The Fifth Kingdom

And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces in and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.
Daniel 2:44

All eyes were upon the poster of the great image that Glen had placed upon the easel. All eyes except those of the young lady in the first row. She sat upright with a rapt expression on her face, her fingers tracing the raised outlines of the giant statue in Daniel chapter two in her large binder. Glen had pasted a drawing of the image onto a sheet of cardboard and carefully cut it out and mounted it onto the page she was now tracing with her fingers. He had used a braille slate and stylus to make labels for the four metals and four kingdoms that the statue represented. Off to one side and above the figure was the rough outline of a huge stone.

Glen began to read the poem he had composed for tonight’s class;

The king of Babylon had a fearful dream,

In which he saw a giant image gleam.

From his day forward, ‘til the statue’s fall,

Its varied metals and its form told all.

In all, four earthly kingdoms were decreed.

Then fell the smiting stone with awesome speed.

The kingdoms gone, God’s kingdom in their place,

Where every saint shall stand and sing with shining face.

I was impressed with the sparse wording and vivid imagery of his poem, so suitable to the text of Daniel chapter two. Glen had read it with a feeling of awe and drama. His husky voice was both gentle and strong. Glen read from his outline of this great chapter that co-ordinated so many Bible prophecies. He spoke with great conviction; “Folks, this image not only reveals, as no other text in or out of the Bible does, the course of world history from the time of Nebuchadnezzar until the return to earth of our Lord Jesus Christ. But it reveals that all of man’s efforts are played out within an historical framework that is as fixed as the stars or the cycles of the seasons. When man thinks he is running things and steering the ship of history, he is ignorant of God’s revelation, which is history told before it takes place. This is one of the worst forms of ignorance and totally without justification.”

“Now I trust you have all had time to go over the king’s dream in Daniel two and Daniel’s interpretation of it as revealed to him by God. To see if the basic truths contained in this chapter have really hit home,” he paused at the word “hit” and then continued, "I am going to ask you a very simple question. How many kingdoms are in this dream?"

Hands went up as soon as his question was spoken. “Yes sir, “Glen pointed to a man in the back row. “Four” was his confidant reply. Glen said nothing and the man grew impatient. “Head of gold, Babylon. Arms and chest of silver, Media Persia. Belly and thighs of bronze, Greece, and legs and feet of iron, the fourth kingdom Rome and its final form of ten toes or ten kings." He leaned back, awaiting Glen’s reply. He was confident that his answer was correct. Still, Glen said nothing as his eyes swept the room.

Then the left hand of the lady using the braille chart was up and waving. Glen walked to her chair and spoke directly to her. “Yes, Miss?” “Five!” she replied . There was a chorus of murmurs, “Five?”

Glen turned to the man in the back row. “Sir, you gave a flawless explanation of the kingdoms represented in the image, but the question was, how many kingdoms are in the dream? You neglected to include the smiting stone.” He looked over at the lady who had answered “Five”. The fingers of her right hand still rested on the raised outline of the smiting stone. Its label read, “The Kingdom of God”.

The End of the Oak Street Bible Shop

There are places, and people too, that you think will always be there. Then, when they are gone you are reminded that you won’t be here forever either. That’s the way it was The Oak Street Bible Shop.

I got the news from Glen, and if anyone else had told me I probably wouldn’t have believed them. I had dropped by his place to give him some cassettes on Isaiah, his latest study. He had said if the Lord let him live long enough he would try to teach this wonderful book. I asked him, “How long is that?” and he replied, “A couple of years of study and then some time to teach.”

His landlady said he was out back working on one of her flower beds. As I approached I saw him carefully cutting the dead stalks from some cannas whose season had been ended by an early frost. He saw me as I approached and gave a little hand wave but said nothing.

“I just came back from our trip to Michigan”, I told him, “How are things going with you?” He continued to work before he replied, and then stood erect and gave me a long, sad look. “I guess you haven’t heard.” I waited, knowing from his expression, that he had some bad news to tell me. “Well”, Glen said “you won’t believe this but they’re tearing down The Oak Street Bible Shop!”

You can imagine my shock when I heard these words from my old friend. “Who?” I asked, “And when are they going to do it?”

Glen stooped to gather up the dead flower stalks into a little bundle before he spoke. It was as if he was delaying so he wouldn’t have to talk about it. “Oh, the developers who bought the place, the whole block, actually. They hired a crew to tear down everything on that block so they can build apartments. They’re even cutting down the trees, if you can believe that. Later, they’ll probably plant new ones that won’t be as big as the ones there now until we’re all dead.”

“I don’t get it” I protested, “We were only gone two weeks! When are they going to do all this?” Glen stood again and let his arms fall to his side. “They’re doing it right now” he said, with a sorrowful voice. “Gary had been mulling over their offer for his place for some time. Said it was too good to turn down, and his wife wants to go back to California anyway, said she can’t stand our winters here.”

“I have something for you, Glen”. I handed him a package of cassettes on Isaiah. "Gary said cassettes are going out of style pretty soon, but he ordered these for you.”

“Going out of style, huh?” said Glen, and then, with a rueful laugh, “Just like me.”

“Sad, isn’t it?” I asked him, “These tapes are the last thing either one of us will ever get from the Oak Street Bible Shop.”

I regretted saying this when I saw the expression on his face. Glen looked at me with earnestly as he spoke. “Not the last thing, I hope. Would you come with me, there is one more thing I want to do.”

“Sure”, I told him, not quite certain what he had in mind. “What do I owe you for these tapes?" Glen inquired. “They are a gift from me and my wife” I told him. “We both have learned so much from you, not just content, but the way you look at things, your determination to follow your own course and not bow down to any man.”

“Like a mule?” Glen said, smiling a little.

“Something like that” I replied, hoping he would understand.

He looked inside the bag briefly and smiled. “Really appreciate this” he said, “These will be great. Let me just put them inside the door and I’ll be right back.”

Glen soon joined me and we walked to his old blue van. As we moved down the long drive he remained silent. When we turned down Oak Street I felt I understood his intent. He parked a half of a block from the shop and we both looked at the old familiar site. It was awful to see how bare it looked without trees. The glaring light revealed the newly scraped earth and the sound of the equipment was like the roaring of lions.

Glen approached one of the workers and began to talk to him. He once said, sometimes the indirect approach is the quickest way to make your point. “Look” he said to the man, “I have a little favor to ask of you. I’ve been coming to this place for I don’t know how many years. All I ask is let me have one little thing to remember it by.”

“I can’t let you on a construction site” the man protested. “I could get in a lot of trouble, there are liability laws. What if you got hurt or something? Besides, there’s not much left.” He gestured at the shell of the old frame building. The windows had been removed and the front door was gone. Our old shop had been gutted and would soon be battered to the ground.

“Just one little item” Glen pleaded. He held out his left hand, palm up and cupped his right hand over it, to show how small it would be.

The two men looked at one another for a moment. You could see the worker sizing up Glen’s rugged, earnest face. Then he took a step back and looked at the ground. “See that white pickup over there? You two get a couple of hard hats out of the back and go on in. But don’t hang around. Just get this item, whatever it is, and leave, okay?”

Glen touched the man’s arm and thanked him and strode off for the truck. He pulled out two yellow hats and handed one to me. I saw him try his on as we walked up the sidewalk. He stopped to adjust the band to fit his big head. We crunched up on the porch, now littered with splinters and rubble. I looked back to see the worker watching us.

Glen stepped through the empty door frame and looked up. There was the prize he sought, the little bell, still in place, held by two screws. Glen looked around and found a large metal tool chest and dragged it to the doorway. He reached into his jacket pocket and brought out his old multi-tool. I noticed his hand shaking as he swung out the screwdriver bit. He put his left hand on my shoulder to steady himself as he reached over to loosen the screws. His eyes were moist as he tried to put the blade into the slot. In a little while he had the screws out and carefully placed them in his pocket. I dragged the tool box back out of the doorway and we stepped outside. Neither of us wanted to look around at the empty room that once was a happy world for us. Sue’s curtains, Gary’s counter, Joy’s high stool and Glen’s beloved “prophecy corner” were now forever in the past. We walked to the truck to replace the hard hats. Glen remembered to readjust the band on his hat. Then he walked back to the curious worker and held out his hand to show him the little bell.

“That’s all you wanted?” the man asked incredulously.

“That’s all that‘s left” said Glen.

When Glen returned, I said, in what I thought was a light mood, “You sure rang that little bell a lot of times over the years, didn’t you, my friend?”

Glen touched the pocket where it was and said, “Yes, but not enough times, not nearly enough.”

He walked to one of the fallen oak trees and leaned on it with both arms. Then this good, strong man began to cry.

Sue Says Goodbye

Glen’s landlady called up the steps, “Mr. Brock, someone on the phone wants you.” Glen arose from the folding chair by his study table and went down the darkened steps to take the phone from her outstretched hand. People never called him any more and he was puzzled as to who it would be. He was even more surprised to hear the voice of Sue.

“Hi, Glen! I’m leaving tonight and I wondered if I could see you just one more time?" Glen was stunned. No one had told him Sue was moving away, and he felt a stab of sorrow at her announcement.

“Sure” he said, “where are you”?

“Well, I’ve already moved my stuff out, what little there is. My car is all packed and I’m leaving tonight. Can you meet me at the Blue Bird in about half an hour?" Still reeling from surprise, Glen answered automatically, “Sure, sure, that will be fine.” His landlady studied his face with sympathy as she tried to read his emotions.

He went upstairs to pick up his jacket and turned off his reading light. He looked at his watch on the table and figured he had enough time to walk to the Blue Bird.

His mind raced as he strode along. He had somehow counted on Sue always being here. She had dreams of opening a fabric shop and seemed contented with her circumstances.. He was mystified by the new direction her life was taking and the vibrancy of her voice. It was as if she was a new person almost overnight.

As he crossed the street to the Blue Bird he saw her sitting at a booth by the window. He entered and sat down across from her. She reached over to touch his hand. “Sorry about the short notice” she said, “but everything is happening so quickly I hardly have time to think.”

Before she could continue, Cheryl appeared to take their orders. Sue went first. “I’d like a barbecue sandwich,” she said, “with home fries and a root beer.”

“And I suppose you would like your regular, grilled cheese” Cheryl said to Glen, already writing it down. “Not tonight” he said, “I’ll have what the lady is having, it sounds real good.”

After Cheryl walked away, Glen looked at Sue with such a questioning look that she felt pity for her old friend. “It happened like this” she began. “A couple of days ago I got a letter from a guy I went to school with. I really liked him and I thought he liked me. We were both kind of shy and nothing came of it, but I always felt there was some kind of bond between us. I was thrilled when I saw his name on the envelope. You know, that he had remembered me after all those years." Glen smiled at her phrase “all those years” but figured it must have seemed like a long time to her.

She went on, “Anyway, when I read his letter I was knocked for a loop. He told me he had married a local girl up there, in New York, I mean, and they had a little girl. I was so disappointed that he had married. Unrealistic of me, I know, like I was hoping he was still single as I was, like he was waiting for me or something. But then he said his wife was dead, killed in a car wreck. It was really dumb too, she wasn’t even driving. She was a passenger in a car driven by a neighbor, some ditzy woman who talked non stop and everybody said didn’t pay attention when she was driving. His wife had agreed to help her shop for something and as they backed out of the driveway she didn’t see a truck was coming, because of a row of evergreens. The truck hit on the passenger side and his wife died almost instantly. Their little girl was with her grandmother at the time.”

Cheryl brought their orders and Sue bowed her head as Glen said grace. She put the fingers of her left hand lightly on the bun and cut little pieces off with her fork. Glen, holding his sandwich with both hands, lowered it to his plate and followed her example. They ate in silence for a time before Sue continued, “He wanted to know if I had ever married, and, if I was still single, would I consider moving up there to be his wife and be a mother to his little girl? Just like that! Not very romantic, but he said he would give me lots of time to consider it and meanwhile we could explore his beloved Adirondacks. We could go in his Adirondack boat, whatever that is?”

“Kind of like a canoe with oars.” Glen said. It’s unique to the region and a handy little craft.”

“All I know about Adirondack things is those deep chairs” Sue said lightly.”You sit in them very long and you can’t get out.”

“Maybe they had servants to help pull you up?” Glen quipped. Sue laughed at the idea, diverted, for the moment, from her rushing thoughts.

“His name is Marc, “ she added, “he has a bait and tackle shop near Plattburgh, way up north. He lives in an apartment but has a down payment on a cabin near the wilderness area. He wants to guide people, says it is so vast you could go forever and not see the same lake twice."

Glen was trying to take it all in. Amazing, he thought, you think you know someone, even yourself, and then things happen and a whole new person emerges. But not new, he reflected, just the one you really have been all along.

Sue ate a fork full of slaw, then patted her mouth daintily with a napkin before she pulled her brooch up from inside her blouse. She opened it to reveal a picture of a young man with dark hair and blue eyes. “His name is Marc Jewell” she said. Then, opening her purse she retrieved his letter and lifted out a picture of the little girl, shyly looking up and holding a doll in her arms. "Looks like her father, doesn’t she?” she said. “But, honestly, Glen, can you see me as a mother!”

Glen swallowed a bite of his barbecue and hastened to say “You’ll be a natural, Sue, you can’t miss. All the children at the shop loved you.”

“Thank you, Glen” she answered, “But you know, I have been a child myself for too long, I’m going to have to grow up fast. All those ideas about a fabric shop and sewing, I mean I’ve been so unrealistic.”

Glen looked at her with affection. “Is this cabin furnished?” he asked. Sue pulled out some pictures Marc had sent her. “Oh, no, it’s never been lived in, it’s not even completely finished." She pointed to a picture of the interior. “This is his idea of decorating!” She had her finger on a window frame with what looked like a tree branch laid across two nails as a curtain rod. “I mean, I like things rustic, but he doesn’t even have a clue!” she giggled.

Glen took a swig of his root beer. “Looks like some curtains are in order and the little girl” , “Janet”, Sue interjected, “Janet, is holding a doll that you could sew clothes for. You know how fast a three year old grows, you could be busy sewing for her for a long, long time.”

“Oh, and I didn’t tell you” Sue added with excitement, "Marc wants to home school Janet! Now that is really a challenge.”

“You’ll have a couple of years to prepare” Glen said, “I know you can do it.”

By now that had finished their food and were sipping the last of their root beers. “What do you think, Glen? Am I crazy to go up there?"

“You’d be crazy not to” Glen said with conviction. They stood up and Glen walked to the register to pay the bill. Cheryl gave Glen a sidelong look. “She’s real cute, Glen” she said coyly.

“That’s what her fiancee’ thinks” he replied.

Outside, Sue took his arm and guided him, “I’m over here” she stopped by her little red car, parked under a street light. It was filled with boxes and shopping bags full of clothing and bedding. He saw a lamp made of pieces of painted wood. It was a bird and a birdhouse. Sue saw him looking at it. “I call that my birdy lamp” she said “I got it for my sixth birthday. It's the last thing I have to remind me of my childhood.”

Glen looked at the boxes and bags piled high. "I hope you can see out ok. Be careful changing lanes. Use your side mirrors.”

“I will, I’ll use my mirrors, don’t worry.” They stood in silence before Sue got out her keys out and opened the door. She turned to him and wrapped her arms around his neck as she kissed him goodbye. She held on as she told him “I’ll never forget you, Glen, never!”

Then she gave him one more quick kiss and slid into the driver’s seat . “That goes double for me” Glen said to himself. Sue started the engine and fastened her seat belt. She rolled the window down and checked her mirrors before she pulled out. Glen saw her little hand wave to him one last time.

He turned to go home. The night air was filled with the smell of wet leaves. He walked slowly. He was in no hurry to get back to his empty room.

"The Whole Christian Belief System Will Collapse," They Said

And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was there place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

Rev. 12:7-9

Business was slow at the Oak Street Bible Shop. It was 11:30 am and only three customers had come in. Or one customer and two browsers. Gary was standing behind the counter in front of his Bible display reading from a newspaper spread out before him.”Did you see this letter to the editor about UFO’s?" he asked.

Joy looked up from her place at the rack containing Chick Publications booklets. “I saw it” she said “But I couldn’t figure out what the writer was getting at. Was he saying that believers are weak-minded or something?”

“Yes” he replied, or words to that effect”. Sue had been cleaning the window with a bottle of Windex and some paper towels, trying to look busy. “What is it all about? Why do they think we’ll lose our belief, or whatever they said? And what have ufos got to do with it?”

Gary quoted from the letter which claimed that the secrecy surrounding such unexplained phenomena was justified because if being from another world contacted the Earth that American society would collapse. “It says that most Americans are religious and feel that the Bible teaches we are the only intelligent beings in the universe besides God and his angels. If another race made its presence known to us it would prove the Bible was wrong and maybe our whole faith was misplaced.”

Joy’s expression took on that fierce angry look she often assumed when she felt skeptics were attacking the faith. “You notice, no scriptures were quoted. I don’t remember anything in the Bible that says we are the only creatures God has made. Although if He did they sure have taken an awfully long time to make contact with Earth.”

“Maybe they are demonic” said Sue, with childlike simplicity, “I suppose the writer of that letter doesn’t believe in demons, but it is one possible answer, don’t you think?”

“Makes sense to me” said Gary, "but if the ufos are demonic it still doesn’t explain why they have waited so long to reveal themselves to us.”

Sue looked wistfully at the “prophecy corner” where Glen liked to stand. “I wish Glen was here, I’ll bet he would understand about ufos and the Bible. Joy looked a little exasperated. Sometimes she thought that Sue hero worshiped Glen. “He would probably say the answer is in the book of Daniel, he thinks everything else is. Why don’t you call him, Sue? He has a book order to pick up anyway."

“Alright, I will” Sue said, lifting the phone and punching in his number. Gary and Joy noticed that she didn’t have to look up Glen’s number. They looked at one another, but said nothing. After a few questions Sue put the phone down. “I talked to his landlady, she said he was doing some yard work for her, but she’d ask him.”

They all returned to what they had been doing and in a matter of minutes they saw Glen’s blue van stop out front. The front door swung open and Glen stepped into the room wearing his work jeans and with dust on his black navy shoes. “What’s this all about?” he asked. He looked from face to face and turned to smile at Sue. “We need your expert opinion” Sue said, her eyes sparkling. “I said I would bet you would know about ufos and if they are in the Bible. Gary read an article that says the government should suppress information about alien contacts because religious people couldn’t handle the truth that we aren’t alone in the universe”.

“Who in the hell said that?” Glen shook his head, “Was it one of those government guys, or one of their shills. Those guys never get it right. The truth is just the reverse. Only Bible Christians could handle an alien contact. I mean informed Christians” he emphasized. “It sure wouldn’t shake my beliefs, it would confirm them. Of course there are other beings besides we humans. Maybe billions of them. In fact, one of the books in my order gives the best explanation I have ever read.”

Gary stepped from behind the counter with a cardboard box containing Glen’s beloved prophecy books. Glen reached into the box and pulled out a paperback book by Arthur Bloomfield. “You see, the Bible tells us of a time, just before the Great Tribulation, when demons will rain down upon the earth.”

“You mean as ufos?" Sue asked in her innocent way.” “Ufos, pirates, or Casper the Friendly Ghost” Glen answered casually. "They can present themselves in a number of ways, I suppose. But the time of their arrival has been foretold."

He opened the book he had been holding and found the place he was looking for. “There are a number of places that deal with this event, but no place tells it with greater detail then here in the Book of Daniel”. Joy slumped on her stool in the doorway, with a look that said “Here we go again”. Gary strained to stifle a laugh. “I know, I know, you guys think I believe everything can be explained by the studying Daniel. But this can be. Let me prove it to you."

Glen began to read from The End of the Days by Arthur Bloomfield, page 157. “The Coming of Antichrist, Daniel 8. The rise of the Antichrist is one of the most important subjects in prophecy, and yet it is the most difficult to comprehend. This difficulty is caused by the fact that it involves situations and conditions never before experienced. For this reason our conceptions and therefore our expositions are inadequate. When we enter the realm of Antichrist, we feel that something has been added-there is a fourth dimension which for want of a better name, we may call “outer space”. While the earth is preparing for a conquest of outer space, outer space is preparing for a conquest of the earth.
Space then, is not a vacuum: it is teeming with life. Scientists debate the question of life on other planets, assuming that life can exist only where there are conditions similar to those on earth. But life in outer space is the kind of life that can exist in outer space. Therefore we do not have to have the same conditions: we only have to have a different kind of being. In outer space, beings are not necessarily friendly. Satan has principalities and powers- organized governments. The satanic conquest of the earth has been, for the most part, a spiritual battle. At the end of the age the added feature is that the battle becomes physical.”

Glen closed the book and looked up. No one was laughing now. “I have only begun to touch on the subject of demonic beings coming to earth. Daniel and Revelation are the great sources of knowledge concerning this subject. They both tell not only what will happen, but when."

"You mean the dates when they will happen?” asked Sue, incredulously.

“Not the dates, Sue” Glen said with gentle patience,”But the order of events." Gary broke in, “But aren’t the events concerning Antichrist’s rise to power going to take place after the Rapture, I mean, we won’t even be here, will we”?

“You’re right Gary. Everyone here believes in the pre-tribulation rapture and its Biblical basis. But there will be others who are not in the rapture. Some of us believe we are laying a foundation of knowledge for them."

Sue spoke up again, “You mean tribulation saints?”

“That’s right, whether they will read our books no one will say, but we can leave a record in case they do. But it is important that we understand the nature of extraordinary goings on so we are not deceived by this talk about creature from distant planets. Also, there could be preliminary contacts, like advance parties, just before we leave.”

Joy was very serious now, “Great events sometimes cast heir shadows before them.”

“Well said” replied Glen. “There is so much more in this Bloomfield book, so much more detail, people need to read it, study it.” He placed the book back in the box and headed for the door. “I better get back and finish my landlady’s iris bed.”

Sue smiled at him, “Thanks for coming, Glen.” He looked at her with tender regard, “Thanks for asking me”.

Who You Gonna Believe?

There were two posters in the Oak Street Bible Shop that showed two different ways of going to be with Jesus. I was browsing, when I saw these posters, on a stand at eye level. One showed the body of an old woman lying on a bed. Her false teeth were in a glass of water on the night stand. An angel was hovering above the bed, reaching down to her and pulling up a transparent version of her as a beautiful young woman. He was lifting up her "soul" to take it to heaven.

Beside this picture was a scene that represented a very different concept. It was a night scene of an old, overgrown cemetery. The gravestones were fallen down and shrubs and weeds had taken over until the graves could hardly be seen.

But there were a number of glowing figures emerging from these graves, traveling upward to join the figures of Jesus and his angels in the sky... It was a picture of the rapture.

A man behind me had been looking at it too. “So typically American,” he said, as if that was a bad thing. I turned to look at him. He was over six feet tall, in a blue, three piece suit and red necktie. He looked sharp and had the poise of someone used to getting respect.

“Which one of these pictures is correct?, “I asked. He began to talk about the Greek influences and the religious traditions of simple Bible believing people from which ideas derive. I didn't hear him cite any scriptures. Everything was cultural, to him.

After he had finished his talk ,I said, “Thank you for your views.” He drew himself up to tower even further above me, he was steamed. “Views! I'm just a Lutheran pastor, all I have is views, I suppose!” I didn't realize it, but I had just made a pastor angry by not believing something he said! Of course I had done that a lot in my life. Didn't set out to, it just happened.

Imagine, a pastor had said something and I didn't treat it with the seriousness he felt it deserved! Well, welcome to America, and welcome to the Protestant belief, that the Bible is the only authority. Luther called it "Sola Scriptura", and they put him on trial, hunted him down and tried to kill him. This pastor did not follow Luther in this, apparently.

Poor, baby! He should have had a sign around his neck that read "I am a pastor, you must believe everything I say". Now, I have known some good pastors, real servants of Christ and of their congregations. Some of them were my friends. But I am not in awe of them.

I think of Colonial America, and the Congregational churches. Their preachers were often fired if they did not keep to the Word or if they abused their authority. They had come from a country where you went to prison for preaching without a license.
Prison is where John Bunyon wrote A Pilgrim’s Progress. They brought his water in a jug with a rolled up paper stopper. He unrolled it and when it was dry it became the manuscript for one of the most popular and influential books ever written.

As far as pastors or teachers dictating what we are to believe, it is so un-scriptural as to be beyond argument. On this particular day, at the Oak Street Bible Shop, we saw the inflamed ego of a church official at its worst. This fellow picked up his order and left without another word.

“Looks like you really upset him,” said Joy, a little amused at it all.

“That's usually my job,” said Glen from his corner of the room. “Especially pertaining to the doctrine of the rapture,” he continued. “Most of us believe it, but where the differences come in is with the idea of peoples' souls going up, one by one as they die, then Jesus coming for their bodies all at one time, yet future. Two trips to heaven , or one time as in John 14?”

Joy, as an ex Catholic, was very much a believer in immortality of the soul. Gary believed that way too, as did Sue, though she had not spoken out on it like Joy and Gary. Glen and I had ceased to believe in man's natural immortality. We were dust, animated by the spirit of life from God, and we knew it.

Joy spoke, dreading what she knew would follow, “I know about our physical nature,”, she said, “But that is just the body! The soul goes to be with Christ when we die. ‘Absent from the body, present with the Lord,’ is what Paul said.

“I wish people would quote the whole passage”, said Glen. “There are a number of errors in doctrine that people try to defend by quoting part of a verse or part of a chapter, the part they feel supports their view.”

“There's that word again, ‘view’", quoted Sue. That's what got that Lutheran guy started.

“Lutheran pastor,” corrected Joy.

Gary interjected, “I think we all agree that when Christians promote a belief without Biblical support, it is just a view. I agree with Luther on that.”

“Even Jesus quoted scripture,” said Sue, “and he was the Word himself. He announced his ministry in Luke chapter four by reading from the book of Isaiah”.

Glen returned to his theme of using partial scriptures; “Paul said, concerning his being with Christ after death, "Not that I would be unclothed, but clothed upon." 2 Cor. 5:2 4. Paul says that mortality will become immortality at the resurrection.

If you read these entire chapters you get the whole picture.”

“Keep on reading,” said Sue, “don't quit until you have read the whole passage.”
It was a motto of hers. Glen smiled at her in appreciation.

Gary broke in, “Jesus said "I am the resurrection and the life, not, I am the immortal soul and the life.

“Whose side are you on?, snapped Joy.

“The Bible's side, I hope,” he answered.

“I'm sorry you are a "soul sleeper" said Joy, “You sound like a Jehovah's Witness” she added.

“Well," Glen came back, “you've managed two attempted putdowns in one sentence. First of all "soul sleeper" is about the most meaningless term I have ever heard. You just reach out for a name to call someone as if that proves anything. It's like saying "nigger" or "honky" as if you are describing a fellow human being. Would it prove anything if I called you a "body sleeper"? The terms are meaningless. Let's use scripture, not call names. As far as what I may sound like, think of who believes in immortal souls. Hindus, Shamans, and every witch.”

“Now who's calling names?,” said Joy.

“I'm not calling names, that is how those people describe themselves”, said Glen. “But even beyond this doctrine, which I feel is so important, there is the practice of just following what we have heard everyone say, instead of searching the scriptures for ourselves. That's what really bothers me. What is our basis for believing what we believe?”

Gary, who was a fan of old movies, tried to lighten things up a bit. “As
Chico Marx, of the Marx Brothers used to say, "Who you gonna believe, me
or your own eyes?" he quoted.

“My own eyes, said Sue solemnly, if they're looking at the Bible”.

The Attack of the Crab

Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister to questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith, so do.
1 Timothy 1:4

Glen never picked a fight, he said, physically, or in Bible discussions. “I don’t need to” he once told us, “they just seem to find me.”

This was definitely the case when a woman known to us as “the Crab” visited the Oak Street Bible Shop one day. Glen was at the counter trying to pay for his order when she approached him and said she had taken his course in Revelation.

“May I be perfectly honest with you?” she asked.”Well Ma’am,” he replied, “only you know that for sure.”

“I’ve taken another class in Revelation since I saw you last. And this teacher teaches it completely different than you did. What do you say to that.”

“Well” Glen replied, “There’s an old business maxim that says, ‘Whenever two men agree all the time, one of them is unnecessary.”

The Crab ignored this. “All I’m saying is that he disagrees with you on everything you say!”

Glen was unruffled, “I guess that means I disagree with him on every point too. What do you say to that?" She glared at him, but said nothing.

“I hope you will agree with me on one thing, ma’am, the only thing that matters is, if a teacher, any teacher, agrees with the Bible. Did this teacher base his teaching of Revelation on the Book of Daniel?”

“Oh, I see, if he doesn’t agree with you, then he disagrees with the Bible!”

“No” said Glen, “but if he disagrees with Daniel, then he disagrees with the Bible, I do say that. Daniel and Revelation fit together, they agree. If your teaching takes you in a different direction than Daniel, if it is not congruent with Daniel, then you have drifted into error. You may remember that I asked everyone to take my classes on Daniel before they studied Revelation with me. I know you started, what happened?”

“Oh, I saw all those statues and weird animals you handed out, didn’t make a bit of sense to me.”

“It didn’t make any sense to Daniel either, ma’am, at first. But then God explained what it all meant, all that was needed at that time.”

“I’ve got one for you, why are there two lists of the twelve tribes in different parts of the Bible?”, she challenged him.

“Actually”, Glen said, “it’s more complicated than that. There are different lists in Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, 1 Chronicles, and Revelation.”

“So, since you’re so big on Old and New Testaments agreeing, how do you explain that?”

“I don’t even try ma’am, have no desire to even try. I only try to understand what God explains in the Bible, that’s a full-time job, believe me. Since the Bible doesn’t tell me about the different tribes he lists, I don’t even worry about it. A coach of a football team fields twelve players, but they are not always the same twelve. He can bench a player for a time. Kind of like God benched the tribe of Dan, for example. There are even two lists of disciples, if you think about it.”

“You mean with Paul, I suppose?”

“No ma’am. I am thinking about Matthias in Acts 1:26, elsewhere, the Bible speaks of Paul and the twelve.”

“You’re just full of information aren’t you?” said the Crab.

The Crab walked over to Joy, who had been taking it all in from her high stool. She looked up at her, “You know you’ve got some real cranks that come into this store, real cranks!”

“Don’t we though!” replied Joy.

Glen paid for his order and turned back to the Crab, “You know I think I’ve read about your new teacher in the Bible. I believe it’s him in 2 Timothy 3:6,7. Yes, I’m sure of it. Got to go, but it sure has been a learning experience talking with you, ma’am.”

After Glen was out the door, the Crab walked over to Gary. “Where did he say he saw my teacher in the Bible?”

Gary found the quotation and turned the Bible around on the counter for her to read:

For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with diverse lusts.
Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
2 Timothy 3:6,7`

The Tall Rooster in a Low Cage

Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
Galatians 1:1

It can be very revealing to listen to your friends as they recount their widely varied experiences in relation to one central truth, such as, in this case the meaning of freedom. It was late afternoon when we were gathered in the Oak Street Bible Shop. Sue was telling of a trip to a chicken hatchery with her father.

“I was about six years old” she recalled, “My father was buying some young hens for us to raise. He liked chickens, he always told us. He said they had them when he was a boy. But he wanted to see if we could save a little money by raising our own. While he was talking to the man who ran the place, I walked around looking at baby chicks in their brooders, and cages of older birds right on up to adult size. Then I saw the most sad sight I think I have ever seen!”

You could see the memory still moved her, partly to sorrow, but also indignation. “I saw a big rooster in a cage meant for a much smaller bird.” She held up her arm with her wrist bent. “This is how he was, all bent over! He would walk around with his neck all bent and he could never hold his head up straight!”

My father was about to finish buying the hens and I ran to him and said “Look, Daddy!” He tried to tell me we didn’t need a rooster, but he could see how sad the poor rooster made me. Finally he gave in. When he asked how much for the rooster, the man kind of shrugged, “Fifty cents, I guess.” They put the hens in some kind of crate and the rooster in a cardboard box that was too small. They had to tuck his head in to close the lid.”

“I got to carry him out to the car, I remember. At home, after my Dad released the hens, he told me to open the box and let the rooster go. It takes them awhile to get used to a place, but before long, the rooster, he was a Leghorn, was standing as tall as he could, actually stretching to stand as high as he could. It made me so happy!”

Glen, touched by Sue’s story, sat in silence for a time, before he spoke. “If only it could work that way with people, Sue. You can show them in the Word of God, how Christ has set us free, and somehow they just can’t see it...”

From across the room, Joy interrupted, “What is it with you men! It seems like you think all you have to do is just read a few verses from the Bible and the problem is solved! Don’t you understand that these so-called hangups that people have are the results of years, sometimes a lifetime of agony. For years, hurts and lies beat people up and their pain isn’t going to go away just like that!”

“Guilty as charged, Joy,” said a chastened Glen. “Some of us have had the experience of reading or hearing the truth and feeling their burden just fall away, right then. But we have to understand it’s not that way for everybody and in every situation. For years after Jeanie died, I would wake up and think she was still next to me in bed. Sometimes I still do. I knew all the comforting places in the Bible, but all I could think was ‘Yes, but she’s still gone.’"

Joy answered him quietly, “I didn’t mean to jump on you, Glen. I guess I just envy people who can see the truth, and the logic of it just heals them right then and there. I know it usually does with you, and I think that’s true of you too Gary, right?”

Gary, a little startled by this change of direction, tried to divert the attention away from himself. "Did you ever hear of a recording called The Prison? It’s by Michael Nesmith, you know, from the Monkees?”

Seeing the uncomprehending looks of the others, he went on. “He invented the music video.. The Prison was the first one. In this case it was a set of songs accompanied by paintings. Look, I wasn’t into The Monkeys, or Mike Nesmith or anything like that. But the girl I was going with was. She lived in a college dorm and played his music all the time, she said she had all his stuff. To impress her I looked for some of his recordings and I found The Prison, a brand new release! I took it to her dorm and they paged her. I held it out to her as she was coming down the steps. She let out this piercing scream! People came running , they must have thought I was attacking her or something. She held up the album by way of explanation and they all went away, guess they were used to scenes like that.”

No one in the room had any idea what The Prison album had to do with the idea of freedom and it showed in their faces, so Gary continued. “The setting of this music was a prison in a remote rural landscape. Inmates walked along narrow halls, going through their daily routines without a change. But one day, one of the prisoners saw a little open place in a wall. When no one is looking, he got down and looked at it more closely. He found there was a hole clear through the wall and he can see a faraway hill. Every day he returns to look at the hole and, all on its own, it keeps getting bigger!

Finally, the hole is large enough that he can step right through it. So he did and then started running for the hill. When he got to the hill and looked back. What did he see? He saw there was no prison, no building at all! Just men, acting like he once did, walking along halls that didn’t even exist, stopping at doors that weren’t there. The prison is all in their minds!”
“I still remember some of he lyrics,

‘Unsuspecting captives
Of a million dreams...’

In this case, bad dreams.” Looking at Joy, he concluded. “I guess this illustrates the idea of finding freedom gradually, over a period of time?”

Joy, usually impassive, was clearly impressed. “You just never know where you’re going to hear the truth, do you?”

Glen came to life hearing this, “You know, the sad thing is, so many times when people are free, they will turn and go right back where they came from.”

“Maybe people do,” said Sue with emphasis, “but I absolutely know there isn’t any way my rooster would ever go back into that awful little cage! You know, I really mean this, but I think animals are a lot wiser than people are a lot of the time!”