by: Dr. Bruce Goddard
The title seems deeply foolish, but let me explain.
Recently, as in the past, we find mockers who act as if you are so stupid for fussing over little things. One recently mocked the lines some have over-pleated culottes or non-pleated. Let me add to that, how about the foolishness of fussing over the hemline, two inches below the knee or two above, or how about six inches below or six inches above. I mean, they are just foolish lines only the ignorant fight over. By the way, whatever your line, have one. I don’t mind your line differing from mine, but be man enough to say where right ends and wrong begins.
Let’s make this more clear, was his foot touching the three point line or not, I mean, it is only an inch or two difference, why is everyone fighting over that? Honestly, why fuss over the goal line, really, it is only a few inches one way or another, why are you fighting over if he crossed the line or not?
Don’t let someone mock you for standing somewhere, for if you are not standing somewhere you are not standing at all. The guy who mocks your stand, has none. The guy who laughs loudest at your fussing over a line between right and wrong has a youth department that does not understand right and wrong. If you have no line, then you have no line and anything goes.
As kids we heard stories of one boy provoking another to a fight saying something like,”Step over that line.”
We hear parents and even law enforcement personnel who have said things like, “They have crossed the line.”
There are of course property lines, state lines and national lines, all of which change jurisdiction of authorities not to 
mention tax laws, speed limits, commerce and much more. One of my neighbors has his fence slowly curve and eventually take twenty feet of my property. Now ask again why we fuss over lines? You bought the Devil’s line of stupid thinking, and the price was too high. We all understand there are lines in life.
In church circles I use to face the worldly churches, the rock and roll or praise and worship churches who argued with my “legalistic ideas.” People in these evangelical churches or “Come as you are, leave as you were churches” didn’t like the fact that I preached on music, dress, movies, dances etc. They felt it was wrong I drew lines between right and wrong.
What is sad is that we recently visited a well known Baptist church where the pastor said something like this, “We cannot put manmade rules or lines about right and wrong about the beat of music or dress or other things in the same category as the Bible.”
Wow! Did that ever sound like the praise and worship, rock and roll, evangelical churches of the last decade. I was not bothered by the last decade’s evangelicals, though that is what they are, they never did stand for separation. What are we coming to when Baptists of today are borrowing the compromising logic of yesterday’s evangelicals?
Lets help today’s Baptists see themselves in the mirror as I tried the last decade with the contemporary churches.
Is there no line on dress? Of course there is! We would not let someone naked walk into our services. So, we do have a line. We may be too cowardly to say where it is, but there is a line. There is a skirt length that any preacher would eventually say is “too short.”
What about music? Would we allow Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift or Rihanna sing in our church? Maybe some would allow it if it got their crowd bigger, but most of our Baptist brethren would not. So there is a line somewhere that they won’t cross. Wow! These shameful manmade lines! I cannot believe how heretical some preachers can be.
There are lines in music, dress, movies, dating and all kinds of activities. Even the public schools have some lines, though so far down the value list of morality that few notice the line exists.
When a preacher criticizes someone having a line, what he is really doing is trying to make his compromise seem more acceptable. He probably had standards at one time and is now shifting the sands in hopes of not offending people in order to build his crowd. He does not want to look like a compromiser. He still wants to be accepted in his Baptist circles and desires to look fundamental, but in reality he is nothing more than the last decades Evangelical.
Dr. Hyles told the story of a church he preached in every year for over 20 years. One day the preacher stood up and apologized for pushing the people too hard. He said he was wrong to push soul winning, standards, and separation. He also never invited Brother Hyles back. I visited that once great church and was shocked at the dead spirit and empty pews. I wonder what happened to the exciting, vibrant ministry that was once there? That is not hard to see. Hey! Why play ball, if the guy keeps changing where the boundary lines are. I’ll go elsewhere to play where the lines are clear, be it a shoe there and a t-shirt here, and the old tree at the end of the field, but we all played with lines.
Brother Hyles told the story of meeting with Southern Baptist officials at a cafeteria. His church was the fastest growing and most popular in the convention. The summary of the meeting was that he needed to stop naming sin. He could preach against it, but stop naming in specifically. He in turn slammed his hands on the table and yelled that he was not for sale. That day every meeting he had been scheduled to preach at was canceled. Brother Roloff called him and said,”Bro. Jack, you’re dead ain’t you?” Brother Hyles replied, “Yes.” Brother Roloff continued, “Nobody ever got resurrected until they died.” Brother Hyles would joke, the “Three R’s” got him in trouble: Roloff, Rice, and Roberson. What it was that hurt him was the preachers who wanted a crowd without offensive lines.
Don’t be afraid of drawing some lines, you are in good company. Our choice is to associate with the compromising contemporary churches of the last two decades or the men who built our Baptist movement, Roloff, Hyles, Roberson, Rice and Norris. If you need help to explain this more on the wave length of most preachers, ask about the lines in the sweet sixteen ball games. They will understand that even if they don’t understand the Bible.
These Baptist compromisers will stand up in their living room and yell at the ref over a missed call, and if it was or was not across the line, then they will turn around and yell at you for having some lines in your convictions. Don’t let that crowd bother you. They are blind leaders of the blind. Draw your lines.
Bruce Goddard
Pastor
Faith Baptist Church
Wildomar, CA
www.thepreachersfriend.com