Gunpowder in the basement

Carol and I recently returned from a wonderful trip that included many New Testament sites as well as a terrific day on the island of Rhodes, Greece. While we were there, I was reminded of a great lesson in our spiritual life through a medieval church.

The Church of St. John the Baptist, pictured above, was built in the 1300’s by the Knights Hospitaler who had settled in Rhodes after being expelled from Jerusalem. It sat right next to the Hospitaler Grand Master fortress and was a very important site, containing the graves of 6 of the 13 Grand Masters. It also contained relics from the Holy Land: a piece of the true cross; a shoe belonging to Mary; one of the 30 pieces of silver; the right hand of John the Baptist – regardless of what you think of relics, you get the picture of the importance of this church.

In 1522 the Ottomans invaded Rhodes and after bloody conflict took over the island, and the church, which they made into a mosque. They made a decision to use the basement of the church to store gunpowder – almost 700,000 pounds of it. One stormy night in 1856, a bolt of lightning hit the church – and the gunpowder – which blew the church and most of the downtown sky-high with hundreds dead.

I thought about this and decided there is something spiritual for me – for us – to learn here. For our purposes – what is gunpowder? Anything which, if touched off, would blow things sky high and hurt a lot of people. I’m not talking about silly things – they will always be with us. I’m talking about potentially dangerous things in our personal and corporate spiritual life.

There was a lot of gunpowder in the early church. False teachers; seating people by income and social standing (James); giving offerings for public show (Ananias and Saphira); church leaders like Euodia and Synteche fighting with each other; the push for Gentiles to be circumcised; the movement for Jesus plus law – and on and on…

Let me give you my takeaways to consider.

A. Gunpowder has no place piling up in our lives or in our church. Paul said: “…live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature” Galatians 5:16.  This means keeping short accounts with God. Don’t wait until evening to get things right. Don’t hold on until Sunday. Spiritual transparency sets the tone both for ourselves personally and for life in the local church.

B. The more the gunpowder, the greater the explosion.  When it does blow up, it takes out the innocent. When there is a public expose of a Christian or of a church, the little sheep are traumatized, and many are lost.  The public failures of Western church leaders have done great disservice to the work of Christ – those failures hurt us all. A friend of mine said once: “The struggles of a church are the struggles of its families.”  I think that’s true. Let’s begin the spiritual life at home.

C. If you tolerate gunpowder in the basement, you’re just waiting for something to set it off. Sean Diddy Combs has been a rap darling, in the recording industry, photographed with many famous people. Last month he was arrested on charges of racketeering, forcing sex and running transportation for prostitution – his trial begins in May. He has kept gunpowder in the basement.  

D. Gunpowder doesn’t move away on its own – someone has to move it. Jesus said: “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift” Matthew 5:23,24. YOU move it!

Pastor Leon Throness

Last Sunday we had a great group to hear my travelogue on biblical places we just visited. There is a possibility of a trip in May 2026 to cover some of the sites from Paul’s journeys. Many have expressed interest and you may be interested also. I’m including a first draft (see below) of this pilgrimage for you to peruse…