Texas Baptist Forum

Preach Jesus, not land

Greg Holloway writes, "There is no way that a Bible-believing, Spirit-filled Christian can agree that Israel is stealing land from the Palestinians" (Oct. 24).

Joshua 21:43-45 states that God fulfilled all his land promises 1,200 to 1,300 years before Christ. God's purpose was to place the promised Messiah right in the middle of the crossroads of the ancient world.

Joshua insists if the Israelites deviate from Moses' instruction and fail to follow God, the Lord no longer will drive their enemies out, and they will vanish from the land (Joshua 23:13).

Jews reject God because they reject Christ—the incarnation of the living God. Do we protect their land and not seek to protect their souls? Be part of making them the people of God by preaching Jesus, not land.

Ben Macklin

Vernon

Taxes and poverty

"Economic theory" (Sept. 26) advocates big-government socialism, which reason and experience demonstrate as the problem in America, not the solution.

Abraham Lincoln said, "You can't make poor men rich by making rich men poor." Benjamin Franklin wrote: "The best way of doing good for the poor is by not making them easy in poverty. … The more public provisions made for the poor, the less they provide for themselves, and of course become poorer. … The less done for them, the more they do for themselves and become richer."

You get less of what you tax—honest labor—and more of what you subsidize—immorality and laziness.

Poverty has increased in America because we pay people to be poor. Couples who have several children never marry, so the woman gets food stamps and Medicaid, even though the man makes a good living. Single girls have babies for welfare checks.

Franklin continued, "Repeal the (welfare) law, and you will see a change. … Industry will increase and with it plenty … and more will be done for their happiness by inuring them to provide for themselves than could be done by dividing (all the rich have) among them."

"If a man won't work, neither let him eat" (2 Thessalonians 3:10).

Brian Burgess

Haskell

Thanks for memories

For decades, Glorieta has represented the finest Southern Baptists had to offer in training. Trained workers provide the foundation of a strong, healthy church, and no finer facility exists in the west than Glorieta.

What used to be the Sunday School Board also has changed. Producing quality materials for our churches was the main thing, and training us to utilize those materials to grow and strengthen our churches was the focus. Workshops trained state convention personnel, who trained associational personnel, who in turn trained local-church volunteers and leaders.

It seems the Sunday School Board's focus changed when it became LifeWay Christian Resources and began to focus more on publishing and printing than providing quality resources and training. Now, with LifeWay's decision to decrease Glorieta's schedule, we can expect strong churches with trained leaders and volunteers soon will become weak churches with little or no trained leaders and volunteers.

There are more profit losers at LifeWay than just Glorieta.

Thanks for the memories. That's all we'll have one day.

Robert Gillchrest

San Diego, Calif.