____________________________________________________ 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). ____________________________________________________ May 9, 2004 ____________________________________________________ Contents: 1) "And, Thou, Capernaum" (Larry Ray Hafley) 2) Message From Death Row! (Ricky Don Blackmon) 3) God's End Product (Dan S. Shipley) 4) "And It Is a Little One" (James Baker) ____________________________________________________ -1- "And, Thou, Capernaum" by Larry Ray Hafley It has been estimated that Capernaum (its name means "village of comfort") had a population of nearly 30,000 in the days of Jesus. It was one of the chief cities of Galilee and was one of the nine cities which existed along the shores of the sea of Galilee. Jesus lived there for two years. Capernaum was called "his own city" (Matt. 4:13; 9:1; Mk. 2:1). The city had a garrison of Roman soldiers in it (Lk. 7:1). It also had a customs' center for which Matthew, the publican apostle worked (Matt. 9:9). Zacchaeus, you may remember, was also a publican, a chief tax collector (Lk. 19:1-10). The city had a Jewish synagogue where Jesus taught and worshipped according to the law (Cf. Lk. 4:16-21). The synagogue had been built by a Roman centurion stationed there (Lk. 7:1, 5). With its location, three miles west of where the Jordan River flows into the Sea of Galilee, along the road which runs from Damascus to the Mediterranean Sea, and with its importance as a Roman military outpost, Capernaum had every economic advantage. With the Jewish synagogue as a center of the true religion of the only true and living God, and with Jesus and several of his apostles living there, the city also had every spiritual favor open to it. Plus, it was one of the cities wherein Jesus did "most" of his miracles, one of which is described in great detail (Matt. 11:20; Lk. 7:1-10). Despite access to these choicest blessings of the flesh and spirit, of both the civil and the spiritual realm, Capernaum failed to achieve success before God. Jesus said of her, "And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee" (Matt. 11:23, 24). Could the same be said of our town, of where we live? We live in a fruitful and productive area. We live where the Bible is taught openly and every man can live freely in the faith. Yet, are our souls languishing in a spiritual stupor? Are we throwing away our lives and our souls and giving them over to the world? Have we no time for the Savior who bled and died for us? Do our lives, despite every goodness and kindness from God, make a mockery of his majesty? Might Jesus say to us as he said to them, "And, thou...which art exalted unto heaven shalt be brought down to hell?" ____________________________________________________ -2- Message From Death Row! by Ricky Don Blackmon I hope I may have a moment of your time. I am writing to you from prison, yes prison....I hope to reach out in the way that Paul did while he was in prison....to help you live according to the gospel of Jesus Christ. First, stop and think what it is that may or may not cause one of us to end up in prison. It is the same thing that can cause us to end up in HELL. What is that? SIN!!! And one of the sins I want to speak about here today is: "REBELLION" Rebellion is what most of us don't think about very much. Like not listening to our parents when they tell us something. Like not listening to God when He tells us something. Like not listening to Governing authorities. And one of the greatest and easiest things that cause this rebellion is your friends. Yes, your friends will try to get you to do something, and if you say "no," often they will say, "come on, are you scared?" or they'll call you "chicken." Then most people will jump right in and do whatever it is, for most people don't like to be looked at like that by their friends....I know what I am talking about, for all I have said so far, landed me on death row.... Wild women, drugs, and fast living was the road I took, and look where it got me. Don't think it cannot happen to you; for if you find yourself on any of these roads, you will sooner or later run into a situation that may hurt not only you, but your loved ones as well. And when you say, "Oh, I know what I am doing," believe me, I said the very same thing, and see where I am. I obeyed the gospel many years ago and fell away, and now I have come home to the Lord again....When I obeyed the gospel I was told through God's word what to do, and I fell away....But, PLEASE HEAR ME, clean up your life if you are in the wrong way of life. In the back of your mind you know who you are and the life you live. And if you say to yourself, like I said many times, "I know what I am doing," the TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE...has a number for you. Mine is 000893. I am only one of 340...people on death row here in Texas. And if you run with the wrong people YOU could get the death penalty. For example; say you are riding around with a friend, and you pull into a gas station. Your friend goes in to pay for the gas, and robs and kills the gas station attendant. You are only sitting in the car, but under Texas Law, a District Attorney can get a jury to give YOU a death sentence as well as the guy that did the killing....Texas will execute people like that as if they were the one who did the crime.... It is my prayer that you will stop and think about your life...for we are all under...God's law. If we obey the Lord, then we can have eternal life, even if life on earth throws us a curve, like it did me. But I was able to repent of my sins, but I also could have been dead before I had a chance to repent, and I know without a doubt, had I done so I would be bound for Hell. But I did repent, and have the chance to meet you in Heaven come Judgment Day. So please, let's work for the goal together, OK? Your brother in Christ Jesus, Ricky Don Blackmon (After eleven years on death row, brother Blackmon was executed August 4, 1999, in Huntsville, TX.) ____________________________________________________ -3- God's End Product by Dan S. Shipley Most everyone soon learns about the relationship between cause and effect, even if by another name. To the cook, for instance, it may be the relationship between the recipe and the pie. That special apple pie is the result (effect) of mixing certain ingredients in certain proportions and baking according to instructions. Only that recipe makes that pie. Even the most conscientious cook could not produce an apple pie by following a hushpuppy recipe -- or, even by partly using the right recipe. Any alteration of the recipe necessarily alters the end product. The same is true with the seamstress who knows cause and effect as pattern and dress or with the builder who knows it as blueprint and house. They all well understand that personal preferences and optionals cannot be substituted for explicit instructions in making that pie, dress, or house. At least, we hope they understand it when we engage them to do work for us! Accordingly, in the spiritual realm we see cause and effect in the gospel and the Christian. This important and fundamental truth is set forth in the Bible under several different figures. First, in the parable of the sower (Luke 8), the seed is identified as the word of God (v. 11), which, when received into the honest and good heart, achieves its God-intended purpose. Only the pure word of God can produce that fruit-bearing child of God; that kind of character God wants in man. The sowing determines the reaping. Mixing the creeds and opinions of uninspired men with God's pure gospel is bound to result in less than that man God wants. In another sense, God's word is a pattern for men to live by. As Moses was admonished to "make all things according to the pattern" (Hebrews 8:5), so must God's will be the pattern for our spiritual service. All that God says about how men are to be saved, for instance, is God's pattern for saving men. That pattern includes faith, repentance, confession and baptism (Mark 16: 15, 16; Acts 2:38; 8:36, 37; 22: 16). Following this divine pattern produces saved men. Changing the pattern changes the result, just as with the recipe and the blueprint. Further, all that men can know about what pleases God in worship is found on the pages of the New Testament -- and all the New Testament says on the subject comprises the divine pattern for worship, nothing more and nothing less. That pattern includes preaching, singing, praying, giving and partaking of the Lord's Supper (Acts 20:7; Ephesians 5:19; 1 Timothy 2:1,2; 1 Corinthians 16: 1 ,2). This is God's blueprint for worship and must be followed if God is to be truly honored. When Paul writes of the Romans being obedient to "that form of teaching whereunto ye were delivered," he pictures the gospel (teaching) as the mold or cast (tupos) into which the obedient is "poured" by submission to be shaped into a Christ-like character. Thus, following God's pattern conforms men to His Son's image (Romans 8:29) and makes them to be partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter.l:4). The honest and good-hearted man knows that he cannot direct his own steps (Jeremiah 10:23) and so yields himself to walk by faith and in so doing becomes the fruition of God's eternal purpose, complete in Christ. -- via The Bulletin of the Church of Christ at New Georgia, February 15, 2004 ____________________________________________________ -4- "And It Is a Little One" by James Baker [Editor's Note: Whether it is large or small, each congregation has its own advantages and disadvantages. And no congregation should ever seek to stay small or to avoid growth, but numerical growth is largely not up to us. Our job is to "plant and water." It is God's job to "give the increase." The writer of the following article has been working with a small intercity congregation in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for about 20 years. Though there have been several converts, due to moving out and moving around, the congregation remains small in number. Please read and consider these thoughts by one who has made a long-term commitment to a work that is difficult, and where rapid growth is pretty much "out of the question." -- Clarence Johnson] "Flee to the mountains" were the words uttered by the angels as they were preparing to destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, along with all the other suburbs and towns of the valley. Gen. 19:17. However, Lot thought himself unable to get to the mountains, so he requested permission from the angels to flee to the small city of Zoar, also called Bela. Gen. 14:2. Gen. 19:19-23. Lot in his explanation of Zoar said, "And it is a little one" (Gen. 19:20). So, it is very clear from Lot's words that this town was small and probably not as favorable as the other cities in the valley. Still, Lot didn't let any of that stop him because even though it was small, he saw a city that could provide refuge for him while the destruction fell upon the metro area. Gen. 19:24-29. Many times in the region of a large city, there are churches spread out with some being big, some medium size, and some very small. And many times, when choosing a church, the desire to worship with the bigger established church appears to be more of the choice. However, others look at the "little one" and see the need to be of encouragement. Acts 16:9. When people unknowingly visit a small group for the first time, they think, "And it is a little one." Of course it certainly is; however, though small, it is still a church where Jesus is in the midst of the saints, and it is a place where one can be saved and can worship God just as one can in a bigger group. Matt. 18:20. John 10:9. "And it is a little one" -- in such a church, members can have a better chance of exercising skills in teaching, song leading, and helping with other aspects of the work because the workers are few and everyone has to work whenever they meet. There's no taking a number and waiting for it to be called; for in a small church, everyone works every time they meet. "And it is a little one" will make members feel more appreciated and not just a face in the crowd because in a small group, people tend to be closer because there isn't a sea of faces where people get lost in the crowds. Also, the expression, "he attends where I worship," cannot be said with simply the tone of an acquaintance, because in small churches it is easier to get to know each other better. "And it is a little one" will bring out the need to give more because money is needed, members are few, and one will have to give better then he would if in a bigger church because the dependence upon the next person to make up the difference will not be there. It's either I must do it, or it won't get done. So the little church shouldn't be avoided, but rushed to by Christians who want to build. How about you dear brother or sister? Do you want to be a builder? Luke 10:2. -- Via The Susquehanna Sentinel, May 9, 2004 ____________________________________________________ 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 ____________________________________________________