Blest Be the Tie That Binds

For over two hundred years, Christian people, with their hearts full of emotion, have sung, Blest Be the Tie That Binds. At SHBC, oftentimes tearfully, we have sung this lovely hymn at the close of our Lord's Supper Service.

The song began in tears. Dr John Fawcett was the beloved pastor of a small church in Wainsgate, England. In 1772 he received a "call" to become the pastor of a large church in London. He accepted the call from this prestigious church in the capital city of England and preached his farewell sermon to a congregation of crushed and sorrowing parishioners.

The scheduled day of departure arrived. Outside the parsonage, the waiting wagons were loaded up with books, furniture, and other goods of the pastor and his wife. Finally all preparations were complete, and the pastor and his wife were ready to depart. The members of the congregation, who had truly become like "family" to the Fawcetts, gathered around the couple. In a sincere outpouring of affection and emotion, and with eyes full of tears, the people begged them to stay.

The pastor's wife looked at him and with quivering voice said, "Oh John, John I cannot bear this."

"Neither can I," exclaimed the good pastor, "and we will not go. Unload the wagons and put everything as it was before."

The pastor's decision brought shouts of joy and thanksgiving from all present. The whole congregation joined in a great spontaneous celebration

In commemoration of this touching event, Dr. John Fawcett wrote the words of this hymn:
Blest be the tie that binds
Our hearts in Christian love;
The fellowship of kindred minds
is like to that above.

What a wonderful tie there is that binds us together in Christian love. I have had the privilege to build relationships with Christians from all over the world, and always there has been that wonderful "oneness."
Blest be the tie that binds.

Could Have Been You.

I must apologize again for my inconsistency in posting to my blog. I would like to say I've just been to busy, but should always find the time to communicate with you guys. Even to say I didn't have anything to say would be a stretch. Simply because I live life. And even if life is not enough there is always my friend who sticks closer than a brother, or my Heavenly Father, or His word. I suppose the best excuse is no excuse. Therefore, I simply ask your forgiveness. Having said that let's move on.

I was pondering just yesterday some of my favorite Biblical characters. I came across one that I have always loved. He's the one children sing about, Zacchaeus, you know the "wee little man". I thought about how a lot of us are a lot like Zacchaeus. For instance, he was rich. Now, maybe we are not rich with material possessions but, we feel kind of rich with ourselves. Sometimes we think "we are all that". We think we have got it all together and under control or at least that's the persona we portray, all the while we are empty and desolate on the inside. Nothing seems to satisfy, something is always lacking.

Zacchaeus was small in stature. I'm sure he heard all of his life about his "shortcomings". Ridiculed and harassed by those around him. We may not be short but in our eyes we're not very significant. We assume that our place in life is always relegated to the background. No one notices us and in the midst of a crowd we feel alone. The room may be full but within ourselves we are alone.

He was also an outcast. He was a tax collector which meant he worked for the Roman government. The Jewish people did not care for Rome and liked their taxes even less. It would be safe to say they liked tax collectors even less than that. He had no social life outside of what would take place with his family. He was not allowed in the Temple because he was considered unclean. The only interaction he had was when he tallied the amount and collected the tax. He was an outcast. At times don't we feel this way? Our friends seem to have forgotten who we are, our acquaintances never acknowledge our presence, and even our family seems to have turned their back. And, we feel like an outcast.

So, here is Zacchaeus empty, alone, and an outcast. He's run ahead of the crowd in order to see Jesus. He's climbed the tree in order to see Jesus. He listens intently as the Savior calls him by name. At that moment the empty alone outcast becomes Zacchaeus the host of the only begotten Son of God. His life is changed dramatically.

Christ will do the same for you. He's calling your name. In the midst of your despair, detachment, and degradation He's calling you by name. He is just what Zacchaeus needed and He is just what we need. Listen, He's calling your name.

Personal Evangelism

Used by permission of the author, Dr. Charles Kelly, President of The New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.

I will never forget the first time I went to First Baptist church of Dallas, Texas. I was thrilled over the opportunity to visit this legendary congregation while I was in Dallas for a weekend. It was awesome! The choir loft stretched from one side of the balcony across the platform, to the balcony on the other side. they had a full symphony orchestra. I had never seen anything like that in church before. The music was so dynamic that I wondered why they did not install seat belts in the pews to keep people from floating off during the praise time. We got to the time of the sermon, and Dr. Criswell stood up and said, "I 'm going to do something that I have never done before." I was thrilled because that meant my only visit to the church would be an historical occasion! And then Criswell said, "I am going to read the church budget." I'm thinking, "No, he won't". And at that 11 o'clock Sunday morning service, being carried live on television and radio, Dr. Criswell opened a folder, put on his glasses, and read line by line through the church budget. For 3o minutes, he read the church budget.

By the time he finished, I was bored almost to tears. In fact, I was more than bored. I was mad at his waste of a opportunity to preach the gospel and call people to salvation! To my surprise, he indicated that a invitation would be extended in spite of the unusual nature of his "message". I thought we would surely beat the Methodists and Catholics to the cafeteria today. He closed his file folder, took off his glasses, put them in his pocket, and began the invitation.

Twenty minutes later people were still responding--coming down the aisles, coming from the back, and coming from the balcony. I said to myself, "I'm going to get a copy of that budget for my next revival". I envisioned a whole new approach to evangelism: budget revivals!

The invitation was finally over, and Criswell began introducing people who had made their decisions for Christ to the congregation. "Oh, glory, glory, Tom come stand here,lad. This is Tom. Some of you may recognize Tom. He is a sportscaster on one of our local stations and now he comes giving his life to Jesus. Oh, glory Bob, Mary--come and stand with Tom You don't recognize Bob or Mary, but they are on the other side of those cameras showing Tom, this good looking lad, and they have been telling Tom about Jesus. Now Tom comes to be saved."

On and on he went, introducing each one who made a decision that day. In most cases, he pointed out somebody in the congregation who had been witnessing to them. Slowly it dawned on me. The secret to First Baptist, Dallas, was more than the man behind the pulpit; it was the people in the pews telling the people they knew about Jesus. The secret to every great church is not just a great pastor. It is a great congregation who leaves church each week to go and tell the people they know about Jesus.

Part of the reason personal evangelism has not permeated the life of the church is because the typical church has lost sight of her mission.