Truth Magazine

By J. Edward Nowlin

There are some relationships in life from which one may just pick up his hat and walk away. For instance, one who is employed to work on a job may find the work or the working conditions unsatisfactory to him, and simply quit after due notice. This amounts to unilateral severance of the employer-employee relationship. If the employer is unhappy with the arrangement, he may terminate the employee, preferably with adequate notice, in which case the result would be the same.

Membership in the church is quite another matter. It seems that some wish to operate here on the basis of the worker-employer relationship, and just check out at any time they wish. This cannot be done with honor to all. Membership in the local church is a family-type relationship. It carries obligations with its privileges. What father or mother or child in a family is free to just “up and walk away?” Even if one tires of the privileges of a home, he has responsibilities which must be adjusted before leaving it. The State is interested in such matters and has laws which govern such actions. Again, what citizen can just default his obligations to his government with impunity? His government gives him protection in life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and he must pay his taxes to his government which provides these. Then, in case of military service a relationship is established from which one cannot simply walk away. What soldier may go AWOL from his Army base any time he wishes? The Army does not take such actions lightly, and any soldier who does so is subject to discipline, court-martial and imprisonment.

Neither does time wash out such responsibilities. A father may be gone from home and family five years, but the judge is unimpressed when he says that he has withdrawn from the family. A citizen may not pay his taxes for ten years, but the IRS man takes a dim view of such neglect. An Army deserter may not be caught for many years, but he still has to “face the music” when apprehended. Should it be any less important that the church member who just walks away be subject to reminders of his obligations in the local church?

Letters of Commendation

When church members wish to leave a congregation and become members of another, they should let their intentions be known to the church and leave gracefully and with the consent of the brethren. This would pave the way for their return at some future time, fi they so wished, and would end their relationship on the same mutually friendly terms it was established upon. Letters of commendation should be more commonly used among churches of Christ than they are. Once in a “blue moon” a member who has moved into town will come forward with a letter in hand from the church of which he was formerly a member, and present it with his request to be “identified” with the local church. This is in keeping with the practice of Paul and others in Bible times. In writing the Corinthian church, Paul alludes to such a practice (2 Corinthians 3:1), and when he wrote to the church at Rome he included such a commendation on behalf of Phoebe (Romans 16:1,2). Also, when Apollos went from Ephesus into Achaia, the church at Ephesus wrote a letter of commendation for him (Acts 18:27; 19:1).

The usual practice (and a bad one it is). is to accept into local churches any stranger who comes along claiming to be a member of the church of Christ somewhere. Certainly, we should trust people and not have suspicious hearts, but some churches have been dealt deadly blows by accepting at face value someone who was a false teacher, hypocrite, or immoral person, when a little investigation and caution on the part of the elders might have prevented it. Some good brethren who do not know the difference between the local church and the universal church are heard to object to the use of church letters ‘as “denominational.” If the Lord accepts one, why should we not do so? The simple answer to this question is, the local church has no word from the Lord that He has accepted a given person! It is true that the Lord adds to the church (universal) those who are saved (Acts 2:38-47), but membership in a local church is obtained by mutual consent; not by baptism, as the Baptists teach. Paul found this out at Jerusalem (Acts 9:26-28).

What Of Members Who Stray?

In addition to leaving the local church to become members of another of the same persuasion, there are some who stray away into sinful living and quit the church. There are others who stray away into error and become members of some digressive church or denominational body. Most of these never announce their intention. They just do it. They are found absent from their usual places of duty and worship, and when investigation is made they are found worshiping and working in a situation of religious error. In either case, those who stray should have the attention of the brethren they have left.

To begin with, every effort should be made to show them the unscriptural and sinful situation they are in, and to get them to renounce such and return in penitence to the fellowship they have left. This means that every member of the church should join in a concerted effort to restore them in the fear of God. Paul laid down this rule in Galatians 6:1: “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness; considering

and become members of another, they should let their thyself, lest thou also be tempted.” One visit by the preacher and another one by one of the elders is not sufficient. This is one of the hardest things to get members of the church to do, but every member should show an interest in the one who has strayed.

In case such group effort to restore is unsuccessful, more drastic measures are to be taken as a last resort. The straying member is unresponsive. There is nothing left but for the church to exercise disciplinary action of a more formal kind. This is commanded by Paul (2 Thessalonians 3:6) in order that such person “may be ashamed” (verse 14) and hopefully will repent. “Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother” (verse 15). This applies to the backsliding member. Those who stray into error “contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned,” and have caused divisions and offenses should be marked and avoided (Romans 16:17); yet, James teaches the importance of trying to “convert” such a person “from the error of his way… in order to “save a soul from death” (James 5:19,20). Although no apostolic example of the mechanics of this action is given in the Bible, it involves using’. the most appropriate method of notifying the straying member of the action of the church toward him. His walking away affects a great many members of the church. It is not just his “own business.”

Truth Magazine XIX: 31, pp. 486-487
June 12, 1975

By Cecil Willis

One of the claims which the Bible makes for Itself is that It can never be destroyed. The abundance of copies of the Scriptures now available is abundant proof that It has made good Its claim. In many passages the indestructibility of the Scriptures is pronounced. In 1 Pet. 1:24, 25, we read: “All flesh is as grass, And all the glory thereof as the flower of grass, The grass withereth, and the flower falleth: But the word of the Lord abideth forever.” It will never cease to be. Jesus said, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (Matt. 24:35). When the heavens shall have passed away with a great noise, the elements melted with fervent heat, the earth and the works therein burned up, the Bible, the word of the Lord, will yet remain. Isaiah said, “The grass withereth, the flower fadeth; but the word of our God shall stand forever” (Isa. 40:8). The Scriptures teach that the word of the Lord -must remain until time is no more, and even through the Judgment, for by the word of God we shall be judged. Jesus said, “He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my sayings, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I spake, the same shall judge him in the last day” (Jn. 12:48). As John tells of the Judgment scene, he says, “And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of the things which were written in the books, according to their works” (Rev. 20:12). The Scriptures teach that from the time that the word of the Lord was put in written form, until the Judgment, they shall never be destroyed.

An Indestructible Kingdom

The Bible again asserts this same truth in a slightly different manner. It asserts that the kingdom of God shall never be destroyed. As the prophet Daniel predicted the building of the Messiah’s kingdom, he said it would endure forever. “And in the days of those kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, nor shall the sovereignty thereof be left to another people; but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever” (Dan. 2:44). After Daniel had said the kingdom to be built could never be destroyed, Paul said that the kingdom which was built will endure forever. “And this word, Yet once more signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that have been made, that those things which are not shaken may remain. Wherefore, receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us have grace, whereby we may offer service well-pleasing to God with reverence and awe: for our God is a consuming fire” (Heb. 12:27-29).

But what are the implications of these statements that the kingdom can never be destroyed? Simply that the Word of God can never be destroyed. As Jesus gave a parable concerning the kingdom of God, He explained it saying, “Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God” (Luke 8:11). So long as the kingdom remains, the seed of the kingdom which is the word of God, must remain. But the Kingdom will last forever, so the Word of God must last forever. If It lasts forever, It is indestructible. So long as the Bible remains, the kingdom has not been destroyed. It may be suppressed for a while, it may not be apparent, but as long as God’s word remains, the kingdom has not been destroyed. When the seed of the kingdom is sown, men and women can become Christians; Christians make up the kingdom. One cannot cause wheat to cease to exist merely by pulling up all the wheat plants he can find. If he leaves just one seed of wheat, in which is the germ of life, he has not destroyed wheat. This single seed can be planted, a plant will come forth, bear its fruit, and wheat remains. So it is with the Word of God. One can fight the church, kill its members, but God has said that his Word cannot be destroyed. And until one can figure out how to destroy the Word of God, which he can never do, the kingdom cannot be destroyed because as the seed of the kingdom, the word of God, is sown into the hearts of men and women, it will bear fruit; they will become Christians and the kingdom will remain. It cannot be destroyed!

The Antiquity of the Bible

The Bible is a very ancient book. Its antiquity is a wonder. It is a marvel that the Bible has remained until the present time. I am quite sure It would not have, had it not been that God had purposed that It should never be destroyed. Relatively few books survive the decade in which they are printed. Very, very few survive for a century. Their make-up is such that the elements tend to destroy them. Age and water rot them, insects eat them, careless handling destroys them, ink fades, covers pull loose. But the Book of God remains.

The last book of the New Testament, Revelation, was written about 1875 years ago. Portions of the Bible, of course, are much older. The first five books of the Old Testament were written by Moses about 1500 B.C., making them nearly 3500 years old. The Book of Job was written even earlier, probably at least 2000 B.C. The Bible probably is the oldest antique you have, even if you are a collector of ancient and very rare objects. Go to your library, choose your oldest volume, and compare its age with that of the Bible. God has seen to it that His Word has not perished from the earth, because He has willed that It should abide forever.

Efforts to Destroy the Bible

The antiquity of the Bible would be a marvel had men throughout the ages cherished It, and taken the very best of care to preserve It. But such has not always been the case. The enemies of Christianity have realized that the kingdom of God could not exist without the seed of the kingdom. Therefore, they have concentrated their efforts against Christianity in the direction of destroying the Scriptures.

Even in the New Testament, we read of those who violently sought to overthrow the cause of Christ. We read of disciples dying a martyr’s death because of their faith. Early in the history of Christianity, Clement of Alexandria wrote, “Many martyrs are daily burned, crucified, and beheaded before our eyes.” For many years Christianity was outlawed by the Roman government. From the time of Trajan (reigned 98-117) until Constantine (c. 300), virtually every one of the Roman emperors was opposed to Christianity. It is true that not all of them actively tried to suppress it, but few of them encouraged Christianity in any way. Many of their efforts were directed toward destroying the Bible. Of Diocletian (284-316), the ruler immediately preceding Constantine, Eusebius, the historian said, “royal edicts were published everywhere, commanding that the churches be leveled to the ground and the Scriptures destroyed by fire” (Church History, Book VIII, Ch. 1). Diocletian went on to say that if one had a copy of the Scriptures and did not surrender it to be burned, if it were discovered, he would be killed. Furthermore, if any other should know of one who had a copy of the Scriptures, and did not report it, he also would be killed. During this time many, many copies of the Bible were burned, copies laboriously written in longhand. Of this period. the historian Newman said, “Multitudes . . . hastened to deny the faith and to surrender their copies of the Scriptures; many more bore the most horrible tortures and refused with their latest breath to surrender the Scriptures or in any way to compromise themselves” (Newman, Church History, p. 169). After this edict had been in force for two years, Diocletian boasted, “I have completely exterminated the Christian writings from the face of the earth!” (Rimmer, Seven Wonders of the Wonderful Word, p. 15). But had he completely destroyed it?

History tells us that the next ruler, Constantine, became a Christian. He requested that copies of the Scriptures be made for all the churches. But alas! Diocletian had completely obliterated the Word of God. After Constantine offered a substantial reward for a copy of the Scriptures, within 25 hours 50 copies of the Bible were brought to him!

The Bible has had many enemies. Even those that professed on some occasions to be Its friends under other circumstances turned enemy to It. During the middle ages, for example, the Roman Catholic Church burned thousands of copies of the Bible. But in spite of it, the Bible lives on. Voltaire, the noted French infidel, who died in 1778, made his attempt to destroy the Bible. He boldly made the prediction that within one hundred years the Bible and Christianity would have been swept from existence into oblivion. But Voltaire’s efforts and his bold prophecy failed as miserably as did those of his unbelieving predecessors. In fact, within 100 years, the very printing press upon whicli Voltaire had printed his infidel literature, was being used to print copies of the Bible. And afterward, the very house in which the boasting Voltaire had lived, was literally stacked with Bibles prepared by the Geneva Bible Society. Voltaire and all his cohorts had miserably failed.

A few years ago H. L. Hastings in a book entitled Will the Old Book Stand? said, “The Bible is a book which has been refuted, demolished, overthrown, and exploded more times than any other book you ever heard of . . . . They overthrew the Bible a century ago, in Voltaire’s time,Tentirely demolished the whole thing. In less than a hundred years, said Voltaire, it will have been swept from: existence, and will have passed into history . . . But the Word of God ‘liveth and abideth forever’ ” (p. 5). The failures of these believers, and failures they must inevitably be, for they are but mere men fighting against the cause of almighty God, reminds me of a short poem written by William Blake:

Mock on, mock on, Voltaire, Rosseau!

Mock on, mock on, ’tis all in vain;

You blow the dust against the wind,

And the wind blows it back again.

Man cannot destroy the Bible. “We might as well put our shoulder to the burning wheel of the sun, and try to stop it on its flaming course, as attempt to stop the circulation of the Bible” (Collett, All About the Bible, p. 63).

“Men have died on the gallows for reading it, and have been burned at the stake for owning it. Tortures too fiendish to describe have been visited upon delicate women and tender children for looking on its pages. Yet in spite of the strongest forces that Hell could unleash and in the face of the animosity of tyrants and despots, there are more Bibles in the earth today than there are copies of any other book ever written by the hand of man!” (Rimmer, op. cit. p. 15).

The Bible’s Popularity

Each year literary men throughout the world are expending their most strenuous efforts to produce what men will call a “Best Seller.” But the “best seller” of all times is the Bible. Each year the Bible outsells all other books. Its critics have railed and ranted, and then died to be soon forgotten. But the Word of the Lord has lived on. It will continue to be the world’s best seller. So long as there are men and women who are willing to let the blessed words of the Bible guide their life, the Bible cannot be destroyed. And even if all shall turn aside from It, God will yet preserve It. For He has said it will last till heaven and earth shall be no more and that all of us shall meet It in the Day of Judgment. We must read it with understanding now, obey Its every commandment, live by It, die by It, and we can thereby share the great promises contained in It.

As I summarize this lesson on the indestructibility of the Bible, a poem that I ran across some time ago says what I have been trying to say.

“Last eve I paused beside a blacksmith’s door

And heard the anvil ring the vesper chime;

Then, looking in, I saw upon the floor

Old hammers worn with the beating years of time.

“`How many anvils have you had,’ said I,

`To wear and batter all these hammers so?’

`Just one,’ said he; then said with twinkling eye,

`The anvil wears the hammers out you know.’

“And so, I thought, the anvil of God’s word

For ages skeptic blows have beat upon,

Yet, though the noise of falling blows was heard,

The anvil is unharmed-the hammers gone.”

Truth Magazine XIX: 31, pp. 483-485
June 12, 1975

By Larry Ray Hafley

“It is my belief that it is entirely unimportant what god one worships, monotheistic or polytheistic; what is important is that belief should produce the true spirit of devotion in the life of the worshiper” (The Wisdom of China And India, p. 13).

Probably very few of our readers would agree with the above quote. Members of denominational churches believe it is important “what god one worships.” In this they are correct. The Bible teaches that there is but “One God and Father of all” (Eph. 4:6). As ancient Israel was commanded, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me” (Ex. 20:3), so are we instructed (1 Cor. 8:4-6; 10:14; 1 Jn. 5:21). Truly, as God has said of Himself, “I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God” (Isa. 44:6).

While it is true that faith or belief should produce “the true spirit of devotion in the life of the worshiper,” it is not true that “it is entirely unimportant what god one worships.”

Parallel Statements

Let us make a few statements Which are parallel to the opening quotation and see if you will agree or disagree with them.

(1) “It is my belief that it is unimportant what Savior saves you. What is important is that you are saved.”

Most who claim to be saved would surely resent anyone who would dare say that you can have the Savior of your choice. “It does not make any difference who saves you, just so you are saved.” Whether you are a Baptist, Pentecostal, Lutheran; or a Methodist, you surely do not believe that the Savior is unimportant. Jesus is the Savior, and “if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins” (Jn. 8:24). Buddha cannot save. No man can save, therefore, the Savior is important. “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim. 2:5).

(2) “It is my belief that it is entirely unimportant what blood one depends upon for cleansing from sin, whether the blood of animals, the blood of Abraham Lincoln, or the blood of Jesus Christ, what is important is that one is cleansed from his sins by blood.”

What a blasphemous statement! Who is it that claims to be a follower of the Lord that can agree with such an utterance? Surely, none can! The blood of Jesus is the “blood of the New Testament which is shed for many for the remission of sins” (Matt. 26:28). “For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins” (Heb. 10:4). Christ made spiritual “peace through the blood of his cross” (Col. 1:20). We are “justified by his blood” (Rom. 5:9). Apart from the blood of Christ, there is no cleansing from sin. Lincoln was a great man, but all the blood his heart could pump in a thousand years could never atone for one sin of one man. Not a drop of all the blood of all the animals who ever lived can take away sins, for Jesus is the one “that loved us, and washed away our sins in his own blood” (Rev. 1:5).

Agreed So Far?

Thus far I suppose most all who profess to be children of God are agreed. That is as it should be. What we have agreed upon is:

A. Not prejudiced opinion.

B. Not what a church creed book says.

C. Not what any mere man has said.

But we have agreed upon what the word of God says. As long as we are willing to go by the Bible, we will be agreed.

(3) “It is my belief that it is entirely unimportant ;what church you are a member of, whether Catholic or Protestant, what is important is that you are a member of some church and that you are worshiping God in the church of your choice.”

Now, perhaps, we have our first open division and disagreement. However, a return to the same standard, the Bible, as we used to establish our earlier unity will promote and provide harmony on’ this point also. Some of our readers, may concur that the church is “entirely unimportant,” but the issue is not, “How many agree?” The issue is, “What does the Bible teach? Does the bible agree with that sentiment?”

We noted from Ephesians 4:6 that there is one God. We learned from Ephesians 4:5 that there is one Lord, one Savior, Jesus. To these points we agreed because that is what the Bible says. In Ephesians 4:4, the word of God says, “There is one body.” This body, the “one body,” is the church. Christ is the “head over all things to the church, which is his body” (Eph. 1:22, 23; Cola 1:18). There are many members of the body, the church, yet there is “but one body,” or church (1 Cor. 12:20).

In Ephesians 2:16 we find that one is reconciled “unto God in one body.” Remember, that “one body,” is “the church,” and there is “but one body,” or church (Eph. 4:4; 1:22, 23). If we are reconciled unto God, we are in that one body, for Paul says that it is the realm, the sphere of reconciliation. Furthermore, Christ. is “the Savior of the body” (Eph. 5:23). How, in light of this, can one say the church is “entirely unimportant?” Can that which Christ loved and purchased with his precious blood be “entirely unimportant?” See Acts 20:28 and Ephesians 5:25.

Do you agree or disagree? Again, as in each case before, we have cited-Scripture to sustain the truth and to deny the opening statement. If you now disagree with these Scriptures concerning the “one church,” what right do you have to demand that I agree that the blood of Jesus is superior to the blood of animals? Why insist that Christ, not Buddha, is the Savior? After all, if you can deny what the Bible teaches about the church, why cannot someone else deny what it teaches about Christ being the Savior? Surely, you see that the Bible is right. You see the truth about the church-“There is one body.” Now that you see the truth, accept it, believe it, obey it and be saved (1 Pet. 1:22; Heb. 5:8, 9).

Truth Magazine XIX: 31, p. 482
June 12, 1975

By Steve Wolfgang

“Buy the truth and sell it not; yea, wisdom, and instruction, and understanding” (Prov. 23:23, ASV). In this proverb, the Wise Preacher has distilled for the ages a principle which is as applicable today as it was when first spoken thousands of years ago. Keil and Delitzsch comment perceptively on the passage as follows:

“To buy the truth, i.e. to shun no expense, no privation, no effort, in order to attain to the possession of wisdom; and to sell it not, i.e. not to place it over against any earthly possession, worldly gain, sensual enjoyment.”

Although spoken before the gospel was first preached in its fulness, these words of wisdom present several fundamental concepts which can be found repeatedly in the New Testament.

Buying: Count the Cost

The idea of “buying the truth” may involve several things. Jesus clearly taught that there would be some expense involved . in becoming citizens of the kingdom of heaven. We may be called upon to sacrifice “social prestige,” or to surrender things which are momentarily pleasurable in order to receive a more enduring kind of happiness and fulfillment. It may be necessary for us to surrender financial “security” or to cease to be involved in questionable practices which might be profitable to those who are not Christians. We may even come to be estranged from family or close friends (cf: Matt. 8:19-22; Lk. 10:57-62). Jesus plainly taught that we need to count the cost which may be involved. One who intends to wait until it will be “easy” for him to change and become a Christian, when he will not have to give up anything, or until there is nothing left to prevent him from so doing, will likely go to his grave still waiting. We need rather to “calculate” the stakes involved and act accordingly (cf. Lk. 14:25-33).

“One Pearl of Great Price”

But it is equally evident that our Lord taught that whatever the cost of discovering the truth, it is not (in the words of the apostle Paul) “worthy to be compared with, the glory which shall be revealed to usward” (Rom. 8:18). Jesus expressed it in these words:

“The kingdom of heaven is like unto a treasure hidden in the field; which a man found, and hid; and in his joy he goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is a merchant seeking costly pearls; and having found one pearl of great price, he went and sold all that he had, and bought it” (Matt. 13:44-46)

“And Sell It Not”

But the quest for and acquisition of the truth is only one half of the proverb-and the fact that the wise man felt constrained to include the second portion indicates that he understood a sad fact about human nature-the tendency to lose our zeal, or our sense of perspective and value, as time progresses. Centuries of church history, and Biblical history as well, bear mute witness of the multitudes who, having once grasped the truth, held it not fast “unto the end” (cf. Heb. 3:5-6, 12-14; 6:11-12; Rev. 2:10).

Selling It Out: Apostasy

Jesus Himself taught that there would be many vvho, having once heard the truth, would have it “choked out” (cf. Lk. 8:4-15). One need not even peruse the pages of church history to see the innumerable demonstrations of this principle; even in our own generation there are ample examples of those who, through discouragement, for the praise of men, out of a love for “the wisdom of the world,” because of malcontentedness, or for an unnumbered host of other reasons, have “sold out” the gospel, and thus their spiritual inheritance, for a “mess of pottage” (cf. Gen. 25:27-34; Heb. 12:14-17).

Selling It Short

But there is another way of “selling the truth” which occurs, perhaps, more often than common apostasy, and which, because of its subtle nature, is more apt to affect faithful Christians; it is selling short the power of the gospel to save those who will believe it (Rom. 1:16-17). When we believe that the gospel cannot save, and churches cannot grow, without some hot-shot, supercharged, well-educated, “full-time” preacher (whatever that may be), without a “good location” (translation: a new, quarter-million-dollar building, preferably “across the tracks” in a white, upper-middle-class section of town), or without some “super-dooper” special, mass communication program-brethren, we have sold short the saving power of the gospel of God! There is nothing wrong with a “located” preacher who receives his full financial support from a church, or with nice, commodious church buildings, or well-developed personal work “programs,” or congregations that are “friendly” toward the visitors; but these things are not the gospel. If the growth of the first-century church had been dependent upon these and other like things, it would never have survived to the dawn of the second century! It is the gospel which saves, and church buildings, teaching programs, located preachers, friendly Christians, etc., while useful, are merely means to the end of presenting the vibrant, soul-transforming word of God to as many people as possible. When we suppose that the gospel cannot save, or that people cannot and will not be converted, without these “extras,” are we not as guilty of “adding to” God’s word as those who festoon it with the doctrines of men and then follow such a perverted gospel straight into apostasy? May we each one encourage others to “buy the truth,” paying whatever price may be necessary, and strengthen our own resolve to “sell it not,” come what may!

Truth Magazine XIX: 30, p. 477
June 5, 1975