The Bulletin
of the
Church of Christ at New Georgia

Tim Johnson, editor

July 10, 2005

 
In This Issue:
Sobering Statistics
by Bobby Graham

Without Possibility of Parole
by Edward O. Bragwell, Sr.

 
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Sobering Statistics

   [Note: This past week I had the opportunity to hear Bobby Graham deliver a lecture on the sin of Social Drinking.  His conclusion was as follows:
1. Strong drink is a serpent in a bottle (Proverbs 23:32).
2. Strong drink is a mocker and a brawler (Proverbs 20:1).
3. The first step toward any sin, including drinking, is the one most easily avoided.

  Besides many observations from the Scriptures, Brother Graham also included the following statistics in his lecture.  Please consider them carefully and see if you don't come to the same conclusion that he did. -- Steve Klein]

  • Alcohol contributes to 100,000 deaths annually, making it the third leading cause of preventable mortality in the U.S., after tobacco and diet/activity patterns. (J. McGinnis & W. Foege, "Actual Causes of Death in the United States," Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), Vol. 270, No. 18, 11/10/93, p. 2208).

  • Among 9,484 deaths attributed to non-medical use of other drugs in 1996, 37% also involved alcohol (Annual Medical Examiner Data 1998, 7/98, p. iii).

  • More than seven percent of the population ages 18 years and older -- nearly 13.8 million Americans-- have problems with drinking, including 8.1 million people who are alcoholic.  Almost three times as many men (9.8 million) as women (3.9 million) are problem drinkers, and prevalence is highest for both sexes in the 18-to-29-years-old age group (Alcohol Health & Research World (AHRW), Vol. 18, No. 3, 1994, pp. 243, 245).

  • About 43% of U.S. adults -- 76 million people-- have been exposed to alcoholism in the family: They grew up with or married an alcoholic or a problem drinker or had a blood relative who was either an alcoholic or problem drinker (National Center for Health Statistics, Advance Data, USDHHS, No. 205, 9/30/91, p. 1).

  • 62% of high school seniors report that they have been drunk; 31% say that they have had five or more drinks in a row during the last two weeks. (LD Johnston, et. al., Monitoring the Future Study, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, 12/99)

  • People who begin drinking before age 15 are four times more likely to develop alcoholism than those who begin at age 21 (NIAAA news release, 1/14/98)

  • Nearly one-fourth of all persons admitted to general hospitals have alcohol problems or are undiagnosed alcoholics being treated for the consequences of their drinking. On average, untreated alcoholics incur general health costs at least 100% higher than those of non-alcoholics (NIAAA, Eighth Special Report, op.cit. p. xi & 259).

  • Based on victim reports, each year 183,000 (37%) rapes and sexual assaults involve alcohol use by the offender, as do just over 197,000 (15%) of robberies, about 661,000 (27%) aggravated assaults, and nearly 1.7 million (25%) simple assaults (U.S. Department of Justice, Alcohol and Crime: An Analysis of National Data on the Prevalence of Alcohol Involvement in Crime, 4/98).

  • Alcohol is typically found in the offender, victim or both in about half of all homicides and serious assaults, as well as in a high percentage of sex-related crimes, robberies and incidents of domestic violence, and alcohol-related problems are disproportionately found among both juvenile and adult criminal offenders (NIAAA, Eighth Special Report, op.cit. p. xi).

-- Bobby Graham

"Without Possibility of Parole"

    A young lady, for her part in the murder of her husband, was sentenced to life in prison "without possibility of parole". Her trial became almost a soap opera recorded by the national news media. As we followed the trial on the news and finally the verdict, we could not help but think what a waste of this attractive young school teacher's life. A young woman, younger than most of my children, now with nothing to look forward to but a life in prison without possibility of parole -- and justly so if the jury made no mistake in their judgment. What a tragedy?

  As I pondered on her fate, I thought of that countless host all around us who are under a sentence far worse than this persons' "without the possibility of parole" -- once the sentence is executed on the Great Judgment Day. Every sinner is under the sentence of eternal death because the "wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23). This death is not annihilation, but an eternity separated from God in Hell. It stands in contrast to the everlasting life given to the saved. Of course, by the mercy of God, a sinner can have this awful sentence lifted prior to his physical death and the judgment that follows (Heb. 9:27). This can be done by obedience to the gospel of Christ. (Heb. 5:8,9; 2 Thess. 1:5-9).

  Once one dies in the lost state caused by sin, his destiny is sealed "without possibility of parole." As Abraham told the rich man in Hades, "there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us." (Lk. 16:26). What an awful sentence! Eternal hell without possibility of parole.

  It will be everlasting fire without possibility of parole. (Matt. 25:41).

  It will be outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth without possibility of parole. (Matt. 25:30).

  It will be a lake of fire and brimstone without the possibility of parole. (Rev. 21:8).

  It will be a place where "the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night" without possibility of parole (Rev 14:11).

  It will be a condition far worse than physical death without possibility of parole. (Matt. 10:28; Heb. 10:29).

  As awful and sure as this sentence is, it does not have to be executed. One can believe in the Christ, repent of his sins, confess his faith in Christ and be baptized in the name of Christ and be pardoned before dying and going to hell without the possibility of parole. (Mk. 16:16; Acts 2:38; Rom. 10:10; 1 Pet. 3:21). Even the young lady convicted of murder can do this and be saved from a sentence far worse than the one she has already received. So can you.

-- Edward O. Bragwell, Sr.