Truth Magazine

By Don Wright

When someone is going to argue something in an attempt to prove a point, it is best if he has some facts to substantiate his claim. A fact is simply a piece of information presented as having objective reality, i.e., it is an actual truth. Some people, however, do not like facts, especially when they are contrary to the position they hold. The old saying, “Don’t confuse me with the facts” is how some people really feel. Nevertheless, facts are important and when it comes to spiritual matters, facing the facts can be a soul saving experience. So, let’s face some facts. 
 
Fact #1: The pleasures of sin last but for a season. It would be naive to say that there is no pleasure in sin. The Devil is no dummy. Well, actually the Devil is a dummy, but he knows enough to realize that unattractive sin is not going to lure too many people to it. In order to catch a fish, you have to have bait that is going to be desirable to the fish. Satan at least knows this much about sin and people. Most sin, therefore, is attractive at first glance. It is pleasurable to the flesh to experience. But the attractiveness of sin wears off soon enough. Its pleasure is transitory. The Hebrew writer wrote, “By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season” (Heb. 11:24-25).  
 
Getting drunk with the boys may be fun at first, but soon the pleasure fades away and the drunkard is left with a hangover. It may be satisfying to the flesh to commit fornication, but the gratification is temporary and the end result is often some kind of disease or unwanted condition (Rom. 1:27). 

Let’s face the facts! There is some delight in sin, but the pleasure is fleeting and the end result of unrepented sin is eternal damnation (Matt. 25:46). 
 
Fact # 2: There is only one church. From man’s perspective a person  can choose the church of his choice. From God’s perspective, however, there is no choice to be made. How can you choose between one? The fact is Jesus did not built a plurality of churches, he built just one. When promising to build the church, Jesus used the singular in referring to the church. He said, “I will build my church” (Matt. 16:18), not churches. In his inspired writing, Paul consistently referenced the fact that there is one church or body wherein Christians can be found (Eph. 4:4; 1 Cor. 12:12-13). Would it be popular to affirm that all the man-made churches in the world today belonged to Christ? Yes! In fact, that is what most of the religious world affirms. But that is contrary to the facts you read about in the Bible. The fact is Jesus built just one church even as he declared he would; and facts do not change just because they are unpopular with the majority.  

Fact # 3: Of those who have reached the age of accountability, only those in the church that Christ built are saved. Where can you find a Christian? There is only one place! You can find a Christian in the church of Christ and nowhere else. Why do I say that? Consider the following facts. In order to be a Christian, one has to obey the gospel of Christ (Rom. 1:16). Those who refuse to obey the gospel are lost (2 Thess. 1:7-9). Paul closes the door on the concept that ignorance is excused by God. Those who know not God are lost and there is no one to blame but themselves. God has revealed his will to mankind in plain fashion. It is not his fault if people refuse to listen to him. Be sure to read Acts 17:30 in regard to ignorance. 

Now what happens to those who do obey the gospel? The Bible answer is that their sins are washed away (Acts 22:16), righteousness (justification from God) is imputed unto them (Rom. 4:5-7), and they enter into fellowship with God. But something else happens too. That person who obeys the gospel is immediately added to the church. Acts 2:47 declares, “And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.” What does the Bible teach about the saved? They are added to the church. What church? We have already faced the fact that there is only one church; therefore, we know what church the saved are added to, don’t we? It is the only church there is which belongs to and was built by Christ. It is the church that wears his name because it belongs to him. The saved are added to the church of Christ. If you are saved, you must, then, be a member of the body of Christ. That’s where you were placed upon your obedience to the gospel. If you are not a member of the church, you are not saved. If you were, you would be a part of the body since that is where God places all of the saved.  
 
What about all the talk among some more liberal brethren of finding Christians in every church (denomination)? It’s error. You cannot find a Christian in any denomination. It may be that a person who has obeyed the gospel has left Christ to follow a human doctrine in a man-made church, but upon doing that, the person ceased to be a follower of Christ. In other words, there may well be many wayward brethren in different denominations, but true Christians can only be found in Christ. The church does not save, but it is made up of all the saved. That is a fact that must be faced.  
 
Fact # 4: Baptism puts one into the church of Christ. Faith only may put one into the Baptist church. Having some water sprinkled on one’s head might make one a member of the church of the Nazarene. Being baptized as an infant might satisfy the Catholic church; but only scriptural baptism puts one into the church of Christ. That baptism is more than an outward sign of an inward grace can be seen by such passages as Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; and Galatians 3:27. For those who may deny the necessity of baptism, it should be observed what baptism does. It washes away sin (Acts 22:16). It is a part of becoming a citizen of the kingdom of God (John 3:3-5). It is the place where God cuts away our sin in a spiritual operation (Col. 2:12). It puts us into Christ (Gal. 3:27). It should be remembered that all spiritual blessings, including salvation, are found in Christ (Eph. 1:3). Since baptism puts one into Christ, one should readily see its importance. 
 
Let’s look at the words “into” and “unto” for just a moment. The prefix un means “not.” For example, we talk of those who are unskilled, undressed, unashamed, etc. The suffix to in the word “unto” describes movement towards something. For example, I might say, “I drove my car to the bank.” “Unto,” then, means moving towards something, but not there yet.  
 
The prefix in indicates entry and reveals location or position. For example, “I was in the bank.” The suffix to in the word “into” describes contact. I might say, “Put your pedal to the metal.” Therefore, “into” means entering in and contacting something. 
 
Now let’s see the application of this. Faith brings us unto righteousness (Rom. 10:10). Repentance brings one unto life (Acts 11:18). Confession is made unto salvation (Rom. 10:10). All of these things (faith, repentance, and confession) are necessary, but they only send us in the right direction. They help one move towards Christ, but they do not put one in Christ. Baptism, being the final step in obeying the gospel, is the thing that puts one into Christ (Gal. 3:27). Don’t just walk up to the door of Christianity, step inside by being buried in the waters of baptism (Rom. 6:3-4). Face the fact! Without being baptized, you are still outside of Christ, not a member of his church, and therefore still living in sin. 

Bible facts are important. They don’t change because of the opinion of man. They do not change with time. The facts that we just looked at are as true today as they were

Yes, it has been nearly forty years. I think back to a Gospel Meeting. The little congregation of twenty-five or thirty souls met in a typical white frame building so common in those days. It was not quite the middle of September, but fall came early that year. There was a nip in the air every evening when we assembled. 

The meeting progressed quite nicely. The attendance began at thirty and the last night there were 92 present. Visitors came from all around. 

There was nothing cutesy or frilly about the sermon topics. Rather, they were a selection of some of the countless, timeless topics of the Bible! Monday night we started out with “Binding and Loosing,” a lesson showing the difference between the Old and New Covenants. (In those days we had never heard of the “One Covenant Theory.) Later in the week we spoke on, “Dangers Facing The Church” and closed the meeting Sunday night with, “What Shall I Do With Jesus?” I suppose the invitation was extended with average enthusiasm as I explained step by step the Gospel plan of salvation. That would have been followed with an earnest exhortation to “respond before it is eternally too late!” When we stood to sing the 92 present joined wholeheartedly in singing the invitation song.

As we were concluding the song, from the body language and facial expressions, I had a strong feeling that some present really had been convicted by the sermon and the song. It was the last service of the meeting and the last song. What was I to do? I alerted the song leader and the audience to be prepared to sing the last verse of the invitation song again. With that, I with great urgency, pled with those who were not Christians to respond while there was “time and opportunity.”

As we sang the verse again, much to the delight of         everyone, five adults from two different towns came forward. And they were baptized the same hour of the night!

That night I learned some great lessons. (1) Never get in a hurry to close a service. (2) Never be reluctant to ask for one more verse of the invitation song if it seems warranted. (3) And, never get in a hurry in extending the invitation! After all, that is what the gospel meeting had been all about. From that time forward, with few exceptions, I go through the plan of salvation very methodically, step by step, at the conclusion of every service. Those who need to be baptized are the ones who likely know the least about the scheme of redemption. Take time to tell them one more time. It may move them. Telling people about God’s plan for saving them has motivated folks for two thousand years!

By James Hahn

While living in the St. Louis area a few years ago I read an article in the local newspaper which stated that the divorce rate in the United States was “leveling off” at the rate of about one in every two marriages ending in divorce. With this kind of “leveling off” we do not have much to be excited about. For many years the number of divorces in this nation has increased. In 1975, for the very first time in history, there were over one million divorces in this nation. That number has increased since then. What is the cause (or causes) for this alarming number of divorces? I do not claim to have all the answers, but I do believe that I have observed certain things that contribute to the many divorces that take place each year.

The very fact that so many are getting divorces is one factor that encourages so many divorces. In years past divorce was frowned upon by nearly everyone in our society. Getting a divorce was an admission of failure and was a shameful thing. I am sorry to say that such is no longer the case. The attitude of “everyone is doing it” seems to prevail. Getting a divorce is now the “in thing” and nothing for which one needs to be ashamed. This should not be the case.

Another problem is the failure of parents to properly teach their children. Paul instructs fathers to bring up their children “in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Eph. 6:4). One has not done this if he fails to teach his children the Lord’s will pertaining to the marriage relationship. God’s will is very plain. When a man and woman are married, they have made a life-long commitment to one another (Rom. 7:2, 3). Parents, we need to teach our children from the time they are able to be taught that when they reach the age when they will be selecting a marriage companion they must consider this a relationship which will exist so long as they both shall live. To fail in teaching this truth is to fail in providing proper teaching for our children.
This failure in teaching is a contributing factor in another cause of divorce. Many young people enter into marriage with the attitude of mind that if things do not work out as they would desire they can always get a divorce. Young people (and old ones as well) need to understand that when difficulties and problems arise (and they surely will) divorce is not an option they have and must never be considered as a solution to their problems.

Selfishness is another cause of divorce. Paul instructed husbands to “love their wives as their own bodies” (Eph. 5:28). A failure to show such love will lead to problems and heartaches. I have known men who thought of no one but themselves. They would spend all their “free” time doing only the things they enjoyed doing. They would spend large sums of money on themselves and on things they wanted, but would never consider doing the same for their wives. As long as husbands or wives continue to think only of themselves and their own selfish desires we will continue to see these marriages ending in divorce.

Several years ago I had the opportunity to talk to a judge that had presided over many divorce cases. I asked him what he thought was the number one cause of divorce. I was somewhat surprised at his answer. He told me that the number one cause of divorce, in his opinion, was the interference of in-laws. He noted that, even when other problems were given as the cause of the divorce, investigation would show that these problems had often come about as a result of either his or her parents interfering in the marriage. Whether you agree with this judge about this being the number one cause or not, you must admit that this is a problem in many marriages. God said that “a man shall leave his father and mother, and shall cleave unto his wife” (Gen. 2:24). This applies to the woman as well. So many young people are not willing to leave father and mother. They fail to realize that their first responsibility (as far as human relationships are concerned) is now to their husband or wife. They need to let their mate know this in word and in action. To fail to do so is to invite disaster.

However, not all of the problem lies with young people unwilling to leave father and mother. Many parents are unwilling to let them leave. Many fathers just cannot accept the fact that someone else now has the responsibility of providing for his “little girl” and many mothers feel that they must tell that daughter-in-law how her “little boy” must be cared for. Parents, we need to teach our children to obey God’s will and this means that we need to teach them to “leave father and mother and to cleave” to their husband or wife. I have seen parents interfere in their children’s marriages and then when divorce finally comes they are ready to say, “See, I told you he (or she) was not good for you.” What they never admit is that if they had not interfered their son or daughter could have had a very happy and long-lasting marriage.

Of course, in all of these causes we see a failure to respect God and his will. This we must do if the divorce problem is to be eliminated. To follow his will is to insure happiness here and a home in heaven in the hereafter.

1212 Melaine Ct., Lawrenceburg, Kentucky 40342-1724

By Larry Ray Hafley

Error and its advocates seek shelter from attacks of truth. Numberless ways have been manufactured to protect the practice and practitioners of error. In the last decade or so of the last century, we had Romans 14 thrust in our faces as a shield. “You can’t chasten me; you can’t challenge my doctrines, for they fall under Romans 14.” This was an old ruse which worked its leaven on the simple and ensnared the gullible (Rom. 16:17, 18).

Another umbrella for error has been opened. It is the cry of “church autonomy.” It is ever so effective, for it is used against those who are, because of the institutional conflict, super-sensitive to anything that would violate the self governing status of a local church! We have fought too hard and labored too long to transgress the principle which many struggled to maintain. 

This tactic is not a new one. (That is one thing about error. Its proponents are not original. They add a few new words to their song, but it is always the same old tune.) From an article by J.W. McGarvey, first published in 1864, we extract the following strategy (Brother McGarvey was addressing the issue of “Instrumental Music In Churches.” He tells how some instrumental innovators were seeking to avoid having their practice questioned.):

But more recently, congregations have been found who are almost, if not unanimous in favor of instruments, and upon the principle of church independence they have assumed the right to make use of them without regard to the wishes of other congregations. 

Note the excuse, the justifying qualification, “upon the principle of congregational independence.” In other words, “Since we are all independent churches, none may justly protest our pianos or oppose our organs.” Change “independence” to “autonomy,” and we have the same thread- bare argument in modern garb. Then, as now, it is argued that congregations may avoid opposition to their innovations by appealing to “the principle of congregational (autonomy).” 

Regarding the use of man-made instruments in worship, brother McGarvey acknowledged, “If the practice is in itself innocent, then these congregations act upon a correct principle and others have no right to interfere or complain.” However, as he correctly observed, if the question is not one of congregational judgment but of scriptural authority, then, said he, “We must discuss it upon its merits . . . renew the original investigation, lay aside all feeling pro and con, and start anew the inquiry: Ought we to make use of musical instruments in public worship?”

Some Modern Examples

Let us use other items of work and worship to God and apply them to the problem and principle cited by McGarvey. 

1. “But more recently, congregations have been found who are almost, if not altogether, unanimous in favor of a monthly or weekday communion, and upon the principle of church independence they have assumed the right to practice it without regard to the scriptural objections of others.” Will that work? Does congregational autonomy allow a church the freedom to break bread upon the first day of the month (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 11:2, 23; Phil. 3:16, 17; 4:9)? 
2. “But more recently, congregations have been found who are almost, if not altogether, unanimous in favor of fund raising sales and suppers, and upon the principle of congregational independence they have assumed the right to make use of them without regard to the scriptural objections of others.” Is congregational autonomy a sufficient smokescreen for pancake breakfasts, pie suppers, and rummage sales (1 Cor. 4:6, 17; 7:17; 11:2; 16:1-3; 2 Thess. 3:4)? 
3. “But more recently, congregations have been found who are almost, if not altogether, unanimous in favor of women leading the church in prayers and public preaching and teaching over the man, and upon the principle of congregational independence they have assumed the right to make use of them without regard to the scriptural objections of others.” Does the autonomy of each local church permit it to appoint women to act contrary to Scripture (1 Cor. 14:34, 35; 1 Tim. 2:11, 12)?   
4. “But more recently, congregations have been found who are almost, if not altogether, unanimous in favor of building cafeterias and physical fitness centers, and upon the principle of congregational independence they have assumed the right to make use of them without regard to the scriptural objections of others.” Will any argue that a church’s self governing status gives it the right to build such facilities for the social and recreational pursuits of its members (Eph. 4:11-16)? 
5. “But more recently, congregations have been found who are almost, if not altogether, unanimous in favor of observing Christmas and Easter (some, like Rubel Shelly and Max Lucado, do so in cooperation with denominational churches), and upon the principle of congregational independence they have assumed the right to observe them without regard to the scriptural objections of others.” Does a congregation’s independence free it from the injunction of the word of Christ on the incorporation of human traditions in worship (Matt. 15:8, 9; Col. 2:8; 2 John 9)? 
6. “But more recently, congregations have been found who are almost, if not altogether, unanimous in favor of giving “the right hands of fellowship” to those whose teaching encourages people to continue in adulterous marriages, and upon the principle of congregational independence they have assumed the right to make use of them without regard to the scriptural objections of others.” Does a local church have the sovereignty to allow “that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce my servants to commit fornication” (Rev. 2:20)? 

Was brother McGarvey wrong when he denied independent churches the right to decide what they would do with respect to the use of mechanical instruments of music in worship?  Brethren, if congregational autonomy forbids one of the above scenarios, it prohibits them all. If it tolerates one, it authorizes them all. They stand or fall together. 

4626 Osage, Baytown, Texas 77521