It has been my conviction for the past 65 years that the church was divinely instituted. The last year or so I have seen more evidence of it in a different way than I had noted in the previous 65. The evidence to which I refer now is this fact: If it were merely a human institution, it probably would have sunk into oblivion under the weight of its apparent lack of leadership, knowledge and concern. Try to imagine the Reynolds Tobacco Company sales meeting. Visualize them gathering each week, occasionally with RJR himself present. They sing a few verses of “Winston Tastes Good, Like a Cigarette Should” and repeat in chorus, “I’d Walk a Mile for A Camel.” Then they blow a few smoke rings to show their special talents, and have a fellowship meal in the reception room and go home for the week. When the board of directors meets, most of their time is taken up with whether they should have disposable towels or automatic blowers in the rest rooms for drying hands, and such other pressing matters. If they have a sales meeting, they see a moving filmstrip of Zig Ziglar and go home. I knocked on Mr. R.J. Reynolds’ door on one occasion and discussed the Bible with him, and I know this was not the usual agenda for their meetings. Is there any preacher among us who has not had many sessions of “business meetings” and other church meetings where the leaders (?) in …

“It is a shame the church has problems.” This saying is echoed throughout the brotherhood of the Lord’s church. The pressing thought is that God’s cleansed people should so put sin behind them that they overcome difficulties before they happen. Members think it. Non-members trumpet it — often as an excuse for disobedience. It is, indeed, a shame that the church has problems. A shame at least equal, though, is the discouraged surprise many feel when contemplating the fact. Church difficulties should never be defended, but perhaps they can be viewed in a little different light. While the design of the Lord’s church is perfect beyond doubt, the inclusion of fallible humans opens the door for sinful potential. Christians will stumble (1 John 1:7-9). Sin affects people, and not just oneself: “For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself” (Romans 14:7). (Spiritually speaking, the references to a “victimless crime” are even more absurd than in the physical world.) Put those two concepts together with the command of Christians to continually assemble together (Hebrews 10:25), and one has an inevitable, logical conclusion: Christians will sin, and thereby cause pain to other Christians. It is a shame, but it should not be surprising. The Lord was not surprised by it. In his omniscience, he even provided a means of dealing with offenses between individuals (Matthew 18:15-18). Ah. And, it is therein that the Lord separated his people from all other organizations of the world. While we must …

William Barclay writes that once President Lincoln was asked how he was going to treat the rebellious Southerners when they had finally been defeated and returned to the Union of the United States. The questioner expected Lincoln would take dire vengeance, but he answered, “I will treat them as if they had never been away.” There was a father with two sons. The youngest came to his father and demanded his inheritance. His father complied, and in short order, the young man had wasted it away. Far from home, penniless and friendless, he resolved to return, confess his sins and ask to be made a household servant. From a distance, his father saw the wayward son approaching. The father ran to him, embraced him and kissed him. In short order, the young man was cleaned up and a great celebration held. What a wonderful story of forgiveness, but it’s not over, yet (Luke 15:11-24). The elder brother, returning from the field, heard the merrymaking as he approached. Inquiring of one of the servants, he learned that his brother had returned, and a celebration was underway. Outraged, he stubbornly refused to participate. His father came out and pleaded with him to join the festivities, but he would not. He had been a faithful son, yet he had never had a party. How could his father possibly justify a celebration for his wayward brother (Luke 15:25-32)? I have no doubt that story was told by Jesus not only to illustrate the Father’s …

Those of us who graduated from the sixth grade long ago can still learn from this story. Read the following and see if you don’t gain some insights: Last fall I divided my sixth grade Sunday school class into three groups for an interesting contest. As my twelve-year-olds gathered in three circles on the floor, I explained that there was only one rule in our competition: Each group had to put together a 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle without talking. I poured the contents of the puzzles on the floor in front of each group, warning them again that they could not talk. The first group went immediately to work, promptly setting up the top of the puzzle box, which gave everyone a clear view of the picture they were trying to put together. The second group tried to do the same thing, but they didn’t know that I had switched the top of their puzzle box with the top from another puzzle. I had deliberately given them the wrong lid. Not knowing that, they set up their box top to use as a guide to assemble their puzzle and went swiftly to work. As the third group gathered around the pile of pieces I had poured on the floor, the kids were dismayed to discover that I had given them no box top whatsoever to use as a guide. They started to protest, but I reminded them that there was to be no talking! What followed was fascinating. The members of Group One were somewhat …

I was on my way out the door of our office to visit a coworker and his wife who were at the hospital delivering their second child when the call came. Hearing the voice of a dear friend on the other end of the line, I settled down into one of our secretary’s chairs near the front door. In less than three minutes he turned my world upside down, forcing me on a long, hard, emotional roller coaster ride. He started out by telling me he had some good and bad news. The good news was that he and his dear wife had learned they were pregnant a couple of months ago. As I began to congratulate and tease him on what would be his third child, he quickly interrupted me and dropped the bombshell — his wife had just experienced a miscarriage. As I sat there in free fall, I groped for the right things to say. There I was about to rejoice with a coworker who was having a baby in the hospital, and yet at the same time my best friend just revealed that he and his wife had lost one. As I inquired as to how he and his wife were doing, my friend went on with some of the details of the pregnancy. If this had occurred a couple of years earlier, my wife and I would have been on their doorsteps within minutes (literally) — even if all we did was sit in the …

The beginning of 2 Corinthians 6:2 is a quotation from Isaiah 49:8. The phrase shows God’s willingness to save all who will obey throughout all of time, past, present and future. The latter portion of 2 Corinthians 6:2 reads, “behold, now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” This phrase indicates the importance of salvation. Before studying the significance of “now” and “day” we need first understand salvation. There are two questions one must answer to understand salvation. The first question is, “What is salvation?” The Greek word soteria is used, indicating “rescue or safety” (Strong). Salvation is a rescuing, but from what? From Hebrews 9:28 we find one who has salvation is one who is without sin. Salvation, therefore, is a rescuing from sin. The second question regarding salvation is, “How do we obtain salvation?” Mark 16:16 tells us how to become saved, or obtain salvation. The passage reads, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.” There is more to belief than acknowledging something true. When the Bible speaks of belief, or faith, it refers to an obedient faith. Consider the Book of Romans to emphasize this point. The beginning of the Book of Romans (1:5) speaks of “obedience to the faith.” The end of the Book of Romans (16:26) speaks of an “obedience of faith.” We then see from Romans 5:1 that we are “justified by faith.” Since the beginning and end of the book both …

In Hebrews 11:6 the author of that eloquent treatise made this very pertinent observation: “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6 New King James Version). The existence of a personal, moral, almighty God is fundamental to all that Christians believe. If there is no moral God, there is no moral being against whom we can sin, and therefore, such a thing as salvation is not needed. Furthermore, if there is no God, there could be no acts of God in the history of mankind, so all the Bible must be looked upon as a collection of myths that really have no purpose in existing. Hence, the most fundamental question having to do with all of life is, “Does God Exist?” Today, we begin a series of articles dealing with this question. There are four basic arguments for the existence of God, which are called, the cosmological, teleological, axiological and ontological arguments. We begin with the cosmological argument, which is also called the argument from creation. Our fundamental idea here is that there is in existence a universe in which we live. The universe did not cause itself, so it must have been caused by something else. Just as our infant children do not come into existence without a cause-effect relationship, and the existence of a child demands that there is/was somewhere both a mother …

Those of us who have had discussions with agnostics or others about the universe may have used the argument that every effect must have a cause sufficient to produce the effect. A watch did not simply evolve from molecules in motion, nor could it. Logically, therefore, the universe had to be produced by some cause that had the power and wisdom to bring into being that which is so vast and interconnected that no accident or human power could have done it. This is a good basic argument, and we have never seen it met with any degree of success, for it is so plain that even a little child recognizes its validity. However, there is one aspect of it that, in my judgment, may produce a blind spot that may have serious consequences. That is, when we say every effect has a cause, we are implying or stating that every effect has one cause. We know of no situation where this is true, for it is our observation and experience that every effect has a multiplicity of causes. If we were to put the matter in a mathematical formula that could easily be seen, it might be: Every effect has a cause, or E=f(C). The actual truth is: E=f(A,B,C,D, etc.), or every effect is a function of many causes. Let us examine some situations in which the awareness of the truth about this might have some serious consequences. The religious world takes the position that Salvation (An Effect) is produced by faith alone. …

Gospel Gleaner, 19:2 (2003): 11. Men and women of God who would not think of gambling, drinking or committing an act of fleshly evil, may otherwise be guilty of a sour disposition with an envious, bitter or negative frame of mind. An individual may quote Scripture, pray fervently and have an unblemished attendance record at worship services, yet may possess such a critical and negative attitude about life that others actually wish to avoid them. Are sins of the flesh less harmful than sins of the spirit? The sin of a bad attitude can cripple, if not kill, the progress of the Lord’s church in any community. A weak brother may have the foulest, most profane tongue of anyone in the town and the church would not want him to serve publicly in the worship assembly. Rightly so! But if a brother has a sour spirit and is known to be a habitual discourager of others, he shall be used!!! Regardless of daily news, sorrowful circumstances or stormy weather, each of us has a duty to show ourselves true men and women of God and be of good cheer. The Bible says: “…greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4). “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1 John …

The great T. B. Larimore, of long ago, said, “While I have friends who would gladly bear my every cross for me, you know I have some enemies. While I cannot understand why I should have such friends, I do not see why I should have enemies. I am an enemy to no one. Long ago I solemnly resolved no one should lose an enemy when I die” (Larimore And His Boys, p. 62). Such was the character of the great preacher Larimore. His biographer wrote of him: “In an intimate acquaintance of twenty years, I have never heard him use an expression which would indicate that he had any feelings of bitterness or resentment toward anyone. He has often spoken to me of unkind treatment received from others, but never has he manifested any feeling of anger toward them” (Ibid.). Of course brother Larimore knew, and we all know, that there is no way for a Christian to escape enemies. We will have them by the very nature of our relationship to Christ, who himself had enemies. Jesus told his disciples, “Blessed are ye, when [not if] men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake” (Matthew 5:11). There are times when, though we strive to exhibit the spirit of Christ at every turn, Satan’s emissaries close in around us. We have done nothing to provoke their wrath except to try to walk in the steps of the …

Unconscious plant life commands respect, and it ought to turn men’s minds to a power that can beget life. Such was its effect on Joyce Kilmer: I think that I shall never seeA poem as lovely as a treeA tree whose hungry mouth is pressedAgainst the earth’s sweet flowing breast;A tree that looks at God all day,And lifts her leafy arms to pray;A tree that may in summer wearA nest of robins in her hair;Upon whose bosom snow has lain;Who intimately lives with rain.Poems are made by fools like me,But only God can make a tree. The very existence of matter is inexplicable without assuming there was a maker. Kilmer’s tree, however, adds more mystery if one does not assume a maker. The chemical elements constituting an apple did not create themselves. And the seed within the apple has something which analytical chemistry cannot locate. From some source the tiny seed has power to burst open and send roots deep within the soil. The roots have anchoring power and also ability to withdraw water and nutriments from the soil. From some source they have ability to turn in the direction where the most water can be found. The same little seed has power to send growth upwards, climbing out of the soil and into the sunlight, and to include in that upward growth canals for carrying precious and vital liquids against gravity to high limbs. Some source gave that tiny, dry, hard apple seed the power to send forth leaves …