Truth Magazine

By Roy E. Cogdill

Men have as much right to alter the Word of God as to remodel and redesign the structure or function of the church of God. The same prerogative that grants to man the right to do one justifies the other, also. But such right does not exist and to exercise it is to bring upon one’s self the anathema of Almighty God. Man has no right to change God’s Word and he has no right to lay his unholy hands upon the church to change it in any way. God designed it from eternity (Eph. 3:10-11). Jesus built it after the divine pattern, upon the divinely laid foundation (Matt. 16:18-20). The Holy Spirit dwells in it to give it life, strength, power and vitality (Eph. 2:19-22). It is in this body, designed by the wisdom and will of Almighty God, sent from heaven and established upon this earth by the Lord Jesus Christ, and directed by the Holy Spirit that God is to be glorified (Eph. 3:21). But this cannot be done by altering the divine pattern for the church any more than it can be done by changing the message of His Word. When men do one, they signify thereby that they would not hesitate to do the other, if they thought it would be accepted by those with whom they are in fellowship. After all, a human creed is no worse than a human organization or a human program or work and worship! Why should it be so regarded? The same passage that teaches one God, one Lord, one faith, and one baptism, also teaches one body (Eph. 4:4-6)!

We have pointed out the divine organization of the Lord’s Church as it is revealed in the New Testament. The one and only organization known to New Testament scriptures is the local church! We challenge any one to produce another. There was nothing larger, smaller, or other than the local church. Through it, all of the Lord’s work was carried on by the people of God. When that organization began to be altered by the wisdom and unbelief of fallible men, apostasy ensued and out of that apostasy, human creeds and human denominational organizations grew. It is even so today!

The “Rule” of the Elders

Over each one of these local churches, God appointed that elders should “rule” or have the superintendence and oversight as bishops. This rule was not by their own authority, residual either in them as men, or in the “office” or work to which they had been appointed, but in the execution of the will of the Lord, the head over all things to the church which is his body, and therefore by his authority. It was not a delegated authority that made them “lords” over the churches. From the exercise of their own will, using the “office” to have their own way and follow their own judgment, they were precluded. A self-willed man is not qualified to be an elder (Titus 1:7). Neither did their position of responsibility give them license to act as “lords” over the heritage of God (the church). The sovereignty belongs to the Lord and everything anyone does in the church of the Lord must be done by his authority (1 Pet. 5:1-5; Eph. 1:21-23).

One extreme among brethren today, concerning the eldership, is the idea that elders, or bishops, constitute a sort of hierarchy that is almost, if not quite, infallible and that these men who have the God appointed rule have the right to determine truth for us all, lay down a prescribed rule by which we are to live, and steer the church on a course of activity from which none have the scriptural right to dissent. The common conception along this line, which is used to excuse fellowship or participation in something admittedly without Bible authority in the activity of the church, is that when the elders decide upon a course of action, right or wrong, every member must be in subjection to them and no one has the right to refuse to follow them in such a course. The infallibility claimed for the Roman Catholic Hierarchy in their “interpretation of the scriptures” and in the authority exercised by them, even to the claim to be able to forgive sins, is no more absolute than that. The Bible teaches that we must obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29). This applies to any kind of authority, governmental, parental, marital, or congregational. The individual that is willing to violate his conscience by fellowshipping what is not in harmony with the teaching of the Lord, just because the elders think it is all right, or for any other reason, is untrue to the Lord and disobedient to his obligation to recognize the Lord as the one and only sovereign of his heart and life.

Concerning elders Paul wrote, 1 Tim. 5:17-20, “Them that sin, rebuke before all, that others also may fear.” This injunction was delivered to a Gospel preacher and was not idle instruction. A preacher that will not dissent and refuse to go along, even with the elders under whom he labors, as well as any others, when they depart from that which is according to truth is a time-server and man pleaser, a hireling and unworthy of Christian fellowship. Every Christian has an obligation to determine what the truth is by his own study of the Word of God and honor it above all else. Elders, if there is any difference at all, are charged with special duty to follow strictly the will of the Lord and watch against any departure therefrom, either in theory or practice (Acts 20:28-32).

That there is wide spread abuse of the eldership along this and many other lines is apparent to all who are in any wise acquainted with the true facts. Sometimes elders are jealous of their “authority” and will not take anyone, preacher, deacon, teacher, or member into their counsel, seeking their advice and help in settling even matters of judgment and expediency. They feel called upon to make every decision without considering or consulting those over whom they “rule.” This is very unwise and will eventually breed rebellion. If a father of the family should feel that it is his right and obligation to make every decision without the advice, counsel, or without even consulting the wishes and preferences of the members of the family, he will breed rebellion. Members, who are properly taught, know how to give their advice, counsel and help in such matters without trespassing upon the duty and responsibility of the elders. Elders who are competent to be recognized as elders should and will know how to keep in constant touch with the members under their supervision without either yielding their responsibility or without being “lords” and oppressive in the exercise of their duty to “rule.”

The other extreme is the presently agitated theory among some, even of the “sound brethren,” that elders have no “oversight” and cannot rightly rule except by teaching and example. There must be the right to “exercise the oversight,” “to tend,” “to take heed,” “to watch,” not by teaching of example only, but in admonition, restraint, discipline, and direction. Upon the elders this responsibility has been made to rest and their obligation to discharge it must be honored not only by them “for they must give an account unto God” for the souls over whom they watch; but it must be honored by those under their “watch,” “oversight” or “tending” by recognizing the subjection that is due them. To disrespect this or try to discredit it is not in harmony with divine authority any more than altering the government of God’s Church by enlarging their authority and jurisdiction. One is as much a departure as the other and both are spiritual anarchy against the God-given government in His church.

Truth Magazine XIX: 51, pp. 812-813
November 6, 1975

By Austin Mobley

In Proverbs four we see the earnestness and tenderness of the father’s instructions and entreaties as he urges his son to ever keep before his eyes and in his heart the word of God. The great physical blessings of life and health are promised if the son will follow the father’s good teachings throughout life (Prov. 4:10).

This sage advice is also good for both young and old today (Rom. 15:4). It pleased God to have Solomon lay out a course that will not only enhance our physical welfare, but our spiritual lives as well, if we will give diligent heed to the words of the wise monarch. Here is the prescription for “health” in Proverbs 4:20-27.

An Inclined Ear

“My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart” (Verses 20-21).

An inclined ear is one that hears and obeys. We are blessed as long as we lend a listening ear to the commands of God, and then do our best to practice everything that will make us “. . . strong in the Lord and the power of His might” (Eph. 6:10-18). But it does little good merely to hear the sayings of Jesus and do them not (Matt. 7:21-27). We deceive ourselves when we hear only. The man is blessed when he is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the word (Jas. 1:21-25). Even a good seed planted in the soil will bear no fruit until it becomes active. It is not enough to hear a lesson taught or a sermon preached, we must put the lesson into practice. While a man is standing before a mirror he is seeing himself in reflection, but if something is out of order it will not change until he does something about it. Likewise, when one reads the Bible he is seeing his duties portrayed, but must do them to receive the blessings promised.

A Guarded Heart

“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Verse 23).

Hearts should be guarded as a man guards a treasure placed in a bank vault for safe keeping. The heart is here pictured as an active fountain, from which flows the issues of life. As physical health depends upon the action of the physical heart, even so spiritual health depends upon the spiritual heart. The heart is hard to manage and often gets us into trouble because we let down our guard. When this happens evil enters, and that which enters the heart will eventually find its way out (Prov. 23:7). “For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies” (Matt. 15:19). That is quite an evil potential. Few hearts are free from bitterness, anger, covetousness, hypocrisy and evil surmisings, so the heart must be guarded.

Controlled Mouth

“Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee” (Verse 24).

A “froward mouth” is one that issues fraudulent deceitful speech; that which twists, distorts, perverts, or misrepresents the truth. Our speech is but an index of our mind. Now the tongue is hard to control. Most of the third chapter of James is devoted to instructions concerning the use, and misuse of the tongue. Small as it is, it is capable of controlling the rest of the body. With it we say “Yes” or “No” to the temptations of Satan. With it we help or hurt friends and loved ones. With it we speak the truth or lie. With it we teach the word of God or the doctrines of men. With it we bless God or curse men. It is true that no man can tame the tongue (Jas. 3:8), but he can control it. The black panther can never be tamed, but he can be controlled.

Single Eyes

“Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee” (Verse 25).

A favorite expression among young people today is, “Right on,” meaning that which has their approval. God wants our eyes to be “right on” heaven. We cannot serve two masters, keeping one eye on the pleasures of the world and the other on the glories of heaven. There is but one way for the Christian to look-toward his Christ! Thus we “seek those things which are above where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God” (Col. 3:1). When we take our eyes off the strait and narrow way, we veer into the ditch of condemnation.

Established Feet

“Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: Remove thy foot from evil” (Verses 26-27).

A pondered path is one that is carefully thought out. Before obeying the gospel of Christ one should first sit down and count the cost (Lk. 14:28). The road is narrow, sometimes rough, and long. It will take much courage and perseverance to reach the end. Pondering well our next step will prevent many a heartache and keep us from making shipwreck of our faith. A little pondering over Matt. 19:9 would stop any God-fearing person from entering into a marriage contract that involved an unscriptural divorce. Pondering over 1 Cor. 15:33 should cause Christians to be selective of the company they keep.

There are no short-cuts to heaven; once we have begun to travel there is but one way to go-ON! If one is not allowed to turn to the left or the right, his way is mapped out for him. The great tragedy of religion is the fact that so many do not want to remain within the limits of divine authority. So many prefer to turn to the left or to the right and see what men have to say rather than accept the authority of Christ.

Conclusion

Suppose for a moment that God would place in your hands a massive, priceless diamond, then ask you to inscribe some brief sentence upon it which would be read at the judgment. What caution you would exercise in the wording of that sentence! But He has placed in your hands something far more precious than diamonds; your soul. Guard it well by heeding this advice of Solomon.

Truth Magazine XIX: 51, pp. 811-812
November 6, 1975

By Ron Halbrook

The Bible is the Word of God. This the Bible claims. Expressions like “the Lord spake unto Moses” appear hundreds of times in Genesis through Deuteronomy. David’s Psalms are famous. David made this claim for his writings, “The Spirit of the Lord spake by me, and his word was in my tongue” (2 Sam. 23:2). “The word of the Lord came unto . . . .” “Thus saith the Lord . . . .” Such phrases are used over and over by the Old Testament prophets. The writers of the New Testament also claim divine authority. For instance, Paul said he spoke the things of divine wisdom “not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth” (1 Cor. 2:13). ‘All scripture is given by inspiration of God” both Old and New Testaments -that is what the Bible claims for itself (2 Tim. 3:16). To make such a claim, the Bible must be either truly God’s Word or else the worst fraud and foulest hoax ever perpetrated. There is no middle ground!

Bible prophecy proves the inspiration of Scripture. Of many examples, Isaiah 53 is perhaps best. About 700 years before Jesus Christ came, Isaiah gave a detailed description of his appearance, character, life, death, burial, and resurrection. “He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities . . . the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all . . . he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” Men cannot see such future events as Isaiah saw without God’s help.

Men unaided by God could not have written the Bible-66 separate books written by some 40 different writers generally not knowing each other or living in the same towns. Yet there is perfect unity, harmony, and consistency-one Deity, one story of love, one Savior. Our universe reflects a variety (different planets, creatures, laws, etc.) and harmony-the planets, creatures, laws, etc. are inter-related and work together for the good of each other; this is possible only under the supervising hand of God. Even so, the Bible reflects a variety natural to the personality, times, purpose, and location of the human authors; the harmony of the Bible is possible in these circumstances only under God’s direction.

Supporting evidences for the inspiration of the Bible include historical and archaeological evidences. In other words, although the Bible is primarily a religious book and not a history text, still the Bible contradicts no proven historical fact. It is consistent with all proven historical facts. Archaeologists dig up the remains of ancient peoples. Not only is the Bible consistent with all proven archaeological data, it has even been used as a guide to many archaeological sites! If the claim of the Bible to inspiration is true, we would expect just such accuracy in the text.

If man be considered the ultimate producer of the Bible, an inadequate cause is accepted. God is the only possible Adequate Cause for these and other features of the Bible. “To forge the Bible is impossible as to forge a world.” Some people object to the idea of God speaking to man in His Word, but there is the evidence. Others object saying the Bible has been used abusively, barbarously, even insanely, so it could not be God’s book. But science has been misused monstrously, and we do not discard science; we try harder to use it properly. That’s what we should do with God’s Word. “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15).

Truth Magazine XIX: 51, pp. 810-811
November 6, 1975

By Luther Blackmon

These are some terms that are often used, but I fear little understood even by members of the church. Let us take them in reverse order and examine each one.

Anti-scriptural: means “against” or “opposite” the scripture. When one commits murder or adultery, for example, he is acting in violation of a direct prohibition of the scriptures. Such things are anti-scriptural. Some people seem to think that this is the only way the scriptures forbid anything. But let us look to the next word, “unscriptural.”

Unscriptural: means “lacking scriptural authority;” not a thing specifically forbidden by the scriptures. This would be anti-scriptural But a thing not authorized in the scriptures, either by direct statement; approved example, or necessary inference, is unscriptural. Instrumental music in worship falls into this category. W e are often asked why we do not use instrumental music in worship. When we answer that it is not authorized by the New Testament scriptures, we are saying that it is unscriptural. To this answer we usually hear the objection, “Well, the Bible doesn’t say not to have it.” Those who offer this objection labor under the impression that for a thing to be wrong it must be anti-scriptural. Not so. The sons of Aaron “offered strange fire before the Lord” and were killed by a fire that “went out from the Lord and devoured them” (Lev. 10:1,2). God had not forbidden them to offer this particular fire. He had told them what fire to offer and that made the use of any other fire wrong. It might be well for us to meditate upon some of these Old Testament cases and see what God did to those who impiously acted without His authority in such matters. A lot of otherwise good people think nothing of presuming to add to what God has authorized in the worship and organization of the church. These same people would feel horrified at the thought of committing murder or adultery. Well, let me tell you something, neighbor. If you will read your Old Testament, you will find that God has always been more tolerant of such things as adultery and murder than He has of those who presumed to add to His arrangements. If you think this isn’t so, look at David. He committed adultery with Uriah’s wife and then had him killed, but God forgave him. Then look at the sons of Aaron, look at Korah, Dathan and Abiram (Numbers 16). Look at Uzzah (2 Kings 6). They were careless and presumptuous with the things of God, and they died for it. How do you come to the conclusion that it is wrong to kill or commit adultery, but a small thing to add to the word of the Lord? Of course, murder and adultery are wrong, but I would just as soon take my chances of going to heaven guilty of these as to try to get there while disregarding the authority of the scriptures in some matter pertaining to the name, worship, doctrine, organization or function of the church.

Scriptural: means authorized by the scriptures, or having scriptural support; not merely mentioned in the scriptures. Many things are mentioned in the scriptures that could not be called scriptural. As stated above, a thing is scriptural when it is authorized by command, approved example, or necessary inference.

Truth Magazine XIX: 51, pp. 809-810
November 6, 1975