PIONEERS

                                                                            Pioneers

Neil McKinlay, Ontario 1956

To me the word pioneer is all about wagon trains going west to tame and settle the North American frontier. After growing up in Scotland, upon return to Canada in 1977, my home and native land, I was called a DP. ‘What’s a DP?’A friend responded, ‘A DP is a delayed pioneer!’ Seriously, I love the sense of adventure. Like the old TV Star Trek series, ‘To boldly go where no man has gone before’, pioneers are always first.

Who was the first man to walk on the moon? Neil Armstrong said in 1969, ‘One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.’ Who was the first Presbyterian elder to take Communion on the moon? Crew member Buzz Aldrin said, ‘I silently read the Bible passage [‘I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without Me’] as I took the wafer and the wine, and offered a prayer for the task at hand, and the opportunity I had been given.’ Irregular as it was, his church had given elder Aldrin special permission. What was the first Scottish tartan on the moon (different trip) in 1969? Alan Bean said in 2005, ‘I took Clan McBean Tartan to the moon and returned it to Earth.’ He donated a piece of the tartan to the Clan Macbean in Scotland.

MacBean Tartan

Who was the first man to walk on earth? Adam in 4004 BC. ‘And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being’ (Gen. 2:7). Who was first to take Communion here? The last Adam. ‘Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” And He took a cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins”’ (Matt, 26:26-28). The first tartan on earth? Joseph’s. ‘Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his sons, because he was the son of his old age. And he made him a robe of many colours’ (Gen. 37:3). Joseph’s brothers decided to add the colour of blood: ‘Then they got Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood’ (Gen. 37:31).

A bit of a stretch describing Joseph’s robe as tartan? Well, what about Armstrong, Aldrin, and Bean? Did man really land, walk, and celebrate the Lord’s Supper on the moon? Did the McBean tartan go to the moon and back? Or is it all a hoax? Indeed, some even doubt the Word of God! This is nothing new. Who pioneered unbelief by being first to doubt God’s Word? Eve, then her husband Adam. They were the pioneers of many things, including sin, rebellion, and everything that springs from it, such as false religion, autonomy of self over God, and reason over revelation. However, by eating the forbidden fruit, they were the first to pioneer death: ‘For in the day you eat of it you shall surely die’ (Gen. 2:17b). One small step for [a] man, one large leap for mankind? These pioneers brought mankind death, i.e., spiritual death (as in your spirit is dead to God), followed by physical death (your body is dead to your soul), followed by everlasting death (your soul is in torments forever). However, the good news is that there is a greater pioneer than Adam, Eve, Joseph, Armstrong, Aldrin, or Bean, yes, the resurrected Jesus.

'He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God’ (Rev. 19:13).  Jesus went to death and back, is pioneer of the new heavens and earth (Rev. 21:21), and is the One before whom all, including the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars, bow (Gen. 37:5-10; Matt. 28:16; Eph. 1:22; Phil. 2:9-11; Col. 1:16). Call on Him today!