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TITLE:   "Questions and Answers Open Forum, Freed-Hardeman College Lectures"

***** Please see pictures for Table of Contents *****

~~~ 1976 1st edition, no longer available in hardback ~~~

AUTHOR:   Guy N. Woods  (see biographical sketch below)

DATE PUBLISHED:   1976 by Freed-Hardeman College, Henderson, Tennessee

BINDING:   Hardback 

PAGES:   381

CONDITION:   Very Good!   Clear/clean text.  Previous owners name.  

LOC/SBA2

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Guy Napoleon Woods
1908-1993

Biographical Sketch On The Life Of Guy N. Woods

Guy N. Woods was born September 26, 1908 in Vardeman, Mississippi. He was the son of George Emmett and Eula Estelle Stokes Woods. His paternal grandfather was Napoleon Burrow Woods (1845-1907), and paternal grandmother was Mary Emma Leslie (1858-1903). His maternal grandfather was Henry Jefferson Stokes (1863-1949). His maternal grandmother was Mary Eliza Wood (1864-1949), both of Benton County, Tennessee. His maternal great grandparents were John King Wood and Nancy Burrell Foster of Benton County, Tennessee. He was the oldest of three children. His brother G. Earle was a gospel preacher, and his sister was Annie Mae Woods Bawcum. In his youth, Guy worked on the farm, and around the saw mill. His father was a logger, which was the reason Woods was born in Mississippi instead of the family hometown of Holladay, Tennessee. His father had worked at a sawmill in Vardeman for a brief period when Guy was born. Soon after they moved back to the family home of Holladay on the same acreage where the Church of Christ in Holladay now stands. 

He attended high school in Holladay and was active on the debate team, an activity that would set the stage for a career of deliberation on the polemic platform. He was baptized by J.W. Grant August 24, 1926. The next month he preached his first sermon at Holladay, Tennessee on his sixteenth birthday. He attended Freed-Hardeman College, Henderson, Tennessee for two years.

Through the years he preached for a number of congregations on a regular basis: South Parkway, Memphis, Tennessee; Tompkinsville, Kentucky, 1929-1931; Post, Texas, 1932-1933; Kirkland, Texas, 1934; Wellington, Texas, 1934-1940; and Lubbock, Texas, 1943-1944. Beginning in 1945 he devoted himself to Gospel Meeting work throughout the country preaching for hundreds of different congregations. For over twenty-five years he conducted between 40 and 50 Gospel Meetings a year. 

Woods was a great debater. By the early 50's he had debated over one hundred leading denominational debaters in the country. In his lifetime he perhaps debated more people than any of his fellow preachers before or since. Of his debating skills, Grover Stevens in the 1946 Woods-Nunnery Debate wrote, "Bro. Woods has been successful as a debater for several reasons. One is his thoroughness. He never allows an argument of his opponent to go unnoticed. He makes his arguments in a forceful, intelligent, yet very simple manner. He does not become excited, nor does he allow his temper to show itself. He confines his remarks to the issues and not to personalities, as can be plainly seen from reading this debate."  He debated men from numerous denominations. Some of the Baptists that he met were: D. N. Jackson (twice), H. F. Pepper (five times), A. U. Nunnery (twice), L. J. Crawford (twice), M. L. Welch (three times). Also, it may be of interest to note that he has met L. J. Crosswell, able materialist debater, six times. The occasions arose where he was called upon to debate his brethren from time to time as well. During the 1950s and 1960s the "ultra conservative," or "anti" movement among brethren caused the need for someone to arise to the occasion and defend the truth of God's word. He very logically and succinctly defended the truth against all attacks. Perhaps the most famous of the debates held with brethren was the discussion known as the Birmingham Debate, November 18-23, 1957 between Woods and Roy E. Cogdill on the subject of support of benevolent institutions from the treasury of the church.

For many years he published articles in the Gospel Advocate. He served as editorial writer for a series of literature produced by the Gospel Advocate. He wrote over a dozen books, including commentaries on: John; James; First and Second Peter, First, Second And Third John, Jude; How To Read The Greek New Testament;  How To Study The New Testament Effectively; Shall We Know One Another In Heaven?; And many more.  He was a staff writer, and later editor for the Gospel Advocate. For a number of years he compiled and edited the Gospel Advocate Quarterly series.

Guy N. Woods was the moderator at the Open Forum during the annual Freed-Hardeman Lectures for a number of years. This writer remembers well his experiences as a student at F-HC during the mid 1970s sitting in the Open Forum hearing the brotherly, but stern, debate between Guy N. Woods and Gus Nichols on the subject of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Inevitably a question on the indwelling of the Holy Spirit would come up in the forum. While Brother Woods clearly and succinctly expressed his views, Gus Nichols would begin making his way to the stage for a rebuttal that the audience knew was coming. Late in life Woods published many of the questions of the Open Forum in two books: Questions And Answers Open Forum; and Questions And Answers Open Forum Volume II.

Guy N. Woods held a license to practice law having been admitted to the bar in both Texas and Tennessee. He held the qualification necessary to litigate before the Supreme Court. However he never engaged in actual practice. 

One of his favorite pastimes was amateur radio. He received his General Amateur Radio License September 26, 1962. He soon upgraded to the Amateur Extra Class Radio License which requires an extensive knowledge of radio electronics and the ability to send and receive Morse Code at a rate of 20 words per minute. It is the highest class license available. One of the little known and unique tracts he wrote is an evangelistic treatise in ham radio language. It was really a tract on the restoration plea. He had many friends who knew him in a much different light through ham radio than his usual presence in church work. His call was WA4KCN.

Woods was in the forefront of technology when it came to his ministry. He was one of the earliest preachers to incorporate the computer in his work. He had an early DOS Bible program called Godspeed that he dearly loved for its searching capabilities. He published some of the first material about computers in the Gospel Advocate in the early 80's. He saw that the computer had great place in the work of the church; he learned all he could about them, and encouraged others to do the same. He learned how to connect his computer to his ham radio and send written messages across the air waves to those who had the capability to receive it. He was fascinated with such challenges.

His good friend Richard England described his death as follows:

Not long before his death, he was quite ill, but still able to drive himself to the doctor.  He was given some prescriptions which he immediately had filled.  Arriving at home, he pulled his car into the garage which was beneath his bedroom.  The space being sparse, he apparently got out of the car (while the motor was running) to make sure the garage door would come down without hitting the car.  Having pulled the door down, he went up stairs into the house and forgot to turn off the motor.  His hearing was greatly impaired in his latter years.  He dressed himself for bed and stretched out.  During the night he was overcome by the car exhaust seeping up into the bedroom. Early the next morning, knowing that brother Woods was quite ill, Neil Anderson went by the house to check on him.  When he arrived, the house was locked up and the engine on the car was still running.  He called the police who came and helped get into the house.  They found brother Woods in a coma.  He lived two or three weeks after that, never really coming out of the coma.  He did somewhat revive momentarily a few times to speak to his sister and one time to me.

Woods passed away in Nashville, Tennessee, December 8, 1993. The funeral took place at his home church at Holladay, Tennessee. It was requested by Bro. Woods that it be low-key with only a brief message. His long-time friend and co-worker Neil Anderson spoke for a brief time. Then Richard England delivered a short eulogy. He was buried next to his father and mother at the Holladay Community Cemetery nearby. Alan Highers led the closing prayer at the gravesite.

Much of the estate left by Guy N. Woods was given to churches that he worked closely with through the years. He reasoned that much of the blessing he enjoyed in life came from his brethren. Therefore he believed it belonged to them and should rightly be given back. Contributions were also made to some children's homes as well. 

Guy Napolean Woods touched the lives of many individuals in churches of Christ through the years. Many loved him, and there were some who hated him. But all respected him as a man of principle who stood for what he believed was the truth of God's Word. Only God knows the far reaching contributions this old soldier of the cross has made to the Restoration Movement in the 20th century and beyond.

-Many of the thoughts above were drawn from personal recollections, and sources such as Preachers Of Today Vol. 1; Vol. 2; Vol. 3; Vol. 4. and the Woods-Nunnery Debate, and friends of Bro. Woods who have given us information to be used here. We extend our thanks to all who have contributed information to make this brief sketch complete. 

 

 

 

 

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