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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).
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December 15, 1996
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Are You Hungry?
by Alan Jones
In I Peter 2:2, the apostle wrote, ``As newborn babes,
desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow
thereby.'' Anyone who has been around a newborn infant
for any length of time knows the singleness of mind that
they have at all hours of the night and day! A young
child's cry will not cease until their hunger has been
satisfied, and their mother's milk provides all of the
essentials they need to grow and become strong.
I have friends who have recently visited Russia, and
they report a tremendous hungering for the Bible in a
country where even owning a Bible was considered a crime
worthy of imprisonment at hard labor. Could it be that we
in this country have been taking the Bible for granted?
What about you? Do you ``desire the pure milk of the
word'' as a newborn baby does? Are you hungry--or have
you lost your appetite to know right from wrong? What is
your attitude toward the Bible? Is it something you
treasure, or something you take for granted?
King Solomon said in Ecclesiastes 12:12, ``The writing
of many books is endless''. Each year tens of thousands of
new books are added to the untold number already in print.
Why, since so many new works are being written, should
you read the Bible?
First, the Bible says about itself in II Timothy 3:16-17:
``All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is
profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for
instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be
complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.''
Second, the fact that you are able to own a Bible
shows the hand of God at work. For thousands of years,
men have faithfully copied God's word as written in the
original Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek languages, languages
whose very structure was ``locked'' by God after the writing
of the books of the Bible to insure accuracy of translation.
Is it accurate? Actually, we have not five or six, but
hundreds of ancient copies of the Bible which perfectly
match with each other. (For instance, the so-called ``Dead
Sea Scrolls'' found in the late 1940's were identical to the
other ancient manuscripts already in our possession,
including the sixteen-hundred-year-old copy on display in
the British Museum in London!)
Because we have so many ancient copies from so many
different parts of the world, there is no doubt that the
Bible we have is unchanged from times of old. And because
the words of the Bible were written in ancient Hebrew,
Aramaic and Greek, we can be confident that we understand
the meaning. This is why the Bible is so easy to translate
into so many languages for people throughout the world to
read. God planned it that way.
The Bible has done more than survive--it thrives! It
continues to be the number one selling book on the planet
and parts of it have been translated into over 1500
languages. Historian Philip Schaff, speaking of Jesus and His
New Testament, wrote, ``Without writing a single line, He set
more pens in motion and furnished them for more sermons,
orations, discussions, learned volumes, works of art, and
songs of praise than the whole army of great men of ancient
and modern times.''
When Christianity began, it was growing fast and
taking followers away from Judaism. In Acts 5:17-42, we read
that the Jewish Council met to decide what should be done
to stop its progress. One of their number, Gamaliel, a well
respected doctor of the Jewish law, took the floor. He
related that various movements had arisen in the past but
had come to nothing. He argued that Christianity should be
left alone. He said that if Christianity was from men it would
be overthrown, but if it was of God they would be fighting
God, and could not possibly win. His words were obviously
proven right!
Although the Bible was written by about 40 men over
a time span of well over 1,500 years, there is a unity of
facts, purpose and teaching in all of the individual books.
The Bible uses the word ``mystery'' to describe the thread
which ties it together: man's salvation from his awful sin
through the life (and the foretold death) of God's only
begotten Son, Jesus (Ephesians 1:9-10).
Why does the Bible refer to this thread as a
``mystery''? As in the entertaining ``mystery'' books of
popular reading, clues are given as you follow along in the
narrative, but the final outcome is never revealed until the
end of the book. Such is the case with the Bible!
The Bible is a wonderful gift from God, telling us His
plan for all men to be free from sin and guilt and to be
restored to fellowship with Him. The Bible could not have
possibly been devised by 40 men over fifteen centuries. One
mind had to have been behind it all...God's!
Do you take His wonderful gift for granted? Certainly
the Bible's internal proof should capture your attention, and
even more, you should see that God has designed it to
fulfill your deepest need, your insatiable, adult hunger to
know the answers to the questions of life: ``Why are we
here on this earth, and what purpose do we serve?'' The
answers are found within the pages of the Bible!
-- Via The Shield of Faith (December 10, 1996)
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Think Positive,
And You Can Do Anything!
(Mantras Of The 90's--Mantras #11)
by Warren E. Berkley
Owing to the influence of human potential thinking,
secular humanism, the New Age movement and other things,
there is the widespread belief that thinking positive
conquers everything; and some are convinced: thinking you
can accomplish something will reduce or eliminate the impact
of any negative or unforeseen factors.
Think Positive,
And You Can Do Anything!
Yet, Biblical teaching is clear: THERE ARE SOME
THINGS MAN CANNOT DO; THERE ARE SOME POWERS THE
HUMAN MIND DOES NOT HAVE, AND CANNOT ATTAIN... And,
BELIEVING IN IMPOSSIBLE THINGS DOESN'T MAGICALLY MAKE
THOSE THINGS COME TO PASS, OR CANCEL THE RELEVANT
VARIABLES.
There are some things man cannot do:
(1) Adam was driven out of the garden and could not
return (Gen. 3:24). I can just imagine Adam being counseled
by Robert Schuller. ``Adam, you just think you can't go
back into that garden. You need to visualize yourself
walking into that garden. That cherubim and flaming sword
is only a figment of your imagination, tainted by your low
self-esteem.'' Yet the Bible says, Adam was driven out and
could not return. The power of positive thinking would have
been of no avail.
(2) The rich man, in Luke 16:26, could not pass ``from
Tartarus to Paradise.'' There was a ``great gulf fixed.''
Humanistic counselors want to say, ``believe, and you will
achieve.'' Still, the rich man would have run right into that
great gulf.
(3) Jesus said that man CANNOT serve two masters
(Matt. 6:24). No human potential seminar can change this
stubborn fact.
(4) Jesus told His disciples on more than one occasion:
``Where I go, you cannot come!'' (Jno. 8:21; 13:33). While
there was a faith these men were to have, it wasn't ``faith''
in their own potential to do what Jesus said they couldn't
do! And...
(5) Jeremiah tells us that MAN CANNOT DIRECT HIS
OWN STEPS (Jer. 10:23). These facts are not given to
discourage legitimate persistence, a positive attitude or the
``can do'' spirit that motivates hard work. The point of all
this evidence is: Believing in impossible things doesn't
magically make those things happen!
All Bible students will acknowledge these two facts:
(1) The Bible commends to us the excellence and necessity
of faith, and (2) Biblical faith is characterized by power
(See: Heb. 11:6; Rom. 1:16,17; 1 Jno. 5:4 and Jno. 7:38). Yet
in these great propositions--and in view of the widespread
misuse of the word ``faith'' by human potential
advocates--there are two clarifications we must hasten to
assert: ONE, Biblical faith must be carefully defined. ``Faith''
(in the context of positive mental attitude and human
potential) may have reference to believing you will achieve,
or visualizing success, or ignoring negative factors. This is
not the faith of New Testament Christianity! Real biblical
faith is convinced that the claims of Christ are true (Acts
8:37), rests on the certainty of God's promises (Rom. 4:21),
and produces the works of obedience to God's Word (Heb.
11:7,8; Jas. 2:14-26). There is a big difference between
``faith'' in human potential, and believing you can accomplish
your goals--and FAITH in Christ that obeys the gospel! The
faith of New Testament Christianity ``should not be in the
wisdom of men but in the power of God,'' (1 Cor. 2:5). The
location of faith's power is in God, His Word, His Son and
the facts of the gospel.
TWO, THE POWER OF BIBLICAL FAITH is not the ability
to fulfill your dreams and climb the ladder of worldly
success! In the preaching I have done against the Human
Potential Gospel, and the exaggerated Positive Mental
Attitude, I've been charged with the sin of denying the
power of faith. NO! What I'm trying to do is clarify what the
real power of faith is, according to the Scriptures. The
power of faith is: the power to resist temptation (1 Pet.
5:8,9; 1 Jno. 5:4; Eph. 6:16); the power of prayer (Jas. 1:6; 1
Jno. 3:22; 5:14,15; Jas. 4:3); the power of stability and moral
courage (2 Cor. 1:24; Jas. 1:3); and the foundation to build
character (2 Pet. 1:5-11). By faith we are saved from sin,
and by faith we cling to the hope of a heavenly inheritance.
The Human Potential use of the word ``faith'' is temporal,
anti scriptural and spiritually destructive.
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NEWS & NOTES
I heard from Bobbie Beasley recently who has been
living in Jesup, Georgia, for a while now. She used to be a
former member with us for about 9 years and says she
thinks about us every day, prays for us, and hopes we are
each doing well. I know some of you have been asking about
her. She is doing fine, still working, attending church, and
sounding very well.
On a sadder note, I received the following message by
Pete Wilson (which was forwarded by Mark Copeland):
``On Sunday afternoon at 3:15 pm on December 8, 1996,
Peter J. Wilson passed from this life and went home to be
with his Lord Jesus Christ. He could not have had a more
peaceful death, he was at home with his family where he
wanted to spend his last days. He said just prior to his
death, 'My labor is over...' His doctors commented that they
believed his swift decline was due to his being so ready to
go. This was his testimony and the legacy of faith that he
leaves behind to his wife, Irene, to his children,
grandchildren and the thousands of people that have been
touched by his faithful proclamation of the gospel of Jesus
for the past 54 years. For those in the Oregon, Washington
area, the memorial service will be held Friday, December 13,
1996 at Evergreen Memorial Gardens at 10:00 AM.
``Email messages sent to me (Pete Wilson) at
pwilson@georgefox.edu will be forwarded to my mother. (The
funeral home is located on NE 112th, off Mill Plain Blvd &
I-205 in Vancouver, Washington).''
We, at the Tri-state church of Christ, also extend our
sympathy to the friends and family.
We had 27 different visitors for November.
Call or write to...
1) receive a free Bible course
2) make an appointment to see Bible film slides in
your home
3) receive directions to our services
4) obtain a ride to church (provided by a member)
5) ask a Bible question
6) find out more about us
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Tri-State
CHURCH OF CHRIST
713 13th Street, 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@wwd.net
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