Truth Magazine

By Larry Ray Hafley

Perhaps most of our readers have been Christians for a long time. At least, they have been in Christ long enough to be teachers. See Hebrews 5:12-14. You may be one such person. You feel a little frustrated at your lack of progress and growth in the grace and knowledge of Jesus. That is good. You should feel a little bit of aggravation, a sense of not being satisfied with your undeveloped state. Do not let it turn you sour and bitter, though.

Examine yourself. Why have you not made the strides you think you should have made? Why are you still a baby in areas where you should now be a mature person?

First, it is a healthy sign if you even recognize your stunted stature. So, be encouraged by that fact. It is worse to be ignorant of such a plight than it is to be in the condition and conscious of it. Take heart; there is hope for you!

Second, do not blame others. It is not the preacher’s fault. It is not the fault of your brethren, your family or your daily associates. Besides, blaming others will not cure your ills. Knowing where you “caught” a cold does nothing to cure you. Knowing from whom you took the flu does not serve to salve your sickness. Thus, we can dispense with the wasted time and effort of blaming someone else.

Third, do you have a clear vision of where you should be in the Lord? Be specific. It is not enough to say, “I want to be a better person.” In what ways do you want to be better? What areas of your life need to be improved? Confess your faults to yourself as well as to the Lord.. Admit them. Next, what do you want to put in the place of your failings? If you do not put something right and good in the place of that which is extracted, you will find that your old sins will come back to the void you have created. Hence, it is essential that you put something positive in the place of that which was removed. Reflect. What will it be?

Fourth, remember that we all start at the same place in Christ. We all come to him as sinners in need of grace, mercy and forgiveness. We are all born as babies in Christ. One man does not buy his way into spiritual maturity. An elder that you esteem started right where you did. His money, his family, his job did not put him where he is in the Lord. He began right where you did. He came up out of the water just like you did-wet, forgiven, saved, a newborn baby in Christ. His growth, his strength of faith, and his influence for good were not bought over the counter. His education did not give him an inside track on godliness. The advantages one has are the fulfillment of opportunity which was seen and seized. It is there for you and me if we will take heed unto ourselves and unto the doctrine (1 Tim. 4:16; 2 Tim. 3:14, 15).

Fifth, and finally, you are where you are in Christ because of your attitude. It is not money or intellect or skill that separates the faithful from the unfaithful, the workers from the shirkers, the babies from the men. It is attitude. When your attitude is right, you will prosper in the Lord and progress in the gospel of grace. It does not matter how many great men of God you may know. It does not matter that you may be privileged to sit at the feet of one of God’s greatest preachers. If your attitude is wrong, these things will not profit and you will not prosper. Your attitude toward God, toward His word, and toward your fellow man is why you are where you are in the Lord. If your attitude is wrong, ten thousand other blessings cannot save you. If your attitude is right, ten thousand hardships cannot sink you.

So, where are you in Christ? You are right where your attitude has put you. Now, what is your attitude?

Truth Magazine XXII: 25, p. 405
June 22, 1978

By Mike Willis

In a somewhat joking manner one of the members spoke disparagingly of another member of the same congregation; he said, “If she smiled, her face would crack.” Though it has been some years since I have been in the congregation in which the member worships, I cannot help but confess that I was somewhat in agreement with the man’s assessment of the good sister. How frequently have I thought that some people’s outlook on life is so sour and bitter that I felt that they must have been weaned by sucking a lemon.

Yet, in contrast with this disposition, I am reminded that the Christian is to add joy as one of the fruits of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22). Furthermore, Paul commanded, “Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord” (Phil. 3:1). Again, he wrote, “Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice” (Phil. 4:4). Joy ought to characterize our general outlook on life as we think, not of what this world is coming to, but of who has come into this world.

Yes, brethren, we should think of the disposition which characterized Jesus. There are many intimations in the gospels that, in spite of the profound elements of grief and tragedy in His life, His habitual demeanor was gladsome and joyous. He was certainly no ascetic as His cousin John was; whereas John came as an ascetic, Jesus came eating and drinking (Mt. 11:19). He enjoyed such happy occasions as a wedding feast (Jn. 2) or eating a meal in a friend’s house (Mk. 14:3). He instructed His, disciples to give the appearance of joy even when they were fasting (Mt. 6:16-18). No, Jesus was no man with a bitter disposition and pessimistic outlook on life; He was a man of joy.

God has commanded that we who are Christians manifest this same kind of joy. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit. If the expressions on the faces of some Christians is any barometer, there are some barren branches, some who are not bearing fruit, among us in abundance. Too many attending the worship services appear to be unhappy; they are not filled with the joy. Hence, we need to understand how one is to be happy in this life in order that he might be filled with the fruit of the Spirit known as joy.

Joy And External Circumstances

One of the things which we need to understand is that joy does not depend upon one’s outward circumstances in life. Indeed, some of the happiest Christians I know have so few of this world’s goods that one would expect them to be bitter about life. On the other hand, some of those who have so many of this world’s goods are the most unhappy. From observation, I can see that joy is not dependent upon outward circumstances for it to exist.

The circumstances which happen in life can produce joy. The women who left the tomb of Jesus were in great joy when they were told that He was risen from the dead (Mt. 28:8). The saints in Antioch rejoiced at the conversion of the Gentiles (Acts 15:3). Both sorrow and depression can result from the circumstances which happen in life (cf. Acts 12:1-14). Yet, I see from the Scriptures that men were happy in spite of the terrible circumstances which they faced in life. The apostles rejoiced that they had been counted worthy to suffer for Jesus (Acts 5:41); the Hebrew Christians took joyfully the spoiling of their possessions (10:34). Here, the circumstances which should have caused tremendous sorrow resulted in happy saints. Thus, the outward circumstances in life did not cause joy to be absent.

The man who is filled with the Spirit will face situations in his life which cause him genuine sorrow. The difference, however, in his character and in that of the man without the fruit of the Spirit known as joy is that he will get over the tragedy without letting it ruin his outlook on life. When tragedy strikes, he will pick up the pieces and rebuild his life. He will not let a tragedy embitter him. He will not allow it to destroy his faith. Rather, he will look on Jesus as the perfect reminder of God’s genuine love for him and move toward recovery.

Sources of Joy

One of the reasons that so many have so little joy is that they have learned to derive their joy from the wrong sources. A man builds all of his joy from advancement in a company, in his job. Then, when he does not receive some promotion that he anticipated, he becomes bitter and resentful in life. Someone else derives his happiness from material possessions. Then when circumstances occur that he does not have the money to continue to add to his material possessions, his source of joy is gone and unhappiness reigns in his life. We could illustrate this point from several other instances but this should suffice to show that one’s source of joy is tremendously important insofar as one’s total happiness in life is concerned.

This is the reason that Paul said, “Rejoice . . . in the Lord” (Phil. 3:1). The other things in which people get their joy in life will fail a person; the Lord will never fail a man. We must learn that in God’s “presence is fulness of joy” (Psa. 16:11); “Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased” (Psa. 4:7). Here are some sources of joy which we get through the Lord:

(1) Salvation. “And my soul shall be joyful in the Lord: it shall rejoice in his salvation” (Psa. 35:9). Even as the angels of heaven rejoice over the salvation of one of the lost lambs, so also we should rejoice both in our own salvation and in that of others.

(2) The word of the Lord. In describing the blessed man of Psalm 1, David said, “But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night” (1:2). “The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: . . . More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb” (Psa. 19:8, 10). In the parable of the sower, one of the men “received the word with joy” (Lk. 8:13); the preaching of Philip brought joy to Samaria (Acts 8:4-8); the eunuch went on his way rejoicing, having obeyed the gospel (Acts 8:39). The Thessalonians received the word with joy even in the midst of persecution (1 Thess. 1:6).

(3) The obedience of others. John said, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth” (3 Jn. 4). Paul described the faithful brethren in Thessalonica as his joy and crown (1 Thess. 2:19, 20). Watching one whom we have helped to convert grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ should be a source of joy in the Lord.

(4) The fellowship of others. Paul rejoiced at the coming and presence of those who were faithful Christians (Phil. 4:10; 1 Thess. 3:6,7; Phile. 7). Hence, another source of joy should be our companionship with other saints. We should find happiness in being in their presence.

When our happiness comes from the proper source, we will not be let down. Jesus described the joy which He would give to His disciples as being different from any other joy because His joy would be one that “no man taketh from you” (Jn. 16:22). Whereas the joy which the pleasures of earth give are fleeting and temporary (Heb. 11:25), the joy which is in the Lord is permanent (Jn. 16:22). This is the reason that you can find many an aged saint with so little of this world’s goods abounding in joy and happiness. He has trusted in the Lord and the Lord will not fail him.

Joy Amidst Persecutions

James commanded, “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” (Jas. 1:2-4). Recognizing that the successful enduring of a temptation produced joy. James instructed Christians to rejoice when such temptations came upon them. This is the reason that the Apostles’ rejoiced when they had suffered for the Lord (Acts 5:41). Even Jesus viewed the tribulations which He endured in this manner. The writer of Hebrews said, “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:2). Jesus looked beyond the temptation to the approval of God which would come to Him when He endured that temptation. We need to learn to look beyond the particular problem which we face to view the approval of God which comes upon successfully enduring and overcoming the problem and rejoice in the temptation.

Conclusion

Are you unhappy in this life? If so, you might need to look at the sources of joy which are in your life. If you find that you are depending upon material things to produce happiness for you, you are probably a most miserable person. The material things which one has in this life can only bring a temporary happiness; soon even that is gone and you are more miserable than before. The only real place of joy is in the Lord. Will you turn to the Lord for salvation, depend upon His holy word, obey Him today, and enjoy the fellowship of the rest of His saints? By so doing, you will find the lasting, permanent joy which Jesus promised to give His disciples (Jn. 16:22). You, too, can be happy in this life.

Truth Magazine XXII: 25, pp. 403-404
June 22, 1978

By Wayne Walker

One of the Bible doctrines most frequently attacked by modern liberal theologians and religious “scholars” is the deity of Christ. The Bible expressly teaches the Godhood and unique Sonship of Jesus (see John 1:1-2; Col. 2:9). Peter made the confession, ‘Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:18). Later, this same apostle told a group of Jews, “That God hath made that same Jesus whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:36). For the Bible believer and the one who impartially reads the gospel record, there can be no other conclusion. However, men who are enslaved by their own biased opinions have conceived several other explanations of Jesus’ existence. Everyone, even the modernist, must admit that a man named Jesus lived in first-century Palestine and had such an effect on the world that we number years by His earthly incarnation.

The most common explanation of Christ is that He was a great moralist, philosopher, and teacher, but not a divine being. Those who try to uphold His ethical teaching but deny His divinity say that He really never claimed to be divine, that these claims were made for Him after His death by His followers. However, a quick glance at the first four New Testament books will destroy this idea. When asked by the high priest if He were the Christ, the Son of the Blessed, He replied, “I am” (Mark 14:61-66). At least the Jews so claimed in John 10:30,36. If this were not His claim, He could have saved Himself a lot of trouble by saying so! In addition, when Peter made his confession, Jesus said nothing to the contrary (John 6:68). Now a “great moralist” certainly would not have allowed His followers to believe a lie, would He?

So Jesus indisputably claimed to be the Son of God. If that claim be not true, then we are left with two other alternatives. The first is that He claimed to be God, but was not; rather, He was a charlatan, a trickster, a fraud. However, this is incongruous with the fact that He placed a great deal of emphasis on the truth: “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). Are these the words of an imposter? Hear again: “If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself” (John 7:17). Would a conscious deceiver continually speak about truth and open Himself to complete investigation? Finally, in John 8:46, Jesus asked if anyone could convict Him of sin. One should think if Jesus were a cheat that someone, somewhere could have laid a finger of blame on Him-but no one did. This man not only claimed to be the Son of God; He lived the part. Certainly such a one was not an intentional liar.

This leaves us with the theory that He thought He was actually the Son of God, but was mistaken. This world make Him a lunatic, a nut. A preacher once said that if Jesus were a mere man claiming to be divine, it would be just as reasonable for someone to claim to be a poached egg. (They have places for people like that!) Even a casual survey of the account of Jesus’ life refutes any such motion. The character of Christ is not that of an insane man. He was completely rational; witness the logic of His answer to the Saducees’ question of the resurrection (Matt. 22:23-34). Also notice that every situation was firmly within His control. When, He was asked trick questions, as in Matt. 22:34-40, never did He lose His composure or temper; nor was He ever at a loss for words. See also the effect of His reasoning on His listeners (Matt. 22:15-22); they marveled at His sensibility. Surely, no unbalanced person ever behaved in this manner.

We have now exhausted our options. The only other estimate of Jesus, and the one which best fits the facts, is that He is exactly who He claimed to be-the divine Son of God and Savior of the world. Thomas was there, he saw, he knew what he was talking about when he said, “My Lord and my God.” We have not been permitted to examine the evidence firsthand as was he, but we have the word of those who did (John 17:20); and Jesus’ response to Thomas was, “Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed” (John 20:2829). John concludes this scene is verses 30-31 by adding, “And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: but these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.” The purpose of the scripture and of all true gospel preaching is to cause men to say with Martha, “Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world” (John 11:27). Thus may we live eternally with Him, “For if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins” (John 8:24).

Truth Magazine XXII: 25, p. 402
June 22, 1978

By Roland Worth, Jr.

The Catholic Church is quite proud of its “unity.” In contrast, they point to the immense division among those who claim the Bible as their ultimate authority. This indicates, so their argument goes, that the Bible is an unreliable final standard and that by submitting to the bishop of Rome schism can be avoided. How does this claim stack up against actual history? Poorly! To be quite blunt, the Catholic Church will find its claim believed only in proportion to the ignorance of its audience. For proof of this, let us examine the record of division in the early post-apostolic centuries. (It should be kept in mind that we do not know the exact year in which Catholicism came into existence. Many of the following events occurred in that period of transition between Christianity and Catholicism.) As our authority we will present quotations from the well known and respected French Catholic historian, H. Daniel-Rops in his volume, Church of Apostles and Martyrs (E. P. Dutton & Company, New York: 1960; reprinted 1963).

Heresies of the Second Century

“Heresies and schisms can be found as far back as one can go in Christian history. Whether it was a question of erroneous interpretation of dogmas or of the fact of Revelation, of aberrant moral tendencies or of secessions provoked by powerful individuals led astray by personal pride, these frictions and divisions had been very numerous: several had left livid scars on the body of the Bride of Christ. Thus in the second century we have observed the fanatical Montanus leading his followers into practices where faith and violence mingled in an apocalyptic exaltation. In the East particularly we have witnessed a proliferation of theories which by eviscerating Christian dogmas and history of their content, while preserving their vocabulary, had run the risk of burying the sound and healthy realism of the Gospel under sterile masses of speculation. Examples of these can be seen in Gnosticism and its countless variants. Thus again we have seen Marcion deriving some of his elements from Gnosticism and others from the ancient strata of Persian dualism, evolving a doctrine that enjoyed great influence on account of his own strong personality and which was an ancient expression of a kind of dualist Protestantism. There was not one of these tendencies which had not left its mark on some part of the Christian world” (p. 453).

Heresies of the Third Century

“Of course there were doctrinal difficulties too, of the kind we have seen springing up since the earliest years of Christianity. Heresy must indeed be regarded as an aspect of human intelligence defaced by sin, for it spread so prolifically. The old heresies of the second century were still alive: Montanism, to which Tertullian now brought his own alarming support, and Gnosticism, which was in the midst of disintegration but which swarmed everywhere in sectarian communities. Other heresies, of a rather different character, now arose; for instead of leaving the Church and establishing their own sects, the third-century heretics clung to a self-styled loyalty, claiming that they were still orthodox, even while they modified official dogmas to suit themselves. We shall see various bishops and not a few theologians straying along some very strange paths in this way, and it was not always easy either to bring them back to the fold or to expel them. These heresies were very numerous, varying in their terms of expression, but all connected with the fundamental problem of the Three Divine Persons and their relations with one another, and often including errors on the very reality of Christ. It is hardly possible to list them all. Modalism maintained that God existed only in one Person and not Three a Person who was successively called Father, Son and Holy Spirit according to the ‘modes’ of His action. According to the time, place, individuals and circumstances concerned, this theory was to exist under the separate names of Monarchianism, Patripassianism, and Sabellianism. Adoptianism, which was developed by a humble Byzantine leather-worker, Theodotus, alleged that Jesus was but a man who had been adopted by God. Subordinationism, a heretical trend, whose seeds can already be discerned in Origen, which his imprudent disciples were to carry to extremes, and which was to find its way into the heart of Arianism, tended to place Christ below the Father, in a second-class position” (p. 354).

Heresies of the Fourth Century

“The period that began with Constantine and lasted for rather more than one hundred years-witnessed the unfolding of ten or so heresies at least, with the most varied bearings on points of dogma. Several of these dated from the third century but they were to undergo considerable development during the fourth. Their names evoke scarcely an echo in Christian memories today. Very few of us have even heard, for instance, of the ‘Pneumatomachians,’ who denied the divinity of the Holy Spirit, or of the ‘Apollinarists,’ who believed in a tripartite division of human nature and maintained that Christ was human in His body and animal senses, but God through the Spirit alone. However, on points of theology which we cannot exactly understand, conflicts arose into which men hurled themselves with an impetuosity and a heroism which enabled them to embrace death itself and which are evidence of an ardent faith. Three of these deviations were to be of capital importance in the history of Christianity: Donatism, Arianism and the insidious current of Manichaeism” (p. 454).

Conclusion

These facts play havoc with the Catholic argument from “unity.” It is like a beautiful diamond that sparkles in our hand but which, when we look at it under a magnifying glass, turns out to be a fake.

Truth Magazine XXII: 24, p. 397
June 15, 1978