We Are Already Set Free

Ray Bakke writes...

I knew an old Glasgow professor named MacDonald who, along with a Scottish chaplain, had bailed out of an airplane behind German lines. They were put in a prison camp. A high wire fence separated the Americans from the British, and the Germans made it next to impossible for the two sides to communicate. MacDonald was put in the American barracks and the chaplain was housed with the Brits.

Every day the two men would meet at the fence and exchange a greeting. Unknown to the guards, the Americans had a little homemade radio and were able to get news from the outside, something more precious than food in a prison camp. Every day, MacDonald would take a headline or two to the fence and share it with the chaplain in the ancient Gaelic language, indecipherable to the Germans.

One day, news came over the little radio that the German High Command had surrendered and the war was over. MacDonald took the news to his friend, then stood and watched him disappear into the British barracks. A moment later, a roar of celebration came from the barracks.

Life in that camp was transformed. Men walked around singing and shouting, waving at the guards, even laughing at the dogs. When the German guards finally heard the news three nights later, they fled into the dark, leaving the gates unlocked. The next morning, Brits and Americans walked out as free men. Yet they had truly been set free three days earlier by the news that the war was over.

While Christ’s Kingdom is not fully achieved, we know the outcome of the battle. We too have been set free.

—Ray Bakke, Chicago, Illinois. Leadership, Vol. 19, no. 2.
See: Isaiah 61:1; John 8:32; John 16:33; Romans 8:21.

"Without Folds"

Spiros Zodhiates writes...

There is a significant word in the Greek New Testament which is
used to describe a person who truly exhibits sincerity in their
Christian life. The word is haplotes, which literally means
without folds. This is best illustrated by examining a simple
sheet of paper. As you fold down the edges or if you were to
crumple the page, you will notice that in trying to straighten it
out, there is still evidence which is permanently ingrained into
the texture of the paper.

A person that is truly sincere will have evidences of “no folds.”
In the New Testament, this type of person is described as
faithful, pure and benevolent (Eph. 6:5; Col 3:22). Also, it is
used to describe a generous giver who has no ulterior motives (2
Cor. 9:13). Are you a person “without folds” in your character? In
the workplace, are you the type of worker who respects authority
for the right reasons? When God looks at you does He see your
sincerity?

Croft Pentz Will Be Missed

This space has been reserved so often for "Zingers" by Croft
Pentz.

Croft Pentz passed on to his eternal reward on July 2, 2008.

Here is a portion of his obituary. He will be missed.

Rev. Croft M. Pentz, 77, of 13394 Meadow View Ave., Waynesboro,
PA, died at 10:55 P.M., Wednesday, July 2, 2008, in the Hershey
Medical Center, Hershey, PA. His death was unexpected and
attributed to natural causes.

Rev. Pentz began his ministry in Little Rock, AR, in August 1952.
He served as a minister to the deaf for 44 years (1952-1996). He
established The Calvary Chapel of the Deaf in Elizabeth, NJ, in
1954 and served as Pastor for 42 years. From 1996-2007 he served
as Pastor of the Senior Adults/Outreach of the Calvary Assemblies
of God, Waynesboro, involving services to four nursing homes,
teaching an adult Sunday School class, editing Senior Adult Paper,
which was published six times annually. While in Waynesboro, he
also assisted various local organizations in providing sign
language services for the hearing impaired.

He was also an accomplished author, having authored 30 sermon
outlines, several of which are still in print. He compiled two
books of quotes, The Complete Book of Zingers and 1001 Things Your
Mother Told You. He also compiled two book of Christian Poetry and
authored four Christian Handbooks with over 1 million books sold
and several translated into other languages. Rev. Pentz also wrote
numerous articles for national magazines and devotionals for
devotional magazines. He prepared gospel tracts which were
published in 7 languages with over 8 million in print. He wrote a
weekly column for The Record Herald from September 1997 -
September 2000 and was presently writing a weekly column called
Healing for the Hurting for the Record Herald.

Rev. Pentz was an avid New York Yankees and Dallas Cowboys fan. He
also enjoyed playing softball in various church leagues.