Truth Magazine

By Irvin Himmel

Jericho was the first city to fall when the Israelites began the conquest of Canaan. Scouts were sent ahead to Ai, the next city to be captured. It was not a large city, so the reconnaissance resulted in the recommendation to Joshua that only two or three thousand men be used in the attack. A force of three thousand moved against the city, but the men of Ai drove them back and the casualties numbered about thirty-six.

The Israelites were startled at their lack of success in the initial move against Ai. Joshua and the elders put dust on their heads and complained to the Lord. Joshua reasoned, “O Lord, what shall I say, when Israel turneth their backs before their enemies!” God answered, “Get thee up . . . Israel hath sinned . . . .”

Joshua rose early in the morning to begin the unpleasant task of housecleaning. There was sin the camp. The guilty party had to be located. The guilt of one man was a stumbling-block to the advance against Ai. Joshua 7 tells the story. It was finally determined that a man named Achan was the transgressor. Only after appropriate disciplinary measures had been taken against Achan were the Israelites able to conquer Ai. Achan was stoned to death.

Achan’s Desire

God put a ban on the city of Jericho before it was captured. No spoils were to be taken. Everything in the city was accursed or devoted to destruction except the silver, gold, and vessels of iron and brass. These valuables were to be put into the treasury of the Lord. All else was to be burned.

Achan’s first mistake was in seeing and desiring the forbidden. He later confessed, “I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them . . .” (v. 21).

Sin often begins with unlawful desire brought on by what we see. Eve “saw that the tree was good for good” (Gen. 3:6). King Ahaz of Judah “saw an altar that was at Damascus” (2 Kgs. 16:10) and arranged for one like it to be built at Jerusalem. This was only one act of many that “provoked to anger the Lord God of his fathers” (2 Chron. 28:25). David “saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon” (2 Sam. 11:2). That was the first step toward his committing adultery with Bathsheba. Simon “saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Ghost was given,” and he attempted to buy the power of the apostles (Acts 8:18).

“Covetousness” is unlawful desire. Achan coveted the items of value that he saw even though he knew they belonged to the accursed city. Eve desired the unlawful fruit in the garden of Eden. Ahaz desired the idolatrous altar that he saw, knowing that God had forbidden idolatry. David lusted after the beautiful woman that he saw and made opportunity to gratify his lust, knowing all the while that the law said, “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” Simon desired the power that he saw in the apostles, but for two reasons that desire was unlawful: (1) God’s gifts are not for sale; (2) Simon had neither part nor lot in the ministry of the apostles.

Achan’s Disobedience

Achan “took of the accursed thing” (Josh. 7:1); he acknowledged later, “I saw. . . l coveted . . . and I took” (v. 21). What he had taken he hid in the earth in the midst of his tent. This shows that he was conscious of his disobedience. Although a person may sin in ignorance, Achan sinned in a willful manner. He knew he was disobeying God.

All disobedience is serious. Saul was rejected as Israel’s king because he disobeyed God (1 Sam. 15). The man of God out (if Judah lost his life because he “was disobedient unto the word of the Lord” (1 Kgs. 13:26). The people of Israel were taken into captivity because they “were disobedient,” and rebelled against God, casting His law behind their backs, and they slew His prophets who testified against them (Neh. 9:26). The wrath of God comes upon “the children of disobedience” (Eph. 5:6).

Achan’s Detection

What Achan had hidden in the earth in the midst of his tent was not concealed from God. In time, Joshua learned the identity of the guilty party. To use the words that Moses had spoken on one ocassion, “Be sure your sin will find you out” (Num. 32:23).

All trespasses are not detected by one’s fellows in the course of life. Paul wrote, “Some men’s sins are open beforehand, going before the judgment; and some men they follow after” (1 Tim. 5:24). No act of disobedience and no wicked thought will escape detection in the day of judgment. “For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil” (Eccl. 12:14). “Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do” (Heb. 4:13). Let us learn from Achan that no sin is kept secret from God.

Truth Magazine XXIII: 7, p. 114
February 15, 1979

By Earl E. Robertson

“Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing which he alloweth,” wrote Paul (Rom. 14:22). Liberals and perverters of truth, practicing some things “contrary to sound doctrine,” must exercise care that their inconsistencies are not too obvious to the public. Their preaching must be geared to their practice, not their practice to their preaching!

Recently such an one said he had never preached on instrumental music in the worship and would not. The reason being, he said, such practice is not mentioned in the Bible. Another preacher of the same persuasion concurred with this statement. They support religious activities for which there is not one verse of scripture to support them and they obviously know it; and, furthermore, they know instrumental music in worship parallels such practice. They believe in one church sponsoring a work for which all churches are equally responsible. But let them produce a scripture authorizing a sponsoring church! They believe that churches may monetarily subsidize human organizations to do the work of the church. But let them produce a passage of scripture to authorize churches of Christ to furnish with subsidy David Lipscomb College or Potter Home and School. They know the scripture makes the difference, and they also know their practice places them “in the middle”.

Any departure from the truth, though it may not be specifically named in the word of God, must be condemned. Paul shows the Ephesian elders that some from among themselves would arise “speaking perverse things” to draw away disciples (Acts 20:30). Do those “perverse” things have to be named before I can preach on them? There is only one gospel but many perverters of it (Gal. 1:6-12). The perversion of truth does not have to be specified in the scripture for one to preach against it! The gainsayers of truth must be stopped – they teach things which they ought not (Tit. 1:9-11). Paul told Timothy to charge some “that they teach no other doctrine” (1 Tim. 1:3). Does the doctrine have to be named in the scriptures before I can rightfully preach against it? There are some things “contrary to sound doctrine” (1 Tim. 1:10) which are not specifically named in the scriptures – instrumental music in worship being one of them! Sins in the “such like” category must be condemned as well as the ones specified (Gal. 5:21). False teachers (2 Pet. 2:1) lead men away with error (2 Pet. 3:17). Instrumental music in worship is unauthorized and must, therefore, be preached against inconsistent preachers to the contrary notwithstanding.

Truth Magazine XXIII: 6, p. 107
February 8, 1979

By Mackey W. Harden

These are the words the angel of the Lord spoke to the apostles in Acts 5:20. The apostles had just been arrested for the second time because of their preaching the gospel. The Sadducees were very upset because the apostles could not be persuaded to quit preaching about Jesus. Upon their first arrest (Acts 4:1-3), Peter and John had been threatened, “. . . and commanded not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus” (Acts 4:17-18). This however did not stand in their way at all, for they continued without any hesitation to teach and preach in the name of Jesus. This is what led to their second arrest, as recorded in Acts 5:17-18.

After they were imprisoned, the angel of the Lord came by night and set them free. They were instructed to “Go, stand and speak in the temple all the words of this life” (Acts 5:20). Let it be observed that they were not set free just to go somewhere and hide from these rulers that were threatening them. They were set free in order to fulfill a divine mission. They had a job to do for the Lord and in order to achieve that goal they had to “Go, stand and speak . . . all the words of this life.”

Those of us who are Christians today have the responsibility to spread the cause of Christ to those who live in this generation. We need to be as zealous of this as the apostles and first century disciples were. Let us notice what the Bible teaches as to how we can “Go, stand and speak .

Go

Jesus our Lord said, “Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest (Jn. 4:35). As a boy of six or seven years old growing up in southern Alabama, it was very easy to visualize what Jesus is saying. As one looked out over those cotton fields all you could see for acres and acres were those little “cotton balls.” Then the workers would go out into the fields and begin to pick and harvest the cotton. Likewise, it staggers the imagination to look out into the world and see the many people who need the saving power of the gospel. Truly the harvest is ready if we will but “go.” “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations . . .” was the command of our Savior (Matt. 28:19). We have to be willing to obey the command of “go” if we are to spread the seed of the kingdom.

Stand

In writing to the church at Thessalonica, Paul said. “Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle (2 Thess. 2:15) To “stand fast” means to remain firm in our beliefs of the gospel that has been delivered unto us. People who are willing to live for the Lord have to take a “stand” against things foreign to the word of God. We need to remain firm and “stand” for the truth. The apostles knew very well what it meant to remain firm for the Lord. In so doing, they gave their lives for the cause of Christ: How firmly entrenched are we?

Speak

To spread the word we have to “speak.” We have to share our knowledge about the gospel with others if we expect to convert them. Paul was an ambassador in bonds for the sake of the gospel. He prayed that he might boldly make known the mystery of the gospel, “. . . that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak (Eph. 6:18-20). Notice that Paul says, “as I ought to speak.” He had the attitude that it was a necessity for him to “speak boldly” the gospel. I fear that many today do not have this wonderful attitude that Paul here displays. Most Christians probably do not talk to people enough about the gospel. If we do not tell them the wonderful story of Jesus, how can they be saved? Let us strive harder every day of our lives to, “Go, stand and speak . . .” to a lost and dying world.

Truth Magazine XXIII: 6, pp. 106-107
February 8, 1979

By Larry Ray Hafley

The gruesome, grisly events in Guyana need a bead drawn on them. It is still impossible to conceive and believe the magnitude of the murder and suicide of 900 people. Why? What? How? These are the beginnings to questions we cannot verbalize, let alone find complete answers to. Apart from the human horror, there are other thoughts to ponder.

First, skeptics and unbelievers are saying: “The Rev. Jim Jones, Jonestown, mass suicide; well, what can you expect? That’s religion for you!” In other words, Christians are lumped together with the “People’s Temple” cult of Jim Jones. We are all just a bunch of cranks and nuts. “Faith” and “religion” are the cause of the madness of Jonestown. Saints must be aware of this attitude on the part of the world. They must not be embittered by it, but they must recognize that it exists and prepare to live it down (1 Pet. 2:12).

The Scriptures say this disposition will result when disciples are led into “damnable heresies.” “And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of” (2 Pet. 2:2). and so it has happened, and so it is that the way of truth is evil spoken of.

Second, there are some horrible things mentioned in the Bible. The practices of the heathen religions are unreal. They are as unbelievable as Jonestown. And people do not believe them. Some of the things in the Bible are just too “far out” to believe, say the unbelievers. Well, suppose the Bible mentioned a false teacher, a deluder and deceiver named Jim Jones. Suppose it described the slaughter in Jonestown. No one would believe that such a thing could be done, but it was! Nothing about the Ammonite god, Molech, is as remarkable as the Jonestown deaths. The Bible is not as unbelievable as real life.

“But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one: To whom they ail gave heed from the least to the greatest, saying, this man is the great power of God. And to him that had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries” (Acts 8:9-11). You could put the name of Jim Jones in a paraphrase of that text. You might even be able to come up with something using the name of Joseph Smith, Ellen G. White, or Mary Baker Eddy, not to mention, Herbert W. Armstrong. No, the Bible is mild compared to current events. If anything is not to be believed, it is Jonestown, not the Bible.

Truth Magazine XXIII: 6, p. 106
February 8, 1979