Truth Magazine

By Roy E. Cogdill

Perhaps most of the readers of Truth Magazine know by now that I have moved from Henderson, Texas to Conroe, Texas. This took place shortly after the first of August. The church in Henderson is making splendid progress. They have hired’ Brother Leonard White of Houston, and he is laboring with them full time and they are able fully to support him. I predict for them a good future. Our year with them endeared all of them to our hearts and we found them to be a devoted group of disciples.

The Spring Branch Church in Houston offered to support me full-time and the Norhill Church is furnishing me a housing and utility allowance to enable me to help the church here in Conroe worshiping at Third and Lewis Streets to get on its feet. This is one of the fastest growing sections in the country and we believe the faithful church here has a good future. I have preached in the past for both of the churches that are assisting me and my association with them has been pleasant and encouraging in every way. We are grateful for their confidence.

It is the purpose here to let the local church put all of its efforts into finding a new location and building a suitable place of worship which we believe will be the biggest step forward that can be taken in this work at this time. We have a good group and our attendance is increasing some and the contributions are growing. Property is extremely high but we have hopes of finding something suitable that we can afford and are working to that end. We invite any who are passing this way to stop by to see us and worship with us. My local address is 439 Cypress Drive, Conroe, Texas, 77301.

Soon after moving here I had to go to the Diagnostic Hospital in Houston for surgery. For about three months I had suffered from very severe pain in the right hip and leg. I had gone through the clinic in Pampa, Texas, where I have gone yearly for some time to Dr. Lang for an annual physical. He reported that my blood chemistry had completely changed in the past year and that, it indicated that I might have a malignancy somewhere. He suggested that I go back to the surgeon that did a prostate operation a year ago last May and see if the trouble might be there again. It was discovered that a new growth had come and that it was malignant. Then bone specialists also found a malignancy in my left hip- Some surgery was performed and treatments were begun.

I am happy to report that I have been home five weeks now and making splendid progress. I am still walking on a cane and sitting on a stool to preach but I hope to be able to discard both before too long and feel confident that I will before long be completely well.

I want to use this medium to express to brethren everywhere my gratitude for the interest that has been shown by literally hundreds of phone calls and cards and many beautiful flowers as well as personal visits. I feel like Paul – every time I think of so many brethren that I have been associated with through the years and learned to love and that I believe love me, I thank God for them. So may I say to all of you who have communicated and many who have kept us in their hearts and prayers that I and my family are eternally grateful for your love, encouragement, and prayers.

Truth Magazine, XVIII:5, p. 2
November 29, 1973

By Mike Willis

Inasmuch as some have become disenchanted with our “narrow-minded, exclusive sect which thinks that they constitute the only saved people in the world,” I think it might be good for us to remember or reconsider, whichever might be the case, how we became so narrow-minded.

The entire basis on which we have stood in the past has been that truth demanded it. We have also noted that truth is exclusive in nature when we have preached in the past. To illustrate exactly what that means, let us consider these facts. Heb. 11:6 states, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” If this statement means anything, it means that those who are atheists are lost. Let the circle below represent all of the world. The shaded area represents those of atheistic persuasion of the world, including the millions in the communistic countries, who are lost.

Another truth is added. “I said therefore to you, that you shall die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you shall die in your sins” (Jn. 8:24). “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me” (Jn. 14:6). This truth excludes an even larger number of humans from salvation. The billions of people worshiping a god through any one of the world religions is pronounced lost by this verse. Our circle now looks like this, with even fewer people possessing the hope of salvation.

Another truth is added. “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (Jn. 3:5). This truth reveals that even among the theists who also believe in Jesus, not all will be saved-only those who have been born again. The circle of the saved becomes even smaller.

Other truths can be added which are equally exclusive. The ones not worshipping in truth or in spirit (Jn. 4:24), the hypocrites (Mt. 7), the ones who have lost their first love (Rev. 2:4,5), the ones preaching and/ or upholding a false doctrine (Rev. 2:20; 1 Cor. 15:33-see the context; 14:37, 38-NASB; 2 Jn. 9-11), etc. are lost further narrowing the circle of the saved, leaving only a small handful in hope of salvation.

Rather than believing what Jesus said–“For the gate is small, and the way is narrow that leads to life, and few are those who find it” (Mt. 7:14)-some begin to seek ways of enlarging the circle of the saved. Those who believe that the above illustrated picture is true are called “legalistic,” “narrow-minded” and “sectarian” by men such as Carl Ketcherside. Like Paul said in Acts 24:14-“But this I admit to you, that according to the Way which they call a sect I do serve the God of our fathers . . .,” I also admit that I serve God in this Way which is called a “sect” by men such as Ketcherside as well as denominationalists of every hue.

Those following Ketcherside have broadened the circle of the saved in several ways. They included in their concept of the saved those who have perverted the worship and the work of the church as well as those who have perverted the purpose and action of baptism. Still they are legalistic.’ They legalistically believe in something which they call baptism, excluding from their concept of salvation and fellowship those who do not receive it. (It is not Bible baptism since they have asserted that a person does not need to know the purpose of his baptism to make it valid.) They legalistically exclude from the saved all atheists and Jews. How such men can criticize others for legalism when they legalistically hold these beliefs and can consider themselves consistent while doing it is beyond my comprehension.

I suggest that before anyone adopts the belief that we have been “narrow-minded, exclusive and sectarian,” becomes enamored with the Ketcherside unity position, and begins preaching it, he seriously consider the exclusive nature of truth. Somewhere down the line every man will become legalistic or else he is logically to accept the doctrine of universalism.

Truth Magazine, XVIII:4, p. 9-10
November 22, 1973

By Cecil Willis

Occasionally it becomes prudent to repeat what one often has said before, or something which he assumes everyone already understands. Such are the circumstances regarding the matters about which we now write.

We have a disclaimer in our catalog. It reads in part: “Only the Bible can be recommended without reservation. The mere fact that some items are included in this catalog does not mean that we endorse every statement in them. But we have been careful to try to present for your perusal books and materials that will be useful and helpful. There are many items that we refuse to sell at all, and hence do not want such advertisements to appear in our catalog. Convictions cannot be appraised by dollars and cents.”

There are times, however, when we sell something we do not approve at all. For instance, a few weeks ago I conducted a debate with a Pentecostal preacher. In order to understand and document their position on the points being debated, it was necessary that I purchase fifteen or twenty books and booklets published by this Pentecostal sect. In order to acquire them, I had our bookstore to order them for me. The bookstore purchased them for wholesale prices, and sold them to me retail. As you may or may not know, Truth Magazine Bookstore does not give discounts to individuals, and that includes the Editor of this journal! In fact, I think, from the number of invoices I receive, that I must be our store’s best customer.

This transaction alone should indicate that books which might not be recommended at all generally might under special circumstances be recommended. To illustrate, I would recommend that anyone who is preparing to debate a representative of any denomination purchase some of their writings in order to understand precisely what that denomination teaches. Yet such books could not be recommended as useful, worth the money, and advisable to purchase, to every brother.

Some books that generally are not reliable are yet quite useful on specific points. Recently our Book Review Editor discussed the new Logos Complete Study Bible. I asked him to examine it carefully, and give an honest appraisal concerning it. The American Standard Version is an excellent translation of the Scriptures. However, in recent years, the number of sizes and quality of bindings of American Standard versions have decreased until there is hardly any first-line, quality binding available. The best I have seen is the No. 760, which sells for $27.50.

When the Logos Complete Study Bible, which sells for $34.95, came out in six bindings, I thought this might be just what many brethren have been seeking. But upon close examination, it was discovered that the references and notes in it had been compiled in such a way as to try to lead the unwary to accept a denominational concept about the Holy Spirit. It therefore was necessary that we warn potential purchasers regarding this “feature” of the Logos Bible. The net result of our Reviewer’s evaluation was, “I cannot recommend it,” except for those students who can ascertain when a reference is being misused. However, to informed Christians, the quality of the book and binding might be such as to off-set the detriment of its misleading cross reference system:

Class Literature

Our bookstore handles ten or twelve different sets of class literature. Hardly any of these- can be unqualifiedly recommended; A dangerous precedent has been established if one ever were to recommend without reservation everything that any men write or teach orally. Our confidence is to be in God and His Word; not in the pronouncements of men.

Recently one good brother, who is much interested in the publishing efforts which we make, wrote criticizing the contents of some books in the Walking With God series (formerly known as Journeys Through the Bible). I agreed with everyone of his criticisms.

Journeys Through the Bible was purchased by the Cogdill Foundation about four years ago because it was going out of print. In our judgment, it had fewer faults than the other prominently used sets of literature. Brother Roy E. Cogdill, when he owned the Cogdill Publishing Company, proof-read and put into print the series from Grade 4 through High School. We knew when we purchased this series that it had some material in it which we personally, and other faithful brethren, could not approve. Plans have been laid, from the day we purchased the material, to re-work the Pre-School and Primary sections of this literature. The volume of work on the new Truth In Life series until now has prevented this re-writing. We cannot undertake such a massive and expensive endeavor until Truth In Life is completely in print, and both time and money are available for re-writing Walking With God.

Churches and Preachers

Paid ads are run in Truth Magazine by some churches. Recently one brother said that acceptance of paid ads from churches might cause a paper to be accused of “being supported by the churches through the back door.” We do not want any church to advertise in Truth Magazine unless the brethren who purchase the advertising space feel that their advertising dollar judiciously is spent. Such ads usually help the churches who purchase them, and undoubtedly are a big asset to brethren in travel in locating a congregation with which to worship.

We have never thought that every church should advertise in Truth Magazine. If they were to attempt to do so, there would be no space available for teaching materials. Truth Magazine is published to provide a medium for discussion of Bible topics. Yet it has been my opinion that it would be helpful, both to the congregation and to brethren who are traveling, if at least one church in each metropolitan area would advertise its location and time of services. It is difficult for a stranger to go into New York City, Pittsburg, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, Chicago, St. Louis, San Diego, Los Angeles, or any other metropolitan area, and quickly locate a congregation with which he wants to worship. These church ads, in various religious journals, then become very valuable, both to the congregation which buys it and to the brother who is trying to locate such a congregation. But we want no church ever to purchase an ad in this journal just to help Truth Magazine.

Recently we have been running some very brief reports about various congregations, and using a picture of a meeting house on the cover of this journal. We have run reports on some congregations that a brother somewhere did not think we should have run, or we have accepted an ad from some congregation which some brother somewhere thinks we should not have accepted.

Just a little thinking should confirm the fact in one’s mind that the publishers of Truth Magazine, or any other journal, are not brotherhood clearing houses. And we certainly do not intend even to try to become such. We wouldn’t if we could, and couldn’t if we would! This simply is to say that the mere fact that we run an ad from a congregation, or run a news report concerning a congregation, is no proof that the congregation is faithful to the Lord. Even a novice should know this much.

Nor does reference to a preacher in these columns indicate that the man is sound in the faith. Brethren who are interested in a particular congregation or preacher will have to conduct their own examinations. Neither the Lord nor the brethren have asked that we conduct such examinations for them. Obviously we report news regarding preachers and churches which are unknown to us personally. Yet not many liberal preachers would want the “kiss of death” which mention in Truth Magazine would convey upon them in some circles. The New Philadelphia, Ohio church is the only liberal church that I now can think of whichever has sought to purchase advertising space in Truth Magazine, and I think they sent their check just to see if I would take it. I did, and still have it, uncashed!

Preachers who let it be known through Truth Magazine that they wish to move to work elsewhere should decide themselves whether they can work with a particular church, and they always have done so. Churches who seek a preacher to work with them should secure as much information as possible regarding any preacher who might respond to their “Preacher Needed” ad. To fail to do so would be irresponsible. Occasionally at faithful and an able gospel preacher just does not “fit in very well” with a particular faithful church. I have often heard preachers say that a particular preacher they know would not be able to work compatibly with certain congregations. Such a circumstance should not exist, but it does. There are some eccentric preachers, and there also are some eccentric churches. The two somehow never seem to work together very peaceably.

Some brethren (preachers and churches) take advantage of the fact an Editor does not know all the circumstances involved, and thus they try to carry on some derisive local campaign through a paper against other brethren. Truth Magazine does its best to avoid involvement in such local problems. Sometimes papers have been “used” to “get at” a local problem which should be dealt with only locally. Editors, being neither omniscient nor infallible, occasionally get burned by blindly getting pulled into a local fight. In my judgment, a brother or a congregation who takes advantage of a paper in this way contemptuously and unfairly has used an otherwise useful instrument to further his or their sinister intentions.

Conclusion

We intend to do our best to be fair, honorable, and above reproach in our dealings with brethren. We expect brethren to reciprocate with a comparable intention. When either of us fails to live up to this intention, we should admit it and try to do better thereafter. Just the right blend of longsufferance and forbearance will compensate for our mutual short comings. If some book or tract mentioned in Truth Magazine is useful to you, buy it. If it is not of value to you, we would prefer that you not buy it. Brethren should make their own examinations of any congregation or preacher mentioned in the Truth Magazine pages. As said earlier, the Editor and Associate Editors of this paper are neither omniscient nor infallible. Nor are we a brotherhood clearing house. And we have no intention to become such, either advertently or inadvertently, though some brethren have denied us this affirmed intention. In so doing, they have perjured themselves, and misrepresented us.

Truth Magazine, XVIII:4, p. 3-5
November 22, 1973

By James Sanders

Our English word apostle is taken from the Greek apostolos: Originally apostle was not thought of as a religious word. The most basic meaning of apostolos (apostle) is connected with a “sending forth” of a “commission.” One who was sent forth with a commission or to represent another was called an apostolos. A naval expedition (with ships ready to` depart) was sometimes spoken of as an apostolos. At other times an apostolos would be a “bill of lading” or a “dispatched letter.” The basic idea was that of “sending forth.”

To the ancient Greek, apostolos was a “sending forth” or a “commission.”1

When Jesus named the twelve He had chosen apostoloi (apostles:), it was to describe their purpose and work. These were the ones He would commission or send forth. The epithet, apostolos, would serve as a constant reminder to them that they were men with a mission.2 Apostolos was the Lord’s way of telling them that they had a job to do and that He was depending upon them.

NT Usage

In the NT, however, apostolos means more than “sending forth” or “dispatching.” Here the word takes on added significance and importance. The concept of “authority” and especially “a warrant or charge of authority” is attached to the meaning of apostolos. In the NT, an apostolos is not just one who is sent forth; he is one who is sent with authority.3

The Twelve were such men. Christ had dispatched them with authority or commandments. Luke wrote: “Until the day in which he was taken up after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments (authority) unto the Apostles whom he had chosen” (Acts 1:2).

Because Christ had delegated authority to the Apostles, their word was binding. The commandment of an Apostle was nothing less than a delegated commandment from the Lord. Paul said to the Thessalonians: “For this cause also we thank God … because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God. . . .” (1 Thess. 2:13).

The power, then, to bind and to loose was given unto the Apostles. The Lord told Peter: “Whatever you shall bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you shall loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven” (Mtt. 16:19b, NASB). The Apostles had the “keys of the kingdom of heaven” because they had authority from Heaven. When Christ sent His Apostles forth, He dispatched them with divine power and authority. In the NT, apostolos meant one sent forth with a commission and with authority.

Apostolos is found some seventy-nine times in the NT.4 The writings of Luke and of Paul account for sixty-eight or about four-fifths of those occurrences. There are at least four different usages of apostolos in the NT: 5

1. A commissioned representative of a congregation. The word apostolos is sometimes used to describe a commissioned representative or messenger of a congregation. Epaphroditus is referred to by Paul as the messenger (apostolos) of the Philippian church (Phil. 2:25).6Epaphroditus was an apostolos because he had been sent and commissioned by Philippi.

In 2 Cor. 8:23 the same usage of apostolos occurs. Here, those who aided in the collection for the needy saints were called messengers (apostoloi) of the churches: “They are the messengers (apostoloi) of the churches and the glory of Christ.”

Luke depicts Barnabas and Paul as apostles though neither were members of the original Twelve. In fact, it is not even certain that Barnabas ever saw the risen Christ. “Which when the apostles, Barnabas and Paul, heard of, they rent their clothes, and ran in among the people, crying out” (Acts 14:14). The thirteenth chapter of Acts explains that Barnabas and Paul had been dispatched by the church at Antioch: “The Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them…. And when they had fasted and prayed … they sent them away” (Acts 13:2,3; Italics mine). Because Barnabas and Paul had been commissioned by the Spirit and sent out by the Antiochian church, they were called apostles. Apostolos sometimes means a commissioned representative of a congregation.

2. Those commissioned by the resurrected Christ. Apostolos is also used of those who: (1) had encountered the risen Christ, and (2) had received a commission from Him personally. Paul was an apostolos for this very reason. He was a witness of the resurrection and had been commissioned by Christ. Asked Paul, “Am I not an apostle? … have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord?” (1 Cor. 9:1). Paul had seen the Lord and therefore was qualified to be an apostle. To the Galatians the apostolos Paul wrote: “Paul, an apostle, (not of man, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead) . . .” (Gal. 1:1; Italics mine). Paul was an apostolos because he had seen the Lord and because he had been commissioned by Him.

James, the Lord’s brother, is likewise referred to as an apostolos: ‘Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and abode with him fifteen days. But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord’s brother” (Gal. 1:18, 19). The apostolate of James is directly linked with his personal encounter with the risen Christ: “After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. And last of all he was seen of me also . . .” (1 Cor. 15:7,8). James, though never a disciple until after the death of Jesus, e became very prominent in the early church. He was, as Paul declares, a pillar in the Jerusalem church. (Cp. Gal. 1:19; 2:9, 12; Acts 15:13-21). Apostolos in the NT was sometimes one who had seen and had been commissioned by the risen Christ.

3. The Twelve. Apostolos also has reference to the Twelve whom Jesus had chosen. These were the divinely appointed witnesses (or ambassadors) of Christ: “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The Twelve are examples of an apostolos in the most proper sense of the word. They were messengers (angeloi) who carried the gospel but they were also ambassadors. An ambassador is one who represents and speaks for another. The twelve were ambassadors (apostolos) who represented Christ.9They preached His word but they represented Him. As ambassadors, the Twelve were authorized to act and govern upon His behalf. In response to Peter’s question (“Behold we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore?”), the Lord replied: “In the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Matt. 19:28). Thrones denote glory and power. The Apostles would govern spiritual Israel by the word which they had preached. Christ had delegated to the Twelve the right of ambassadorship; He had given them the right to represent Him and to act upon His behalf.

4. The Apostle of our profession. In Hebrews 3:1, Jesus Himself is called an apostolos: “Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus.” Here the word, apostolos, is used to describe the absolute authority of Christ. He is the One who is uniquely sent out by God. He is the Son in whom God had finally spoken (Heb. 1:1). He is the High Priest who has completely expiated the sins of His people (Heb. 2:5ff.). Christ is an apostolos because He was commissioned and sent out by God. God speaks through Him because He is the Ambassador (Apostolos) of God.

Footnotes

1. William F. Arndt and F. Wilbur Gingrich, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: and Other Early Christian Literature (Limited ed. licensed to Zondervan Publishing House; Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1957), p. 99.

2. Jas. Hastings (ed.), “Apostle,” A Dictionary of Christ and The Gospels (New York: Chas. Scribner’s Sons, 1907), I, p. 104.

3. Karl Heinrich Rengstorf, “Apostello,” Theological Dictionary of The New Testament, ed. Gerhard Kittel, trans. Geoffrey W. Bromiley (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1904-), 1, p. 421. Cited hereafter as Kittel, TDNT. All transliterations are mine.

4. Joseph Henry Thayer, Greek-English Lexicon of The New Testament (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, n.d.), p. 68.

5. Kittel, TDNT, pp. 421-423.

6. Joseph Bryant Rotherham in his translation, The Emphasized New Testament (Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1959), renders apostolos literally. Epaphroditus is called an apostle.

7. A qualification for the Apostolate was to be a witness of the resurrection of Christ (Acts 1:21-22).

8. John 7:5: “For neither did his brethern believe in him.”

9. “The proper meaning of apostolos is an ambassador who not only carries a message like an angelos, but also represents the sender.” (Transliteration mine). Jas. Hastings (ed.), “Apostle”, A Dictionary of The Bible (New York: Cas. Scribner’s Sons,1900),1, p.126.

Truth Magazine, XVIII:4, p. 13-14
November 15, 1973