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THURSDAY, JANUARY 19, 2006
8B
Why do
we need
good
teachers?
1 Timothy 4:1-6
Many people eiyoy compet
ing with each other and being
the center of attention. Some
people eryoy telling the latest
joke; others love name drop
ping; others like being the
first to own the newest piece
of clothing or technolt^y.
Satan uses our weaknesses
against us. He will whisper in
the ears of people who eiyoy
being the center of attention
that if they just come up with
some new angle on Christian
ity, they will be recognized as
a great teacher. The same
practice was occurring in
Paul's day and it continues
today
Paul knew there were peo
ple following him around, try
ing to one-up his teaching. So
he warned Timothy to be on
the look out for lying spirits
and doctrines invented by
devils. Such doctrines were
taught by hypocritical liars
who Jaimed to honor Christ
as Lord but who really were
seeking their own prestige by
spouting oflf the newest and
latest fad.
Timothy was instructed to
teach the truth in order to
stop people fi*om turning
away fiom God’s truth and to
those lies in part marking
him a good minister and ser
vant of the family of God. This
turning away is called aposta
sy Tbday it is vital that we
have teachers dedicated to
teaching the truth of God’s
word so Christians can recog
nize error when it is taught. It
is good to desire to be a
teacher in the church, but
teachers must be very careful
to teach only the revealed
truth of God.
II. What makes a good
teacher?
(1 Tlmotliy 4:7-12)
The first thing Timothy was
to do was to stay away fiom
false teachers and errant
teachings. Paul told Timothy
to have absolutely nothing to
do with myths and old wives’
tales. He meant that Timothy
should not even show up
where the teachers were
teaching, lest he give credibil
ity to the teachings by his
mere presence. Tbachers
must be careful about the
causes or messages they sup
port.
He warned Timothy that he
would have to guard his godli
ness by training himself the
way an athlete trains for a hag
competition. He would have
to devote himself to the study
of Scripture, make sure he
had a solid relationship with
God, and spend time in
prayer. Then he would have
the wisdom and spiritual
muscle to stay away fiom doc-
Rease see TIMOTHY 4:1-6/7B
RELIGION
Yolanda’s groove
Life IB
Gospel artist uses music as ‘platform’to reach audiences
FILE PHon
Gospel star Yolanda Adams uses her music to reach people and spread the word of God. She said when
she takes the stage it is about more than just singing.
By Chens F. Hodges wiU change someone,” she said.
Her new CD “Day by Day” has
spawned the crossover gosp)el hit ‘*Vic-
tory” which receives play on gospel
and secular stations.
Despite a four-year layoff between
records, Adams still has a broad fan
base. “The great thing about gospel is
that you don’t have to have an album
chensJiodgesCo ihecharlottepostrom
When Yolanda Adams takes the
stage in Charlotte on Jan. 27, she’s
going to do more than just sing.
“This is my platform. This is the
way I talk to people; it’s never about
just singing. I have people for a few
hours and maybe I can say something
every year to keep working,” she seiid.
And working is what she’s been
doing. Adams stared with Boris Kod-
joe in “The Gospel,” She’s been laying
. the groundwork for her Voice of an
Angel Foundation, which focuses on
mentoring high school students
Rease see ADAMS/7E)
Pastor calling for boycotts over gay rights
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
OLYMPIA, Wash.-A
pastor has called for a
national boycott of
Microsoft, Hewlett-
Packard and other busi
nesses that have come out
in support of a gay dvil
ri^ts bill, saying the com
panies have underestimat
ed the power of religious
consumers.
Rev. Ken Hutcherson,
pastor of Antioch Bible
Church in the east Seattle
suburb of Redmond—also
home to Microsoft—said he
would offidally make the
call for the boycott Thurs
day on a national conserva
tive talk radio show, “Focus
on the Family”
‘'We’re tired of sitting
aroimd thinking that
morals can be ignored in
our country,” he said Mon
day “This is not a threat,
this is a promise. Check out
the past presidential elec
tion. We made the moral
issue the No. 1 issue.”
Last week, several com
panies, including Microsoft
Corp., Boeing Co., Hewlett
Packard Co. and Nike Inc.
signed a letter uig;ing pas
sage of the measure, which
would add “sexual orienta
tion” to a state law that
already bans discrimina
tion in housing, employ
ment and insurance based
on race, gender, age, dis
ability, religion, marital sta
tus and other factors.
Microsoft’s support comes
a year after it was
denounced for quietly drop
ping support for it.
Hutcherson, who has
oi^anized anti-gay-mar-
Rease see PASTOR/7B
Church News
‘Days’ a
very bright
effort for
Neal
Antonio Neal
Days of My Life
Tedd T. and Antonio Neal,
producers
EMI Gospel
I don’t know that gospel
music needs a Babyface, but it
certainly seems to have found
one in Antonio Neal.
Neal is part of the burgeon
ing set of gospel artists that
throw convention to the wind
and do contemporary music
that makes Kirk Franklin
sound traditional. Neal’s obvi
ous influences include Baby-
face, Tbny Rich and maybe
even D’Angelo. His songs fit
snugly between R&B and light
pop.
That’s not to say this isn’t a
gospel CD. The lyrics let you
mistake this for nothing but
gospel. He doesn’t substitute
God and Lord for pronouns for
replacement words. He’s
upfiiont about for whom he
sings.
Neal isn’t a bad singer,
either. He’s not a fiery vocafist
or one who relies on typical
gospel conventions. He’s more
of a crooner and storyteller.
Neal has crafted a set of
interesting songs. The first
three are c^ainly contempo
rary R&B, none of which
would soimd out of place on
urban radio plajdists. The title
song could certainly make
some heads bob.
The re^ of the CD giv^ way
to a very mellow pop groove,
sometimes ev^ folksy Neal
spices things up a bit with
“Our Love,” which borders on
funk.
This CD would be a bit more
compelling if Neal’s delivery
was more assertive. Still, this
may be the perfect thing for
those who don’t want tradi
tional gospel. This is as far
fiom that as you can get.
Ratmgs
Oaaaic;
Exceflent
Good
Fair ilH
Why? ♦
No stars—A mesB
77te deadline to have announcements added to the
calendar is noon Friday. Fax to (704) 342-2160 or e-
maxl cherisJiodges(&thecharlotteposlrom.
Ongoing
Grace BiUe College will host winter classes
at Grace Baptist Church on 1185 Little Rock
Road in Newton throu^ March 13th. The^
classes maybe taken for credit. For informa
tion. call (828) 464-7055.
The Millions More Movement-Chariotte. Inc.
will move to its new location at Little Rock
AME Zion Church, 401 N. McDowell St. The
group will meet the second and fourth Monday
ni^ts of the month for six months. For more
information, call (704) 333-1690.
January 19 •
The Broomfield CME Church, located on
Shannon-Bradley Road in Bessemer City, will
host the Women of Real Destiny (Conference
through Saturday The event kicks off at 7 p.m.
with speaker Apostle Ann Jackson fix>m the
Living Waters Christian C^ter in Charlotte.
Services begin nightly at 7 p m. and 1 p.m. on
Saturday For more information, call (704) 824-
7709.
January 22
Simpson-Gillespie United Methodist Church
will celebrate 135 years with dedication service
of renovations and additions to their fourth
site. The church, located at 3545 Beatties Ford
Road, spait 10 years to renovating their cur
rent location and adding additional class
rooms, offices, storage areas and a choir room
For more information, call (704) 399-2717.
January 29
The Tfemple of Deliverance International Fel
lowship, located at 5521 Cannon Drive, Suite
104 in Monroe, will host “100 Men in Black.”
The event b^ins at 6 p.m
January 30
The Path Ministries will host a religious con
ference throu^ Feb. 2. The conference is titled
“Kingdom Agenda, Making the 0)nnectiOTa.”
^)eakers include Bishop Eddie Long and host
ed by the Rev. Claude Alexander. For informa-
ti(Hi, call (704) 392-1681 or register online at
www.theparkministries.org.
February 11
Tfemple of Deliverance International Fellow
ship, located at 5521 Cannon Drive, Suite 104
Rease see FEBRUARY77B
0#o