Truth Magazine

By Garreth L. Clair

The objective in this lesson will be to establish as a fact the existence of the church on earth in this latter part of the 20th Century. Since nearly two thousand years have passed since Christ established the church on Pentecost day (Acts 2), it seems only reasonable that some might question the fact of its existence today. Since there have been many changes in all aspects of man’s life, we need to be assured that the church Jesus built is still here on earth and that man may be a part of it. To that we address the following:

1. If the church Christ established has perished from the earth, if it no longer exists, no religious institution has a biblical right to exist.

2. If the church of Christ is extinct from the earth today, all religious institutions in existence today are purely of human origin and everyone who belongs to one of them belongs to the wrong church.

3. But if the church Jesus built does exist on the earth today, everyone ought to find it and do whatever is necessary to become a part (i.e., member) of it.

4. There can be no question about the existence of the church of Christ in the early days of the Apostles (Acts 2:47; 8:4; etc.).

5. There are two extreme views that must be examined when the present subject is considered, they are:

a. “All religious institutions now in existence are the church” (i.e., all denominations are branches in the true vine).

(1) This view is first of all a misapplication of the Scripture in John 15:1-8. In the context of the passage in John the Lord is discussing the relationship between himself and his disciples on an individual basis. To make Christ’s statement here apply to denominations as the branches is a total misapplication of his words.

(2) Such a view of the Lord’s church would cause man to look upon the church as a freak, for Christ would be the head over many bodies (Eph. 1:22; 5:23).

(3) This concept of the church would also dispute Christ’s prayer for unity of all believers (Jn. 17:20-23).

b. “The church you read about in Acts 2 does not exist today in visible form.” Some contend today that there is no unit of organization except “the body universal concept,” that the local assembly of saints is without authority. To these objections we offer the following:

(1) The church is instructed to assemble together (Heb. 10:25). This assembling necessitates a place, the place is therefore the meeting-house of the local church in that place.

(2) The Jerusalem church was a visible church; it was visible enough to be scattered abroad (Acts 8:3,4).

(3) Christians are also instructed to comfort one another and edify one another together under the oversight of qualified elders (1 Thess. 5:11-15).

(4) Friends, the church is just as visible as people for the simple reason that the church is made up of converted people (Acts 2:37-41).

Perhaps one of the most discussed facets of the present day existence of the church established on Pentecost (Acts 2) is, “Can a continuous line be drawn through history back to the establishment of that institution according to Acts 2 of nearly twenty centuries ago?” Please observe the following facts in this connection:

1. Is it really possible for any religious group today to trace its history in an unbroken chain back to the apostles?

a. The Roman Catholic church claims they can trace their history back to the apostle Peter as their first pope. Let us examine their claim in the light of history and the teaching of the Bible:

(1) From a sermon outline prepared by the author in First Century Preaching By Twentieth Century Preachers (Guardian of Truth Bookstore, pp. 53,54) we present the following facts regarding Peter:

(A) Peter was a married man (Mk. 1:30; 1 Cor. 9:5).

(B) Peter refused man’s homage (Acts 10:25,26).

(C) Peter taught others to wear Christ’s name, Christian (Acts 4:12; 1 Pet. 4:16).

(D) Peter did not claim to be infallible (Gal. 2:11).

(E) Peter taught that Christ was head of the church, not himself (Acts 2:29-36).

(F) Peter never wore such names as Holy Father, Pope, etc.; he knew God condemns such (Matt. 23:9).

From these facts it ought to be apparent that Peter was not a pope.

(2) There is no historical evidence of the existence of the Roman Catholic Church until 606 A.D.

b. Some Baptist theologians also attempt to trace the chain of their denomination back to the apostles; among the most prominent are Ben M. Bogard (Baptist Church History Chain Examined by George B. Curtis, Firm Foundation Publishing House 1938, pp. 18,19), and J.M. Carroll in The Trail of Blood published Ry Ross L. Range, 1974. The fact is these men and other Baptists cannot trace their denomination any further back in history than John Smyth, who in 1607 formed the first English Baptist Church (see Handbook of Denominations in the United States, fourth edition by Frank S. Mead, p. 33). In the second place some Baptists claim that John the Baptizer was a Baptist. To suggest that John was in the Baptist Church places the establishment of the Lord’s church in Acts 2 after the establishment of the Baptist Church which would make the Baptist Church a church without Christ as its founder. Surely we can see that the Baptist, as well as the Catholic, church cannot really trace their line unbroken back to the apostles of Christ. Through the years many have attempted to trace their line back to the apostles without success.

c. Is it really necessary to trace the history back in an unbroken line to the apostles to establish that a church today is the Lord’s Church? I think not, for the following reason:

(1) Luke 8:4-16 discusses the parable of the sower. The point of emphasis in the parable is the nature of good seed (i.e., sowing the truth of the gospel in the hearts of mankind) to produce believers in Christ.

Let us notice some facts here about the seed in the parable before we proceed, observe:

(A) The power and characteristics of seed.

1. Seed brings forth after its kind (Gen. 1:11).

2. We may know the seed by its fruit (Matt. 7:20).

3. “Seed” is that which perpetuates all institutions.

(B) What is the seed in the parable of Lk. 8:11? Let us inquire here into this subject in some detail.

1. Do we have the seed in the parable today?

2. Is the seed alive today (cf. Heb. 4:12; 1 Pet. 1:23-25)?

3. What is the soil?

4. Who are the sowers today?

5. Just as the perpetuity of the oak is in the acorn in the physical realm, in the spiritual realm the perpetuity of the church is in the seed (i.e., “The Word of God”).

In the conclusion of this lesson may we suggest that the church revealed in the Bible (i.e., the church of Christ) does exist today and may be found in its local sense in communities all over this great nation and in many foreign countries.

Guardian of Truth XXXII: 10, pp. 297-298
May 19, 1988

By Steve Wolfgang

Footnote Allan Bloom, The Closing of the American Mind.- How Higher Education Has Failed Democracy and Impoverished the Souls of Today’s Students (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1987), pp. 75-77.

Allan Bloom, currently a professor at the University of Chicago, has had a distinguished academic career, teaching also at Yale, the universities of Paris, Tel Aviv, and Toronto. During the 1960’s he was a professor at Cornell, resigning i !1 protest over the capitulation of that school’s administration to campus radicals.

His Closing of the American Mind became an unexpected bestseller, indeed, something of a cultural phenomenon, during 1987. While we do not endorse everything in the book, several passages are well worth reflecting upon.

This is the significance of rock music. I do not suggest that it has any high intellectual sources. But is has risen to its current heights in the education of the young on the ashes of classical music, and in an atmosphere in which there is no intellectual resistance to attempts to tap the rawest passions.

But rock music has one appeal only, a barbaric appeal, to sexual desire – not love, not eros, but sexual desire undeveloped and untutored. It acknowledges the first emanations of children’s emerging sensuality and addresses them seriously, eliciting them and legitimating them, not as little sprouts that must be carefully tended in order to grow into gorgeous flowers, but as the real thing. Rock gives children, on a silver platter, with all the public authority of the entertainment industry, everything their parents always used to tell them they had to wait for until they grew up and would understand later.

Young people know that rock has the beat of sexual intercourse. That is why Ravel’s Bolero is the one piece of classical music that is commonly known and liked by them. In alliance with some real ark and a lot of pseudo-art, an enormous industry cultivates the taste for the orgiastic state of feeling connected with sex, providing a constant flood of fresh material for voracious appetites. Never was there an art form directed so exclusively to children.

Ministering to and according with the arousing and cathartic music, the lyrics celebrate puppy love as well as polymorphous attractions, and fortify them against traditional ridicule and shame. The words implicitly and explicitly describe bodily acts that satisfy sexual desire and treat them as its only natural and routine culmination for children who do not yet have the slightest imagination of love, marriage or family. This has a much more powerful effect than does pornography on youngsters, who have no need to watch others do grossly what they can so easily do themselves. Voyeurism is for old perverts; active sexual relations are for the young. All they need is encouragement.

The inevitable corollary of such sexual interest is rebellion against the parental authority that represses it. Selfishness thus becomes indignation and then transforms itself into morality. The sexual revolution must overthrow all the forces of domination, the enemies of nature and happiness. From love comes hate, masquerading as social reform. A world view is balanced on the sexual fulcrum. What were once unconscious or half-conscious childish resentments become the new Scripture. And then comes the longing for the classless, prejudice-free conflictless, universal society that necessarily results from liberated consciousness – “We are the World,” a pubescent version of Alle Menschen werden Bruder, the fulfillment of which has been inhibited by the political equivalents of Mom and Dad. These are the three great lyrical themes: sex, hate and a smarmy, hypocritical version of brotherly love. Such polluted sources issue in a muddy stream where only monsters can swim. A glance at the videos that project images on the wall of Plato’s cave since MTV took it over suffices to prove this. Hitler’s image recurs frequently enough in exciting contexts to give one pause. Nothing noble, sublime, profound, delicate, tasteful or even decent can find a place in such tableaux. There is room only for the intense, changing, crude and immediate.

Guardian of Truth XXXII: 10, p. 299
May 19, 1988

By Irvin Himmel

This is a question to ponder. Perhaps many people have never thought on it seriously.

Someone may be convinced that he is here quite by accident. He did not result from planned parenthood. He may think of himself as no more than a biological product. Indeed, thousands of people are born as unplanned children, some as unwanted children, and not a few are left to the mercy of society.

Regardless of how we came to be here, the fact is that we are here, and we need to think on why God has granted life. Rather than dwell on the circumstances surrounding birth, whether someone wanted us or not, how we were treated in childhood, and the kind of parents who brought us forth, we need to focus on the true meaning of life.

There is more to our being here than mere physical existence. Man is a biological creature, but of far greater importance, he is made in the image of God (Gen. 1:26,27). Man possesses a soul that is not mortal (Matt. 10:28). While our bodies come from our fleshly parents, the soul or spirit comes from God (Heb. 12:9).

Whether our parents wanted us or not, the heavenly Father wants our lives to be devoted to his service. Whether our parents loved us or not, God loves every one of us. Whether our parents took any interest in us or not, God is very much interested.

It is sad that so many people attempt to measure life by material possessions. Success often is gauged by what one has, not by what he is. Christ said, “. . . A man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth” (Lk. 12:15). Again, he said, “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matt. 16:26) “Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?” (Matt. 6:25).

Why am I here? What is life all about? The “Father of spirits” has not left us to grope in the dark. He has not left us to stumble and wander aimlessly. He has revealed his plan and purpose for us. We need to open the Scriptures and investigate.

Why am I here? Should I cast off all restraint and do whatever affords pleasure? Should I act in a selfish, anti-social manner? Should I deny myself everything that is pleasurable?

The Bible teaches succinctly on this all-important subject.

We are here to glorify God. He sent his son into the world to die for our sins. Through faith in Christ we have access into the grace of God. “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” (1 Cor. 6:20). Each life either brings honor to God or else it brings reproach on his name.

We are here to magnify Christ. “According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death” (Phil. 1:20). Failure to honor the Son is failure to honor the Father who sent him (John 5:23).

We are here to help other people. “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith” (Gal. 6:10). The strong must help the weak (Rom. 15:1). The faithful must carry the gospel to the unenlightened. We are taught to have care and concern one for another.

We are here to prepare for heaven. We are begotten to a living hope through Christ, “to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you” (1 Pet. 1:4). The Son of God left heaven and lived among men in order that we might enter heaven after finishing our brief span on earth. This present life is intended of God to be preparatory for the never-ending life to come.

How dreadful for one to live out his days on this earth with little or no thought of his responsibility and accountability to God. Why am I here? Old and young need to examine this question. The rich and the poor need to think about it. Everyone needs to face up to the purpose of life.

Guardian of Truth XXXII: 10, p. 296
May 19, 1988

By Wayne S. Walker

One of the greatest heroes of all the Bible is Abraham. While he made his share of mistakes, the general trend of his life was that of faithfulness to God and, as a result, he is referred to as the friend of God. In this article, we shall notice a statement made about Abraham in Genesis 15:1-6. This particular event follows a number of things that might have given Abraham occasion to be apprehensive. He had been called to leave the comfort of his homeland to sojourn in a strange country. Because of a famine, he had to dwell for a short time in Egypt where he incurred the wrath of Pharaoh. There was strife between his servants and those of his nephew Lot, so they decided to separate. Afterwards, Lot and his family were taken captive in a battle and it was necessary for Abraham to gather an army, overcome the captors, and rescue Lot.

Verse I tells us, “After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.”‘ God went on to promise Abraham that he would have a child and that his descendants would be more numerous than the stars of heaven. Then it is said of Abraham, “And he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness” (v. 6). Abraham believed in the Lord. He was a man of faith. In fact, we often refer to him as the father of the faithful. Based upon this account, let us examine the faith of Abraham.

I. What is faith? “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Heb. 11: 1). This is not so much a definition of what faith is so much as it is a description of what faith does. The term translated “faith” is defined in Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon as, “Conviction of the truth of anything, belief . . . in the N.T. of a conviction or belief respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, generally with the included idea of trust and holy fervor born of faith and conjoined with it. . . . When it relates to God, [faith] is the conviction that God exists and is the creator and ruler of all things, the provider and bestower of eternal salvation through Christ. . . . In reference to Christ, it denotes a strong and welcome conviction that Jesus is the Messiah, through whom we obtain eternal salvation in the kingdom of God.” The verb form is “used especially of the faith by which a man embraces Jesus, i.e. a conviction, full of joyful trust, that Jesus is the Messiah – the divinely appointed author of eternal salvation in the kingdom of God, conjoined with obedience to Christ.”

The best way to identify what faith is would be to examine its manifestations in the life of Abraham. God had told Abraham, “Get out of your country, from your kindred and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you.” Abraham believed God so strongly that he “departed as the LORD had spoken to him” (Gen. 12:1-4). The Lord said to Abraham, “. . . Every male child among you shall be circumcised.” Abraham’s faith was firm enough that he “. . . took Ishmael his son, all who were born in his house and all who were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very same day, as God had said to him” (Gen. 17:9-26). When Jehovah commanded Abraham, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” Abraham did exactly as he was ordered so that God could say, “For now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me” (Gen. 22:1-2). That was faith!

Notice what the New Testament says about Abraham and his faith. Abraham was justified by faith (Rom. 4:1-3, 1922). The basic meaning of “justify” is “to render righteous or such as he ought to be” (Thayer’s Greek-English). But was Abraham justified by faith only? No, he was also justified by works (Jas. 2:20-24). But is this not a contradiction? How could this possibly be so? “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would afterward receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going” (Heb. 11:8). Abraham was justified by faith when he obeyed God’s word and did the work that God commanded him to do.

II. This brings us to our second point, which is, how do we express our faith? Remember that Abraham obeyed. We must also obey the will of God. “Though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him” (Heb. 5:8-9). Just as it was necessary for Jesus to obey the plan of God so that we might be saved, it is also necessary for us to obey the plan of God so that we might be saved. The only people who are said to receive eternal salvation are those who obey Christ. What about those who do not obey? “. . When the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thess. 1:7-8; emphasis mine, WSW). Obedience is the only way to salvation by faith.

Once we have obeyed and become God’s children, we continue to express our faith by faithfulness in service. “Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord” (Matt. 25:21; emphasis mine, WSW). It is interesting to note that the word rendered “faith” can also be translated “faithfulness,” depending upon the context (Gal. 5:22, cf. KJV and ASV). Jesus told the struggling church at Smyrna, “Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Rev. 2:10).

Another means by which we must express our faith in God is by purity of life. We are not to be conformed to this world but transformed by the renewal of our minds (Rom. 12:1-2). J.B. Phillips explains the command not to be conformed as, “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold” (The New Testament in Modern English). To be transformed means to be changed, hence, to be different. How is this accomplished? “For the grace of God t hat brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works” (Tit. 2:11-14). Let us keep ourselves “unspotted from the world” (Jas. 1:27).

III. Our last point is, what are the results of our faith? Just as Abraham was justified by faith, we too can be justified by faith. “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 5:1). To be justified by faith is equivalent to being saved by faith. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God” (Eph. 2:8). We are not saved by grace only, but by grace through faith. Grace is descriptive of all that God has done for us to make salvation possible. Faith is descriptive of all that man must do in response to God’s grace to receive the salvation offered. And as we have seen in the example of Abraham, this kind of faith definitely includes obedience.

Another result of faith is that it provides for us a source of guidance in this life. “For we walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Cor. 5:7). Does this refer simply to a blind leap in the dark? No. What is the source of our faith? “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom. 10:17). Thus, the source of guidance provided by faith is God’s word. David said, “Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path” (Psa. 119:105). Therefore, to walk by faith means to walk in the truth of the Scriptures (3 Jn. 4). This is how the children of faithful Abraham are to live (Gal. 3:6-9).

A final result of faith is eternal salvation. The apostle Peter describes this salvation as “an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you,” and then goes on to tell his readers that because of what Jesus had done for them and because of their own faith in him they will be “receiving the end of your faith – the salvation of your souls” (1 Pet. 1:39). The world “end” in that passage carries with it the idea of “the final issue or result of a state or process” (W.E. Vine, Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words). The blessed promise of Jesus himself is found in John 3:16. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes [has faith, WSW] in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” Abraham could look forward to this hope by faith (Heb. 11:13-16).

Conclusion

As we close this article, consider the following question. Do you have faith in God like Abraham did? “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” (Heb. 11:6). If you do have faith, what kind of faith is it? Is it a dead, passive faith? Or is it a living, active, obedient faith? “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love” (Gal. 5:6). Examine your life and remember the warning of Hebrews 10:38. “Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draw back, My soul has no pleasure in him.”

Guardian of Truth XXXII: 10, pp. 304-305
May 19, 1988