Truth Magazine

By Mike Willis

There are many portraits which have been drawn of Bible characters and events, but I don’t ever recall seeing one in which Judas was portrayed. In Bible Epitaphs, C.E. McCartney quoted William Hazlitt to say, “I would fain see the face of him who, having dipped his hand in the same dish with the Son of Man, could afterward betray Him. I have no conception of such a thing, nor have I ever seen any picture that gave me the least idea of it” (18). Judas remains an enigma to us.

What Judas Did

Judas was one of Jesus’ disciples. When Jesus chose his apostles from among his disciples, Judas was one of the twelve selected. He probably was one of the more outstanding disciples to have been selected by Christ. As an apostle, he walked with Jesus every day during his earthly ministry. He heard Jesus’ teaching about God, witnessed the miracles he performed, and saw the character of the only perfect man ever to have lived. He saw the glory of God incarnate (Jn. 1:14; 14:9).

But Judas was a thief (Jn. 12:6). When he witnessed the “wastefulness” of the woman who anointed Jesus with precious ointment, he rebuked Jesus for allowing this to happen (Jn. 12:4-6). Matthew ties this event to his decision to betray Jesus to the Jews for thirty pieces of silver. He probably perceived that Jesus had no intentions of establishing an earthly kingdom and that there would be no exalted position to bring him wealth, power and fame.

At Jesus’ last supper with the apostles, “Satan entered his (Judas’) heart” (Lk. 22:3). He left the Apostles and led the Jews to the Garden of Gethsemane to arrest Jesus. Later, when Judas saw the outcome of his dastardly deed, he regretted what he had done and returned the money to the Jews. Then he went out and hung himself.

His eternal destiny is not left in doubt. Jesus said, “The Son of man goeth as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! It had been good for that man if he had not been born” (Matt. 26:24). He was the son of perdition who was lost (Jn. 17:12).

Nevertheless, when Luke records the selection of Matthias to take Judas’ place, he wrote, “That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place” (Acts 1:25). The eternal destiny which Judas received was his own place. In the same sense, heaven is one’s own place for him who lays up his treasure there (Matt. 6:19-20). Someone wrote,

The tissue of the life to be,

We weave with colors all our own; And on the fields of destiny

We reap as we have sown.

Each of us going to his own place.

 

We Choose Our Own Place In This World

There are some aspects of life beyond our control. I did not choose the place of my birth, parents, physical appearance or genetic make-up. Nevertheless, there remains much of life which we create for ourselves.

 

1. We choose our marriage companion. There are different kinds of women for a man to choose. A person can go after the one who dresses in the attire of a harlot, is loud and boisterous, and is forward (Prov. 7:10-13). Or, he can look for a companion who is modest in dress (1 Tim. 2:9-10), has a meek and quiet spirit (1 Pet. 3:4), and has the “law of kindness” on her tongue (Prov. 31:26). Every man who goes home from work to meet his mate goes to his own place. He chose for himself the kind of mate to whom he wished to go at the end of every day.

 

2. We choose what kind of home relationship we will have. A person can create his own place by how he con-ducts himself in his home. If he chooses to be selfish toward his wife, neglect her needs, and be abusive in his speech, he should not be surprised to receive in return anger, resentment, and ill will. Each of us goes to his own place  a home he has made for himself by his manner of life.

 

3. We choose what kind of relationship we have with our children. Our children can be the source of much sorrow and grief (Prov. 10:1). Sometimes parents create for themselves this sorrow and grief by how they treat their children. When they do not provide the proper kind of discipline (Prov. 22:15), provoke their children to anger (Eph. 6:4), ignore and neglect their children, and spoil them by giving them everything they ever want, parents create monsters out of their children  monsters with whom they have to live!

 

 

4. Children choose their own place with reference to their parents. Teenagers may be slow to realize that they create their own place by how they act toward their parents. If children sass their parents or otherwise show disrespect, bring home poor grades from school, and are negligent about the chores assigned to them, they should not be surprised when their parents are angry. They have created their own place by their conduct.

 

We Choose Our Own Place in the Church

When we get up to go to church on Sunday morning, we go to our own place. The church with which we worship is what we make of it. We can make the church with which we worship a bad experience if we choose to bite and devour one another (Gal. 5:15). We can go to a church which is dead or dying if we bring half-hearted worship, never mention Christ to our neighbors and friends, and sit back and do nothing to convert our young people and keep them active. If you never open the doors of your home to show hospitality toward other Christians and your neighbors and friends, you will go to your own place when you go to a dead or dying church!

On the other hand, you can go to a church which is alive and zealous, characterized by members who weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice. Your worship can be directed by a song leader who has prepared himself to lead singing, a preacher who proclaims God’s word from sincerity and dedication, prayers which pour out our hearts’ desires, and a warm remembrance of Christ’s sacrifice on Calvary. What it is depends upon each of us, but it is true that each of us will go to his own place when he leaves for worship this Sunday morning.

We Choose Our Own Place in Eternity

As was especially true for Judas, so also it is true for each of us. Each of us chooses for himself his eternal destiny. I can lay up treasure for myself in heaven (Matt. 6:2W; by patient continuance in well-doing I will reap eternal life (Rom. 2:7). Or like Judas, I can so live that it would be better that I not be born, become a son of perdition, and receive the wrath and indignation of God (Rom. 2:9). But if this is what I receive, it will be my own place. I will have prepared it for myself; this will be the just wages of my unrighteousness.

What kind of place are you making for yourself on earth? Do you go home to a place that is more like a heaven on earth or like a hell hole? Remember, it is generally true that you make it for yourself. What kind of place will you have for yourself in eternity? Heaven or hell? Remember that when you die, like Judas, you too will go to your own place, one which you have prepared for yourself. Which will it be?

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 11, p. 2
June 3, 1993

By Irvin Himmel

The text for this homily is John 8:31,32: “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, if ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

A disciple is a learner. The Jews who were taught by John the Baptist were called John’s disciples (Jn. 3:25). The people who believed in Jesus and followed him were called disciples of Jesus (Jn. 18:1; 19:38). The Jews who were clinging to the law of Moses but refused to believe in Jesus considered themselves to be Moses’ disciples On. 9:28).

There is a pronounced difference between a disciple and a disciple indeed. The people who learned enough to believe in Jesus were considered his disciples, but the Lord said, “If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples in-deed” The word “indeed” means “truly,’ “in reality,” or “most certainly.” One may be called a disciple without being that in reality.

1. To be a disciple indeed one must continue in the word of Christ. Some take the word of Christ lightly. They are not willing to be bound by the Lord’s teaching. They are determined to believe what seems good in their own eyes. They rely more on human wisdom than on the divine word. They follow Christ’s word only when it happens to coincide with their own preconceptions, notions, and thoughts. Paul taught that every thought is to be brought into captivity to the obedience of Christ (2 Cor. 10:5). He urged, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom” (Col. 3:16). Whether we respect and continue in the word of Christ or not, it will judge us in the last day (Jn. 12:48).

2. To be a disciple indeed one must love the Lord more than all else. Jesus said, “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever cloth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple” (Lk. 14:26,27). Immediately after these statements, our Master illustrated how we must be willing to count the cost. Many people are unwilling to pay the price required in true discipleship. They want to be disciples on their own terms, not the Lord’s terms. They are unwilling to take a stand for Christ and the truth if it means being criticized and ridiculed by friends, business associates, or relatives. No one is a true disciple unless he stands ready to part with anything or anyone that may come between him and the Savior. “So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple” (Lk. 14:33).
3. To be a disciple indeed one must bear fruit. Jesus spoke of himself as the true vine, the Father as the husbandman (vinedresser), and the disciples as branches growing in the vine. “1 am the vine, ye are the branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” He also said, “Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples” (Jn. 15:1-8). To abide in Christ requires that his words abide in us. If we ignore his words and practice what he has not authorized in religion, we make ourselves unfruitful. We must keep his commandments to abide in his love On. 15:10).
4. To be a disciple indeed one must love others who are true disciples. Jesus said, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another” On. 13:34,35). John wrote, “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also” (I Jn. 4:20,21) Love prompts true disciples to help each other. We do not help each other by condoning error, by sanctioning sin, and by defending unscriptural concepts. Paul strongly rebuked the brethren in Corinth for their sins because he loved them.
5. To be a disciple indeed one must persevere. The word of truth is misunderstood sometimes. People think we are being too hard when we preach the word just as it is writ-ten. In John 6:60, some thought what Jesus said was too hard to accept. “Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can bear it?” In verse 66 we read, “From that time many of this disciples went back, and walked no more with him.” They were finished with Jesus! This happens often today. Some cannot endure sound doctrine (2 Tim. 4:3). They are unwilling to do as did the disciples in Jerusalem who “continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers” (Acts 2:42). In some cases they feel so uncomfortable among true disciples that they take their leave and never return. Concerning such, John said, “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us” (1 Jn. 2:19).

It is not enough for us to be called disciples of Jesus Christ. Let us demonstrate before others that we are his disciples indeed.

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 10, p. 23
May 20, 1993

By Canadian Prince

With deep sadness I received the news that Art Corbett of Jordan, Ontario, Canada departed this life on April 27, 1993 after an extended illness. The Corbetts, Art and Lillian, have been a bulwark of strength in the Lord’s work in Ontario, Canada for over 50 years. They were baptized by Roy E. Cogdill after the first gospel sermon they heard (though there had been some private studies before that). They grew rapidly in Christ and became active not only in the work at Jordan, but throughout the province of Ontario. They have given liberally of their time, talent and resources to promote the cause of Christ.

I first met them in my first meeting in Ontario which was at Owen Sound in 1961. Since then it has been my privilege to preach in 25 gospel meetings in Ontario, most of which were attended by the Corbetts and some of which were largely financed by them. Their home was always a haven of hospitality for gospel preachers. After a series of strokes weakened him, he had to be hospitalized. Lillian lovingly and faithfully took care of him.

The Corbett children and grandchildren have been active in the Lord’s work also. Funeral services were con-ducted on April 30 from the Tallman Funeral Home in Vineland with the service conducted by family members. Jim Nicholson, a son-in-law, spoke at the services, as did John Hains, who is married to a granddaughter. Grand-sons were pallbearers.

With the death of Art Corbett a noble era passes in the work in Ontario. He loved the truth and those who preached it. He could ably fill the pulpit and served for many years as one of the elders at Jordan. His convictions were never for sale. His influence, together with other good men, kept the church at Jordan steady when many were being lured into institutationalism. We will miss our dear friend and brother. Our loving sympathy is extended to his wife Lillian and to all the children and grandchildren.

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 11, p. 7
June 3, 1993

By William C. Sexton

Paul has a long chapter dealing with some important matters in 1 Corinthians 7. Many aspects of the marriage relationship in a time “of distress,” or difficulty, are touched upon. Prayerful and serious consideration should be given to them. Let us desire to know the truth and be determined to practice it when we see it.

In verses 27-28 there’s a principle that gives some trouble. I wish for us to ponder the idea that is presented there. The way it is translated in the KJV it may appear to say something that is out of harmony with other Scriptures. It reads:

Art thou bound to a wife? seek not to be loosed. Art thou loosed from a wife? seek not a wife. But if thou marry, thou has not sinned; and if a virgin marry, she hath not sinned. Nevertheless such shall have trouble in the flesh; but I spare you.

To some at first the word loosed may seem to mean that you have been bound (married) and then set free, by way of divorce, when they read the second part of the verse where the word loosed means “divorce.” However, it can be and is translated:

Are you married? Do not seek a divorce. Are you unmarried? Do not look for a wife. But if you do marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. But those who marry will face many troubles in this life, and I want to spare you this (NIV).

In this way of translating the verse, it makes sense, and is in harmony with what is stated elsewhere. Matthew 19:9, points to the necessity of staying married, with but one exception, that of “fornication” or unfaithfulness on the part of one. If such violation has occurred (fornication), the other is able to marry again without the sin of adultery. That same principle has been restated in 1 Corinthians 7:10-11 along with Romans 7:1-4. If the verse was read to mean that loosed means divorced in verse 27 for any cause without qualification, then it would be saying that they can remarry without sin. That is contrary to all that the Lord says on the subject, and thus cannot mean that. Rather it is talking about the unmarried, not having a wife. For the present distress, troubling times, it would be better to remain unmarried, as is stated in the first verse of the chapter.

Let us read God’s word in context, and with the flow of divine thought that is in harmony with all that God says on the subject. This is an important matter that is disregarded by many in and out of the church today, with grave consequences. We challenge each to see the meaning of the Lord’s teachings and to determine to abide within their bounds.

Such activity is possible and profitable. When we look into the perfect law of liberty (Jas. 1:25) and continue therein, doing what we are directed to do, we are in good condition. When we fail to walk according to the teachings, we are off on our own and will perish.

Beloved in our day there is much trouble in our nation and in the church due to a violation of God’s law given to regulate the family. We shall be able to help only when we read carefully so as to understand what God says, and then have deep enough conviction to live by it and to place it clearly before others, asking them to consider the teachings and the fruit of being governed by the “law of Christ” (1 Cor. 9:21; Gal. 6:2).

I know of nothing in our land to-day that is so destructive to the souls of people and produces more heart-ache than the breakup of the family. It is occurring in and out of the church, due to a lack of teaching and respect for God’s will. The ills that we see everywhere shall continue to grow, till people in leadership roles stand up, speak out, and hold their ground on this vital matter.

I recognize that not all who hear the truth will believe and practice it, but they can’t possibly do right if they are ignorant of God’s teachings. Who has the responsibility/privilege to make it known? Will we step for-ward and discharge our responsibility or shall we remain in the shadows claiming we have no duty to speak out?

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 11, p. 5
June 3, 1993