school and entertainment erode away at our store of available time and energy. Sometimes this is virtually unavoidable; often it is scarily reminiscent of the thorny soil of Mathew 13:22, showing a general interest in the things of God but not enough focus and commitment to give it preference over worldly interests. No one is suggesting that gospel meetings are somehow necessary for salvation or that failing to participate fully in them necessarily imperils ones salvation. But certainly the rule of thumb for Christians should be to abide by the clear suggestion of Hebrews 10:23-25 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as I the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near. With that in view, let us review some of the particular reasons we hold gospel meetings, with a view to encouraging the participation of all: Extra time spent in worship. Perhaps this is the most obvious reason. If three or four
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A publication of

East Hill church of Christ 2078 East Nine Mile Road Pensacola, Florida 32514 (850) 479-2130 Easthillchurchofchrist.org Hal Hammons, preacher and editor Hardy Eubanks, Andy Goodson and Larry Smith, elders

Vol. 3, No.3 January 19, 2014

Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. Romans 6:4

hours a week devote to participating in community worship is a good thing, why not double that number? Yes, there is sometimes too much of a good thing, but Ive never heard of there being too much of this good thing. Reach the lost. Far too often we need a special opportunity to talk to our neighbors about Jesus. Just because that should not be the case is no excuse for actually passing when those special opportunities actually come around. Extra time building relationships with brethren. If you want to strengthen a connection between yourself and someone else, the natural thing to do is spend quality time with that person engaged in an activity that brings you together. What better way, then, for brothers and sisters in Christ to connect better and stronger than to spend time together in worship? Quality time in study of the word. No one denies that our time in private Bible study is valuable, and if someone makes the case that his personal study is interfered with by gospel meetings, that says volumes about his commitment to the text. Most of us, however, lack that kind of time commitment through the week, and giving diligence to the word over a brief period of days can do wonders for our soul. And if there really is someone there who studies for two or three hours every weekday evening, it would do the rest of the body good to spend extra time in his or her presence! Encouragement of gospel preaching and gospel preachers. Gospel preachers put a great deal of effort into their work in general, and into gospel meetings in particular. There is nothing they would like more as compensation for their efforts than a large, attentive, energized audience. On the other hand, there is little more discouraging than seeing ones efforts met with indifference and inattention. Build enthusiasm in ourselves and others. Gospel meetings are often called revivals for a reason. The regularity of our collective worship has many advantages, but it also tends to breed stagnation and distraction. By shaking things up temporarily, we remind ourselves what worship is all about. We remember how blessed we are to be the people of God, and to be in the company of other believers, and to have free and easy access to the throne of God at any time. We do not know if the early saints had gospel meetings. We do read in Acts 2:46-47,

Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved. Yes, that passage seems to include at least in part a purely social aspect to the Christians association. But even that social interaction was spurred on by the connection they shared in Christ; it is reasonable to assume that even their regular, carnal meals were characterized by spiritual interaction. It is also reasonable to think the numerical growth of which we read in this context resulted at least in part from the strong bonds between the Christians. May it be so said of us! HH

bar down the way from the church house is now plugging Sin Trivia Night. I thought about calling them and asking what sort of questions might be asked, but I worried I might know too many of the answers. So I made up some of my own that I thought would fit the bill: How many babies and baby mamas does former wide receiver and reality TV star Terrell Owens have? Whats in a frozen margarita? List the films in which Anne Hathaway has taken her top off. Does Pamela Anderson have more divorces, tattoos or plastic surgeries? Who was older when he died, Elvis Presley or Michael Jackson? You may have come up with a list of your own. (The fact that my list, brief though it may be, does not mention Lindsay Lohan astounds me.) The point is, its not a category thats difficult to define. Certain things in this world fit the broad sin heading. We know it. The world knows it too. We have the wrong sin discussion, it seems to me. We want to engage our neighbors in a Bible-based discussion about what constitutes sin. In fact, you can probably get most of the world to agree with you most of the time with regard to the definition without even opening your Bible. The problem is, people dont care. They think sin is funny. Trivial, even. I fear we need to go back to square one. Sin is bad. Necessarily and undeniably bad. It hurts the sinner, and it hurts the culture. Its wrong to do the wrong thing (1 John 3:4) and to avoid doing the right thing (James 4:17). The consequence for sin is death, and Jesus is the only remedy (Romans 3:23). Those are some answers you really need to get right. HH

SIN TRIVIA CONTEST TONIGHT