Time for Your Children

By Larry Ray Hafley

In order to provide for a child, parents must take time with their children. It is not a mother’s job alone. Though a godly mother likely will spend more time with a child, both parents must be involved. Both must give of their time. Mom, Dad, are you doing it? Are you setting aside time for your children? Do you listen to them? Do you re- ally hear them? Do you let them know that their feelings, their wants and wishes, are important and will be given fair consideration? Or, do you ignore them? Do you usually tell them to “go away,” or “go outside and play,” or, worse yet, do you say, “Leave me alone”?

A child senses whether he is loved or whether he is sim ply being tolerated. Sometimes we blame “bad” children and say, “I don’t understand him! I gave him everything!” Yes, you may have given him everything he needed except for the one thing he needed most — that is, you and your time. My friend, if you are “too busy” to take even a few precious minutes with your child, you are too busy! See Proverbs 31:10-31 and Ephesians 6:1-4.

Would you abandon your child in a wilderness and force him to make it on his own? Of course not! Yet, when we neglect to give our children time, when we fail to give our attention to them and refuse to hear the expressions of their tender hearts, we are forsaking and deserting them, leaving them to wander along the highway of life.

Perhaps this poem by Stan Gebhart will touch you and help you to see the importance of giving yourself to your dear ones.

I looked at you and smiled the other day. I thought you’d see me, but you didn’t.

I said, “I love you,” and waited for what you would say. I thought you’d hear me, but you didn’t.

I asked you to come outside and play ball with me. I thought you’d follow me, but you didn’t.

I drew a picture just for you to see.

I thought you’d save it, but you didn’t. I made a fort for us back in the woods.

I thought you’d camp with me, but you didn’t.

I found some worms ’n such for fishing if we could. I thought you’d want to go, but you didn’t.

I needed you to talk to, my thoughts to share. I thought you’d want to, but you didn’t.

I told you about the game, hoping you’d be there. I thought you’d surely come, but you didn’t.

I asked you to share my youth with me.

I thought you’d want to, but you couldn’t.

My country called me to war. You asked me to come home safely, But I didn’t.

Now, dear mom and dad, will you find some time today to share with your children and give them the greatest gift you could ever give them — yourself?

The Lord’s Supper — Its Frequency

By Johnie Edwards

The frequency of observing the Lord’s Supper has been a troubling question for many. There are those who observe the Lord’s supper once a year, every six months, quarterly, monthly, every other month and some weekly.

There is an interesting statement in the 1890 edition of The Standard Manual For Baptist Churches by Edward T. Hiscox concerning the frequency of eating the Lord’s supper:

As to the time, place and frequency of the ordinances, no Scriptural directions are given. They are left optional with the churches. They are usually observed on Sun- days, but not necessarily. As to come to observe it the Supper, our churches have very generally on the first Sunday of each month (20).

There Are Scriptural Directions

The Lord has not left us without scriptural authority for partaking of the Lord’s supper.

1. The Lord himself instituted the Lord’s supper. “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it. For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins” (Matt. 26:26-28).

The Lord’s supper is of the Lord, not of men. Therefore men have no right to decide anything about the elements or the frequency of the Lord’s supper.

2. Two items are to be used in the Lord’s supper. Paul told the Corinthians, “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?” (1 Cor. 10:16). How many elements did you count in this passage? Only two are mentioned! The bread is a memorial of the body of Christ and the cup, the fruit of the vine, is a memorial of the shed blood of our Lord.

3. Individuals eat the Lord’s supper in the assembly. The Standard Manual of the Baptist Church says, “Since the Supper is distinctively a church ordinance, it is to be observed by churches only, and not by individuals . . .” (20). I don’t remember reading any thing about the Lord’s supper being a church ordinance, do you? Surely the individual eats the Lord’s supper; a fact many overlook. Paul penned, “But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body” (1 Cor. 11:28-29). It seems that the brethren who believe that when one person partakes of the communion at an evening service, every member must also partake with them, miss that eating the Lord’s supper has some individuality to it. When an individual communes on Sunday morning, he has done what the Lord commanded be done. If not, why not?

4. The Bible teaches that the Lord’s supper is to be ob- served every first day of the week. By apostolic example we learn, “And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight” (Acts 20:7). But someone is ready to say, “Well, it doesn’t say the first day of every week. And didn’t Paul say, “For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come?” (1 Cor. 11:26). Paul is not discussing frequency; he just says when you do eat the Lord’s supper, it shows the Lord’s death. As to frequency of the Lord’s supper, every week has a first day, and any event that is celebrated is celebrated as often as the day rolls around. For an example, how often do you celebrate your birthday? Well, until you get to be about 40, once a year! Why just once a year? Once a year only comes once a year. Now how often does the first day of the week come. Every week. When Moses told Israel, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exod. 20:8); why didn’t he say remember every sabbath day? He did not have to say it that way. Jews knew that every week had a Saturday. In regards to the Lord’s supper, the Holy Spirit knew that early Christians understood that every week had a first day! While eating in a MCL Cafeteria, I noticed a sign about the Lions Club. The sign said, “Lions Meet Here Tuesday 6:00 P.M.” The sign does not say that the Lions meet here every Tuesday. It doesn’t have to; Lions know that every week has a Tuesday! 

Need I say more?

Into What Were You Baptized?

By Tom Hamilton 

Paul met “certain disciples” at Ephesus in Acts 19. Paul knew that these men were “disciples” or followers of God, but he also knew that they were not Christians. Therefore, the question Paul put to them was, “Into what therefore were you baptized?” We, like Paul in this example, will not deny that others may believe in God, may have had a religious experience, or may have some attachment to God. But we must also ask the same question that Paul did. Into what were you baptized? Our answer to this question will determine the validity of our religious experience and our relationship to God, just as it did those many centuries ago.

Baptized Into Water

Jesus was himself baptized as an example for us to follow. In Mark 1:9, we read that “Jesus was baptized by John in (lit. ‘into’) the Jordan river.” This expression does not make much sense unless we also understand that baptism means “immersion” — Jesus was immersed into the waters of the Jordan River. That is why the next verse says, “When Jesus came up out of the water . . .” This example of Jesus set the pattern for all believers to follow. For example, in Acts 8:38 we read of the Ethiopian’s baptism “. . . and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch,  and he baptized him. And when they came up out of the water . . .” The fact that Paul refers to baptism as a “burial” (Rom. 6:4; Col. 2:12) also indicates that baptism involves a complete covering over or a total submersion into water. Of course, our answer should agree with what the New Testament says that we are to be baptized into.

Therefore, we must not simply be baptized by water or with water, but into water. Have you been baptized into water?

Baptized Into Death

Paul says in Romans 6:3-4, “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ have been baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” In the same way that Jesus physically died, was buried, and raised from the dead, we spiritually die to sin, are buried in baptism, and are raised again. Our old sinful self has been crucified and we have made a complete break with our sinful past, therefore we should not sin anymore, but rather live a new life (Rom. 6:5-6). Notice that our spiritual resurrection follows, not precedes, being baptized. The correct order — death, burial, and then resurrection — must be preserved if we are to be right with God. Spiritual resurrection and renewal can only take place after baptism.

Have you been baptized into death and then raised to eternal life?

Baptized Into the Name

Jesus commanded his disciples in Matthew 28:19, “Go therefore and disciple the nations, baptizing them in (lit. ‘into’) the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things I have commanded you.” Acts 8:16 and 19:5 also speak of being baptized into the name of Jesus. While other passages speak of being baptized in or by the name of Jesus, baptism into the name of Jesus carries a little different meaning. It is a figure of speech for ownership, indicating that one rightfully wears the name of his owner. Notice in 1 Corinthians 1:10-17, Paul says that nobody was baptized into Paul’s name and, therefore, nobody could claim to “belong” to Paul. On the other hand, if we are baptized into Jesus’ name, then we belong to him. It also makes it clear that we do not belong to Jesus and cannot rightfully wear his name as our owner until we are baptized.

Have you entered into the realm of Christ’s ownership, having been baptized into his name?

Baptized Into Forgiveness

Peter says in Acts 2:38, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for (lit. ‘into’) the forgiveness of your sins.” Here we find the answer to the very simple question, How does one enter into the forgive- ness of one’s sins? Peter says that we enter into forgiveness through baptism. This also means that until one is baptized, one has not entered into the forgiveness of his sins. This does not mean that we are saving ourselves. Peter explains elsewhere that baptism saves us, not of our own power, but simply because we are faithfully doing what God has said in order that we may have a clear conscience (1 Pet. 3:21).

Therefore, we must be baptized in water out of obedience to God in order to receive the forgiveness of our sins. Have you been baptized into the forgiveness of your sins?

Baptized Into the Body of Christ

Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12:13, “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body.” Paul pictures the church — the group of all the saved — as a body with its many members. But how does one get into Christ’s body? While people will give many different answers to this question, there is only one Bible answer — baptized into the body! One does not enter into Christ’s body and then afterwards get baptized. Also, this means that one is outside of Christ’s body until baptized to enter into it.

Therefore, to be a member of Christ’s body, we must be baptized. Have you been baptized into the body?

Baptized Into Christ

Finally, the Bible tells us not once, but twice, that we are baptized into Christ. We have already quoted Romans 6:3-4 when noting the expression “baptized into death.” Note also Galatians 3:27, “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” How do we get into Christ? Again, while many give conflicting answers, there is only one biblical answer. If you want to agree with what the Bible says on the subject, you must agree that one can enter into Christ only by being baptized into Christ. This also means that one is not in Christ until one enters into Christ through baptism. It also means that one does not get into Christ and then get baptized afterwards, as many teach.

If you believe that you are now in Christ, how did you get into him? At what point did you go from being outside of Christ to being in Christ? Have you been baptized into Christ?

Conclusion

These are not, of course, six different baptisms that the Bible is talking about. The Bible is simply telling us the six things that we are baptized into when we are properly baptized out of obedience to God.

When we are immersed into the waters of baptism, we bury our dead previous life of sin, enter under Christ’s ownership, receive the forgiveness of our sins, become members of the body of Christ, and enjoy all of the blessings of God that are to be had by those who are in Christ, having entered into him by baptism.

Waiting for the Coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ

By Dan King

In the opening chapter of Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, the writer encourages these brethren to “wait for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (v. 7). All of us understand this notion of “waiting.” Often we must wait in line at the check-out counter to buy groceries. We wait in line to buy tickets at the movies. We wait at the doctor’s office to be called in to our appointment (which was usually a half-hour to an hour earlier than when we are called!).

Sometimes when we wait it is not a problem of patience or understanding. The line is short, or the check-out per- son is efficient, or everyone in line has just a few things, etc. Whatever the case may be, we are not forced to wait long.

But then at other times we have to wait for a long time. Then we grow impatient, we get nervous and “antsy.” I have seen people lay the merchandise down and walk out of the store. Sometimes they even get nasty. I have also seen impatient people in the doctor’s office leave and tell the nurse at the desk that they would never be back!

Waiting takes patience. Yet, if we are busy while we wait, then the time goes by quickly and we do not notice. Some restaurants have games for the kids on the placemats; others have little game-boards right on the table. Pediatricians’ offices sometimes have a huge assortment of toys to entertain the children while they wait. Most outer offices have magazines aplenty for us to read while we wait.

Paul recognizes this idea in the text of the Christian’s wait. Idle waiting leads to impatience and frustration, and sometimes causes people to quit altogether. Here are the things that the apostle lists as important for us to do while we wait on Jesus:

1. Be enriched in utterance. In v. 5 he writes: “. . . that in everything ye were enriched in him, in all utterance and all knowledge.” As children of God, we have been enriched in utterance in several ways. First, our language ought to be more pure and enriching to those around us. Christians should never use profanity or vulgarity, cursing or swearing, for it is not appropriate to our calling: “Now do ye also put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, railing, shameful speaking out of your mouth” (Col. 3:8). Second, our speech should be happy and pleasant to those about us. We are saved from our sins! We have heaven as our hope! God loves us and is caring for us! Certainly we should talk like people for whom these things are true. None of us likes to be around people who are morose and unpleasant, negative and critical, why would we think others would want to be around us if we are this way? Our speech should be a blessing to those who hear us: “Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer each one” (Col. 4:6).

2. Be enriched in knowledge. Paul also states that we ought to be “enriched in him, in . . . all knowledge” (v. 5). While we await the return of our Lord, we need to be grow- ing in knowledge. Peter wrote: “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and for ever” (2 Pet. 3:18). This is, in itself, a life-long enterprise which, sad to say, some of us have never yet begun. The key to our desire for growth is an appreciation of the word “enriched” used in this phrase. We are “enriched” by our gain in knowledge. We are “enriched” by our growth in spiritual wisdom. Some people are enriched by an inheritance of wealth; others are enriched by working hard and saving; still others are enriched by successful business enterprises. But we are never more enriched than when we grow in the knowledge of Jesus Christ! The problem is, however, that the riches of Christ are unsearchable (Eph. 3:8) to the untrained eye, and completely hidden from the fleshly man (Col. 2:2-3). Yet they are the only true riches (Matt. 6:19-20)!

3. Live blamelessly. Paul continues in v. 8: “Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.” What a tremendous challenge! To attempt to live before God blameless in Christ! Now, admittedly, we are all going to have need of God’s “confirmation” described in the first part of the verse. At times we will err and commit sin, and thus have need of the cleansing blood of the Savior to complete the work. Yet we should see it as a “race set before us” which we run “looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith” (Heb. 12:1-2). Or, as Paul put it elsewhere: “Not that I have already obtained, or am already made perfect: but I press on, if so be that I may lay hold on that for which also I was laid hold on by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself yet to have laid hold: but one thing I do, forget- ting the things which are behind, and stretching forward to the things which are before. I press on toward the goal unto the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as are perfect, be thus minded . . .” (Phil. 3:12-15).

4. Live in fellowship. In v. 9 Paul further admonishes the Christians at Corinth to abide in the fellowship into which they were called. Our fellowship in Christ is both with God and with one another in the body of Christ, the church: “If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in the darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin” (1 John 1:6-7).

 

The sweet fellowship of the church is a blessing which the negligent and unfaithful miss in this world. But ultimately they miss the greatest blessing of all: fellowship with God. Perhaps they never miss it because they have not truly enjoyed it. But, just consider the fellowship which you have had with your best friend in this world, and imagine for a moment that you had never known them. You would never have missed them had you never known them, it is true, but surely you can realize that you would have missed out, knowing them now as you do! So it is with fellowship with God and the church. You may never miss it if you have never had this sweet friendship, but you have certainly missed out! Every faithful child of God will continue steadfastly in fellowship: “And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and the prayers” (Acts 2:42).5. Remain united in Christ. At v. 10 the apostle presents the church with a great challenge as she “waits for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.” This is the challenge of unity within the fellowship of which he has just spoken: “Now I beseech you, brethren, through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfected together in the same mind and in the same judgment”. Here he makes three demands: (1) Speak the same thing; (2) No divisions; (3) Be perfected together in mind and judgment. This is no small order! Certainly it will keep us all busy as we “wait for the Lord”!