If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end; if you look for comfort you will not get either comfort or truth only soft soap and wishful thinking to begin, and in the end, despair. C. S. Lewis
If you read last Friday’s post, were you shocked to discover from evangelist David Nasser that both of Watchman Nee’s forearms were cut off while he was in a Chinese prison so that he would cease writing about his Christian faith? I was stunned when I heard it! I discussed David’s message with my younger daughter who also heard him speak in person, and my ears did not deceive me. We heard the very same thing! I intentionally included David’s remarks in the post on October 16 for a specific reason. Either David Nasser knew something I didn’t about Watchman Nee or he was telling a tall tale for sheer sensationalism. I believe David prefaced this remark about dismemberment by saying that you won’t be able to read about it anywhere, making it sound like he had special knowledge regarding Watchman Nee.
I was so bothered by this claim that I spent several hours over the weekend conducting internet research, and there is no documentation whatsoever that this occurred. My friend who has known Stephen Kaung (a disciple of Watchman Nee) for decades has NEVER heard this before either. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Stephen Kaung, he now is in his 90s and has translated many of Watchman Nee’s teachings into English which are available in the form of paperback books. My friend has Watchman’s biography entitled Against the Tide (authored by Angus Kinnear), and she assures me there is nothing in it about Watchman Nee’s arms being chopped off!
As I stated last Friday, shortly after making this false claim David Nasser asked this question: “Where are the Watchman Nees of this generation?” Did he need to sensationalize the testimony of Watchman to motivate the students to “take up their cross and follow Jesus”? Here’s the problem with making a comment like that in front of an auditorium full of young impressionable students. At some point in the future, one of these teenagers who heard David’s message may discover that Watchman Nee simply died in prison at the age of 69, and that he did not lose his arms. What will that realization do to their Christian faith? Aren’t men of God always supposed to tell the truth?
“I tell you the truth” is a common phrase used by Jesus Christ during his earthly ministry. In fact, on Saturday I looked it up in my concordance and discovered that Jesus prefaced his teaching with that phrase (I tell you the truth) 77 times!!! Providentially, one of our commenters mentioned the importance of “truth” in reference to yesterday’s post. Here’s an excerpt from Broken Clay’s enlightening comment:
“Truth is a person. Truth is Christ. He said that He is The Truth.”
Why did Jesus repeatedly have to assure His disciples and others who were listening that He was telling the truth? Could it be that there were spiritual leaders in Jesus’ day who weren’t telling the truth?
When I realized that in all likelihood David Nasser’s claim about Watchman Nee did not happen, I experienced déjà vu. Four years ago my older daughter attended a youth rally at which evangelist Tony Nolan spoke. He addressed a group of around 500 teenagers. Since I had never heard Tony before, I decided to attend. While I have never had any formal seminary training, I have listened to countless sermons by theologians over many years and have made my study of the Bible a high priority in my life. What Tony Nolan shared that evening troubled me deeply, so much so that I was compelled to share my concerns with the organizer of the event. Here’s what I wrote to him
I am concerned that Tony Nolan used the controversial passage in Judges 11 to illustrate how we need to be more obedient and grateful to God. As I sat in the audience listening to his message, I was troubled with the conclusion he drew regarding the fate of Jephthah’s daughter. He explained to the teenagers that he believed Jephthah’s daughter was offered up to God as a literal burnt offering, much like Joan of Arc. In his conclusion, he stated that we should aspire to be as sacrificial and obedient as Jephthah’s daughter.
While there may be some debate among Bible scholars regarding whether Jephthah’s daughter was literally offered up as a burnt offering, I believe the stronger argument is that she lived many years as a virgin, never marrying or having children. These are the reasons I have arrived at this conclusion:
(1) Jephthah’s daughter said to her father, “Let this thing be done for me: Let me alone for two months, that I may go and wander on the mountains and bewail my virginity, my friends and I.” (Judges 11:17 NKJV). Since God’s Word specifically states that Jephthah’s daughter went to bewail her virginity and not her life, I believe she lived. If she were to be sacrificed, I highly doubt she would have spent the last two months of her life wandering the hills with her friends, instead of spending her last precious days with her father, especially since she was his only child. I believe Jephthah kept his vow to God by forbidding her to marry or have children, instead of killing her. That is why I believe the story ends with the phrase: “She knew no man” (Judges 12:39). I think her father sacrificed her to become a temple virgin for the rest of her life because the passage concludes with the following verse: “And it became a custom in Israel that the daughters of Israel went four days each year to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite” (Judges 11:40). In this ancient culture, not marrying and remaining childless would have been a terrible curse, which is why the daughters of Israel lamented Jephthah’s daughter for an extended period of time each year. In some ways, living in this humiliating state would be worse than death, especially as she grew old with no lineage.
(2) I believe that God condemns human sacrifice and surely would not approve of it in this instance. There are three references in my Bible which demonstrate this. The first is Leviticus 18:21, which states: “And you shall not let any of your descendants pass through the fire to Molech.” The second reference is Deuteronomy 12:31, which states: “You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.” The final and most compelling verse to me against human sacrifice is Leviticus 20:1-5, which states: Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Again, you shall say to the children of Israel: “Whoever of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell in Israel, who gives any of his descendants to Molech, he shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall stone him with stones. I will set My face against that man, and will cut him off from his people, because he had given some of his descendants to Molech, to defile My sanctuary and profane my Holy name. And if the people of the land should in any way hide their eyes from the man, when he gives some of his descendants to Molech, and they do not kill him, then I will set My face against his family; and I will cut him off from his people, and all who prostitute themselves to commit harlotry with Molech.
(3) I think Jephthah realized the instant his daughter came out of his house that he made a FOOLISH VOW to God. No legitimate priest would have helped him carry out an act that violated God’s law. Surely, Jephthah realized that he would be put to death himself if he kept this vow. And if he sacrificed his daughter and was not stoned to death, those who permitted this evil act would be judged by God themselves. Since Jephthah lived and is honored in the New Testament (Hebrews 11:32) as one of the great men of faith, I believe he worked with the religious leaders to honor his vow by having his daughter set aside as a temple virgin.
Years ago, I spent much time listening to Adrian Rogers’ messages on the heroes of the faith in Judges. He spent an entire sermon explaining this passage, and he made it clear that this was not a case of human sacrifice. He concluded that she remained a virgin for the remainder of her life.
I realize that Tony’s explanation of this passage seems more sensational if he infers that Jephthah set ablaze his daughter on an altar to God. However, I am concerned that what I believe to be a misinterpretation of Scripture may actually harm the Christian walk of those who heard the message. I was very familiar with this passage before Tony’s presentation, and I was bothered by his one-sided explanation because scholars are divided on this issue. Many youth in attendance had never heard this Bible story, and it will probably be a long time before they revisit it. Even if Tony is correct in his assertion that Jephthah offered his daughter as a literal burnt offering (which some Bible scholars claim), I believe this is a very poor illustration of obedience to God.
Dee did not attend this youth rally featuring Tony Nolan, but I found out that her son (who was around 13 at the time) did. Here’s how…
Several days after Tony Nolan’s talk, Dee and her son were driving somewhere, and he had a discouraged look on his face. She asked him what was wrong. He responded with this question, “Mom, why do parents want to kill their own children?” Dee was stunned! Apparently, this is how her teenage son interpreted what Tony shared. Fortunately, Dee mentioned her son’s question to me, and I was able to explain to her exactly why he would have even thought up such a question. Fortunately, Dee was able to explain to her son the proper way to interpret Judges 11. How many students who heard Tony at the youth rally that evening never mentioned anything about it to their parents?
Here’s my question – how many young people across the country have heard Tony Nolan deliver this very same message? As a parent, I am EXTREMELY upset at this misapplication of Scripture. Why are evangelists like David Nasser and Tony Nolan using what I consider to be EXAGGERATION to motivate young people in their Christian walk?
Study after study has shown that when teenagers go off to college, many renounce their faith. Could it be that this kind of sensational evangelism is hurting rather than helping to solidify the beliefs of our young people?
Over then next few days we will be exploring the “New Atheists” and how they are seducing Christians away from the faith, especially our children. We must be blatantly honest with our young people or they may lose their Christian faith and embrace a belief system that comes straight from the former “ angel of light” – Satan himself!