Truth Magazine

By Mike Willis

But I would have you know, that the bead of every man is Christ: and the head of the woman is the mant and the head of Christ is God (I Cor. 11:3).

In recent years, our country has experienced a “women’s liberation movement-” Under the guise of requesting equal salary for equal work, this movement has rejected the Lord’s divine arrangements for the role of women and been the voice of a left-wing political agenda. The leaders of the women’s movement, National Organization of Women, have supported abortion, the family leave bill, and other political causes. As part of their message, this group has denigrated the role of motherhood, belittling those mothers who think that they best serve God and this country by raising their children and maintaining a stable home. Recently, one of the women’s leaders was exposed as being involved in a lesbian relationship. Obviously, the National Organization of Women does not speak for all, or even most, women.

The influence of the women’s movement has been felt in religion, even as it has been felt in every other area of society. The seminaries of prominent denominations have an ever increasing number of women enrollees and graduates- They are taking their place in the pulpits of Protestant denominations across the country.

The Lord himself has spoken about the proper roll of women. In 1 Timothy 2:11-12, Paul wrote, ”Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence-” Those who deny the inspiration of the Bible assert that these teachings are the words of a prejudiced man, not the inspired words of God!

What Influence Will This Movement Have Among Us?

We would be naive to think that this movement in society will not influence Christians. I would like to suggest some of the ways it is influencing us:

1. Women not willing to submit to the husband’s role as head of the house. The Lord is the one who commanded that man is to be the head of the house (I Cor. 1:3). Women who refuse to submit to their husband make an impossible situation for the management of the home and undermine parental authority over the children. The home is not like a corporation run by two partners with equal authority. In that case, when matters of disagreement occur, no decisions can be made. Instead, the Lord has laid the responsibility of headship on the man.

2. Women are overstepping their bounds w speak from the pulpit with men present. Already among the liberals, women are addressing audiences with men present. Articles are being published in brotherhood journals to prepare the ground for planting the seed of women preachers. Some extremists among the liberals have already stated their intention to appoint women as deacons and elders. Less God’s . extreme brethren allow men to stay in sessions designed for women. In some lectureships for women, those women who would not speak until the men were excused were belittled. We can expect that the influence of this movement will spread, the more liberal brethren continue to set aside Bible authority.

Women attending business meetings. Women are increasingly asking for a voice in the decision-making process. In some churches among faithful brethren, women already are attending the business meetings. God has assigned to men the role of headship in the home. He has assigned to men the office of elders and deacons (I Tim. 3:1-12). These men are responsible for the decision making of the local church. In the absence of elders, the men’s business meeting is generally used to make decisions for the local church. Women have no more role in that meeting than they have in the elders meeting. The decision to allow them to attend, but not speak, can as easily be defended for their attendance at the elders meeting as for the business meeting.

I have been surprised that some brethren have not recognized the desire of women to be present at these meetings for what it is a usurpation of the authority God gave to men. We Christians are not immune to the influences of the women’s movement.

I am not defending elders or the men’s business meeting not communicating with the women, either to receive or give information. Many times women are discontent in a local church, not because they desire to participate in the decision making process, but because no one communicates to them about the Lord’s work. They desire to be a part of it and are frustrated by the lack of communication they receive about the work. In this case, the elders or the business meeting need to address the issue of how they can more effectively communicate to the church.

Women’s concept of their role in society. The worldis also influencing women’s perception of their role in society. I cannot defend from the Scriptures that a woman is always guilty of sin when she takes a job. The godly woman of Proverbs 31 was involved in secular business as also was Lydia (Acts 16:14-15). However, I can confidently assert that, when a job interferes with a woman’s (or a man’s) obligations at home and in the church, a woman has her priorities out of focus if she places her obligations to the job over her obligations at home and at church.

A woman can be fulfilled as a housewife and mother! A person does not have to have a successful career, climbing the corporate ladder, to achieve self-esteem, satisfaction, and fulfillment. The person who thinks otherwise has accepted one of the primary theses propagated by the leaders of the National Organization of Women. The acceptance of the NOW teaching about women is sometimes reflected when women apologetically say, “I’m just a housewife” when they are asked what they do. Why should a mother apologize for giving her full time to managing the house and rearing her children?

There are some occasions which demand that a woman work in order for the family to have the necessities of life (not exorbitant living standards). Many godly mothers struggle daily to manage their time, fulfilling the role of wife, mother, and employee. These Christian women are to be commended for laboring to be faithful to God with the extra burden of full-time employment. We would hope that those husbands whom they help to provide for the family would willingly help them to keep things up at home, that their load might be a little lighter.

Conclusion

Let each of us be conscious of those things in the world which are shaping our concepts of right and wrong. Paul admonished, “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Rom. 12:2). The National Organization of Women has, unfortunately, been an instrument to undermine the family.

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 6, p. 2
March 18, 1993

By Lewis Willis

The Bible is the inspired Word of God. Paul affirms as much in 2 Timothy 3:16 when he says, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” Because this is so, we in churches of Christ emphasize that the Bible serves many purposes.

It is a store house of knowledge for people who would be free from sin. Jesus said that truth would make us free (Jn. 8:32). I like a statement from Leslie Diestelkamp which I wrote down several years ago: “The Word of God misunderstood is no more helpful than the Word of God unknown!” Because of the sins of past generations, the Bible is unknown to many. Here in our country, we are rapidly moving in that direction. Because of the corruptions of religious doctrine, many are not free because they misunderstand its profound message.

The Bible is also a guide which shows Christians how to live. David wrote, “Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory” (Psa. 73:24). The Bible is God’s counsel, and it is man’s guide. He learns how to live as God wants him to live by reading the Bible. Most of the New Testament is used to outline the responsibilities of those who would serve God.

The Bible is a statement of doctrine which is to be believed. Paul said it is profitable for doctrine (2 Tim. 3:16). I read a statement in an article by Johnie Edwards this week. He wrote of those who would try to make a distinction between “faith” and “doctrine.” Johnie cited Acts 13:7-12 to show that several words were used interchangeably to refer to the same thing — the Truth. Those expressions were the Word of God, the faith, the right ways of the Lord and the doctrine of the Lord. Men try to make a distinction where God made none. For our purposes, note verse 12: “Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord.” Clearly, this man believed the doctrine.

Another of the functions of the Bible is that it nourishes us spiritually. Note the following passages which refer to it as food and water: (a) “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby” (1 Pet. 2:2); (b) “For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For every one that uses milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil” (Heb. 5:12-14); (c) “Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water” (Jn. 4:10); and, (d) “I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world” (Jn. 6:51). The Bible is the only source for this spiritual nourishment.

Man is a religious being so the Bible teaches him how to worship. (a) He is to pray (Acts 2:42). (b) He is to sing (Eph. 5:19). (c) He is to observe the Lord’s supper on the first day of every week (Acts 20:7). (d) He is to give of his money on the first day of the week as he has been prospered (1 Cor. 16:2). And, (e) he is to study God’s Word, and this comes from teaching (Acts 20:7). There is no other source provided by God to guide us in worship except the Bible.

Man is a sinful being so the Bible teaches him how to be forgiven. (a) He is told he must hear the gospel and believe (Rom. 10:17; Jno. 8:24). (b) He must repent of his sins (Lk. 13:3; Acts 2:38; 17:30). (c) He must confess his faith in Christ with his mouth (Matt. 10:32-33; Rom. 10:10; Acts 8:37). (d) He then must be baptized as the Word of God directs (Matt. 28:19; Mk. 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3-4; Gal. 3:26-27; 1 Pet. 3:21). (e) Thereafter a man must be faithful until the time of his death (Rev. 2:10). These are the things specified by the Bible which one must do to be saved. They are certainly not unknown to us anymore. One would have to have help to misunderstand them.

Man is a suffering being so the Bible tells him about the Great Physician (Matt. 9:12-13). The Word of God teaches us that God cares for us (1 Pet. 5:7), and that he will never leave us or forsake us, but will be a helper to us (Heb. 13:5-6). When the troubles of life beset us, the words of the Bible are to be used to comfort and console us (1 Thess. 4:18).

8. Because man is an intelligent being, the Bible is presented to him to instruct him in the ways of righteousness. God’s Word identifies the good works which man must do (2 Tim. 3:16-17; Eph. 2:10; Tit. 2:14). No instruction we receive is as great as the instruction found in the Bible.

Therefore, the value of the Bible is in the things it will do for us, as outlined above. We could have spoken of other things. When we are weak, it supplies courage and strength. It gives us occasions for joy, and comforts us when we are in sorrow. When we are in despair, it gives hope. And, when it is time to die, it tells us about eternal life which is available to those who have served God. Do you know of any other document or book about which all of these things could be said? Is the Bible of value to you?

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 5, p. 10
March 4, 1993

By Tony Ripley

The Pharisees, even though they were of the strictest sect of the Law, were people of external and artificial righteousness. The priests were certainly more indicative of this in that they paraded their celebrated phylacteries, their great affluent cloaks, as well as their regal words of wisdom. A good Pharisee was one that paid strict attention to outward conduct. (For you never knew who might be watching you!) A good example of such an attitude is found in Luke 18:1Of. In this passage we see a contrast between two men: one a Pharisee and the other a publican. The Pharisee held true to the stereo-typical characteristics of his own class and kind as we notice in verse 11. “The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as the rest of men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week; I give tithes of all that I get.” Such arrogance and self-centeredness were typical of the genuine Pharisee character.

In Matthew 15:1-20 Jesus rebuked this sect for their vain reasoning. They were worried so much more about outward cleanliness that they had totally disregarded inward cleansing. Jesus said, “But the things which proceed out of the mouth come forth out of the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart come forth evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, railings: these are the things which defile the man” (vv. 18-20). Jesus was concerned with the righteousness that men were seeking. He pointed out that man should be more interested in the motive and intent of the heart rather than what others might think of him. Notice the Beatitudes that Jesus mentioned in Matthew 5. He shows us attitudes completely opposite to the world’s standards today. Listen!

Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled.

Blessed are the merciful; for they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called the sons of God.

Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

“The Pharisee stood and prayed thus . . . God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are… And the publican … smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner…” (Lk. 18:11,13).

These virtues were of such caliber that external shows and parades did little good, for these were attitudes of the heart. In Matthew 4:4 Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word which proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” This shows us that man needs more than food for the outward body which quickly perishes (2 Cor. 4:16), but that he must have food for the inward man as well.

Again in Luke 18:13f Jesus praises a publican, not for what he was outwardly, but for what he really was inwardly. Notice his statement: “But the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote his breast, saying, God be thou merciful to me a sinner. I say unto you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other.”

Our attitudes need special attention and care at all times. In word and deed we want our lips to match our hearts. The old expressions, “think before you speak” and “think before you act,” are really good bits of advice. We should evaluate our motives before bearing information about another. We should examine our intent prior to carrying out a certain act regardless of whether or not it looks good to the public. For we seek to please God not men. Let’s be careful that the righteousness that we’re seeking is not an external, artificial, ephemeral type of justification that appeals only to the world’s eye. For Jesus exclaimed, “For I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and the Pharisees, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven.”

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 4, p. 23
February 18, 1993

By Mike Willis

Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye (Matt. 7:1-5).

This text is one of the more abused texts in the Bible. One can expect to hear it quoted when a state executes a murderer, a church exercises discipline, and a preacher condemns false religion. These abuses of the text, however, do not change the fact that it is teaching that a certain kind of judging is sinful. We need to learn what kinds of judgment are wrong and what kinds are right.

The Bible Does Not Condemn All Judging

The word “judge” occurs 191 times in the Bible and its cognates increase the number to over 500. Though the judgment under discussion is occasionally God’s judgment, there are human judgments which are commanded of men. In whatever understanding of Matthew 7:1-6 we reach, we must not interpret these verses to condemn those actions elsewhere commanded. Here are some judgments commanded of men:

A church judging differences between brethren. In 1 Corinthians 6:1-8, Paul commanded the church to appoint judges to decide differences between brethren so that brethren would not take their differences before unbelievers.

Church discipline. In 1 Corinthians 5, Paul condemned the church at Corinth for not withdrawing from the fornicator who had taken his father’s wife to be his wife. Whatever we understand Matthew 7 to teach, it cannot condemn the judgments which are essential in withdrawing from the impenitent wicked.

Judging men to be false prophets. John commanded that Christians “try the spirits” to see whether or not they were from God. He gave the criteria for making the determination. Even in Matthew 7, Jesus warned of the danger false prophets pose to his children (7:15). Hence, this passage cannot condemn the judgments made in ascertaining that a man is a false teacher.

Condemning sin. The work of a gospel preacher necessitates that he “reprove, rebuke, and exhort” (2 Tim. 4:1-2). In so doing, he will label certain kinds of conduct as “works of the flesh” which keep a person out of heaven (Gal. 5:19-21). Matthew 7 is not condemning the judgments necessary to condemn sin. The preacher only reports God’s judgment about sin; he is not merely expressing his own judgments.

A state punishing a criminal. Romans 13 instructs civil courts to administer God’s vengeance upon the criminal. Paul stated that the civil government did not “bear the sword in vain.” When a state punishes a criminal, even in the death penalty, it is only doing what God commanded. Its actions are not a violation of Matthew 7.

Jesus’ words in Matthew 7 were not designed to make men blind to the facts about us, ignore the information gathered by our senses, or make us tolerant of sinful conduct.

The Bible Condemns Sinful Judgments

There are some sinful kinds of judgment which we must avoid. Here are some of them:

1. Censoriousness. Some are hypercritical, fault finders and nit pickers. This passage condemns this kind of judgment.

Evil surmising (1 Tim. 6.4). This kind of judgment at-tributes bad motives to one’s fellow man without evidence to conclude that it is there. People who gossip usually at-tribute evil motives to other’s actions. This evil surmising is grounded in hatred for that person.

Self-righteousness (cf. Lk. 18:9-14). Some manifest a “holier-than-thou” disposition when they condemn the con-duct of others. Jesus forbade that self-righteous disposition in the parable of the Pharisee and publican who prayed in the Temple.

Hypocritical. In the text before us, Jesus exposed the sinful conduct of hypocritical judgments. He compared hypocritical judgment to the man who was trying to remove a speck of sawdust from another’s eye, while having a telephone pole in his own eye.

Fruits of Sinful Judgment

There are some things which sinful kinds of judgment pro-duce. Knowing its fruits should motivate us to avoid committing sinful kinds of judgment.

Sinful judgment obscures our moral vision. The hypocrite minimizes his own sin and maximizes the faults which are in others. He does not have clear moral vision. The censorious person has no even-handed balance in his assessment of other’s conduct.

Sinful judgment creates animosity toward oneself. Jesus warned that the same judgment we use on others will be used on us. Sinful judgments create animosity, hatred, and bitterness. We need to recognize that sinful judgments destroy the peace and harmony of a family and church.

How To Make Proper Judgments

Get all the facts. Jesus said, “Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment” (Jn. 7:24). Sometimes judgments are formed without knowing all of the facts and unrighteous judgments are made.

Use the right standard. The word of God is the only standard fitted to be used for judgment. My personal whims should not be used as a standard by which to measure others. If sin has not been committed, I would be best served by keeping my mouth shut and not condemning the person for his actions.

Look for contributing circumstances. Sin is sin. It is always wrong. However, sometimes the circumstances under which a sin is committed make for a gentler judgment of my fellow man. A dose of the Indian adage about walking a mile in my brother’s shoes would do each of us good.

Have the proper attitude. When sin is condemned and exposed, it should be done with meekness (Gal. 6:1) and love (Eph. 4:15). Arrogant, self-righteousness will embitter men.

Conclusion

Let us resolve to avoid sinful judgments and to manifest the right spirit in expressing God’s judgment against sin.

Guardian of Truth XXXVII: 5, p. 2
March 4, 1993