Most of you know I am passionate about genealogy. I was spending some time Monday reconstructing an early family from Lebanon County, Pennsylvania. One early census recorded this man, Abraham Zug (pronounced Zook), as a ‘Preacher’. So I went on through the census records to learn more and he was always listed as a Farmer.

Later in life I found him living with an adult son, who was listed as a ‘Minister of the Gospel’. So I went deeper yet, studying the Lebanon County History and found they were both part of the Church of the Brethren branch known as the Dunkers. The Dunkers, of course, believed in water baptism by immersion, thus the moniker. They were also apparently pretty legalistic.

It seems the Dunker church in Lebanon County was founded by two men, Abraham Zug and one other. It seems the other man fell into sin, whatever that was. At first he confessed to the sin, but then denied it. Since he denied the sin, the church refused to allow him to attend. He was excommunicated and it rocked that local church to the core. I wonder if there was more to the story than meets the eye. A little politics in the old church?

How difficult we sometimes make it for sinners to come to Christ and find grace for their lives. Are you making it simple or difficult for those on the journey?

Tags: forgiveness, sin