Posted by Melvin Jones on February 16th, 2005
By the way, my name is Melvin Jones.
This entry is a little on the long side. My apologies for it. I will at least try to make sure the text is fairly useful to you and maybe even a little amusing.
The following are two unedited comments made by a couple of ladies (secondary ladies since they are not the FIRST Lady) who visited this site. Specifically, these commentors read “Runnin’ With the Big Dogs”. Take a look at their responses. They exactly fit the mold for the easily pimped parishoners. Dr. Cashflow Dollar would be proud of what John has accomplished so far.
WHOEVER YOU ARE (I’m Melvin Jones), I THINK THAT YOU MUST BE VERY ENVIOUS OF PASTOR JENKINS AND THE OTHER PASTORS AND MINISTERS, TO HAVE SUCH NEGATIVE BELIEFS OF THE SCRIPTURE AND YOU DO NOT WALK IN FAITH OF YOUR PASTOR OR HIS BELIEF OF THE HOLY BIBLE,WHO ARE YOU TO JUDGE WHAT ANY OF THE PASTORS SAY IS THE WRONG WAY TO INTERPRET THE BIBLE, YOUR BELIEFS ARE YOURS TO INTERPRET ANY WAY THAT YOU WANT, BECAUSE YOU ARE WHO YOU ARE AND PASTOR JENKINS, REVEREND ELDRIDGE, YOU DID NAME HIM AS ONE OF PASTOR JENKINS FOLLOWERS OF THE WORD, THEY ARE WHO THEY ARE AND IF WE ARE TO SURVIVE THIS WORLD, WITH ALL THE KILLINGS,WAR AND EVERTHING ELSE YOU CAN NAME IS GOING ON YOU NEED OUR GOD AND YOU ARE NOT GOD, GOD IS THE ONLY ONE TO JUDGE, NOT YOU. SOUNDS TO ME AS IF YOU NEED GOD IN YOUR LIFE, NOT (SATAN). I THINK WE NEED TO PRAY FOR YOUR SOUL. MAYBE YOU WILL BELIEVE. SO DON�T BE ENVIOUS OF MY PASTOR JENKINS OR ANY OF THE OTHER PASTORS, GO TO CLASSES AND BECOME A PASTOR, OR MINISTER AND BE HAPPY.
Although I got a little depressed when I read this comment, I will try to break it down and make an observation or two.
First, notice that she doesn’t really address the issues. She accuses me of being envious of John Jenkins. And some how, the basis of her believing I am envious is because of my “negative beliefs of the Scriptures.” The fact is I am tremendously concerned for John. If according to the Bible he is teaching another gospel (suffering in hell paid for our sins, not suffering on the cross), the Bible (not Melvin) doesn’t have anything good to say about his state (Galatians 1:8) As your pastor likes to say - “Those words were there before I got here.” I actually feel sorry for him and the ministerial staff he has so badly misled. But I especially feel great pity for the thousands of people at FBCG who may not even be saved to begin with. This is a terrible responsibility for John to take into eternity. I dread his appearance at the Bema seat of Judgment.
She then seems to object that I do not walk in “…faith of my pastor or his belief of the Holy Bible.” Surely most of you know that we are commanded to exercise our faith in God, not our pastor. Paul, an apostle, actually commended the Bereans for checking to see if what he said was true. (Acts 17:11) Why then is it to be considered ungodly to test what the pastor-teacher says against the standard of the Bible?
She then asks a very good question. She says “Who are you to judge what any of the pastors say is the wrong way to interpret the Bible?” She seems very much to be implying that no one is to judge any interpretation another person comes up with. But is this really a valid position?
For starters, the Bereans judged what the apostle said. 1 Corinthians 14:29 says that we are to judge the utterances of the prophet. We are to judge the validity of what he says. In fact, here Paul is talking about discriminating and discerning. And in the context, it appears to be talking judging the accuracy of what has been said.
The issue that pushed me away from FBCG is the teaching that Jesus’ death of the cross was not sufficient to pay for our sins. The questions you have to ask yourself are:
1. Does the Bible say Jesus’ death on the cross was sufficient to pay for our sins? (The answer here is “Yes”.)
2. Does saying his death was insufficient constitute another gospel? (Again, the answer to this question is “Yes”.)
3. Is the pastor’s interpretation right simply because he is the pastor? (Surprise! The answer here is “No”.)
4. If the Bible says Jesus paid for our sins on the cross and the pastor says He paid for our sins in hell, which one are you going to go with? (Apparently, if you attend First Baptist, the answer here is “The pastor”. However, the correct asnwer is “The Bible”.)
The commentor goes on to say some other things, but I’m not really sure it’s worth taking your time to cover. You can read the comment here and in the comment section of one of the posts.
Instead, I would like to move to a second commenter.
She says:
Mr. Jones, get a life. Being so wrapped up in the teaching at FBCG you don�t agree is waisting valuable time for you and your family. You have no heaven nor hell to put your family in, we each make our own decisions as to which doctrines we want to follow. You have chosen your path to follow. When you listen to the messages each one is presented from scripture. It is left to each individual to follow what they believe according to scripture, not just what their pastor says. If you don�t believe in what Pastor Jenkins is teaching from scripture, don�t try to poison the minds of others with your findings and beliefs. Our time in this system of things is getting shorter and these things you are writing is a total waist of time that could be spent in a much more positive manner. I�ll pray for you and your understanding of God�s word. God Bless!!
Mr. Jones, get a life.
Again, the first response is one of insult. She implies I have no life. I might not, but the fact that I�m concerned about the church and the bad doctrine it is being fed is not necessarily an indicator of that lack. Of course, if the writer doesn�t think an accurate view of the essentials (Jesus died on the Cross for our sins is certainly an essential) is important, then yes, I am engaged in a massive game of Trivial Pursuit.
You have no heaven nor hell to put your family in, we each make our own decisions as to which doctrines we want to follow.
Then she makes an interesting statement. She makes the fairly obvious, if somewhat unrelated, observation that I have no heaven or hell to put my family in. The issue here is not if I can send someone to hell. The issue we must address is whether or not John Jenkins is preaching another gospel. And if he is, what should the believers� response be to that? My task is to make sure you understand the need to make a decision in the first place, not threaten you hell fire or make you believe one thing or another. John isn’t going to do that. He will tell you what to believe and if you choose not to believe it, you will be encouraged to keep your mouth shut or find another church.
When you listen to the messages each one is presented from scripture.
Yeah. So? She seems to think that just because someone uses the Bible they must be telling the truth. Jehovah�s Witnesses regularly use the King James and other versions to demonstrate to the average Christian dimwit that Jesus was a created being. Does that mean they are telling the truth? David Koresh, the leader of the Branch Davidians, memorized a huge amount of Scripture. He used it to convince his followers that he should be allowed to have multiple wives including some of the prettier little girls there in the complex. Did using scripture make his statements true?
It is left to each individual to follow what they believe according to scripture, not just what their pastor says.
Notice that this person does not talk about the rest of scripture. Romans 16:17,18 says that we should take note of a person who teaches error, not simply believe what we want. Galatians 1:8 talks about God�s attitude toward someone who preaches another gospel (price for sin paid on the cross versus price for sin paid in hell � if you look at the two, even the words look different.). 2 Thess 3:14 says that we are not to keep company with such a person. 2 John 10, 11 says that the believer should not receive someone who brings faulty doctrine. If they do, they are sharing in that person�s evil deeds. Galatians 2:14 gives a lesson by example. When Peter screwed up and went along with the Judaizers, Paul called him out, in public, in front of the rest of the believers. He didn�t conclude that Peter was free to believe what he wanted to believe. Each one of the verses I list seems to indicate that the Christian is to do more than simply let the error continue.
If you don�t believe in what Pastor Jenkins is teaching from scripture, don�t try to poison the minds of others with your findings and beliefs.
Again, if what the pastor is saying is another gospel, am I �poisoning the minds of others�� or am I doing my job of warning the church as directed in the previously cited sections of the Bible?
Our time in this system of things is getting shorter and these things you are writing is a total waist of time that could be spent in a much more positive manner.
A perhaps more urgent way of putting it is �It is given men but once to die, and then the judgment.� (Hebrews 9:27) She�s right. We do have a short time here. But we have an eternity on the other side. I don�t want to face Jesus Christ my Lord and have Him ask me why I didn�t warn the Church about the pimps in the pulpit. And even if some people want to close their eyes to what the Bible says, I still have to speak up loudly and, if need be, abrasively. Better I should offend on this side, than stand by while the sheep are fleeced and then face Jesus Christ at the Bema seat of Judgment (2 Cor 5:10).
If what I am saying is true, you who stand by silently have a great deal to answer for. And this isn’t because I have a hell to send you to. It’s because the Bible says so.
If I have missed something here (Scripture please) let me know.
Incidentally, my name is Melvin Jones.
And thank you for your offers of prayers. This is a challenging task with ample opportunities to screw up. It is my desire to get it right one hundred percent of the time.
Melvin Jones
Bowie, MD
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