____________________________________________________ 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). ____________________________________________________ April 23, 2006 ____________________________________________________ Contents: 1) Misconceptions About the New Birth (Dick Blackford) 2) Legalism: The Un-Sin (Steve Klein) 3) News & Notes ____________________________________________________ -1- Misconceptions About the New Birth by Dick Blackford I receive the Sword Of The Lord, a Baptist publication which claims to be the largest religious weekly in America. In a recent article on the new birth, the above caption was highlighted in the middle of the article. It jumped out at me. Never have I seen so much false doctrine taught in such a small space. That is the nature of error, especially since one need not (cannot) list Scriptures which teach the views expressed. Some of my best friends and favorite relatives are Baptists. By examining the five short statements made, it is certainly not my intention to hurt them. This is not an attack on people but an investigation of a view that affects our eternal salvation. We should not fear investigation and we cannot afford to be wrong on this issue. 1. The New Birth Is A Miracle A miracle is a supernatural, instantaneous occurrence that supersedes the normal. It is an open, obvious thing for which there is no earthly explanation. In the vegetable kingdom God created the first plants. He then set in order the law of reproduction, whereby God does not need to keep creating plants full-grown. By merely sowing the seed a plant is reproduced. God's law of reproduction is a marvelous thing, but it is not a miracle. In the animal kingdom and the human kingdom, it works similarly. God created the first animals and the first humans. But when we want additional animals or desire children in the family, we do not expect God to miraculously make another dog or cat, nor do we expect Him to create another baby from the dust or from a woman's rib. Instead, God's law of reproduction is that when the male seed is sown in the womb of a female, offspring is produced. It is a marvelous thing, but it happens according to law. In the spiritual kingdom, miracles were involved in the beginning of the age (Acts 2; 1 Cor. 12:28). Some had miraculous knowledge and ability in the infancy of the church. But God set up a law of reproduction which involves the sowing of the seed (the word of God, Lk. 8:11) into good soil (the mind of man, Lk. 8:8,15). The good seed in the good soil germinates, producing faith, repentance, confession and baptism. Through the teaching of the Spirit, a man is led to obey. "Except a man be born of water and the spirit he cannot enter the kingdom...." Just as we cannot see what causes the seed to germinate in the plant, animal, and human kingdoms, neither can we see this in the spiritual realm. But it happens according to God's spiritual law rather than miraculously. 2. The Mind Cannot Comprehend It This is partially true, if one means we cannot comprehend the knowledge and the power of God which brought about the new birth. But by "being rooted and grounded in love," we may be "strong to apprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which passeth all knowledge..." (Eph. 3:17,18). There was a time when it was needful for Jesus to speak in figurative language about the new birth (Jn. 3), since some wanted to take Him by force and make Him a king and others wanted to take Him by force and crucify Him. However, Jesus later taught that being "born into the kingdom" meant the same as being "converted" (Mt. 18:3) and "doing the will" of His Father (Mt. 7:21). His apostles taught that being in Christ made one a "new creature" (born again, 2 Cor. 5:17). One is said to be "baptized into Christ" (Rom. 6:3; Gal. 3:27). They also taught that one is raised from baptism to walk in "newness of life" (born again, Rom. 6:4). If this cannot be comprehended, why did Christ and the Apostles explain it? Why are we admonished to study it (2 Tim. 2:15)? Such would be an exercise in futility and reduce the biblical exhortations to absurdity. 3. The Tongue Cannot Tell It Jesus told it, as we have previously shown. The apostles also told it. If we tell the same thing they told, then we are telling it. 4. One's Vocabulary Cannot Express It Certainly the tongue cannot tell what the vocabulary cannot express. And there are some things that fit in that category. For example, the "peace of God passeth all understanding" (Phil. 4:7). But if the tongue cannot tell it and the vocabulary cannot express it, then how can we preach it? Men are not preaching the new birth when they say these things about it. Jesus and the apostles had the vocabulary to express it. If we study what they taught and say what they said, then we can express it. But how many denominational preachers are willing to say what Peter said in Acts 2:38 or 1 Peter 3:21? 5. But The Heart Can Feel It The Bible never says this. Very little emphasis is put on feelings in connection with conversion. From the Scriptures and from experience, we should be overwhelmed with the knowledge that feelings often mislead. Saul of Tarsus felt saved. He thought Christ was an imposter and Christianity was a hoax. The followers of Jim Jones felt right about what they were doing. We are impressed with the devotion of Paul and others for wrong causes. The way we can know we have been born again is not by a "good feeling" but by whether we have taken all (not part) Christ and the apostles taught about salvation and obeyed it. If you have taken faith but have neglected obedience to the Lord in baptism (Acts 22:16; Rom. 6:3-5), regardless of how you feel, you have not been born again ("new creature," "newness of life," etc., 2 Cor. 5:17; Rom. 6:3,4). Rejoicing (good feelings) were mentioned in some cases of conversion, after baptism (Acts 8:39; 16:34). This is not evidence, but a byproduct of salvation. Measure your actions by the word, not your feelings. -- Via Guardian of Truth XXIX: 5, pp. 144, 149, March 7, 1985 ____________________________________________________ -2- Legalism: The Un-Sin by Steve Klein Since the church began, the devil has concocted any number of diabolical schemes to ensnare God's people. One of his most successful gambits has been the invention of the pseudo-sin commonly called legalism. More people consider legalism to be a sin than consider 7-UP to be a cola, but they are all mistaken. Legalism is the UN-SIN. Legalism is defined as "strict, literal or excessive conformity to the law or to a religious or moral code" (Webster's Dictionary). Simply put, a legalist follows the rules. I was not there when the devil and his angels dreamed up this strategy for getting Christians to commit more sin by convincing them that legalism is a sin. But I must say that it was a stroke of genius. Just think of it -- being able to actually convince people that not committing sin is a sin! Satan must have noticed that early disciples "continued steadfastly in the apostles doctrine" (Acts 2:42), and that they were expected to be "obedient in all things" (2 Corinthians 2:9). At some point however, Satan also became aware that the apostles and prophets of Christ were teaching Jewish Christians that they could not rely on their obedience to the Law of Moses for their salvation; it would do them no good to strictly follow the Law of Moses. And that's when Satan hatched his scheme. He knew that if he could convince Christians that the apostolic warnings against becoming "entangled again with a yoke of bondage" (Galatians 5:1) were talking about strictly keeping the commands of Jesus, then he could get them to stop being concerned with commandment keeping. This is what has happened. Millions of people today who call themselves Christians believe that strict obedience to God is a sin called legalism. They believe that to be a faithful Christian one must not be too concerned with actually doing exactly what Jesus said to do. Their leaders write things like the following: "Stringently striving to obey Christian rules and regulations doesn't enable the Spirit-filled walk; it often kills it" (2 Corinthians 3:6). [Neil Anderson, Freed from Legalism]. Please note that in the verse cited by this anti-legalist, the apostle Paul states that God "made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." What is "the letter" in this passage? Is it "Christian rules and regulations" as Mr. Anderson states? We don't have to guess, for Paul tells us in the next verse. The letter that kills is called "the ministry of death, written and engraved on stones" (2 Corinthians 2:7). "The letter" is plainly the Law of Moses! It was written on tablets of stone. Over and over again the apostles of Christ warn that striving to strictly follow the Law of Moses will lead to death, not life! But NOWHERE do they state that strictly following the commands of Christ will do the same. The New Testament never condemns the strict keeping of the commandments of God. It always commends it. Even the hair-splitting, herb-tithing, commandment-keeping Pharisees were not condemned for keeping God's commandments too well. They were condemned for keeping the small requirements while leaving off the big ones. Jesus told them that they should have kept BOTH! "These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone" (Matthew 23:23). My friends, those who love God will keep His commandments. "For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome" (1 John 5:3). Those who don't keep God's commandments, don't really know Him. "Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, "I know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him" (1 John 2:3-4). -- Via The Bulletin of the Church of Christ at New Georgia, March 19, 2006 ____________________________________________________ -3- News & Notes Let those of us who are Christians continue to remember Naomi Baker, Janice Arnold, and Melinda Reed in prayer for their complete healings and good health. The last couple Sundays, I preached 4 sermons on the apostle Peter. Though the sound-quality had to be greatly reduced for the Internet, these can be heard through the following website: http://home.onemain.com/~tedwards/edwards.html ____________________________________________________ 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 ____________________________________________________