Chapel Services

0:02 Looking at our world from a theological perspective. This is the Theology Central podcast making Theology Central. Good afternoon everyone. It is Wednesday, August twenty eighth, twenty twenty four. It is currently two thirty six pm Central Time, and I am coming to you live from the Theology Central studio located right here in Abilene, Texas. Hey, ladies and gentlemen, this has to stop, all right. I'm developing a pattern here that's not going very well, and we've got to break the cycle. We've got to break this pattern. What is happening? You heard it yesterday? I did a broadcast. I didn't think it went very well. In fact, it was trash. In fact, I still think I probably should have deleted it. So then I did a second one to try to make up for the first one. I thought the second one was somewhat better. I thought we raised at least some important questions. How do you know if you really love God? Now there wasn't a lot of response to that question, but I think I think we did a good job challenging how most people would answer that question. And I think the Book of Revelation in chapter two really destroys a lot of people's perspective on that. So so we made up for the bad one, at least in my mind. Well, then today I was like, oh, I know what we'll do. I'll work on Ephesians chapter four because we have to. We've got to finish this up.

1:24 It's one of those things we've kind of left unfinished, so let's get to it. Wait wait, wait, Well, you know this whole thing started because we were listening to the Salt and Light conference. Well, I mean, it can't hurt to go back and review another message from that. It will only add to our discussion about Ephesians four. What was I thinking. My whole frustration with that conference was I don't feel like they're really dealing with Ephesians Chapter four, right, That was my whole frustration. So what did I go? And that thing turned into a total and complete disaster. So I'm back to try to make up for my failure earlier. And I hope this will go somewhat. I hope it goes well. I hope it goes I hope it. I hope it goes well. Well, we will see. Now, one of the things I've been trying to bring to your attention, ladies and gentlemen. And you don't really need me to bring this to your attention.

2:17 But if you're not paying attention, school is in the air. School is in the air. The school bell is ringing. Does that make you have flashbacks going, Oh wait, I'm late, I'm late to my class. I gotta hurry, I gotta hurry. I was always late to class. I was always late to class because I don't know, I was off wandering around doing whatever. I'm like, Oh no, I gotta get the class. I gotta get the class. Okay, all right, Well, then I can connect it to a famous album and well, okay, I'm not gonna get into all that. But the point is, school is in the air. Now you say, well, not for me, I'm not going to school. I don't care.

3:01 But school is in the air. And the specifically what I'm referring to is Bible colleges and Christian universities. They are back in session. And you say, well, I don't care, it doesn't impact me. Listen to me. Bible colleges and Christian universities are training, are equipping the next generation of Christian leaders, pastors, missionaries, where whatever they may go, wherever their vocations may take them. They're training the next generation. Now, if it was up to me, I would burn down the seminary, you know, institute, the institution of the seminary and Bible colleges. I would burn all of that to the ground. There wouldn't be any because I think local churches should be the one training the future Christian leaders.

3:49 It should be happening within the context of the local church. The local church should be training, equipping, and sending out and supporting. That's the way it should be. Not hey, go off to Bible college seminary, get into all kinds of debt, and then you can't even actually take that job at a small church because you know you've got to be able to pay back your school loans. Oh I can't. I can't stand the entire system, right, But whether I may want the system burned to the ground, the you know, the seminary industrial complex, that whole industry, that old Bible college industry. Even though I'm not a fan of it, I know it exists and I know that it's training the next generation. So I love to keep up with what's going on in Bible colleges and seminaries, right, I want to know and this is not a perfect way to keep up. But one of the things you can do is you can take your sermons two point oh app and right now you can start looking for Bible colleges, Bible institutes, universities, seminaries, and you can follow every single one. And as you follow every single one, then right there on the Sermon's two point oh app and your feed tab, you're going to get all the new content that they are putting out, whatever it may be, and you can get at least that's not you're not going to have a perfect idea, but that's at least one way. And then on other podcasting apps, you can look up church Christian universities, you can look up Bible colleges, seminaries and find others that don't broadcast on the Sermon's two point oh app and overall you'll get a pretty

5:22 good idea if you know of Christian universities or seminaries or Bible colleges that put out any kind of philological journal. That's another way to keep up with what's going on. There's lots of ways if you really want to know, because really it gives you an idea where Christianity is going. You can see where Christianity is, but where is it going? Is it is it? Look? Does the future look so bright that you have to wear shades? Okay? I know I'm referencing another musical term. All right, but is it looking good? Or is it looking like? Oh my goodness, the end is near. If that's the future, then ended. Now. Just say, hey, ladies and gentlemen, we're closing down the church because I've seen where we're going and it's not good.

6:04 Just run for your lives. Close the church. It's over. The future is in danger. Okay. I don't know which way it's going to go. You can determine for yourself. So that's what I've been doing. I've got my sermon's two point oh app I've been checking it left and right looking for the newest content, and all of a sudden I found Bob Jones University. They've been broadcasting a lot lately because school is back in session. Right, do I need to do the Do I need to turn off my microphone and do this again? School is back in session? Right?

6:44 Okay, it's it's it's not worth the trouble. I have to mute. I have to hit two buttons to mute. Two different microphones in order to play that sound where you don't get the echo. It's it's it's it's too much trouble. And in my mind, oh, that's I'm being clever and I'm being funny, and reality I'm like, that's just more trouble than it's worth. Okay, but the point is school is back in session. So if you know anything about Bible colleges and Christian universities, you know they have something that typically students are required to attend. What am I referring to, Well, let's listen to what was going on at Bob Jones University. I don't know if this was I think this was this morning. I think this was this morning because I heard this live. I've been waiting for it to show up in my feed.

7:32 So I think this happened this morning on the campus of Bob Jones University, which is in where is that Greenville, South Carolina. I believe that's where it's located. So let's go to the Well, let's go to the campus of Bob Jones University. Let's hear what was going on this morning. If you went to Bible College, if you went to seminary, you know what I'm referring to. If you did not go to Christian university or Bible College, you have no idea. Maybe you have an idea, but here, here is what happens on many of their campuses. You're ready, Here we go. Welcome, Welcome to the first chapel. And we're actually going to call this metachapel because we're going to be describing what chapel will be like in chapel.

8:15 So welcome to the first chapel. Now, if you go to Bible College, if you go to seminary, if you go to a Christian university, there is chapel service. Many of those Christian universities, chapel service attendance is mandatory. Now my experience, most of my education seminary, Bible College, Bible institutes, Bible Institute. I was physically a student a Christian university. I was physically present, but many of the others I did things online. I did things online. I was in the United States Military, so I had to do a lot of things online. But so I was present for some and for others. I was doing distance learning if you want to use it that way, online learning, if you want to use that term. But I do have an experience with chapel all right, because here's what happened.

9:18 I was in the United States Military. I was stationed at Offit Air Force Base, Omaha, Nebraska. Now, as soon as I got there, look, my whole purpose of joining the military. I hate to destroy the image, but it wasn't because I wanted to serve country or because I wanted money for school. That's what I wanted. I wanted to out of Texas. I wanted away from my horrible, horrible situation here. I wanted out of this place, and I wanted to escape. But I wanted money for college. So as soon as I arrived at my first duty station, off At Air Force Bace, Omaha, Nebraska, I was like, I get me to a school. Oh, there's Grace University downtown Omaha, Nebraska. It's a Christian universe. I want to go to school there. What do I gotta do?

10:03 Right? Okay? So I get with the educational department on base. How do I get money for this? Okay, they'll pay for this. Okay. How do I sign up for this? Okay, pool go and enroll. Boom. I'm a student at Grace University, oh, Maha, Nebraska. I'm taking classes to see world religion genesis. I can't remember the class, all the classes I took there. I can't remember everything I accomplished at Grace University, but there I began my educational pursuits, my philological educational pursuits. All right, So I'm a student, I'm enrolled. I was taking a full course load. I just remember some classes more than other. I had my own little, you know, mailbox there on campus everything, right, I remember going to the bookstore getting my textbooks everything. So in some ways I was like a normal student. But in other ways I wasn't like a normal student. I wasn't living on campus or anything.

10:52 I was in the United States Military. I was working forty plus hours a week, like I had responsibilities. I knew that that I was not an an in residence student. I was living off campus, and my situation was clearly understood. Right, So I'm attending classes, and I was able to take classes at different times. Sometimes happen to be in the evening. Sometimes the military work where I could go take an hour. It was it was just a weird way structuring everything. But I go to my mailbox just to check to see because sometimes the university would send things out to students that you needed to see. And so I got there and it says you have a mandatory appointment with the dean, and I'm like, what in the world do I have to go see the dean for? Right? So I go and I go in the secretary set. He'll see you and knock on the door, walk in. Are you you know? Ask me my name? Yes, sir? Yes, Okay, Well there's a problem. You are, you know, possibly in trouble because it has brought to our attention that you have been a student here for this long and you have never attended chapel. Chapel is mandatory. If you do not attend chapel, you're in this kind of probation and this can happen and then you could be thrown out.

12:11 And I'm like wait what, I'm like, hey, serve, okay, back up, back up, I don't live on campus. I'm in the United States Military. When your chapel service is going on, Yeah, depending on what my job was at the time, I may be holding an M sixteen guarding whatever I'm guarding at the or I may be working the gate like or I'm working at the hospital. Depending on what my job was At that specific time, I'm like, what are you talking about? So I almost got in trouble because I was not attending chapel service. And he said, well, okay, we understand, but whenever you can, you should make it a priority because chapel is very important. And I'm like, okay. Now, at that time, I kind of walked away a little frustrated, right and right. What I was thinking is, okay, So if you go to school here and you take a full load, you're taking things like Old Testament Survey, New Testament Survey, You're taking things like World Religions, Genesis whatever.

13:06 You're taking all these theological courses, biblical courses. You're taking all these things about the Bible and about Christianity and church history and theology and Armaenuticts and Exegesus and Hebrew and Greek and all these things. And so it was weird, like, so you're doing all of this, but you also have to attend chapel service. So there was a part of me like, I wonder what they're hoping to actually accomplish by making people go to chapel service. What are they actually accomplishing? And on other Christian universities that are really more like a liberal arts school school. Many of those students just complain all day long that they have to go to Chapel service. They hate it and say, well, why did you pick a Christian university? But they they're there because, well, the school offers a degree in this.

13:54 They're not there for the Christian part, They're there for the educational party want to they want to do this, so they want to do this. They don't care about the Christian part, and it's like, well what, So sometimes like why is Chapel here? Because these kids hate it, others are forced to be there. They already got a million things going on. They're trying to remember, Okay, what did we learn in Old Testament survey? What did we learn in New Testament survey? What did I learn in Greek class? What did I learn in Hebrew class? What did I learn about Leviticus? What? What did I learn? And Oh, now I'm supposed to go to Chapel and it's supposed to be And I've always kind of been like, so, what is Chapel really supposed to be? Now? Others have far different attitudes about it. Some will say it's like the greatest experience of their lives Hyles Anderson College in Indiana. I will listen to them and they're chapel services. Sometimes it's a little frustrating. I don't really understand their culture. But it'll be like, Okay, today, your guest speaker is pastor so and so, and then the students just like yeah, and they cheer like and it goes on for like five six minutes, and the pastors like, okay, sit down, sit down, and they're whistling and cheering like it's I don't And I'm like, what in the world is this? Could you just let the speakers speak? So I So, then the preacher just preaches. I'm like, so they're getting preaching on top of all their Bible courts.

15:12 I So, I like, what what what should be the mindset? Well, obviously this is the first chapel at Bob Jones University, and they're going to explain chapel in chapel, referring to this as metachapel. So I'm going to back this up. Let's see what Bob Jones University. Because the reason I'm playing this is they're they're trying to change some things about chapel so it'll be more beneficial, more helpful, more useful. So I'm kind of curious. Let's hear what's going on on the campus of Bob Jones University.

15:55 Welcome, Welcome to the first Chapel. And we're actually going to call this Metachapel because we're going to be describing what chapel will be like in chapel. So we're going to spend some time just having conversations about chapel this year and some new changes, some suggestions that we had from student leaders, and so I'm excited about our first chapel. I hope you are surviving the heat. If you're like me and you're from the north, whenever it gets in the nineties with this kind of humidity, it's really really hot. But I'm glad you guys are surviving. So they're making changes. I'm interested to hear the changes.

16:37 Maybe we'll get kind of their philosophy about chapel. All right, students have made suggestions. Okay, I'm interested. Now I do have to laugh. If it's ninety degrees and you think that's hot, it was one hundred and thirteen degrees, or I know people can say it's a dry okay, Okay, alright, whatever, Okay, but I digress. So, but I am interested to hear exactly what this is about because because almost all Christian colleges, almost all Christian universities, Bible colleges, seminaries, they almost all have mandatory chapel. I mean it's pretty common. Now. My question is it's common because it's tradition or is it common because it has been found to be absolutely life altering, life changing? And everyone who leaves campus is like, I miss those days of chapel now again. I just struggle with it, right, because you've got all this other stuff going on? Do you need another preaching teaching service when you just walked out of New Testament survey, you just walked out of Greek class, you just walked out of your study on the Pauline Epistles, you just walked out of the you know, the minor prophets class, and now you're going to go to a preaching class so that you can take more notes. So I just I don't know. I know, look know that my mindset is always I question everything, So I know this is it.

18:06 I'm not always a good person to get a because I just challenge everything, Like I don't care if you did it for fifty years. Who came up with the rule that you have to do it? But obviously there's no biblical rule that saying Christian university and Bible College you must have chapel. There's just no there's no biblical rule. For they may believe there's a biblical foundation. I don't believe there's any command whatsoever to do this. Again, I believe the training should be done in the local church, especially for pastors and missionaries. Any of those schools that focus on training pastors and missionaries, all of that should be done in the local church. I'm utterly convinced of that. I think the New Testament would support my view more than sending them off to Bible College. But in all of these other settings, Christian universities and all of these, I mean, should you make it mandatory or should you just offer it.

18:58 Now? I don't know, Bob Jones, if they make it mandatory, I think they make it mandatory. I don't know. I could, I could probably verify, But many schools make I mean I was in a school with made it mandatory you had to be there, so I know many schools make it mandatory. So what like I don't mandatory worship. See that just seems contrary to me. Mandatory worship. You will be at chapel service and you're gonna worship God because we tell you to say, I'm not. How do you feel about that? Right, I'll have to look and see if I'll look and see if Bob Jones is mentoring. But let's see what changes they're going to make. We do have another evangelistic service tonight at seven o'clock with evangelist Brent Savinski and at this time Josiah Cheryl is gonna come and open our service in prayer.

19:51 Let's pray together. Heavenly Father, we thank you for another school year that you have given to us. We thank you for the beautiful day outside and the reminder Lord that it is of your faithfulness to us and to your creation. Would reminded of the beauty of it all, and God that how it magnifies your glory and your power. And so we ask Lord that as we come into this school year, that we would see that more and more, Lord, that we would commit ourselves to you, recognizing your holiness and your greatness and Father, your authority over us, but also your kindness to us and sending your son. So we pray Lord that as we walk together this year and this semester, that you would guide us closer to yourself, Lord, and magnify your name and your son, Jesus Christ through us.

20:35 We commit this year to you, God, and we commit this time together to understanding better how our school is to operate, and how we can focus and chapel and how things are going to operate this year. We love your Lord, and we commit this time to you now in Jesus' name. Amen. Now, during that prayer, I was doing research. Chapel services at Bob Jones University are mandatory for students. Bob Jones University, known for its conservative Christian values, require students to attend chapel services regularly as a part of their spiritual formation and community involvement. Chapel services at Bob Jones University are typically held multiple times a week and feature worship, preaching and teaching that align with university mission and develop students Christian faith and character. Attendance is monitored and students are expected to participate as part of the commitment to the school's guidelines and spiritual expectations. If a student fails to attend the required chapel services. There are specific consequences that are part of the school's disciplinary system. Here's what typically happens.

21:35 If a student does not attend first demerits. Missing chapel service can result in demerits, which are part of the university system of handling infractions. A certain number of demerits are assigned for each unexcused absence accumulation of demerits. If a student accumulates too many demerits from miss chapel services, along with any other infractions, they can face escalating disciplinary actions. These actions might include additional meetings with a dean see I had to have a meeting with a dean, required counseling, or other corrective measures disciplinary probation. If the accumulation of demerits reaches a higher threshold, the student could be placed on discpulinary probation. This status comes with more severe restrictions and expectations, and continued non compliance could lead to further consequences potential suspension or dismissal, and extreme cases, continued failure to attend chapel and accumulate demerits can lead to suspension or even dismissal from the University, although this is generally reserved for repeated or more serious offenses. Bob Jones University emphasizes the importance of chapel as part of the student's spiritual development and community involvement, so adherence to attendance requirement is taken seriously. However, students may be able to get excused for legitimate reasons, such as illness or other approved conflicts, usually by communicating with the appropriate university office. Is mandatory, chapel, mandatory, worship mandatory, And if you don't go to merits and

23:08 then it escalates, you can draw your own conclusion about that. This and this is not a Bob Jones thing, It's just that's who we're listening to. But again, Great University, Omaha, Nebraska. I got in trouble and was being threatened with being placed on student probation and then who knows, possible dismissal, and I'm like, what do you want me to do? I'm in the United States Military for crying out loud. You know this, right? Okay? So, so it's like the whole thing was ridiculous the way it went down. So but and again, I've heard plenty of other students I mean, I live in Abilene, Texas. There's Ableing Christian University, Hardin Simmons and McMurray. All three are Christian universities. One's church christ one is Southern Baptist, and one is a Methodist.

23:52 I think all three have required required chapel, mandatory chapel. It's required. And I've heard basically constantly people like, I'm so sick of this. Why do I have to go? Why do I have to go? Why do I have to go? And you could argue, well, that's a good thing because you're teaching them responsibility, you're teaching them discipline. They already have to go to class, they already have to pass tests, they already have to write term papers, they already have a million other responsibilities, many of them. Well, not only are they are living on campus and going to school full time, they have jobs, have either jobs on campus jobs off campus. They have jobs, they have school that I like. I don't know if chapel's going like, I just don't know the mandatory part of it is.

24:41 But let's see what the changes Bob Jones is going to do this year, and let's talk about it, and then we'll talk about the history of it, and we'll talk about some other things that hopefully will be interesting. Our faithful God has brought us back from summer break and will continue to be faithful to us this semester. His mercies are new to us every morning, and in response, our life's crime should be yet not I, but Christen me as we. Live for him. Let's stand and sing. Now. I chopped up this audio. It's all chopped up, so they're getting ready to sing. It may start for half a second and then it's going to go right into the next section because I was trying to remove all the music. So I think I've eliminated some of it.

25:22 So if it's a little choppy here or there, just it's okay. I've cut it all up. I know I did the best I could in my editing. It's not perfect, so you know, all right, let's just see what happens. I'm singing. There's nothing like hearing thousands of college students raising their voices together. And worship, and it is so good to be here. The last time I spoke on campus last semester, I was actually wearing a red dress and makeup and long hair. So I don't wear as in living gallery as the Apostle John. So I remember going to the costume department and I realized, like, I'm gonna have to wear this red floor length robe, kind of fitted floor length robe.

26:18 And then I looked. At the wig and I thought, well, at least it'll cover my baldness. And even the wig had a receding hairline. So it was it was an interesting experience, but it was really cool. If you ever get to be in a living gallery, I'd encourage you to take advantage of that. Now again, he said, you know, it's awesome to hear all these students' voices raised and worship. Again, is worship mandatory? Like if you if you make worship mandatory, then is it worship? Now? I'm not seeing every student there feels the weight of the being mandatory. But if you're forced to be there, I mean, isn't worship something that we should do freely, willingly, out of love, out of you know, our gratitude for His mercy and grace. We come because we're broken and we're humbled, and or we are we're convicted. I struggle with that. That that's my own struggle. Nothing again. Schools, obviously, the institutions can do whatever they want. They can create any rule they want. I'm not telling any student to rebel against any rule, nothing like that. I'm just having a conversation about, well, what's going on, I mean schools in the air. We're talking about what's going on in all these campuses, and so I've always had these questions. Again, That's why I started with my story at Grace University.

27:39 I'm not singling out any university, So no one get mad at me that I'm picking on some school. I'm not. I'm just the whole concept of you will go to chapel and we're going to worship God. Just don't know if worship can be worship if it's being there because you're mandatory, because you've been made to be there now. So that's that's where I'm conflicted from a philological perspective. How many of you were in summer school this summer, Okay, a number of you took classes. That is exactly what I felt like that I was in summer school, learning and listening as I traveled across the country and even across the world, talking to alumni and donors and faculty and staff, and especially I enjoy talking to students and so it's great now to have all of those students and many many more back on campus as.

28:34 We start this school year. And we did stay busy this summer. One of the big projects that we worked on was a new business space. And I appreciate a number of our alumni donors who gave about eight hundred thousand dollars. So this wouldn't affect tuition or what students give, but they wanted to donate to improve your student experience. So let's get eight hundred dollars. The amount of money that's funneled into Christian universities, seminaries, Bible colleges, a number is absolutely staggering, right, I mean, like I don't even know, like if my church at any point, and it's twenty four year history, would have ever received five hundred thousand dollars, I don't even like the things we could have done, even we were a little church in the middle of nowhere, Texas.

29:33 Anyone who's listened to me forever. We tried to give away books, we tried to get at one point, we were providing curriculum to people for free. We were doing everything in our power to educate, to train, to disciple, to equip and yeah, I mean we were. I mean, yeah, it's just creat Can you imagine that much money going into a church and all the educational opportunities churches could provide the materials they I could, well, shouldn't that be? I just think I can't. I'm so conflicted over the whole structure. You know, again, a Christian university, I understand. I guess you know. That's where your kid doesn't have to go to the bad It's so called secular university.

30:16 But in some ways, don't you want the Christian people into secular university to be a light to be salt and light. Salt and light needs light needs to be in darkness, and salt needs to be where salt is missing. Right If we just all gather around in the Christian university, so we escape the bad world, at some point you've got to enter into the bad world. Right, So I mean all by the time you get to university, but time you get to college, supposedly you've spent eighteen seventeen to eighteen years in church, you should be as discipled and is equipped. You should basically have the equivalent of a seminary education. If you've been in church for basically eighteen years. But too many times churches take their teenagers and it's fun, food, activity, ridiculousness, and the kids are theologically illiterate, biblically illiterate. And then we're like, Okay, now we can't send them to the secular university because they'll get eaten alive. We got to go send them to a Christian university. So now the Christian university can do what the church didn't do. The church didn't equip them, the church didn't train them, the church didn't equip them.

31:20 So they're no longer tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine. So now we got to spend all of this money to send them to a Christian university because the church completely felt at its job. That's how I feel about the situation. But that's a lot of money. Eight hundred thousand dollars. That's a lot of money. In the hand to the crew who put together the new business space. I appreciate. Doctor Weathers also sent out a survey with me, and we wanted to get feedback from students. What are things that we can do to improve your student's experience. So one of those was to get new sip lids for the DC to go cups so that your beverage didn't spill all over your new fit this semester. So I appreciate the work that Aaron Mark did to get those new siplids. Also, we are continuing to replace the World War Two era vacuum cleaners in the dorms, so and also to have printers that actually work consistently in the dorms.

32:33 So another excellent. Suggestion we had was that once a month after society will have food truck Fridays, so we'll have options for eating. And then we also installed a disc golf course, so that is on back campus. I think you'll get an email maybe this afternoon, and we're trying to come up with names, so if you want to help us name the disc golf course. One of my former students who was in Brasilion wanted to name it. I think on you disc it said the Basilion Lake Disc golf Course instead of the Omega Lake Disc golf Course. So we'll let you guys come up with a name that you want for that. We also installed cameras on all the campus gates for more security, and then we'll also be adding more casual Fridays throughout the semester and so we'll let you know when those those are. And then we adjusted some of the D group experiences, so we wanted you to be able to come as town students to D group, and I think mister Dalton was able to talk to you about those yesterday. So we are continuing to listen to student feedback. So if you have suggestions, send those to President at BJU dot E d U or to doctor Weathers, and we want to hear from each of you. One of the things that we just gus a lot this summer was chapel and so I

34:03 would meet regularly or not actually in person, but would talk regularly to the SLC, which I always thoughts stood for Salt Lake City, but here it stands for the Student Leadership Council. I think I got that right. So the SLC had a lot of ideas for positive changes that we could make to Chapel and the first thing that we did was to hire a Chapel coordinator. So if you would welcome our new Chapel coordinator, Pastor Jerial antoy. So. Jerial was the. Men's SLC leader president in twenty twenty. It's kind of an interesting year to lead through. And then he and I have been pastors together at Morningside for the last four years. Facebook reminded me yesterday that we've actually been friends on Facebook for six years. So, Jeral, I appreciate that you actually started a Facebook account to reach out to old people like your parents and me, So thank you for doing that. What would you prefer that we call you?

35:09 Do? You all know my brother Jr. On Toy. You guys know Jr. So, so we're from Texas, but we're also Filipino. And so when I was a student here, they literally called me the Texapino. So you're welcome to use Texapino. Uh, mister Ontoy is my dad, So I don't really like that, but you know, we're both pastors at heart, right, and so you know, Pastor Jerry ol, mister Jerry or whatever. I'm I'm flexible, but I'm curious if I can flip the script. What should we call you? Pastor Josh? I mean that's what you know, That's what I always called him, pastor. So yeah, when I worked with my dad, I had gone back to my homecher so he was Pastor Crockett. I was Pastor Josh so that's what I've been at morningside. I do.

35:50 I hate to admit Oh, man, I hate to admit this. Oh, I hate to admit this. Okay, now this I'm just going to talk about my own This is me, all right, this is me I have by my fleshly nature, all right. I am always the anti conformist. I'm always the one who doesn't like mandatory anything. I mean, I know it's ridiculous. I was in the United States military, right, but even in the military, there would be like commander's calls, right, these are mandatory commander's call, you have to be there. I did everything and my power to get out of them. I found ways I worked when I especially worked in the hospital. When I was security Forces, I never had to go to one because I was typically always I always had ways out of that. But when I worked in the hospital, I just got in good with the doctors, right because I worked directly with the doctors, and so I got in good with all of them, and the doctors liked me, and we always had great conversations. So I got in and so I would basically like, look, commander's calls tomorrow morning at seven am or whatever. Hey, can't tell me there's something that needs to be done.

37:01 That was like before the first patient arrives. There would always come up with something and then boom, and some people look by, hey, why are you not a commander's call? Well, doctor so and so told me I needed to call this, or I didn't need to do this. Sorry, can't go right. So I always got out of it in some way, shape or four. People are always laughing at my way to get out of it, And if I had to go, I would get very frustrated. And I would sit there so many times and say, why am I here at a commander's call at seven am? Because everything you're telling me you could have sent me in an email. You could have send me a PowerPoint presentation. All your many cases, you're just pointing things up on the slide, reading them. You could have just sent this to me. I could have looked at it in five minutes. But here we are forty five minutes into this thing and we're not oh so far. My flesh would be sitting there. I'd be the kid. I would be sitting there going, oh my goodness. I could be doing this. I could be reading this. I could be studying this. I could be doing this, I could be resting, I could be at the library. I could be doing a million things, and I'm sitting and so far none of this information has It's just you could have just emailed everyone. You could have put it in their mailbox. You could have just said, here's the new Chapel coordinator. Boom. Here's we're gonna have a disc golf course. We're gonna we got new sippy cups.

38:15 There's gonna be new vacuum cleaners, new sippy sippy cups, new Sippy Liz or whatever he called them. All right, We're gonna have we're gonna have new printers. Boom. Like you could have just been like bullets, bullet statements one, two three, here's the latest news from Bju boom boom, boom, boom boom. You don't need to come to Chapel Service for any of this, right, right, I mean come on now, Like now that's that's again, that's that's my flesh. That's my flesh, all right. I still want to know, like what is the big changes, what's the big changes here that that I really want to hear. I want to get an idea of what what is what's their philosophy behind chapel. We're getting there. I know it's we've already been at this for thirty eight minutes and we're not getting any right now. But I'm I'm I'm counting on.

39:02 We're gonna get somewhere. Do you have a brother, doctor Crockett? So sometimes I'll introduce myself as the not as smart, not as rich doctor Crockett, But that's that's a little likely. So doctor Josh, Doctor j I wish I could play like Doctor j the NBA legend, but DJ, yeah, whatever you want to, so. I like it. So what were some of the chapel changes that the SLC talked about this summer? What are some of the things that we're going to be doing as chapel coordinator. You've kind of already experienced one of the changes, which is more student led worship. And even as I'm sitting here, it's been a couple of years since I've sung in FMA. And you guys are blowing the roof off this place.

39:44 You guys sound incredible, and so you are our greatest asset, and so as. We blowing the roof off this place, Okay, I just typically do you blow the roof off the place with worship songs. I don't know. That just it seems like a weird kind of a weird like we blow the roof off the place. It's like, you know, I don't know, like something you would hear at a electronic dance festival or like, I don't know, a rock concert they blew the roof off the place. I don't know. It just seems an interesting description for worship. But okay, talk to student leaders. Even as we talk to several music faculty, it's like, how can we actually use our students who are preparing for a career in music or are going to be the future leaders in church music all around?

40:32 Now? Actually, okay, I've made a little fun at the term, but that's actually a good idea. If you've got students on campus who are in the music department and they're being trained to possibly be the new song leaders, praise and worship leaders they're going to go into a few well, then yeah, if give them the chance to use their talents and their abilities right there in chapel, that's a great I mean, that's that's a great idea because they're getting the ability to get better at what they're doing so, when they then leave the university to go to a church or wherever, they can step right in and immediately begin to help and prove that church's worship or whatever the case may be. Even if they don't enter in as a job, they can, even if they're just a member at a church, they can immediately volunteer and make the situation better. So, yeah, that's great. I love that.

41:18 That's great. Now again, I would really like to know what would chapel look like on most of these Christian university campuses if it wasn't mandatory. Now, by making it mandatory, you do give them an audience in which to then lead in worship. If you remove the mandatory part, they could be leading worship to five people. So then but then if they if the people don't show up, do what. Yes, I'm conflicted. I'm conflicted, all right. But that's a good idea. I love that's that's a great idea. On the world literally, and so we wanted to tap into that even from the chapel platform. And so different days we'll kind of have different formats. So we'll have music teams some days and choirs. If you sing an acchoir, you'll be singing some days. We'll still have some song leaders and piano other days. So that's going to be kind of one of those changes. Just using more student led music awesome.

42:12 One of the other things that we thought of and heard from students was more videos. So, for instance, my daughters came last year. I think on Monday, Bob Jenes Academy would join BJU. This year, it's going to be on Wednesday, and I said, you know, what are some suggestions you have for chapel and they said number one, less organ music, and then number two they said, we what's that thing? They speed read like, we don't even we don't even know it. And so I was like, oh, the creed. And some of us come from churches that don't have a creed. Others of you go to a church that do have a confession, a historic confession or creed credo in Latin just means I believe. And so I think it is very important that we think about what we believe, we think about the creed as we say it. So we're going to try to start having videos to help us kind of slow down and think about the meaning of the creed. In many parts of the world, what you believe as a Christian can cost you your friends, your family, or even your life. My baby brother, Luke is a cross cultural worker in Africa with his family, his five little boys and his wife are actually headed back there today. So we'll say some tearful goodbyes and see them maybe in another two years, but ask him to lead us in the Creed and kind of introduce why is the Creed so important to us as Christians?

43:37 Okay, so this is interesting. The people want more video? Do you need video in chapel service? I mean, do it to students? Watch enough videos? They need video in chapel So I'm not I'm not so down with that again. Ah all right, but the Creed? Okay, now this is the history Bob. If you don't know, Bob Jones University has a Creed. Now I'm somewhat conflicted on this as well. Why would Bob Jones University create a creed when Christianity has been given one of the most significant historical documents and all of Christiandom, which is the Apostles Creed. Why wouldn't you use the Apostles Creed? I think Creed should be used everywhere, every church, every Christian school, homeschool every I mean, Christians need to know the creeds. I think we have three that are absolutely phenomenal. Right, even if you have an issue with a one point here or there, but the Apostles creed, the Nicene creed, and the Athenacious creed or the Athenician creed. Everyone should know those three creeds.

44:47 Everyone should know them. We could go to the cal Calcedonian definition, we could do that. I mean, there's other things we could we could look at, but I mean those three right there are absolutely instrumental in the history of Christianity. To me had gone with the Apostles creed. But well, let's listen to the Bob Jones. They're gonna use a video here, which is kind of weird. Why wouldn't you just have someone stand there and say, okay, here's the creed. We think the creed is absolutely instrumental, so we're gonna be using the creed in chapel. They go to a video of someone explaining the creed. Couldn't you just have someone I don't understand the video thing. Does it change because well there's a person up there talking.

45:28 Oh wait, now there's a video screen and I get to watch someone talk like I I'm not. I don't that's kind of I'm a little conflicted on it. But let's listen to what they say about the Creed. Hey, good morning. My name is Luke Crockett, and my family and I live and minister on a small island off the coast of East Africa. And the reality is that in many parts of the world and many other countries, to publicly proclaim these core doctrinal truths that we affirm in the Creed risk to bring persecution isolation. I remember baptizing a young mother who saved out of Islam and joined our church, And when we went to do the baptism, I thought maybe she would want to be baptized in another village on the other side of the island, where where not many people knew her. And she said, no, I want to be baptized in my home village so that my family and my friends can publicly see my declaration to follow Jesus Christ. But it cost her dearly.

46:33 Her mother, her sister whom she lived with, says you're dead to us. Her husband ended up leaving her and her four children. But sadly, that is a reality in many parts of the world. Right now, we have a young man seventeen years old. He wants to get baptized, but his dad is forbidding it, saying it will bring dishonor and shame to our family. The truths that we affirm in the Creed are so important because they're relevant. They're relevant to every culture, to every nationality, to every language, to every generation. So I'd invite you now to recite with me the vju Creed. I believe in the inspiration of the Bible, both the Old and the New Testaments, the creation of man by the dread factor of God, the incarnation of virgin birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. His identification as to son of God is vicarious atonement for the sins of mankind by the sheddingest blood across the resurrection of his body from the tube.

47:37 His power is save men from sin, the new birth to the regeneration by the Holy Spirit, and the gift by eternal life by the. Grace of God. I hope every. Said, I'm not understanding the use of the video. Why the video you get to be like, hey, the Creed is super and other cultures to publicly professor faith could lead to pain suffering, maybe even death. There are stories, and I know someone who has this story. You could say that and then say, here's the creed. Let's say it. If you could not hear that because you had the video playing and then the students citing it, and of course they weren't synced up because it's a video. Okay, all right, but here we go. Here's the creed, the Bob Jones creed. We believe in the inspiration of the Bible, both the Old and the New Testaments. That's awesome. The creation of man by the direct act of God, that's awesome.

48:36 The incarnation and virgin birth of our Lord and Savior of Jesus Christ, that's awesome. His identification as the son of God, his identification as the son of God or okay, I don't know. I don't like that identify he was the son of God, the eternal son of God, all right. His vicarious atonement for the sins of mankind by the shedding of his blood on the cross, the resurrection of his body from the two, his power to save men from sin. I wish he would have had more about imputed righteousness. But okay, the new birth through the regeneration by the Holy Spirit and the gift of eternal life by the grace of God. That is the Bob Jones University Creed. Now the Apostles Creed, which is the one I would think you should go with, is this. I believe in God the Father, Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.

49:24 I believe in Jesus Christ, his only son, our Lord, who was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilot, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. I don't remember. Some translations would be he descended into hell, but he descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven. He is seated at the right hand of the Father and will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of Saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life ever lasting. Ah men, Now the are very different. Now the Apostles Creed is shaped in a Trinitarian form.

50:06 Right. I believe in God the Father, I believe in Jesus Christ, and I believe in the Holy Spirit. It's trinitarian and structure. The Bob Jones Creed does not mention the Trinity in any way, shape or form, and so yeah, but okay, that's the Creed, all right, Awesome, So they want to use videos and I guess they want to do more with the Creed. No major hostsale changes here. Let's see if they say any more. I wanted to go through the like I was going to compare and contrast. I was going to go through the compare and contrast the Bob Jones Creed with the Apostles Creed and kind of go through the history and all of that. But this has taken much longer than I thought. Let's see what else is going on at chapel at Bob Jones University.

50:54 The time we come to worship in Chapel and we recite that Creed that we will think about the meaning, We're actually going to have a contest. So any of our visual storytelling majors or graphic design majors, or just really any student. I know we have a lot of creatives in a liberal arts university like this, We'd love for you to kind of imagine the Creed and put it in video and we'll have a contest and use those in chapel throughout the semester. At this time, I'm going to ask Marina Rodriguez to come and join Pastor Jerial and me, and she is a senior criminal justice major, and she's going to talk about using a journal. Would you welcome Marina with me?

51:37 All right? So she comes and talks about journals, and it looks like they're handing out journals. So it sounds like what they want is on certain days of chapel they want everyone to bring a physical Bible, which is great. I think that's awesome. Bring a physical Bible and a physical journal. So they really want people coming to chapel to to take notes, to open a Bible and to take notes again, which I don't understand. But then later on they say, really what they the goal of it? And they kind of say this later on that the goal of chapel is not really seminary. It's not like it's not to go deep. It's a spiritual pep rally. It's a spiritual pep rally. So they see chapel more as a spiritual pep rally, which I'm like, okay. So it's a mandatory pep rally. They want you to bring a Bible, they want you to take notes. You're already have a Bible in taking notes in your classes. It's just I don't quite understand it. So I did a little work here on a little bit of like what this I've got, like the history of chapel services and all and the evolution of them over time. Now, the purpose of chapel services, I look for what many would classify. Why do you have chapel services at a Christian institution? You can tell me what you think. The first one listed that I have here is spiritual formation. Chapel services are designed to foster the spiritual growth of students, providing them with opportunities for worship, prayer, and reflection. They aim to nurture a

53:08 Christ centered worldview and encourage personal faith development. But what is the rest of the school doing. What is all of your courses doing. Aren't the rest of your courses trying to help you mature in Christ giving you a Christ centered worldview and encouraging personal faith development? Does the chapel do something different than your classes? Now, someone say, well, the classes are academic, But well, if you're telling me to come to chapel and have a physical Bible and a pencil or a pen and a notebook and take notes in a roundabout way doing the same thing. Aren't the pastors who the speakers speaking? Aren't they going to give and outline even though you say, well, it's not as in depth, is it not? In reality? Kind of the same thing. Community building chapel services are a unifying element within Christian colleges. Bringing together students, faculty, and staff were a shared experience. This fosters a sense of community and belonging among participants. Aren't they already together in class?

54:12 Aren't they already together in the in the dining room. Aren't they already together in the student whatever it is student union building? Aren't they already together in other activities? Do they have to come to chapel night? Well, now now we're together and even here, and when they talk about this, they're going to talk about their groups and they're going to sit in groups on certain days, so that you're sitting with your friends. Well, you're already hanging out with your friends. Don't you live in a dormitory with all kinds of other people? Don't you have like I don't understand how so so far spiritual formation. I don't see how Chapel's going to add to the spiritual formation already going on. Community building. I don't see how it's going to add any more community building to already what's going on. Third, Educational and integration. Educational integration services often compliment the academic curriculum by integrating theological teachings, ethical reflections, and discussions on Christian living. They can provide practical applications of biblical principles being taught in the classroom. Now, I guess you could do this. The whoever's speaking in chapel could be like, okay, we're in the second week in how many here are taking this class? Or because you know, like you know all the classes pretty much. I don't know how you could do it, but you could take something from one of the classes and say, now here's a practical application from what you're learning. I guess if you could do that, you take the curriculum, you look at everyone's curriculum and say, okay, I'm going to take a practical lesson from that. I'm going to make a practical lesson from that. I guess you could do that.

55:45 But I think in many cases the professors are already doing that right, So, I know, educational integration, but it sounds like it's still educational. You're gonna I don't know next. Exposure to diverse perspectives. Guest speakers from various Christian traditions, backgrounds and ministries are often invited to speak. This exposes students to a wide range of perspectives and encourages broader understanding within the Christian faith. I completely reject that you're not going to get a wide range of perspectives because typically no school is going to bring in someone to speak in chapel who doesn't agree with the core teachings of that university already. They're simply going to reinforce the teachings that are already there. They're not going to be challenging or offering a unique perspective, at least I don't think so. Encouraging Christian service and mission, chunpel services frequently highlight themes of service, missions and social justice, motivating students to engage in community service and consider their roles in the broader mission of the church. I don't know about that.

56:51 Worship and devotion chapel services provide a regular space for worship and devotion, often featuring music, scripture, reading, sermons, and other forms of worship. They often break from the academic routine and a time of dedicated spiritual focus. Okay, maybe I think you would have to really structure it in a much more like what could we do and to make this as a spiritual experience. I hate to say experiential, because again, the highest form of worship is the teaching of God's word. That okay, maybe you could do something with that one. And then they just go on and say chapel remains a significant aspect of the identity and mission of Christian universities and Bible colleges, continuing to adapt to meet the spiritual needs of each new generation of students.

57:35 I don't know, I don't know, I don't well, let's listen to a little bit of this and we'll just wrap it up because I don't know what else to say. I want you to hear what's going on now. Now here's what I want you to do again. I want you to follow every one of these schools on the sermon's two point oh Ambassador College a Southwestern theological seminary. I can't remember all of them. I think Puritan Reforms seminaries on there. Bob Jones University. You find the school and follow them. Most of what you're going to hear is chapel services. That's mostly what you're going to hear. Now, you listen to those chapel services and then you formulate in your mind how radically different than that would be from class.

58:27 Thank you, doctor Crockett. I was really excited when I got the invitation to speak in chapel, but I was definitely like freaking out because. It was a very short notice. So if you all would just bear with me, I'm just gonna pretend it's like just me and these gentlemen. When we announced in student Leadership that we were doing John ten ten for the Student Verse, I was so excited. That verse is such an encouragement to me. The fact that God not only gives life, but gives life abundantly is so incredible. It's such an incredible truth, and the Word of God is alive. And I think that's something that I tend to forget when I come in every day and I get to hear it over and over again, I can tend to become numb to things that are incredible and amazing. This summer, I actually wasn't in a Christian environment like I typically am with camp and everything.

59:20 I worked as a waitress and I was interning at a police department, both very secular environments, and I just realized how much I craved being with a body of believers and how much the word can change you when you're under it. Journaling is something that was so important. For Okay, once again, I just I'm not a fan of oh Man. I was in the secular environment. I couldn't wait to get back to around oh nothing but Christians I'm not. I just don't under it's the world that's sick. It's the world that supposedly needs to we need to be there. I don't understand it. I don't nderstand don't understan like I understand that's a common refrain within Christians that they need to be around Christians. I always found it more interesting to be around lost people and have cool, interesting conversations, where Christians is typically never ending debate and argument because you can't agree on anything.

1:00:16 But that's my own that's my own take. But okay, but now this is interesting. So they're at the first Chapel, we haven't really done much. We've got a little bit of information, we've recited the Creed and now, okay, journaling. If you've been a Christian, I mean, I'm assuming if you're going to a Christian university, you came from some church background. Right. What Christian who's ever gone to church for more than five minutes don't know about journaling or a notebook like I mean, I mean to me, I mean, nobody had to say the word journaling. I became a Christian about a notebook, Like, nobody had to say you need a notebook. I bought a notebook because I know when they're preaching, they're making points, so I'm assuming they want me to write them down so that I can remember them. Nobody had to tell me to take notes.

1:01:08 It was like they're giving a presentation. I didn't know. Maybe I didn't know if it was called a sermon, but they're they're preaching, they're opening a book, they're reading, they're giving me references, they're giving cross references, and in many cases they're giving me three points or four points. So nobody had to tell me. I immediately bought a notebook so I could write down sermon notes. Nobody had to tell me that, oh wait, I'm gonna read and study my Bible. Well, you can't really study unless you're write. You gotta write, You got you gotta process, you gotta think. Okay, all right, so all right, then I would buy Christian books. Well, if I got a Christian book, I need to be taking notes on what I'm reading. Then I would listen to Christian radio and here a messages. Well I gotta take notes. So you come to university and you got to be talked about journaling, and I don't unders like who doesn't have a notebook? Is anyone? Was anyone a Christian for any length the time? It didn't possess a notebook.

1:01:56 It didn't own a notebook and take notes. Now, I guess now may maybe at night, now that I think about it, I get I guess now I could be wrong. I could be wrong, but I think typically it's maybe Is it typically women who take notes and it's the men who don't. I don't know. Let's see what she has to say about journally. For me, when I started as a freshman, you forget a lot of your freshman year. Like I was sitting here looking at all the freshmen coming in, I was like, wow, like I forgot the excitement, and you forget a lot of the memories like I was just looking at you know, you forget how many freshmen you meet and just like the random people, and you also forget some of the lessons you get to learn. Coming in a whole new place and environment and looking back at old journals, old times that I interacted with the word was just such an encouragement. I've been going through the Pentateuke and the Israelites are so much like us a lot of times, and you look at them and you're like, you saw God part the Red Sea and you saw him, you know, come down from the mountain and you saw what you provide.

1:03:02 And how do you forget who God is? And yet I come into chapel and I forget, like how incredible the word is and how it can affect me. And I get to look at the evidence I've written down of the words that have been brought to mine, small things like like even the songs that we sing. It's such. Now, that's an interesting argument for journaling, so that you can look back at your journals. I am curious how many people who keep journals or notebooks look back. To me. It's not about looking back to me. The reason you have a journal is you see more when you write more, you understand more when you I take your I keep.

1:03:47 I write not to look back later, but I write so that I can see in the present. It's not about so in the future I can look back and so that in the present I can see. Your pencil is your greatest a right. The way to see is through the pencil, not through your physical eye, but through the pencil. Because you have to take and when you write, you have to your brain has to process. You have to think. So you right to remember, you're right to see, your right to understand, your right to process. I don't think you write so that you can look back in your journal. I mean, what are you gonna do look back and go, oh, tonight, I'm gonna read my journal from you know, three years ago. I just I don't.

1:04:29 I don't think that that's necessarily the practical reason. You're right for the present benefit. You don't write so that you can look back. It may be fun to look back sometimes and go what in the world was sinking? Sometimes I will see an old notebook and look through it and go, what in the world was wrong with me, okay, but I was seeing what I was seeing at the time, and now I see what I see at the time. So I guess it's interesting to see the development over time. I don't know. Much encouragement to come in and be having like a difficult day and we're singing still mysel so and I will write that down and journ all that down and be like, wow, God, like you know, I needed that song or you know. A couple Bible conferences ago, we went through Ecclesiastes, and I remember this speaker wrote in Ecclesiastes three eleven. He spoke specifically that God makes all things beautiful in their time. And I had just received some really difficult family news and I was really grieving, and I was just interacting with the scriptures like God, I don't understand how you do this. And I remember looking back at that and be like, wow, God has made all things beautiful in its time and it's so e.

1:05:36 Oh boy. His Ecclesiastes three eleven. Again, this is this very devotional minded approach to scripture. Someone reads a scripture and you just immediately apply it to your situation, and God's going to make all things beautiful. God's going to make all things beautiful. That's why I was said in a church where there were two kids who watched their mother. Who these kids were, and I don't think there were even ten years of age. There were two brothers and they watched their mother die of cancer. They made all He made all things beautiful. Now could they have a grabbed onto Ecclesiastes? Now someone says, well in heaven, okay, well, then make sure you clarify that. And is that even the point of what Solomon is saying in Ecclesiastes. There's so much But again there's this always like just the scriptures speaks to me. The scripture speaks to me. The scripture speaks to me. This scripture may not be about we've got to be careful how we apply things, all right, okay, but all right, so I'm trying to get I'm trying to get where they're going here.

1:06:44 Encouraging to see that. And just as the Israelites had to put up memorials of God's faithfulness, I think joenerally is such a unique experience of being able to remember how faithful God is because we are so forgetful. Okay, now that I've heard that, that's a pretty good one. Israel set up memorial stones so they could remember, and that in our journal we can write things down so we can remember. Okay, I think again, I still think the process of journaling is for the present, not to look back. It's to see now, to think now, to process now. But okay, it's a different approach, but that's okay again. I just find it interesting at a Christian university you have to talk about journaling because I would think any of these kids have gone to church for five seconds knows about the importance. I mean, what was the youth group doing. Didn't you teach them about taking notes and how to take sermon notes and how to do exegetical studies and Bible study methods and church summary or chapter summary method, topical method, theyll thematic method, biographical method.

1:07:46 I mean, what in the world were they doing in youth group. As people? Awesome, thank you so much, Marina. The ushers are going to come at this time and give everyone a journal. And this is again something I did as a student because I didn't have a phone back then. But it's been so amazing to go back through and look at sermons that I heard as a student at Morningside, student lessons that I learned at Bible conferences here at BJU, And so we are going to encourage all of our students to bring a paper Bible Tuesday and Wednesday when we'll have preaching guest preachers coming in. So on Tuesday, that's when we're going to have pastors from town or pastors from out of state come in and preach to us.

1:08:38 And then also on Wednesday, when we'll be going through the Book of Ecclesiastes in depth. And this will be an opportunity for us to take out our journal, take out a paper Bible. If you forget your paper Bible, we will have some available in the lobby as you come in. I didn't realize how often I forget a paper Bible when I go to church because I always had an office at church, so I would just go to my office and pick up my preaching Bible. So now even when I go to church at Morningside, I have to often go to Loss and Bound and find a pay per Bible. Because I do like the idea of encouraging a physical Bible. I still am very much a supporter of the concept I think we look at mobile devices, phones, tablets fifty hours a day. I know that's hyperbole, and so I think whenever it comes to time to read or study, I will use the blue Letter Bible app to look up Hebrew, Greek, that kind of thing, or maybe do some kind of cross reference. But I try to set that to the side and then describe a notebook, a physical notebook, physical pencil, physical bible, because I still want it to feel unique. I still want it to feel different. Now, there was a day picking up a physical Bible was no different than picking up a physical book, and I was always touching physical books. But in our culture today, now what can really make it counter cultural and unique is it's a physical bible, physical notebook, physical pencil or pen And I think then we can try to at least preserve, Hey, we're doing something different than what we

1:10:11 typically do. So I'm glad they're encouraging. That I've forgotten my paper Bible. So we're going to encourage us to focus. Not that this is a phone and free zone, but when we come to the preaching of God's word, that we take out a paper bible, a journal, and I would encourage you to write down at least one thing that you learned every Tuesday, every Wednesday in chapel. Maybe it's a slide, maybe it's just something that the Holy Spirit's using in your own heart to write down the thought, write down the sermon outline, and then in Thursday, on Thursday when we have d group, this is an opportunity where your gl will go around and ask everybody to pull out your journal and just share something that you learned this week in chapel.

1:10:56 So now I do love the idea that in the group you'll talk about what you learned in chapel. I do love that. Now. At the same time, again, it's filling a somewhat mandatory. You're being put on the spot. You must show up and basically now you must take notes, so that you're going to be checked. Possibly. Now I'm not saying that there's any consequences if you don't take any notes, but you're going to feel really awkward if they go around the room, Hey what did you learn? I didn't learn anything in chapel. I didn't take any notes because I think the whole thing is stupid. Okay, well, obviously you're not going to be able to do that, so I think it kind of forces conformity, right, couldntform or be cast out? Kind of idea. Again, I'm not a fan of that, but okay, so.

1:11:38 We hope that this is an investment that will be worth it as you look back, that you'll have something written down of what God was doing in your heart. Any other thoughts, Pastor jerryl about paper bibles or journals. I think that sounds great. I'm excited to do this with you if I can remember to bring my Bible. But this will be great, awesome, all right, at this time, I'm okay, we'll stop there. That's what's going on. School's in the air. I want you monitoring, listening to what's going on in Christian universities. It's just kind of I mean, they broadcasted it, they posted it, they posted it, so they I mean, you know, I don't know, I don't really know what we kind of got from that, but we got the creed. So you now know the Bob Jones University Creed. You know that.

1:12:25 All right? You can say what you think about that. Again, I think the Apostles creed is just the apostles. Creed connects you to church history, connects you to the history of the of two thousand years of Christian history, the Apostles creed has been used and used and used and used and used. So to me, I would want to use a creed that connects us to the broader history of christiandom than one that I think was. I think the Bob Jones University creed was created somewhere in the twentieth century. I don't know the exact year, and it just seems like a more modern one. So I like the connection to history because well because as well. Then yeah, and I think the Apostles is trinitarian. I don't know. I think there's some things there, but there you go.

1:13:08 I don't really journaling great. I mean again, I'm somewhat confused by that. Like I mean, if you go to church, I mean, who goes to church without a notebook? I like, if I'm at a church and I look around and people don't have a notebook or a Bible, I am utterly completely baffled and confused. I am, and I've called out with Before I became a pastor, I called out people on that. In fact, I was supposed to become the associate pastor at a church in Bellevue, Nebraska, and on pastor appreciation night, I was supposed to give like a little fifteen minute message and where you're supposed to say where the pastor is great? And I read and I follow a template and I said, forget the template. Hey, you know what you will? Guys want pastor appreciation by going downstairs and having a cake and saying some nice things.

1:13:57 That's all ridiculous. If you really want to appreciate the pastor, here's a novel idea. Show up on time for church and walk in here with a Bible and notebook. Because many of you walk in here with no Bible, no notebook, You walk up late, you show no appreciation to the pastor, no respect to God's word, and it's absolutely ridiculous. Well, the church did not appreciate that, and my chance to be hired as the associated pastor was over, and my entire life took a turn because I went off. I'm like, we're gonna go play little oopastor appreciation because we're gonna have a little cake and a little pot luck. It's just ridiculous. It's surface if you really want to appreciate. And because where my classroom was on Sunday mornings, I taught the singles, and there was windows that overlooked the parking lot, so I would see everyone walking in a lot of times the singles showed up late. So I was sitting there just watching people walk in no bible, no notebook. And I was like, what is even the point you're coming to church? Who comes to church without a Bible in a notebook? Someone? Please tell me why.

1:14:56 It's like going to I'm gonna go play basketball, but nobody's gonna bring a basket. I'm gonna go play football, No one's gonna bring a football. You go to church, you have a Bible and a notebook? Why? Because you're there to hear the preaching of God's word. And if God's words being preached is important, You're gonna want to write it down so that there's a possibility you may remember it more than five minutes after church. Okay. And when early on in my church, we gave all the kids a little notebook. We called it FBI notebook, Faithful Bible Investigators FBI Notebooks. We gave out to all the kids and we said, and I told the parents, this is not about forcing them, this is not about punishing them. We just want to encourage them, to teach them how to use a notebook and how to take sermon notes. That doesn't they can do it all kinds.

1:15:45 They can be creative. Let them come up with their own way that they just get a couple of the points down. This is not to be a punishment thing, a negative thing, a force thing, mandatory thing, but we want to encourage that, Hey, what's being preached is important, write it down, listen, because I will own help them. When they go to school or if they go to college, they're gonna have to take notes. So it's kind of weird. Hey, I know all those kids are taking notes in their classes, but you got to encourage them to have a journal and take notes in church and chapel service. Like I don't get it, Like I sometimes Christianity, I'm just I look at it and I'm like, I'm just so confused. Who goes to church without a Bible in a notebook? Like I don't even know. Nobody even had to tell me that. And it's not And I'm not saying that because I'm spiritual has nothing to do about being spiritual.

1:16:31 There are people who are more spiritual and more godly who don't bring a Bible and don't bring a notebook. Bringing in a Bible in a notebook does not guarantee you'll be spiritual or godly. It just means you're going to be well informed and you're trying to learn, and you're trying to study. It doesn't mean you're going to be more godly. It just may means you become more knowledgeable. More knowledgeable does not eat equal more godly. Let's make that very clear. There are people who are not very knowledgeable but are more godly than I've ever been in my entire life. Right by no means am I saying that makes me more spiritual in any way, shape or form. I just don't understand. You're a university. You got to try to get the kids to bring a journal and write something down like I don't understand that. But then they're mandatorially there. They're made to be there, so then maybe they don't If they don't want to be there, then they don't want to bring a Bible or not.

1:17:21 But now you got to bring a Bible and a notebook and take notes and be prepared in your group to be asked what you learned. But that's chapel service. What do you think about chapel services on Christian universities. Again, someone's going to misconstrue this. It's not a criticism of Bob Jones University. It's not Christian universities everywhere do this. I'm just using their discussion since it was in my feed, as an opportunity for us to discuss the broader topic of chapel services creeds journaling. Right, Bob Jones University is not the focus here. Bob Jones University is not the focus here. Bob Jones University is not the focus here.

1:18:04 Because someone's going to get ticked off at me. And I'm not criticizing. They can do their school anyway they want. It's their school. I'm just looking at it from a theological perspective about mandatory chapel services, chapel services in general. What should they be for, what's the benefit of them, what's the use of them, How should this work? What? That's all I'm discussing. All right, thanks for listening everyone, have a great day. God bless