Truth Magazine

By Donald Willis

The local high school presented the stage production of “Annie” prior to the New Year. My daughter assisted in the production by playing with the orchestra. Like a doting Father, I sat through the entire production thinking the most outstanding part of it was the orchestra performance.

“Annie” was an unwanted child kept in an asylum run by a drinking matriarch whose primary interest was the money she received. “Annie” was a cute young lady who would steal the heart of anyone. Daddy Warbuck would take one of the children from the home into his home for the Christmas holiday, and this year he had “Annie” sent into his home. He fell in love with the child, and wanted to adopt her into his family.

The setting for the program was the years around the Great Depression (I recall those years myself). Life was truly difficult. Income was limited. Stock market almost was not. Everything was gray.

“Annie” introduced the song, “Tomorrow,” in which she assured the adults the sun would come out, and that life would continue. She injected the positive element into a dismal society.

It seems to me that we need these same affirmations of faith in the providence of God, and that all is well with His people upon the earth. It seems that negative thinking produces negative results! Positive thinking produces positive results! God is for His people, He is on their side. He desires to see them successful! Man often will not permit God to assist him in life. Many have lost their dependence upon God.

Christ is that fountain of living water. The source is adequate, the ingestion is refreshing, the adsorption is life giving. One can have confidence in the continuing effect in one’s life.

God is the light with Whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning (Jas. 1:17). God is not an unsteady light, a blinking light; there is no variableness. Man is unsteady, often one cannot depend upon man. But not so with God. We can have confidence in Him. Surely the “sun will come out tomorrow” because of God’s love and reliability.

Get out of the doldrums, step into the glorious light of the assurance of God, and be confident!

Guardian of Truth XXIX: 8, p. 228
April 18, 1985

By Harry L. Lewis

Sometimes it is difficult to determine just who is making the trouble for God’s people. In 1 Kings 18:17-18, we find this statement, “And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel? And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father’s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed Baalim.” In this instance, it would be almost impossible to tell just who was the real trouble maker if we did not know more about the situation than is stated here in these two verses. If you had been an ordinary soldier in Ahab’s army, just who would you have thought the troubler of Israel was that day? Many times the people of God have been accused of causing trouble when, in reality, Satan’s helpers were the real culprits. Sometimes it is even those who do not want to take sides, but just want to stand and do nothing who cause trouble.

Let us take the case of David and Goliath to illustrate how someone might be taken for a trouble maker when in reality he is just doing what must be done (1 Sam. 17). When David came upon the scene, there was peace and quiet on the battle front. Two armies were peering at each other across the valley, but there was no open war – all was quiet. It was kind of like the spiritual battle that God’s people wage day after day with Satan and his helpers. There is an open battle once in a while, but most of the time there are two armies just glowering at each other. Some sort of like it that way. Everybody knows which side that they are on. Everybody knows there is a war, but there doesn’t have to be any open fights so long as some hothead does not show up. Enter David! “Is there not a cause? ‘ ” David said in 1 Samuel 17:29. His brother, Eliab, who we learn in 1 Samuel 16:7 was a fine specimen of a man, talks down to David for butting into this war. Some are happy with an armed truce when winning the battle may cost them personally. Eliab knew that he was not going to risk all to fight an all-out war with the giant, but he felt badly when someone came along who would. He accused David of coming out to see the battle. What battle? There will be no battle so long as Eliab or King Saul, who also was head and shoulders above all in Israel, are depended upon to meet Goliath. Eliab and King Saul try to discourage David in every way they know how, but to no avail. David is a troublemaker and he sees a chance to stir something up. He saw a chance to make a name for himself. He wanted to be known as the brotherhood gunslinger. David became a disturber of the peace, it was all his fault! Eliab was a great peacemaker. He paints a dark picture of David with his few sheep and his foolhardy notions of fighting the giant.

You know, my brethren like the idea of drawing up battle lines against Satan and sin, but they sometimes, like Eliab, get hostile at those who engage the battle. It seems to me anger at the fighter is getting worse instead of better. It seems some of our champions of truth would rather stare at the enemy from a safe distance than go down with sling in hand and look him in the eye. The giant can come out forty days in a row and curse God and His Son, but when some gospel preacher goes out to do battle, the sideline saints have nothing but good things to say for the poor giant who got his head cut off after getting hit with a rock.

I remember some of the debates I have been to: the Hafley-Parnell debate, the Welch-Bayer debate, the ChappelearWelch debate. There were others which I have heard about; the Grider-Totty debate, the Porter-Bogard debate, etc. I have heard backhanded remarks about each of these debates. “Hafley, Welch, Porter and Grider, as well as others, were too harsh,” some are heard to say. If some of these folks had reported what happened to Goliath that day I wonder if they would have said, “That bully with the sling-shot hit the poor man with a big rock, and then wasn’t satisfied, so he went up and actually cut the poor man’s head off while he lay unconscious! ” Yes, I get the impression that some of our champions of right and justice would be in favor of starting a fund for poor defeated giants and take the money out of the church funds to keep it going.

Shame on you David! You trouble maker! You came upon the scene and all was peace. The battle was drawn, and all the champions of Israel were standing tall, but then you came along and made it very plain what the problem was. Some would rather talk about fighting against sin than to do any of the fighting. Not only that, they don’t want anyone else to do it, lest some other might get the reputation of being a real giant killer.

One of the deacons at Plainfield, Indiana made me an elephant chaser when I was located there in 1968. That thing worked very well for I have never had one bit of trouble with elephants since. Some of our giant killers do the same thing. They do fine so long as there are no Goliaths around!

Guardian of Truth XXIX: 8, pp. 227-228
April 18, 1985

By Donald Willis

Contentment is one of the greatest possessions one may have. It is within itself a goal toward which one needs to strive. A truly contented person possesses a balance; the daily pressures and setbacks do not disconcert. One is able to go with the flow of daily activities realizing a Great Hand is directing; therefore, all is well!

One can learn contentment! God even commanded His people too be content. “. . . Be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me” (Heb. 13:5-6). An evidence of repentance, John the Baptist taught, was “…be content with your wages” (Lk. 3:14). Paul instructed, “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high minded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy…” (I Tim. 6:17). Trust God, He will never forsake!

Fulton J. Sheen, in his book, Way To Happiness, states four basic causes of discontentment. The principle cause is egotism or selfishness, which sets the self up as the primary plant around which everyone else must resolve. The second cause is envy, which makes us regard the possessions and talents of others as if they were stolen from us. The third cause is covetousness, or an inordinate desire to have more, in order to compensate for the emptiness of our heart. The fourth cause of discontentment is jealousy and hatred of those who have what we wish for ourselves.

One of the greatest mistakes is to think that contentment comes from something outside us rather than from a quality of the soul. Jesus, in the greatest of all sermons, the Sermon on the Mount, taught that happiness comes from character, and not from things! Anyone can learn that contentment is a human circumstance of life, if the heart is centered in God.

Trying to make a discontented person happy is like trying to fill a sieve with water. However much you pour into it,. it runs out too rapidly for you to catch up. Trust in the Lord!

Guardian of Truth XXIX: 7, p. 210
April 4, 1985

By Vernon Love

“Rev. Moon” is in jail, but the Moonies are not! “Rev. Moon” was found guilty of not paying taxes on interest he received on a bank account in his name. Now he is in jail. The Moonies are still spreading their false doctrine through “love” and are as active as they have ever been, but they have a new way of getting their message to the people.

They claim that when Moon received millions to put in his own personal account to use for his work, and though he received interest on this money, that this was his own religious right and the government should not say a word. Two Moonies admitted to me that if “Rev. Moon” would have put the money in the bank in the name of The Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, or the Unification Church, as it is commonly referred to, and wrote checks on the account, even allowed the account to draw interest, that he would not be in jail. Surely, “Rev. Moon” and all his accountants knew this, as this information is available to all. So, since his disciples knew this, it appears to me that “Rev. Moon” is in jail for a cause. It appears that he does not know the difference between the church and the individual, but I think he went to jail to further his cause.

So, they cry “denial of religious freedom!” Guess who comes to the rescue? Yep, denominational preachers by the thousands! They have formed the “Ad Hoc Committee For Religious Freedom.” This group has been meeting all over the U.S. telling the tale that Uncle Sara is infringing upon religious freedom, and they have brought in others who have gotten into trouble with the government. They met in Tampa and some of us went to hear all the speeches of how religion is doomed here in the U.S. This group is not sparing any expenses, as they go first class. We met in one of Tampa’s finest hotels, and then were fed a very nice lunch. All of this was free; paid for by “Rev. Moon” and his denominational cronies.

Then I received a letter from the “Interdenominational Conferences for Clergy,” which is another one of “Rev. Moon’s” groups. They are inviting the clergy to different resorts to hear what “Rev. Moon” teaches so you can get more insight into the Unification movement. Then they say all non-Unificationists will be allowed to reply. They took 200 clergy to the Bahamas; then they have plans to go to the Hilton Head Island Beach, later to Gatlinburg, Tennessee, then to Mobile, Alabama. They will pay your air fare or travel by car, put you in a very nice room, and let you stay three days with one guest. All free of course; you have to pay for your own liquor, and any other charges you might have. This is costing them a bundle, but they are not showing any signs of slowing down even though “Rev. Moon” is in jail.

The amazing thing to me is that until “Rev. Moon” got into tax trouble, most of the clergy of the U.S. would not be found dead near “Rev. Moon.” Now that they see the U.S. is investigating churches for non-religious activities, they are crying that this a violation of their religious freedom! There were forty different groups which filed briefs in behalf of Moon. The list is made up of the National Council of Churches, American Baptist Churches, Presbyterian Churches of U.S.A., African Methodist Episcopal Churches, Mormons, Catholics, and many non-religious groups and individuals. “Rev. Moon” was able to do with one c rime more than he was able to do as a free man, and his group keeps on growing. Would you believe that there was a black preacher from Texas, who said he was a member of the Church of Christ, who openly supported “Rev. Moon” at the “Ad Hoc Committee For Religious Freedom Rally” in Washington, D.C. held in May, 1984?

Where do they get all their money? They sell flowers, candy, pictures, and anything else they can on street comers all over the U.S. They own property worth millions, and they use their assets to make a profit so they can spread their “false doctrine.” Many of the Moonies are out on the street comers selling so they can make their own living and have time to teach that “Rev. Moon” has been sent to finish the work that Jesus Christ did not accomplish. These Moonies have the will, zeal, and money to go anywhere in the U.S., and no town is off limits. The next time you drive by a vendor on a street comer, you had better ask who he is, because chances are the vendor will be a Moonie. Remember, “Rev. Moon” is in jail, but the Moonies are not!

Guardian of Truth XXIX: 7, p. 213
April 4, 1985