Truth Magazine

By Roger Hillis

“Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, ‘The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say “See here!” or “see there!” For indeed the kingdom of God is within you’ (Luke 17:20-21).

The first century Pharisees just didn’t get it. They had so many misconceptions about the nature of the Lord’s kingdom and they passed most of those mistaken ideas on to their children and their children’s children. The biggest problem was that the entire Jewish nation was looking for an earthly kingdom. Many still are.

Thayer defines kingdom as “1. royal power, kingship, dominion, rule . . . 2. a kingdom i.e., the territory subject to the rule of a king … 3. frequently in the N.T. in reference to the Reign of the Messiah …. (96-97).

There are therefore two major thoughts from the word “kingdom.” One involves the “concrete” use of the term as realm or territory. The other usage is more “abstract” and refers to the Lord’s reign or authority. Both usages are found in the Bible.

There are clear instances where the idea of rule or do-minion is in view. See Psalms 103:19 and Daniel 4:31. Territory is not under consideration here; authority is. And the word “kingdom” sometimes means territory. See 1 Kings 11:13, 34-37 as an example. Something to rule over is implied in the word itself.

The problem arose because, every time a Jew saw or heard a Messianic prophecy, he read “powerful, earthly king who will lead our armies into victorious conquest of all other nations and free us from foreign oppression.” And the Jews had this concept driven into their minds for so long that nothing else registered. More than 400 prophecies about the coming Anointed One all told them (from their perspective) that the Christ would be their physical deliverer. Here are just a few of those verses:

And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever (Dan. 2:44).

These great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth. But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever (Dan. 7:17-18).

There are many others. As you have time, read Isaiah 2:1-4, 9:1-7, Micah 3:9-4:8, and Zechariah 8:20-23. This kingdom, ruled by the Son of David, would be the most powerful kingdom ever and would be eternal.

It was under those conditions and in that type of atmosphere that Jesus came into the world. He was the Messiah, the one who would deliver them. But his deliverance was from sin and spiritual bondage, not from national oppression. Both John the Baptist (Matt. 3:1) and Jesus (Matt. 4:17) preached that the kingdom was “at hand.” It was not some 2000 years in the future; it would be established in the lifetime of his auditors (Mark 9:1).

But the Jews still did not understand. For hundreds of years, their ancestors had been telling them of this powerful, earthly Messiah who would be the answer to all their national problems. They could not shake that impression and, on many occasions, when Christ did something awe-some, they thought their dreams were coming true. “Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He de-parted again to a mountain by Himself alone” (John 6:15). They wanted an earthly king so badly!

Even the apostles did not fully comprehend until the Holy Spirit came on them on Pentecost. As late as Acts 1:6, they asked Jesus, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”

And of course, many today still make the same mistake. They continue to look for the establishment of Christ’s physical kingdom on earth, based primarily on a misunderstanding of Revelation 20. The kingdom which they seek will never come. Christ’s spiritual kingdom already is here.

Many of the verses which speak of the kingdom tell us of the territory over which he rules  the church. See John 3:5, Ephesians 5:5, Colossians 1:13, Hebrews 12:28, and Revelation 1:5 (ASV). There are also numerous verses which use the term “kingdom” to refer to Christ’s power, authority and majesty, and not to the territory over which he exerts that dominion (see Luke 1:31-33; 2 Tim. 4:1; Rev. 11:15; 12:10).

Are you a part of the kingdom of the Lord? Are you a faithful Christian? Have you made Jesus the Lord and King of your life? If not, continue to read and study the Bible. Obey its commands and the Messiah will add you to his kingdom. “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love” (Col. 1:13). May God bless your search for truth.

Guardian of Truth XLI: 4 p. 25-26
February 20, 1997

By RichieThetford

Children of God, true disciples of Christ, know what things are black and what things are white. Let us all be determined to walk in the ways of light and turn aside from all darkness. May we always strive to do as Solomon wrote in Proverbs 4:23  “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life!”

Many people in the world today will do something, and then afterward, will stop and question whether or not those things that they did were right. But what about Christians? Do Christians do things that are questionable in God’s sight? Sadly, I must say that they do. There are Christians who use various ways of trying to justify their actions, even when they know that it is not completely pure. We need to learn to call things exactly as they are in this life. We need to know what is black and what is white. But before we can do this, we must first understand what sin is.

What is sin? Sin is doing anything that violates God’s law of righteousness. 1 John 5:17 says: “All unrighteousness is sin” and “Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness” (1 John 3:4). When we transgress or do things that are against God’s law, then we have committed sin. It doesn’t matter what we do, if it is something that is not approved of by God, then it is sin, and all sin is black

Love Not the World

We are told that as Christians, even though we must live in the world, we are not to be of the world. This means that we must not get caught up in the things that unbelievers do just because they are doing it. 1 John 2:15-17 says: “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world  the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life  is not of the Father but is ofthe world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”

Everything that we do that is contrary to Bible teaching falls into one of these three categories. It is either the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, or the pride of life that gets us into trouble. James tells us that friendship with the world is enmity with God (4:4), and that we are to submit our-selves to God, while resisting the devil (4:7). We are also told, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded” (James 4:8).

Practice Makes Perfect

Practice makes perfect in everything that we do in this life! If we practice good things, godly things, then we will learn godliness (Phil. 4:9; Heb. 5:14; 2 Pet. 1:10). However, if we practice the things of the flesh, those things that are unrighteous before God, then we will become worldly and Satan will have a grip on our lives (Rom. 1:32; 7:19; Gal. 5:21; 1 John 3:10). Christians should always be practicing those things that are only righteous before God. When we fail to do so and wilfully sin, then there remains no more sacrifice for sins (Heb. 10:26-31). Notice the following chart showing the things that are placed in the black, gray, and white columns. The things in the black and white column, have Scriptures indicated showing us from God’s word that these in fact are black or white.

Now let’s take a moment and look at that “gray” column. These are things that some Christians are involved in, often claiming that there’s no divine guidance, and therefore try to justify that these are acceptable. But are they? Are there really gray areas to Christianity? Jesus said: “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth” (Rev. 3:15-16). Everyone needs to understand that everything that we do is either black (wrong) or white (right) in God’s sight. There can be no “gray areas” as far as God is concerned.

The Gray Areas Rightly Divided

Paul told Timothy to “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15). Let’s take a moment and rightly divide those “gray areas” into black or white. Nowhere do we read in God’s word where instrumental music is authorized, only that we are to “sing with grace in your hearts to the Lord” (Col. 3:16; Eph. 5:19). Therefore, instrumental music should be placed in the “black” column. In the area of immodesty we are told to prove all things (1 Thess. 5:21), do all in the name of the Lord (Col. 3:17), do all to the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31), live beyond reproach (1 Pet. 3:150, and to wear the proper clothing (1 Tim. 2:9-10). We have now placed immodesty in the “black” column. What about dancing? God’s Word says to prove all things and abstain from all appearance of evil (1 Thess. 5:21-22), and that lusting is wrong (Matt. 5:28). Can we control the other person’s thoughts when dancing? Of course not. “Do not be deceived: Evil company corrupts good habits” (1 Cor. 15:33). See also 2 Corinthians 7:1, Romans 14:23, and 1 Corinthians 10:31. Again we have rightly divided dancing and placed it into the “black” column. Mixed swimming would also fall under the area of 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 and must be placed in the “black” column. Many Christians are now watching movies that have bad language and sex scenes all through them. Surely we have read God’s word which says, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8), and also the words of Paul which tells us what kinds of things to think on (Phil. 4:8). See also Titus 1:15. Movies with bad language and sex scenes are certainly something that Jesus would not approve for his disciples to watch! We have now placed movies with bad language into the “black” column! Is smoking something that God approves of? Would that be a work of the flesh or a fruit of the Spirit? Surely a Christian would know and understand that smoking hurts his influence (Matt. 5:16), is an addiction and enslavement (1 Cor. 6:12; 9:27), is offensive to others (Matt. 7:12), and is harmful to one’s health (1 Cor. 6:19-20)! Do you think this is something Jesus would do? Of course not! We have just placed smoking into the “black” column. Finally we are left with social drinking. Would a Christian consider himself part of that chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a peculiar person (1 Pet. 2:9) while taking another drink of alcohol? Drinking alcohol is not a fruit of the Spirit, it is a work of the flesh. Therefore, the social drinker is sinning (1 Thess. 5:21-22). We have now placed social drinking into the “black” column. We have gone to the word of God in order to “rightly divide” all those things that some Christians would call “gray!” Did you notice where all those “gray” things ended up? Everyone is now in the “black” column. Why is that? It’s because if it is not a fruit of the Spirit, something that is righteous in God’s sight, then it has to be wrong and therefore put where it belongs and that is in that “black” column.

Conclusion

The law of God is made for the lawless, disobedient, ungodly, and for sinners. It is for all those who practice things that are contrary to sound doctrine (1 Tim. 1:9-10). The Bible teaches us that “if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us” (1 John 1:7-10). The apostle Paul wrote: “And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit” (Gal. 5:24-25). Children of God, true disciples of Christ, know what things are black and what things are white. Let us all be deter-mined to walk in the ways of light and turn aside from all darkness. May we always strive to do as Solomon wrote in Proverbs 4:23  “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life!”

Guardian of Truth XLI: 5 p. 6-7
March 6, 1997

By Marvin Taylor

What faith! What courage! Even the mention of Stephen’s name elicits our admiration of this first martyr (excluding Jesus himself) for the cause of Christianity. The conflict started in the heated anger of public debate and continued in a scene of mob violence. Stephen’s clear presentation of truth evoked the worst actions from hearts too hard to receive God’s message (Acts 6:9-10). Stephen had refused to be controlled by public sentiment or manipulated by unjustified human anger. He preached hard against the sins that plagued his opponents at that time. Lis-ten to his concluding statements to the historic sermon which had traced Israel’s history of rebel-lion against God: “Ye stiff necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye. Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of Whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers: Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it” (Acts 7:51-53). Stephen’s words cost him his life. He died a painful death by stoning at the hands of evil men whom he had loved enough to teach the truths they needed to hear the most.

Young Saul of Tarsus was a consenting bystander (Acts 8:1). As a Jew from Cilicia, he was probably at the initial debate scene at the synagogue for Cilicians (Acts 6:9). His education at the feet of Gamaliel and his patriotic zeal funneled through the eyes of the Pharisee sect, pointed him to opposition of this new sect of disciples of Jesus of Nazareth. He must have heard the testimony of the bribed false witnesses before the Council because he came to a decision to consent to the stoning of Stephen. This was demonstrated by his holding the coats of those who actually threw the stones that battered and bruised Stephen to death (Acts 7:58).

Saul moved from spectator to participant in the persecution movement against the disciples of Christ. If you had been a disciple of Christ in Jerusalem at that time, you would have feared that Saul and his men would come to your house and drag you to jail (Acts 8:3). His zealous efficiency as a persecutor led him to seek authorization to follow fleeing believers to Damascus, arrest them, and extradite them to Jerusalem. However, when he arrived at Damascus, he was not the same man. Yes, it was the same physical form, except that Saul was now blind, but he no longer had any taste for punishing followers of Jesus of Nazareth. Quite to the contrary, he now fasted and prayed, and when he was commanded by Ananias to “arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:16), that is exactly what he did (Acts 9:18). His spirit had been fully transformed. He had gone from Saul of Tarsus, expert antagonist of Jesus’ followers, to Paul the most industrious apostle of Jesus Christ.

What had happened on the road to Damascus? Persons like Saul would not make such a drastic change in their lives without good reason. In Luke’s commentary (Acts 9), as well as Paul’s teaching to Felix (Acts 22) and Agrippa (Acts 26), the appearance of the resurrected Jesus and his words are the historic keys that unlock the mystery of the unexpected change. Indeed, Saul’s metamorphosis becomes one of the strongest evidences to counter the doubts of skeptics of Jesus’ resurrection of all subsequent ages.

Notice how the newness of life of the apostle Paul merges with the lifestyle that Stephen had adopted (and probably would have continued had his life been spared). Stephen had preached Jesus as the Son of God in the synagogue in Jerusalem. In Damascus, Saul (Paul) “preached Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God” (Acts 9:20). Stephen’s opponents in debate were not able to resist the wisdom and spirit by which he spoke (Acts 6:10). The Jewish rivals of Saul in Damascus were confounded (Acts 9:22). Stephen was stoned to death by an angry mob. The converted Saul made an enemy of the governor of Damascus but escaped by being lowered down the city wall in a basket (2 Cor. 11:32-33).

When Paul returned to Jerusalem three years after his conversion, the parallels to Stephen’s life become even more striking. Imagine Paul coming to identify with the congregation in Jerusalem. They knew him as an angry, young man who had wreaked havoc upon the church there. Some may have been imprisoned by him. Some may have had family or friends imprisoned or executed through his efforts. Barnabas must have mustered all his powers of persuasion to convince them of the true conversion of Saul. What faith it took for them to glorify God for Paul and the work he was doing (Gal.1:22-24). When Paul got settled, he disputed with the “Grecians” (Acts 9:29). These “Grecians” would be like the “Grecians” in the church at Jerusalem who had murmured against the “Hebrews” in the case of the Hellenistic widows being neglected (Acts 6:1). These were Jews who spoke the Greek language and adopted more of the Greek culture. This would be descriptive of those who would frequent the synagogue of the Libertines, Cyrenians, and Alexandrians where Stephen had his debate. The result was quite similar, the “Grecians” “. . . went about to slay him” (Acts 9:29). His former enemies who had become his adopted spiritual family, now intervened and escorted him to safety in Caesarea from where he took a ship home to Tarsus (Acts 9:30).

Paul couldn’t undo his past sins but what a cleansing effect it must have had for him to pick up the banner from Stephen and carry on the battle, especially in returning to Jerusalem and showing them the change in his life and teaching. How Stephen must have smiled from the spiritual realm, in seeing his work being furthered and Christ’s cause being advanced from this once unlikely source!

If we had been disciples of Christ in Jerusalem and had known Stephen, would we have wondered why God would allow such a terrific worker for the Lord to be put to death? With our hindsight, the Lord’s plan comes into focus. Stephen’s martyrdom led to followers of Christ boldly step-ping forth to be the pallbearers at Stephen’s funeral (Acts 8:2). As other disciples in Jerusalem were forced to flee, they took the gospel as a valued part of their baggage (Acts8:3-4). As the soldiers in the war with Mexico used the battle cry, “Remember the Alamo,” so these soldiers of Christ could have used the motto, “Remember Stephen.” And then there was the lifestyle, dedication, and courage of Stephen that became an abiding encouragement and model for the apostle Paul.

This whole philosophy of trying to kill the cause of Christ by murder was a total failure. It failed in the crucifixion of Jesus. It failed in the slaying of Stephen. Indeed it completely backfired, because it just gave the Lord’s followers that much more determination to never let die the cause for which Christ and Stephen sacrificed their lives.

The closing scene of Stephen’s earthly life pictures the heavens opening and his seeing Jesus sitting at the right hand of God and Stephen saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (Acts 7:59). As Paul ultimately faces his execution at the hands of the Romans, he reflects without regret on the past and looks with a “Stephen-like” optimism to the future. He writes, “For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. Hence-forth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.”

Do we remember Stephen and use his life as an encouragement to be faithful soldiers of Christ in the 20th century? Have we developed the spirit of martyrdom which is vital to having the moral courage (virtue  2 Pet. 1:5) it takes to be a true disciple of Christ? (Luke 14:26). Although we may not actually give our lives for “the cause,” by having a willingness to do so, we are prepared to face the lesser trials and tribulations that this life may present to tempt us to stop standing for what is right and to turn to religious worldliness. Let us each live that we may face death and judgment with the same faith and courage as did both Stephen and Paul.

Guardian of Truth XLI: 5 p. 10-11
March 6, 1997

By Chad R. Wadlington

“For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe” (1 Cor. 1:21, KJV).

There are times in our reading of the Bible we come upon a verse or phrase that gives us some difficulty. A first glance at the verse above has given some quite a jolt when they suppose Paul to say that preaching is foolishness. I imagine their confusion would be compounded when considering four verses earlier Paul said, “For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach” (v. 17). Taking both together one might conclude that Christ sent Paul out bent on foolishness. It seems at least there were some in Corinth that thought so.

The church at Corinth was fighting a culture dominated by intellectualism. The society around them had denounced the preaching of Paul as complete foolishness and their influence was permeating the Christian’s evaluation of the manner and message of gospel preaching. In the 1 Corinthian letter, Paul shows the true folly of those who think themselves wise enough to evaluate God’s ways.

He begins his admonition against the division paralyzing the church. As with the Greek philosophers and their disciples, the Christians were dividing among themselves according to their chosen teacher (1 Con 1:12). The pagan world was persuaded more by a teacher’s manner or style than by his message, but this was not to be the Christian’s standard of evaluation. To them he wrote, “For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect” (1 Cor. 1:17). The Corinthians were to be impressed with the teaching rather than the teacher. The one of whom they were taught and baptized into was important. That is why Paul did not come to them with persuasive words of human wisdom lest their faith would be in wisdom and not the power of God (1 Cor. 1:17; 2:1-5). He later stressed that those who baptize or preach are nothing (1 Cor. 3:7). The division of the Corinthian church was simply a result of evaluating the manner of preaching as the pagans did, “For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?” (1 Cor. 3:3).

The trouble with carnal behavior was that the natural man rejects the teachings of God, thinking them to be foolishness (1 Cor. 2:14). And that was the next step for the Corinthian church if they were trying to keep pace with culture. The intellectuals had already judged the message of preaching to be foolishness. Certainly the Christians did not want to follow that “wisdom” and jeopardize their salvation! So in 1 Corinthians 1:18-25, Paul borrows the pagan accusation of “foolishness” to demonstrate that God in his “foolishness” is still wiser than the wisest of men. “Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?” (1 Cor. 1:20).

It is as if Paul is calling court, demanding testimony from the intellectuals who think themselves wise enough to evaluate God’s ways. And anytime God is-sues a challenge to man it is serious. Jesus challenged his enemies, “Which of you convicts me of sin?” (John 8:46). God challenged Job, “Who is this who darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Now prepare yourself like a man, I will question you and you will answer Me” (Job 38:2-3).

In our Corinthian text, Paul quotes God, who challenged Israel’s wisdom in attempting to save herself through alliances, rather than trust his power (Isa. 29:14). Now Paul challenges the intellectuals in Corinth, “Where have your philosophical pursuits ever led?” The answer was nowhere, “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God” (1 Cor. 1:21).

Try as they might their pursuits were a dead end. Through their wisdom they were no closer to God, salvation was still out of their grasp, and they were doomed to perish. In their “wisdom” they rejected the only thing that would save, the message of the gospel. They judged that message to be foolish. The Jew had his idea of the Messiah, a physical reign on the throne of David and Jesus did not fulfill their expectations. The Greek had his idea of a Savior and it was not a Savior who could not save himself. However, it was not the Jewish or Greek idea that mattered. God’s ways are not subject to the ideas of men (Jer. 10:23; Isa. 55:8-9). God in his wisdom chose the cross and it was that “foolish” message that saved those who believed.

In all their scrutiny the intellectuals had overlooked the only reason they deemed the cross to be foolish  be-cause they would not have chosen it. Man became the end of his own reasoning and how enlightened is that? “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise … that no flesh should glory in His presence” (1 Cor. 1:27-29). Here Paul has come full circle exposing the core of the problem, evaluating the manner and message of gospel preaching by worldly standards. The end of human wisdom is human and anytime man elevates himself he replaces God as supreme authority. “But God forbid that I should glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Gal. 6:14). All glory, honor, and worship are God’s and can be shared with no one (1 Cor. 1:31). “To God, alone wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for-ever, Amen” (Rom. 16:27).

The problem at Corinth stands as a warning to those today who criticize the manner and method of gospel preaching. The denominational “intellectuals” claim the gospel’s power has lost its effectiveness in the hands of incapable men whose style is archaic and whose content is unenlightened. Sadly that attitude has permeated the thinking of some Christians, who have tried to replace the edification of preaching with entertainment and the message of sin with psychology.

Christ did not send us out bent on foolishness. The gospel message is the same today as in the first century, pure and unadulterated by the wisdom of men. In it we should stand, steadfast and unashamed, knowing it is foolishness to the perishing, but salvation to us who believe (1 Cor. 15:58; Rom. 1:16; 1 Cor. 1:18). Let us glory in being “fools for Christ’s sake” (1 Cor. 4:10)!

Guardian of Truth XLI: 4 p. 23-24
February 20, 1997