Truth Magazine

By Bob Buchanon

(Editor’s Note: This report has been delayed because brother Buchanon, in his old age, has become forgetful. He thought that he had already mailed it but had not.)

On Monday morning, March 12, our Northwest 747 lifted off the runway of the O’Hare International Airport in Chicago and headed for Manila, a trip that resulted in some completely new experiences for us, some different and deeply formed impressions on our minds, and some new and lasting friendships with Christians in another land.

We arrived in Manila, after a short stop in Tokyo, at 11:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 13, having dropped a day when we crossed the International Date Line going west. In spite of the late hour, we were met at the airport by many of the Filipino brethren, some of whom had come great distances to greet us upon our arrival. Lovely leis of sweet smelling flowers were draped about our necks by some of the young Christians and we were warmly received by many preachers and their families, some of whom we were able to recognize from pictures. They made us feel that our coming was of great importance to them.

We were also met by Levy Maravilla, one of the elders with the Hazelwood Church in St. Louis, a native of the Philippines, but now residing in the United States with his medical profession; Rodi Tan, Dr. Maravilla’s nephew; and Bill Battles, a doctor from Anniston, Alabama, who was just finishing a combined medical and preaching trip in the Philippines. He had been accompanied by Frank Butler, also of Anniston, but who had already returned home because of illness.

An Impossible Task

Some brethren, upon learning of our plans to visit the Philippines, gave us the names of preachers they wanted us “to check up on,” as if we would be in contact with all of the churches and all of the preachers in the Philippines. Many American brethren do not realize the massiveness of these islands. The Republic of the Philippines is a nation made up of about 7,000 islands in the Pacific Ocean, a great number of which are volcanic in origin and very small. Many of them are uninhabited, only 730 are known to be populated. The northern most islands are a little over 300 miles from the mainland of Asia. The population at the present time is estimated to be close to 50 million people. Needless to say, it was impossible to meet all of them.

There are probably more faithful congregations and gospel preachers in the Philippines than in any other foreign nation. There may be as many as 400 preachers in the Philippines who are working on full or part-time basis preaching the gospel, many of Whom are supported in their work by congregations in the United States. The growth of the church there in recent years has been remarkable, and even more remarkable is the fact that the majority of our brethren in the Philippines has resisted and taken a stand against the liberal and institutional trends which have swept so many congregations in the United States and in other countries into apostasy. To go to this nation and work with these people in the propagation of the gospel was a challenging and enjoyable experience. We came back a few pounds lighter and extremely tired, but with a feeling that we were able to accomplish the work we set out to do.

First Impressions

Connie Adams, upon his return from his preaching trip to the Philippines, said: “The first impressions of an American being driven across the city of Manila is hard to describe, ” but little did we know just exactly what this meant. Thousands of colorful jeepneys everywhere, seemingly all car horns blowing at once, the open buses, hawkers trying to sell their goods on every street corner, and the near misses while negotiating traffic provides a breathtaking experience.

Rodi served as our very capable guide while we were in Manila. We were pleased that he was doing the driving instead of one of us. It is very doubtful that any American preacher could get in an automobile and drive from one side of the city to the other and arrive alive. It is difficult to describe what we saw. There are no distinct traffic laws. A driver makes a lane wherever he can squeeze in. What few stop signs or traffic lights you see, they are ignored, and it is a case of who can pull the biggest bluff on the other driver. Speed limits are also either non-existent or ignored by all drivers.

Hospitality

The attitude toward hospitality displayed by Filipinos is unmatched by any we have seen in our country. It is from the heart and will be the very best that the host has. The visitor is always treated as an honored guest. On several occasions we were being fanned by some of the sisters while we were eating. Often, we ate alone with our host while the rest of the family waited until we were through. Even though this made us uncomfortable, we did not object. Several of those that had made trips prior to us explained that they want to do this, to do us honor.

Some of the food and eating customs were different than what we were accustomed to, but we soon learned to adjust. Often, we ate with the only forks they owned while others ate with their fingers. It goes without saying, that we ate some food that we had never tried before – namely, dog! We learned, too, to expect rice at all meals. All of the food we ate did not tempt us to go back for seconds, but we survived. And much of the food was delicious! In the back of our minds, we knew, too, that several of our hosts had gone in debt to provide these meals for us.

Preaching In Manila

We spent one day in a lectureship with the church in Pasay City, a suburb of Manila, where Victorio Tibayan is the preacher. The church assembles in the second floor of a building over a busy street. Due to the street noise, it was necessary to yell. In spite of the noise and the heat, the attention and interest was great. An accurate count of the attendance was not taken, but we met about 30 preachers from Luzon that we would not otherwise have been able to meet. We both preached in the morning service, followed by lunch at a brother’s home which was nearby. In the afternoon session, we both spoke again, and Bill Battles also brought a lesson of the suffering which Jesus endured in His crucifixion, from a doctor’s point of view.

Working In Oriental Mindoro

Early on Saturday morning, Eliseo Sikat, who had attended the lectureship, met us at our hotel to accompany us to the island of Mindoro, where he preaches for two congregations – Aurora with about 45 members and San Luis with 28 members. Rodi and Levy took us in the car from Manila to Batangas, a drive of little over two hours, where we would get on a boat going to Calapan, Mindoro. We were met and warmly greeted by brother Diosdad Menor and his family at the dock. Not knowing exactly (when it comes to keeping a schedule, there is seldom anything done “exactly” in the Philippines) when we would be arriving, they had made two previous trips down to the dock for earlier boat arrivals. The trip to brother Menor’s home in his jeep over a rough and very dusty road was an introduction to what was in store for us during the next four days.

Brother Menor has been a Christian since 1932 and has been preaching most of that time. He has baptized hundreds of people in Mindoro. At 71 years of age, he travels most of the time trying to edify 20-23 congregations in Mindoro and Tablas Island. Every other week, he teaches in preacher’s training class. Brother Menor is a very kind and gentle man, very knowledgeable in the Scriptures, and an excellent preacher. He has a very lovely wife and gracious family, and our visits in their home will be long remembered. Brother Menor has considerable influence in the Philippines among the brethren, and he is highly regarded by his co-workers on Mindoro.

Brother Ricarte Madayag works with Brother Menor in Calapan, where the church meets in the Menor’s home. The church has purchased property in Calapan, but lack the funds to begin constructing a meeting house. Ricky works closely with Brother Menor, filling in for him during his frequent absences, and helping to conduct the training classes. He was converted from the Pentecostal church about five years ago, is a good Bible student, and a very capable and effective preacher. He and his wife accompanied us on our travels in Oriental Mindoro.

We were much impressed with brother Eliseo Sikat, already mentioned as having accompanied us on the boat ride. The Aurora congregation meets in a small bamboo building which was constructed by Eliseo and which adjoins his home. He supported himself for eight years by teaching school so that he could preach. His services are often needed by 4-5 congregations. He has a good knowledge of the Scriptures and considerable ability in preaching. He and his wife also were with us during all of our travels on Mindoro.

Time and space will not allow us to mention each congregation and all of the preachers that we met on Mindoro. We preached for about twelve congregations and met about eighteen preachers. We were pleased to have the opportunity of meeting the family of eighty-three year old Leoncio Adap who was baptized in 1926 by George Benson, the first American to preach on the islands as far as we know.

Our work in Mindoro and our association with the brethren there was all pleasure, in spite of some of the hardships and difficulties we encountered. The churches on Mindoro seemed to be in excellent condition, with a good relationship between them. All the brethren for the different congregations seemed to love and appreciate one another, and were glad to see each other. Because of the difficulties of traveling on Mindoro (there being no paved roads) and the distance between the congregations, they are unable to be with one another as often as they would like. The preachers also manifested respect and appreciation for one another, and we saw not even one hint of the kind of problems between them that we observed in other places. There is not a single church of Christ on either Mindoro or Tablas islands with any liberal tendencies, and there must be more than thirty congregations on the two islands. This is largely due to the work and influence of brother Menor and his faithful co-workers. Becoming acquainted and working with them was a first-class privilege.

Preaching In Mindanao

An early morning flight put us at the airport in Davao City, on the large island of Mindanao, at about 10:15 a.m., where we were again greeted by numerous brethren and welcomed with lovely leis. We were able to meet and preach for about ten different churches while around Davao City. Both of us also spoke on a radio program on consecutive Sundays.

While we were in Davao City our schedule was about the same every day. Between 7:00 and 8:00 a.m., we would be met at the hotel by Ruben Notarte and the others who would accompany us. This meant that they would have to arise as early as 2:00 in the morning to meet us on time, and they were usually very prompt. Leaving the hotel, we would usually ride on jeepneys, motorcycles with sidecars, and/or buses and we would often walk for a long distance to reach our appointed place for the day, with the travel requiring two or three hours one way. We would often pick up other traveling companions along the way. When time permitted, we would have services both in the morning, and in the afternoon following a break for lunch. The services would usually last about three hours, but the brethren, even the children, listened carefully and interestedly all the time.

Prior to making the trip, we had asked brother Nortarte to plan our schedule for us. We were with him for only thirteen days, but he made a very strong impression on us. We came to love him for the kind of man he was, and to appreciate him for the great work he was doing. Ruben was converted from a denomination just a few years ago where he had previously served as a teacher in their seminary, as well as one of their most widely used preachers. He was skillful in three languages and proved to be valuable to us in interpreting our lessons.

For the most part, the people we worked with in and around Davao City are those referred to as the “cultural minorities,” who are thought to be the original inhabitants of the Philippines. In their languages, dress and customs they are somewhat different from other Filipinos, but we found them to be equally friendly, hospitable, and, especially, as sincerely interested in hearing the gospel. In fact, seeing this latter quality demonstrated on an occasion or so provided us with one of the most thrilling experiences of our lives. These people are probably not nearly as advantaged from cultural, economic and educational standpoints as the rest of the people of the Philippines, but they seem to be free of materialistic attitudes and genuinely interested in spiritual and eternal things. They live in the mountainous and rural regions, and depend on the land for their livelihood. Such natural disasters as typhoons and droughts create severe hardships for them. There are about 600 members of the church among these people in about 17 congregations. We enjoyed being with all of the brethren, but there were two instances that will long stand out in our memories.

Some of the brethren in one area had misunderstood what our schedule was to be. They arrived at the appointed place to hear us preach -only to learn that they were three days early. Not having money for transportation to go back home, they waited until we arrived. Three days without a decent place to sleep or food, but we never heard one complaint. One brother remarked, “Many of us would still be hungry even if we went home. We have no food for the body, but we are anxious to be here and get food for the soul. “

The two days we spent in Magsaysay was another one of the most thrilling experiences of our lives. The church there had just erected a new building in which to meet, larger than most of the buildings we saw, with a roof partly of corrugated steel and completed with thatch. Only the front end of the building was closed with a wall of woven palm leaves; the other three sides were open. The “pews” were benches made of 2×4’s, 2×6’s, or bamboo poles. The women sat on the right side of the building with their children and the men sat on the left. Many more stood and sat at the back of the building and on both sides than were seated inside. We tried on several occasions to count how many were present, but kept losing our count. We did at one time get beyond 300, so we estimate there were from 300 to 400. Many of these folks had walked long distances (some as much as 20 miles) to be present. All of them listened very intently and patiently during the long services, and at the end were as friendly and hospitable as anywhere we have ever been.

Completely different from our work with the minorities was the invitation to participate in a lectureship on Thursday night, Friday, and Saturday morning, with the church in Kidapawan. Romulo B. Agduma is the regular preacher for this church. The lectureship was attended by about 65 Filipino preachers and their families from all over the island of Mindanao. Our stay in Kidapawan afforded us the opportunity to meet many of the preachers of Mindanao, some from as far away as the Zamboanga provinces, and to get a feel for the work they were doing.

We both felt the need, in our lessons Friday, to deal pointedly with some problems that had come to our attention while we had been in the area. We condemned attitudes of jealousy, bitterness, and party-spirits. It was also necessary for us to strongly oppose a lecture delivered by one of the young preachers in which he made the appeal to go hunting for one deer instead of many fish. His parallel was that it was better to convert one rich person in the city than several poor people among the minorities. We were gratified to see that many of the Filipino preachers wanted to state their opposition, too. One mature preacher accused the younger preacher of “reading too many denominational books. ” Most brethren saw the absurd and denominational proposals in the lecture.

While in Kidapawan, we stayed in the home of brother R.B. Agduma. He has, for about 20 years or better, been opposing the practices of the liberals in the islands. He attended the liberal school at Baguio City and was once identified with them. For a long time he published a paper called the Gospel Preacher, but has stopped it due to a lack of funds. Romulo has had undue pressure put upon him from many of the native preachers by their constant requests for help – both in their spiritual needs and their financial needs.

It is doubtful that even the Agdumas know how many they accommodated in their home during the lectureship. We were given the privacy of their daughter’s room. The rest of the house was almost wall-to-wall sleepers. Brethren slept on the floor, on the kitchen table, on the couch, on the stairs, and anywhere else they could find to lay their head. Sister Agduma, along with her daughters and various ladies from the church, worked many hours in providing the meals.

Following the lectureship, we preached one day in Digos and spent one day in visiting several preachers and brethren. On Wednesday, we flew back to Manila for a couple days rest, hot baths, and washing clothes before starting our last leg of our trip.

North Luzon

We were joined in Manila by Andrew Gawe, preacher for the church in Baguio City, who accompanied us on our travels up the Cagayan Valley and to Aparri. The Isabela province was about 175 miles north of Manila. We were met at the airport by several preachers and left immediately for our preaching appointments.

During Saturday afternoon a lectureship was scheduled in the outdoor pavilion of the hotel where we were staying, which was attended by about twenty preachers and some of their wives from that area. We spoke on two controversial subjects – the head-covering for women during worship and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Some contention had been created on these subjects within a couple of congregations. On the whole, we felt the afternoon was spent in a very worthwhile study.

We were able to visit with numerous congregations in North Luzon. Services often lasted four hours. It was a joy -to meet the various preachers and learn of the work being done in each of these places. During one service, a very little, ninety-year-old Filipino woman responded to the invitation at the end of the service. We can still vividly recall how happy she seemed to have been.

We were originally scheduled to spend two or three days at Santa Ana and Lubak at the northern-most point on Luzon, near Aparri. No American preacher had ever gone to this region before, and we were looking forward to working with Brother Jeremias Salcedo. However, communications between this area and everywhere else are very poor and the transportation was coming to a halt due to the holidays. In fact, because of the “Easter” holiday, all flights for the whole weekend had been cancelled, which posed a problem for us. We were told that there were no hotels or restaurants in Santa Ana, which was several hours away by jeepney (and Lubak was even further by boat), and there would be no return trip to Aparri that day if we were to go there. Reluctantly, because we hated to disappoint Brother Salcedo, we decided that we had little choice but to return to Manila. Lord willing, if we ever return to the Philippines, we will visit in that area.

Our last preaching day was in Baguio City, the summer capital of the Philippines, and a beautiful city located high in the mountains. The five-hour bus ride over the narrow, steep and winding road provided some breath-taking scenery. The Baguio congregation seems to be in excellent condition. They have a very nice rented place in which to meet and Andrew Gawe is a good man to be working with them. We would have enjoyed being with them longer.

On our return trip back to Manila, we stopped in Urdaneta for a short visit with the brethren at this place. We were unable, due to lack of time, to preach for these brethren, but we wanted them to know our love and appreciation for all the good things they are doing for the Lord’s cause. We then stopped in Angeles City, the location of Clark Air Force Base, to visit with the preacher and his wife. Brother Castorio Gamit continues to labor for the kingdom there.

Memories

The trip leaves us with many pleasant, edifying and motivating memories. The friendships we made with so many Filipino Christians-will last a life-time, whether we are ever privileged to see them again in this life or not. It is difficult for us to objectively assess the results of the trip, but the brethren we worked with assured us that our efforts were helpful to them in the different places where we went. Altogether, eighty-nine persons obeyed the gospel as a result of the services in which we preached; how many of these would have obeyed the gospel had we not gone there, we have no way of knowing.

Probably the greatest beneficiaries of the trip was Bob and Ben – it helped and inspired us in so many ways and gave us an insight into the lives, work, and faith of Christians in another land that we had never had before. To see people so interested in and responsive to the preaching of the gospel, in contrast to the general indifference we often experience on the part of most people in this country, was refreshing and thrilling. To see the love, sacrificing, dedication, faithfulness and zeal of so many of the Filipino Christians in circumstances that we would consider very difficult, was rewarding and motivating. The brethren in the Philippines could teach us many lessons that would be worthwhile for us to learn if we had such an opportunity.

Personal Observations And Remarks

1. The cost of living is higher in some areas of the Philippines than in others. Some preachers are receiving more than they deserve; others are under-paid. Inflation is hitting the brethren hard – especially with the higher rates being charged for transportation. Congregations which are presently helping to support men there should take this into consideration. There are a number of worthy men in need of support. If you know of an interested individual or congregation that would desire to do so, please have them to contact us. We can supply some names and addresses. We do not know of a more fruitful field of the gospel today than the Philippines.

2. We share the sentiments of some of the previous American visitors in saying we do not see the need for an American preacher to go there and stay. There are many capable men among the native Filipinos, men well able to teach and train other gospel preachers and capable of defending the truth in honorable debate on any issue. We can see many advantages, however, of preachers going from time to time and conducting extensive Bible studies on various subjects.

3. We were able to keep our expenses lower than many of the previous preachers due to attempts of “trying it on our own” on several occasions. We did not see the need of paying the extra expenses of plane fares, hotels, and meals in order to have a Filipino with us at all times. We had brethren to escort us to the airport in one city with brethren ready to meet us at our destination. This saved much money.

4. Song books, Bibles, communion sets, tracts, class materials, etc. are needed in many areas. The very ablest and most experienced of the Filipino preachers have limited libraries. Through the influence of many preachers (Roy Cogdill, Cecil Willis, Connie Adams, and others), several brethren have sent study helps to some of the Filipino preachers. Many others, however, are limited to maybe a concordance. We will be happy to put you in touch with a Filipino preacher who would love to receive study aids from you.

5. It was not at all uncommon to speak with a Filipino preacher who had been supported by an American church for five or six years, only to learn that he had received no communication from them during these years. The preacher is in need of the monthly check as his support, but many of them are so longing for a letter of concern and encouragement and a reminder that “we remember you in our prayers and are thinking of you on this side of the globe.” What about it, brethren? When is the last time you wrote?

Truth Magazine XXIV: 5, pp. 86-90
January 31, 1980

By Mike Willis

Through the years, those who have been associated with Truth Magazine have changed. I am the third editor of the paper and certainly our staff of writers is not the same as in the initial issue of the paper. Furthermore, our readers have changed; we are certainly not writing to the same audience we wrote to twenty-four years ago (as a matter of fact, I was only eight years old at that time). Consequently, a statement of our aims and purposes would be most helpful to those who are interested in helping increase our circulation through putting this paper into the hands of those who might benefit from its teaching.

A Weekly Subscription Periodical

Truth Magazine is a sixteen-page weekly periodical which is published by Cogdill Foundation. It is the only weekly periodical circulating among conservative brethren. There is only one other weekly periodical published among brethren (Firm Foundation which circulates among liberal brethren). We, however, are the only weekly periodical which stands opposed to church sponsored recreation, church support of human institutions, and the sponsoring church arrangement.

As a subscription journal, this fact needs to be kept in mind. When some people see that our price is $10.00 per year in comparison with $7.00 per year for Searching the Scriptures, $6.00 per year for Preceptor, $7.00 per year for Gospel Anchor, $7.00 per year for Gospel Guardian and $9.50 (!) per year for Vanguard, they forget that all of these subscription journals are monthlies whereas we are a weekly. Hence, by comparison, Truth Magazine continues to be the best bargain among religious periodicals circulated among conservative brethren.

An Uncompromising Commitment To Truth

Truth Magazine is a gospel paper which has an uncompromising commitment to truth. We intend to stand for the truth and make our stance known so clearly that no one will wonder where and why we stand. Brethren will not have to wonder what we believe about any subject, inasmuch as we shall be delighted to give an unambiguous answer through our pages.

Historically, Truth Magazine has been known for its stand for the truth. Under its former editors, Cecil Willis and Bryan Vinson, Jr., Truth Magazine has been known for its unflinching stand in opposition to church support of benevolent societies, the sponsoring church arrangement, church support of recreation, church support of colleges, and, more recently, the grace-unity apostasy. Its pages have been filled with instruction on these topics inasmuch as Truth Magazine was originally started to provide a medium for the discussion of problems within the churches of Christ.

If there has been one criticism of the paper which has had any legitimacy, it would be criticism that Truth Magazine is militant (indeed, too militant for some). For this, we make no apologies. We intend to always be militant against sin of any kind. We intend to expose the men who are espousing views which stand in direct conflict with God’s word in order that brethren might be aware of who they are, what they are teaching, and what is wrong with it.

To protect all of us from one man’s opinion, Truth Magazine maintains an open format in which issues might be discussed. Truth Magazine will publish both sides of an issue in order that brethren might decide what is right and wrong for themselves as they study from the word of God. We have no interest in seeing anyone else or to become ourselves the official spokesman for what those in the churches of Christ must believe. Therefore, we shall speak what we think is the truth of God’s word, but we shall offer those with whom we disagree the opportunity of public response. In this way, Truth Magazine maintains its commitment to truth.

A Good Staff of Writers

Truth Magazine is a paper which has an excellent staff of writers. The names of the men who comprise our writing staff are easily identified by those who do much reading of material written by Christians. Here are the names of our writing staff:

Donald P. Ames

O.C. Birdwell

Bill Cavender

Roy Cogdill

Karl Diestelkamp

Johnie Edwards

Larry Hafley

Ron Halbrook

Irvin Himmel

Daniel H. King

Irven Lee

John McCort

Earl Robertson

Keith Sharp

Jimmy Tuten

Steve Wolfgang

In addition to this fine staff of writers, the following brethren also contributed articles for publication in 1979: Weldon Warnock, Leonard Tyler, Dudley Ross Spears, Tom O’Neal, Marshall Patton, Bob Buchanon, Leslie Diestelkamp, Norman Fultz, David Harrell, Hoyt H. Houchen, and many others

One can see from this list of names that Truth Magazine is not the work of one man; it represents the collective labors of many different brethren. I appreciate the many men who have taken the time to study the word of God on some particular subject, write it, and submit it for publication in Truth Magazine. I am thankful for the caliber of writers who send in material for publication.

A Channel For News

Truth Magazine is also a channel for news. In our Quips and Quotes, New Churches Established, and Field Reports columns, we try to report the news which might be of interest to brethren. We want to help keep brethren informed about what is happening throughout the world among God’s people. Hence, we encourage brethren to write their news and send it to us.

There is rarely a year that goes by but that an extended report is printed regarding the work in the Philippines. As brethren conduct meetings in various parts of the country which might tend to be isolated, they send in a report regarding their labors there and the condition of the churches in those areas. Hence, the news items in the paper make it especially helpful to brethren.

An Advertising Medium

Truth Magazine is also an advertising medium for churches, brethren and Truth Magazine Bookstore. Inasmuch as the funds necessary to pay the bills come from the sale of books by our own bookstore, the primary focus of our advertising space must be given to Truth Magazine Bookstore. Hence, all of the books\which are published are available through Truth Magazine Bookstore. Furthermore, we emphasize in our advertising those works which are published by Cogdill Foundation.

Occasionally, however, some person will publish something which he needs to advertise. He will then purchase advertising space in Truth Magazine to get his publication before the brethren. Others sometimes lead ,a group of interested people on trips to the Bible lands. They also advertise in our pages.

However, one of the most significant advertisers is the local congregation. Many local congregations advertise their location and times of services on the pages of Truth Magazine. This is not a back-door method of making a contribution to Truth Magazine. It is the purchase of a legitimate product. Hundreds of elderships across this land have accepted the fact that brethren are traveling more these days than at former times. They recognize that these brethren will want to worship while away from home, so they advertise their locations to assist them. Those of you who travel any at all and have sought to find a place with which to worship know how useful these ads are to you. On my vacation to the Northeast last year, I took a copy of Truth Magazine with me to help me locate places to worship and had no trouble locating a place to worship.

Furthermore, Christians are constantly moving because of their jobs. As many are transferred here and there, the problem of finding an acceptable place with which to worship becomes greater in direct proportion to the number who are re-locating. There is hardly a week which goes by but that someone is contacting me, trying to find faithful saints in some area of the country with which to worship. Frankly, I become more convinced each day of the need of brethren to advertise their places of worship, times of services, and the name of someone to contact to help brethren who are traveling and re-locating. Hence, the advertising medium of Truth Magazine is another service which we provide for the brethren.

A Balanced Journal

Truth Magazine is also a balanced journal in that it contains articles on a number of different subjects in each and every issue. Last year, we had three special series of studies on Romans, worldliness and worship (these issues constituted 20% of our total publication last year). In addition to these special issues, we had articles throughout the year on such topics as the church, worldliness, authority, assurance of salvation, attitude, baptism, Calvinism, Catholicism, cults, drug abuse, faith, grace, heaven, immodest dress, instrumental music, Jesus, Jonah, liberalism, Mormonism, situation ethics, the temptations of Jesus, personal evangelism, and a number of other topics.

Those who circulated the statement that “all that Truth Magazine publishes is fights among the brethren” are either misinformed or lying. Indeed, the number of articles pertaining to problems among brethren would certainly constitute a small percentage of our total output of material.

In preparing Truth Magazine’s layout, I seek a balanced presentation. I want to print something which will help the weak Christian, the non-Christian, the mature Christian, and the growing Christian. I want to publish things which my wife will read-as well as what I would like to read. I seek for balance in our pages.

Conclusion

I suppose that this is the reason that many congregations think that Truth Magazine should be sent to everyone of their members. I would agree with their judgment, however biased I may be. I would think that brethren would recognize the need of an informed membership (not just an informed preacher and/or eldership). The key to doctrinal soundness is a taught membership. Some brethren, therefore, send the paper into the homes of every member of the local church as a tool for helping them to teach their members.

The rates of Truth Magazine are such that this is not much of a financial load for the local church. Sending the paper directly into the homes of ten people only cost $7.50 per month (larger quantities can be figured at the rate of $.75 per person per month). Many individual Christians purchase groups of subscriptions in order to personally send the paper into the homes of some of their friends (even as I do).

To the best of my ability, I have sought to inform you as to the purpose and work of Truth Magazine. Again, if any of you have any questions pertaining to our work, please feel free to personally contact me and I shall attempt to answer your letter. We have nothing to hide so I shall be as forthright with you as I know how to be. If there is any way that Truth Magazine can be of any service to you, just contact us and we shall do what we can to accommodate your needs.

Truth Magazine XXIV: 5, pp. 83-85
January 31, 1980

By Weldon E. Warnock

A few of our brethren advocate that if a church puts a tract written by a woman in the tract rack, a sin is committed. Among all the absurd positions that brethren have taken through the years, this one is in competition to “take the cake.” What a warped conception of women’s role in the kingdom of God.

If these extremists are to be consistent in their position, they must quit singing all of the hymns written by women. In fact, they will have to print their own songbook that contains only songs written by men or they will have to mutilate the books they have by cutting out the songs written by women.

According to their illogical thinking, it would not be enough to not sing the songs, but the teaching done by women through the printed page (songs) must not even be in the meetinghouse. What would be the difference of having what women wrote in a songbook and what women wrote in the tract rack (or in a Truth Magazine – editor) It seems to me that having the women teaching us in the worship assembly through the songbook would, be far worse than haying a tract in the vestibule for anyone who might choose to, read it outside of the assembly, if the tract is sinful.

Brethren, such a ludicrous position could not be right. The fact that in its ultimate consequences the position makes the church a laughingstock shows that these brethren who embrace such extremity need to back up and reconsider.

In the songbook, Sacred Selections, there are nearly 150 songs written by women. This book is one of the songbooks used by the anti-women-teachers’ brethren and they sing the songs written by the women. (Oh, consistency, where art thou?) Some of these songs are “Just As I Am,” “Oh, Why Not Tonight?,” “I Am Thine, O Lord,” “Near the Cross,” “He Hideth My Soul,” “Anywhere With Jesus,” “Hold To God’s Unchanging Hand,” “When We All Get To Heaven,” and “Take the Name of Jesus With You,” to name a few. What are they going to do? Will they admit their extremism and back off or will they start using the scissors and cut out the songs?

Phariseeism

Such strict and narrow limitations on a woman’s role in the church because of a misunderstanding of 1 Tim. 2:11-12 reminds me of the spiritually deranged Pharisees during Jesus’ personal ministry. Due to their warped concept of the Sabbath, they meticulously defined “work” that prohibited nearly every imaginable activity.

There were 39 basic actions laid down by the Jews which were forbidden, on the Sabbath. Each action had to be carefully defined. One of the actions forbidden was a “burden.” But, what is a burden?. Some said a “burden” is anything that weighs as much as two dried figs. The orthodox Jews condemned anybody who drew water; who struck or killed anything or who just planned to do anything on the Sabbath.

The Catholic Church

These “no-tract-by-women-in-the-vestibule” brethren are just as preposterous as the Catholic Church’s restrictions concerning fasting before communion. In one of the Catholic books I have it states: “The Communion fast requires that one should take nothing in the way of food or drink, not even medicine. Things that are not digestible, such as a hair, thread or piece of wood, do not break the fast. Neither do the remains of food sticking between the teeth, not blood from the mouth or gums or tongue, since they do not come from without. Little drops of water which mingle with the saliva in washing the teeth and are swallowed unintentionally are not considered a violation of the fast . . . . One who is eating or drinking must stop at the first stroke of twelve o’clock, though he may swallow what is in his mouth.”

So, from midnight till Communion, a Catholic may not, according to this book, eat or drink anything digestible. However, Catholics may have all the wood, hair or thread they may want to eat.

Someone said there are three senses that man follows (not counting the five physical senses): revealed sense, common sense and nonsense. Of course, all must follow revealed sense, but brethren, for the sake of truth, peace and growth of the church, let’s start using a little common sense and not so much nonsense.

Truth Magazine XXIV: 5, p. 82
January 31, 1980

By Jimmy Tuten

There is a great need for teaching regarding abuses of church organization. The eyes of the beholder in the sectarian world view the church as another denomination because they see no distinctiveness associated with it. Generally speaking, brethren have become like those around them. Certainly we do not want to “harp” on issues, but we must teach what they are and how to deal with them. Failure to bring brethren to a remembrance of these things results in spiritual anemia (Rom. 14:1; 15:1; 1 Cor. 11:30; 1 Thess. 5:14). Our new generation simply does not understand that the basic “cause for the “new religion” facing us is unbelief! Generally speaking, brethren no longer anchor faith in objective truth (God’s Word), but in subjectiveness, the “we want it, we are going to have it because we don’t see anything wrong with it” approach. The “we do many things for which we do not have authority” philosophy has become a way of life in the brotherhood. As always there are three distinct groups among us: (1) the liberals, (2) the middle-of-the-roaders, and (3) the conservatives, who most often are called “antis.” The liberals and middle-roaders insist that the what of the work of the church has been given, but not the how. The conservatives maintain (and, rightly so) that the issue is not one of methods, but of organization. The who may not do the what (if not specified) in any way that does not violate Biblical principle. But can the church (the who) build and maintain human institutions (missionary societies, colleges, hospitals, etc.) through which to do the work God gave it to do?

The All-Sufficient Church

The church is God’s organization. It is called ekklesia in Greek, meaning the “called out” ones. It is a spiritual house, a priesthood and a holy nation (1 Pet. 2:4, 9). It is the fulness of the Lord Jesus Christ (Isa. 28:18; Eph. 1:22-23). God’s plan for man’s redemption focuses in the church: “this is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church” (Eph. 5:32). The only organization for function on the part of citizens in the kingdom known to the New Testament is the local church with Jesus Christ as its head, independently organized under its elders (Eph. 5:25; Acts 14:23; 20:28; 1 Pet. 5:2). There is no earthly headquarters for the head of the church is in heaven. Though churches of Christ are not tied together by any central organization on earth, they do cooperate by functioning independently in carrying out God’s instructions.

Each local church can, to the extent of its ability do all that God intended the church to do. Each congregation is autonomous, independent, equal and sufficient in their relation to other collectivities. In the absence of authority should any local church financially subsidize through contributions any human organization such as a college, they sin! Should the elders of any local church give up their duty to see the things done by the flock are done rightly, they give away their autonomy; they sin! In either case the local church becomes dependent in$tead of independent, unequal instead of equal, and insufficient instead of sufficient. The issue is still this: if elders can delegate part of their oversight (resources, for example) to an unauthorized sponsoring church or to a human organization, then why not the rest of the elements of the local church? Why not some big, super organization! If elders can delegate a part of its work, is the whole left? Are they overseeing the flock, the whole? Shades of Rome! Please observe the chart and see the common ground of agreement, that the church doing its authorized work by the expedient methods deemed best causes no breach. Division occurs when human organizations or arrangements usurp the place of the church. All agree that methods are permissible but strife occurs when it comes to which organization shall employ these methods. The organizations are not methods, they are organizations that use methods!(See chart below)

 

 

A Glance Backward

In this writing, only a sketch of the historical aspect of digression will be given. Our immediate situation ties in with the early elements of the cooperation movement about a hundred years ago. Desiring to bring into being machinery for pooling resources in evangelism, influential men in the 1850 era began to commend the “sewing societies” of certain women desiring to provide clothing for the poor, the sponsoring of the “United Kingdom” fund by the Bethany, Virginia church (campaigned for by Walter Scott and S.K. Pendleton), and other institutional societies for church-supported benevolence. Voices of opposition were heard. Men like Barton W. Stone wanted to know where the New Testament authorized such. From this, the demand for cooperation of churches on a local and national level resulted in division when the American Christian Missionary Society began in 1849. Then as now, the desire for unscriptural arrangements was more important than unity among believers. As early as the middle nineteenth century, one can see the development of “liberalism” and “conservativism.” There was a clear, distinct cleavage between the two. A casual reading of events relating to the American Christian Missionary Society and election of Alexander Campbell as president reveals vividly that the one goal was not unity, but cooperation. Men like McGarvey and Pendleton took opposing positions on the society. The Gospel Advocate came out strongly against the Missionary Society in 1866.

One cannot overlook the “college issue” of this period. Beginning with Bethany College, the problem of the relationship between colleges and churches of the Lord was apparent. In the past, colleges have denied taking contributions from churches except when sent without solicitation. Now funds are openly solicited from churches by various colleges. In 1939, when G.C. Brewer went on record at Abilene Christian College as endorsing colleges in the budgets of churchs, a statement was made by him that it was his (i.e., Brewer’s) understanding that this had been the situation since Bethany College was founded in 1840. With qualifications, men like George Benson of Harding College, E.H. Ijams of Lipscomb in Nashville and N.B. Hardeman of Freed-Hardeman opposed placing colleges in church budgets.

From this situation, it was but a short step to sponsoring church arrangements with elderships taking oversight of foreign fields. Having proven workable overseas, the method was applied at home. Such things as the Herald of Truth were born. Anything that brethren want to promote is now placed under a sponsor and diocesan elderships are commonplace. The mania of “Frog Kissing Retreats,” and other clap-traps are fallouts.

When will brethren wake up to the fact that all human institutions and arrangements in evangelism, benevolence and edification stand or fall together? The church cannot by divine authority work through, nor contribute to any of them. How sad to witness brethren’s desire for their promotions taking precedence over peace and unity. The intoxicating glory of man-made schemes are short-lived when compared to eternity’s hell and loss of identity.

Where Is The Stopping?

In The Christian Monthly of August 1870, James Pickens said, “If the door is set ajar for innovations, how shall we determine where it shall stand or that it should not stand wide open, and that continually?” The giants of liberalism are lamenting the fruits of unscriptural cooperative efforts spawned by them. Ira Rice attacks the “maverick pastor” Jim Reynolds of Dallas, Texas; charging him with the responsibility of certain churches in Cupertino, California and Dallas joining the inter-faith movement. The truth of the matter is this: brother Reynolds only watered the digressive element in these churches. Brother Rice planted the seed of digresion when he convinced the Southwest Church of Christ to sponsor him in Singapore in 1955. Listen to him: “. . . your editor feels peculiarly qualified to comment personally on this one, because the now so called Southwest Church of Christ . . . is the same old Hampton Place Church of Christ, which was the original sponsoring church that sent my family and me to Singapore in 1955 – and was our sponsor for more than 13 years!” (Contending for the Faith, January 1978, italics mine, jt). The Southwest church where Jim Reynolds preached at the time of this statement had as much right getting involved in inter-faith movements as she did sponsoring and taking oversight of Singapore works. The pot calling the kettle black? I say so!

Questions

1. Why do brethren need to be constantly reminded of issues which divided the church in bygone years?
2. Was the last division over church support of benevolent societies and colleges simply a division over methods? Explain your answer.
3. What does the belief in the “all-sufficiency of the church” mean? Is the church all-sufficient to market books and other literature? Is the church allsufficient to care for the poor of all the world?
4. Why is it sinful for a church to contribute to any human institution?
5. Is there any significant difference in a church contributing to a missionary society, benevolent society, or edification society (college)?
6. Is the missionary society, benevolent society or col lege simply a “method” of doing a given work?
7. Is there any difference in principle in sending a cash contribution to a college, loaning a school the use of the church building, and building a church school?
8. Why is a “little liberalism” dangerous?

Truth Magazine XXIV: 4, pp. 73-75
January 24, 1980