For Love and For Justice / Part 130 / Zabeth and Paul Bayne

Heritage of Faithfulness

Paul and Zabeth Bayne are people of faith. You do not need to share their faith to appreciate that they are individuals who stand for something in which they believe. When I mention 'belief' I am not now even speaking about their protestation of innocence and their advocacy for justice. I am writing about their personal belief in a supreme being who manifested an earthly presence in the person of Jesus Christ the Son of God. That is formulaic for Christianity. The Baynes are Christian believers. It shouldn’t require an apology. Within our tolerance conscious society we have developed a remarkable ability to accept diverse faith systems yet curiously view Christian devotees as eccentric or odd. You and I both know that this is unreasonable and they deserve the latitude we apportion to others.

To demonstrate to you what I see when I look at the Baynes and to forecast what I believe will be the ultimate outcome of this trial, I will sketch a scenario that Paul and Zabeth do not even want to envision.

I will be glad to put this campaign to bed and that will be when Paul and Zabeth put their three children to bed in their own beds in their own home. That is what I sincerely believe will be the outcome.

If by some horrific stroke of poor judgement, this court ruled against the Baynes and awarded the children to MCFD, here is what I believe will eventually result. If the Baynes never have their children returned to them, setting aside possibilities of further legal pursuits or emotional crashes because of crushing disappointment, here is what I visualize for the Baynes. Paul’s and Zabeth’s faith will not capsize and sink. Paul and Zabeth will work at something that pays the bills but that will not be their compelling reason for living. They will be encouragers to other hurting people, providing references and resources and networking among broken hearted folks. And years will pass and children will mature and become adult. And whether or not in foster or adopted homes they are ever exposed to Christian beliefs, they will want to find Paul and Zabeth. And those children will not be disappointed with what they discover. In fact, what those children will uncover will be all the hopes and dreams that Paul and Zabeth held for their children, the memories of a few fleeting years together long ago, the fire of their devotion to serving others in all the intervening years. They will find that these parents spent their lives cheering on others, encouraging the weary and inspiring people to be true and strong. Those children will find their parents’ footprints so deeply set that following will be easy and desirable. Theirs will be a heritage of faithfulness.

It is because they are this kind of people now, that they should have their children returned to them and they will have their children returned to them.

Zabeth and Paul Bayne – Part 68 – The Bayne Campaign for Justice

GOD SENT HIS SON

Exact words are important, specially when they are scripture, and specially when it is believed that these were inspired. The New Testament was written using Aramaic Greek, and the apostle Paul who wrote a letter to the Christians in Galatia chose his words carefully. For that reason the Greek verb exapostello is significant. You will recognize the prefix ‘ex’ meaning ‘out of’ or ‘out from.’ The body of the word then sounds like apostle. An apostle like Paul was a ‘sent one.’ Apostello is the verb “I send.’ The word exapostello then means ‘sending out from’ and carries the idea of going forth from a place at which the person has been before. It is found in Galatians 4:4 which is translated, “But when the fullness of time had come. God sent forth his Son, born of a woman…” When the time was right, God sent His Son out from Himself. His Son left heaven with divine authorization.

Understanding this commissioning, the words of another text, John 1:1-2, and 14 become an inspirational revelation. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”


So we know that Jesus came from God and he did so by becoming human. But exactly how did he pull that off? By being born. This is not a reference to the beginning of his existence but to being born as a child of a woman. Jesus came a long way from his exalted position to take on this likeness of ours. An Old Testament prophet named Isaiah foresaw this and wrote, “behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” That name as you may know means, “God with us.” How profound is that?

That involvement of God in our ordinary lives is precisely what Paul and Zabeth are counting upon. Sometimes human decisions must run their course until the time is just right for the establishment of a righteous statement – a declaration of authenticity, and a broader outcome than anyone can imagine. Within three weeks a court of law will convene at which time it is believed that truth will be clearly in evidence, and that truth will set the Bayne children free to return home to their parents.

It’s Christmas Eve. May the blessing of God be your experience and Paul’s and Zabeth’s comfort tonight.

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