Truth Magazine

By Mike Willis

Recently I visited a couple who had quit attending worship services. Problems at home had overwhelmed them. In this particular case, problems generally had that effect on them. When things in their life seemed bright and cheery, they were present at the worship services; however, when the clouds of life appeared on the horizon, the infrequency of worship was in direct proportion to the ominous nature of the clouds. Theirs is not a unique case.

There are a good many saints who decide to quit worshiping God when problems face them in life. Some blame God for their problems; others place blame on everybody except themselves. They think that the elders, deacons, preachers, and other faithful saints have never experienced problems as great as theirs. Consequently, no one can understand their problems or sympathize with them; most importantly, no one should condemn them for not worshiping regularly because they do not know how bad life is for them. I have heard this story enough times to know that this attitude toward life’s problems affects a good many of us.

Studying the lives of some of God’s great saints is extremely helpful in learning how to cope with life’s problems. One such example of that is the manner in which David handled his problems. On one occasion, he wrote,

Hear my cry, O God;

Attend unto my prayer.

From the end of the earth will I cry unto Thee, when my heart is overwhelmed:

Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

For thou hast been a shelter for me,

And a strong tower from the enemy.

I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever:

I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah (Psa. 61:1-4).

What a difference in David’s attitude and that of those who, in the face of troubles, decide to quit worshiping God.

David’s Problem

This psalm does not explicitly relate what particular problem David was facing. He faced many during his lifetime, most of which were greater than any I have faced. The problem was bad enough that he called his prayer to God a “cry” to God. He offered his prayer “from the end of the earth.”

In trying to learn the physical circumstances from which David cried to God, a good bit of attention has been given to the phrase “from the end of the earth.”

We know that the center of the affections and devotions of the pious Israelite was the “holy city, Jerusalem; whither the tribes went up, even the tribes of the Lord, to testify unto Israel, and to give thanks unto the name of the Lord.” The country of which this city was the capital, was to the Jew the world; it was the world within the world; the earth within the earth; the whole globe beside was to him a waste, a place out of the world; an extraterrestrial territory, beyond the limits set up by the Lord Almighty. This in Holy Writ what is called the world, or the earth, frequently signifieth only that part thereof which was the heritage of the chosen people . . . . “The end of the earth,” then, as referred to the psalmist, would signify any place of bodily absence from the temple where the Deity had taken up his special abode, or any place whence his spiritual affections were unable to reach that temple (Alfred Bowen Evans as quoted by C.H. Spurgeon, Treasury q/’David, Vol. 111, p. 108).

Assuming that Evans is correct in understanding “the end of the earth” to removal from the location of the Tabernacle, this psalm was probably written during the period of Absalom’s rebellion; however, it could also be referring to any of the period when David was hounded by Saul.

Whichever it might refer to, David surely faced problems as great as or greater than those faced by most of us. Frankly, I have never had anyone chasing me to kill me; I have never been forcefully removed from the assembly of God’s people. As a matter of fact, when compared to the lives of Job and David, my life has been relatively free from problems; most of us would have to say the same in comparison to these two persevering saints.

David’s Method of Handling Problems

The particular thing of interest to the saints of God should be what is the correct manner to handle one’s problems in life. There are times when a person gets into a situation which he can only endure. Some of us are running to psychiatrists for pills to enable us to cope with life’s problems. That is not the way David handled his problems; here is how he handled them:

1. He prayed to God. His heart was overwhelmed (Psa. 61:2). He cried to God. The Father in heaven has a heart and is open toward his children. Like our earthly fathers, He is touched by our tears. Describing Jesus’ agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, the writer of Hebrews said, “. . .who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared” (Heb. 5:7).

Though we sometimes do not think about it, tribulations sometimes drive us to God. They draw us closer to God. Faith’s greatest triumphs are achieved in her heaviest trials. Consequently, James wrote, “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing” (1:2-4). Pouring out of our heart’s desires to God is pleasing to God. The person who understands the nature of God should realize that there is more to be gained in laying his problems on God than in taking some kind of pill to numb us!

2. David expected help from God. He cried to God because he had found that, in the past, “thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy” (Psa. 61:3). Perhaps your experiences in faith have been so limited that you cannot say that you have personally found God to be a shelter and a strong tower in the past. If so, please consider how God has helped His people in the past. God was with David on repeated occasions, delivering him from a lion and a bear, from Goliath the Philistine, from Saul’s spear and his army, from the Philistine king Achish, and from others. Hence, when David faced this new trial, he would turn to Him who had delivered him in the past.

God delivered Daniel from the lion’s den, the three Hebrew children from the fiery furnace, Hezekiah from the invasion of Sennacherib, Peter from Herod’s attempt to kill him, and He can deliver us from our problems. There is no problem so great that God cannot deliver me from it. If He could deliver Jonah from the belly of the great fish, He can deliver me from any of my problems.

Sometimes, however, God does not deliver us from our problems. In such cases, God gives us the strength to endure them. When Paul prayed to God for help in removing his “thorn in the flesh,” the Lord replies, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9). Consequently, Paul wrote, “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore, I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Cor. 12:9-10). Frankly, I have more admiration for this approach to life’s problems than that offered by pagan sources.

David’s Concept of God

1. The rock that is higher than I. The comparison of God to a Rock which is higher than the author is probably to be taken from the manner in which a high rock stands out of in rising tides. As David saw himself sinking in the problems of life, he called for help from God who was the Rock that is higher than himself. Help must not be a mere rock; it had to be a rock higher than himself. For the king of Israel to refer to help from someone higher than himself, he can only be referring to Deity. “The rock that is higher than he, must be higher than any man; for David was a mighty monarch” (Ibid., p. 110). David, therefore, looked upon his God as a rock which could save him from any tide of troubles which tended to engulf him.

2. The shelter. David said, “Thou hast been a shelter for me.” God was the shelter from the storms of life. Whenever a man is caught in a storm, he looks for a shelter; when David was caught in the storms of life, he fled to his God as a shelter to protect him from the storm.

3. A strong tower. He added that his God was “a strong tower from the enemy.” David had seen his God protect him from his enemies so frequently that he compared Him to a strong tower built around a wall of a city. A strong tower was a place of great protection from which soldiers could drive invading troops from the wall of the city. God was David’s strong tower; He protected him from the enemy.

David’s Trust In God

Because of the these concepts toward God, David said, “I will trust in the covert of thy wings” (Psa. 61:4). Even as baby chicks flee to the hen with her wings spread out for protection, so David fled to the cover of God’s wings for .help in time of trouble. Faith in God involves this trusting relationship with God: one does not trust God only in times of peace and prosperity; he especially trusts Him in bad times. One might be inclined to think that he could conduct his own affairs in periods of peace and prosperity; however, even the most foolish of us recognize his need for divine grace during trials.

The man who never walks with God through good times will not likely find the strength he needs from God in troublesome times. The troublesome times test a relationship at best. We need to walk with God day by day in order to find the strength to make it through difficult periods of our life.

We still sing this psalm of David regarding our need to learn to trust in God. Our modern songwriters have written it as follows:

O, sometimes the shadows are deep,

And rough seems the path to the goal;

And sorrows, sometimes how they sweep

Like tempests down over the soul.

O, sometimes how long seems the day,

And sometimes how weary my feet;

But toiling in life’s dusty way,

The Rock’s blessed shadow, how sweet!

O, near to the rock let me keep,

If blessings or sorrows prevail;

Or climbing the mountain way steep,

Or walking the shadowy vale.

O, then, to the Rock let me fly,

To the Rock that is higher than I;

O, then, to the Rock let me fly,

To the Rock that is higher than I.

– Wm. G. Fischer

Let us grow in faith to practice that about which we sing!

Let us find our strength to endure the storm in God. The relatively little which other sources can give should drive us to God. Only through faith in God can we look forward to the future. Present times look ominous at best. Rather than worrying about what the future holds, let us flee to Him who holds the future!

Truth Magazine XXIV: 16, pp. 259-261
April 17, 1980

By Don R. Hastings

There were many times in the life of Abraham when his faith was put to the test. However, these trials were relatively easy when compared with the severity and difficulty of this supreme test of Abraham’s great faith. I am amazed .and astonished at the degree of faith which Abraham possessed in God. We ought to be ashamed of ourselves at how easily our faith falters under our light afflictions.

What would you have done had you been in Abraham’s place? Would your faith cause you to act in complete accord with God’s will? As Christians, we are “Abraham’s seed, heirs according to the promise” (Gal. 3:29). Let us act like his children by following his example of complete obedience. It is easy to understand why God thought so highly of Abraham. What does he think of us?

God’s Command To Abraham (vv. 1, 2)

The King .lames Version says, “God did tempt Abraham.” God did not try to induce Abraham to sin (James 1:13); Satan is the tempter (Matthew 4:1, 3). We sin when we permit Satan to entice us to do evil (James 1:14, 15). God was proving, or testing, Abraham’s faith (American Standard Version).

God required Abraham to sacrifice that which was very dear to him. Isaac was his only begotten son by Sarah (Gen. 21:3). Ishmael was his son by his handmaid Hagar and they had been driven out (Gen. 21:10-14). Today, God requires us to sacrifice that which is very dear to us – our own selves (Rom. 12:1, 2; Matt. 16:24).

The best we can offer God is ourselves and that involves our: (1) Love, affection, and devotion (Matt. 22:37); (2) Time. He wants the best years of our life, but many want to give Satan the best years of their life and then give God a worn out body and mind; (3) Energy. How much work are you doing for the Lord (1 Cor. 15:58)? (4) Material goods. Many want to give to God what is left over after they have spent money to satisfy their own pleasures. Abraham understood God’s command, and so can we!

Abraham’s Response To God’s Command (vv. 3-6)

He “rose early in the morning.” His first order of business was to do what God had commanded. We would have thought up excuses for delaying. Look how we delay in doing work for the Lord. Look how many arrive tardy out of~habit at the worship services.

He did not seek the advice of others. What others might say about such drastic action did not hinder his obedience. Sometimes, others have trouble understanding us when we put God first. The coach of the all-star team did not understand it at all when I pulled my son out of the important game because it was time to assemble with the saints. In my high school days, my classmates did not understand it at all when I refused to participate in dancing during physical education class.

Abraham did not let the distance to travel interfere with his obedience. Many, today feel as though it is a great burden and expense to get in their cars and travel a few miles to worship0 God. My`, what= sacrifices we make! Abraham did not fuss about the weather, either.

Abraham’s Response To Isaac’s Question (vv. 7, 8)

“God will provide” – what great faith! Isaac said, “Behold, the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt-offering?” The daddy answered his boy, “God will provide . . . .” Right here is where I would have broken down if that was my command to obey, and my boy Ted had asked me such a question. What great faith Abraham possessed! Do we believe that the Lord will provide (Matt. 6:25-34).

Manifested Complete Trust

Abraham manifested his complete trust in God by obeying this command which cost him dearly and made no sense to the human mind. It was through Isaac that the promises God made to Abraham were to be fulfilled (text; Gen. 17:21; 21:12). How could God keep His promise if Isaac was killed? Had not God said that it was wrong to kill (Gen. 9:6)?

The only answer to this problem that Abraham could see was that God would resurrect Isaac (text). What great faith! There is no record of God having resurrected anyone at this time.

“All Things Work Together For Good” When We Obey God (Romans 8:28)

The angel stopped Abraham from slaying his son (vv. 9-12). God provided a ram (vv. 13, 14). Through an angel, God renewed His promises to Abraham (vv. 15-19). If all people would only have the faith to do God’s will in everything, what a wonderful place this world would be to live in, and how much happier we would be!

Abraham proved his faith by works (James 2:21-23). Do you have the faith of Abraham? If you do, you will prove it by your complete obedience to God’s commandments (James 2:26). You will be a faithful Christian.

Abraham would have offered his son, but God stopped him. However, the Father did not stop Himself for offering His only begotten Son for our sins! Will you show your love for His sacrifice by being baptized into His death so His blood can wash away your sins?

Truth Magazine XXIV: 16, p. 258
April 17, 1980

By N. B. Hardeman

Why preach again first principles of the gospel of Christ? I look out over the audience and see silver haired sires along with other brethren that have been knowing the truth for numbers of years, and I wonder if you do not think: “Is he to preach again on faith, repentance, confession, and baptism for the remission of sins? Why, Brother Hardeman, we understand that.” Doubtless a large part of you do; but mark it: There are people attending this meeting now and shall hereafter, who know no more about the gospel today than some of you preachers did twenty-five or thirty years ago. It is just as necessary to show this present generation the distinctive plea of the gospel of Christ as it was for our ears to have been greeted by it in the years gone by. Second, there are people accountable to God today that were not accountable last year, and for that reason let us tell it over and over again. In the third place, there are people interested now who were not, at the last meeting in Nashville. Well, how do 1 know that? By general observation. I know there are experiences and things that come to pass in our lives that make us feel more keenly that we are rushing on down to an open tomb, that make us more conscious of the fact that we are beating funeral marches to the confines of the dead. Some spell of sickness, the burial of some loved one, some tragedy has come so close as to make people recognize the danger, thus prompting them to resolve within themselves: “I expect to become obedient unto the gospel of Christ.” Therefore, preach the first principles. Why? People attending that never have before; some accountable now that were not when the last meeting was held; some by virtue of varied and sundry circumstances interested now who have not hitherto so been (Hardeman’s Tabernacle Sermons Vol. IV, p. 14-15).

Truth Magazine XXIV: 16, p. 257
April 17, 1980

By Leslie Diestelkamp

Paul was a great advocate of salvation by grace and almost all of his writing is saturated with expressions of gratitude for and confidence in God’s grace. Yet Paul was moved by the Holy Spirit to write a warning to all of us to remember that grace does not give license to sinfulness. He said, “that as sin reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto enternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord” and then he added, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we that are dead to sin live any longer therein?” (Rom. 5:21-6:2).

If we have come into Christ through an obedient faith we are freed from past sins and given a precious relationship to God, in Christ, but we are then obligated to continue in righteousness. And we must not assume that because we are in Christ, God will “look the other way” when we sin. There is nothing in the New Testament to suggest that God will overlook any transgression or that He will decline to charge a person with guilt just because that person is a child of God.

Jesus lived a perfect and sinless life for three purposes: (1) To “do the will” of the Father (Jn. 4:34); (2) To set a perfect example for us to follow (1 Cor. 11:1); (3) To provide the only adequate sacrifice for the sins of others (Heb. 4:15; 7:26). But the perfect life of Jesus (which he lived on earth) is not imputed to us – that is, that is not attributed to us or counted for our account. Two verses of scripture need consideration here:

1. In Romans 4:8, Paul wrote, “Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.” Paul was not saying that God would overlook some sins in certain people, but he was teaching that some people’s sins are forgiven and, therefore, will not be held against them (see Rom. 4:7). And, in context, these verses were all teaching that righteousness today is not in keeping the old law but in and through faith in Christ, and that this righteousness is possible for both Jew and Gentile. Either (Jew or Gentile) if he sins is counted a sinner and if he is forgiven he is counted righteous.

2. In Romans 5:10, Paul wrote, “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” Paul is not saying that the sinless life of Jesus will save the Christian today, but he is saying that the Christian is saved today because Jesus is alive – He is now at God’s throne, interceding for us. Because we have a living Savior, we can have security as we “walk in the light” (1 Jn. 1:7) and as we “walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit” (Rom. 8:1).

God’s grace is an expression of His love for sinful man, but God’s very nature is incompatible with sin itself. Therefore, God cannot be reconciled to a sinner, but a sinner can be reconciled to God through the blood of Jesus which was and is a sufficient price, paid in full, to enable God to justify the ungodly when they turn from ungodliness in faith.

Saved By Grace

Every Bible believer must acknowledge that we are saved, if saved at all, by God’s grace. However, there is much confusion as to the process by which we become beneficiaries of that saving race. Actually God’s grace comes to us in a three-fold manner. Perhaps we could simplify by saying that salvation for the alien sinner is accomplished only as a result of three separate, yet related circumstances, as follows:

1. “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (Jn. 3:16). Indeed, God has “set forth” Jesus Christ to be “a propitiation through faith in his blood . . . . for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God” (Rom. 6:25). That is salvation (provided) by grace.

2. “Or despiseth thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance” (Ram. 2:4). A true believer will be moved by the love of God, his supreme sacrifice and the love of Christ, and will respond with sincere submission in repentance and baptism (“They that gladly received the Word were baptized . . . ” — Acts 2:41). This is salvation (motivated) by grace.

3. But when the sinner had obeyed the gospel, he had earned nothing at all. God is not obligated to him even yet. However, under this circumstance and at this point God does pardon the sinner’s guilt. “. . . ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness” (Rom. 6:17, 18). This is salvation (received) by grace.

Conditional Salvation

Thus we see that everything which man cannot accomplish by merit, and that is necessary to our salvation, God has fully supplied by His generous grace. And He has made it sufficient for “whosoever Will” (Rev. 22:17). He is “no respector of persons” (Rom. 2:11).

Yet this abundance of grace does not save all because: (1) Some never know of this grace. “How shall they call on him of whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard?” (Ram. 10:14). (2) Some who hear will not believe and (3) some who believe will not obey.

Peter said, “Save yourselves . . . .” (Acts 2:40). Jesus said, “Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of the Father which is in heaven” (Mt. 7:21). Again Jesus said, “He that believeth and.is baptized shall be saved” (Mk. 16:16).

As far as God’s part in our salvation is concerned, it is altogether, totally, of grace! But as far as man’s part is concerned, salvation is altogether, totally conditional. Salvation for the sinner is obtained by grace and by an obedient faith, and that is not at all contradictory! And the next essay in this series will be regarding “Continuous (Constant) Grace.”

Truth Magazine XXIV: 15, pp. 250-251
April 10, 1980