I stopped to see what he was saying. And he was making fun of the “Campbellites.” Well, I didn’t know anything about Alexander Campbell, but I knew that we [members of the church of Christ] were sometimes called “Campbellites” in those days. So, I stopped long enough to see what he was saying about the Campbellites that was so funny! One thing he said was that, we were so narrow minded that [a fly? a gnat?] could sit on the bridge of our nose and kick both eyes out with but one foot. That’s pretty narrow minded.

And why are we so narrow minded? Because we believe that you have to be baptized in order to be saved! Everybody was laughing. I looked up to see who all these people were that were laughing. There were some men that I’d been seeing in church waiting on the Lord’s table—the men that I’d been seeing in church leading public prayer. And they were laughing right along with all the others.

That disturbed me!! I thought, “Why doesn’t one of these men stand up for the Truth?!? Why doesn’t somebody speak up?!? ”And he went on with his tirade against us. I couldn’t stand it any longer, and I went up there, and I said, “If you think we’re so narrow minded and if you think we don’t have to be baptized, what are you going to do with Mark 16:16?” Well, he didn’t know what it said. I quoted it to him. He just laughed. He thought it was funny. And then, I said, “Well, what do you think about Acts 2:38?” He didn’t know what it said, either, so I quoted it to him. And that was funnier than the other one, and they all laughed. And I thought, “Well, I’m not doing any good here.”

[NOTE: There was a problem with the microphone. The transcriber/editor has tried to recall what Brother Lyon said during the time the microphone was out of order.]

Apparently, Brother Lyon went to the preacher of his congregation and told him what had happened. He told the preacher that he felt he hadn’t done the cause any good and asked the preacher to prepare him more fully to meet the “regular comedian” the next Saturday when that man came along. Brother Lyon told the preacher that he was going to speak up for God. The preacher told Brother Lyon that he knew what had happened. Brother Lyon did prepare and went to meet the “comedian”—the charismatic preacher—but he was not there. Brother Lyon says, “He was afraid who I might bring with me next Saturday, or some Saturday, if he was going to be there.”

[NOTE: The microphone is now adjusted, and the Bible lesson continues.]

So, the preacher said to me, “Well now, you prepared for him and he didn’t show up any more. He was not there. Now, what are you going to do?”

I said, “I tell you what I’m going to do. I’m going to be prepared. I’m going to prepare myself so that any time, whenever or wherever I meet a fella of his kind, I’m going to be ready for him. I won’t have go to away and study, and then come back, and he’ll be gone. I’ll be prepared.”

So he said, “Well, you preach next Sunday night at the congregation.” Well, that shocked me to death, but that’s when I preached my first sermon, and I preached there thereafter.

Forty…years…passed . I had the flu. That didn’t happen to me very many times back in those days. I had the flu, and I had to stay at home from worship. My wife went on and taught the class she was involved in, and I wrapped up in a robe and went into the den, and was going to get a program on TV. And…………………… guess…who…was…on? There he was. It wasn’t the same man, but it was his kind. It was Jimmy Swaggart, and Jimmy Swaggart, you know, in the height of his glory back in those days, he would choose a church, some kind of church, and make fun of it all through his program. He would say to the people, “If you don’t like what I’m saying, you can turn your TV off!”

Well, I didn’t turn my TV off, but I thought, “Why…doesn’t…somebody…speak up and SAY something? Why…don’t…we…have a nationwide program that speaks UP and SAYS something?!? ” We had had—and we still had in some areas— a program called “Amazing Grace” with Ira North, an excellent program. In some places, they had access to “Herald of Truth,” but we didn’t have access to it. And so, why doesn’t somebody…? A lot of good churches in that area; a lot of good preachers in that area—much larger churches [congregations of the Lord’s church], and much better preachers than I, but…nobody’s saying anything—just as quiet as a church mouse.

That bothered me. Why…doesn’t…somebody…speak up and say something about the Gospel, the Truth?!? If we think we have the Truth , why don’t we say something about it out where it can be heard ?!?

I wrestled with that…and prayed about it…until Spring came, and I was in a meeting in March. I was staying with an elder, in their home, upstairs. I was preparing my sermon for that night. I was praying, and I prayed about this situation about TV. I went downstairs, and I said, “If you have arranged for me a place to eat at lunchtime, please cancel it, because I have some business I must take of.”

I went to the nearest TV station to our place and bought some time—a 52-week contract. It took us a good little while to get that—[from March to the] 1^st of August as a matter of fact. I signed a 52-week contract with that station for some kind of a TV program in which we preached the Gospel. I hadn’t even told the elders about it.