Holy Ground

“We are standing on holy ground . . .”

Sometimes we begin our worship singing these words, “We are standing on holy ground . . .” Have you ever thought of the seriousness of what our hearts proclaim as we come together? To sing these words and then forget the melody they made in our hearts is to rob us of the greatest joy on earth—standing in the presence of God on His holy ground.

Two people in the Bible were told by God that they were standing on holy ground. The first story we know so well. Moses saw the burning bush and went to it, only to hear the message from heaven, “Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground” (Ex. 3:5). Forty years later, Joshua stood just outside of Jericho and was in the presence of the heavenly messenger. “And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and said to Him, ‘What does my Lord say to His servant?’ . . . ‘Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy’” (Josh. 5:14-15). Just imagine how these men felt. Sense their awe. Sense the reverence of the moment. Do not miss His message to us in these verses.

We too stand on holy ground. Do we not sometimes acknowledge this when we sing, “The Lord is in His holy temple, let all the earth keep silence before Him”? Perhaps we think of Him being in heaven at the moment (for He indeed is), but there is another holy temple where He dwells. Peter described it this way, “You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God” (1 Pet. 2:5). The next time we assemble for worship, sense that He is here and we as His spiritual house have assembled to offer sacrifices to Him. Paul says it even more specifically, “For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are” (1 Cor. 3:17).

As we come together this Sunday, we should realize just how holy that occasion is. We offer the sacrifices of praise to Him with our lips in our prayers and singing (Heb. 13:15). We come to His table to remember the holiness of His body and blood given for us. To fail to remember Him at such a moment is to eat and drink damnation to our souls (1 Cor. 11:29, KJV). As His word is read and taught to us, the words of Joshua should reflect our hearts, “What does my Lord say to His servant?”

Standing on holy ground. That is precisely what we do each week. We have come before the Holy one and we seek His holiness because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy” (1 Pet. 1:16). How sacred is that time. How reverent we should be. How focused we must be! We are in His presence. Let us remove our “shoes of irreverence” and worship Him!

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Origin of the Church of Christ

Some time ago, we received a very brief but pleasant letter, seeking validation as to whether or not the church of Christ was the only church that could trace its roots and origin all the way back to the New Testament. We will herein seek to very briefly and humbly, but at the same time very Biblically, answer that question…

There are several denominations – biblically condemned divisions (see I Cor. 1:10) from the one, original, Christ promised, purchased, and established New Testament church which we see began on the Day of Pentecost as recorded in Acts 2 – including especially Catholicism, that claim to follow their roots all the way back to the Bible; but their claims are completely, transparently, and absolutely illegitimate. (With all of the ridiculous “pomp and circumstance” surrounding the selection of the latest pope, this article would seem to be even more needed now than it was when we received the letter!) Consider for instance: Where in the Bible does the Lord God call His church “Catholic?” He doesn’t. That name doesn’t ever occur in the “all-we-need-to-know-to-make-us-complete-to-stand-before-God-Scripture” (2 Tim. 3:14-4:4), any more than do the terms “nun,” “purgatory,” or “pope.” Jesus Christ Himself even at one point, personally placed His earthly mother Mary (who incidentally went on to birth at least six more children after she had Jesus – see Matt. 13:55; Mk. 6:3) on a level below that of the “common folk” who would do His Father’s will (Matt. 12:46-50; Lk. 11:27-28). And many more of that denomination’s particular man-made teachings and practices are specifically and expressly condemned in God’s most holy Word (See: Matt. 23:9; 1 Tim. 2:5, and 4:1-5 for example). A more complete biblical list is included in a very comprehensive bible study on this man-made religious system known as Catholicism, available at: http://www.clevelandcoc.com/?page_id=139.

To begin with, Peter couldn’t have been the first pope. He was never called that in Scripture; was married (Matt. 8:14); had children (being an elder as he was {1 Ptr. 5:1} in the Lord’s church required such {1 Tim. 3:1-5}); and Peter would never allow himself to be worshipped (Acts 10:24-26) as do the popes today. Despite their claims to the contrary, the roots of the Roman Catholic Church are not found in God’s Word, but in Constantine’s reign (313-337 AD).

From the “tares among the wheat” (See Matt. 13:24-30) seeds of this fourth century, Constantine-led departure from the sacred truths and commandments of Scripture (I Cor. 14:33-37) and the “faith once delivered for all the saints” (See Jude 3) a couple of centuries earlier, eventually came the Protestant Reformation, which, instead of seeking to simply go all the way back to the bible and simply do as God had commanded, sought to make some surface reforms to the already biblically-apostate religious system known as Catholicism. But putting a new roof on a structure established on a foundation of sand still doesn’t leave one with a secure spiritual building to safely house his religious hopes in (See Matt. 7:21-27)! Several of these departures from both the “faith once delivered,” as well as Christ’s one New Testament church once established (Acts 2:37-47; Romans 16:16), can be seen in the following list. Please note there are no Biblical footnotes on where to find them in Scripture because they simply aren’t found therein as they exist today. In fact, there is not a single Protestant denomination on the face of this planet that is more than five hundred years old. Check them out:

  • Roman Catholic: 313-337; Rome; Emperor Constantine.
  • Lutheran: 1517: Germany; Martin Luther.
  • Episcopalian: 1534: England; King Henry VIII.
  • Many Protestant Denominations also mix in and follow many of John Calvin’s (1509-1564) man-made doctrines…
  • Congregational: 1550; England; Robert Browne.
  • Baptist: 1607; Holland; John Smyth.
  • Methodist: 1739; England; John Wesley.
  • Mormon: 1830; America; Joseph Smith.
  • Seventh-Day Adventist: 1831; America; William Miller.
  • Christian Science: 1866; America; Mary Baker Eddy.
  • Jehovah’s Witnesses: 1872; America; Charles Russell.
  • The Church of the Nazarene, the Church of God (this name is seen in Scripture, but this denomination and its man-made doctrines aren’t), the Assembly of God, and the Pentecostals all came about as a result of a fracture in the Methodist Church between 1880 and 1910. It was during this time period that a doctrinal schism also occurred which caused the division between the Christian Church and the churches of Christ.
  • The “Community Church,” “Emergent Church” and many others are even younger yet…

Compare those with this… During His earthly ministry, the Lord Jesus Christ promised to build His church (singular); He said at that time that Peter would open it up (See Matt. 16:18-19). And indeed Peter did so (some 50 days after the Sabbath that Jesus’ body spent in the tomb), on the Day of Pentecost, 33 A.D. (Acts 2), binding by-faith repentance and baptism for the forgiveness of sins as the “terms of admittance” into Christ’s saved group of people or “church” (SEE Acts 2:22-47), or the “churches of Christ” as God called its individual congregations in Scripture (Ro. 16:16).

“Church of Christ” is a term of description; it denotes Whom this “called out” or “saved” body of people (that’s what the “church” means – it’s never a physical building in Scripture, but always the people) belongs to. This group of Christ-saved, gospel-obeying, and God-purchased people are also referred to in the Bible by six other very appropriate names as well, all of which also denote their Owner, Head, and just Whose sole authority they follow (See: Acts 20:28; 1 Thess. 2:14; Gal. 1:22; 1 Tim. 3:5, 3:15; Hebs. 12:22-24). While any and all of those biblically-mentioned names are appropriate, can any sincere seeker of Christ possibly believe that God is just as pleased with man-honoring, man-made names (See Acts 4:12) such as Baptist, Lutheran, Catholic, and etc – and the man-made teachings which accompany them of course (Jn. 4:23-24; Matt. 15:7-9; 1 Tim. 4:1-5) – which are nowhere to be seen in God’s Word but came about hundreds and hundreds of years after Christ established His one New Testament church in Acts 2… And in light of such passages as 1 Cor. 1:10, Gal. 1:6-10, and Eph. 1:22-23 w/chapter 4:4-6?

The conclusion of the matter then is this… Not only do we “trace our roots” back to New Testament times, but we clearly see the church of Christ named (Romans 16:16) and in existence there throughout (Acts 2 forward). Come and experience the Lord’s church; the one the apostles worked and worshipped in; the one in the Book.

 

 

 

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April Fool

Do Not Be an April Fool!

When was the first ever April Fools’ Day hoax? Have you ever thought about it? I submit to you that it must have been April 1, 6000 BC (roughly). It was not really a joke at all; it was a mean, horrible and malicious attack. I am talking about the very first April Fools’ Day in history. This sad event is recorded in Genesis Chapter Three. The first ever April Fools’ hoax was pulled on Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden by the father of the foolish – Satan himself. On that April Fools’ Day, foolishness (sin) first entered the world, marring God’s perfect creation, and mankind has been falling for the same old April Fools’ hoax ever since.

What is a fool? Webster’s defines a fool in this way,

“1. One who is destitute of reason, or the common powers of understanding; an idiot. Some persons are born fools, and are called natural fools; others may become fools by some injury done to the brain. 2. In common language, a person who is somewhat deficient in intellect, but not an idiot; or a person who acts absurdly; one who does not exercise his reason; one who pursues a course contrary to the dictates of wisdom. 3. In scripture, fool is often used for a wicked or depraved person; one who acts contrary to sound wisdom in his moral deportment; one who follows his own inclinations, who prefers trifling and temporary pleasures to the service of God and eternal happiness.”

The Bible defines the fool in this way, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” (Proverbs 1:7) Therefore, a fool is one who does not fear God and who despises His wisdom and instruction. That is exactly what Satan was able to tempt Adam and Eve to do.

God Had told Adam and Eve, “Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” (Genesis 2:16-17). A proper fear or reverential awe of God should have kept Adam and Eve from ever approaching that particular tree. Yet they listened to Satan’s lie, “Ye shall not surely die…” (Genesis 3:4). And they fell for his sick joke, “For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil…” (Genesis 3:5).

Their foolishness opened the door for more foolishness to follow and we have all at one time fallen for Satan’s April Fools’ hoax. “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned…” (Romans 5:12). We can thank God, however, that there is a remedy for that mistake, a way to escape the eternal consequences of the horrendous April Fool’s hoax perpetrated by the devil. “For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many… Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous…” (Romans 5:15, 18-19).

Don’t fall for the same old April Fools’ Hoax. It has not changed in thousands of years. Though it has many guises and variations, it remains essentially the same. Satan knows that if he can first get you to lose your respect and awe of God then he can cause you to despise God’s wisdom and instruction – resulting in sin. Don’t fall into his trap! Avoid being entangled in his web of lies and deceit. Flee temptation – run away from its presence! Follow Solomon’s advice, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13). Don’t be a fool!

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Autonomy

Not long ago a person I was working with in an attempt to convert him from a false religion stopped me while I was presenting a statement about the independence of each congregation by exclaiming “I did not know that.” After some consideration it dawned on me that there may be many people who are seeking true Biblical doctrine who were unaware of the independence of each congregation of churches of Christ. For that reason this article has been written.  I do pray that some will examine my reasoning and exegesis of the Bible texts to follow and find satisfaction (i.e. acceptance) of the Biblical doctrine of local congregational autonomy.

What does the word autonomy mean? – (Autonomy: “self-law”, hence, self-governing…the right of self-government…a self-governing community.)  -Autonomy = Independence & self-government.

CHURCHES IN THE EARLY N.T. ERA WERE AUTONOMOUS:

The Biblical pattern of the early church (i.e. independent congregational government) is the only way a congregation may organize to this very day. There is no other organizational structure reveled for the local congregation found in the New Testament.

Each Local Church Is A Complete Organization Within Itself:

Acts 14:23 – And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed. KJV

Acts 20:28 – Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. KJV Phil. 1:1 – Paul and Timothy, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons: KJV

CONSIDER THIS:

The organizational structure of a congregation is revealed in the three references sited above; the Biblical organization for local congregational function consists of elders, deacons, and other members.

This concept will work perfectly with each congregation wherever the congregation exists in the world. The congregation has no organizational function beyond its own ability. The ability of each congregation is determined by the size, spirituality of its members (i.e. maturity), and its financial strength.

Each congregation is responsible to God in three area of work:

Eph. 4:10-16 – 10 He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ: 14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

1.     Evangelism – spreading and supporting the teaching of Christ.

2.     Benevolence – Taking care of the congregation’s needy.

3.     Edification of itself – building up the membership of the congregation (i.e. aiding the members to grow – mature in the faith).

The above three areas of work assigned by the Lord for the congregation when performed to the extent of their ability with their resources is authorized, pleasing to the Lord, and completely acceptable to God.

Through the above process each congregation is acceptable to God.

I know of no Biblical teaching that authorized a plurality of elders in one church to assume or accept the responsibility of a sister congregation’s work; either in part or the whole.

The concept of sponsoring elderships, congregational interlinking such as is current in the Roman Catholic Church, the Methodist, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Baptist, and many others religious organizations pursuing unauthorized means and methods to activate the universal church (i.e. all the members throughout the world or all the churches throughout the world) is without Biblical support.

CONSIDER THIS:

Any system or any organizational arrangement that is not authorized by the Bible is unacceptable to our Lord.  Anything that is unauthorized by our Lord via the Holy Scriptures that is practiced by man is sinful. There is no other statement that will adequately define this departure from the Biblical pattern; this is transgression of God’s instruction.

SEE ALSO THE FOLLOWING BIBLICAL REFERENCES:

Jesus Christ is the only Head of the Universal Church and has not delegated any authority to any man or men to take His place while he sits at the throne of the Father in Heaven.

Matt. 28:18-20 – And Jesus came and spoke unto them, saying, all power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen. KJV

Eph. 1:22-23 – 22 and hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him that fills all in all. KJV

Col. 3:15-17 – 15 and let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him. KJV

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I Believe Everything

Not too long ago, I was having a conversation with a friend about religion, and she said, “ I believe in everything.”  I was a little taken back with this response, and did not reply to her immediately, but decided to ponder upon it for a while.  Knowing a little something about this person, I am pretty sure that she did not mean something like “ I believe red lights mean ‘go’,” or “I believe that 2+2=2365.”  Given the context of our discussion, she seemed to be referring to religious beliefs, and so, to be charitable with her statement, I will comment upon that.

Even given religious beliefs, however, one will soon find that not all of them can be accepted so that one could truly say, “ I believe everything.”  For example, popular Hindu beliefs accept reincarnation.  This is the idea that one’s soul leaves one’s body and comes back in another life to inhabit a different body.  In Hindu belief, this happens impersonally.  One’s soul is simply the “energy” from one body that inhabits a new body, but no personality is transferred.  Hindus also believe that reincarnation can take place into other beings like dogs, cats, horses, cows, birds, rats, and other animals.

However, Christianity does not hold to reincarnation.  Christians believe that one’s life on earth is the only life that one has to live before final judgment, and that there is no cycle of reincarnation that occurs (Hebrews 9:27).  Each individual is a separate person unique in identity for all time and space.  Each person has one body, which will be resurrected on the Day of Judgment (John 5:28-29).  On that day, everyone will be judged by Jesus the Christ according to what he or she has done in that body whether good or bad (2 Corinthians 5:10).

Perhaps one might say, “I can believe both of these things, and do well.”  Such seems like a high-minded way of looking at it, but that both sets of beliefs cannot be maintained is easily seen by simply considering the differences.

Christianity -Resurrection Popular Hindu Belief – Reincarnation
Personhood is real; The self is personal. Personhood is an illusion; The self is not personal.
Death occurs once. Death occurs multiple times.
The self is resurrected into his own body. The self is reincarnated into a different body.
The self is resurrected for eternal judgment. The self is reincarnated according to karma (a type of judgment that is cyclical).
The self survives resurrection. The self does not survive reincarnation.
Resurrection occurs once. Reincarnation occurs multiple times; it is cyclical.
Judgment occurs once and is final. Judgment is cyclical occurring many different times.
The personal self spends eternity in heaven or hell; in fellowship with God or not, respectively. The impersonal energy that was one’s self eventually merges with cosmic oneness.

It seems clear that one cannot believe both sets of teaching (reincarnation and resurrection) at least as these doctrines are set forth in Christianity and Popular Hindu Religion.  One may try to synthesize these beliefs somehow, but one will wind up with something different and end up compromising one set of beliefs or the other.  The new set of beliefs will still be different from the old set and one will still end up not believing everything.

Most importantly, though, an individual who professes to believe everything must ask himself how he is going to live his life right now?  If one accepts the teachings of reincarnation, there really is no motivation beyond one’s own personal feelings as to how he should live.  So, if one lives in such a way so as to destroy his or someone else’s life, then no big deal.  One is reincarnated into the next life as something lesser than human and one’s energy moves to that state.  If one fulfills the purpose of that state (whatever that is), one may then move back up and take on being human again.  If one becomes “enlightened,” then he may move on to an impersonal state of existence with the whole of the cosmos.  One would never know all of this is happening because in this religious system, each change destroys one’s personality.

However, if one truly believes in resurrection, one will order his or her life so as to anticipate the Day of Judgment when all will be judged according to his deeds.  One will seek to ensure that his deeds have been of the sort that accord with the Judge’s standards of right and wrong (John 12:48).  If one only has one shot at life and doing the right thing therein, then one had better get it right lest his soul is lost eternally.  Such circumstances do not entail impersonal cosmic union, but the eternal persistence of an individual consciousness under just punishment for wrongdoing.  However, should someone act according to the Judge’s standards, he or she will receive judicial mercy and eternally persist in a state of harmony and union with the Judge (God) in a personal loving relationship.

Surely these two sets of beliefs entail different sets of life choices.  One will either believe he has another opportunity to do right in the next life, or he will believe this life is his only opportunity to do right.  One will act according to the one belief or the other, and consequences will follow.  When it comes down to making personal decisions, one simply cannot believe everything.

Practically speaking, one must act one way or another at any given point in life.  One will act based upon what one believes about one’s actions.  It is important that we believe the right things so that we will act the right way.  However, in order to believe the right things, we must have the right standard of behavior.  The Bible is that standard.  It is the word of God that God has given for us to study, learn, and believe so that our actions may be ordered correctly.  The apostle Paul wrote, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:  That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).  Why not ask someone today to sit down and study the Bible with you.

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