____________________________________________________ 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 14, 2006 ____________________________________________________ Contents: 1) Did the King Reject His Kingdom? (Clarence R. Johnson) 2) They Lingered Too Long (Jimmy Tuten) 3) Reasons for Teaching (Phillip Owens) ____________________________________________________ -1- Did the King Reject His Kingdom? by Clarence R. Johnson John tells us that after the feeding of the 5,000, "Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone" (John 6:15). Mark, in his account of the gospel, informs us that Jesus went to the mountain to pray, Mark 6:46. But why did Jesus resist the attempt of the crowd to make Him a king? After all, before His birth, an angel had said to Mary, "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end" (Luke 1:32-33). Also, when He stood before Pilate, the Roman governor asked Him, "'Are You a king then?' Jesus answered, 'You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world'" (John 18:37). So, why did Jesus resist their efforts to make Him a king? The simple fact is that their concept of His kingdom was the farthest thing from His mind -- and His intentions regarding the kingdom had never entered their minds. As He said to Pilate in John 18:36, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here." In spite of the common concept in the Jewish minds, Jesus had never had any intention of being an earthly monarch. He had absolutely no political ambitions. He had no interest in carnal warfare against the Romans, or anyone else. His warfare was a spiritual struggle against Satan and the forces of evil. His goal was not to destroy men's lives, but to save them, Matt. 1:21; Luke 19:10; John 10:10. Isaiah, "the Messianic prophet," had foretold the peaceful nature of Christ's kingdom. "Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the LORD's house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it. Many people shall come and say, 'Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths.' For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, and rebuke many people; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore" (Isa. 2:2-4). This passage was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, Acts, chapter 2, when the word of the Lord went forth from Jerusalem and devout Jews from every nation under heaven determined to walk in His ways. These individuals from numerous cultures, speaking various languages, etc., were at peace with each other because they were at peace with God under Jesus as King in His peaceful, spiritual kingdom. "Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved" (Acts 2:44-47). Jesus rejected the carnal kingdom some attempted to thrust upon Him because His reign was to be a spiritual reign, which He received after He ascended to the Father in heaven, Acts 2:30-35; Dan. 7:13-14. -- Via The Susquehanna Sentinel, May 7, 2006 ____________________________________________________ -2- They Lingered Too Long! by Jimmy Tuten Over the holidays I was in the home of a dear friend who is in the publishing business. He showed me a beautiful volume on Pompeii that his firm was responsible for bringing into being. I marveled at its magnificent color photographs depicting the city's ruins and fantasized over what the city must have been before that dreadful day in the summer of A.D. 79. What was once a showplace of culture was buried beneath tons of hot, wet ashes and cinders that were sprayed over it by the eruption of Vesuvius. For almost seventeen hundred years it was forgotten and its actual existence was questioned by many. Having been discovered, its testimonies to grandeur are ours to behold. The most important thing about Pompeii's ruins is what they tell us about the people of that day. It is a fact that numerous individuals lost their lives in the destruction who needed not to have lost their lives. Archeologists found that most who lost their lives at Pompeii did so because they lingered too long, trying to prolong enjoyment of what they were doing or trying to salvage their valuables. One publication tells us, "The excavator's shovels revealed all manner of family tragedies, scenes of mothers, fathers and children caught in absolute extremity. Mothers were found still holding their children in their arms, protecting them with the last bit of veil as they both suffocated. Men and women were dug up who had gathered their valuables together, got as far as the city gate and there collapsed under the stony hail, still clinging to their gold and precious things. At the threshold of one house two young women were found who had hesitated until it was too late, intending to go back into the house and salvage some of their treasures. Body after body was found at the Gate of Hercules, bodies all heaped together and still encumbered with the household gear that had grown too heavy to drag any further" (Gods, Graves, And Scholars). What a lesson to learn! God's Word reveals a far greater destruction to come than that experienced by Pompeii, a destruction involving those who obey not the gospel (2 Thess. 1:7-9). The certainty of this destruction cannot be denied, yet rather than flee to the arms of safety, people linger in sin. The same things that caused many to perish in Pompeii, devotion to loved ones and earthly possessions, are causing people today to linger in disobedience to God's Commands. They will die in the destruction of the world because they are outside of Christ (2 Pet. 3; Rom. 6:1-6, 17). Nothing should keep us from obeying the gospel (Matt. 10:37-38; 6:19-20; 16:24-26). Learn a lesson from the destruction of the beautiful, proud city of Pompeii. Flee from a life of sin that you might escape the wrath of God upon the disobedient. "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great a salvation?" (Heb. 2:3). "Watch therefore, for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come" (Matt. 24:42). "Careless soul, why will you linger, wandering from the fold of God? Why so thoughtless are you standing, while the fleeting years go by." -- Via Truth Magazine XXIV: 27, p. 433, July 10, 1980 ____________________________________________________ -3- Reasons for Teaching by Phillip Owens This article points out eight reasons for teaching others the gospel. 1. To Obey A Command Of God: Hebrews 5:12 states, "For when by reason of the time ye OUGHT to be teachers...." "Ought" does not mean you can take it or leave it like, "I ought to clean out our garage." Rather, the word means a "binding as necessary; must; obligated to." Teaching another the truth is a command of God. 2. To Exercise Spiritual Discernment, Develop Spiritual Maturity, And Grasp Deeper Spiritual Teachings: The Hebrew Christians failed to grow as they should (Heb. 5:11-14). They had become "dull of hearing." As a result, they could not teach, were in need of spiritual milk and could not discern good and evil. Studying to teach helps develop our senses, gives us a better grasp of the whole of the Bible, and enables us to appreciate deeper truths (such as the Melchizedek priesthood). This makes our faith "rooted and builded up in Him" (Col. 2:6). The study required to teach has by-products that pay eternal dividends. 3. To Become Great In The Sight Of God: Jesus said, "...whosoever shall do and teach them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 5:19). God will eternally bless the Christian who does and teaches everything He says in His Word. 4. To Follow The Example Of Jesus: Numerous examples show Jesus teaching (Matt. 11:1; Mk. 4:1; 6:2,34; 8:31). Molding our will into God's will demands that we share the truth with those who do not know it. By doing this, we follow Jesus' example (1 Pet. 2:21). 5. To Follow The Example Of The Apostles: The great commission was specifically directed to the apostles (Matt. 28:18-20; Mk. 16:15,16), yet people today are saved the same way they were saved back then -- through being taught the gospel. We follow their example in teaching that others may be saved. 6. To Follow The Example Of Early Christians: At Stephen's stoning, disciples in Jerusalem were scattered. Those displaced Christians taught people within their sphere of influence (Acts 8:4), and so must we. 7. To Grow To Become Elders And Deacons: An elder is to be "apt to teach" (1 Tim. 3:2). This means he is able and willing. A deacon gains "great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus" (1 Tim. 3:13), which indicates he is to grow sufficiently to stand for truth -- to teach Bible truths. Becoming an elder or deacon in the local church should grow naturally out of one's desire for his own spiritual development. 8. To Demonstrate Our Love For Others: Jesus said a second commandment like the first is, "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself" (Matt. 22:29). If we really want the best for someone, really believe there are only two eternal destinies for every person (Matt. 22:45), really believe the gospel is God's power to save (Rom. 1:16) and without it people are lost and bound for a devil's hell (2 Thes. 1:8), we will not be able to keep from teaching that person the truth. -- Via In Back To Basics, Vol. 2, No. 10, Oct. 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 ____________________________________________________