Truth Magazine

By Frank Jamerson

Introduction:

A. The series of parables (Luke 15) was given to answer the criticism of Jesus for eating with sinners (vv. 1,2).

B. The prodigal (wasteful) son is better known, but the elder son represented the cold-hearted self-righteousness

of the scribes and Pharisees.

Discussion:

A. His departure from home (vv. 11-13).

1. He could not wait until his father died; he must have his part now!

2. Though the father was not obligated to do so, he gave him what he wanted.

3. There must have been a long period of conflict at home. It reached the point that the boy wanted to get away, and the father allowed it.

B. The pleasure in sin.

1. When he gets away from home, he can do as he pleases without being corrected. (He could “enjoy” himself, Heb. 11:24,25.)

2. He wanted to be his own master – independent of restraints of “Where have you been? With whom? What did you do?”

3. That is what sin is! It is rejection of God’s restraints and self-deification (Gen. 3).

4. He was a son in name, but not in heart. The atmosphere had become disagreeable to him, and the further he could get away – the better! (v. 13)

5. Many young people have the same desires today but go where they may, they will never find another mother and father! (The prodigal did not.)

6. The pathos of the story is “a certain man had two sons” – not a king had two servants, Or a master had two slaves. (Sin is not simply disobedience to a master, or treason to a king, but ingratitude toward a Father [cf. 2 Sam. 15:6; 18:29-33; Isa. 1:2].)

C. The Ruin of Sin (vv. 13-17).

1. The waste of sin (v. 13).

a. Waste means “to scatter abroad, is used metaphorically of squandering property, Luke 15:13; 16:1” (W.E. Vine).

b. Think of the waste in drugs, alcohol, illicit sex, stealing, etc. Men of great ability have squandered their opportunities because of sin.

2. The cost of sin (v. 14).

a. It cost him everything he had! There is always a price to be paid (cf. Gal. 6:7; Isa. 59:1-2; Jas. 4:4).

b. Sin begins as a pleasant companion, but ends a terrible task-master.

3. The cruelty of sin (vv. 14b-16).

a. He “began to be in want.” He had never been in that situation.

b. He “joined himself” – indicates he “glued himself” to a citizen of the country who did not want him. The ungodly will help you sin, but they are not interested in sharing your troubles.

c. Prov. 13:15.

4. The insanity of sin (v. 17).

a. He “came to himself” – indicates he was not himself.

b. Rebellion is madness.

D. The Return Home:

1. He resolved (v. 18).

a. As he sat and thought about home, he kept thinking “I can see the end of the tunnel,” or “something will turn up,” but it didn’t. He had the choice between “mother’s cooking” and “hogs’ feed.”

b. His resolution was not: “I’ll wait until I am a little more respectable,” or “I’ll see how my family feels about me.” He went as he was!

2. He returned (v. 20).

a. He made an unreserved confession – not “I’ve been a little wild, but every one sins,” “I just got in the wrong crowd for a while,” but “I have sinned. “

b. His sin was “against heaven” (v. 18), as well as against his family (cf. Psa. 51).

3. He was received (vv. 22-24).

a. As he draws near home, we can better imagine his thoughts than describe them! The place had not changed much, but what a difference in him!

b. Father was not sitting on the front porch of a fenced house with gate locked – waiting to be begged to receive his son. He was looking for him!

c. The feast indicates the joy of a forgiving God over a forgiven man, and the joy of a forgiven man in a forgiving God.

d. The attire was not that of a slave, but a freeman. (The slavish attitude melted in the arms of a loving father.)

Conclusion:

A. The father did not throw his arms around him while he was in the pig pen, nor while he was in the arms of a harlot.

B. The elder brother’s attitude in v. 30 (“you are eating with this sinner”) is nearly the words of verse 2! (He had not learned how to relate to family; yet his father still loved him.)

C. Any life not used in serving God is wasted.

Guardian of Truth XXXI: 14, p. 435
July 16, 1987

By Denver Niemeier

I have learned that God so loved man that he gave his Son and his Son gave his life so that man could be saved from his sins and live eternally with his Master (John 3:16).

I have learned that those who are saved are added to the church that the Son built (Acts 2:47; Matt. 16:18), and that in the church God is glorified (Eph. 3:21).

I have learned that God has provided for man every instruction needed to inform man how to conduct himself as a child of God and a member of the church (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:3). From the divine point of view, the church is perfect, nothing is missing, everything is just as it should be. But, I have learned there are problems among those who are members of the church. These are caused by many things: differences of opinion, lack of understanding, ignorance, bad attitudes, meanness, anger, and lack of consideration, just to name a few. Until these are removed on the part of the humans in the church, the problems won’t cease.

My purpose is to point out some things from what I have learned and experienced in my years of preaching and from serving as an elder that might cause us to be more careful in our association with brethren in Christ.

Improper elders are the cause of many problems. There is a dire shortage of proper elders today. Churches with large numbers cannot (evidently) find men who are qualified to serve or else the men refuse to serve. It is a sad commentary when so few are qualified and willing to serve. Men, who profess to have heaven as their goal, are not willing to press forward and prepare to serve in what Paul said was a good work (1 Tim. 3:1). We have a problem and it certainly is not God’s fault. How can we expect to have that crown of life if we will not get involved as we should as Christians?

I have learned that there are those who do not know how elders get to be elders. Recently, I learned that some years ago there was an elder (?) who, when he became ill, appointed his wife to serve, during his sickness. He died from his illness and his wife carried on until she died. This happened at a church in southern Indiana, the other man who was an elder (?) at that time told me about it.

My first meeting was for a rural church in Barren county Kentucky. One of the men informed me that he was the “acting elders” having been appointed by the “real elder” to serve, while the real elder was away on vacation.

On another occasion as I pulled into the parking lot of a rural church in Pulaski county Kentucky, where I was conducting a weekly Thursday night Bible study, one of the men came over to my car and asked if I had heard the good news about him? My answer was, “No.” He then told me he had been made a “Junior Elder.” I asked what that was, and he replied, “A junior elder is one who is in training to be an elder.”

I have learned that there are those who pay no attention, or are unaware of what the Bible says about elders and their qualifications and work. Many seem to want to stress the physical qualifications and pay little attention to the spiritual.

I have learned that some elders do not want the members to know what is going on. In Acts 26:26, Paul told Agrippa, “For this thing was not done in a corner. ” However, some conduct their oversight as if the best way to do things is in a comer. Years ago a church in Kentucky had elders who reached the decision that it was in the best interest of the church to change preachers. They made this known to the church but, when they were asked their reasons for making that decision, they said they did not want to reveal them. The preacher, not wanting to move, found among the members those who resented the decision and silence of the elders and started working toward the end of his staying and getting rid of the elders. Needless to say, a lot of trouble was the result.

As preachers sometimes have the opinion that elders are “my elders,” some elders at times act as if they think the church is theirs. I have learned that some want to be “boss,” some love pre-eminence, some are poorly prepared and do not have the vision and foresight their responsibilities require.

Before I go on, let me say that there are good, honest, sincere, dedicated, conscientious, sacrificing, properly prepared men who are serving as elders; the same is true of many who are devoting their lives to preaching the gospel. I thank God for them; may their tribe increase. So when I mention these things concerning elders and preachers, I am not down on all.

I have learned that every member of the church does not always act like he should. I have also learned that some who preach along with some who serve as elders will take advantage of the brethren, just as there are brethren who will take advantage of preachers and elders.

I have learned that elders and preachers need to have a clear cut understanding on many things when they enter into a working arrangement together. The same is true when a preacher agrees to work with a church that is without elders. An invitation is issued to a preacher to move and work with a church, the preacher accepts, yet details that involve all of them are not-worked out before the move takes place. Such things as moving expenses, amount of support, vacation weeks, number of meetings the preacher is to be away each year, pay adjustments, etc., need to be discussed and agreed to by all concerned. Many problems occur as the result of misunderstanding on these things.

In my opinion the best way for this to be handled is for it to be put in writing. For example, time passes and the ones who discussed these things with the preacher may no longer be there. Sometimes people forget, but if it is in writing and all involved have a copy, it is very easy to check and see what was agreed to.

A preacher looking for a place to move, learned of a church that was looking for a preacher. He contacted some of the members, went to “try out” and afterward talked with one of the members and was told that they wanted him to move there. When he showed up thinking he was to be preaching there, he found out that the one man he had talked with did not have the approval of the church to ask him to come.

I made a similar mistake some years ago. I agreed to move and work with a new church some 300 miles away. Between the time I accepted the invitation to move and the time of the move, I talked several times with the man who had phoned me and told me the church wanted me to come. We discussed several different things concerning the move and the work to follow. However, when I arrived, ready to start the work, I found out that things I had been assured of over the phone had not been discussed with the rest of the men. I have learned to work these things out before the move takes place.

In 1956 I accepted my first work as a “full-time” preacher. I was with that church over three years and had a good work there. During that time they never mentioned any adjustment in my support, and neither did I. That would not happen again on my part. I have learned better. How many would stay with a secular job that long without a raise?

A young preacher was talking with me some time back about his work with a certain church. He said, “I have been here almost two years and nothing has been said about an adjustment in my support. I don’t know what to do. If I bring it up they just might tell me that if I want more money to go somewhere else.” Again to repeat, work these things out beforehand.

One night after services during a gospel meeting we invited several to our house including the visiting preacher. One of the guests mentioned that the preacher was a “Big Preacher.” I will never forget his reply when he said, “A big preacher is just a little preacher away from home.” How about that?

While on that thought, there is something else I have learned. A church will bring in a visiting preacher to hold a meeting, sometimes lasting a week, or in many cases today, even less than a week. The visiting preacher will be supported (paid) far and above the amount that same church will pay the local preacher for the same period of time. Surely the travel expenses of the visiting preacher need to be taken care of in addition to his support, but to pay one man such an excess is unfair to the local man?

I also have learned that some have the idea that a preacher going to preach in a meeting is going to get rich. This leads some to want to decrease or even stop his support at home during that time. Too many times what he gets for that meeting is not equal to the support loss at home.

I once drove 500 miles during a meeting and was given a sack of potatoes and $15.00. Even then the brother who gave me my “gas money” as he called it, acted as if he did not want any one to notice that he was doing so. I have learned that brethren are not thoughtful at times concerning preachers and support.

I have learned that preachers are expected to be ready to go whenever called upon. Day or night, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year be ready. Have the car in shape to run, gas in the tank, money in the pocket or bank to take care of any expense that might be involved. Any preacher worth his salt will go when called if at all possible. However some of these occasions put him to extra travel and expense. Whenever this happens, those who have called for him need to give consideration to that added cost.

I think of an occasion when I was called to speak at the burial services of a member of the church who had died in a western state and was being returned home. I had never met the man or his family, the services were to be held at a meeting house some distance from where I lived and where he had worshipped in years past. After the services someone handed me some money and said that the family wanted me to have it. Shortly after that I returned to that area to preach one night. One of the men came to me and started reading me the riot act, about taking money from a poor widow and her children. When I was able to calm him down some, I found out he was talking about the money I was given at the funeral I just mentioned. Did I mention that some brethren will take advantage of preachers?

On three different occasions involving three different churches, three different preachers I know of, went to the brethren at the end of the year or when they were leaving that work and asked for their vacation pay stating that they had not taken the time off for vacation so therefore the church owed them so many weeks support even though they had been paid every week of the time they had been there. Did I mention that some preachers will take advantage of the brethren?

I have learned that some think the preacher and his family are their personal property and are at their beck and call. The first work that I moved to where the church furnished the house for the preacher to live in resulted in learning other things. We had been there less than a week, many things were yet to be unpacked, not all the furniture was in place, well, you know how it is. One member suggests we have a get acquainted pitch-in on that Sunday afternoon in the backyard and that all could use the facilities of the house in getting the food ready etc. No thought was given as to what might be convenient for us. We did not have a pitch-in at that time.

A young couple I know would drop in on the preacher and his family around supper time about once a week and would spend the whole evening without checking first to see if it was suitable with the preacher’s family or not. No consideration was given as to what plans might have been made by the preacher and his family for the evening. When this couple was asked about this they replied, “They live in the house that belongs to the church, and since we are a part of the church that makes the house ours and we can go into our house any time we want.” This reflects the attitude that some have: “We pay him, he and his belong to us. He had better jump whenever he is told.” Again I ask, did I mention that some brethren will take advantage of preachers?

God’s plan calls for elders to oversee – preachers to preach – members to live and work with all as his children. It takes all members, each doing his best for the body of Christ to be built up (Eph. 4:16).

Problems exist because the people in the church fail to be as God would have them to be one to the other. These problems would be done away with if we would all be as God would have us to be.

Now comes the question. Am I helping to do away with these problems or am I helping to create them? Let’s all learn to do better.

Guardian of Truth XXXI: 14, pp. 432-434
July 16, 1987

By Irven Lee

In the very first part of the book of Joshua the Lord gave this capable leader of Israel counsel on how he could have “good success” in his work in bringing the Israelites into their promised land. The Lord promised that He would not fail or forsake him, but He would see to it that Joshua would divide the land unto the people. That was the divine side of the plan. Joshua was to be strong and of good courage; he was to obey the law of God, turning not to the right hand or to the left; and he was to meditate on the law constantly. Joshua did his part, and God kept His promise. There was “good success” (Josh. 21:45; 23:14).

That kind of reverence for God and respect for His law today will make it possible for a happy young couple to have “good success” in the task of home making. Happiness is a by-product of humble obedience to the “law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:2). Open violation of this law brings failure in all precious spiritual endeavors.

Finding a good wife who is faithful and worthy, and having a family of well-trained children, is the greatest find a man can make. This is “good success” (Prov. 18:22; 31:10-31; Psa. 127:3-5). If he has a wonderful home so do his wife and children. If his home is a failure for him, it is a sad experience for his family also. The success or failure of the home affects every member of the family and many more.

Does any one know of anything worse in this life than an ungodly home and the divorce which marks the final crash of the failure? Each day of fife after that brings some of the bitter taste of the failure to keep God’s laws that relate to family life. The aftermath of this spectacle comes to the guilty parties and to the innocent. None escapes the horror. Relatives, the church, and the community suffer also in many such cases. Even the welfare of the nation is harmed many ways by the instability of so many families.

A Divorce To Think About

My telephone rang one day a few decades ago. A woman to whom I sometimes preached called to tell me that her husband had asked for a divorce. There were five young children each only a little younger than the brother or sister just older. They had been living on a very limited budget. It was heart rending just to hear of that husband and father’s request.

I went to the man to try to learn his viewpoint. He did talk. He told about a day when at lunch time he happened to eat at the same table with one of the women who worked at the plant where he worked. They talked and laughed and found it pleasant together. They soon sat down together again, and then it became a habit. One day she asked if he were happily married. He thought about that question and “realized” that he was not. I got in on the story when he was ready to desert his family and live with that woman who ate lunch at his table.

You may use your imagination to tell the story of the future. Was he very happy with the woman that was willing to take him away from his wife and children? Would she be a worthy wife like the woman of Proverbs 31?

What would the future be for the wife who was left with the children? We may suppose that she, too, had at first been a pleasant companion to the one who became her husband and the father of her children. But now things have changed! He would find bills to pay, noise at his house when he came home, and a tired wife to talk with. He decided that he was not happily married. I wonder if he would have recognized happiness if he met it in the road?

That family of nominal church members were not faithful Christians. I could not list her faults and his, but they were, at least, guilty of not being all they should have been. Repenting and removing the faults would have been the way for them to find a happier situation. Violating the marriage law and deserting the wife he had married and deserting his children is not the way to go looking for happiness or heaven. A man who will not provide for the physical and spiritual needs of his own family has denied the faith and is worse than an infidel (1 Tim. 5:8). He and his own wife could have made a much better home.

Think of what may have happened to the children. They would grow up without a father. Each and every child needs a father to bring him up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Children cannot provide for themselves things that cost money. A mother of five young children is in no position to be a bread winner. Those five children, if they still live, are now adults. They were not in those early days taught to be Christians. Do you suppose they are now walking in the steps of Jesus? They did not ask to be born, but their very existence presented a crying need for tender love and care. Each had a soul worth more than the world.

Think of the woman who talked and laughed at the lunch table. Do you think her life has been worth living? She is now old enough for social security if she still lives. Death will soon come to her if it has not already. What then?

Who wins when there are such divorces? Circumstances vary from one divorce to another, but each brings something other than the best. Each is a giant step down toward disappointment for some. A divorce is a legal document obtained by paying court costs, and a copy may be kept as a badge of failure in life’s most important undertaking. Some have trophies for outstanding athletic accomplishment, plaques for special honor for faithful work over a period of years, or for some very heroic deed. Divorce papers are not framed and placed with such trophies.

Are you working at the challenge of being a good marriage companion and a good parent? If not, why not? Will the divorce rate ever come down in a wonderful way in America? The influence of Christ is in that direction, so a great religious awakening would bless our country that is now so much under the influence of immoral atheists. “Awake thou that sleepest” (Eph. 5:14-17; Rom. 13:10-14). Think of how rewarding “good success” in the family would be to all and how serious failure and divorce would be. See that you walk circumspectly.

Guardian of Truth XXXI: 14, p. 436
July 16, 1987

By Mike Baggett

There are few things in life as difficult as swallowing one’s pride. That’s what my wife and I had to do when we learned the error of our ways.

On August 10, 1986, my wife and I discussed our future with the liberal church with which I was preaching. Our decision to leave was based on repeated failure to turn the brethren from the error of their ways, after we ourselves had learned the truth.

In March 1986, 1 began a personal study on my own of issues facing the church. There were many things about the liberal church that I had my doubts about since our fleeing denominationalism and being baptized into the Body of Christ. There were certain things about the liberal church that brought back memories of the Baptist church! After all, I wanted the world to know that Christ’s church is different! But it seemed to me that many of the churches were on a head-on collision course with the denominations!

One of the practices that disturbed me is having social meals in our buildings of worship. We never used the building where I preached for this purpose, but almost all the brethren with whom we had fellowship had built their own dining halls! I was teased when I expressed doubts about spending God’s money for such purposes. Some of their elders and men treat the local church treasury as if it was their own! They have their special jokes about the church treasury, but God’s Word, not man’s, distinguishes the use of this money from that of our own bank accounts! My studies soon revealed this truth. There is no way anyone can defend the building of dinner halls, gyms, or camp houses, using only God’s Word! The church treasury is for the work of the Lord, and not for entertaining the brethren!

Soon I reasoned that if I could be wrong about spending God’s money on one thing, I could very well be wrong about another! I spent hours in my study for weeks on end studying about church supported orphan homes, widow homes, and homes for the aged. And do you know what? I found no authority in the New Testament for the system my brethren had created and sought to defend! With the help, and advice of many conservative brethren, I soon stood firmly against institutionalism! I would not teach the congregation until my wife was convinced. Thank God her heart was open unto the truth. Now I could teach the brethren!

For about two months, I labored with the brethren over the issues. After about six weeks, great opposition sprang up. One brother told me, $6you’re sawing on a limb.” This means you are cutting off your own support. I continued to teach in their homes and from the pulpit the doctrine some called of “Satan” and a perverted “man’s theory.” When the men had a special meeting about my “new doctrine,” I knew we would not last long.

I was out of town when they had the meeting. A good friend, and brother, told me when I got home. We had studied the issues together, and even though he seemed convinced of the truth also, he would not speak in my defense. Neither would another brother who had said, “I’ll stand with you if no one else will.” Now I know how Jesus must have felt being deserted of the eleven. In my last meeting with the men, I experienced what Paul said in 2 Timothy 4:16, “At my first answer no man stood with me, but all men forsook me.” I can also say, as Paul said in v. 17, “Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me.” The men told me again, “Stop teaching your anti doctrine.” They also said, “We don’t won’t to hear about negative things concerning the church; preach on love, good works, or how to live.” I told them I would not stop preaching the issues. My wife and I decided that day to move back to our home town.

With the help of conservative brethren from many congregations we were able to move that week. The letters of love, concern, and support flooded our mailbox! The love of Christ was demonstrated to us when we took our step of faith. I thank God for all the holy brethren we have come to know in the past nine months. We are still very new in the truth. And we look forward to the years we pray to have in continuing to grow, and hopefully teach others the danger of departing from God’s Word. Reader, if you are attending the “mainstream” church, I say this kindly, can you justify with book chapter and verse, “church of Christ” softball teams, dinner halls, camp houses, orphan homes, and church supported colleges?

Guardian of Truth XXXI: 15, p. 457
August 6, 1987