The Ohio Independent Baptist, December 1998

ll o ... b Pastor David Chapman n the t<..'n~c ,tructurc l)f the \\ or<l. fr(' Tll the c.rc.1t co1nn1i s~i on. " ,o c ... tht.'TCfl, rC ·· '" the 1ncan1ng. "1,., vou i,: . > • The d1,"-·1plc. \\ ere I n~tru ·ted tn tc,h:h (n,.tk. c di,( 1plc~) .1~ the) \,\ cnt thr",ugh their nc1r1n.ll routine:-, of It, ing. l .\ ~l l' t " l:" \\ J~ .11 the p.11nt store to pt ·J.. up ,uppltc:-, ll,r hi~ hnn1c proJc · t - , "'U knl, \\ . nl1n11.1l. c, er) da) ·tuff. t\n")ther ·ust\)fller entered 1.Htd announced , .. l 1u:--t bun1pcd into son1conc ·s Chev in the p.1 rk Ing h) t. ·· \ ' cs. 1t be longed to P.1 ·t",r E' The minor dan1age wa. ... c ,.1n1incd .1nd ,\ pron11 sc ,,a · n1ade to bring the n1oncy to Pastor E al hi · ho1ne around noon. urc enough the n1an an·ivcd on tirnc wi th n1oney for the hrok.cn head I ighl. In the n1 idst of the ir con vc rsat ion the v1~i tor 111cntioncd he was hav ing trouble \-vi th his n1arriage, giving a wonderful opportun ity for Pa. tor E to share the gos pel of Jesus hr ist. Even though he did not receive Chri st, he said he wou ld give the n1atter ·crious thought a , his \.vi f c had just recently made a decisi on fo r the Lord . Thi s meeting "by accident" was no accident ! Always he ready to answer, As You Go. Who-N [ 't? continued \ aluc of a po1nt of reference. What' that ? It could be a point on a compa b: \\ h1ch 1 ou de ' ide the di recti on to go, a hand on a clock by which you decide \\ hat lime ll I and thu , what to do next. J tree 1n the d1 'Cance by which you pl ow a ~ traight f urrov:. a con tell ation of car .... 1n the heaven by \.vhich you guide a hip or an airplane . or the yard tick by \,\ hi h \ ou mea ure feet and inche . A • point of reference become the ba i for dec i · ion . the tarting point for compari– ·on . a key to understanding everything el e going on around u . It i not so '- ..... n1u h a point a a fra1nework within \,\h1ch \-\ e form our under randing of realt t\ . r The OARBC provides uch a biblical poi nt of reference. In iL constituti on it articulate a doctrinal pos ition which ha become a " theological ho1ne ' ' to many people . Thi '·home'' ummarizes the clear teaching of Scripture on 19 different ubject and give to us a fran1ev:ork for d1 cern ing truth from error The OARBC advocates a eparat- 1 t po ture from liberalism while at the ame lime encouraging fellowship with people of like faith . The OARBC embrace the total comp lex of the Bapti t d1sttncuves. eeing them not simpl) a hi storical teachings or trad n1onal dogma but a biblically based truths . Taken together, the doctrinal pos1- uon. the eparat1 l po ture and the Bapust di uncLJ\ e become a point of reference b\ whi ch other realities are ., measured. They become the platform on v.h1ch people 5tand, the framework b 1 v. h1ch they interpret reality , the home 1n whi ch they feel comfortable. And v..·ho needs a point o f reference? People v; ho need to know what time it i , what direct ion to take, who need to mea ure distance , a nd yes, and even n1ore importantly, people who need to know what they beli eve, why they be li eve it and how they should then be living based on those belief . The OARBC articulates uch a point of doctrin al reference. It takes the Bible very seriou ly, synthesizes its instruc– ti on , organi ze it precept in under- tandabl e term , and thu prov ide a point of reference for a bib lical view of reality And we all need that! If there were no OARBC, at lea t two group o f peop le would mi ss it. Those \.vho understand that they really are not "Lone Ranger " in the work of the Lord and tho e who value a c lear point of reference for making good dec isions about beliefs and behavior. You could probably think of others as well who would ore ly miss it. Give it a try! Across The State, continued On August 23 , Riley C r eek Baptist celebrated Homecoming Sunday. Former pa tors Charles Ipitz and his wife, Glady , and Bill Baker and hi s wife, Faith , returned to participate in the services. Long- time members were recognized for thei r faithful service and "staying by the stu ff." Twelve members' names were placed on a plaque for membership of 50 years or more. The church enj oyed a picnic and an afternoon musical concert given by the church's own missionaries to Brazi l, Ken and Renny Snare. hroughout hi tory, the go pel ha heen communicated in ma ny form . Hand– written scrolls, printed pages, and modern a irwave have all been used a media to spread the go pel. At Cedarville College, tudents use the medium of their gener ation to reach the world for Christ. From every re idence ha ll room on campu , tudents use the ne\\ 1 e t con1puter technology to acce da ta worldwide, order li br a ry ma teria l , read the la te t magazine or jour nal, correspond with family a nd fr iend , a nd pread the go pel-24 hour a day, 7 day a ,veek. All thi a nd n1ore i ava ilable at no extra co t through Cedar ville' a,vard– ,vinning con1pu te r network. CEDARVILLE COLLEGE