____________________________________________________ THE GOSPEL OBSERVER ____________________________________________________ "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20). ____________________________________________________ March 21, 2004 ____________________________________________________ Contents: 1) The Sin of Ananias and Sapphira (Jason Moore) 2) The Greatest Knowledge (Steve Klein) 3) God's Drawing Power (Gilbert Alexander) 4) "He Took a Little Child" (Clarence R. Johnson) ____________________________________________________ -1- The Sin of Ananias and Sapphira by Jason Moore But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession. And he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles' feet. But Peter said, `Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself? While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.' Then Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and breathed his last. So great fear came upon all those who heard these things. And the young men arose and wrapped him up, carried him out, and buried him" (Acts 5:1-6). Three hours later his wife Sapphira showed up not being informed of the death of her husband. Peter asked whether she had sold the land for the price indicated by her late husband. Perhaps he even pointed to the money at the feet of the Apostles. She answered, "Yes, for so much." Peter, undoubtedly distraught and yet filled with righteous indignation toward her brazen lie, asked why she had conspired with her husband to test the Spirit of the Lord. Those who had buried her husband were ready at the door to carry her corpse away. Immediately, she fell dead. Such a reading needs to be considered thoughtfully. We are not reading an event from the law of Moses, when the fire from God consumed Nadab and Abihu or when Achan and his household were stoned by the congregation. Those events would be appropriate warnings to us (1 Corinthians 10:11), yet such Old Testament episodes are discounted in the minds of people because they belong to the Mosaic era. Here is an event early in the gospel age in which we live where we witness a candid display of God's wrath. What is the message of God's judgment on Ananias and Sapphira? We must not be guilty of treating the blood of Christ as a common thing. Forgiveness of sin is a precious gift. Its cost was the price of God's own son. When we sin and repent, sin and repent, sin and repent with a remorse that is transitory, with little or no struggle to defeat sin in our life, and with no concerted planning to escape the wiles of the devil, are we not treating the grace of God lightly? The cross of Christ is not to be regarded like Aladdin's lamp. We cannot will-fully sin or engage in half-hearted holiness and then conspire in our heart that we can always repent tomorrow. Just rub the cross and say the magic formula and poof our sins are gone. Is God obligated to forgive us just because we say the right words? Does He not see our motives and know that we don't mean it? Does God not know our hearts? Does He not see such presumptions? The judgment on Ananias and Sapphira says that He does. To play the hypocrite is to lie, not to men, but to God (Acts 5:4,9). The real sin of Ananias and Sapphira was hypocrisy. There was a legitimate need in Jerusalem. They, like Barnabas and others, sold their property and brought the proceeds from the sale to the Apostles to be distributed to the needy saints. Did they feel pressured to give because others were doing so and they had the means to help? They might have felt embarrassed if they did not join in the benevolent activity. Or were they jealous of the notoriety that comes from philanthropy? Whatever their reasonings they pretended to give the entire price of the land when in fact they kept a part of the price for themselves. They of course did lie to men, but the real lie was to God. They gave of their means under the pretense of being thoughtful and kind. They gave. But they gave to gain glory for themselves. We must be careful that our worship, that our service to God on any plain does not become merely a veneer. We cannot allow it to degenerate to a theatrical production that is put on so that the elders, the preacher, our family will speak well of us, or maybe leave us alone. We will probably succeed in fooling them. But God is not mocked. When we have pretended to be His servants by yielding to the pressure of godly company or to gain the audience and applause of men, we have told a serious untruth to God. This occasion with Ananias and Sapphira demonstrates His disgust for those who wear His name like a mask. We must be sober in our service to God. I don't wish that God would perform in our time the type of cleansing activity that He did that day before the saints in Jerusalem. I fear the loss of life that would come, for I have had times when the gift of forgiveness has been regarded lightly and service has been rendered for show or for masquerade rather than for God's glory. But if God did interject a demonstration of this sort, what would that do to our worship? What effect would that have on our daily conduct? We would have a marked awareness that we stand before the Almighty. May I suggest that we keep such a picture of His glory and reign upon the heavenly throne before us each day? Such a vision should not just evoke fear, but hope that inspires us to serve our God. For He is alive. -- Via Gospel Power ____________________________________________________ -2- The Greatest Knowledge by Steve Klein We live in a time when a high value is placed on knowledge. Our young people are being assured that education is the key to a successful life. Millions of dollars are spent annually for research aimed at increasing man's knowledge of everything from diseases and their cures to the migratory habits of butterflies. Human knowledge is increasing at a rate of well over 2,000 pages of information per minute. It has been estimated that if a person read 24 hours a day from age 21 to age 70, and retained all that was read, he would still need another one and half million years to learn everything that humanity has learned. Yet humanity collectively knows but a drop in the bucket compared to what God knows. When Job was questioned by God concerning what Job really knew about this world, Job confessed, "Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know" (Job 42:3). In many respects, knowledge really is power, and obtaining it will benefit us immensely -- especially knowledge of the spiritual truths contained in Scripture. Therefore, the wise man commands, "Apply your heart to instruction, and your ears to words of knowledge" (Proverbs 23:12). Yet, even the most ardent student of God's word would have to confess that he does not "know it all." The point is that every one of us has intellectual limitations. It is beyond any of us to know all there is to know. But we all can know the One who knows it all. We can have a full and complete relationship with Him when we come to know His love for us. Paul's prayer for the Ephesians was that they would come "to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God" (Ephesians 3:19). Do you know the love of Christ? That is, have you believed that God's Son sacrificed Himself for you and your sins, and have you been baptized into His death for the remission of those sins? It matters little what else you know, if you don't know God's love. It is the greatest knowledge. -- via The Bulletin of the Church of Christ at New Georgia, December 14, 2003 ____________________________________________________ -3- God's Drawing Power by Gilbert Alexander So, you "went to church?" What went ye out for to see -- Big Bird, the Cookie Monster, a magic show, a demonstration of hypnosis? What went ye out for to receive -- an eight-foot balloon, trick cards, hot dogs and Coke? What went ye out for to do -- play on the softball team, go to the rodeo, visit Six Flags, attend the Sweetheart Banquet? But what went ye out for to see? Zoos, social clubs, carnivals, or entertainment centers use such attractions to draw large crowds. But the church of our Lord has no right or reason to use such carnal attractions to draw audiences. The church has something far better, richer, and more beautiful to offer -- the glorious gospel of Christ. If God's people will work diligently, personally, individually, and collectively to present God's way of salvation to people, those who have ears to hear will hear. The gospel of Christ is God's drawing power. "No man can come to me, except the Father that sent me draw him; and I will raise him up in the last day. It is written in the prophets, `And they shall all be taught of God.' Everyone that hath heard from the Father, and hath learned, cometh unto me," Jesus said (John 6:44-45). God has spoken in these last days by His Son, the message being found in the gospel (Heb. 1:1,2; 2:1-4). The gospel contains the attraction, the incentive, the cure for man's spiritual life. We do not seek to trick people into hearing the gospel. Some obviously lack confidence in the drawing power of the Word. One famous preacher said that the gospel is the hook and the promotions are the bait used. I emphatically deny such. Christ did not feed multitudes to draw a crowd (John 6:22-29). Peter did not used brother Simon (the former sorcerer -- Boy, did he have the credentials!) to do a magic show to draw crowds in Samaria. Surely, if these things were according to God's wisdom, Peter and the other New Testament preachers would have had that wisdom. Paul, a man of great ability, could surely have worked up a great show as a come-on to attract people in Corinth, so he could preach to them! But he said, "I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified" (I Cor. 2:2). When he said that the time would come when they would no longer endure sound doctrine, Paul offered no alternative or other incentive. Neither can we. Please, brethren, let us go to individuals with the message of salvation in Christ, and beseech them to hear it. If they will not hear, then let us go to another who will hear. Let us not smudge the glory of the pure gospel of Christ with carnality. The salvation of the carnal man must come through changing his attitude, not through appealing to and feeding his carnality. Let us never doubt the power of God's word to accomplish what He desires of it. If we do our work well according to His authority, God will be pleased and His work will be done. -- Via The Bulletin of the Church of Christ at New Georgia, November 9, 2003 ____________________________________________________ -4- "He Took a Little Child" by Clarence R. Johnson Jesus came with His apostles to Capernaum, and "when He was in the house He asked them, `What was it you disputed among yourselves on the road?' But they kept silent, for on the road they had disputed among themselves who would be the greatest. And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, `If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.' Then He took a little child and set him in the midst of them. And when He had taken him in His arms, He said to them, `Whoever receives one of these little children in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives not Me but Him who sent Me'" (Mark 9:33-37). Perhaps the best comment on what Jesus meant by saying to His apostles that he who desires to be first must be last of all and servant of all is Jesus' own statement recorded by Matthew in Matt. 18:5, "Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." In the preceding verse, the Lord had said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will be no means enter the kingdom of heaven." Little children are humble. Little children are teachable. Little children desire to be helpful. Instead of seeking personal greatness, Christ's disciples needed to be changed. They needed, like little children, to manifest humility, a willingness to learn, and an eagerness to be helpful in the cause of Christ. "If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all." We might take a moment to note that Jesus did not say that little children need to be converted. He said His disciples needed to be converted -- changed -- so that they were more like little children. Young children need to be taught, guided, and trained, but in many respects those of us who are older could observe valuable lessons from them. In connection with these thoughts, it might be well to remind ourselves that God's spiritual and moral laws have always been directed to those who are capable of understanding such laws. When Israel rebelled against God's will and refused to possess the promised land, God charged only those who were mature with their rebellion, Deut. 1:39. James 4:17 tells us, "Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin." Those whose minds are not capable of distinguishing right from wrong are not held responsible nor charged with sin. And since baptism is for penitent sinners, Acts 2:38, young children are not proper subjects for New Testament baptism. Notice that Jesus did not put the child before His apostles to be baptized, but to serve as an example the apostles should follow in humility and willingness to serve. -- Via The Susquehanna Sentinel, 2/29/04 ____________________________________________________ MYRTLE STREET CHURCH OF CHRIST 1022 Myrtle Street Denham Springs, LA 70726 (225) 664-8208 Sunday: 9:15 AM, 10:00 AM, 4:00 PM Wednesday: 7:00 PM evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (225) 667-4520 e-mail: tedwards@onemain.com web site: http://home.onemain.com/~tedwards/go ____________________________________________________