Foundations of Faith
NOT CONFORMED TO THIS WORLD (I)

One of the criteria for knowing God’s will (Apr00) is not being “conformed to this world” (Rom. 12:2). We are also told in Scripture:”Love not the world” (1 John 2:15); “whosoever … will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God” (Jas. 4:4); “keep … unspotted from the world” (Jas. 1:27).

What does it mean to be conformed to the world? What is the world?

I could list a great many things that have been taught over the years as being of “the world.” Here are a few:Going to movies, drinking, dancing, gambling, playing cards, playing pool, having television in the home, wearing earrings, wearing lipstick, going to ball games, and listening to rock music. The problem with lists is that they only provoke arguments, such as:”The Bible doesn’t say anything about it”; “lots of other Christians do it”; “what about the things you do?”; and so forth.

Instead of giving a list of do’s and don’t’s, it would be better to consider some principles that relate to the world:

1. “The world” is all that is not of the Father (1 John 2:15).

2. “The world” is that which hates the Lord Jesus Christ and does not “esteem [or value] Him” (Isa. 53:3).

3. “The world” includes all those things that are passing away and will be burned up (1 John 2:17; 2 Pet. 3:10).

4. “The world” is the collection of things, activities, and entertainments that man has put together to make himself happy without God. (See Assignment 8)

5. “The world” includes recreation that is not for the purpose of re-creating, refreshing, or re-equipping the body and mind for service for the Lord (1 Tim. 4:7,8; 2 Tim. 3:17).

The three major elements of the world-“the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life” (1 John 2:16)-are all found in Satan’s temptation of Eve (Gen. 3:6) and in his temptation of Christ in the wilderness (Matt. 4:1-10).

The lust of the flesh. We usually connect this with sexual lusts, and Satan indeed tempts us to think that sex is okay if we love each other or if we are to be married soon (1 Cor. 6:18). But there is more. Satan tempted Eve with a food that she had never tried before, and he tempted Christ to provide food for Himself. He tempts us to eat quantities and types of food that are not good for our bodies (1 Cor. 6:19). He tempts us to allow into our minds visual images, words, and music that will only distract us from our communion with the Lord. It is well to pray often to know and to do the Lord’s will in our relationships, eating, TV and video watching, Internet surfing, etc. Often the Lord’s will about these things is a “no-brainer.”

The lust of the eyes. Satan tempted Eve with food that was pleasant to the eyes, and he tempted Christ by showing Him “all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them.” Satan tempts us by showing us things:fashionable clothes, sporty cars and trucks, beautiful homes and furnishings, electronic toys, etc. In the process, he reminds us that we must not let our friends and neighbors get ahead of us in the possession of these things. He seduces us by showing us the almost unlimited buying power of small plastic cards.

Once again, let us pray for wisdom and knowledge of God’s will when spending our money-oops … I mean to say, His money. (See Assignment 9)

Satan also is very skillful in tempting us to save out as little as possible for the Lord. If you tend to emphasize that “we are not under the law but under grace” (Rom. 6:15), then you may be tempted to give just the “left-overs” from your pay check to the Lord. If you tend to follow the law of Moses, then you may be perfectly satisfied in giving only a tenth of your income to the Lord, and thinking that you are free to do with the rest whatever you please. However, we should rather pray that we will honor and glorify God in the expenditure of every dollar that He entrusts to our care.

The pride of life. Satan tempted Eve with becoming like God Himself through eating the fruit, and he tempted Christ with instant fame by jumping off the peak of the temple. He tempts us to put all of our mental and/or physical energies into being “numero uno,” winning the game or contest or debate or argument, getting the promotion, or being the most attractive. He tempts us to deny rather than confess our sins against one another, to hold grudges, to get even. He tempts us to avoid saying or doing anything (even if God wants us to) that might hurt our reputation or our friendship with others.

Running the Race
THE LANGUAGE OF PRIDE

Here are a few examples of the language of pride:

1. “I am not going to let him get away with saying that to me.”

2. “I am going to get an A in history if it kills me!”

3. “I didn’t do anything wrong. He started it!”

4. “I hope Aaron likes my new hair-do.”

5. (After pronouncing a word incorrectly): “I wish I could just crawl into a big hole! What will people think of me?”

6. (In an assembly meeting): “I am going to keep my mouth shut so I won’t say anything wrong.”

7. (After defeating your opponent in tennis): “What’s the matter? You didn’t do so well today, did you!”

8. (After losing the tennis match): “You sure are lucky; you got all the good bounces.”

In contrast, here is some of the language of humility:

1. (When criticized): “Yes, you are right; I was wrong.”

2. (After being called out in a close play at first base): “Wow, what a great catch!”

3. (After receiving a compliment or an award): “Praise the Lord! He gave me the ability, and besides, lots of others helped me.”

4. “What can I do to show the love of Christ to my school mate who often says nasty things to me?”

5. (After saying or doing something stupid in public): “Lord, help me to be more wise and careful; and help me not to crawl into a shell just because I made a mistake.”

Assignment 8: Write out some verses in Genesis 4 that illustrate the point just made.

Assignment 9: Write out a verse in each of Luke 6, 16, and 19 that suggest that our money and possessions all belong to the Lord.

Foundations of Faith
KNOWING AND DOING GOD’S WILL (III)

In Apr00 we saw that God reveals His will to us through the Scriptures and by impressions placed upon our mind by the Holy Spirit.

3. By counsel. “Where no counsel is, the people fall; but in the multitude of counselors there is safety” (Prov. 11:14). Sometimes by telling a respected Christian brother or sister about the matter in which we are seeking God’s will, they may point out Scriptural principles that bear upon the matter or ask probing questions to help us determine whether we have really satisfied the criteria for knowing God’s will.

4. By circumstances. God often guides us through circumstances. For example, one’s detailed plans for the next two months can all change in a moment’s time as result of a heart attack. But we must be careful not to look to circumstances as our means of guidance. The Lord tells us:”I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you shall go; I will guide you with My eye.” Then, following this very positive manner of divine guidance, we are warned against depending upon circumstances for guidance:”Be not as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding:whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle lest they come near unto you” (Psa. 32:8,9). The one who is guided by circumstances first goes off in one direction, only to be reigned back in, and then in another direction, only to be pulled in again.

We should never make plans with the idea that if God does not agree with our plans He will somehow stop us. Sometimes He may permit us to go ahead with our plans as a painful learning experience. (See Assignment 7)

I once met a man in the Baltimore City Jail who admitted to allowing himself to be guided by circumstances and deceiving himself into thinking that he was following God’s will. He had used drugs from time to time and one morning he awakened with a craving for a “fix.” At the same time he realized that he probably was not pleasing God by “doing drugs.” So he prayed that if God did not want him to have drugs He would not allow him to find a drug dealer. God did not answer this insincere prayer, with the outcome that the fellow ended up in jail. Here, obviously, was a situation where it should have been clear from God’s revealed Word what His will was, without even having to pray about it.

We cannot leave the topic of circumstances without briefly commenting on Gideon and the fleece. You will recall that God confirmed His will to Gideon through the wetness or dryness of a fleece (Judg. 6:36-40). Many people since Gideon’s time have attempted to learn God’s will by “putting out the fleece.” For example, “Lord, if you want me to witness to my next door neighbor, send a purple Cadillac down the street in front of my house in the next five minutes.” Let us observe that the Lord had already plainly told Gideon what He wanted him to do. Since what he was told to do was so against his nature, Gideon put out the fleece to make perfectly sure that he had understood the Lord correctly.

The specific way or ways one learns to discern God’s will may differ for each individual. It depends on our developing a very close, full-time communion with the Lord so we can be guided by His eye (Psa. 32:8). The only way for us personally to discern God’s will is to actively seek it. Let us summarize the steps:First, make sure that the choices you are deciding among are all in accordance with Scriptural principles. Then check through all of the criteria listed earlier in this series and pray that God will help you to recognize any area of your life that might hinder Him from revealing His will to you. If you are seeking God’s will concerning a decision, consider the different choices you have and ask yourself if you would be truly willing to accept any one of these choices as your course of action. Then pray, spend time in quiet with the Lord, and perhaps seek the counsel of an older, wiser brother or sister. If you do not seem to be getting an answer, be patient, check yourself against the criteria again, and try again. Remember that the Lord desires that we be filled with the full knowledge of His will (Col. 1:9). We can count upon Him to respond to our sincere desire for this.

Do not wait until you need to make a very major life decision (such as marriage, college, career, etc.) before attempting to discern the Lord’s will for the first time. God may not give us the satisfaction of discerning His will in the bigger matters if we do not care to know His will in the smaller, everyday matters of life.

What are some of the everyday matters in which we ought to be seeking God’s will? Here are a few for starters:whether to trade in the car for a newer model or keep the present car for another year or two; deciding between a plain but reliable car and a sporty red convertible; decisions with regard to other major and moderate purchases; choice of leisure time and vacation time activities; whether to watch a specific TV program tonight; whether to watch TV at all tonight versus writing a letter to a hurting friend; whether to attend the Wednesday night prayer meeting; the best time and way to witness to one’s office mate; how much to put in the collection plate each Lord’s day; how much income to save for future emergencies; whether to visit the neighbor who is in the hospital; whether to accept an invitation to preach at the Sunday evening gospel service; what text to preach on; and so forth.

If we don’t actively pursue God’s will when these different questions come up, Satan usually will give us a gentle nudge in the direction of maximizing self-ease, comfort, and ego-satisfaction. However, if we get into the habit of asking, “Is it the Lord’s will that I do this or not do that?” many of the answers will not be difficult to figure out, simply on the basis of our knowledge of Scripture and of what we know about the nature of Christ. And for decisions that are not so clear-cut, it is well worth our while to take the time to lay the matter at the feet of the Lord and seek guidance and direction from Him.

Running the Race
Assignment 7: (a) Write out a verse in Psalm 106 that tells what might happen if we insist upon our own way. (b) Describe a personal experience in which you insisted on having your own way or else neglected to seek God’s will first.

Foundations of Faith
KNOWING AND DOING GOD’S WILL (II)

In Mar00 we established that (1) God wants us to know His will and (2) He has a specific will for each of His children.

3. God has certain criteria that we must satisfy before we can know His will. (a) We must not be “conformed to this world” but “transformed by the renewing of [our] mind” in order to know “what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God” (Rom. 12:2). (b) We must “walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time” if we would understand what the will of the Lord is (Eph. 5:15-18). (c) We must not be allowing active sin in our lives, but daily confessing and repenting of known sin (Psa. 66:18). (d) We must sincerely want to be totally emptied of our own will and earnestly desire the Lord’s will for our lives. We must seek to be like our Lord who said, “I seek not My own will, but the will of the Father who has sent Me” (John 5:30); and “I delight to do Thy will, O My God; yea, Thy law is within My heart” (Psa. 40:8; Heb. 10:7; Luke 22:42). (See Assignment 5)

(e) We must be faithful in carrying out that which we already know to be God’s will if we would learn His will in new areas and for new decisions (John 7:17). In short, there is no way of knowing God’s will if our state of soul before Him is not right.

4. We must actively seek God’s will through prayer, dependence, and waiting upon God. David prayed, “In Thee, O Lord, do I put my trust … for Thy name’s sake lead me and guide me” (Psa. 31:1-3). Also, after praying that God would reveal to him any wicked way in him, David asked the Lord to lead him “in the way everlasting” (139:23,24). And immediately upon his conversion on the road to Damascus, Saul of Tarsus prayed, “Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do?” (Acts 9:6).

5. We must quiet our soul and spirit and allow the Holy Spirit liberty to communicate His will to us. Moses exhorted his people, “Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord” (Exod. 14:13; see also 2 Chron. 20:17). Elijah experienced in succession a strong wind, and earthquake, and a fire, but it was with “a still small voice” that the Lord revealed Himself to the prophet (1 Ki. 19:11-13). “Be still, and know that I am God,” we are exhorted (Psa. 46:10). And the Lord said of Israel, “Their strength is to sit still” (Isa. 30:7, 15).

Having laid the foundations, let us consider ways in which God’s will is revealed to us. First and foremost, it is revealed through the Scriptures. We are told that it is God’s will that we abstain from fornication (1 Thess. 4:3), that we give thanks in everything (5:18), and that none should perish but that all should come to repentance (2 Pet. 3:9); 1 Tim. 2:4). And we certainly are not limited to those verses that explicitly state what God’s will is; surely the Scriptures are full of statements of God’s will-His commandments, His statutes, His words, His desires, and the perfect example given to us by the Man Christ Jesus-for us. For this reason
we ought to become as familiar as possible with God’s Word. Whenever we study the Bible, let us ask what we can learn about the character of God in the passage and then what we can learn about God’s will for our lives.

The Scriptures give mainly guidelines and general principles for our walk through this world. How does God reveal to us the specifics of His will concerning higher education, marriage, career, job, areas of service for Himself, expenditures of leisure time and money, purchase of material possessions, charitable giving, and so forth? Let me suggest a few ways as starters:

1. By the Scriptures. I do not mean to be repetitious. In a previous paragraph we considered the Scriptures as the means of providing general guidelines and principles as to God’s will for our lives. Here I refer to the Holy Spirit’s bringing a particular Scripture to mind that helps to confirm us in the will of God. As a personal illustration of this, a number of years ago while I was planning a business trip to the Netherlands the Lord seemed to burden my heart with stopping in London on the way home to visit a certain Christian couple there; I ticketed accordingly and reserved a rental car for pickup at the London airport. The morning I was to fly from Amsterdam to London I awakened to find snow falling heavily; on the radio I learned that the snowfall was heavy in the London area as well. What should I do? It was very tempting to call up and book a flight straight to New York. But I prayed. I sought to empty my mind of my personal fears and my own will. All of a sudden the words of 2 Cor. 12:8 came flooding into my soul:”My grace is sufficient for thee.” I was filled with peace that the Lord would safely lead me to my destination in the London suburbs. As I set out by car the snow on the roads was already melting and I had a wonderful visit with my friends.

2. By impressions. We have just shown how the Holy Spirit may impress a Scripture verse upon our soul to indicate God’s will for us in a certain matter. I would suggest that the Spirit speaks to our spirits in other ways as well, no doubt far more often than we are aware. For example, when driving, has the thought ever come into your mind, “You had better check the side view mirror once again before changing lanes”?

Sometimes when we pray for guidance, the Holy Spirit immediately impresses a thought or picture upon our minds. (For example, see Sep99, “Prayer for Mislaid Articles.”) But we need to be careful, especially if the guidance is exactly what we had hoped for, to make sure that we are truly emptied of our own will and that the guidance is consistent with God’s Word.

Perhaps more often we do not receive an answer immediately. It is important not to become discouraged at this point. Rather, we must continue to pray often and wait on the Lord for guidance in the particular matter. At the Lord’s perfect time, whether we are praying or not, the Holy Spirit may strongly impress upon our mind the guidance we are seeking. (See Assignment 6)

Running the Race
Assignment 5: Write out verses in Psalm 32 and Matthew 6 that show that we must seek to know and to do God’s will with single-minded dependence upon Him.

Assignment 6: Write out a total of four verses in Psalms 25, 27, and 37 that speak of our waiting on or for the Lord.

Foundations of Faith
WHERE HAVE WE COME FROM AND WHERE ARE WE GOING?

As you read this you will have lived through the first two months of a brand new millennium. Perhaps this “new beginning” is good time to review what we have covered in the first seven years of GROWING and see what remains to be covered.

Major topics covered include:

1. The authority and divine inspiration of the Scriptures.

2. The attributes of God.

3. The Holy Trinity.

4. The deity, eternal Sonship, and sinlessness of Christ; evidences for the resurrection of Christ.

5. The Person and work of the Holy Spirit.

6. God’s created beings:Satan, demons, angels, man.

7. Sin, atonement, way of salvation, blessings of salvation, eternal security.

8. Baptism.

9. Law and grace.

10. The Church.

11. Spiritual gifts, serving the Lord.

12. Prayer, worship, praise, thanksgiving.

We still have some major topics to cover, including the beginning of time (creation of the universe), the end of time (second coming of Christ, great tribulation, and millennial reign of Christ), and eternity (heaven and hell). Before we go there, however, we will devote the next few issues (possibly into 2001) to Biblical teaching about the Christian life:living sacrificially, knowing and doing God’s will, living holy lives, not loving the world, the two natures, getting the victory over sin, and-in keeping with the name of this publication-growing spiritually.

PRESENTING OUR BODIES A LIVING SACRIFICE

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world:but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God” (Rom. 12:1,2).

In Apr99-Jul99 we discussed serving the Lord, and in Feb00 worshiping the Lord. The word “service” in Rom. 12:1 combines these two ideas. It is a special word that is sometimes translated “service” (Matt. 4:10; Rom. 9:4; Heb. 9:1,6; Rev. 22:3) and other times “worship” (Acts 24:14; Phil. 3:3; Heb. 10:2). It is always used in connection with worshipful service for the Lord.

This service involves sacrifice:”present your bodies [that is, our whole being] a living sacrifice.” This service also involves doing the “good, and acceptable, and perfect will” of our Lord and Master. Christians are to carry out this service every moment of every day, in all situations and circumstances.

In the Old Testament, the children of Israel showed their devotion to the LORD by offering animal sacrifices. As Christians, we do this by presenting our “bodies a living sacrifice.” Let us give examples of how we can do this in a variety of settings.

At home. We can sacrifice our desire for independence by being obedient to those whom God has put over us-our parents (Eph. 6:1; Col. 3:20).

At school. We can sacrifice a bit of our outer beauty by dressing modestly so that members of the opposite sex will be attracted to us more for our inner beauty and moral character than our physical appearance (1 Tim. 2:9; 1 Pet. 3:3,4) . (After all, wouldn’t you prefer a lifetime marriage partner who shares your spiritual ideals and love for the Lord than one who is only attracted to your teenage face and body?)

At work. We can sacrifice our tendency to oversleep and be lazy by always arriving at work on time, not abusing sick leave, putting in a full day’s work, and not “goofing off” when the boss is away (Col. 3:22.23).

At play. We can sacrifice our obsessive desire to win by not trying to bend the rules, not arguing with the umpire or referee, not getting angry when a call doesn’t go our way or when we lose the game, and by complimenting players on the opposing team for playing well (Eph. 4:31,32; 1 Pet. 5:5,6).

At the assembly. We can sacrifice our desire to be heard, to be in control, and to have our opinions accepted (Phil. 2:3; 3:16; 2 Tim. 2:24; 3 John 9).

KNOWING AND DOING GOD’S WILL (I)

As noted above, being a worshipful servant of God also involves proving “what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God” (Rom. 12:2). “Prove” in this verse is a word that is used of gold and other precious metals being tested in the fire to reveal degree of purity. God tests us believers in many ways to see if we will respond by going our way and doing what we want to do (Isa. 53:6) or by seeking and doing what He wants us to do. When we pass the test we have “proven” (or demonstrated our obedience to) God’s good and perfect will.

Let us now look at Scriptural principles for knowing the will of God. There are five main points I wish to make in laying the foundations for knowing His will:(1) God wants us to know His will; (2) God has a specific will for each of His children; (3) God has certain criteria that we must satisfy before we can know His will; (4) we must actively seek God’s will; and (5) we must allow the Holy Spirit liberty to communicate His will to us.

1. God wants us to know His will. The apostle Paul prayed for the saints in Colosse that they “might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding” (Col. 1:9). (See Assignment 3)

2. God has a specific will for each of His children. Some have suggested that God does not have a specific will for His people beyond the general principles and guidelines given in His Holy Word. However, I do not believe Scripture bears this out. When Abraham sent his servant to get a wife for his son Isaac from among his relatives, the Lord definitely led him to a specific woman-Rebekah (Gen. 24:14-27). When Joshua prepared to go to battle against Jericho, the Lord had a very specific battle plan for him to follow (Josh. 6). (See Assignment 4)

Running the Race
Assignment 3: Write out verses in Ephesians 5, Colossians 4, and Hebrews 13 that show that God wants us to know His will.

Assignment 4: Write out verses in 2 Samuel 5, John 11, and Acts 8 to show that God’s will is specific.

Foundations of Faith
WORSHIP, PRAISE, AND THANKSGIVING

Just as there is not a gift of prayer, there are no gifts of worship, praise, and thanksgiving. These are activities for all believers. They are the heart’s response to God for His gifts to us of love and grace.

The Hebrew word translated “worship” in the Old Testament literally means “to bow oneself down.” This word is found in both of the following verses:”He ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground” (Gen. 18:2). “I and the lad will go yonder and worship” (Gen. 22:5). Most of us have seen pictures of Muslims kneeling on their prayer rugs with their faces to the ground. That gives the sense of this Hebrew word.

The word in the New Testament has a similar meaning and is often found in connection with bowing down:”They … fell down and worshiped Him” (Matt. 2:11; 4:9; 28:9; Acts 10:25; 1 Cor. 14:25; Rev. 3:9; 7:11).

Worship, therefore, has to do with the attitude of our soul in the presence of the Lord. Whether or not we are physically on our faces before the Lord may not be of prime importance. But certainly our souls and spirits are to be bowed before Him in humility and lowliness. Thus, we recognize how great and pure God is and how little and sinful we are; we judge our pride, boastfulness, disobedience, willfulness; we are convicted about the times we have pushed God off of His throne, putting ourselves there in His place. This is what is meant by the verse:”O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness” (Psa. 29:2; 96:9). (See Assignment 2)

In the New Testament, Jesus tells us that “God is a Spirit, and they who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). This means that we are not free to create our own image or concept of God. We worship Him according to the revelation that He has given us of Himself and His attributes (see Jul93-Nov94) in His Word, the Holy Bible.

In the New Testament we are not told to worship God. However, the Lord Jesus did tell His disciples to remember Him (Luke 22:19; 1 Cor. 11:23-26). When we remember Him, worship will truly follow.

“Hallelujah! Praise ye the Lord!” Halal is the Hebrew word for “praise,” u is an ending for the pronoun “you” and Jah means “the LORD.” Put them together and you are speaking Hebrew when you exclaim, “Hallelujah!” Psalm 117, the shortest psalm or chapter of the Bible, begins with, “O praise the LORD,” and ends with “Praise ye the LORD.” In other words, the psalmist is saying, “I am praising the LORD; I want you to join me and we will all praise Him together.”

A literal meaning of the word halal, in today’s language, is “to shine a spotlight on.” At a concert a spotlight is put on the soloist, thus marking him/her out. So praise to the Lord is putting the spotlight on Him, marking Him out as One who is very special and worthy. When an entertainer has performed well, or an athlete has played well, what does the audience do? They clap their hands and/or cheer for that person, and in that way put a “spotlight” on him/ her. My son once told me that he cheered himself hoarse while attending a professional baseball game. A couple of years ago when the baseball player, Cal Ripken, broke the record for consecutive games played, there was unbroken cheering for him for 21 minutes. Better than that, the Italian opera singer, Luciano Pavarotti, was applauded for over an hour on at least one occasion. These are examples of giving praise to men. Do we come close to showing such enthusiasm in the presence of the Lord, giving praise to Him?

The same word for “praise” is found in the following verse:”I was envious at the foolish when I saw the prosperity of the wicked” (Psa. 73:3). Here the word is used in a negative sense:turning the spotlight on oneself-rather than on the Lord-is the ultimate act of foolishness.

The Hebrew word, yadah, for “thanksgiving” is often translated “praise” and is also the primary Old Testament word for “confess.” The next three verses all have this same Hebrew word:”When Thy people Israel … shall turn again to Thee and confess Thy name … then hear Thou in heaven and forgive the sin of Thy people” (1 Ki. 8:33,35). “O that men would praise the LORD for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! (Psa. 107:8,15,21, 31). “O give thanks unto the LORD, for He is good” (Psa. 136:1-3).
Yadah literally means to stretch out the hand, point one out. John the Baptist had been preparing the people for the coming of One who was greater than he, the Messiah Himself. Then, one day, seeing Jesus coming to him he exclaimed, “There He is! There is the One I have been telling you about! Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). That is what yadah is. Another illustration of yadah is found in this familiar verse:”If you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved” (Rom. 10:9). Confessing the Lord Jesus means not being afraid to tell others about your Saviour.

We conclude from these illustrations that thanksgiving should include telling the Lord-and others-what you think of Him and what He has done for you.

The New Testament word for thanksgiving provides a further insight. The Greek word eucharistia for “thanksgiving” contains within it the word charis or “grace.” Thus thanksgiving is the response of my heart and lips to the recognition of God’s grace or favor to me when I really deserve just the opposite (see Jan94).

Thanksgiving relates to all parts of our lives:”In every thing give thanks” (1 Thess. 5:18). “Giving thanks always for all things” (Eph. 5:20; Phil. 4:6).

When someone gives you a birthday present what do you say? “Thank you, that is just what I wanted, the color is beautiful, it fits perfectly, I enjoy reading books by this author” or some such sentiment. It is not difficult, is it? So why do you find it so difficult publicly to thank God for His many benefits to you? It does not take a special gift to thank the Lord-just love for the One who first loved you (1 John 4:19).

Running the Race
Assignment 2: (a) Write out a verse in 1 Corinthians 11 that shows what can happen if we try to worship when in an unholy state. (b) Write out a verse in Matthew 5 that shows what we must do before we can worship properly.

Foundations of Faith
PRAYER (V)

All believers, young and old, male and female are to pray. None are excluded from this privilege. Every true child of God will pray almost involuntarily. It was said of Saul of Tarsus in the first three days after his conversion, “Behold he prays” (Acts 9:11).

At the assembly prayer meeting, of course, the sisters are to “keep silence” (1 Cor. 14:34; see Oct98). But no brother should think he cannot pray in public. Some say, “I have no gift for prayer.” But does one need a gift to beg if he is starving? Dear young brothers and sisters, attend your local assembly prayer meetings. Write out your prayer requests and hand them to an older brother. Dear young brothers, do not sit like wax figures on the benches month after month. It is only the sisters who are to “keep silence in the churches.”

The apostle Paul bowed his knees “unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph. 3:14). Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (Acts 7:59). We have no instruction or example in Scripture for prayer to the Holy Spirit. We read of praying in the Holy Spirit (Jude 20), but nothing of prayer to the Holy Spirit.

Fasting may often be a help to effectual prayer. Fasting is not an empty exercise which was to be abandoned after the death and resurrection of Christ. The disciples often prayed and fasted (see Acts 13:2,3; 14:23; 2 Cor. 6:4,5). The apostle Paul encouraged the believers at Corinth to devote part of their time to prayer and fasting (1 Cor. 7:5). The relationship between fasting and prayer is a very practical one. For one thing, we do not have to interrupt our praying for the preparation and consumption of food. Also, that part of our blood supply which would have been diverted to the digestive organs is now available for the brain, thus keeping us more alert as we labor before the Lord in prayer.

Some of you may not be familiar with this word “unrequited,” but the following verses will help to define it:”In those days Hezekiah was sick to the death, and prayed unto the LORD; and He spoke unto him, and He gave him a sign. But Hezekiah rendered not again according to the benefit done unto him, for his heart was lifted up” (2 Chron. 33:24,25). The Lord wonderfully answered Hezekiah’s prayer when he was terminally ill and gave him 15 more years of active life (2 Ki. 20). But how did Hezekiah respond to this blessing? He did not necessarily fail to thank God for it, but he did fail to devote those additional 15 years faithfully to the LORD.

Let us ask ourselves, “How do I respond when God answers my prayers?” If I have been praying for good health and have also been taking a daily dose of Vitamin C, does God or Vitamin C get credit for my getting through the winter without a cold? If I have asked the Lord for help repairing an automobile and it turns out that I am able to find the problem and correct it in record time, do I turn around and brag about how skillful I am? If the Lord answers my prayer and helps me in a way that leaves me with an extra amount of money, time, or health, do I use such bonuses to treat myself or take it easy, or do I use it to benefit the Lord’s work or minister to needy people? (See Assignment 1)

Perhaps we would receive more answers to prayer and realize significantly greater spiritual growth and blessing if we were more faithful to render to the Lord according to the benefits that He has so graciously heaped upon us.

Running the Race
SOME EXAMPLES OF ANSWERED (AND UNANSWERED) PRAYER (V)

A few years ago my wife and I were in Nakuru, Kenya with a couple of hours free before having to travel on to Nairobi; we considered visiting a nearby national park famous for its lake with millions of flamingos. But upon asking the Lord what to do, I was given a strong sense that we should skip the park and catch the first bus to Nairobi.

We arrived a few minutes too late to catch the big, safe “country” bus that tourists are encouraged to take. Our only immediate alternative was to take a minibus “matatu” with its reputation of having a high rate of accidents. Upon praying further, the Lord seemed to direct us to take a matatu. Our ride was safe and uneventful. The next day we read in the newspaper that a riot had broken out at the Nakuru bus station about two hours after we had left, with personal injury, destruction of property, and total disruption of bus service. How we praised the Lord for keeping us from going to the national park that morning and getting us out of there in the nick of time.

These “unanswered” prayers in the Bible were really answered differently from what was asked:

1. King David prayed and fasted for the child of Bathsheba, but “the child died” (2 Sam. 12:16,18). But as a result, David’s heart was drawn toward heaven in a way it might not have been otherwise, for he worshiped the LORD and said, “I shall go to him” (verses 20-23).

2. Elijah prayed, “Take away my life” (1 Ki. 19:4). The LORD had better plans-taking Elijah to heaven without dying (2 Ki. 2:11)!

3. The apostle Paul prayed three times for the thorn to be removed from his flesh, and the Lord responded, in effect, “I will not remove it, but I will give you grace to bear it” (2 Cor. 12:8,9). As a result, Paul learned the wonderful truth that through the power of Christ, “When I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Cor. 12:8-10).

4. The Lord Jesus Christ prayed three times at Gethsemane that the cup of God’s judgment might be kept from him. God’s answer was to send an angel from heaven to strengthen Him (Matt. 26:36-44; Luke 22:43). Aren’t you glad Jesus accepted that cup of wrath for your sins?

Finally, here are four ways God answers prayer:

1. No, not yet.

2. No, I have something even better for you.

3. Yes, I thought you would never ask.

4. Yes, and here’s more.

Assignment 1: In Luke 17, only one of the ten lepers responded to being healed by the Lord? (a) Write out a verse that describes his response. (b) Write out a verse that tells of an added blessing this healed leper received as a result of his response to the Lord. (c) Write out a verse in Psalm 116 that refers to our response to God’s blessings.

ANSWERS TO ASSIGNMENTS FOR 1999

1. (a) Write out Deut. 18:22; (b) write out Deut. 18:20.

2. (a) The sermons are similar in that they both speak of Jesus being risen from the dead (13:30; 17:31); (b) they are different in that events in Israel’s history are reviewed (13:17-22) and the Old Testament Scriptures are quoted (13:33-35,41) in the sermon to the Jews but not to the Gentiles; Paul speaks to the Jews of the God they already know but to the Gentiles of who God is because they were worshiping the unknown God.

3. Write out Prov. 11:24 or 25.

4. (a) Write out Acts 16:16-18; (b) write out Acts 5:3.

5. God punished them because they lied and said they were giving all of the proceeds from the land sale to the apostles when actually they kept part of it for themselves. There was nothing wrong with keeping part of it for themselves, but it was wrong to lie about it.

6. Write out Mark 5:15,29,42.

7. Write out Col. 1:24; 1 Pet. 2:21; 4:13.

8. Describe an occasion when you felt the Lord giving you a message from himself to give to another person; answers will vary.

9. (a) Write out 2 Ki. 5:3,10, 13. (b) Who did God use to bring you to the Lord? answers will vary.

10. Write out Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 12:13; Eph. 1:13.

11. Write out Psa. 66:18 and Prov. 21:13.

12. Write out John 17:9 or 20 and Heb. 7:25.

13. Write out John 17:11,13,15, 17,21,24 (at least three).

14. (a) Write out Matt. 26:40,41, 43,45 (at least two); (b) write out Luke 23:34, Acts 7:60.

15-1. (a) Christ Jesus. (b) He spoke only those things that His Father gave to Him.

15-2. The teacher primarily explains the meaning of the scriptures while the pastor has the wisdom to apply the scriptures to peoples’ problems of everyday life.

15-3. The work of the exhorter is that of restoring the sinning, backsliding, wandering, or discouraged believer back to communion with the Lord and the joy of God’s salvation.

15-4. Describe two ways in which you have served the Lord; answers will vary.

15-5. Healing was immediate and complete; all who came for healing were healed by Jesus; dead were raised; they did not stage healing services but went to where the sick people were.

15-6. (a) Write out two verses of 1 Cor. 11:30; 2 Sam. 12:7-15; Gal. 6:9. (b) Write out two verses of Rom. 8:17; Job 42:6; Psa. 119: 67, 71; Heb 12:10; 1 Pet. 5:10; 1 Pet. 4:14,16; Jas. 1:3; Acts 12:5, 12; Acts 16:25,30; etc.

15-7. Write out one or more ways you do the work of an evangelist; answers will vary.

15-8. Speaking in tongues does not help one to grow in holiness and spiritual maturity. Rather, we grow in holiness and spiritual maturity by focusing on Christ and being changed into His image, by diligent, day-by-day praying, studying the Word of God and learning and doing God’s will, and by allowing the Holy Spirit to control us and produce His fruit in our lives. Write out 2 Cor. 3:18.

15-9. Write out two verses of John 15:7; 1 John 3:22; Psa. 66: 18; Jas. 5:16; etc.

15-10. Describe an experience in which the Lord answered one of your prayers; answers will vary.

15-11. Write out three verses of 1 Tim. 2:4; Eph. 6:18; 1 Tim. 2:1,2; Eph. 6:18,19; 1 Thess. 5:25; 2 Thess. 3:1; Heb. 13:18; Jas. 5:14, 15; Luke 22:32; Matt. 5:44,45.

15-12. Write out three verses of Matt. 6:9-15; Col. 4:12; Phil. 4:19;
John 17:15; 2 Cor. 13:7; Acts 28:8; 2 Cor. 12:8; Jas. 5:14,15; Luke 10:2; etc.

Foundations of Faith

Running the Race

Foundations of Faith
PRAYER (IV)

In this series we have considered the moral basis for prayer, how we are to pray, how often we should pray, and for whom we should pray. Now let us learn from the Scriptures

We shall begin with the topics of prayer taught by the Lord to His disciples, and then list other themes of prayer found in the New Testament.

1. That God’s name be kept holy (Matt. 6:9), say, by not using it carelessly and by ourselves behaving in a holy way if we call ourselves Christians and children of God.

2. That our Father’s kingdom- which is the eternal state-might come (Matt. 6:10; Rev. 22:20), and that we might allow Christ to rule our lives each moment.

3. That God’s will might “be done in earth, as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10), starting with ourselves (Col. 4:12).

4. That God will continue to provide all that we need daily for body, soul, and spirit (Matt. 6:11; Phil. 4:19).

5. That God will restore us to fellowship with Himself after we have sinned, just as we forgive those who sin against us (Matt. 6:12; 1 John 1:9).

6. That God will keep us from trials and testings, and will keep us from responding in a sinful way to any trials and temptations that do come our way (Matt. 6:13-15; Mark 14:38; John 17:15; 2 Cor. 13:7).

7. That God will heal disease (Acts 28:8; 2 Cor. 12:8; Jas. 5:14,15).

8. That God will send Christian workers “into His harvest” (Luke 10:2).

9. That God will be merciful to us and forgive us and save us if we are not yet saved (Luke 18:10; Acts 8:22; Rom. 10:1; 1 Tim. 2:4). Are you saved?

10. That our faith, and that of others, might not fail (Luke 22:32).

11. That God will give us boldness (Acts 4:31; Eph. 6:19; Col. 4:3).

12. That God will deliver from prison (Acts 12:5; Philem. 22).

13. That God will open the way for us to visit certain people or assemblies (Rom. 1:10; 1 Thess. 3:10; 2 Tim. 1:3,4).

14. That God will give us wisdom, the knowledge of His will, fruitfulness, and growth of our love and knowledge of Christ’s love (Eph. 1:16; 3:14-19; Phil. 1:9; Col. 1:9-11).

15. That His Word will have free course (2 Thess. 3:1; Isa. 55:11).

This question was posed at the beginning of our study of prayer (Sep99). If the God of all knowledge knows all of our problems and concerns and needs already, why should we pray to Him about them? Here are some suggested answers:

1. Prayer is an evidence that we realize our weakness and inability to solve every problem and handle every situation by ourselves. It shows our dependence upon the Lord rather than upon ourselves or other human beings.

2. When our prayers are answered, praise and thanksgiving to God will follow. Without prayer we would not be made aware of God’s power and wisdom and we would not be thankful (Phil. 4:6).

3. Prayer knits our hearts together with those with whom and for whom we are praying (Acts 12:5,12).

Running the Race
SOME EXAMPLES OF ANSWERED PRAYER (IV)

Hundreds of miles away from any doctor, the wife of missionary John Clark lay dying of a tropical fever. There was one unusual request she kept repeating: it was a call for three ripe tomatoes. But where could a tomato be found in the whole of the Belgian Congo? Only the prayers of the entire mission compound seemed to keep Mrs. Clark alive.

A tribeswoman suddenly appeared and wanted to see the missionary. No one had ever seen her before. John Clark looked into the crude basket that she carried: there were three ripe tomatoes!

The native had come for advice. Food was scarce in her village, but here was some queer fruit she had grown from seeds left her by a white man. Were these all right to eat? Mrs. Clark ate the tomatoes and soon recovered from her fever.

The Scriptures tell us of a man named Elkanah who lived in the land of Israel between 1100 and 1200 B.C. “He had two wives;… Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children” (1 Sam. 1:2). One year when Elkanah took his family to Shiloh to sacrifice unto the LORD, Hannah “prayed unto the LORD … and she vowed a vow, and said, “O LORD of hosts, if Thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of Thine handmaid, but wilt give unto Thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life….

“And the LORD remembered her [and] she bore a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, Because I have asked him of the LORD” (1:10,11,19,20).

This proclamation was made by Minnesota’s Governor Pillsbury: “In view of the threatened continuation of the grasshopper scourge, I do hereby appoint Thursday, April 26, 1877, to be observed as a day of fasting and prayer.”

In 1873 many farms had been ruined by the grasshoppers. The next year there were a thousand times as many, which stripped trees, gardens, and fields of everything edible. It was even worse in 1875 and 1876. Of course, conferences were held and experts were consulted, but no one could find how to get rid of the grasshoppers.

Now look at the timetable:

April 26. Day of prayer.

April 27. A day so hot that young grasshoppers hatched out in millions -enough to destroy the crops of half a dozen states. Not much sign of a miracle yet!

April 28,29. More warm weather.

April 30. Just when the grasshopper nation was really flourishing, a sharp frost occurred-which killed the lot!

If the frost had come earlier, the grasshoppers would have been unaffected, and if it had been much later, it would not have hurt them.

A ship burned to water’s edge off of Cape Horn; 14 sailors in four lifeboats tossed in the ocean for days, praying frantically for rescue. Meanwhile, a whaling vessel was facing a strong south wind and making little headway. Suddenly, an idea popped into the captain’s mind: “There are probably as many whales in the opposite direction; why not run with the wind?” An hour after changing course, they came upon the 14 sailors, just in the nick of time. “By His power He brought in the south wind” (Psa. 78: 26).

Assignment 15: The following is a review quiz based on the 1999 issues of GROWING. Please refer back to the indicated issue when answering each question.

1. (Jan.) (a) Who was the greatest prophet of all? (b) What evidence did he give of being a prophet?

2. (Feb.) What is the difference between the gift of teacher and the gift of pastor?

3. (Mar.) Describe the work of one who has the gift of exhorting.

4. (Apr.) Describe two ways in which you have served the Lord.

5. (May) What are some differences between the way the Lord Jesus and the apostles healed people and healing services today?

6. (June) Write out (a) two verses about our suffering because of our own sin, and (b) two verses about our suffering for reasons not related to our sin.

7. (July) Describe one or more of the ways you do the work of an evangelist.

8. (Aug.) Does speaking in tongues help one to grow in holiness and spiritual maturity? If so, write out a verse that states this. If not, write out a verse that does show how we grow in holiness and spiritual maturity.

9. (Sept.) Write out two verses that give moral principles that must be observed in our lives if we are to expect answers to our prayers.

10. (Oct.) Describe an experience in which the Lord answered one of your prayers.

11. (Nov.) Write out three verses that tell for whom we should pray.

12. (Dec.) Write out three verses that tell for what we should pray.

Foundations of Faith
PRAYER (III)

Pray always. “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17; Rom. 12:12; Eph. 6:18). The apostle Paul was faithful in that which he requested other believers to do:”I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy” (Phil. 1:4; also Rom. 1:9; Col. 1:3; 1 Thess. 1:2; 2 Tim. 1:3; Philem. 4). May the value that we place upon prayer be no less than that shown by the prophet Samuel:”God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you” (1 Sam. 12:23).

1. All people. “I exhort therefore that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all [people],… for … God … will have all [people] to be saved and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim. 2:1,4). How can we do this when we are personally acquainted with only a tiny fraction of “all people”? Well, can’t we begin by praying for all the people we do know, and adding others to the list as we get to know them? If you do this, you may soon become frustrated at not having enough time to pray for everyone you know at one “kneeling.” You may be able to cover only a portion of your “list” each day; but that is better than not praying for them at all!

2. All saints. The final piece of God’s armor for the Christian is “praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints” (Eph. 6:18). The comments given above for “all people” apply equally to “all saints.”

3. Authorities. “I exhort … prayers … for kings and for all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty (1 Tim. 2:1,2).

4. God’s servants. The apostle Paul-perhaps the boldest, most faithful Christian of them all-often requested prayer for himself. “[Pray] for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth to make known the mystery of the gospel” (Eph. 6:18,19;1 Thess. 5:25; 2 Thess. 3:1; Heb. 13:18).

5. Sick people. “Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him. … And the prayer of faith shall save the sick” (Jas. 5:14,15).

6. Backsliders. Jesus prayed for Peter even before his three-fold denial of Christ (Luke 22:32); surely we should pray for our backsliding Christian friends. (See Assignment 14)

7. Enemies, persecutors. “Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who despitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be the children of your Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 5:44,45).

Running the Race
SOME EXAMPLES OF ANSWERED PRAYER (III)

We’ll let Ezra tell you the story himself: “Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava … to seek of Him a right way for us and for our little ones and for all our substance. For I was ashamed to require of the king a band of soldiers and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way: because we had spoken unto the king, saying, The hand of our God is upon all them for good that seek Him…. So we fasted and besought our God for this….

“Then we departed from the river of Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month to go unto Jerusalem; and the hand of our God was upon us, and He delivered us from the hand of the enemy, and of such as lay in wait by the way” (Ezra 8:21-23,31).

My friend Jean H. was once a missionary nurse in Honduras. She had just helped to deliver a baby, but to the dismay of both mother and nurse, the baby was born dead. That evening, the baby’s father came into the clinic drunk, carrying a pistol, and blaming Jean for having killed his baby. He stood there, pointing the pistol at the trembling nurse, but suddenly he turned and walked away. Much later Jean learned that an elderly Christian lady back in the United States had been, that very hour, impressed by the Holy Spirit that Jean was in trouble and prayed for her. The Lord wonderfully answered that prayer.

In his four years of missionary work in South Africa, Andrew Murray’s ministry was characterized by his burning love for souls. Nothing deterred him from his duty. Once he set out to walk 12 or 15 miles across wolf-infested country to keep an appointment. When he arrived at his destination, a surprised farmer asked, “How did you do it? Where were the wolves?”

“They snapped at my ankles all the way,” Andrew calmly answered, “but they never touched me. I knew I was in the path of duty, so I prayed to God to keep me and He did.”

Arriving one day at the ford of a river, Andrew Murray found a team of oxen with a wagon stuck in the mud on the river bank. The driver was furious. He lashed the animals unmercifully. He cursed and swore and fumed.

“Why do you swear so?” Andrew asked the man.

“Oxen cannot be driven without swearing,” the man replied.

“Give me the whip,” said Andrew. He lifted up his heart in prayer, cracked the whip, and encouraged the oxen. Presently he had the oxen and wagon out of the mud. The workman took back the whip and meekly drove away.

A native of a tropical country had a terribly high fever. She said to the Christian doctor, “You say that God wants His children to have what is good for them: would not ice be good for me?” They were miles from any city; it was a full month before the rainy season and hail was unheard of in that region; there was no place where the doctor could get ice. But challenged by the woman’s faith, he called the workers together for prayer. As they prayed, a thunderous crash shook the house, followed by a deluge of large hail stones. The woman proved that our Lord is a God of miracles.

Assignment 14: (a) Write out two or three verses from the scene in Gethsemane in Matthew 26 that suggest why Peter’s faith failed in spite of Jesus’ warning to him. (b) Write out verses in Luke 23 and Acts 7 that illustrate praying for one’s enemies.

Foundations of Faith
PRAYER (II)

1. Pray believingly. “Whatever you shall ask, believing, you shall receive” (Matt. 21:22; Mark 11:24; Jas. 1:5,6).

2. Pray intelligently. “If we ask anything according to His will, he hears us” (1 John 5:14). This causes us to think before we act and before we pray. Sometimes we make plans and then ask the Lord to help us and bless us in carrying out those plans, when the Lord did not want us to do it in the first place. Similarly, Jesus tells us, “Whatever you shall ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son” (John 14:13; 15:16). Asking in Jesus’ name does not mean mindlessly closing our prayers by saying, “In Jesus’ name, amen.” It means that we pray with the confidence that Jesus Himself is asking the Father for the same thing for us. Finally, we are to pray with our mind engaged, and not using empty, mindless repetitions (Matt. 6:7). (See Assignment 12)

3. Pray specifically. “Friend, lend me three loaves” (Luke 11:5-13). This was a precise request to meet a specific need of the moment. Another example might be:”Lord, even though I do not like the way he does certain things, help me to be patient and kind to my office mate.” The young driver in this month’s The Race did not pray to win the lottery or for some other windfall, but for just the amount that was needed, and the Lord answered his prayer. (See Assignment 13)

4. Pray fervently and earnestly. “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Elijah … prayed earnestly that it might not rain” (Jas. 5:16,17; Luke 11:5-13).

5. Pray perseveringly. “Continue [or persevere] in prayer” (Col. 4:2; Luke 18:1-8). This is different from praying in mindless repetition (Matt. 6:7). It means not giving up if our prayer is not answered immediately. Jesus prayed three times at Gethsemane (Matt. 26:34-44), the apostle Paul prayed three times concerning his thorn in the flesh (2 Cor. 12:7,8), and Daniel prayed “three full weeks” for a certain matter (Dan. 10:1-13). George Müller prayed 60 years for the salvation of his brother; the Lord answered that prayer shortly after Mr. Müller died.

6. Pray unitedly. “If two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of My Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 18:19).

7. Pray forgivingly. “When you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against any” (Mark 11:25).

8. Pray thankfully. “In every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God” (Phil. 4:6; 1 Thess. 5:17,18). It is good to mingle our prayers with thankful memories of the many ways the Lord has helped us and answered our prayers in the past.

Running the Race
SOME EXAMPLES OF ANSWERED PRAYER (II)

A young man, when courting his future wife a hundred miles from home, prayed that he would have sufficient money to buy enough gas to get home. When the gas gauge was on empty and it was beginning to look desperate, the Lord led him to look on the floor and behind the seats of the car. The few coins he found there purchased just enough gas to complete his trip.

A Christian woman related to me the following experience that took place in 1971: “The engine of my car began to ‘miss’ while driving home from the midweek prayer meeting. The next morning I had a baby sitting engagement, so I drove to the home where I was to work. The car got worse as I drove along. When the mother returned, she recommended a mechanic in a certain place about 20 miles away.

“I always ask God to take me safely to my destination whenever I drive the car. This time, of course, I asked God to get me safely to the repair shop without trouble. The car continued to ‘miss’ and ‘jump’ all down the highway, but finally I arrived at the repair shop.

“The mechanic picked up the distributor cap. There was nothing holding it on! A large piece had broken off.

“‘How did you get this car here?’ the mechanic asked.

“‘I drove it about 20 miles to get here,’ I replied.

“‘No car could run with a distributor cap like this,’ he said. ‘It was a miracle if you came 20 miles in this car.'”

No doubt it was a miracle. God performs miracles every day-we just need the faith to see them.

A couple of years ago I set out on a trip early in the morning. I was scheduled to minister the Scriptures in Indianapolis that evening, nearly 600 miles away. About 50 miles into my trip, a terrible noise started coming from the engine. I pulled over and noticed the speedometer needle gyrating wildly between 0 and 80. I got off the freeway and went to a service station, but the mechanic would not be there for another hour. As I continued on the freeway to the next exit, I began praying that the Lord would heal the car. Within ten minutes the loud clatter diminished and stopped entirely and the speedometer needle settled back to normal. I spent the rest of the trip praising “the Lord for His goodness and for His wonderful works to the children of men” (Psa. 107:8,15,21,31).

The following incident was told me by a Christian brother who lives in the Bahamas: “It was a windy and rough day on the water. My dad and I went out in my boat fishing, quite far from land. Upon starting the engine to return home, we found we had lost the propeller.

“There we were, night coming on, in rough weather, and no propeller. I prayed to the Lord that we might find it. We then sculled into the wind to where we thought we stopped last. Dad looked in the water glass. There, about 20 feet down on the bottom, was the propeller! We were able to pull it out, attach it to the boat and get safely back to land. The Lord is our resource in all things.”

Assignment 12: How do we know Jesus prays for us? Write out a verse in John 17 and one in Hebrews 7 that answer this question.

Assignment 13: Write out at least three verses in John 17 that give specific requests made by the Lord Jesus to His Father for His disciples.

Foundations of Faith
PRAYER (I)

We recently (Jan99-Jul99) completed a series on gifts of the Holy Spirit. Each gift defines a special area of service for the Christian to carry out in the power of the Holy Spirit, in subjection to the Lord, and for the building up of the Church. There are many different spiritual gifts:each believer has been given at least one gift, no one has all of the gifts, and no specific gift of the Spirit has been given to all believers (1 Cor. 12).

We now begin a series on spiritual “non-gifts”-first prayer, and then worship, praise, and thanksgiving. These are all areas of service to the Lord, but they are not given to a few select persons in the body of Christ. Every believer in Christ is to pray to God and to give praise, worship, and thanksgiving to Him. These represent the response of our hearts to all that God has done for us; they flow from communion with the Lord and require no special gift of the Spirit for their exercise.

God is omniscient, that is, He possesses all knowledge (Aug93). That knowledge includes everything about every one of His created beings. If God knows all of our problems and concerns and needs already, why should we pray to Him about them? As an informal assignment, think about this question and see if you have a scriptural answer to it. We will ask once again-and try to answer this question-when we complete our study of the scriptures on this topic of prayer.

There are a number of moral principles that must be observed and practiced in our lives if we are to expect answers to our prayers.

1. We must be abiding in Christ. “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done unto you” (John 15:7). To abide in Christ means that we have a deep, living, permanent connection with Him. In other words, we must be saved or born again through trusting in Christ’s sufferings and death on the cross for our eternal salvation (John 3:3,7,16; Acts 16:31).

2. We must have Christ’s words abiding in us (John 15:7). We must keep the lines of communication between ourselves and Christ wide open by letting His Word instruct, reprove, and correct us (2 Tim. 3:16). Just as we can clog our coronary arteries by eating lots of junk food, so we can clog our spiritual “arteries” by reading, looking at, and listening to all of the junk that is out there in the world today. “Whatever we ask, we receive of Him because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight” (1 John 3:22).

3. We must have no unjudged sin

4. We must be as willing to help others as we want God to be willing to help us (See Assignment 11)

5. We must be righteous-our lives consistent with what we confess with our lips. “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much” (Jas. 5:16).

Running the Race
SOME EXAMPLES OF ANSWERED PRAYER (I)

Even though the Bible tells to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17), it takes a lot of spiritual growth and experience before we learn the full scope of problems, decisions, and other matters that we can and should pray about. By giving some real-life examples of how God has answered prayer, perhaps our readers will be stimulated to commit more of the matters of their daily lives to prayer.

The famous missionary to China, Hudson Taylor tells the following story (slightly abridged) of his conversion: “When I was about 15 years of age, my mother was absent from home and I had a holiday. In the afternoon I looked through my father’s library to find a book to read. Nothing attracted me, so I turned over a little basket of pamphlets and selected a gospel tract that looked interesting. I said to myself that I would read the story at the beginning and stop when it began to give a sermon.

“Little did I know at the time what was going on in the heart of my dear mother, 70 or 80 miles away. She rose from the dinner table that afternoon with an intense yearning for the conversion of her boy. Having more leisure than usual, she went to her room and turned the key in the door, resolved not to leave until her prayers were answered. Hour after hour did she plead for me, until she could pray no longer and began to praise God as she sensed that the Holy Spirit was telling her that her prayer had been answered.

“I, in the meantime, was so struck by the message of the tract that I fell down on my knees to accept my Saviour and His salvation. Thus, while my mother was praising God on her knees in her room, I was praising Him too.”

The following is one of hundreds of answered prayers experienced by George Müller in his orphanage ministry in Bristol, England:

On one occasion, with more than 2,000 mouths to feed, not a drop of milk remained for breakfast the next day and not a penny was in hand to buy even a cupful. That evening, Mr. Müller gathered his staff of workers together and on their knees they told their Father that His children needed milk.

The next morning the children sat down at the table-with empty mugs in front of them. They bowed their heads while Mr. Müller simply, gratefully thanked the Father for daily bread-and for milk! As soon as the prayer ended, a loud knock was heard at the door. It was a dairyman. His wagon had broken down just outside and he could not get to town with his milk. Mr. Müller was welcome to it if he would help carry it in. Every waiting mug was filled with milk that morning!

Have you ever mislaid your glasses, keys, checkbook? Do you, like me, frantically run about from room to room, stopping to pray only when every option has been exhausted?

On one occasion, when I had mislaid my checkbook, I remembered to pray first before running around. The Lord rewarded me by flashing a picture on my mind of where to look. It was the last place I would have thought of looking, but there it was!

Assignment 11: Write out a verse in Psalm 66 that illustrates Point 3 above, and a verse in Proverbs 21 that illustrates Point 4.

Foundations of Faith
THE BAPTISM OF THE HOLY SPIRIT AND SPEAKING IN TONGUES

There is a very broad range of teaching today concerning speaking in tongues. At one end there are those who teach that tongues and other “sign gifts” disappeared toward the end of the first century (see May99). At the other end there are those who teach that speaking in tongues is a necessary sign that a believer in Christ has been baptized by the Holy Spirit.

The Bible says that “tongues … shall cease” (1 Cor. 13:8), but we cannot prove conclusively when this happened (or will happen). On the other hand, if there is real Spirit-led speaking in tongues today, there is no biblical evidence that it is linked with the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and most likely it is limited to being a sign to unbelievers, as it was in Bible times (1 Cor. 14:22).

How did speaking in tongues (that is, foreign languages) serve as a sign to unbelievers? The following pattern is seen in Scripture:(1) God’s people refuse to listen to His message to them; (2) God causes tongues to be heard as a sign of judgment; (3) God causes the people to be scattered. This pattern is seen first at the Tower of Babel (Gen. 9:1,7; 11:1-9). Then the LORD through Moses warned the nation of Israel that if they failed to do what He told them to do (Deut. 28:15), He would send a nation against them whose language they would not understand (verse 49) and then would scatter them over the whole earth (verses 64,65). This prophetic warning is repeated by the prophets Isaiah (28:11-13) and Jeremiah (5:3,15,19).

Coming to the New Testament, the Jewish people would not listen to the Messiah (Matt. 23:37) and cast Him out (Matt. 26,27); for this reason Jesus pronounced God’s judgment upon the nation, including the destruction of the temple (Matt. 23:38; 24:2). This prophecy was confirmed, less than two months later, by a most remarkable event involving the speaking of foreign tongues in Jerusalem. People from many different nations, gathered for the feast of Pentecost, heard the disciples speaking in a variety of languages, including their own (Acts 2:1-11). This event had a two-fold purpose:(1) It served as a warning to the Jewish nation that judgment would soon come upon God’s chosen people and they would be scattered among the nations (which happened in 70 A.D.); (2) it signaled the birthday of a new people of God-the Church, the body of Christ, made up of all true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ from all the nations of the earth. This new people was indwelt by the Holy Spirit; God provided a miraculous sign for this special occasion to show that a new order of things had come in.

In Acts 10:44-47 we read of the Roman soldier Cornelius and others of his household believing the gospel and immediately receiving the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues. The reason for the speaking in tongues is clearly stated:it showed that the very same Holy Spirit who came upon the Jewish believers on the day of Pentecost had come upon the Gentile believers (verses 45,47). There were not to be two Churches-a Jewish one and a Gentile one-but one Church made up of all true believers in Christ.

The 120 disciples (Acts 1:15) had to wait for the baptism of the Holy Spirit because the Spirit would not come until after Christ had risen (Luke 24:49; John 7:39; Acts 1:4,5). Now that the Holy Spirit has come, there is no need for a new convert to pray and wait for the baptism of the Holy Spirit-and there is no instruction in the New Testament telling us to do so. The teaching in Paul’s Epistles is that all who are saved have been baptized by the Holy Spirit (that is, have the Spirit dwelling in them). (See Assignment 10)

There are three examples in the New Testament (Acts 2,10,19) in which speaking in tongues is linked with the baptism of the Holy Spirit. But these were special because they signaled a change of God’s chosen people from Israel to the Church. There are many other instances in the Book of Acts of people becoming saved and receiving the Holy Spirit without mention of speaking in tongues (2:41; 4:4; 8:17; 13:12; 16:14,15,32-34; etc.). The apostle Paul instructs us that speaking in tongues was a gift of the Holy Spirit given to certain individuals and not to everyone (1 Cor. 12:10,28,30).

What can be said about the teaching in the Charismatic Movement that tongues provide the Christian with a quick and easy path to spiritual maturity and holiness?

1. Some charismatics are beginning to see that it does not work this way; more important, there is no biblical support for this teaching. It is only by focusing on Christ and being changed into His image that we grow in holiness and become spiritually mature (2 Cor. 3:18; 1 John 2:13,14).

2. The apostle Paul warned the Corinthian believers against being too occupied with speaking in tongues (1 Cor. 14:1-25). He called it a sign of immaturity-not maturity (verse 20)!

3. People play the lottery in hopes of taking a shortcut to the “easy life.” Christians must be careful not to be seduced into looking for quick and easy ways to spiritual maturity. This can be attained only by diligent, day-by-day praying, studying the Word of God, growing in our knowledge of God and likeness to Christ, learning and doing God’s will, and allowing the Holy Spirit to control us and produce His fruit in our lives.

Running the Race
SERVING THE LORD (V)

As noted previously (Oct98, Jul99), the sisters are not free to speak in the assembly meetings. But God has given them plenty else to do, as seen in these examples from the Bible:

Helping and Encouraging. Rahab, Samson’s mother, the widow of Zaraphath, the woman of Shunem, Dorcas, Lydia, Phoebe, Mary, Tryphena, Tryphosa, Persis (Josh. 2; Judg. 13; 1 Ki. 17; 2 Ki. 4; Acts 9,16; Rom. 16).

Praying and Pleading. Abigail, Esther, Anna (1 Sam. 25; Esth. 5-7; Luke 2).

Prophesying and Teaching. Huldah, Mary Magdalene, Philip’s daughters, Priscilla, Lois, and Eunice (2 Chron. 34; John 20; Acts 18,21; 2 Tim. 1,3).

Giving. Hannah, the poor widow, Sapphira (1 Sam. 1; Mark 12; Acts 5).

Delivering from Enemies. Jael (Judg. 5).

Yielding Oneself to God. The virgin Mary (Luke 1).

Assignment 10: Write out verses in Romans 8, 1 Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 1 that support the last statement about the Holy Spirit dwelling in all who are saved.

Foundations of Faith
SPIRITUAL GIFTS (VII)

As noted previously (May99), there is disagreement whether these “sign gifts” continue to exist today. Here are some principles and rules from Scripture for any who claim to speak in tongues, particularly in the setting of the local church:

1. The tongues are real languages (Acts 2:4,6,11), not repetitious syllables like “ka-ka la-la da-da imba-imba- imba.”

2. No more than three men are to speak in tongues in a given service (1 Cor. 14:27).

3. Those who speak in tongues are to do so one at a time (verse 27).

4. They are to pause after the first sentence or two to give room for a translation or interpretation (see point 1 below concerning interpretation of tongues); if there is no interpreter, they are to be silent (verse 27).

5. They are to pray for the gift of interpretation (verse 13), in which case, if everyone in the room speaks the same language, it would be preferable to skip the tongues and go straight to the interpretation (verses 19,24).

6. The women are not to speak but rather are to keep silence in the assembly meetings (verse 34).

Those who believe they have the gift of interpretation should bear in mind the following points:

1. A message in a foreign tongue that is ten minutes long cannot be credibly interpreted in two minutes, and vice versa.

2. The word “interpretation” really means “translation” (the Greek words in Matt. 1:23, John 1:38,42, and Heb. 7:2 are the same as those in 1 Cor. 12:10,30 and 14:26-28). Thus, the interpretation should be given after every sentence or two of the message in a foreign language.

3. If the original tongues message has may repetitious syllables, words, and phrases, the interpretation should include the same kinds of repetition.

More will be written about speaking in tongues, in connection with the baptism of the Holy Spirit, in the next issue of GROWING. Even though the original gifts of tongues and interpretation may no longer be present in the Church today, let us consider possible present-day applications of these gifts.

The gift of tongues was given, in part, to bridge communication barriers, as was evident on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2). Today, by studying foreign languages, we can prepare for the possibility of being led into foreign missionary work. Even if we all speak the same language, there may be cultural, social, economic, and educational barriers to be bridged in an assembly. Suppose there are blacks, whites, and Hispanics in an assembly; doctors and third grade dropouts; teenagers and senior citizens; relatives of mine and non-relatives. These diverse groups, even though every one is a born-again Christian, may tend to form little groups or cliques. So the Lord may raise up someone with the gift and ability to bridge the communication and fellowship gaps among these different groups.

A modified form of the gift of interpretation is sometimes helpful even when there is no speaking in tongues. I refer to an area of ministry in which one may not be specifically gifted as a teacher but is gifted in understanding teaching ministry and making it more plain to others. For example, a teacher may present a complex explanation of a particular doctrine. A listener who understands what has been taught, but who senses that it might have gone over the heads of simpler souls, may give some simple examples and illustrations to aid others in the understanding of that doctrine.

Running the Race
SERVING THE LORD (IV)

Here are some examples from the Bible of serving the Lord in evangelizing or giving the good news of God’s salvation to others.

1. Peter, Paul, Stephen, and Philip preached to both large crowds and small groups of people, including leaders and common citizens, Jews, Samaritans, and Gentiles, both at home and abroad (Acts 2-28).

2. Paul and Silas gave a good testimony in jail, praying and singing hymns of praise to God, resulting in the jailer coming to them and asking how to be saved (Acts 16:25-30). (See Assignment 9)

Most of us do not have the gift of evangelist; yet, as the apostle Paul instructed Timothy, we are all to “do the work of an evangelist” (2 Tim. 4:5). Here are some suggested ways in which our readers might do the work of an evangelist:

1. Pray for the Lord to give wisdom and opportunities.

2. Obtain gospel tracts that present the gospel clearly and that are appropriate for your purposes. (Sample packets of tracts may be obtained from Christian Literature, P.O. Box 1052, Anoka, MN 55303; Moments With The Book, P.O. Box 322, Bedford, PA 15522; or your local Christian book store.)

3. Enclose gospel tracts in birthday, get well, sympathy, and other greeting cards to your friends and neighbors.

4. Hand out tracts on a street corner; put tracts under the windshield wipers of parked automobiles.

5. Mail out appropriate tracts to the bereaved (from newspaper death notices), survivors of accidents (from newspaper reports), taverns, abortion clinics, or to all the persons listed in your local community telephone directory.

6. Go door to door with gospel tracts and/or invitations to the assembly gospel meeting.

7. Hold Bible classes after school or Vacation Bible School in your home for the neighborhood children.
8. Start up a Bible study at work or school.

CONGRATULATIONS!

Six of our readers completed all 27 (15 regular plus 12 review) assignments for 1998, and all had scores over 93%. Drew Johnson and Daniel Kasper, both of Pennsylvania, led the way with scores of 98.9% for the year. Others included Kate Kauffman (Pennsylvania), John Hope (Virginia), Dickson Wanga (Kenya), and Lori Spielman (Pennsylvania). Ojukwu Jonah and Gabriel Ofagbe (Nigeria) completed 25 and 23 assignments, respectively. Joseph Amusak (Nigeria) completed all of the 1994 and 1995 assignments.

Assignment 9: (a) Write out verses in 2 Kings 5 that describe three different persons or groups of persons who helped Naaman to be healed of his leprosy. (b) Who were the different people that God used to bring you to the Lord?

Foundations of Faith
SPIRITUAL GIFTS (VI)

Some today claim to have the gift of healing, but the manner in which many use their “gift,” and the results of it, are often far different from the examples given in the Bible. For this reason, in May99 we gave points that ought to be considered by those who think they have the gift of healing.

Let us now consider this topic of healing from the standpoint of one who is sick or experiencing trouble. What if a sick or injured person is not healed, even after much prayer or laying on of hands by a “healer”? Some teach that all sickness is of the devil and that God wants everyone to be healed. Some may lay a “guilt trip” on the sick person and accuse him of not having enough faith if he is not healed. Scriptural responses to each of these teachings were given in May99. Let us follow Paul’s example when suffering:”I besought the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And [the Lord] said, “My grace is sufficient for you” (2 Cor. 12:8-10).

For those who are sick, in pain, bereaved, or suffering in other ways, it is very important to learn God’s purposes for our pain and suffering. Why do so many women purposely try to have more children after having to endure all the discomforts of pregnancy and the intense pain of childbirth? I believe it is the anticipated joy of having, loving, and raising the baby that makes it all seem worthwhile. So when we are experiencing pain and suffering, it helps us to know that our suffering is going to result in benefit to ourselves or others. Here are a number of reasons from the Bible why God allows His people to suffer:

1. That we might be partakers of Christ’s sufferings (Rom. 8:17). (See Assignment 7)

2. That we might be purified and partakers of God’s holiness (Job 42:6; Psa. 119:67,71; Heb. 12:10; 1 Pet. 5:10).

3. That we might learn more of God’s grace and goodness and manifest the works and goodness of God (Psa. 107; John 9:3; Rom. 8:28).

4. That we might glorify God (Psa. 50:15; John 11:4; 17:5; 1 Pet. 4:14,16).

5. That we might realize our own weakness and learn to depend more upon the Lord’s strength (2 Cor. 1:9; 12:8-10).

6. That we might learn patience (Rom. 5:3; Jas. 1:3).

7. That we might be drawn closer to one another as children of God and members of the body of Christ (Acts 12:5,12; 2 Cor. 1:11).

8. That we might be able to comfort, encourage, and understand others who are suffering (2 Cor. 1:3-7).

9. That we might be a testimony to the unsaved (Acts 16:25,30).

10. That we might see the emptiness of this present world and be stirred up to have a real desire for the next one (2 Cor. 4:17; 5:4; Phil. 1:23).

11. That we might smite the consciences of evildoers by returning good for evil (2 Ki. 6:21-23; Matt. 5:44; Rom. 12:19-21; 1 Pet. 3:6).

12. That we might be awakened to our sin or judged for our lack of repentance and persistence in sinning (1 Cor. 11:30).

13. That we might have impressed upon us the seriousness of sin, even after we have confessed it to the Lord (2 Sam. 12:7-15).

14. That we might receive the natural and just consequences of our sinful behavior (Gal. 6:9).

When we are suffering it is well to pray, “Search me … and see if there be any wicked way in me” (Psa. 139:23,24). At the same time, we can see from the list above that there may be many other reasons for our suffering that have nothing to do with sin in our life. Remember that God took Job who “was perfect and upright, and one who feared God and avoided evil” (Job 1:1) and put him through the fire of pain and suffering to purify him even more (Job 42:1-6).

“They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them” (Mark 16:18). This does not mean we are to tempt God (Matt. 4:7) by purposely playing with cobras and drinking poison (as some way-out cults do today, often with dire consequences). But the life of a missionary can be made very hazardous by scorpions, tigers, polluted water, and hostile people. King Darius feared that Daniel would be killed by the lions (Dan. 6:19-22) and the people of Malta expected the apostle Paul to die from the snakebite (Acts 28:3-6). While neither Daniel nor Paul set out to perform miracles in these instances, the Holy Spirit saw fit to work miracles through them.

How might the working of miracles be applied today? Have you ever heard it said, “It will take a miracle for X to become saved [or for Y to be restored to the Lord; or for Z and his wife to be reconciled]”? Thank God for those of his faithful children who are willing to challenge “the impossible” and accomplish, through ministry of the Word in the power of the Holy Spirit, that which-humanly speaking-is impossible (Luke 18:27).

Running the Race
SERVING THE LORD (III)

Remember from Jan99 that prophesying is bringing a message of “edification, exhortation, [or] comfort” (1 Cor. 14:3) from the Lord to another person. Here are a few examples from the Bible:

1. Samuel, as a child, brought a message from the LORD to the high priest Eli (1 Sam. 3:11-18). Later, Samuel brought messages both of instruction and of God’s judgment to King Saul (1 Sam. 13:13,14; 15:1-3,16-29).

2. A man of God from Judah brought a word of warning to King Jeroboam (1 Ki. 13:1,2).

3. Elijah brought a message of doom from the Lord to King Ahaziah (2 Ki. 1:16), while Elisha brought a word of hope to the starving people of Samaria (2 Ki. 7:1).

4. The prophetess Huldah delivered a message of judgment to the nation of Judah, but a word of peace to King Josiah (2 Chron. 34:22-28).

5. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, the minor prophets, the apostles Peter, Paul, and John, and others wrote down messages from God for the readers of Holy Scripture.

6. While the apostle Paul was a prominent prophet of the Lord, the Holy Spirit gave to Agabus a message to give to Paul (Acts 21:10,11).

Assignment 7: Write out verses in Colossians 1 and 1 Peter 2 and 4 that illustrate this point.

Assignment 8: Describe, if you can, an occasion when you strongly felt the Lord giving you a message from Himself to give to another person.

Foundations of Faith
SPIRITUAL GIFTS (V)

“These signs shall follow those who believe:in My name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; … if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover” (Mark 16:17,18). This was part of the Lord Jesus’ message to His disciples when He told them to go into all the world and preach the gospel. The signs mentioned here are like some of the spiritual gifts listed by the apostle Paul:”The gifts of healing … the working of miracles … divers kinds of tongues … the interpretation of tongues” (1 Cor. 12:9,10).

There is disagreement among Bible scholars whether these so-called “sign gifts” still exist in the present day or whether they ceased when Holy Scripture was completed at the end of the first century A.D. (as suggested by 1 Cor. 13:8). The arguments are long and involved and beyond the scope of this publication. There is strong historical evidence that these gifts had totally disappeared by the end of the century. One of the clear purposes of these gifts was to authenticate the teaching of the apostles-to get people to pay attention in an era in which the Holy Scriptures had not yet been completed and were not widely available. We cannot rule out the possibility that the Holy Spirit may still be pleased to use such gifts today in parts of the world where the Scriptures and Christianity are as yet unknown. For example, they may help missionaries to communicate the gospel to people of other nations and may help the people to pay attention to what they are trying to tell them.

It seems likely that these sign gifts in their original God-given form have essentially ceased in most parts of the world-including our own-where the Bible is well known. However, for any of our readers who believe they possess one of these sign gifts, I shall try to show from Scripture how such gifts are to be used. We shall also consider ways in which modified forms of the gifts of healing, miracles, tongues, and interpretations may be manifested by believers today -through the leading and power of the Holy Spirit-to minister to others.

The Lord Jesus healed people and so did the twelve disciples and the apostle Paul. We learn a number of things from their examples:

1. The gift was not used for personal benefit or gain. The apostle Paul could heal others (Acts 14:10; 28:8,9) but not himself (2 Cor. 12:8,9).

2. The persons healed were not sent home and told that they would be feeling better soon. Rather, the healing was immediate and complete (Mark 1:42; 2:12; 7:35; Luke 4:39; Acts 3:7,8; 9:34; 14:10). (See Assignment 6)

3. The persons were not healed selectively, but all who came to Jesus (Matt. 9:35; 15:30,31; Mark 6:56; Luke 4:40; 6:19) or to His disciples (Matt. 10:1,8; Acts 5:15,16; 8:7; 28:9) were healed of all kinds of sickness and disease.

4. Many of the persons healed were well known by relatives and friends to have been sick from birth or to have serious infirmities (Mark 2:3; John 9:1; Acts 3:2; 14:8).

5. The gift included power for the ultimate healing, namely, bringing the dead back to life again (Mark 5:35-42; John 11:43, 44; Acts 9:36-41; 20:9,10).

6. Neither Jesus nor the apostles staged healing services, but went to where the sick people were, where there could be ample testimony to the validity of the healing (Mark 1:21-2:12; 5:1-17; John 9:1-11; Acts 3:7-10; 9:38).

7. Often the persons were healed as an act of pure grace, without any particular evidence of faith on the part of the sick person or his/her relatives (Matt. 8:14,15; John 9:1-7; Acts 3:6). Also, there is no mention in Scripture of anyone failing to be healed because of his or her own lack of faith. Rather, Jesus rebuked His disciples, who had the gift of healing, for their lack of faith in failing to bring about healing (Matt. 17:14-21).

8. Contrary to the teaching of some, illness cannot necessarily be attributed to Satan. Satan could not touch Job without the LORD giving him permission (Job 1:12; 2:6). Some illness is a result of a person’s own sin (1 Cor. 11:30; Jas. 5:15,16; 1 John 5:16). Some trials come directly from the Lord, “for whom the Lord loves He chastens” (Heb. 12:5-11).

9. Scripture is clear that it may not be God’s will for a particular person to be healed (2 Cor. 12:8,9; 1 Tim. 5:23; 2 Tim. 4:20), at least for the present. Sometimes, the healer may even be led of the Lord to do just the opposite-to call down sickness in judgment upon a sinning person (Acts 13:11; see also Jas. 5:17).

There is a kind of healing needed in the Church today that, no doubt, is much more important than mere physical healing. I refer to healing the backslidings of God’s children (Jer. 3:22; Hos. 14:4) by faithful appeals and admonitions (Matt. 18:15; Gal. 6:1). I refer also to the healing of conflicts and breaches among Christians by those gifted as peacemakers (Matt. 5:9).

Running the Race
SERVING THE LORD (II)

Here are more examples of how the men and women of the Bible served the Lord.

1. Elijah (through the power of God) brought a young boy back to life (1 Ki. 17:22).

2. Elisha also brought a young boy back to life and healed Captain Naaman of his leprosy (2 Ki. 4:32-35; 5:14).

3. Joshua and Caleb tried to calm and encourage the people of their nation (Num. 13:30; 14:6-9).

4. Samson’s mother reasoned with and encouraged her husband (Judg. 13:22,23).

5. David played his harp to refresh King Saul’s troubled spirit (1 Sam. 16:14-23).

6. Solomon counseled and judged his people with wisdom (1 Ki. 3:16-28; 4:32-34; Prov. 1-31).

7. The old men wisely counseled King Rehoboam to be a servant unto his people and to speak good words to them (1 Ki. 12:7).

8. Barnabas helped the believers in Jerusalem to overcome their fear of Saul (Acts 9:26,27). He also encouraged the believers to “cleave unto the Lord” (Acts 11:23).

9. The apostle Paul encouraged and counseled the crew and passengers on ship during a terrible storm (Acts 27:22,31-36).

Assignment 6: Write out three verses in Mark 5 that show how quickly and completely Jesus healed three different people.

Foundations of Faith
SPIRITUAL GIFTS (IV)

We shall wait and deal with the so-called sign gifts of healing, working of miracles, tongues, and interpretation of tongues in the next issues of GROWING. This leaves two spiritual gifts to be discussed.

This gift is simply called “helps” in 1 Cor. 12:28 and “ministry [or service]” in Rom. 12:7. It is often linked with the gifts of ruling, giving, showing mercy, and other spiritual gifts. All of us have helped and served many times. Most of us will gladly lend a hand when asked. But the one gifted in helping and serving no doubt is distinguished by continually being sensitive to what needs to be done and goes and does it without being asked.

The Apostle Paul labeled Priscilla, Aquila, and Urbane “helpers [or fellow workers]” (Rom. 16:3,9). Martha and Phoebe were noted for their service to others (Luke 10:40; John 12:2; Rom. 16:1). The greatest of all examples of helping and serving is found in the Holy Trinity:”God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Psa. 46:1). “If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet” (John 13:14). “The Spirit also helps our infirmities” (Rom. 8:26).

The word “ministry” in Rom. 12:7 is related to the one translated “deacon” in 1 Timothy 3:12. It is also used to describe the activities of evangelizing and preaching and teaching the Word of God (Acts 6:4; 12:25; 20:24; 2 Cor. 5:18). So while there is a special gift of helping and serving, all spiritual gifts are ministries by which we serve the Lord (1 Cor. 12:5).

Scripture tells us that “in the latter times [today, certainly!] some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils” (1 Tim. 4:1-3; see also 2 Pet. 2; 1 John 4:1-3). All believers in Christ, including those who are but “little children” spiritually, have the power through the Holy Spirit to distinguish between truth and error (1 John 2:18-27; 4:6). But each one of us needs always to pray for wisdom and discernment whenever we are faced with new teachings or spiritual experiences. Sometimes we are troubled by a teaching or experience that does not seem to be quite right but we cannot put our finger on what is wrong with it. For example, a friend may describe to us with great enthusiasm the experience of being “slain in the spirit.” It is well to discuss these things with others in our local assembly. There may be many in the assembly who can help us; one who has the gift of “discerning of spirits” (1 Cor. 12:10) may be of particular help in this regard.

The Apostle Paul clearly had this gift. Not only did he discern what was false, but also recognized when there was true faith, such as perceiving that the crippled man of Lystra “had faith to be healed” (Acts 14:9). (See Assignment 4)

Running the Race
SERVING THE LORD (I)

Have you ever asked, “How can I serve the Lord?” Some young Christians get hung up on trying to learn what their spiritual gift is. They seem afraid to do anything for the Lord until they know their spiritual gift. But they have it backward. We are to imitate Saul of Tarsus who, when converted, asked, “Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do?” (Acts 9:6). If we pray for opportunities to serve the Lord, He will very quickly show us plenty of them. If we are truly sincere about wanting to serve the Lord, He will show us needs and will burden our hearts to do something about those needs (see Jan99).

In the series on “Spiritual Gifts” we seek to define and describe each gift. In this series on “Serving the Lord” we approach the same subject from a different angle, namely, looking at how the men and women of the Bible served the Lord. Since we have studied the gift of helping and serving earlier in this issue, let us begin with this area of service.

1. Noah built an ark (Gen. 6).

2. Joseph provided food for the nations in time of famine (Gen. 41-43).

3. Bezaleel, Aholiab, and others constructed the furnishings of tabernacle (Exod. 35:30-36:2).

4. The Levites erected and transported the tabernacle (Num. 3,4), and served as doorkeepers, treasurers, and musicians for the tabernacle (1 Chron. 24-26).

5. Rahab hid the spies (Josh. 2).

6. Jonathan helped and protected David (1 Sam. 20).

7. The widow of Zaraphath fed Elijah (1 Ki. 17:8-16).

8. The woman of Shunem provided housing for Elisha (2 Ki. 4:8-17).

9. Jehoshabeath hid the heir to the throne (2 Chron. 22:10-22).

10. Job helped the poor, orphans, widows, blind, and lame (Job 1:8; 29:4-17).

11. The widow gave her last two mites (Mark 12:42-44).

12. Barnabas, Ananias, Sapphira sold land and gave money for the needy (Acts 4:34-37; 5:1,2). (See Assignment 5)

13. Dorcas made clothing for the poor (Acts 9:36-42).

There is no special gift for praying. All believers can do it (Eph. 6:18).

1. Abraham pleaded with the LORD to spare Sodom (Gen. 18:23-33).

2. Moses prayed for the nation of Israel (Exod. 17:4,11,12; 32:11-14,30-32; Num. 21:7).

3. Abigail pleaded to David to spare her household (1 Sam. 25:14-35).

4. Esther pleaded to King Ahasuerus to spare her people (Esth. 5-7).

5. Job prayed for his sons and his friends (Job 1:5; 42:10).

6. Daniel prayed for his people, the Jews in captivity (Dan. 9:1-19).

7. Anna prayed night and day in the temple (Luke 2:37).

8. The Lord prayed often (Matt. 14:23; Mark 1:35; Luke 3:21; 5:16; 6:12; 9:18,28; 11:1; 22:32,41; John 17).

9. The apostle Paul prayed for nearly everyone he knew (Rom. 1:9; 10:1; Eph. 1:16; Phil. 1:4; Col. 1:9; 1 Thess. 1:2; 2 Thess. 1:11; 2 Tim. 1;3; Philem. 4).

10. Epaphras prayed for the assembly at Colosse (Col. 4:12).

Do these examples give you any ideas yet as to how you can begin to serve the Lord?

Assignment 4: (a) Write out a passage in Acts 16 that demonstrates the Apostle Paul’s ability to discern spirits, even when being flattered. (b) Write out a verse in Acts 5 that shows how another apostle had the gift of discernment.

Assignment 5: Ananias and his wife did a good work in selling some land and giving some of the money to help the poor. So why did God punish them with death?

Foundations of Faith
SPIRITUAL GIFTS (III)

George and Mary Smith just experienced a horrible tragedy. A tornado whipped through their neighborhood, demolishing their house and car, killing their baby daughter Stephanie, and leaving both of them with serious injuries. To make matters worse, George had been out of work for several months and had no health insurance and only partial home and auto insurance. Worse still, he had ignored the warning siren that might at least have preserved Stephanie’s life and kept them from being injured. Because of this, George fell into a deep depression and wished he had died too. Mary grieved greatly over the loss of her daughter.

However, George and Mary’s fellow believers in the local church quickly moved into action. Brother Armstrong organized a group who sifted through the debris for valuables and then cleared away the rubble. Brother Holmes organized and directed a team that built a new house.

Sister S. immediately recognized the great need and anonymously donated $20,000 from her retirement fund to help with the funeral, hospital, and home refurnishing expenses. Sister McCandless spent many hours with Mary, talking, listening, praying, sympathizing, reading the Scriptures, organizing, and decorating as she helped Mary both to work through her grief and to get her life, body, and new home in order.

Even after George and Mary recovered from their injuries and moved into their new house, George went into seclusion, so ashamed and depressed was he over his negligence in his daughter’s death. But Brother Barnaby visited him several times and shared how the Lord had lifted him up from his own failures on a number of occasions. Brother Barnaby encouraged George in the Lord (1 Sam. 30:6) and exhorted him to resume his responsibilities at home, at work, and in the local assembly.

This scenario illustrates the use of several gifts of the spirit.

“He who rules, with diligence” (Rom. 12:8). “God has set some in the church … governments” (1 Cor. 12:28). Many activities and ministries of the local church are carried out by individuals, such as the work of a pastor, teacher, or evangelist (although these all surely need the prayer support of the rest of the congregation). But matters come up that involve a more united effort or the involvement of the entire assembly. Examples include such things as (1) planning to paint or repair the building; (2) disciplining a sinning brother or sister; or (3) planning a conference, vacation Bible school, or summer camp. One with the gift of ruling or government will typically be the one who takes the lead in organizing such group efforts. In our story above, Brothers Armstrong and Holmes may have had such a gift.

The same word “rule” is used in connection with those who carry out the work of an elder or overseer and the work of a deacon (1 Thess. 5:12; 1 Tim. 3:4,5,12; 5:17; see Nov98); thus its application clearly includes dealing with spiritual problems and helping the assembly to make decisions.

“He who gives, let him do it with simplicity” (Rom. 12:8). All Christians at times give of themselves, their time, and their money to help others. But some are especially gifted in this area. They are very sensitive to the financial and material needs of others and are quick to meet those needs. They do not complicate and delay their giving by asking whether or how they can get a tax deduction out of it. They “do it with simplicity.” If one wishes to borrow from them, they give without expecting to be repaid (Luke 6:30-35). Sister S. in the story above may have had the gift of giving. The Lord is faithful in replenishing the funds of the giver so that the one so gifted may be able to give to others in need. (See Assignment 3)

“He who shows mercy, with cheerfulness” (Rom. 12:8). One with the gift of mercy does not say, “I am sorry you are having so much trouble; let me know if there is anything I can do.” Rather, he/she says, “I am sorry you are having so much trouble; would it be convenient for me to bring over supper tonight? or would tomorrow night be better?” When we see a car with its hood up and a man or woman standing helplessly beside it, we may think, “I really feel sorry for that person,” and then drive right on by. However, the person with the gift of mercy will not only feel sorry for those in distress, but will stop and help them (see Jan94). Sister McCandless in the story above probably had the gift of showing mercy.

“He who exhorts, on exhortation” (Rom. 12:8). Exhorting is one of the features of prophesying (1 Cor. 14:3; see Jan99). However, it is important enough in its own right to be mentioned separately, even though the gift of prophecy is mentioned two verses earlier. An example of an exhortation is found at the beginning of the chapter:”I beseech [or exhort] you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice … unto God” (Rom. 12:1).

The exhorter finds himself in good company. The words “exhort” and “exhortation” are closely related to the words “Comforter” used of the Holy Spirit (John 14:16,26; 15:26; 16:7) and “Advocate” used of the Lord Jesus (1 John 2:1). A comforter or advocate is literally one who is called to one’s side to help. The Holy Spirit, not merely at our side but dwelling in us, seeks always as “the Comforter” to direct our heart and thoughts to the Lord Jesus (John 16:14,15). Jesus Christ, as our “Advocate with the Father,” seeks to restore the sinning saint to full fellowship with God the Father.

Just so, the work of the exhorter is especially that of restoring the sinning, backsliding, wandering, or discouraged believer back to communion with the Lord and the joy of God’s salvation (Psa. 51:12). The exhorter does not do this by shouting harsh words at the sinner. Rather he goes to the sinner’s side and gently, humbly, and earnestly ministers Christ to him through the Scriptures.

In the story above, Brother Barnaby displayed the gift of exhorting. This gift seems to be implied in the following verse:”Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, you who are spiritual restore such a one in the spirit of meekness” (Gal. 6:1).

Running the Race
Assignment 3: Write out a verse in Proverbs 11 that supports the last statement.

Foundations of Faith
SPIRITUAL GIFTS (II)

“And He gave some evangelists” (Eph. 4:12). Those with this gift have a real love for lost souls, hate the thought of their being separated from God for eternity, and long for their salvation. They see other people first and foremost as those who need Christ, whether they be friends, relatives, or total strangers.

Evangelists have the ability to discern a sinner’s condition of soul, probe the conscience, and answer questions or objections (John 4:5-26). They study the Word to know the best ways to present the gospel clearly and accurately to different classes of people, just as the apostle Paul used different approaches in addressing Jews and Gentiles. (See Assignment 2)

Evangelists are persons with much courage, energy and perseverance (2 Cor. 11:23-27). They realize the tremendous importance of prayer, both before and during each gospel opportunity (Eph. 6:18,19). Once evangelists have delivered their message, they depend upon the Lord to bring fruit from it, and give all glory to God when a soul comes out of darkness into light (1 Cor. 3:6).

Not all believers are gifted as evangelists; however, all of us should “do the work of an evangelist” (2 Tim. 4:5). The more we grow in our appreciation for the price the Lord Jesus paid to save us, the more earnest we will be in seeking to reach lost souls for Christ (2 Cor. 5:14,15).

This gift is mentioned several times (Rom. 12:7; 1 Cor. 12:28; Eph. 4:12), along with a closely related gift called “the word of knowledge” (1 Cor. 12:8).

Teachers are gifted to unfold, expound, and explain clearly and accurately the Word of God to the people of God. They are dedicated students of the Bible. They make themselves familiar with all of Scripture and make use of the many kinds of helps available, such as Bible commentaries and English, Greek, and Hebrew concordances and dictionaries. They seek to interpret each phrase, verse, and chapter of the Bible in a way that fits with the immediate context and is consistent with every other part of Scripture.

Teaching is regarded by many as a prestigious gift; believers with other gifts tend to desire it. Perhaps for this reason, James exhorts, “My brethren, be not many masters [literally, teachers]” (Jas. 3:1). In the list of gifts in Romans 12, emphasis is placed on our being faithful to exercise the particular gift God has given to us. Thus, for example, if we have the gift of “ministry, let us wait on our ministering; or he who teaches, on teaching” (Rom. 12:7).

“And He gave some pastors and teachers” (Eph. 4:12). The Greek word here translated “pastors” is elsewhere translated “shepherd” and several times applies to the Lord Jesus (Matt. 25:31; John 10:11;14; Heb. 13:20; 1 Pet. 2:25).

Phillip Keller once shepherded a literal flock of sheep in Africa. In A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23, he lists four requirements that must be met before sheep will “lie down in green pastures” (Psa. 23:2):They must be (1) free of all fear, (2) free from friction with other sheep, (3) free from flies or other pests, and (4) free from hunger. The shepherd’s work is to help his flock to achieve these requirements.

The Christian with the gift of pastor applies the Word of God to the “flock” of believers in ways that will relieve them of their fears and anxieties (Phil. 4:6; 1 John 4:18), help them to resolve conflicts and be reconciled with one another (Matt. 5:24; Jas. 5:16), help them to deal with opposition from unbelievers (1 Pet. 4:12-16), and direct their hearts to the Lord in whom is found all rest and satisfaction (1 Pet. 5:10).

The work of an elder or overseer (Nov98) is closely connected with the gift of pastor. The apostle Peter instructed the elders to “feed the flock of God” and then commended them to the “chief Shepherd” (1 Pet. 5:1-4).

While the gift of “the word of knowledge” is associated with the gift of teaching, “the word of wisdom” (1 Cor. 12:8) and the gift of exhortation (Rom. 12:8) are linked with the gift of pastor. The teacher primarily explains the meaning of the scriptures while the pastor has the wisdom to apply the scriptures to peoples’ problems of everyday life. The one cannot do without the other. In fact, the wording in Eph. 4:12, “He gave some pastors and teachers,” suggests that the Lord may sometimes help pastors to develop some teaching skills and teachers to develop some pastoring skills.

Having studied the five gifts listed in Eph. 4:12, let us note what is to be accomplished through these gifts:”For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ” (verse 13). First, these gifts are to be used for, literally, the “perfect joining together [see 1 Cor. 1:10] of the saints.” This fits in with the value God places on the Church as the body of Christ (Jul98-Sep98). Second, these gifts are used to instruct and train other believers in the Word of God, to equip them to develop their own gifts in service for the Lord. In this way the body of Christ will be edified or built up.

Another of the gifts of the Spirit is “faith” (1 Cor. 12:9). Every believer in Christ must have faith in order to be saved (Eph. 2:8). One aspect of the fruit of the Spirit, manifested by every believer, is “faith” (Gal. 5:22). Our entire lives as Christians should be characterized by the exercise of faith, that is, trust and dependence upon the Lord (2 Cor. 5:7; Gal. 2:20; 2 Thess. 1:3). The Lord wants us to trust Him for every matter and care of our daily lives and to count upon His guidance and supply for our every need (Phil. 4:19; 2 Cor. 12:9).

Yet above and beyond this, some believers are gifted with an extraordinary measure of faith. The Lord shows them a great work that needs to be done, and they launch out in faith with no idea where the necessary funds and help for this work will come from. All they know is that the Lord who led them into this work will provide for every need along the way. This gift of faith is well illustrated in biographies of George Müller who established an orphanage in Bristol, England and Hudson Taylor who was a missionary in China.

Running the Race
Assignment 2: Read the apostle Paul’s gospel sermons to the Jews in Acts 13:16-41 and to the Gentiles in Acts 17:22-31. In what ways are they similar? In what ways are they different?

Foundations of Faith
SPIRITUAL GIFTS (I)

As pointed out previously (Oct98), every member of the body of Christ has a role to play in the body as a whole and especially in the local assembly. For this purpose, one or more spiritual gifts have been given to every believer in Christ (Rom. 12:3-8; 1 Cor. 12:4-11,28-31; Eph. 4:11,12).

Let us discuss a few general points concerning spiritual gifts. First, just as the human physical body has many different members (eyes, ears, arms, legs, heart, liver, muscles, nerves, etc.), so the body of Christ has many members, with many different gifts and many different roles to play. In order for the local church or assembly of believers to function properly, each member must be ready and willing at all times to use his/her spiritual gift for the benefit of the whole assembly.

Second, you may be wondering, “How can I know what my own spiritual gift is?” The Bible does not tell us, but a good starting point is found in the question asked by Saul of Tarsus when he had just been converted:”Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do?” (Acts 9:6).

Each believer in Christ should be asking this same question. If we are truly sincere about wanting to serve the Lord, He will show us work to be done and people with needs and will burden our hearts to do something about those needs. A person with one kind of gift will often be especially sensitive to one kind of need or work to be done, and a person with a different gift may be sensitive to a completely different area of need. If you keep track of the persons and situations that concern you each day, and what you do to help in each situation, after a while you may see a pattern forming that will help define your spiritual gift.

Third, it is well to see that the entire Trinity is involved in this matter of spiritual gifts:”There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of [services], but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations [or effects], but it is the same God who works all in all” (1 Cor. 12:4-6). So while the gifts are given by the Holy Spirit, the person who receives a gift is not free to do whatever he/she wants with this gift. Rather, the person is to be subject to the Lord in the use of that gift in service for the Lord (verse 5) and for building up the body of believers (verses 7,25). Finally, each time we faithfully use our spiritual gift as directed by the Lord Jesus, we are to leave the results with God who “works all in all” (verse 6). It is He who brings about the desired effect in the heart and life of the one to whom we have ministered. We are not to be discouraged if the use of our gift does not immediately yield positive results. God’s timing is perfect.

We are ready now to describe briefly each of the spiritual gifts mentioned in Scripture.

These two gifts are often linked together (1 Cor. 12:28,29; Eph. 3:5; 4:11; Rev. 18:20). They were prominent in the first century A.D. during the formation and building up of the Church:”You … are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone” (Eph. 2:19,20).

The apostles were, literally, “sent out ones.” The greatest Apostle of all was Christ Jesus (Heb. 3:1), the One sent by God “to be the Saviour of the world” (John 3:16,17; 5:36; 6:57; 8:42; 17:3; 1 John 4:9,10,14). Jesus sent out His 12 disciples “to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick” (Luke 9:2). When they returned from their mission, they were referred to as “apostles” (verse 10). On other occasions Jesus sent both the 12 apostles and others to preach and to prepare the way for Him (Luke 9:52; 10:1; 19:29; 22:8); after His resurrection He directed His disciples to “go into all the world and preach the gospel” (Matt. 28:19; Mark 14:15; Luke 24:47).

The apostles were men who had seen Christ in resurrection (Acts 1:22-26; 1 Cor. 15:8). They were granted authority over demons and diseases (Luke 9:1), to deliver evildoers to Satan (1 Tim. 1:20; 1 Cor. 5:5), and to tell people what they should do (2 Cor. 10:8-10).

The prophets were those who, literally, “spoke for another”; more specifically, they brought messages to the people from God. Again, the greatest Prophet of all was the one prophesied in Deut. 18:15,18, the Lord Jesus Christ (Luke 7:16; John 6:14; 7:40; Acts 3:22-26), the One who spoke only those things that His Father gave to Him (John 8:28; 12:49; 14:10). The first century prophets were those who received fresh revelations and teachings from the Holy Spirit that have come down to us as the New Testament.

Most Bible scholars agree that the gifts of apostles and prophets, as known in the first century, have passed off the scene. With the completion of the Holy Scriptures there are no fresh revelations from God.

However, in a secondary sense, today’s foreign missionaries might be considered as apostles or “sent out ones.” As souls are brought to Christ through their preaching in a certain place, they teach the new converts and instruct them in coming together as an assembly of believers. This is much like the work of the apostle Paul, though today’s missionaries do not seem to have the authority that God gave to the early apostles.

Similarly, while there are no prophets today who bring new revelations of truth from God, there are prophets in a more restricted sense who bring the truth of God’s Word, the Scriptures, to the people. Jesus gave Mary Magdalene a message to deliver to the disciples, which she did faithfully (John 20:17,18). If we are daily in close communion with the Lord, He may similarly lay on our hearts a message of “edification, exhortation, [or] comfort” (1 Cor. 14:3) from the Scriptures to deliver to relative or friend or fellow believer. In an assembly meeting for ministry of the Scriptures (Oct98), two or three “prophets” may speak (1 Cor. 14:29). This means that the Lord may give to these brothers a message from His Word that gives just the needed teaching, warning, exhortation, encouragement, or comfort to the believers who are gathered together.

Prophesying may also include foretelling the future (2 Chron. 18:11-22; Jer. 14:15,16; 19:14,15; 25:30; 27:16; Ezek. 6:2; 20:46,47), and this type of prophesying is popular in some Christian circles today. But one must make certain that the message is from the Lord.

Running the Race
Assignment 1: From Deuteronomy 18 write out a verse that tells how to distinguish a false prophet and one that describes the punishment of a false prophet.

ANSWERS TO ASSIGNMENTS FOR 1998

1. 2 Cor. 12:4 and either 5 or 9 or 10 (write out two verses).

2. That person, if truly saved, will go to heaven because he has eternal life (John 3:16), shall never perish (John 10:28), shall not come into judgment (John 5:24), is kept by the power of God (1 Pet. 1:5), cannot be plucked out of God’s hand (John 10:28,29), and is sealed by the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:13; 4:30). Any one of these or other appropriate verses should be written out.)

3. John 1:12; Col. 2:6 (write out both).

4. John 14:6; Acts 4:12 (write out both).

5. Old Testament: David (2 Sam. 11:4-17; 12:13; 24:10,25; write out at least two verses); New Testament: Peter (Luke 22:43-61; John 21:15-17); or Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-14,15-16); write out at least two verses.

6. (a) Col. 2:12; (b) Col. 2:20; Col. 3:1,2 (write out at least three verses).

7. Heb. 12:1,2 (write out both verses).

8. Brother B might have said: “I appreciate your concern. I want to do what is pleasing to God. I am not aware of any scripture that suggests that what I am doing is wrong or displeasing to the Lord. Perhaps you can help me.” Another answer, submitted by one of our students is this: “Brother A, I appreciate your concern about my habit of smoking a pipe!! I must admit that I have felt the gentle urging of the Holy Spirit for some time now to stop smoking. The fact that you are bringing the subject up confirms to me that the Lord doesn’t want me polluting my body in this way anymore. I am glad that you had the courage to talk to me about this in a straightforward, non-judgmental, and private manner. I realize that my body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and I want to stop this filthy habit. Will you pray with me that I won’t crave the tobacco anymore and have strength to stop pipe smoking?”

9. Rom. 12:5; 1 Tim. 3:15; Rev. 19:7 (write out each verse).

10. Andrew found his brother Simon, told him about the Messiah, and brought him to Jesus (John 1:40-42).

11. Proverbs 10:17; 12:1; 15:10, 32 (write out three verses).

12. (2 points) (a) Acts 18:27; 2 Cor. 3:1 (write out both verses); (b) Rom. 16:1,2 (write out both), (c) Rom. 15:26; 1 Cor. 16:3 (write out both).

13. (a) Acts 4:31; 12:5 or 12 (prayer meeting) (write out both verses); (b) Acts 4:31 (no need to write out again); 12:7-11,17 (write out one or more verses).

14. Elders should (a) feed the flock of God, (b) do it willingly, (c) do it with a ready mind and not concerned about how much it pays, and (d) be examples to the flock (1 Pet. 5:2,3). The younger believers should submit themselves unto the elders (1 Pet. 5:5).

15. The brother repented and had sorrow for his sin, making Paul glad (2 Cor. 2:2,7); the assembly was now to forgive him, comfort him, and confirm their love toward him (2 Cor. 2:7,8) (write out two verses).

16-1. Eternal life is life that is never ending (1 Thess. 4:17), and it is a totally new kind of life, with God and Jesus Christ as the focus (John 17:3).

16-2. Such verses cannot be found!

16-3. Being enlightened, tasting, and made partakers in verses 4 and 5 refer to the superficial responses of professing Christians. If they turn back to Judaism or some other religion, they are saying that Jesus Christ really did deserve to be crucified after all, and they will not find salvation in anything or Anyone but Christ.

16-4. It is important to hold the doctrine of eternal security because (a) the Bible teaches it, (b) it causes us to praise, worship, serve, and obey God out of appreciation for His great love and grace toward us, and (c) it keeps us from trying to add something of our own doing to the work that Christ finished for us (give at least two of these reasons).

16-5. Water baptism symbolizes (a) the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ; (b) our being dead to sin and alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

16-6. First of all, we are to obey them, but not out of fear of a penalty but out of appreciation for what Christ has suffered for our sakes. Second, (a) much more than not committing murder, we seek to lead souls to eternal life in Christ; (b) much more than not stealing, we work so that we can give to those in need; and (c) much more than not taking God’s name in vain, we preach Christ as the only name by which one can be saved.

16-7. 1 Cor. 12:12 and others (write out one verse).

16-8. An important activity of the members of the body of Christ is reproof, correction, and rescue of one another when we wander away from the Lord and fall into sin.

16-9. Evidences that the local churches in New Testament days were united together: (a) believers carried letters of commendation when visiting another assembly; (b) the apostle Paul in his epistles reminded the churches of their unity with other assemblies; (c) the richer assemblies sent financial aid to the poorer ones; (d) believers of different ethnic backgrounds were joined together in one body; and (e) differences in doctrine and practice among assemblies were discussed and resolved.

16-10. 1 Pet. 2:5,9; Rev. 1:6 (write out two of these verses).

16-11. (a) Qualifications of an overseer: Tit. 1:6-9 (write out one verse); (b) qualifications of a deacon: 1 Tim. 3:8-12 (write out one verse).

16-12. Write out Matt. 18:15-17 or 1 Cor. 5:13.

Foundations of Faith

Running the Race

Foundations of Faith
THE CHURCH (VI)

“Judge not, that you be not judged” (Matt. 7:1). To many Christians and to many local churches, this is what the Bible says about church discipline, namely, that there should be none. Whatever this verse may mean (see The Race in this issue), there are many passages in the New Testament that clearly show God-given authority for discipline in the local church. For example, the apostle Paul passed judgment on the man in Corinth who was committing fornication, and urged the Corinthian Assembly to do the same (1 Cor. 5:3-5).

Dealing with Those Who Have Faults. “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness” (Gal. 6:1). This particularly falls under the responsibilities of an overseer (see Nov98). However, the person most responsible for going to the erring one and pointing out his/her fault or sin is the one who is aware of the offense. The Lord might even use a child, like Samuel (1 Sam. 3:11-18), to point out the sin of an older person.

Dealing with the Unruly. “Warn those who are unruly” (1 Thess. 5:14). The “unruly” here are those believers who are neglecting their God-given responsibilities in the home, at work, or in the assembly. It includes those who are not working and are getting into other people’s business instead of trying to find a job, doing volunteer work, helping others, or serving the Lord (2 Thess. 3:11,12).

Dealing with Heretics. “A man who is a heretic after the first and second admonition reject [or avoid]” (Tit. 3:10; also Rom. 16:17). A heretic is not necessarily one who teaches wrong doctrine but one who tries to form a party or sect around a particular doctrine or issue or himself. The best way for everyone to deal with such a person is to avoid him as the verse in Titus tells us. Without any followers after his cause, he will either leave and go elsewhere or be quiet.

Dealing with a Person Who Continues in Sin. “If your brother sins against you, go, reprove him between you and him alone:if he hear you, you have gained your brother.” (Matt. 18:15, JND translation). This may be either a sin that has been committed personally against you, or one that you have witnessed or been told of. So far this is like Gal. 6:1. If your brother confesses his sin and stops doing it, your job is well done and you need not carry the matter further. Or if he gives evidence that he was misunderstood or falsely accused, the matter is over unless new evidence of his wrong-doing comes to light.

“But if he will not hear you, then take with you one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church; but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto you as an heathen man and a publican” (Matt. 18:16,17). Here is the scriptural procedure if the sinning brother justifies his sinful deed or continues in his sin. It may not have been a huge sin-like adultery or stealing or being drunk (1 Cor. 5:11)-to begin with. But if it is not confessed, it raises a barrier between himself and the others in the church, as well as between himself and God. If the sin is continued, he is behaving like “a heathen man” and the local assembly has authority from God to put him out of fellowship (Matt. 18:18).

Dealing with an Elder Who Sins. “Against an elder receive not an accusation but before two or three witnesses. Those who sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear” (1 Tim. 5:10,20). When an elder or overseer sins, the procedure given in Matt. 18:15-17 does not seem to apply. Because of the responsible position the sinner occupies in the local assembly, his sin calls for public rebuke. At the same time, if his sin is not confirmed by at least two or three witnesses, then the matter should be kept quiet until there is sufficient evidence.

Dealing with a Wicked Person. “Put away from among yourselves that wicked person” (1 Cor. 5:13). There once was a man in the assembly at Corinth, Greece who was committing fornication. It was not an isolated act but a sin-pattern that was widely known in the community (1 Cor. 5:1). Due to the public nature of this sin, the steps of Matt. 18:15-17 were not applicable. Since the man remained unrepentant, the entire church was to excommunicate him or deny Christian fellowship to him.

Dealing with an Excommunicated Person. The purpose of putting wicked brothers or sisters out of fellowship is to help them to learn the seriousness of the sin with sincere hope and prayer for their repentance and restoration to the Lord (1 Cor. 5:5; 1 Tim. 1:20).

Preventive Discipline. Perhaps some of the problems that call for church discipline might be avoided if more care were taken in receiving brothers and sisters into fellowship in the first place. “Lay hands suddenly on no man” (1 Tim. 5:22) is a verse to consider in this regard. (See Assignment 15)

Running the Race
“JUDGE NOT”

We have just described several different kinds of judgments to be made by the church against sinners. So what does the verse mean that says, “Judge not, that you be not judged” (Matt. 7:1)?

Here are some suggestions as to what we should not judge:

1. The context of chapter 6 is earthly riches. The preceding verse says, “Take … no thought for the morrow” (6:34). The Christian who has (or thinks he has) forsaken all to follow Christ should not stand in judgment on the believer who still is wealthy.

2. We should not judge motives or outward appearances (John 7:24; 1 Cor. 13:7). Rather, we should try to give the most positive interpretation to a person’s action, unless there is clear-cut evidence of sin.

3. We should not judge the service of another Christian (1 Cor. 4:1-4), for example, thinking that my service for the Lord is more profitable than my brother’s service.

4. We should not engage in any of the reproving and correcting activities of Matt. 18:15-17, Gal. 6:1, etc., unless we are in a state of self-judgment before the Lord.

Assignment 15: Read 2 Corinthians 2. Write out a couple of verses that tell what happened to the brother who had been put out of fellowship, and how the assembly was to behave toward him.

Assignment 16: The following is a review quiz based on the 1998 issues of GROWING. Please refer back to the indicated issue when answering each question.

1. (Jan.) Give two definitions of “eternal life” and write out two verses that support these definitions.

2. (Feb.) Can you find verses in the Bible that speak of a true believer in Christ (a) losing his eternal life, (b) being separated from the love of God, and (c) having the seal of the Spirit removed?

3. (Mar.) Briefly explain the meaning of Heb. 6:4-6.

4. (Apr.) Give at least two reasons why it is so important for Christians to hold the doctrine of eternal security.

5. (May) Write down at least two biblical truths that are symbolized by water baptism.

6. (June) The Old Testament law says that we must not (a) murder, (b) steal, nor (c) take God’s name in vain. As Christians under grace how are we to respond to these three commandments?

7. (July) Write out a verse that shows how the Church, the body of Christ, is like a human body.

8. (Aug.) What important activity of the members of the body of Christ is emphasized in the August issue?

9. (Sept.) Describe at least three evidences that the local churches in New Testament days were united together.

10. (Oct.) Write out two verses that show that all believers in Christ are priests.

11. (Nov.) (a) Write out a verse that gives some qualifications of an overseer or bishop; (b) write out a verse in a different New Testament book that gives some qualifications of a deacon.

12. (Dec.) Write out some verses that show how to deal with a person who continues in his/her sin.

Foundations of Faith
THE CHURCH (V)

What is the difference between bishops, overseers, and elders? These three terms all apply to the same office in the local church. The apostle Paul called together the “elders” of the church at Ephesus (Acts 20:17), and said to them:”Take heed … to all the flock, over the which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers” (20:28). The terms “elders” and “bishops” likewise refer to the same persons (Tit. 1:5,7). The Greek word translated “overseer” is the same as the one translated “bishop” in these and other passages. The word “overseer” describes the kind of work these men do in the local church, and the word “elder” describes the level of spiritual maturity required for such work. As we shall see later, the office of a deacon is distinct from that of the overseer or elder.

How are overseers and deacons appointed? The 12 apostles appointed deacons in the church at Jerusalem (Acts 6:3). The apostle Paul and Barnabas appointed “elders in every church” during their missionary journey (Acts 14:23). Paul authorized his co-worker Titus to appoint “elders in every city” (Tit. 1:5-8); he apparently gave Timothy the same authority to appoint overseers and deacons (1 Tim. 3:1-13). So in the early period of the Church, apostles and apostolic delegates (like Titus and Timothy), under the direction of the Holy Spirit (Acts 20:28), appointed overseers and deacons in the various local churches. We see from these and other passages that each assembly had several overseers and deacons (Acts 11:30; 15:2-23; 21:18; Phil. 1:1; Jas. 5:14).

What are the qualifications of an overseer or a deacon? These are listed in Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus (1 Tim. 3:1-13; Tit. 1:5-9). The qualifications primarily relate to moral character (“blameless … sober … not a brawler … not covetous”) and experience as a leader or ruler (“If a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?”).

What are the responsibilities of an overseer? The verse just quoted gives the answer:he takes care of and watches after the souls of the brothers and sisters in a local assembly (1 Tim. 3:5; Heb. 13:17). He exhorts and counsels the believers, warns the unruly, comforts the faint-hearted, and supports the weak (1 Thess. 5:12-14). By sound teaching he exhorts and convinces those who teach things contrary to the Word (1 Tim. 3:2; Tit. 1:9). The overseer may not have a gift for public speaking. There is no indication in the Bible that he is responsible for an assembly’s worship, preaching, teaching, or evangelizing. But he takes time getting to know the brothers and sisters in the assembly. He invites them to his home (1 Tim. 3:2). One-on-one, as he sees the need, he encourages, comforts, rebukes, corrects, instructs, and warns the believers in the local assembly. What a tremendously important role such a brother has to play in the assembly!

What are the responsibilities of a deacon? Perhaps the best description of his work is given in Acts 6. There were many poor believers in the church at Jerusalem, often due to persecution by Jews and pagans. The wealthy believers contributed money so that the local church could provide meals and other necessities to the poor among them (Acts 4:34-5:2). It was the deacons who were responsible for handling these funds and making sure that there was no favoritism and that everyone received a fair share. (See Assignment 14)

Can there be overseers and deacons today? This may seem like a strange question. Most local churches today appoint overseers and deacons. However, the Bible does not speak of churches appointing people to such offices, but only of apostles and apostolic delegates, neither of which have existed since the first century. On the other hand, the qualifications of overseers and deacons must have been given in Scripture for a reason.

A number of local churches today believe that Scripture does not give them authority to appoint individuals to the offices of overseer and deacon. However, they recognize the need for persons taking these responsibilities. Those who meet the qualifications and carry out the responsibilities are recognized and encouraged by the local church.

Running the Race
WHAT DO OVERSEERS AND DEACONS HAVE TO DO WITH
ME-A YOUNG CHRISTIAN?

The church at Thessalonica apparently did not have appointed overseers. So the apostle Paul pleaded with that assembly “to know those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you; and to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake” (1 Thess. 5:12,13). This takes us back to what we discussed in Aug98. As part of “one body in Christ, and every one members one of another” (Rom. 12:5), you younger believers (as well as us older ones) should expect to find others in the assembly coming up to you and encouraging, exhorting, correcting, or warning you. Those who are filling the place of an overseer will be particularly prominent in this activity. So do not despise them or resent their intrusion into your personal life. It is for your greatest good and blessing that they do this as they “watch for your souls” in obedience to the Lord (Heb. 13:17). By coming into the fellowship of the local church, you have essentially agreed to be accountable in attitude and conduct to your brothers and sisters in the assembly. If no overseer or older brother (apart from your father) has ever talked to you with the purpose of encouraging, instructing, or correcting you, I suggest you bring this to the attention of one of the older brothers in the assembly.

Here is another thing for you young believers to think about: If you value the work of the overseers and deacons in your local assembly, begin studying the qualifications for overseers and deacons. Make sure you conduct your life in such a way that in due time you will qualify for such a role in the assembly. Most assemblies are in great need of persons who are both qualified and willing to carry out the responsibilities of an overseer or a deacon.Assignment 14: Read 1 Peter 5. List four things that the elders or overseers should do when carrying out their responsibilities in the local assembly. Then write out one thing the younger believers should do in response to the work of the elders.

Foundations of Faith
THE CHURCH (IV)

“House of God” is an expression often used by people to refer to a church building. However, the Bible says that “the house of God … is the Church of the living God” (1 Tim. 3:15). The Church, as we have already seen, is a body made up of all true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. So the house of God is a building whose “stones” are people:”You also, as living stones, are built up a spiritual house” (1 Pet. 2:5; Eph. 2:22). “You are the temple of God, and … the Spirit of God dwells in you” (1 Cor. 3:16).

The Church viewed as “the house of God” and “the temple of God” suggests several practices of the local church:

1. Just as the Spirit of God dwells in “the temple of God,” believers are to be gathered unto Christ, with Him as the Center in their midst (Matt. 18:20).

2. The believers are not only “living stones” making up the house, but holy priests within the house, “to offer up spiritual sacrifices (1 Pet. 2:5).

3. “The house of God … is … the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Tim. 3:15), so is connected with ministry of the Word of God.

4. As a “holy temple” (Eph. 2:21; 1 Cor. 3:17), discipline is exercised to cleanse the local church of unholiness (1 Cor. 5:13; 1 Pet. 4:17).

5. Order in the house of God is maintained in each local assembly by means of the service of elders and deacons (1 Tim. 3:1-15).

We shall consider each of these five aspects of the house and temple of God in more detail.

Believers in a local assembly may have many different reasons and purposes for gathering together:it may be (1) to participate in the Lord’s supper in which one man is officiating with a standard service; (2) to listen to a sermon; (3) to attend a Sunday school class; (4) to hear the preaching of the gospel; (5) to attend a music program or hymn sing; or (6) to plan some Christian service.

There is a type of Biblical gathering that is rather neglected in the Church today:”Where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matt. 18:20). “When you come together, every one of you has a psalm, has a doctrine, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying” (1 Cor. 14:26). In such meetings, Christ is in the midst, the focus of attention. There is no human leader in these meetings; rather the Spirit of God leads whom He will to praise, worship, pray, announce a hymn, read a Bible passage, or give a word of edification, exhortation, or comfort from the Scriptures (1 Cor. 14:3). This may be a meeting to remember the Lord in His death (Acts 2:42; 20:7; 1 Cor. 11:26-28), for prayer (Acts 2:42), or for ministry of the Scriptures (1 Cor. 14:3, 26-35). (See Assignment 13)

In the Old Testament there was a family in the nation of Israel (the descendants of Aaron) that was privileged to serve as priests on behalf of the rest of the nation. Only the priests could go into the tabernacle or temple or offer sacrifices. Only the high priest could go into the “holy of holies,” the innermost room of the temple, and that only once a year (Heb. 9:1-10).

In the New Testament Church, by contrast, all believers are holy priests “to offer up spiritual sacrifices,” “the sacrifice of praise to God” (1 Pet. 2:5; Heb. 10:19-25; 13:15); also, all are royal priests to show forth to others the praiseworthy acts of God (1 Pet. 2:9).

There is no indication in the New Testament of a priestly class or a system of clergy and laity in the Church. There is no hint of a certain class of believers being more privileged and qualified to draw close to God (for example, in administering the Lord’s Supper) than other believers. Christ Himself is our “great High Priest” (Heb. 4:14; 2:17). As shown in the previous section, in a meeting of the assembly, where the believers are gathered together unto Christ, our High Priest, “every one” of the brothers may participate as directed by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 14:26).

Notice that I said “every one of the brothers may participate.” This restriction is based on the verse, “Let your women keep silence in the churches, for it is not permitted unto them to speak” (1 Cor. 14:34). This does not mean that the sisters occupy a less important position in the church. Rather, they provide crucial prayer support for the brothers who speak, and the Holy Spirit sometimes takes the silent meditations of a sister and gives them to a brother to speak publicly. There should be no thought that the vocal brothers receive more glory than the silent sisters because it is God who should receive all the glory. Also, nothing should really count with us but what God thinks of our prayers, thoughts, and meditations, whether silent or vocal.

The Holy Spirit has many other things for the sisters to do outside of the meetings of the assembly. These will be discussed in a later issue in connection with spiritual gifts.

Every member of the body of Christ has a specific and important role to play in the proper functioning of the body (1 Cor. 12:12-27). Another way of saying this is that one or more spiritual gifts have been given to every believer in Christ (Rom. 12:3-8; 1 Cor. 12:4-11; 28-31; Eph. 4:11,12).

There is a common belief in Christianity that a seminary-trained, properly-ordained clergyman is the only one qualified to preach or teach the Word of God. But we do not learn this from the Bible. The uneducated fisherman Peter became a powerful preacher from walking with Christ for several years; so may you. The word “clergy” is derived from the Greek word kleeros which means “lot” or “inheritance.” It is found in the New Testament only in 1 Pet. 5:3:”Neither as being lords over God’s heritage (kleeros), but being examples to the flock.” So the only reference to “clergy” in the New Testament applies this word to the flock of believers as a whole, and not to a special class of leaders.

A special issue (or two) will be devoted to a discussion of the various gifts of the Holy Spirit and many ways that saved men and women can serve the Lord.

Running the Race
Assignment 13: (a) Write out verses in Acts 4 and Acts 12 that speak of a particular kind of assembly meeting. (b) Also write out verses in these two chapters that show the powerful results of these meetings.

Foundations of Faith
THE CHURCH (III)

In the previous two issues we have observed some comparisons between the body of Christ-made up of all true believers in Christ-and man’s physical body. Just as the different parts of our human bodies work to help, nourish, instruct, and protect each other, so the different members of Christ’s body-the Church-do the same for one another.

How does this work? How can we have fellowship with others who are in the body of Christ? The Holy Spirit not only has joined the believers together as members of the body of Christ (Rom. 12:4,5; 1 Cor. 12:12,13), but He has helped believers in cities and communities to be united together in local churches or assemblies. Can you think of the names of local churches mentioned in the New Testament? The apostle Paul wrote letters to several, including the churches at Rome, Corinth, Galatia, Ephesus, Philippi, Colosse, and Thessalonica.

In the days of the New Testament, there were no divisions into separate denominations. There was a unity of all believers in the city of Rome, for example. Because it was a large city, there may have been several small groups of believers meeting in homes, such as the one at the house of Priscilla and Aquila (Rom. 16:5). But a unity of fellowship existed among all these groups, as also among the churches in the different cities.

There are many evidences of this unity among the local churches in New Testament days:

1. When believers from the church in one city visited the one in another city, they carried with them letters of introduction and commendation from their home church or assembly.

2. The apostle Paul when writing to one local church often reminded the believers of their unity with the other assemblies in the Church (Rom. 16:16; 1 Cor. 1:2; 16:1; 2 Cor. 1:1).

3. The more wealthy local assemblies sent financial help to the poorer ones (2 Cor. 8:1-15; 9:1-15). (See Assignment 12)

4. Believers of different ethnic backgrounds-Jews, Samaritans, and Gentiles-were all joined together in one body (Eph. 2:14-18), rather than forming distinct ethnic assemblies in the same community.

5. Care was taken to discuss and resolve differences in doctrine and practice that might arise among the different assemblies (Acts 15).

Clearly God wants every believer to have fellowship with other believers who live in the same city or community. For those Christians who lived in the first century A.D., there was no problem deciding which local church to fellowship with. There was only one to choose from. Or if there were several assemblies in a large city, presumably one would identify with the one closest to home.

Times have changed in the past 19 centuries. Sad to say, believers have divided into thousands of denominations, sects, and groups. How does a newborn child of God decide which group to fellowship with? Some evangelists advise, simply, “Go to the church of your choice.” This suggests that all are equally sound. But the history of the Church reveals that many of these divisions have occurred because of very serious issues of Biblical doctrine or Christian practice.

Some people may be looking for a church with a pastor they find easy to listen to. Others may be looking for a group where they can use their musical talents or where there will be special programs for their children. Still others may be looking for a “friendly” church, perhaps one that will overlook their sinful attitudes and lifestyle.

Here is the counsel of the Bible on this matter:”Follow righteousness, faith, love, peace, with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart” (2 Tim. 2:22). Such Christians would surely exhibit the following characteristics:

1. They would be true, born-again, practicing Christians, not Christians in name only, whose “faith without works is dead” (Acts 2:47; Jas. 2:14-26).

2. They would place the highest possible value on the Holy Scriptures as their authority for doctrine, behavior, and action (see Jan93-Jun93).

3. They would be true to the teaching of the Bible about the Trinity, the nature and attributes of God, and Jesus Christ being fully God and fully man (see Jul93-Apr95).

4. They would be true to the teaching of the Bible that salvation is “not of works” (Eph. 2:9) but comes from placing our trust for eternal salvation totally upon the sufferings and death of the Lord Jesus Christ for our sins (see Jan96-May97).

5. They would love the Lord; their highest motive in life would be to obey, follow, serve, and worship the Lord, and to “do all to the glory of God” (John 14:15; 1 John 5:3; 1 Cor. 10:31).

6. Correspondingly, they would have no love for “the world”-“the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life”-that is going to pass away (1 John 2:15-17).

7. They would love their brothers and sisters in Christ and would desire fellowship with them (John 13:34,35; Heb. 10:25; 1 John 4:11; 5:1,2).

8. Out of their love for the Lord, they would be active in reaching out with the gospel (Mark 16:15; 2 Tim. 4:2,5).

Besides these characteristics, one should look for the following practices resulting from the Bible’s teaching about the one body and the local church (details in the next issues of GROWING):

9. Recognizing that every member of the body of Christ has a spiritual gift and a role to play in the local assembly; at the same time, recognizing that God has not given all gifts to one person.

10. Acting on the truth of the priesthood of all believers, thus, depending on the Holy Spirit rather than an appointed man to lead in assembly worship.

11. Exercising church discipline in cases of wicked teaching or practice.

12. Keeping “the unity of the Spirit” by seeking fellowship with all who “call on the Lord out of a pure heart,” rather than being an “independent” church or assembly.

Running the Race
Assignment 12: (a) Write out verses in Acts 18 and 2 Corinthians 3 that have to do with letters of commendation. (b) Write out two verses in Romans 16 that speak of the apostle Paul introducing and commending another believer to the church at Rome. (c) Write out a verse in Romans 15 and one in 1 Corinthians 16 that speak of one local church helping another.

Foundations of Faith
THE CHURCH (II)

More comparisons of the physical body with the body of Christ.

Scene 1. You have just finished stuffing yourself at a buffet. As you are walking down the street toward the car, your nose begins smelling the most wonderful aroma-roast pork. In response, your legs start carrying your body toward the smell, and your saliva and gastric juices start flowing. Then your stomach sends a message, “Hey, whoa there; don’t you know I am all filled up already?” Your legs get the message and start heading for the car once again.

But suppose your nose, tongue, taste buds, hands, and legs ignore the signal from your stomach. They say to the stomach, “You are just out to spoil our fun.” So you stuff your stomach with delicious roast pork until the stomach rebels and regurgitates it, which no longer is very pleasant to the nose, tongue, and taste buds.

Scene 2. A finger tip on your right hand accidentally touches a hot burner on the stove. What happens next? Does your left hand pick up a knife and chop off the careless finger? Of course not! Nerves in your finger shoot a message back to the spinal cord which shoots a message-all in split seconds-to the other bones of that finger, as well as the hand, wrist, lower and upper arm, elbow, and shoulder. All of these work together quickly to lift your finger tip from the hot stove. Then your legs quickly carry you to get an ice cube or piece of an aloe plant to soothe the hurting finger.

Scene 3. While walking on a sidewalk you do not notice the raised section ahead. Your toe hits it and you stumble and lose your balance. What then? Your arm shoots out to break the fall. Your arm or hand may get scraped up or broken, but you have kept your head from being injured.

We learn from 1 Corinthians 12 that God has placed every believer in Christ into the body of Christ so we can receive instruction from Christ the Head, and so we can assist, encourage, exhort, protect, build up, teach, correct, and help one another to grow “unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Eph. 4:11-16; also Rom. 12:3-8; 1 Cor. 14:3).

Most of all, we are placed in the body so we will exalt and honor our Head (as in Scene 3 above). We teach one another what we have learned about Christ our Head, and the older believers have a special responsibility to help the younger believers to know what Christ is like by the way they live. If we are allowing the Holy Spirit to do His desired work of changing us into the image of Christ, then this will help others in the body to learn to know Christ better.

As illustrated in Scenes 1 and 2 above, an important activity of the members of the body of Christ is correction and rescue. Messages from the stomach rescued other parts of the body from an unpleasant experience. The finger tip had little or no power to remove itself from the hot stove. Just so, we may know fellow Christians who need to be rescued from wallowing in sin. Most Christians tend to shy away from work like this. As a young person, you may sit back and wait for an older Christian do the rescue work. Lots of questions may fill your minds:How can I go up to someone else and tell him he is sinning when I still sin myself? What if he is offended by my doing this? What if he points out some of my sins in return? What if we have been real good friends and this destroys our friendship? Isn’t it unloving to criticize others?

Here is what the Bible says:”Brethren, if a man be overtaken with a fault, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness” (Gal. 6:1). “If your brother shall trespass against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone:if he shall hear you, you have gained your brother” (Matt. 18:15). The young man Timothy was told to “Reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine” (2 Tim. 4:2).

Rescuing our brother or sister from sin is a difficult work (they may not want to listen) and a risky work (they may reject you as their friend). But it is truly a work of love, showing real care and concern:”Open rebuke is better than secret love. Faithful are the wounds of a friend” (Prov. 27:5,6). When Peter writes, “Add … to brotherly kindness [love]” (2 Pet. 1:7), he means that being good friends with another (“brotherly kindness”) must not keep us from showing self-sacrificing, “agape” love if we see our friend heading down a path of sin. Let us make sure that our love for Christ and desire for His honor and glory takes priority over preserving human friendships. Besides, if your friend is a real born-again Christian, he/she will realize the value of your faithful rebuke, and your friendship will likely become closer and stronger in the long run.

Running the Race
HOW DO WE RESPOND TO REBUKE AND REPROOF?

Do you drive a car? If so, here is a situation most of you can identify with.

You are driving down the road and you see a stop sign ahead. A split second before you apply the brakes a passenger in the car shouts, “Stop sign!” How do you respond? Is it like this:

1. “Who’s driving, you or me?”

2. “Don’t you think I can see too?”

3. “Here, you drive if you think you are so smart!”

Or is it like this:

1. “I did see it but I was careless to wait so long to apply the brakes.”

2. “Thank you for the warning. I didn’t really need it this time, but I might the next time.”

If you are honest with yourself, you know that there are times when you really don’t see that car approaching the intersection or that is in the lane next to you in your blind spot. If you “turn off” the warnings of well-meaning family members or friends, you may be risking a bad accident in the future.

Similarly, if you, as a Christian, give a smart-aleck remark back to a loving friend who is concerned about your walk with the Lord, you may end up in deep trouble, making decisions that you will regret for the rest of your life.

Assignment 11: Write out verses in Proverbs 10, 12, and 15 that describe the person who refuses or hates reproof.

Foundations of Faith
THE CHURCH (I)

Have you ever watched a marionette show. A marionette is a puppet that is moved by strings or wires by its operator. Many Christians think of their relationship with God like that. I am down here on earth, connected with God up there in heaven. I am trusting in the finished work of Christ for my salvation, so I can be sure of going to heaven for eternity. I can pray to God at any time and know that He will hear me. I know God as my loving and giving Father. I have the Holy Spirit dwelling in me.

All these things are blessedly true of the believer in Christ. But there is much more to being saved than just having an individual relationship with God. One of the blessings of our salvation is being made a member of the body of Christ (Jan98). God not only has saved us to be individual children of His, but He also has united us collectively as the body of Christ.

This body often is referred to in the Bible as “the Church.” The Scriptures have much to say about the Church as it is of great value to God. “Christ loved the Church, and gave Himself for it … that He might present it to Himself a glorious Church” (Eph. 5:25-27). We shall devote several issues to the study of this important topic.

There were many true believers in Old Testament times (Rom. 4:1-8; Heb. 11:1-32). However, the Church was not known back then; the believers served and followed the Lord as individuals. The Church as a unified body of believers did not begin until the Day of Pentecost, about 50 days after Christ died and rose again.

The Church was not yet in existence while Jesus was still living. He said to Peter, “Upon this rock I will build My Church” (Matt. 16:18), and clearly “this rock” was Jesus, not Peter (1 Cor. 10:4; 1 Pet. 2:4-8; Eph. 2:20).

Also, it is by the Holy Spirit that we are “baptized into one body” (1 Cor. 12:13). Jesus, both before His death and after His resurrection, prepared His disciples for being “baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days hence” (John 7:39; Acts 1:5,8). There were about 120 disciples who were baptized by the Holy Spirit into the Church on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 1:15; 2:1-3; see Dec94 for more on the baptism of the Holy Spirit). Thousands more were added by the Holy Spirit soon afterward (Acts 2:41,47; 4:4,14).

The Greek word for “church” in the New Testament is ekklesia. The word ekklesia literally means “called out ones.” It was used generally by Greeks to refer to a public assembly of the citizens summoned by the town crier. The early Church was made up of Jews who, upon believing on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, were called out from the Jewish religion to be members of the body of Christ (Acts 2:44, 46). Later on, when the gospel came to the Gentiles, many of them also believed and were called out of their pagan religions and joined with the Jewish believers in the same body, the Church (Acts 10:45; 15:14; Eph. 2:11-21). In this series of articles, we shall use “Church” with a capital C to denote the Church of Christ as a whole, worldwide (such as in Eph. 5:23), and “church” with a lower-case c to denote a congregation or expression of the Church in a certain place (such as Gal. 1:2). The Bible does not-and we shall not-use the word “church” to designate a building where Christians meet together.

The word ekklesia goes far beyond simple membership in a body. As mentioned above, it expresses the thought of an assembling of people. The chief activity of the local ekklesia or church is being assembled together for worship, prayer, or being taught the Word of God. We shall often use the word “assembly” in this series, especially in reference to the believers gathered together in a particular place.

The Church is viewed in the New Testament in three aspects:(1) its unity as the body of Christ; (2) its order and ministry as the house and temple of God indwelt by the Holy Spirit; and (3) its heavenly character and hope as the bride of Christ. We begin by considering the body of Christ. (See Assignment 9)

Comparison of the physical body with the body of Christ. The human body has hundreds of different parts, both external (eyes, mouth, fingers, hair, skin, etc.) and internal (muscles, bones, lungs, blood, nerves, etc.), and quadrillions of individual cells. Each cell and each part has a role to play in the physical body.

The body of Christ is just like that. The analogy between the physical body of a human being and members of Christ’s body is clearly presented in the Bible:”As the [human] body is one, and has many members … so also is Christ…. Now has God set the members … in [Christ’s] body, as it has pleased Him … many members yet one body” (1 Cor. 12:12-27).

The cells in the human body do not live forever. As they die, others take their place (except for nerve cells which are not replaced). Where do the new cells come from? In the biological process of mitosis, young, active cells are always dividing, producing new cells. When a cell ages it stops dividing and dies.

The body of Christ works in the same way. When one member leads another soul to Christ, there are now two members. Every Christian has the privilege and responsibility of reaching out with the gospel to those about us and leading others to Christ. This begins at home with members of our household, and then extends to other relatives, neighbors, schoolmates, fellow employees, and others. As we do this, members who die are replaced by new members, and the whole body grows. (See Assignment 10)

We shall continue to compare the human body and the body of Christ in the next issue.

CONGRATULATIONS!

Three of our readers completed all 25 (13 regular plus 12 review) assignments for 1997. Drew Johnson of West Reading, Pennsylvania led the way with a score of 98.0% for the year. John Hope of Mechanicsville, Virginia and Dickson Wanga of Mweiga, Kenya had scores of 94.4% and 91.2%, respectively. Gabriel Ofagbe of Lagos, Nigeria and Richard Unutaire of Warri, Nigeria completed 21 and 19 assignments, respectively.

Running the Race
Assignment 9: Write out a verse in Romans 12 about the body of Christ, one in 1 Timothy 3 about the house of God, and one in Revelation 19 about the bride (or wife) of Christ.

Assignment 10: What is the first thing Andrew did when he began to follow Christ (John 1)?

Foundations of Faith
LAW AND GRACE

A Christian man, Brother A, once told me about visiting Brother B and expressing concern about Brother B’s habit of smoking a pipe. Brother B’s response was something like this:”It shouldn’t really be a concern because “we are not under the law but under grace” (Rom. 6:15).

Brother B’s response was taken from Scripture, but was it a scriptural response? Does the Christian no longer need to keep the law and obey the commandments given in the Bible? What role does the law play in the life of the Christian?

“The law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good” (Rom. 7:12). God’s law teaches us about His character and shows us what is pleasing to Him as well as good for us. Therefore, the Christian does well to become acquainted with God’s commandments.

Before we were saved, the law was helpful in convicting us of sin (Rom. 3:20; 5:20; 7:7-13). But we had no power to keep God’s commandments then, nor do we, in ourselves, have such power now that we are saved. Consider the believer who has a problem with overeating. He knows it is wrong; he wants to overcome it; he makes a new year’s resolution to control his eating; he puts up a sign:”GLUTTONY KILLS”; and on January 2 he pigs out again.

While we have no power in ourselves to keep God’s commandments, we do have a source of power. It comes from living our lives moment by moment under the control of Christ. This is based on the knowledge that we are “risen with Christ,” have “life in Christ,” and are “dead to the law by the body of Christ, that [we] should be married to … Him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God” (Rom. 7:4; 8:2; Col. 3:1; see May98).

Here is another way of looking at this that may be easier to understand:As we focus on the Lord Jesus Christ and think about Him- how much He gave up in coming down from heaven to go to the cross, how much He loved us, and how much He suffered to save us from our sins-our hearts are attracted to Him. In fact, as we behold “the glory of the Lord, [we] are changed into the same image” (2 Cor. 3:18). One of the side benefits of responding often to the Lord’s request, “This do in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:19), is that we are transformed by it to become more and more like Christ.

As we have Christ before our hearts and are motivated by thoughts of His sufferings for us, we will do what He wants us to do and “the righteousness of the law [will] be fulfilled in us” (Rom. 8:4). In other words, we will keep God’s commandments. But we will no longer do this out of fear; nor with a grudging obedience; nor in our own strength; nor for selfish reasons such as bribing God to do something for us. Rather we will do it out of appreciation for His love and grace (2 Cor. 5:14,15). This is what it means to be “under grace” and “not under the law.” In fact we are lifted above the law in the sense that we now have power and desire to do far more of what pleases the Lord than was ever required by the law.

It is helpful to notice the many scriptures that show us that the power to live holy lives comes from having our hearts set on Christ. For example, when the Lord Jesus tells the disciples to “love one another,” He provides the example and motivation, “as I have loved you” (John 13:34; see also Rom. 13:14; 15:2,3; 2 Cor. 8:9,10; Eph. 4:20-5:5; Phil. 2:1-8; 1 Pet. 2:1-3,21-24). (See Assignment 7)

Christians who use the law-for example, the Ten Commandments or the Sermon on the Mount-as their rule of life tend to fall into a number of traps:they may (1) try to find loopholes (Matt. 23:16-19; Mark 7:9-13); (2) concentrate on their own favorite list of rules, often to the neglect of more serious and scriptural commandments (Matt. 23:23-25); or (3) be satisfied with a far lower standard of morality than that found in Christ.

On the other hand, those-like the pipe-smoking brother-who loudly proclaim that Christians “are not under the law but under grace” may tend to use their freedom from the law as an excuse to sin (Gal. 5:13). (See Assignment 8)

As we focus on Christ and allow Him to control every part of our life, we will follow a standard of morality and holiness that greatly exceeds that of the Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount.

Running the Race
KEEPING THE TEN COMMANDMENTS UNDER GRACE

To give a practical illustration of what it means to be “not under the law but under grace,” let us take the Ten Commandments of Exodus 20 and translate them into what they might be for the Christian who is living by the power of the grace of God and the love of Christ.

1. “No other gods” translates into the much higher standard (signified by <<) of Christ our supreme object and pattern (Phil. 2:5; 1 Pet. 2:21).

2. No graven image (meaning that God is a Spirit) << filled with the Holy Spirit and producing the fruit of the Spirit (Eph. 5:18; Gal. 5:22,23).

3. Not taking God’s name in vain << preaching Christ as the only name by which one can be saved (Acts 4:12).

4. Keeping the Sabbath (seventh day, rest) << devoting the first day of the week, as well as other days of the week if possible, for worship, service, and receiving instruction (Luke 24:25-49; John 20:19; Acts 2:42,46; 5:42; 17:11; 20:7-11; 2 Cor. 11:28; Heb. 3:13).

5. Honoring parents << honoring and showing respect to all men, and loving even our enemies (1 Tim. 2:1; 1 Pet. 2:17; Matt. 5:44).

6. Not murdering << leading souls to eternal life in Christ (John 3:16; 5:24).

7. Not committing adultery << loving one's wife as Christ loved the Church (Eph. 5:25).

8. Not stealing << working and giving to those in need (Eph. 4:28).

9. Not lying << speaking the truth in love, and proclaiming the truth of the gospel (Prov. 27:5,6; Eph. 4:15; Acts 26:25; Gal. 2:5,14; Eph. 1:13; 1 Tim. 2:4).

10. Not coveting our neighbor’s possessions << coveting our neighbor's salvation, and coveting or desiring for ourselves the knowledge of God's will, the best gifts, the sincere milk of the Word, and to be with Christ (Rom. 10:1; 1 Cor. 12:31; 14:1; Phil. 1:23; Col. 1:9; 1 Pet. 2:2).

Assignment 7: Write out two verses in Hebrews 12 that link an exhortation not to sin with Christ’s work.

Assignment 8: Can you think of a better way Brother B might have responded to Brother A’s concern?

Foundations of Faith
BAPTISM

It was stated in the Apr97 issue of GROWING that “salvation is not produced by our works, whether our good deeds, our baptism, our confirmation, our church attendance,… or our service.” Rather, we are saved through faith by God’s grace (or favor shown to us who deserve the opposite). “By grace are you saved through faith … not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:8,9).

However, water baptism is very closely connected with salvation. Jews of Jerusalem, people of Samaria, Saul of Tarsus, Cornelius the centurion, Lydia of Thyatira, the jailor of Philippi, and others were baptized shortly after their profession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour (Acts 2:41; 8:12,38; 9:18; 10:44-48; 16:15,33; 18:8; 19:5). We shall attempt to show, by studying the meaning of baptism, that it is not a requirement for salvation but an act that should closely follow our salvation.

Baptism-going down into and coming up out of the water-is the acting out of a story. First of all it is the story of the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. When I am put under the water, I demonstrate publicly that I believe that Christ died for my sins and was buried. When I come out of the water, I show that I believe in the resurrection of Christ, that my Saviour is alive!

This meaning is implied in the apostle Paul’s teaching about baptism in Romans 6; but there is even more to it as we now shall see:”Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound…. What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we who are dead to sin live any longer therein? Do you not know that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death? Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism into death:that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of His death, we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection…. If we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him” (Rom. 5:20-6:8).

One result of Christ’s death on the cross is the providing of forgiveness to sinners and deliverance from the eternal judgment that our sins deserved. Another result of His death is that we who are saved are viewed by God as being “dead with Christ” or “crucified with Christ” (Rom. 6:5,6,8; Gal. 2:20), “buried with Him” (Rom. 6:4), and “risen with Christ” (Col. 3:1; Rom. 6:5). The ceremony of water baptism is presented as a public enactment of these Biblical truths.

These concepts are not easy to understand, and well-respected Bible scholars disagree on the exact interpretation of these verses. However, it is clear in Romans 6 that our water baptism serves to remind us that we “are dead to sin” and should not “live any longer therein.”

The word “baptism” means immersion. My baptism-burial in water -is a public declaration that the old “I” that was totally dominated by my sinful nature inherited from Adam is dead and buried. My coming up out of the water is a demonstration that there is now a new “I” that is linked with the risen Christ, so that I “walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6:4).

By our baptism we declare publicly that a change has taken place in our life. Others can now expect to see a positive difference in our attitude, behavior, love for God’s Word, faithfulness to our Lord, obedience to our parents, and love to our brothers and sisters. By our baptism we are really saying, “If you catch me behaving sinfully like the person I used to be, I invite you to remind me of my baptism-that I am “dead to sin and alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 6:11). (See Assignment 6)

Do not Mark 16:16 and Acts 2:38 show that baptism is required for salvation? “He who believes and is baptized shall be saved; but he who believes not shall be damned” (Mark 16:16). There are a great many passages in the New Testament that clearly teach that salvation is by faith alone and not of works (see Apr97). The thief on the cross was assured of being in Paradise with Christ, even though he had no opportunity to be baptized (Luke 23:43). The believers in Caesarea were baptized after they were saved and received the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:44-48). The second part of Mark 16:16 says only that “he who believes not”-with no mention of those who are not baptized-“shall be damned.” And, as shown above, the very meaning of water baptism- dead to sin, buried and risen with Christ-is opposed to its being a requirement for salvation.

So in Mark 16:16 and Acts 2:38, baptism cannot be a requirement for salvation, but is expected to be a public demonstration of it on the part of every believer. This was particularly crucial with the early Jewish converts to Christ. They had publicly rejected Christ and crucified Him. So if they were truly saved they would be willing to take a public stand for Christ in baptism (see Rom. 10:9).

Why do some people baptize infants? Some believe-without clear support from Scripture-that baptism protects the child from going to hell if it dies before the “age of accountability.” Others understand baptism in the New Testament to be an extension of the Old Testament rite of circumcision. Some of these view baptism as a pledge by the parents-on the ground of the death and resurrection of Christ-to bring up the child in the knowledge of God’s Word and the gospel of Christ.

It seems to this writer that persons who are baptized as infants are deprived of the distinct testimony, blessing, and benefit provided in baptism as described earlier.

What does the verse mean:”What shall they do who are baptized for the dead if the dead rise not?” (1 Cor. 15:29)? In the history of the Church, some who have publicly declared by baptism their faith in Christ have paid for it with their lives. There were those in Corinth who did not believe in resurrection of the dead. So the apostle Paul argues:if the dead are not raised, what is the sense in becoming a Christian, being baptized, and exposing oneself to martyrdom? “Baptized for the dead” refers to new Christians filling up the ranks, taking the place of those who have died.

Running the Race
Assignment 6: Write out (a) a verse in Colossians 2 that speaks of the meaning of baptism, and (b) another verse in Colossians 2 and a verse or two in Colossians 3 that give practical applications of the teaching of baptism.

Foundations of Faith
ETERNAL SECURITY (III)

Scene:Mr. Ronson’s Sunday school class.

Mr. Ronson:Last week, as you may recall, we had a very lively discussion relating to the doctrine of eternal security, and particularly the difficult passage in Hebrews 6 (see Mar98). Does anyone else have questions or comments about the eternal security of the believer in Christ?

Marty:There is another passage in Hebrews that I have found troublesome:”If we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more sacrifice for sins” (10:26). Do not all of us sin willfully at times? I know I do.

Mr. Ronson:Yes, I do too, but if we read further down in the passage we will see the character of this “willful sin.” It is sin directly against all three Persons of the Trinity. It is sin against God the Father by treading “under foot” His Son; it is sin against God the Son by counting His shed blood as “an unholy thing”; and it is the sin of insulting or despising God the Holy Spirit, “the Spirit of grace” (verse 29). This sin is similar to that of Hebrews 6. There one has “tasted the good word of God”; here one has “received the knowledge of the truth.” The person has received the knowledge of the truth without actually receiving the truth itself into his heart, soul, and mind (see Matt. 22:37). Here, one not only turns away from Christ after learning about Him, but turns violently against Him.

This is not speaking of losing one’s salvation by committing a willful sin, but of incurring God’s eternal wrath by preaching against His only way of salvation (verses 29,30).

Shawn:So, are these passages in Hebrews referring to backsliders?

Mr. Ronson:No, they are speaking of what we call “apostates.” Apostates are people who may know a lot about Christianity, but have never become real Christians, and have turned away from and against Biblical Christianity. These are to be contrasted with “backsliders” who are true believers in Christ whose hearts grow cold, and may fall into sin for a time. But the Holy Spirit is always working in such souls, ever drawing them back to their Lord and Saviour. Judas Iscariot is, perhaps, the closest specific example in the Bible to an apostate. We mentioned him last time (Mar98). Can you think of any examples in the Bible of backsliders? (See Assignment 5)

Mr. Ronson:You may find other Bible verses that seem to contradict the doctrine of eternal security. However, always keep in mind the many Bible passages that clearly teach this truth (Feb98), and ask for the Holy Spirit’s help in gaining a correct understanding of the more difficult and seemingly contradictory passages.

(Please write to the Editor of GROWING if you desire further information on this topic.)

Running the Race
HOW SHOULD WE THEN LIVE (in View of the Doctrine of Eternal Security)?

Scene: Mr. Ronson’s Sunday school class.

Mr. Ronson: Before we conclude our study of eternal security, I would like to ask a couple of related questions: What is so important about believing the doctrine of eternal security? And what difference does it make in the way we live our daily lives?

Kim: The main reason we should believe it is that the Bible teaches it.

Mr. Ronson: Excellent, Kim!

Lee: For your second question, it is kind of like the doctrine of election. Realizing that God has done all of the work of (1) providing salvation for us through the suffering, death, and resurrection of His Son, (2) choosing us to receive His salvation (Jun97), and (3) keeping us saved for eternity, causes us to praise, worship, serve, and obey Him out of appreciation for such love and grace.

Mark: In addition to that, by not having to worry every five minutes whether I am still saved, I have greater freedom and power to serve and worship the Lord.

Bev: But doesn’t it sometimes work the other way as well?

Mark: What do you mean, Bev?

Bev: Well, I have heard people ask it this way: If a person trusts in the Lord Jesus Christ, is taught “once saved, always saved,” and has the assurance of going to heaven, what is to keep that person from falling deeper and deeper into sin?

Mr. Ronson: That is a very good question, Bev-one that often comes up. Who would like to try to answer Bev’s question?

Marion: We have all of the blessings of our salvation that we recently learned about (Sep97-Jan98); we have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us; we have a new, Christ-like nature; and we have the infinite love of Christ in suffering immensely for us as the most powerful motivation in the universe to keep us from sinning. Why, to go on living without paying any attention to God’s holy Word and what will bring joy to our Saviour is like … like spitting in Jesus’ face!

Tom: That was a great way of putting it, Marion! It really is sobering to think that after all Christ has done for us, we still mess up at times. The fact that God still loves us and does not kick us out of His family when we sin is a powerful motivation not to sin the next time we are tempted. “The love of Christ constrains us” to live for Him (2 Cor. 5:14, 15).

Bev: Hey, this is making a lot of sense to me. If I think that my eternal salvation depends on how I behave, then I am trying to add something of my own doing to the tremendous work that Christ did for me. So the value of the Lord Jesus Christ and His work are diminished in my mind, and I lose the powerful motivation of God’s love to keep from sinning and to do His will 100% of the time.

Mr. Ronson: Those were great observations, class. I couldn’t have expressed it better myself. Every true, born-again Christian who believes in eternal security should be living according to the very highest moral standards of all people in the world. Shame on us … and we bring great dishonor upon our Lord … if we don’t!

Finally, if we know individuals who claim to be Christians but give no evidence of loving and living for the Lord Jesus Christ, we ought treat them like any other unbeliever and give them the gospel.

Assignment 5: Give the names of two backsliders, one in the Old Testament (try 2 Samuel) and one in the New Testament (try Luke), and write out at least one verse for each that shows what they did in their backslidden state. Also, write out at least one verse for each that shows they were restored to the Lord.

Foundations of Faith
ETERNAL SECURITY (II)

Mr. Ronson gave a lecture to his Sunday school class on eternal security based on the Feb98 issue of GROWING. At the end of his lecture he asked his class if they had any questions or comments. Here is the dialogue that took place:

Dale:Everything you have told us, Mr. Ronson, really makes sense and has answered a lot of my questions. But I still have a problem with the passage in Hebrews 6.

Mr. Ronson:Yes, a lot of people have had a problem with that passage. Would you read it for us please, Dale?

Dale:The passage is Hebrews 6:4-6:”It is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good Word of God, and the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance, seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.” It just seems to me that this passage is talking about believers who lose their salvation.

Mr. Ronson:Yes, I can see how you and others might get that impression. But let us look at this passage more closely. Five benefits received by these individuals are listed:

1. They “were once enlightened.” I once read a book about Buddhism. I became enlightened to some aspects of that religion. But much of it made no sense to me; besides, it did not show me how my sins could be forgiven. So I rejected it.

2. They “tasted of the heavenly gift .” What or who is “the heavenly gift”?

Stacy:”The gift of God is eternal life” (Rom. 8:23).

Fran:”Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift” (2 Cor. 9:15), which I take to be the Lord Jesus Christ.

Mr. Ronson:Good answers from the Word of God, both of you! The heavenly gift is the Lord Jesus Christ and his eternal salvation. But notice, it does not say “swallowed the heavenly gift”; it does not say “received the heavenly gift.” It says “tasted of the heavenly gift.” In John 6:53,54 we find that it is not enough simply to get a taste of Christ. “Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except you eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoso eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.” (See Assignment 3)

3. They “were made partakers of the Holy Spirit.” On the day of Pentecost the people who were gathered at the temple from many different countries “were all amazed and marveled, saying … We hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God” (Acts 2:7-12). Many were observing and hearing and partaking of the power of the Holy Spirit as displayed through the disciples who were filled with the Spirit. But only the 3,000 of the observers who later received the Word preached by the apostle Peter were actually saved (Acts 2:41).

4. They “have tasted the good Word of God.” Everyone present at this Sunday school class is tasting “the good Word of God.” Most of you, I hope, are also swallowing it, taking it in, and allowing it to give you spiritual life and energy and make you to grow and mature spiritually. But some of you may be thinking, “This teaching about following Jesus and God is silly. I’m not going to let God mess up my life.” So you may merely taste, but then spit it out.

5. They have tasted “the powers of the world to come.” The miracles performed by the Lord Jesus, the apostles, and others, and witnessed by many, are often described by the word “power” (Luke 4:36; 5:17; 9:1; Acts 6:8). The Lord Jesus also looked ahead to the time of “the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matt. 24:30; 26:64). But many of those who followed Christ did so only for the food or material benefits they might get from Him as a result of His miracles (John 6:26,27; Acts 8:13,18-23).

Judas Iscariot tasted every one of these benefits, but rejected them all and perished in his sins (Mark 14:21; John 13:11). On the other hand, not one of the blessings of salvation- such as forgiveness, justification, sonship, eternal life, or sealing of the Spirit (Sep97-Jan98)-is mentioned in the passage in Hebrews 6.

Dale:Thank you, Mr. Ronson, that helped me a lot.

Eric:I never looked at this passage in the way you described it and it makes sense to me. But I have another question. [He glances at his two unsaved friends whom he brought to Sunday school for the first time.] Does this mean that one who leaves this class rejecting Christ will never again have an opportunity to be saved?

Mr. Ronson:I don’t believe the passage goes quite that far. One who hears the gospel and puts it off, saying, “Maybe I will reconsider when I am older” (see Acts 24:25), is taking a great risk, but may still repent of his sins, trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, and be saved (Rev. 22:17), I believe.

This Epistle to the Hebrews gives several warnings to Jewish men and women who have heard the gospel and have professed to follow Christ. If they give up Christ and go back to trusting their Jewish rites and rituals and good works to save them, there is no hope for them in that state of soul. They are basically saying that Jesus Christ really did deserve to be crucified after all, and thus “crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh.” There is no salvation apart from trusting in the sufferings and death of Jesus Christ for our sins.

Gerry:I have heard a lot of people say, “There are many roads that lead to God and heaven, and Christianity is just one of those roads.” Shouldn’t we be tolerant of other religions?

Mr. Ronson:Can anyone find a verse in the Bible that says that salvation is found in Christ alone? (See Assignment 4)

Mr. Ronson: If being “tolerant” means showing love and compassion to people of other religions, yes, we should be tolerant. But if we really desire to show the love of God to such people, we will want to rescue those dear souls from the lake of fire. And so we will faithfully seek to point them to the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no other way for their sins to be washed away.

We must stop now, but we shall continue this discussion next time.

Running the Race
Assignment 3: Write out verses in John 1 and Colossians 2 that speak of receiving (not just tasting) Christ.

Assignment 4: Write out a verse in John 14 and one in Acts 4 in response to Gerry’s and Mr. Ronson’s questions.