____________________________________________________ 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 5, 1995 ____________________________________________________ Tithing and the Old Law--Are They Still For Today? by Tom Edwards Recently, I responded to a person's question concerning the Old Testament law. This is a portion of that message which was uploaded to the "Wholly Bible" echo mail in Fidonet. (For anonymity, I'll just use the person's first name.) Danny: I've heard a number of comments on the echo lately about ``the new covenant'' and that at Jesus' death, the information in the Old Testament no longer applies, that now the new covenant of the New Testament applies. On the other hand, I also hear that we still need to follow the Law, and tithe, and do all these other things in the OT in order to prove to God that we love him. So, which one is it? My Response: We are no longer under the Old Testament laws for they were ``nailed...to the cross'' (Col. 2:14). By His death, Jesus ''...takes away the first in order to establish the second'' (Heb. 10:9). Tithing was part of the Old Covenant, as well as circumcision, and various other requirements under the Old Law. Many in the early church also had the wrong notion that the Law of Moses was to still be practiced on an equal basis with the gospel (Acts 15:1,5). But notice how seriously wrong they were for this: in Galatians 5:2,4, ``Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.'' Keep in mind that the Old Testament command of circumcision came from the same law that tithing came from--the Law of Moses. It is not commanded in the gospel. It is, therefore, just as wrong to bind tithing for today as it would be to make circumcision mandatory for salvation. Though the New Testament does speak about giving (1 Cor. 16:1-3), and that God loves a cheerful giver, it nowhere tells the individual what percent his giving should be. (Tithing, of course, literally means ``a tenth.'') How much the individual gives is between him and God. I enjoy reading the Old Testament, and we can learn much from it about God and His dealings with others, but we must also realize, in rightly dividing the word of truth, that we are not under the Old Testament today, but rather the New. Furthermore, the Law of Moses was given to no other people but to the children of Israel who were God's special people. The Gospel, on the other hand, is to be for everyone--regardless of race or nationality. ___________________________________________ The Meaning of "For" in Acts 2:38 by Tom Edwards The following person, Scott, whom I have also been discussing the Bible with on Fidonet, expresses a view that many people have toward the meaning of "for" in Acts 2:38. He is definitely not alone in his position on the purpose for baptism, but is it Biblically based? Let's consider this together. Scott: Grammatically, Acts 2:38 commands us to be baptized *because of* the remission of sins, not as a means of procuring it. Christ's death accomplished the remission of our sins. Unfortunately, you don't seem to think his atonement was sufficient for us. My Response: I looked up the Greek word ``for'' (eis) in the phrase in Acts 2:38, ``for the remission of sins,'' in The Englishman's Greek Concordance of the New Testament, which shows all the English translations of a particular Greek word throughout the New Testament. There were more than a thousand verses I looked at where this Greek word (eis) is translated as ``into,'' such as Matthew 2:14, where it speaks of Joseph, Mary, and Jesus who ''...departed into Egypt.'' A couple other examples: Matthew 9:17, ``Neither do men put new wine into old bottles....'' Matthew 12:29, ``Can one enter into a strong man's house....'' Etc. But even if we didn't understand this, it's not just baptism, but also repentance that is ``for the remission of sins'' because both of these words are conjoined with the little conjunction ``and'': ``repent and be baptized.'' For whatever reason one is baptized is the same reason why one is to repent--and vice versa. The phrase ``for the remission of sins'' is also seen in Matthew 26:28, in which Jesus says, ``For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.'' Did Jesus die on the cross because sins had already been forgiven? Of course not, He died so they could be; and we are baptized so that they will be (1 Pet. 3:21). Nowhere does the New Testament say--or even indicate--that baptism is ``because'' one's sins have already been forgiven. Rather, it shows that it is so they will be (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3,4; 1 Pet. 3:21). Interestingly, hear Acts 2:38 in one of the earlier editions of the New International Version: ``Peter replied: `Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven....'' Christ's atonement was so sufficient that it needed to be made only one time for all time (Heb. 10:11,12), but the majority of the world are still lost in their sins and hell- bound. This doesn't mean that Christ's sacrifice is inadequate for them. It simply means that most people haven't met the necessary conditions in order to benefit from Christ's sacrifice; and those conditions are that one believes in Jesus (Jn. 8:24), repents of sin (Acts 17:30), acknowledges his faith in Christ (Acts 8:36,37), and is baptized in water for the remission of sins (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 1 Pet. 3:21). ___________________________________________ Someone once said something to the following effect: "Seven days without prayer makes one weak." ___________________________________________ Just Believe--or Is There More To It? by Tom Edwards The false belief of salvation by "faith only" is very prevalent in our time. Jeffry, as we will see, makes a statement that epitomizes the view which many people adhere to concerning this; but is it Scriptural? Let us consider what the Bible says. Jeffry: As you can see, there were many places where the only thing the person was told, was ``if you believe you will have eternal life.'' My Response: I just wanted to say that there is a big difference between saying one is saved by ``faith'' and saying one is saved by ``faith only.'' The Bible actually shows many things that one is saved by (faith, grace, blood of Jesus, works, baptism, confession of faith, obedience, etc.), but to say one is saved by ``faith only'' will automatically exclude everything else--such as repentance. Many words and phrases in the Bible are used comprehensively or as a ``synecdoche.'' For example, the Bible tells us to ``be faithful.'' What does this mean? It actually involves many things, and we must read the entire New Testament to learn of these things. ``Walk in the light,'' ``abide in the vine,'' etc. These are phrases that also ``sum up'' many responsibilities. What if, however, instead of ``summing up'' these ideas with one word or phrase, the New Testament simply substituted it with all that it really involved? Can you imagine how big the New Testament would have to be? It would have to keep repeating itself so that words such as ``faithful'' and phrases such as ``walking in the light'' could be clearly defined each time. That instead of just saying ``be faithful,'' it would say, ``Be sure to pray without ceasing, study the word of God, tell others about Jesus, go to church, take of the Lord's supper, give of your means on the first day of the week, don't lie, don't cheat, don't steal, don't commit adultery, help the poor, etc., etc. Faith is also used, at times, in this same way. And when it is, it is implied that obedience is also coupled with it. In other words, those who believe to the saving of the soul are those who have repented, acknowledged their faith in Christ, have been baptized in water for the remission of sins, and are continuing in their faithfulness unto God. They believe in God and what He has told them to do to be saved and have responded by obedience; this is saving faith. Ironically, the only passage in the entire New Testament that uses the phrase ``faith only'' or ``faith alone'' is in James 2:24; but here we learn the exact opposite of what so many would have us to believe. This verse says that one is ''...justified by works, and not by faith alone.'' Therefore, there is not one passage in all the New Testament that expresses the idea of salvation by ``faith only.'' Saving faith is an obedient faith. There are many people today who could testify toward believing in the deity of Christ and the truthfulness of the Scriptures, but at the same time realize that they are still lost in their sins because they have not yet repented and obeyed the gospel. Their faith is dead. Such was the case of many who though they had ``believed in Him,'' they were not willing to confess Christ--because they loved the approval of man more than the approval of God (Jn. 12:42,43). If one's faith does not even motivate one to obey the gospel than that faith is vain and will not lead to salvation. For Jesus is the ``source of eternal salvation'' ``to all those who obey Him'' (Heb. 5:9). And, ``Not everyone who says to Me, `Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven'' (Matt. 7:21). Is believing in Christ's deity the only thing that is the will of God for us? Is not repentance also part of the will of God for those who want to be saved? Everything that God commands one to do to become a Christian is all part of His will; and, therefore, we must respond by our faith and obedience. ________________________________________ Tri-State CHURCH OF CHRIST 1314 Montgomery Avenue, Ashland, Kentucky 41101 Sunday: 10:00 A.M. Bible class 10:50 A.M. Worship 6:30 P.M. Worship Wednesday: 7:30 P.M. Bible study evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (606) 325-9742 e-mail: tedwards@zoomnet.net Gospel Observer web site: http://www.zoomnet.net/~tedwards/go ________________________________________