Vegan Panhandlers, and other links

The posting of links does not constitute an endorsement of the sites linked, and not necessarily even agreement with the specific posts linked.

• A wealth of information. . . untapped no more -- “I tell you all that to make the point that Jim is not just terminally curious like me, he is a professionally educated and trained crazy man.”
• Awake Thy Soul: Singing the Centuries-Old ‘Sacred Harp’ in Baltimore -- “Raucous at times, haunting at others, shape-note singing can come across as an indecipherable wall of sound at first because of its polyphonic harmony singing.”
• C. S. Lewis’s Denial of the Blood Atonement -- “C. S. Lewis (1898-1963) is loved with an equal fervor by conservative evangelicals, emergents, Roman Catholics, Mormons, even atheists, a fact that speaks volumes to those who have ears to hear.”
• Catch a Wampus Cat -- “It didn’t take long for the wampus cat to become the subject of stories designed to scare children into doing as they were told.”
• Face to Face With History -- “It turns out that following the original discovery in the Malakoff quarry, archaeologists found two more heads in the same vicinity. As far as explanations go, it seems science is as stumped as I am.”
• Friends in High Places -- “While Dad’s left hand was trapped, he saved a man’s life that day with his right hand—the day he came home with the big bandage.”
• How Scripture’s Authority Shapes What We Do On Sunday Morning -- “The primary audience of the Bible is not a single person but God’s gathered people. We express his final authority when we express allegiance to what he has commanded in his Word.”
• On Reading and Studying as a Pastor -- “...precisely because our people are bathed in trivial information in this day and age, they need a shepherd with real knowledge, much discernment, and a nose for truth.”
• Texas Book Man -- “Felton Cochran’s cluttered bookshelves—the finest collection of Southwest literature for sale—endure despite the internet.”
• The 10 Largest National Cemeteries in the USA -- “A US national cemetery is a military cemetery provided for the burial of US military personnel, veterans, and sometimes their spouses or dependents.”
• The Needless Alarm. A Tale -- “Beware of desperate steps. The darkest day, “Live till to-morrow, will have pass’d away.”
• The Recent Olympic Last Supper Controversy: Worse than Weird -- “Christians see churches as weird that accept only sacred worship of God. Any church or Christian that takes a stand against worldliness is weird.”
• Vegan Panhandlers -- “Lately I’ve been on a deep dive into “demonymology.” Sounds ominous, but it’s simply the study of what people from certain places call themselves.”
• What Distinguishes Biblical Counseling from other Methods? -- “Rather than attempting to catalogue all the players, I think we are best served by developing basic skills in discernment.”

Using none of these things

1 Corinthians 10:1-14

Paul’s right to apostolic ministerial support, established by seven reasons:

1. Paul’s apostolic relationship to the Corinthians, verses 1-3
2. The example of others, verses 4-6
3. The principle of common right, verse 74
4. The teaching of Scripture, verses 8-10
5. The value of things, verse 11
6. The practice of the Corinthians, verse 12
7. The ordinance of the Lord, verse 13-14

Nevertheless, Paul had a settled policy to “make the gospel of Christ without charge” (verse 18)

“we have not used this power” verse 12

“I have used none of these things” verse 15

Cf. also Acts 20:33-35.

Acts 20:17, plurality of elders

Acts 20:17, plurality of elders.

v. 17 And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church.

 

When in Miletus, Paul called the elders (plural) of the church of Ephesus to meet him. Again, in verse 28, he called them plural overseers. Plurality of elders = pastors plural instead of a pastor singular in local congregations. This is demonstrated in Acts and the New Testament through biblical practice and theological significance. In the New Testament, elder, bishop and pastor is one office/function. The New Testament documents a plurality of elders, with the consistent use of the word “elders” (plural) and the word “church” (singular).

 

Biblical practice.

There were multiple leaders ordained in the churches in Derbe, Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch (Pisidia), Acts 14:23 – And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed. Paul and Barnabas ordained elders in every church in Derbe, Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch. Nothing indicates any one of the elders is different from the others. This they did in each place. This they did without electing or ordaining one elder in charge over the others.

 

There were multiple leaders in the church at Jerusalem, Acts 15:4 – And when they were come to Jerusalem, they were received of the church, and of the apostles and elders, and they declared all things that God had done with them. With the church and the apostles, the elders (esp. 2, 4, 6, 22-23) deliberate the question “except ye be circumcised ye cannot be saved.” No one elder is distinguished from another, but mentioned as a body or group. After discussion, James takes the lead in closing the session, giving his “sentence” (judgment).^[i] For elders in Jerusalem, see also Acts 11:30; 16:4, and 21:18.

 

There were multiple leaders in the church at Ephesus, Acts 20:17ff. – And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church. Paul called the elders of the church of Ephesus to meet him in Miletus. He addresses them equally, as a body, exhorting them to feed the flock over which the Holy Ghost made them overseers. He met with them all, taught them all, exhorted them all, warned them all, and prayed with them all. No one is drawn to the forefront for special charges or recognition.

 

There were multiple leaders the church in Philippi, Philippians 1:1 – Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons: The church at Philippi has plural elders. Paul and Timothy write to the saints at Philippi. Bishops are addressed, but no one more than the others.

 

There were multiple leaders in Thessalonica, I Thessalonians 5:12-13 – And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; and to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. And be at peace among yourselves. Those that labour among and are over this congregation are “them” plural. None “over them” more than another, or one to be esteemed more than the others.

There were multiple leaders in the churches that Timothy was to teach, I Timothy 5:17 – Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine. Those who “rule well” are plural in number. This is general instruction to Timothy to teach others, but the practical application will be plural elders in a singular church. Who is going to count them worthy of double honour? Who is going to not muzzle them? Who is going to hear accusations? Who is going to rebuke them? The local church.

 

There were multiple leaders in the churches in every city in in Crete, Titus 1:5 – For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee: Paul left Titus in Crete, one purpose of which was for him to ordain elders in every city.

 

The use of “them” in Hebrews 13:7, 17 agrees with the concept of plurality of elders – Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God... Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief. “Them that have the rule over you” are described in a plural manner. The writer does not say that one should rule more or to watch more or that one is to be obeyed more or remembered more.

 

There were multiple leaders in the churches to which James was writing, James 5:14 – Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: The sick call to themselves the elders of the church. The author delivers a general rule. In real-life situations, the singular sick person will call elders plural. While the lack of plural eldership in a local congregation might not make that impossible, it mitigates against this being readily followed as normative.

 

There were multiple leaders in in the churches to which Peter was writing, I Peter 5:1-3 – The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. Peter exhorts the elders plural to freely feed and oversee the flock (church) of God to which they are attached.

 

The consistency of record speaks volumes. Other less significant mentions of elders in the churches, or other passages that might apply to the subject are: Acts 11:30, 16:4, 21:18 (elders in Jerusalem), Acts 13:1 (prophets and teachers in Antioch Syria), Ephesians 4:11 (pastors and teachers, plural), I Timothy 3:1-13 (qualifications of bishops and deacons); I Timothy 4:14 (the presbytery, a plurality of elders); Titus 1:5-9 (qualifications of elders/bishops), and  III John 9-10 (one who desired preeminence condemned). The evidence constitutes a biblical case of the practice of the early church, as taught and instructed by the apostles. The consistent pattern in the New Testament is that each church had elders/pastors plural.

 

One exception?

Revelation 2:1, 8, 12, 18; 3:1, 7, 14 – “Unto the angel of the church of ______ write…” A common view is that the “angel” of the church signifies the (singular) pastor. If this is true, it is an exception to the other cases noted. Several possibilities exist, including the fact that angel in its simplest meaning (i.e., messenger) is simply the messenger from or to the church in each of these places. The old English Baptist preacher Hanserd Knollys contends that angel could be used figuratively as a collective noun representing the elders of the church (especially since this is a book of signs and symbols). Nevertheless, it the main burden is for those against the plurality of elders to show why their interpretation of “angel” is not consistent with the rest of the New Testament.

 

Biblical principle.

Theological significance supports pastor plurality, harmonizing with the practice of the New Testament churches. The Lord Jesus emphasized the ideal of equal Christian servants. Although “the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion” Jesus told the apostles “it shall not be so among you” (Matthew 20:25-27). But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant... Jesus himself sets the example, having come to serve rather than be served (Mark 10:41-45). See also Luke 22:24-27. The local church is a body in which each member is indispensable (I Corinthians 12:12-31), and Jesus Christ is the one and only head of the church (Ephesians 1:22).^[ii] Elders are not authoritarian dictators, but placed in submission under the Head. The sheep are the Lord’s and the pastors are to feed them (John 21:15-17; Acts 20:28). Elders ought to take the servant’s part (John 13:14), give preference to others (Romans 12:10), and be mutually accountable to one another (James 5:16). Pastors (Elders) – yea, every member of a congregation – serve in community rather than isolation (Hebrews 10:24-25; John 13:35).

 

The concept of one person “in charge” comes from the world’s standard more than from the New Testament. Elders may move differently as “leaders” by exercising their different spiritual gifts and having them recognized by the church. There is a distinction between assigned leadership and natural leadership, that is, gifts and calling (cf. Acts 9:15). When the church at Antioch set apart Paul and Barnabas, they did not put one “in charge” over the other. See Acts 13:1-4. The church set them apart to the work to which God had called them. God obviously had a special calling for the Apostle Paul. However, there was no contrived authority under which Barnabas simply acquiesced to whatever Paul wanted. See Acts 15:36-39. On the other hand, the apostles in relation to the early church occupied a special place not held by any church officers today. Among equals there may be differing gifts and differing amounts of experience, but the plural elders are of equal standing.

Concluding thoughts.
If isolated from other scriptures, some practices and principles might be explained differently that plurality of elders. However, if we rightfully expect the same practice to prevail in all the churches (I Corinthians 7:17; 11:16, 23; 14:33; I Thessalonians 4:1; II Thessalonians 3:6, et al.), the same explanation is reasonable in all cases.

The conclusion is not that churches must artificially create plurality when none is available, but that churches must not reject plurality when God raises up plural men to serve as elders.[iii]

---

[i] Some may see this as James making the decision. However, the apostles, elders, and the whole church did not acquiesce to James because of his authority, but gladly agreed to what seemed good to them. This James is not James the brother of John (Acts 12:2), but apparently James the Lord’s brother. He seems to be called an apostle by Paul in Galatians 1:19.
[ii] A single pastor (or even plural pastors) is not the head of the church. There is one head, that is Jesus Christ. See Matthew 21:42; Ephesians 1:22; and Colossians 1:18, for examples.

[iii] Incidentally, the hiring of multiple staff members, hierarchically ordered, as practiced in many modern American churches, does not follow the orthopraxy of the New Testament.

Cumberland Presbyterian General Assembly Pics

Some information on the Texas Presbytery of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 1880-1899 (click on picture to enlarge)

1880 ministers

1890 churches

1891 churches

1892 churches

1893 churches

1893 ministers

1894 churches

1894 ministers

1899 churches

CPC General Assembly Minutes on Google Books

• 1880
• 1890-1893
• 1894, 1899

Cumberland Presbyterians in Rusk County

My primary church history interest is in the Baptists, of course. However, I have other historical interests. One is my county, region, and state. As we have gotten involved in trying to preserve the oldest church building in our county – which was built and owned by the Cumberland Presbyterians – my interest in the Cumberland Presbyterian churches in Rusk County, Texas has been piqued. I have been surprised to find that the Cumberland Presbyterians were once much stronger in the county.

Before I began researching the history of the Pine Grove Cumberland Presbyterian Church near Pine Hill, I believed there were (had been) four Cumberland Presbyterian churches in Rusk County – Mt. Hope, Pine Grove, Pleasant Springs, and Willow Springs. I also knew there had once been a Presbyterian Church meeting near the Maple Grove Cemetery at Minden, but did not know to which branch of Presbyterians it belonged.

After starting this research, I have discovered that at least twenty Cumberland Presbyterian churches have existed in Rusk County at one time or another: Brachfield, Grandview, Henderson, Hickory Grove, Leverett’s Chapel, London, Maple Grove/Minden, Mt. Enterprise, Mt. Hope, New Harmony, Oak Flat, Overton, Pine Grove, Pine Grove # 2, Pleasant Hill, Pleasant Springs, Saint Bettie’s, Sulphur Springs, Union Grove, and Willow Springs. A few of these were probably short-lived. There may have been more than these. (There was also a church at Linn Flat in Nacogdoches County, with family connections to the Watkins family in the Patrick/Pine Hill area.)

The Cumberland Presbyterian Church originated in a schism from the older Presbyterian Church, over predestination, revivalism, centralized authority, and ministerial credentials. An independent Cumberland Presbytery was organized in Tennessee in 1810, which became a fully new and distinct denomination in 1829.

The Cumberland Presbyterian Church had become the third largest Presbyterian & Reformed denomination in the USA by 1900. Around this time the Northern Presbyterians (Presbyterian Church USA) revised their Confession of Faith to moderate its statements on Calvinism, predestination, etc., and invited the Cumberland Presbyterians to unite with them. The majority of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church General Assembly voted for the union, which became official in 1906. However, at the local level many Cumberland Presbyterians were not in favor of the merger, rejected it, and continued as the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. (The Texas Presbytery opposed the merger by almost 2 to 1, though a majority of its ministers voted for it.)

Here is a little historical information I have discovered and put together about the Cumberland Presbyterians in Rusk County. (Some of the links are quite random, and there is a lot here that needs to be fleshed-out. I do not think I have posted anything that is incorrect, but it really needs to be gone over again at some point, with references attached.)

Cumberland Presbyterian Churches in Rusk County, Texas

Pleasant Hill, organized 1845-1856, Pleasant Hill community between Henderson and London. In 1845, Captain Robert Washington Smith donated land in the Pleasant Hill community for a church and cemetery. It is uncertain how soon afterward the Cumberland Presbyterian Church was organized, but at least before 1856 (and likely much closer to 1845). The Trinity Presbytery met “in March, A. D. 1847, in Col. R. W. Smith’s neighborhood, in Rusk county, Texas.” This suggests a church was likely in existence by that time. R. W. Smith was a brother-in-law of Cumberland Presbyterian minister Archibald H. Watkins. Some traditions hold that Sumner Bacon organized this church. There is some discrepancy over Bacon’s time of death (1842 vs. 1844), but it seems this church could not have been organized likely before his death. At least two churches came out of the Pleasant Hill Church, formed of members of Pleasant Hill church at the end of the 1850s. The Cumberland Presbyterians exchanged properties with the Baptists at London (now Old London) around 1859, and another CP church was formed at Mt. Hope about 1860.

• “Pleasant Hill Rests, Silently Relating Memories Of Ages,” Elton L. Miller, Henderson Daily News, Friday, July 22, 1938, p. 2
• Our Church in Texas, Texas Presbyterian, November 3, 1846
• Trinity Presbytery, C.P.C., Texas Presbyterian, June 26, 1847

London (Old London). This is where the congregation from Pleasant Hill after swapping locations with the Baptists. It is currently unknown to this writer what happened to this congregation.

Mt. Hope, Gaston/Joinerville, organized 1860. M. J. Kelley may have led in the organization. He is buried at Mt. Hope. Some of the Pleasant Hill Cumberland Presbyterians organized here because it was closer than going to London. Original building was located near the northeast corner of the cemetery. Presently existing building was built in the 1930s. Mt. Hope CPC officially closed in September 2022. However, it is not clear that they continued to be supplied by Cumberland Presbyterian ministers up until its closing.

• Mt. Hope Sunday School Has Seen Rapid Growth, 1932

Pine Grove, organized 1849, near Pine Hill, Texas. Originally met in a log cabin. The current building was built in 1870, and is the oldest existing church building in Rusk County, Texas. Pine Grove disbanded in 1905-1906, around the same time of the Presbyterian/Cumberland Presbyterian merger. The demise of the church may have been partly due to members who were forming new churches nearer their homes – but it is likely that this denominational struggle over merging with the Northern Presbyterians was involved. A Quitclaim Deed (1990) giving the property to the Pine Grove Cemetery Association states that when the church dissolved “all of its members became members of either the Willow Springs Presbyterian Church, P. C. (USA), or Pleasant Springs Presbyterian Church, P. C. (USA), both formerly Cumberland Presbyterian churches…”

Pleasant Springs, at Patrick Community, near Brachfield. Organizers probably attended Pine Grove before constituting a new church in the Patrick Community. Pleasant Springs was organized September 23, 1881, and petitioned the Texas Presbytery to receive them. I. W. Hill was an early moderator. Other ministers include J. A. Hornbeak and A. A. Swain.

Brachfield, at Brachfield between Minden and Pine Hill. Possibly started after the merger, especially if Pleasant Springs joined the older Presbyterian group.

Minden/Maple Grove, at Minden, central Rusk County. Organized January 3, 1875. “At the December Session [of the Texas Presbytery of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church] in 1874 passed an order dividing Mt. Enterprise congregation and ordered a new congregation to be organized to be known as Minden congregation…” Archibald Watkins was the first pastor. Apparently left the Cumberland Presbyterians in 1906.

Willow Springs, Chapman/Pine Hill. This church was organized by members from Pine Grove, October 15, 1905 – first session meeting November 19, 1905. L. E. Tipps was pastor and moderator, with F. M. Wylie & J. B. Wylie, elders. 16 charter members (notes from a session book and information supplied by Robert Wylie).

• Photograph of Willow Springs property

Mt. Enterprise, at Mt. Enterprise in southern Rusk County. Existed before 1874, when the Texas Presbytery voted to divide the congregation and start another church in Minden. Apparently still existed in 1900.

• Program of Texas Presbytery (at Mt. Enterprise)

Hickory Grove (Hickory Flat), organized 1872, probably south of Henderson. “April 8, 1883…the persons whose Names are hereinafter Subscribed do desire that there (sic) membership be transferred from Hickory Grove Church the which was organized A.D. 1872 to New Harmony Church and that the church be known as New Harmony Church in the place of Hickory Grove and we petition the Texas Presbytery of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church to take us under her care and jurisdiction.”

New Harmony, The New Harmony Church was received under the care of the Texas Presbytery of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church July 8, 1883. The first session minute is dated August 7, 1883. The New Harmony Community was about 3-1/2 miles southwest of Henderson. Based on newspaper mentions, this church still existed in 1942. People mentioned minutes tend to be related to the Bethel, Davis, Compton/Pone, and Hickory Grove communities/cemeteries.

In 1937, the Alexanders describe their farms as located “In the New Harmony Community, about three and one-half miles S. W. Henderson.”

• New Harmony Revival
• Revival Meeting Will Open Today

Overton, in the city of Overton, northwestern Rusk County. Organized as Piney Grove, moved to the city in 1872, becoming the first church in Overton. As members moved and died, the Overton congregation disbanded. It was reorganized in 1926, through the labors of G. F. Harris and J. D. Potts.

• Assembly Program, 1937
• Overton C.P.C., 1938

Pine Grove (African-American), near Brachfield, organized date unknown. Pine Grove # 2 belongs to the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in America. That predominantly African-American denomination separated from the predominantly white Cumberland Presbyterian Church in 1874.

• A Brief History of Pine Grove C. P. C.

Saint Bettie’s (African-American), in Henderson on Harkless Street, organized in the 1800s. When the church was relocated in the early 1900s, the name was changed from the Cumberland Presbyterian Church of Henderson to Saint Bettie’s Chapel. This was in honor of Sister Bettie Session, the oldest member of the church and the mother of C. P. minister George Session. Saint Bettie’s belongs to the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in America.

• Some History of Saint Bettie’s C. P. C.

Leverett’s Chapel, at Leverett’s Chapel in northwestern Rusk County, organized 1935.

• Leverett’s Chapel C. P. C., 1951
• Pastor Enters Mission Field, 1979

Henderson. The Cumberland Presbyterians organized a church in Henderson in 1859. The congregation met at the corner of West Main and Van Buren Streets. In 1906, the Henderson Cumberland Presbyterian Church joined the Presbyterian Church USA, and became Central Presbyterian Church.

• History of the Presbyterians in Henderson

Grandview. Listed in the 1890, 1892, and 1894 minutes of the General Assembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, pp. 254, 284. Pastors L. E. Tipps and J. M. Cocke.

Oak Flat. Listed in the 1894 minutes of the General Assembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, p. 294. M. C. Hays, pastor. D. S. Wallace of Laneville was clerk of the session.

Sulphur Springs. Listed in the 1890, 1892, and 1894 minutes of the General Assembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, pp. 254, 284. Pastors J. S. Norvell and M. C. Hays.

Union Grove. At or near Chapman; listed in the 1899 minutes of the General Assembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, p 146a. No pastor listed. G. E. Wylie of Chapman was the clerk of the session.

1894 and 1899 Sessions

1890 and 1892 Sessions

Some Cumberland Presbyterian ministers mentioned in Rusk County.

Archibald H. Watkins, Pine Grove, et al. Watkins died in 1881 and is buried at Pine Grove. Early minister at Pine Grove and first Chief Justice of the court in Rusk County. His brother R. O. Watkins was also a minister.

Thomas H. Campbell, Brachfield (apparently Thomas Hardesty Campbell, who later served at Bethel College and Memphis Theological Seminary 1943-1972.

Orville H. Gibson, Mt. Hope.

S. Q. Proctor, Overton, Leverett’s Chapel.

I. W. Hill, Pleasant Springs, Maple Grove, Mt. Enterprise.

M. J. Kelley, Pine Grove.

L. E. Tipps, Hickory Flat/Grove, Mt. Hope.

J. T. Jopling, Henderson.

Jeff D. Potts, last minister assigned to Pine Grove.

G. F. Harris.

Oran Hatch. Oddly, in the 1850 Rusk County census, he identified himself as an “M. E. (Methodist Episcopal) Clergyman” even though he had already joined the Presbyterians.

S. A. McPherson, died in Waxahachie and is buried in Dallas.

T. T. Thornton (probably returned to the Methodists). His obituary is in a Methodist periodical and only mentions him being a Methodist preacher. His tombstone apparently has the wrong year on it, since the Texas Christian Advocate probably did not print his obituary a year before he died! (1908 vs. 1909)

• Thornton, Texas Christian Advocate, June 25, 1908, p. 11

J. S. Norvell. Norvell’s wife came back to Nacogdoches County after he died.

Moody Cunningham Hays. Joined the Methodists, probably about the time the Cumberland Presbyterians united with the Northern Presbyterians. (He was a first cousin to my maternal grandmother.)

J. A. Hornbeak. Went with the Northern Presbyterians in 1906.

G. W. C. Self, New Harmony.

J. M. Cocke, Henderson, Grandview. Ordained in Marshall in 1890.

W. H. H. King, Overton.

H. B. Milner. Son of Arnold and Mary Milner, who are buried at Pine Grove.

J. G. Braly, Mt. Enterprise, 1892.  His brother S. H. Braly may have also preached in Rusk County.

Licensed Rusk County ministers and candidates in 1891.

• W. C. Chadwick, Mt. Enterprise
• Sidney Clinton, Pine Hill
• J. F. Hays, Minden
• B. A. Hodges, Minden

Some newspaper clips:

Sins of our fathers revealed in local church records
Henderson Daily News, Wednesday, July 26, 1939, p. 7
Henderson Daily News, Sunday, August 16, 1942, p. 5

Texas Presbyterian newspaper, at Portal to Texas

History of Tennessee Community (in Shelby County, Texas), Timpson Weekly News, January 2, 1948 (served by Archibald Watkins, I. W. Hill, and L. E. Tipps))

C. P. C. links to “Our Senior Soldiers” (might contain some bios of ministers who preached in Rusk County)

History of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, by B. W. McDonnold, 1888

Encyclopedia Britannica.

Early in the 20th century the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. revised its Confession of Faith and included interpretations of predestination that the Cumberland Presbyterian Church found acceptable. Negotiations for union resulted in a majority of the Cumberland Presbyterians rejoining the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. in 1906. Members who rejected the merger elected to continue as the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. In 2005 the Cumberland Presbyterian Church reported about 82,000 members and more than 700 congregations. Headquarters are in Memphis, Tenn.

In 1874 a separate Colored Cumberland Presbyterian Church was established for African American members. This group, now called the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in America, in 1996 reported more than 15,000 members and about 150 congregations and is headquartered in Huntsville, Ala.

The Trident

[Evolution assaults] the word of God at its very inception by calling into question the most basic tenets of Scripture. Once hooked by this spike, gone for the most part is trust in an instantaneous special creation by God, a literal Adam and Eve, the fall of man, and his subsequent need for a Redeemer. The first eleven chapters of Genesis, the seed bed for all the doctrines that follow in the remainder of Scripture, become little more than a fable or parable. The rudimentary truth of fallen man’s proclivity toward evil and of eventual judgment against impenitence, as demonstrated in the worldwide Flood, is lost in the battle for the hearts and souls for whom the ultimate sacrifice has been made.

The nature, power, and character of the Living God so clearly set forth in these and the ensuing chapters of Genesis, as well as the rest of the Decalogue, become blurred and faith is shipwrecked in the fog of doubt and confusion.

Floyd Nolen Jones, The Chronology of the Old Testament, page 7 [Note: In context, the “Trident” is textual criticism, evolution, and the jettisoning of biblical chronology.]

Looking upwards in a storm

The author of “There is a fountain” – William Cowper – also wrote “Looking upwards in a Storm” (“God of my life, to thee I call”). This hymn is number XIX in Book III of Olney Hymns, hymns under the heading of “Conflict.” At times it appears in hymn books with the heading “Divine Aid Implored.” Oft afflicted with despair, distress, and depression, Cowper (1731-1800) was experientially well-able to speak for the Christian who cries in distress. Remember God is “God of my life,” a prayer-hearing, prayer-answering God, who invites the mourner to his open door! “God, my God, forgets me not.”

The meter of the hymn is Long Meter. The CPWI Hymnal (The Church in the Province of the West Indies, St John, Barbados, 2010) joins it with the tune St. Sepulchre by George Cooper III (1820-1876). Cooper was an organist St. Sepulchre’s Church on Newgate Street in London, and the tune takes its name from the church. Of Sacred Harp tunes, I think that Hebron would be a good fit, and also Devotion.

1. God of my life, to thee I call,
Afflicted at thy feet I fall;
When the great water-floods prevail,
Leave not my trembling heart to fail!

2. Friend of the friendless, and the faint!
Where should I lodge my deep complaint?
Where but with thee, whose open door
Invites the helpless and the poor?

3. Did ever mourner plead with thee,
And thou refuse that mourner’s plea?
Does not the word still fix’d remain,
That none shall seek thy face in vain?

4. That were a grief I could not bear,
Didst thou not hear and answer pray’r;
But a pray’r hearing, answ’ring God,
Supports me under ev’ry load.

5. Fair is the lot that’s cast for me:
I have an advocate with thee;
They whom the world caresses most
Have no such privilege to boast.

6. Poor though I am, despis’d, forgot,
Yet God, my God, forgets me not.
And he is safe, and must succeed,
For whom the Lord vouchsafes to plead.

To the first stanza, Cowper footnotes Psalm lxix. 15, and  Psalm xl. 17 to the sixth.

Psalm 69:15 Let not the waterflood overflow me, neither let the deep swallow me up, and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me.

Psalm 40:17 But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me: thou art my help and my deliverer; make no tarrying, O my God.

No melody without music, and other music quotes

The posting of quotes by human authors does not constitute agreement with either the quotes or their sources. (I try to confirm the sources that I give, but may miss on occasion; please verify when possible.)

“The best, most beautiful, and most perfect way that we have of expressing a sweet concord of mind to each other is by music.” -- Jonathan Edwards

“We cannot have a melody without music, nor can we have divine record of God speaking without words.” -- John MacArthur

“Since the largest book in the Bible is a songbook, we see the importance of sacred music before God.” -- David Cloud

“The hymn was the prayer of the penitent, and the hallelujah of the redeemed.” -- George C. Loud, Evangelized America 

“Music is God’s gift to man, the only art of Heaven given to earth, the only art of earth we take to Heaven.” -- Walter Savage

“Next to the Word of God, the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world.” -- Martin Luther

Lessons from a tuber crop

Lessons from a tuber crop (potatoes – unlike beets, carrots, turnips – are not a root crop, but a tuber, a stem that grows underground).

Fruit, noun. Any product of plant growth; any edible part of a plant; product, result.

It’s May and I am digging my potatoes, slowly but hopefully surely. (It was May 2024 when I wrote this.) Here are a few lessons I’ve learned.

The results can be described as no fruit, fruit, more fruit, much fruit (John 15:1-5).

Zechariah 4:10 For who hath despised the day of small things?

All my potatoes had fruit, with some having more and some having less. If the taters (tubers) were larger there were often fewer of them. If they were smaller, there were often more of them. The amount of fruit given could be deceptive to the naked eye. If the tubers were weighed rather than counted, those that appeared to have more fruit might have less fruit – which made me think, our casual calculations of how much fruit is on some other Christian’s vine might likely be misguided.

Sometimes you have to get your hands dirty. 

Jesus did, in a sense. (For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him).

Some fruit comes in unexpected shapes.

If you are used to buying your potatoes in a grocery store, you might think they are all nicely round or oval. And they mostly are, but apparently the odd-shaped potatoes get passed over for lesser jobs.

What you see above ground hints at what is not seen. 

Fine plants. Cracked soil. Maybe even a top part of a tuber visible above ground.

Sometimes you have to dig deeper. 

All the potatoes are not just below the surface. Some are right under the surface and some are deeper. It is easy for the shallow digger to overlook good fruit.

There are enemies of the fruit – for example, the potato bug, fire ants, as well as weeds & grass. The potato bug is a perennial enemy, whose larvae infestation can destroy the foliage on potato plants. Last year I fought them on three fronts. This year I saw one adult beetle, crushed it in my hand, and (surprisingly) never saw another beetle or its larvae. Weeds and grass flourished this year, and I had a hard time keeping up. These compete with the potato for water and nutrition. Fire ants can cause some damage to the tuber and plenty to the hands digging them!

1 Peter 5:8 ...your adversary the devil...

1 Kings 21:20 ...Hast thou found me, O mine enemy?

The fruit brings joy – for what it is (the result of laboring together with God) and what it does (provide food/sustenance).

Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.

God gives the increase (Psalm 67:6; 1 Corinthians 3:6). Without Jesus we can do nothing (John 15:5).

Fulfilling a former purpose

Acts 20:1-6 fulfilling a former purpose

Verse 1: Paul had previously purposed to pass through Macedonia and Achaia, and then go to Jerusalem. Staying in Ephesus a little longer, he sent Timotheus and Erastus ahead of him into Macedonia. Now Paul is moving on that purpose. He bids the disciples a loving farewell.

 

Verses 2-3a: Paul traveled through Macedonia to exhort and encourage the disciples, then went into Greece. Greece is identified as Achaia in Paul’s purpose, described in Acts 19:21. He stayed there for three months. It possibly was during this time Paul wrote his letter to the Romans (cf. Romans 15:25-26, 31).

 

Verse 3b: The Jews here “laid wait” for Paul (cf. v. 19), indicating an intent to ambush him, for evil intent – either to arrest and accuse Paul before the authorities, as they had done at other times; or possibly to accost and kill him. Perhaps they intended to attack Paul on board ship, since knowing of the plot, Paul changed his course to reroute back through Macedonia rather than sail to Syria from Greece. Some have suggested a contrived robbery at sea, since Paul was carrying a contribution from the churches in Macedonia and Achaia to the saints in Jerusalem.

 

Verse 4: Accompanying Paul to Asia were eight men:

 

• Sopater of Berea
• Aristarchus (of the Thessalonians)
• Secundus (of the Thessalonians)
• Gaius of Derbe
• Timotheus [of Lystra, 16:1]
• Tychicus (of Asia)
• Trophimus (of Asia)
• Luke [a “we” section begins verse 5. Acts 20:5-21:18, from Philippi to Jerusalem]

Verse 5: Sopater, Aristarchus, Secundus, Gaius, Timotheus, Tychicus, and Trophimus go on ahead of Paul, Luke, and (presumably) Silas to wait for them at Troas.[i] “tarried for us” indicates that Luke has rejoined the group.

 

Verse 6: the author, Luke, evidently stayed at Philippi during the events of Acts 17:1 to Acts 20:5-6 – possibly 6 years.[ii] Note that this time the trip from Philippi to Troas took five days, in contrast to two days on the initial trip from Troas to Philippi recorded in Acts 16:11-12. After this five-day journey, they stayed in Troas seven days.

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[i] Silas has not been mentioned by name since he and Timothy joined Paul in Corinth (18:5). Outside of Acts he is mentioned (by the Latinized form “Silvanus”) in II Corinthians 1:19; I Thessalonians 1:1; II Thessalonians 1:1; and I Peter 5:12.
[ii] The calculation and approximation of this time includes possibly a month in Thessalonica (17:1ff.), stays in Berea and Athens (chapter 17), over 18 months in Corinth (18:11), a trip back to Jerusalem and Antioch (chapter 18), 3 years in Ephesus (cf. 20:31), travel through Macedonia, and 3 months in Greece (20:3) before going back through Macedonia.

“Sola Scriptura” “Solo Scriptura” “Nuda Scriptura”

“Sola Scriptura” “Solo Scriptura” “Nuda Scriptura” “Nada Scriptura”

What is Sola Scriptura? Sola Scriptura is a Latin phrase meaning “scripture alone.” It is a Christian bibliological doctrine. It means that the Bible is the sole source of authority (either explicitly or implicitly) for Christian faith and practice. If only the canonical Scriptures are completely inspired and the only encapsulation of all truth, then only the Scriptures are authoritative in a way nothing else is. “The scriptures are the only rule of faith and practice” has been a common way Baptists have stated their belief in the Bible.

On Facebook awhile back, Alexander Thomson wrote “there is a growing attempt to argue that ‘Sola Scriptura’ is not ‘Solo Scriptura; and that resort to Scripture-only proof is ‘Biblicism’.”

A cadre of evangelical theologians today like to contrast “Sola Scriptura” with phrases such as “Solo Scriptura” and “Nuda Scriptura” – or draw a hard line between only and alone (which, of course, are English synonyms). Some of them may merely be trying to correct radical errors of individualism.[i] Others, however, are watering down the strength of Sola Scriptura.[ii]

Jeremy D. Myers, a former pastor who would like to redeem Christians from their biblical faith and practice, defines “Solo Scriptura” thusly: “‘Solo’ Scriptura is the idea that we can learn all matters about faith and practice using the Bible alone, plus nothing else.”

Marty Foord, a lecturer at the Evangelical Theological College in Singapore tells us that “sola scriptura does not mean that the Bible is the only authority for believers.”

Canadian minister Lawson Murray expands the idea, claiming, “Protestant reformers made a distinction between the principles of ‘sola Scriptura’ (Scripture alone) and ‘nuda Scriptura’ (bare Scripture). ‘Sola Scriptura’ has to do with the sufficiency of Scripture as the Christian’s supreme authority in all spiritual matters. ‘Nuda Scriptura’ is the idea that the Bible is the Christian’s only theological authority in all spiritual matters. The best transliteration for ‘nuda Scriptura today is ‘solo Scriptura’ (just me and my Bible).”[iii]

Greek Orthodox Archpriest Andrew Stephen Damick (who doesn’t believe in either sola or solo) piles on against the “Protestants,” writing, “Solo scriptura, it is argued, is what most Evangelicals would probably understand as their basic matrix of church authority—the Bible is above everything. Some might say that the Bible is the only authority in church life, while others might say it is the primary authority in church life, but it’s still over everything.” In the end he concludes, “this ‘sola’ vs. ‘solo’ business is really a distinction without a difference” and that “sola” is really “just a better-read version” of “solo.” I sort of agree, though I would change “better-read” to “more sophisticated.”[iv] After receiving a thoroughly “liberal” education, some want a more sophisticated way to explain Sola Scriptura. They elevate themselves above being so simple in belief as to receive the phrase from a children’s song, “the Bible tells me so.” (Cf. Matthew 18:1-4.)

Many “Protestants” now nuance the terminology. They may argue that the Bible is not the “only authority,” just the “supreme authority.” It is not the “sole authority,” but “an authority” (or “final authority”) above other “lesser” authorities.[v] 

We do not (and should not) reject the teaching of God’s people in his churches through the years, neither what someone has written in a commentary or theological book, nor how the Holy Spirit has led someone else to understand the passage – but we still stand on “Scripture alone,” “Only Scriptura,” and/or any or whatever term means that the only authority for our faith and practice is found in the Bible. The book of Acts extols the virtues of the Bereans, who would not take the word of an apostle, if such word did not agree with Scripture (Acts 17:11). The Bible trumps every Roman pope and every little Baptist “pope.” It is above all of them, the one and only and final authority. We do not use the Scriptures as our “sole resource” – but it is the “sole recourse.” There is no higher court of appeal.

If we do not believe that the Scriptures, inspired by God, throughly furnishes us with all we need for every good work, including doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16-17), then we have gone over to the other side![vi]

Beware of the new nuancers. The nuancing of the term “Sola Scriptura” is an admission that the term is not “sufficient” and may even suggest that those nuancing the term do not really believe the Scriptures themselves are sufficient! In the end, the fight against “Sola Scriptura” or “Solo Scriptura” may leave us with “Nada Scriptura.”[vii]

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[i] Radical individualism rejects the study and interpretation of the Bible from within the gathered church community and installs it in the “Lone Ranger” Christian – making such an one his own authority. Sola Scriptura includes interpreting the Scriptures in the church community as guided by the Holy Spirit. It does not make either the individual or the church supreme.
[ii] “Sola Scriptura simply means that all truth necessary for our salvation and spiritual life is taught either explicitly or implicitly in Scripture. It is not a claim that all truth of every kind is found in Scripture. The most ardent defender of sola Scriptura will concede, for example, that Scripture has little or nothing to say about DNA structures, microbiology, the rules of Chinese grammar, or rocket science.” I do not disagree with anything here by John McArthur, but I wonder why he found it necessary to write it. Which advocate of Sola Scriptura is arguing that we should go to the Bible to learn the rules of Chinese grammar, for example?
[iii] He did not cite any Reformer or Radical Reformer who used this term positively. I get the impression that it is primarily a new term to try to encapsulate an older idea. It does seem that Calvin may have at least once used “ex nudis scripturis” to describe depending on the scripture alone (Concerning Scandals, Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1978, p. 18). Anabaptist/Baptist leaders (if properly understood) might well be described as holding a sort of “Nuda Scriptura” view without appealing to such terminology (i.e., correctly understanding that “Sola Scriptura” demonstrates their belief). Additionally, the reason many of these teachers did not accept the traditions of the Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches is not because they totally rejected any continuity of teaching the Bible. Rather it was because they rejected the Catholic and Orthodox as being part of that continuity; that is, they are not true churches in the New Testament sense.
[iv] This may be seen in those who argue for replacing “sola” with “prima.” Are they not tacitly admitting they do not even believe “Sola Scriptura” – or at least that they think “sola” and “solo” are equivalent terms.
[v] If it is the “final authority” then it is the “sole authority” – other things called authorities are not authorities, merely servants or helps.
[vi] Many “highly educated” students are coming out of Baptist and Protestant seminaries with the idea that the Bible itself does not teach Sola Scriptura. Consider the teaching and implications of these texts: Deuteronomy 12:32, Revelation 22:18-19, do not add to or take away from God’s word; Psalm 119:89, God’s word is settled, forever; Isaiah 8:20, for truth and light, we must speak according to the word; Mark 7:6-9, the traditions of men vs. the commandments of God; Romans 10:17, the word is foundational to our faith; 1 Corinthians 4:6, do not think above what is written; Galatians 1:8, there is only one gospel, not many; Ephesians 6:17, the word of God is the sword of the Spirit; 1 Thessalonians 5:21, we have the resource to prove all things and hold fast the truth; 2 Peter 1:3, we are given all things that pertain to life and godliness; Jude 3:5, the faith is once delivered; 1 John 4:1, the word necessary to try the spirits.
[vii] “Nothing Scripture,” that is, without any biblical authority. (Sorry for switching from Latin to Spanish. ... Not really.)