Pastor's Blog

A while back I posted a piece entitled,   On the Sometimes Touchy Subject of Drinking Wine . I have since happened to run across this witty speech delivered by Rep. Noah S. "Soggy" Sweat on the floor of the Mississippi state legislature in 1952. The speech concerned the prohibition of liquor, which was still the law in Mississippi at the time. Efforts to change the law met with a great deal of controversy. The speech illustrates the point of my previous post. My friends, I had not intended to discuss this controversial subject at this particular time. However, I want you to know that I do not shun controversy. On the contrary, I will take a stand on any issue at any time, regardless of how fraught with controversy it might be. You have asked me how I feel about whiskey. All right, here is how I feel about whiskey:      If when you say whiskey you mean the devil's brew, the poison scourge, the bloody monster, that defiles innocence, dethrones reason, destroys ...

Wherein (as a Puritan of yore might have put it) the divine goodness in providing man with that which gladdens the heart is displayed and vindicated, and sundry warnings concerning the misuse of God’s good gifts are given, together with a few recommendations for the lawful enjoying of the same One of the things we ought to admire most in God is his habit of taking what man intends for evil and using it instead for good (Gen. 45:5-8; 50:20; Rom. 8:28). On the other hand, one of the things we should most lament in man is his habit of doing just the opposite —taking what God intends for good and using it for evil (Ezek. 16:17-21; Hos. 2:8). Examples abound, but I will limit myself to three. “He satisfies your hearts with food and gladness” (Acts 14:17) If anyone wishes to have proof of God’s goodness, let him look no further than his own taste buds. Seriously. God has made us in such a way that we must eat in order to maintain our health and strength. This might have been a...