Truth Magazine

By Aude McKee

Introduction:

I. This is the third lesson dealing with attempts to reform the Roman Catholic Church.

A. We have observed that these attempts failed.

B. Out of Luther’s work reformation did not come; rather, a new religious body was born.

C. This period, instead of being a reformation period, was a period of Protestant denominational births.

II. In the last lesson we noticed five fundamental bases on which the reformation was begun:

A. Bible – only rule of faith and practice.

B. Anything may be accepted in religion that is not expressly forbidden.

C. Justification by faith only.

D. Priesthood of all believers.

E. Removal of obstructions between man and Christ.

III. Reformatory efforts were not confined to Germany. In this lesson we give attention to the work and results of another man.

Discussion:

I. Reformation Activity in England.

A. Principles of the Lutheran reformation swept across the English Channel.

1. The English people had some preparation – John Wycliff and others less well known had taught against fundamental Catholic doctrines.

2. Catholic corruption had left a bad taste in people’s mouths – they were ready for changes to be made. English people loved their freedom.

3. But when the break with Catholicism came, it was more political and social than religious.

B. Henry V111 ruled England from 1509 to 1547.

1. He was devoted to the Catholic Church.

2. In 1521, Pope Leo X gave Henry the title “Defender of the Faith” for his defense of the sacramental system against the writings of Luther.

II. Henry VIII Had Marriage Problems.

A. Henry was married to Catherine of Aragon. (She was the daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain.)

1. Henry claimed he never loved her (she was the widow of his brother).

2. She bore him six children but only one daughter survived (Mary).

3. He argued that he ought to have a son to succeed him.

4. He happened to be in love with an attendant in the Queen’s court – Anne Boleyn.

B. Henry requested permission of the Pope to divorce Catherine and marry Anne.

1. The Pope refused the request.

2. Henry then divorced Catherine and married Anne in 1533.

3. The Pope excommunicated Henry in 1534.

III. The Beginning of the Church of England.

A. Later in the same year (1534) Henry proclaimed himself the head of the Catholic Church in England.

1. Shortly thereafter he was able to get the English Parliament to make the act official by cutting the English Church off from Rome and declaring the English Sovereign (king and queen) head of the church. This was known as the Act of Supremacy.

2. The Catholic Church in England then had its name changed to the Anglican Church or the Church of England.

3. There were some changes in doctrine and practice, but in the main it was simply a Catholic Church under English rule. This organization still is nearer the Catholic system than any other Protestant body.

B. Though the initial break with Catholicism was not doctrinal, Henry VIII drafted Ten Articles in 1536. They have been summarized thus:

“The authoritative standards of faith are the Bible, the Apostles’, Nicene, and Athanasian creeds, and for ‘four first councils.’ Only three sacraments are defined: baptism, penance, and the Lord’s Supper; the others are not mentioned in approval or denial. Justification implies faith in Christ alone, but confession and absolution and works of charity are also necessary. Christ is physically present in the supper. Images are to be honored but with moderation. The saints are to be invoked, but not because they ‘will hear us sooner than Christ.’ Masses for the dead are desirable, but the idea that the ‘bishop of Rome’ can deliver out of purgatory is to be rejected.”

1. These articles were later enlarged into Forty-Two Articles.

2. Revised in 1563 into Thirty-Nine Articles which have become the formal statement of faith for the Church of England.

C. Being born of social and political expediencies, trouble lay ahead.

1. Upon Henry’s death in 1547, his son Edward, who had a Protestant mother, came to the throne V t and continued his father’s work.

2. At his death, “Bloody Mary,” daughter of Henry and Catherine, ascended the throne.

a. England then experienced a “Catholic Reaction.”

b. Mary probably had up to 400 people put to death who had opposed Catholicism.

3. When Mary died, Elizabeth, daughter of Henry and Anne Boleyn, began to rule and she redirected England toward Protestantism.

IV. Interesting Things About The Church of England.

A. History in America.

1. First planted on the shores of America by Drake in California in 1578.

2. The movement grew fast in the South and “West,” but made little headway in the East for many years.

3. The American Revolution almost destroyed the Church of England in America.

a. Most of the clergy were loyal to the King of England.

b. They fled back to England during the latter part of the war.

4. In 1783, reorganization came and the name Protestant Episcopal Church was adopted.

B. Form of government.

1. Basic unit is the parish. It is overseen by the Rector (Priest).

2. Wardens have charge of the church records and collection of alms.

3. Vestrymen have charge of all church property.

4. Parishes are grouped geographically into 74 dioceses. The dioceses elect the Bishop.

5. Government in the diocese is vested in the Bishop and the diocesan convention, composed of clerical and lay members. Meets annually.

6. Every three years there is a general convention composed of two houses – Bishops and deputies. Laws passed here must be submitted to the dioceses for ratification before becoming law.

7. The ecclesiastical head of the Church is the Presiding Bishop elected by the general convention. He serves to age of retirement – 72.

C. Doctrines.

1. Children are born in sin; must be regenerated in baptism (Book of Common Prayer, pp. 273, 274).

a. Sin not inherited – it is committed (1 John 3:4).

b. Baptism is for those who can believe and repent (Mk. 16:15-16; Acts 2:38).

2. “That we are justified by faith only is a most wholesome doctrine and very full of comfort” (Ibid., p. 605; see James 2:24).

3. Jesus “died to reconcile His Father to us” (Ibid., p. 603; see 2 Cor. 5:19-21).

4. “Baptism” can be performed either by pouring or immersion (Ibid., p. 279; see John 3:23; Matt. 3:16; Rom. 6:4).

5. Special days are observed (Ibid., p. L, LI; see Gal. 4:10-11).

6. Believe ten commandments still binding (Ibid., p. 68; see Col. 2:14; Heb. 10:9-10; 8:7-8).

Conclusion:

1. If you had been living at this point in our study, you would have had these choices before you:

a. You could have submitted to the authority of the Pope of Rome, believed the doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church, and become a part of that religious denomination. But to do so you would have had to deny the authority of Christ and the all-sufficiency of the New Testament!

b. You could have taken the other branch of Catholicism. You could have followed the Patriarch of Constantinople and become a member of the Greek Orthodox Catholic Church. But to do this would have demanded that you affiliate with and pledge support of doctrines contrary to the plain teachings of God’s Word.

c. You could have refused to be a part of either division of Catholicism and followed Luther to become a member of the Lutheran Church. But to do this would have put you in conflict with many simple and plain teachings of inspired men, not the least of which would have been 1 Corinthians 1:13: “Is Christ divided; was Paul crucified for you; or were you baptized in the name of Paul?” Did Luther have the God-given right to start another church?

d. Or, you could have rejected this Protestant body and joined the Catholic Church in England – ruled by the head of the British government. Could you have done this with a good conscience knowing that “we walk by faith and not by sight” (2 Cor. 5:7) and that “faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God” (Rom. 10:17)?

2. However, these are not the only choices you would have had – one remains:

a. You could have taken the Bible and studied it for yourself (2 Tim. 2:15).

b. You could then, upon your faith in the Lord, your repentance of your sins, your confession of your faith in Christ, have been baptized into Christ unto the remission of sins (Mk. 16:15-16; Acts 2:38; 8:26-40; Gal. 3:26-27).

c. You could have refused to have anything to do with any man-made religious organization.

d. By your obedience from the heart your sins have been washed away (Rom. 6:17:18; Acts 22:16).

e. By your obedience you have been added to the church by the Lord (Acts 2:47).

f. There is only one body and that body is the church (Eph. 4:4; Col. 1:18).

g. So now you have what you have been seeking -salvation from sin.

h. You are a member of the church of Christ’s choice.

i. Why ruin the work of God by joining something the Bible never heard of?

j. Why make your worship vain by upholding the doctrines of men (Matt. 15:9)?

3. Why not go back of the corruptions of men to the pure Word of God – back of the churches of men to the church built by Christ (Matt. 16:18) and bought with his blood (Acts 20:28)?

Guardian of Truth XXXII: 18, pp. 558-559
September 15, 1988

By Bill Hall

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10).

When one is baptized he becomes a new creation, but he is not the creation of any man. He is the workmanship of God.

He is not the workmanship of the person who converted him – not primarily, anyway. Man can teach, influence, persuade, and baptize; but only God can cleanse, forgive, raise a person to sit with Christ in the heavenly places, and give him life. He is God’s creation – God’s workmanship. Just as surely as no man could create an “Adam,” just that surely can no man create a new creature in Christ.

Neither is one self-made. In Christ, one does not lift himself “by his own boot-straps.” Christianity is not a “do-it-yourself” religion – not in the fullest sense. One does not effect his own salvation through his own merit. Rather, in obedience to the gospel and faithfulness as a Christian, he places himself as clay in God’s hand, to become the work of the divine Potter, who molds, shapes, and perfects him that he might be fashioned in the image of his Son.

He is the workmanship of God because his salvation is “by grace through faith … .. the gift of God” (vv. 8,9). If one’s salvation were of meritorious works, he would not be the workmanship of God. This is the primary thrust of the passage.

The workmanship of God exists as a monument to his greatness. As a beautiful vessel is a monument to the greatness of a potter; as a beautiful painting is a monument to an artist; so a mature and perfected Christian is a monument to the marvelous power of God. Such a person is a product of God’s grace and exists for “the praise of his glory” (Eph. 1:6,12,14; 3:14-19). That God could take a Peter, a John, a Saul of Tarsus, an Aquila, a Priscilla, a John Mark, and mold him or her into the lovely vessel each became is a manifestation of his greatness. That he could do the same for people this writer has known and observed equally manifests his greatness. That he can and will do the same for me if I will but submit myself to his care in humble obedience, trust, and prayer is the greatest marvel of all. “I am so glad that Jesus loves me. . . Jesus loves even me” (P.P. Bliss).

The workmanship of God must be handled with care. Such a person is special, precious, priceless to God. As one is cautious in handling a family heirloom or rare piece of pottery fashioned by the hands of a master, so he must be cautious in his handling of that creation which is the work of God. “For meat destroy not the work of God,” Paul warned the Romans (Rom. 14:20). That person toward whose tender conscience you are showing little regard or whose soul you are placing in jeopardy is the work of God. Love that person. Appreciate him. Be tender toward him. Recognize his value. Handle with care!

The workmanship of God must never be content until it is brought to perfection. “Finish then thy new creation,” Charles Wesley wrote in his familiar hymn “Love Divine.” In keeping with this, Paul could express his confidence in the Philippian Christians, “that he who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6,7). Only those who remain in the Potter’s hands until brought to completion and perfection become vessels of honor All others become marred and fit only fit for destruction (2 Tim. 2:19-21).

Let no man, then, boast of himself. Self-righteousness has no place in the heart of a Christian. If any man boast, “let him glory in the Lord” (1 Cor. 1:31) and “in the cross of Jesus Christ” (Gal. 6:14). We are his workmanship.

Guardian of Truth XXXII: 18, pp. 553, 567
September 15, 1988

By Ronny Milliner

Most of the accomplishments of King Saul are things of which one would not be proud. He was greatly successful in at least one thing. He raised a fine son in Jonathan.

It is indeed rare that a son will rise above his father’s faith, but such was truly the case with Jonathan. Of course, we really do not know how much of an influence that Saul had on his son. It may very well be that Jonathan’s mother or even someone outside the family would be primarily responsible for molding the character of this fine young man.

One of the outstanding events in the life of Jonathan is his successful attack on the Philistines in 1 Samuel 14:1-4. We can learn several good traits about Jonathan from this event that would be worthy of our imitation.

His Objective

As the chapter begins, notice the contrast between the action of the prince and the action of the other people. The first verse speaks of Jonathan, “And the day came that Jonathan the son of Saul said to the young man bearing his armor, ‘Come, and we will go over to the fort of the Philistines on the other side.’ But he did not tell his father.” Verses two and three tell about the rest of the people “waiting at the edge of Gibeah.” While everyone else was just sitting Jonathan had an objective. His goal was the Philistine fort.

How many churches are “waiting at the edge of Gibeah” today because they have no objectives? Year after year passes by and very little is accomplished. We follow the same routine and are often content with “keeping house.”

Why not set some goals for the church? What do we want to accomplish in the next two years? Where do we want to be five years from now. Jesus set a goal for the apostles (Matt. 28:19-20; Mk. 16:15), and they met it (Col. 1:23). With God’s help so can we.

His Obstacles

Jonathan had set a great objective, but before he obtained it he had to overcome some obstacles. Verses four and five read, “And between the passages by which Jonathan sought to go over to the Philistine fort, there was a rocky crag on the other side, and a rocky crag on the other side; and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other, Seneh. The one crag was on the north in front of Gibeah.” The obstacles were so great that it is later stated that “Jonathan went up on his hands and on his feet” (14:13). Jonathan would have to overcome these obstacles if he meant to meet his goal.

Think of all the obstacles that stood in the way of the apostles in their effort to preach the gospel to the world. Reading 2 Corinthians 11:23-28 will remind us of some of these things. We can expect Satan to do all he can to hinder us in our efforts for good. Let us have the faith by which we can remove the mountains of obstacles (Matt. 17:20).

His Optimism

Verses six and seven record the optimistic faith of Jonathan. He said to his armor-bearer, “It may be Jehovah will work for us, for there is no hindrance to Jehovah, to save by many or by few.” Jonathan knew that the odds against him did not matter as long as he had God on his side.

We need this same optimistic spirit when it comes to our work in the Lord’s vineyard. There are too much negative expressions and doubts when his work is being planned. How many good efforts have been shot down by “It won’t do any good”? Instead of this attitude, let’s say with Paul, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:13).

His Observation

In 1 Samuel 14:8-12 Jonathan suggests a way that he could be assured of the victory from God. Having received the sign from God he observed, “Come up after me, for Jehovah has given them into the land of Israel” (14:12).

How observant are we to the opportunities that God has set before us? When an associate at work asks us a religious question do we see this as an opportunity to invite him to have a thorough study on the topic, or do we give him a short answer and forget it? When the community around a church building is rapidly growing does the church see this opportunity to grow as well? Heed the words of Jesus, “Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the field, for they are already white for harvest!” (Jn. 4:35)

His Outcome

The outcome of Jonathan’s effort is that he “struck twenty men in about half of a furrow of an acre of a field” (14:13-14). Jonathan’s victory was also an encouragement to the rest of Israel’s army to pursue the fleeing Philistines.

With the kind of faith and actions that were characteristic of Jonathan we also can attain the victory over our foes. Taking up the whole armor of God we will “be able to withstand in the evil day” (Eph. 6:13). Yea, “we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Rom. 8:37).

Conclusion

Yes, Jonathan was certainly Saul’s successful son. By imitating his good example we too can be successful soldiers in the Lord’s army. “Come, and we will go over to the fort of the Philistines” (1 Sam. 14:1).

Guardian of Truth XXXII: 18, p. 560
September 15, 1988

By Daniel H. King

In Ecclesiastes 7:2 the wise man deliberately shocks us with his statement that, “it is better to go into the house of mourning than into the house of feasting. ” Of course, none of us would choose the house of mourning, if it were ours to make the selection. But that is not usually the way it is. The house of mourning most often beckons us there for our visit. We go because of our respect for the deceased and the family. At times we are in attendance because the departed was a part of our own little household. It is especially sobering then, but, in truth, we always come away better people for our visit.

The reason this is so is because the funeral home and grave side are places of instruction, schools of higher learning. In a sense it could be said that they are the schools of “highest learning.” Most of us spend our days working at learning a living and accomplishing the necessary but trivial duties of life. We seldom pause to ask ourselves, “What am I doing this for?” or yet, “What am I really here to get done?” When the call comes from the house of mourning, we are arrested in mid-stride, as it were, and forced to gaze beyond the incidental things to consider, if only momentarily, that which is truly worthwhile about life and living.

Let me consider with you in these few lines some of the most precious lessons from the house of mourning.

The Value of Life

God’s word describes life as the creation of God himself.

To this date the combined efforts of scientists and researchers in the laboratories of earth have not been able to duplicate, even in the simplest of its forms, this great miracle of God. Yet we take it for granted every day. It surrounds us in its astounding variety and we seldom consider the true wonder of it!

There is a time when we take thought of it, though, and that is when we visit the house of the dying or of the dead. Then for that fleeting moment we ponder how amazingly fragile this gift from God truly is. I remember with fondness an incident in my own childhood that taught me this timeless lesson. My brothers and I had been given a little puppy that we had come to treat as one of our family. One day it fell asleep under the wheel of the car my parents had parked under a tall shade tree. When they pulled away our pup was crushed. I remember clearly (I was only about five at the time) my father wrapping him up in a sack and walking the three of us boys across the road to a field where he gently laid our little friend in the earth. I don’t remember his exact words, but I recall my dad saying something like this: “Boys, there will come a time for each of us, when we must go back to the dust also” That precious little life had been snuffed out like a candle’s wick. There was nothing we could do to bring it back. But what a lasting impression that simple scene and those words left upon us!

David lamented the death of his former master Saul and the loss of his friend Jonathan in 2 Samuel 1:17-27. In his lament he brought out the good that there was in the life of Saul. Even though he had not finished his life well, still there had been a time when he was the greatest warrior in Israel. He had started out to be a good king and a good man. It is this that David called to mind. Human life is exceedingly precious. David had counted Saul’s life as too valuable to take in an act of murder or even of revenge, while he had been presented several opportunities to take it. Life must not be treated as cheap (Gen. 9:56). One who maliciously takes the life of another should pay the ultimate price. A lessor penalty will cheapen this irreplaceable commodity. When God offered an appeasement for human transgression, he offered the most precious thing possible – the life of his Son (Jn. 3:16; 1 Jn. 3:16). We would be wise to value it just as highly as the God of heaven does.

The Brevity Of Life

During the forty years of wilderness wanderings, Moses watched an entire generation of his contemporaries vanish one by one. No doubt it was a humbling experience! His reflections upon their passing are found in Psalm 90. There he noted that while God is “from everlasting to everlasting” (v. 2), man is comparable to the ephemeral grass that “grows up in the morning” and “in the evening is cut down” (vv. 5-6). Our years are spent “as a tale that is told” (v. 9). Moses continued: “The days of our years are three score years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength but labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away. Who knoweth the power of thine anger? even according to thy fear, so is thy wrath. So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” (vv. 10-12).

In the house of mourning we give thought to the brevity of our lives on earth, even as did Moses in the wilderness of Sinai. We recognize that we are like a “vapor that appeareth for a little time and then vanisheth away” (Jas. 4:14). Like Peter, we know that we all must soon “put off our earthly tabernacle” (2 Pet. 1:14).

It is our proximity to death in the house of mourning that brings this truth home to us. When we study the book of Job we see that this great patriarch, living as he did so many days at death’s doorstep, thought and spoke frequently of the awful reality of death. His descriptions of death are some of the most colorful images found in the Bible (Job 4:19; 7:6-10; 8:9; 9:25; 10:9; 13:12; 14:1).

The Certainty of Death

As the splendid military general Joshua stood before the children of Israel near the end of his valiant career, he admitted himself vulnerable to death’s certainity. “Behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth” (Josh. 23:14). While he had escaped the edge of the sword to live to a ripe old age, still he knew that there was no escaping the. eventual arrival of the Grim Reaper. All the medical miracles of our day can only postpone its coming. Life-sustaining machines only slow down its approach. Eventually it does arrive.

This being true, there is only one way to deal with it; treat it as did Joshua of old. He saw it as much a part of living as life itself. He also viewed it as an opportunity to die as he had lived, in faith and dedication to God. His departing words placed before his brethren the choice of serving God or turning to the gods of the nations. We especially admire his uncompromising stand. His words ring out clearly through the halls of time: “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

The house of mourning should bring again to our minds the certainty of death. But it need not discourage or depress us. The Lord Jesus has broken the bonds of death and forever freed us from the fear of this dark reality (Heb. 2:14-16).

The Blessings of Human Sympathy

At the house of mourning families that are widely separated usually find the time to be back together for the occasion. Isn’t it sad that we often do not take the time otherwise? Scripture impresses us with the importance of weeping with those who weep (Rom. 12:15) and bearing one another’s burdens (Gal. 6:2). At times when families lose loved ones we tend to take special care to give attention to their needs. It is at special moments like these that we recognize who our most valued friends are. As the Bible says, “A brother is born out of adversity” (Prov. 17:17). Our brothers and sisters in Christ are never more precious to us than at such times. I should think also that we would never more fully see the void left in our lives by their absence than at the house of mourning – if we have forsaken the Lord and his people.

The Urgency of Sacred Responsibility

The greatest fallacy of man is the sin of procrastination. It is the vice of putting off till tomorrow something that needs to be done today. Someone has said that “procrastination is the thief of time.” I know that this is so, for it has stolen many opportunities from me. But there are some things which must not be put off, for their consequences are eternal. For example, I know of many young people who have put off obeying the gospel of Jesus Christ until their hearts are hardened by the practice and the tender appeal of the Savior no longer haunts them. Now they cannot be reached by simple words of encouragement. Perhaps some catastrophic -event in their lives will move them on to action, and perhaps nothing will do it. In my book there is only one time to obey the gospel and that is now (Heb. 3:13; Jas. 4:13). Now is the time to do what we plan to do for God. We must be “always abounding in the work of the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58). Tomorrow we may be lying cold and still in the house of mourning. All our good intentions will count for nothing if they are not put into action.

The Vanity of Earthly Things

So much of what we do here on earth is vain and empty. We will not even remember it ourselves. It certainly will not be written down in the history books for posterity. Solomon said that “All is vanity,” and asked, “What profit hath a man of all his labor which he taketh under the sun?” (Eccl. 1:2-3) After he had completed the labor of a lifetime, of the architectural and engineering feats that were his pride, he said: “Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had labored to do: and behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun” (2:11).

If a man of such incomparable wisdom recognized earthly things to be vain, we ought to set our minds upon the eternal goals and aim for the heavenly sphere. “Seek those things which are above, where Christ is” (Col. 3:1). At the house of mourning we are brought back to the reality of the vanity of earthly things and the importance of spiritual verities.

The Value of Our Faith

Our religion is never more real or valuable to us than when we stare into the cold face of death. The house of mourning shows the real value of our faith. The Savior wept at the graveside of Lazarus and then charged the dead to come forth from the tomb (Jn. 11:14). He was Master of Death at the house of Jairus, calling the precious little daughter of the ruler of the synagogue from the bosom of darkness back into the light of life (Mk. 5:35ff). He brought the widow’s son again to the land of the living at the tiny village of Nain (Lk. 7:11-16). He was himself victorious on the third day when the disciples discovered the tomb empty (Lk. 24:3). And I am convinced that he will someday make us victors as well. The Christian man or woman would not trade that faith for all the world’s most precious things. Those things are not spendable currency in the house of mourning.

Guardian of Truth XXXII: 17, pp. 541-542
September 1, 1988