YouTube has yanked the 5/21/2016 service for copyright violations! Here is the temporarily aborted post about it.

Pastor Pilgrim: “Knowing is Good Enough!”

An article in the July 24, 2015 edition of “Spectrum” by Pastor Danielle Pilgrim. 105 people commented on this, including a few nutcases. The net is nutcase friendly!

THE MAY 21, 2016 GRADUATES OF BEREAN CHRISTIAN JUNIOR ACADEMY GET SOME USEFUL ADVICE

 

A sermon at Berean Seventh-day Adventist Church, Atlanta, delivered this Sabbath also served as a Commencement Speech for the graduating class of BCJA, a K-8 component of Berean’s  thoughtful provision for every stage of your lifelong walk with Christ. Pastor Danielle Pilgrim was the presenter of this multitasking oration. She is a very recent graduate herself, having just earned a Master of Divinity degree from Andrews University.

 

When Berean Pastor Austin Humphreys delivered  THIS SERMON February 10, 2016 in the course of a  Wednesday night “War Room” service, it was soon revealed to be a sort of road test for THIS OTHER SERMON, presented at the “big church,” shortly thereafter. It was expanded to Sabbath sermon dimensions by the addition of what the pastor humorously referred to as more “juicy meat.” Pastor Danielle Pilgrim similarly road-tested portions of this Sabbath’s sermon, perhaps curious to determine how it would play in Peoria. Either through the pastor’s foresight, or by divine providence, the subject matter (introduced by an anecdote relating some comic events associated with her own May 5-7 graduation festivities), proved to be transportable, adaptable, and relevant when expanded to Sabbath proportions. Here is a LINK to the “shake-down-cruise” of this Sabbath’s offering, but it is compromised, due to the insensitive editorial intrusions of the reporter. He has sworn to be more respectful toward the latest creation by Pastor Pilgrim, entitled “Knowing is Good Enough!”

 

The interior of Pioneer Memorial Chapel at Andrews University, the scene of some of Pastor Pilgrim’s graduation events, It has the same construction type as Berean’s 1963 facility, but is not quite as stylish.

Here, usually, is a link to the ENTIRE SERVICE, but it is not working at present, and any attempt to view the video yields this message: “This video contains content from SME, who has blocked it in your country on copyright grounds.” A quick search reveals that SME is associated with Sony, developers of the compact disc, and the holder of many copyrights. How was the capacity of a CD determined? It was sized to accommodate Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. An amazing performance by the BCJA Elementary Choir preceded Pastor Pilgrim’s remarks. It was not just good for a bunch of kids. It was good, period. You will just have to take my word about this for now. Just in case things get straightened out on the video before I have leisure to revisit the topic of this particular service (a state of affairs that is inevitable), you can prayerfully attempt to get this LINK to work for you. A short sequence of notes that I vainly thought that I had originated 30 years ago forms part of Natalie Raggin’s accompaniment to the operatic piece performed by the kids. Only God can possibly trace the family tree of every creation of man, for they are, at root, creations of God. All rights reserved!

 

I admit that I am a hack writer. There are two approaches I employ when I am blessed with an opportunity to report on the significant events that happen at Berean Church. The first approach is unfocused, discursive, ham-fisted, and seemingly way too secular at times. This “bloggy” technique is a pleasure to produce, but not particularly useful. A second approach sticks very close to the material under consideration. I use this sparingly, as it is not at all pleasurable to the scribe, but tedious, and taxing, and more than a little time consuming. But the result is useful, and as Paul declares in regard to the Gospel, “I am not ashamed of it.” Pastor Russell has been treated in this dispassionate and conscientious manner. So has Pastor Humphreys. But Danielle Pilgrim has, heretofore, not been summarized in the respectful way that she deserves.

 

What in the world are those crazy kids up to? This image of Pastor Danielle Pilgrim comes from the Berean Christian Junior Academy Facebook Page.

My report on Pastor Pilgrim’s first Berean sermon, which is stashed right HERE, happened to be concurrent with a temporary fixation upon rhetorical form. I hate to say it, but it comes across as being mildly patronizing, since some emphasis was misplaced upon the fact that it constituted what might be regarded as a “freshman” effort. But despite her youth, Pastor Pilgrim, like Pastor Humphreys, possesses capabilities that far exceed the norm. I noted that the congregation gave her an “A+” for her inaugural address. I will protract this judgmental attitude by confirming that Pastor Danielle Pilgrim is, indeed, “above average.” An emergency synopsis of her remarks would do absolutely nothing to bolster this assessment, as my notes are too sketchy, and my meager capacity is not equal to the task. I envy the few hundred souls who had access to the video Saturday night, before it got ingloriously yanked by the copyright police. I should have been one of these, but was regrettably deflected into other activities. Again I will excuse myself on the grounds that these other activities were church related. Here is the EVIDENCE that I was not out bar-hopping this Saturday night.

 

Doctor/Elder Alphonso Findley’s short sermon on Revelation, Chapter 18 got back-burnered last week. The excuse I made was that the subject matter was too deep for the short amount of time available for commentary. This Wednesday’s “War Room” elder of the week was Elder Jennifer McCurdy. A newcomer, upon first spotting Elder McCurdy, might exclaim (as I did), “how did a sixteen year old girl get to be a church elder?” It is deceptive , for she is a tad older than this. She is blessed with the same genetic makeup as the late Dick Clark, and can convincingly portray a young Mary in Christmas pageants. I would seem very misogynistic were I to completely ignore the remarks that she presented on the evening of May 5, 2016. A brief summary of them will help to temporarily plug a giant gap in this post, one that is the result of some controversy concerning the YouTube video of Pastor Pilgrim’s Sabbath sermon.

 

Elder Jennifer McCurdy, behind the scenes of the 2013 Berean “Come Adore Him” production, an image by Burdie Henri, available at this encyclopaedic LINK.

ELDER MCCURDY: “IT’S HARD TO BE A SAVIOR, WHEN THE PEOPLE YOU WANT TO SAVE DON’T WANT TO BE SAVED!”

 

The key scripture for Elder McCurdy’s sermonette was Second Corinthians 5:21:

 

“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.”

 

“I have watched a lot of television.” This opening statement served to instantly bond the elder with the balance of humanity. “I won’t say what show!” The unidentified show featured a hero and a villain. The villain made a remark to the hero, the kind of pithy observation that Ernst Blofeld used to make to James Bond. It is reproduced at the head of this summary, as it serves as a nifty, if rather long-winded, title for the elder’s speech. Here it is again: “It’s hard to be a savior when the people you save don’t want to be saved.”

 

The act of “salvation” is not confined in Scripture to it’s most noteworthy instance. Lesser rescues abound. The elder was reminded of the story of Lot, one found in Genesis 19. Lot and a handful of his progeny were saved from destruction. “I know that Jesus wants to save us,” Elder McCurdy stated, “but I also know that the devil taunts Him while He is doing it.” References to the adventures of Lot commenced with a surprising instance of those who were “unwilling to be saved:” the pair of angels who came to warn Lot! Lot implores them in Verse 2: “please turn aside to your servant’s house.” The response to him by the angelic emissaries reveals them to be reluctant houseguests: “No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”

 

 

 

There are reasons (bad reasons) why some of us [even angels] would not care to be saved. Elder McCurdy provided four of these reasons, with supplementary comments, to the crowd that had gathered in the “War Room.”

• COMPLACENCY- The speaker guided the angel through their hesitation, and into Lot’s house in Sodom. The evils of this condemned city were brought to our remembrance by a brief allusion to the unpardonable demands the men of the place made on Lot. The following citation from the NIV is not for the prudish: “Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.” The messengers apprised Lot of God’s intention to obliterate the citizenry of Sodom, and extended an offer of salvation to the future husbands of Lot’s daughters. This warning was passed on to the probationary sons-in-law. It fell on deaf ears. Elder McCurdy hypothesized as to why the future sons-in-law might have been paralyzed by inertia: “Sometimes you can be so in your mess, that you consider it to be the norm!” The angels had graciously tried to save all of Lot’s extended family. But the grooms took the news of impending destruction as if it were some kind of joke. The speaker thoughtfully reminded us of the term that describes the men’s attitude. “This was a sign of complacency,” she said. “They did not want to be saved.”
• DISOBEDIENCE- Elder McCurdy observed that “Some people just don’t believe.” Disbelief is like a gateway to disobedience. The references to Lot skipped ahead to what may be (after Adam and Eve) the most memorable instance of disobedience in the Bible. The perversity of Lot’s wife’s backward glance at Sodom displayed not just a lack of trust in her husband, but a lack of trust in God as well [I have to throw in a quote by Jesus, a great Bible scholar, which has unstated connections to this incident: “…No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62)].

This dignified version of the preceding image is nearly good enough to be by Durer, excepting the bad background perspective (which I have cropped out). It came from this Catholic/Apocalyptic (?) WEBSITE.

• YOU ARE ONLY A “FAN” OF GOD- Elder McCurdy provided a nice analogy, one that would be appropriate for use by Pastor Austin Humphreys (who is both sports-crazy, and analogy-crazy). “Fans get tickets so they can cheer their team on,” the elder said, “but they are not players!” She continued her parable by noting that players train hard for what they do. Now the elder began, to quote John 16:29, “speaking plainly and not figuratively.” (NLT) “When we are ‘fans’ of God, we don’t mind going to church, engaging in praise, paying our tithes; but when the going gets tough…” Fans are not players. But when you have a personal relationship with God, you are with Him all of the time, and not just on Game Day. You read the Word. you pray. You are on His team!”

A few parenthetical comments were provided at this point. They addressed the reluctance that many display to embrace the Christian way of life, and to instead make excuses to themselves for not placing the God in the center. They place themselves in the center. They are “self-centered,” and this inward focus conveniently excludes God from their field of vision. Many opt out of salvation by proclaiming themselves to be unworthy of it. Elder McCurdy reminded us that “None of us are worthy. But the reason Jesus died is so we could take on his righteousness!” You have to give everything to God, in order to take on His righteousness. The case of the “rich young ruler” was provided as an example of what NOT to do.

Elder McCurdy restated her theme near the midpoint of the presentation. This helped keep everyone’s mind (or my mind, at least) from wandering off somewhere else.

•  YOU FOCUS ON YOURSELF, AND NOT ON GOD- (This statement of the final of the four points came at unexpected place, as the gloss upon actually preceded  the statement itself. This is kind of like the presentation style of the late Paul Harvey, who would cap a protracted “build-up” with a startling “pay-off.”

What are the solutions for overcoming the aforementioned barriers to salvation? Elder McCurdy left us with three important techniques for getting to the place where we all need to be.

• BE CONTENT, INSTEAD OF COMPLACENT- My usual Wednesday night dullness of mind kept me from initially grasping the difference between “contentment” and “complacency.” But a nuanced definition would attribute virtue to the first term, and smug lethargy to the second. The elder’s next proclamation reminded me of a pair of recent Berean sermons concerning the attitude of the infirm man who lay beside the Pool of Bethesda forever, seemingly unmotivated to find a better way of life. The elder strongly advised us that we get over our “learned helplessness,” as none of us were truly helpless. God can help us. God will help us.
• YOU HAVE TO PRACTICE YOUR FAITH- The sports analogies experienced a revival in the course of a short illumination of this point. “If you don’t exercise it [faith], it will atrophy!”
• YOU ARE ALREADY SAVED- [a scholarly analysis of the tenses employed by the original language of the Bible is often inserted in sermons, in order to underscore the fact that many of God’s provisions for our well-being are present realities, and not distant hopes: Pastor Pilgrim’s elusive Sabbath sermon contained one of these analyses.] Elder McCurdy made it plain: “Jesus died on the Cross. It was not just for show!” She repeated the next assertion three times. “I an the righteousness of God in Christ!”

Not yet a Player, but no doubt determined to be one!

The elder laid out her case like a pro (elders are expected to be pros, I am pretty sure). The introductory “slice of life” anecdote was revisited at the conclusion. The unidentified television show, and the words spoken by the villain, to the hero, was again mentioned [the great controversy adapted to the small screen]. The sermonizer shifted the scene to Christ’s temptation, by Satan, in the wilderness [the great controversy in IMAX]. The lies of the enemy are not to be heeded. They only serve to keep us immobilized by our sin. God can transport us to a much better place. We must assume “the righteousness of Christ.” It is a an all-inclusive way of living:

“You must BELIEVE it!”
“You must THINK it!”
“You must RECIEVE it!”
“You must LIVE it!”

The elder wrapped things up. “I’m not worthy. But God is worthy.”

A last prayer included, among others, he following statements: “Help us to be players, and not fans. Help us to understand that the work is already finished.”

{Farewell for now, Pray that the SMS copyright forces are soon appeased, but a conscientious summary of Pastor Pilgrim’s sermon is now unavoidably delayed. It is the Lord’s will. Blessed be the name of the Lord!]