A New Pope

So the Catholic Church has a new “Pope.” To listen to the news over the past few days one would think that everyone in the world is Catholic; that the resignation and election of a new pope impacts everyone’s life. However, this is not true in my case. The truth is that I feel that the NFL free agent signings and pending draft are bigger events in my life than the religious elevation of a mere man. I continue to be dumbfounded by the things I see and hear. So I thought I would share some thoughts with you and then ask you some questions.

1.  We do not have a new “Pope” and he is NOT the “Holy Father.” My Holy Father is in heaven and I will worship and serve Him alone! Jesus said, “And Jesus answered and said to him, “Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ” (Luke 4:8). My Lord also said, “Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven” (Matthew 23:9). But apparently these sayings mean nothing to the Catholic Church. Someone might say, “We do not worship the Pope.” This is not what I saw and heard from thousands who stood Vatican waiting for a white smoke signal and announcement of a new “Head.” When the elders selected me to be the preacher at Point Pleasant I looked outside my office window and do you know what I saw? Grass growing! Had the church been standing out there I would have told them to go home and go about the Father’s work!

2.  Unlike the previous selection, this transfer of power did not come because of death but due to the resignation of Joseph Alois Ratzinger. But I am reminded of something the events surrounding the death of Karol Józef Wojtyła (John Paul II) and I promise you this is true (I could not make this stuff up). Apparently for centuries, when the “Pope” had evidently taken his last breathe, the senior Cardinal (not from St. Louis) would take out a “silver mallet” and bonk the “Pope” on the head three times, each time calling out his birth name. If he did not respond the Cardinal would announce to everyone present that the “Pope” was dead. No foolin’! You just hit him in the head with a hammer! If he wasn’t dead before, he is now. I have searched my Bible and cannot find any mention of this anywhere. Apparently they have stopped the beatings and just call out his name now. I don’t know why they changed this. Maybe for the same reason they are not allowed to eat meat on Friday (or are they?). And anyway, I thought fish was meat.

3.  Speaking of birth names, the new “Pope”, Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina, got to pick his “Pope” name as all other “Popes” have. They say that they can choose any name they want from the list of previous popes (Jorge picked Francis) except for the name Peter. This is apparently out of respect for their “first Pope.” Yet, there is no credible evidence that Peter was a “Pope” or ever was in Rome. In fact, Paul was there and told Timothy, “At my first defense no one stood with me, but all forsook me. May it not be charged against them” (2 Timothy 4:16). Where was Peter? Any way, Jorge broke the norm and chose Francis (a name not previously used) is honor of St. Francis of Assisi.

4.  As for the election of a new “Pope” I found this interesting. I again have searched my Bible for this information and came up empty. Apparently many changes have taken place with this process over the years; mostly because the process can become very political (imagine that, when men do things their way, instead of God’s way, they always have to have, their way). But here is the most intriguing thing about this process. All the cardinals under the age of 80 (120 max) come together in a secret meeting to elect the new “Pope.” They say they believe they are being “guided by the Holy Spirit” and God already knows who the man is He wants. So here is my concern, why would it ever take more than one, unanimous ballet? Why would there ever be a need for black smoke to come from the chapel’s chimney (hang on, let me check, nope that’s not in the Bible either)? I heard that many years ago it took more than three years to decide whom the new “Pope” would be and it only happened because a bird landed on one of the “cardinals” when they all walked outside. They determined that the bird was the Holy Spirit. Amazing. This time a bird landed on the chimney prior to the white smoke coming out and this was perhaps a sign from God as well. But Check Acts 1:15-26 to see how the process really works when God’s hand is in it!

Amazing that so many people have been so deceived by this religion and its ungodly, unauthorized traditions. Yes, Paul said to keep the traditions (2 Thessalonians 2:15), but the word there means the teachings that came from God by inspiration and where passed on to all men through the Bible (Ephesians 3:1-5; 2 Peter 1:20-21; 2 Timothy 3:16-17). The fact is that I am sad today, and frustrated by the work of Satan in the religions of men.

Please dear friends, study the Bible (2 Timothy 2:15; Acts 17:11). Be ready to give an answer (1 Peter 3:15) and earnestly defend the one true faith (Jude 3).

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Body of Christ

Order in the Body of Christ

1 Cor. 3:3-9 – “for you are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?  For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?  Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?  I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.  So then neither is he that planteth anything, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are laborers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building.”

The church is a Divine Institution with a set order for everyone who is a part of it.  In the New Testament we have the Divine arrangement set forth so that we do not have to fuss over our particular place in it.  In the text; 1 Cor. 3 we have some material that tells us that the church (i.e. its members) all have their place. In this text Paul is disappointed in the membership of the Corinthian congregation because they apparently misunderstood the role of the teachers, the hearers, and the relationship of each to God and to each other (verses 3-4). The failure to understand the role of teachers and their mission by the congregation had caused division in the congregation. The division might be referred to as cliques; each clique claiming allegiance to a specific teacher. Paul says of this division that it displays carnality (i.e. “fleshly things” – not understanding properly spiritual things – From – A Critical Lexicon and Concordance by E.W. Bullinger – pages 134-135 – def. #2) on the part of those involved in these cliques. Indeed, cliques in the congregation are a detriment to progress and soundness; this is true because the various cliques spend their time competing with each other for prominence when they ought to be promoting Jesus Christ and His Church. There are times when it seems that within our brotherhood the most important thing to some is to make sure that there is some kind of issue that brethren can fuss over when they all should be fussing about the lack of progress in the local church. Was it not Jesus who told us to “seek the kingdom of God first” in our list of things for disciples to do (cf. Matt 6:33 “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.“)?

In verse 5 – Paul tells those that were following a particular man that all men are just men, that each Christian regardless of his position, age, personality, etc. were all servants of God. Paul encourages them to disband these cliques and all together serve the Lord Jesus Christ as a single unit (i.e. to the congregation in Corinth he is encouraging unity under one Head – i.e. Jesus Christ) cf. Col. 1:18-19 -“And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. 19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell; (KJV)”

In verse 6-8 Paul instructs those that he has referred to as carnal minded to understand the role of teachers. Paul says that teachers are to sow the good seed (i.e. “the Word of God” – Luke 8:5-11). Paul clearly understood that those that know the truth will be free from sin and schism (John 8:32; John 17:17). Paul is careful to show the roll of the teacher (i.e. preacher. elders, or otherwise) as all equals in a project for Christ to teach everyone the truth of the gospel (cf. Matt. 28:18-20; 2 Tim. 2:2). Paul continues in verse 8 saying that the key figure in the conversion of the sinner is not man but that the increase will be the result of Christ efforts (i.e. He will give the increase).

In verse 9 Paul concludes this context with a call to unity of purpose and understanding; “or we are laborers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building.”

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The Centrality of the Lord’s Supper

The Centrality of the Lord’s Supper

In Acts 20, the apostle Paul is in the midst of making his way through the Gentile churches to collect money for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem (Rom. 15:26). He passes through Macedonia, Achaia, back to Macedonia, and across the Aegean as accompanied by several men who likely served as Gentile guards and guarantors for the money the apostle was carrying to Jerusalem (Acts 20:1-4). These men sailed ahead of Paul and waited for him at Troas. On a Wednesday, Luke and Paul set sail from Philippi to meet up with these men in Troas. It took them five days against prevailing head winds to make the journey, but they arrived on Monday. Luke tells us that he, Paul, and all of these men stayed in Troas for seven days until the arrival of the first day of the week, Sunday (Acts 20:5-6).

Next, Luke writes, “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.” In English we have the dependent clause “when the disciples came together to break bread.” In Greek, this expression is known as a genitive absolute. Here it answers the question, “When did Paul preach to them?” It was when the disciples came together to break bread, and they did that upon the first day of the week. The expression “to break bread” in Greek incorporates an infinitive of purpose. It states the reason why the disciples came together upon the first day of the week. It was their weekly custom to “break bread,” that is, to observe the Lord’s Supper of which the first act is to break bread (1 Cor. 11:23-24).

Thus, the observance of the Lord’s Supper was the purpose of their gathering together upon the first day of the week. First Corinthians 16:2 teaches us that the disciples gathered upon every first day of the week. Hence, the disciples gathered upon every first day of the week for the purpose of observing the Lord’s Supper. Singing, praying, and studying God’s word may be observed by the Christian upon any day of the week. The Lord’s Supper and the collection must be observed upon the first day of the week. Acts 20:7 teaches us that the Lord’s Supper is central to congregational worship upon the first day of the week.

This does not imply that the Lord’s Supper is more important than any other aspect of worship; it simply means that the Lord’s Supper is the central purpose of corporate worship on the Lord’s Day. Most have forgotten this, or do not want to remember it as did the Christians in the New Testament. We know of many who place the Lord’s Supper on Thursday or Saturday night. But, this thwarts God’s purposes. It was God’s intention that the Lord’s death be remembered on the day He arose, not on the day he was betrayed, crucified, or buried. It is a perpetual memorial of Christ’s death on the day of His triumph over death. Any other day of the week fails to fulfill this ultimate significance.

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The Curse of the Law

Galatians 3:10-13 “For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, the just shall live by faith. In addition, the law is not of faith: but, the man that doeth them shall live in them. Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree…”

What law is Paul speaking of and what is the “curse” of that law? Paul was referring specifically to the Law of Moses (i.e. the Ten Commandments), but the same principles apply to any system of law. The “curse” of the law is that one must keep the entire Law in order to be justified by it and that once one has sinned under the Law, there is no way to put away one’s guilt. The Law of Moses made no provision for the forgiveness of sin. In James 2:10, we are taught that under a system of law (any system that is totally based upon a rule of law), if one tries to keep the whole law but offends in even one point, he is guilty of all. The curse of the Law, according to Paul in Romans 7:7-13, is that it exposed sin in his life, yet it did nothing to take away his guilt.

The Law of Moses only allowed for forgiveness in prospect, that is, it only covered the sins of men until Christ came to take away those sins. Now that Christ has come, the Law has been taken away. It was nailed to the cross along with Him (Colossians 2:13-14) So now, we are free from the curse of the Law of Moses. Does this mean that there is no longer a law that we must follow? Is there not a requirement for Christians to obey in the New Testament?

Yes, obedience is a requirement even under the Law of Christ. Christ demands our obedience. Matthew 7:21 teaches that we must do the will of the Father in order to enter into the kingdom of heaven. The will of God is our law. The will of God has been revealed in its fulness in the New Testament. The Word of Christ will judge us in the last day. Those who reject Christ and His Word are rejecting the very law that will judge them. (John 12:48) We are now under the Law of Christ. Galatians 6:2 gives us the imperative command to bear one another’s burdens in order to fulfill the law of Christ.

We are under the law of Christ, which is a law of Liberty. The fact that Christ’s law is a law of liberty does not mean that we are free to disobey it (Galatians 5:13). James teaches, that we must be a doer of the Word of God and not a hearer only (James 1:22-25). One who is a doer of the Law of Liberty will be blessed. James also teaches in that we will be judged by that Law of Liberty (James 2:12).

Since one could not keep all of the commandments under the Law of Moses, as we read in James 2:10, one would be guilty of all the Law. There was no way under the Old Law for ones sins to be taken away. The punishment for sin is death. Therefore, violation of any point of the Law of Moses brought one under the “curse” of the law, which was the death sentence. Only by the grace of God was a way made for man to rid himself of the “curse” of law. The grace of God freed man from the curse of the law.

Does this mean that grace and law are mutually exclusive? God forbid! Grace is what brought about a system of salvation by faith in Christ Jesus. We are justified only by our obedient faith in Christ, not by works of law. However, that does not void every form of law. Romans 3:31 teaches that law is established through faith. Faith establishes or confirms law. If we have faith in Jesus and are obedient to His Will, then we must recognize His Will as law, or else we would not be faithful to it. Our obedience to Christ’s Law confirms that His Law is in effect.

In Galatians 2:16-21, the word “law” is referring any system whereby one is saved according to works of merit. Whether it is by the Law of Moses, which made no provision for forgiveness, or whether it was by the Law of the Jews, which was apart from the Law of Moses, and had developed into a system of works based salvation. The Jews believed that they could earn their way to heaven by keeping the traditions of their ancestors. Therefore, we are not justified by law keeping in and of its self, but we are justified by the law of faith in Christ Jesus.

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Resolution and Forgiveness

Resolution and Forgiveness

We all have been there. It’s a great day, everything is going fine, and then someone does something to hurt or offend us. Maybe, it’s a co-worker, our boss, a fellow student, a teacher, a clerk in the store, or even a member of our own family who says or does something that injures us physically, mentally, and/or emotionally. Our first instinct, usually, is to feel a bit surprised and angry. We are now at an important crossroads, a significant point of decision. We must now choose what our next response will be.

At this “fork in the road,” we can choose the path that many take in this situation that leads to further anger. We may decide to remain angry and nurture this anger until it becomes expressed as malicious thoughts and hatred toward the person or persons who initially injured us. We may even use our time to formulate ways to “settle the score” with that person – to extract our “pound of flesh” as repayment for what they did to us. Holding closely to that “grudge” that gives meaning to our anger, we may now strike back by saying things intended to hurt their feelings and/or damage their reputation or even try to attack them physically. That same person may then be encouraged to respond in kind and so begins and is perpetuated the “cycle of hatred.” Is this resolution? Does this solve the problem? Hardly!

Anger is a God-given emotion. Even our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, at times, became angry (Matthew 21:12 – 13; Mark 3:5) yet He knew how to control it. We, too, are expected by our Creator to control our anger and not allow it to be transformed into sinful, malicious thoughts and outright hatred (Ephesians 4:26 – 27, 31; Colossians 3: 8). We cannot, must not hold onto our anger – that’s the easy way out, the “path of least resistance.” That sort of attitude leads only to further sin and even more frustration, guilt, anger, malice, and hatred.

There is another, better path to take when someone hurts or injures us. In Luke 17: 3–4, Jesus offers us all a way to achieve a positive, righteous, godly solution to just such a situation. He tells His disciples (and us today):

“Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.” [NKJV]

Jesus clearly lays out a step-by-step process to resolving the issue. We must, first, make the effort to approach the person(s) who sinned against us and “rebuke” them. The word “rebuke” is translated from the Greek term EPITIMAO which means: “to tax upon, i.e. censure or admonish;…charge, rebuke.” (1) We have to confront them and let them know, in no uncertain terms, that their actions were hurtful and wrong. They need to know! There is no doubt that people will do things intentionally, at times, to hurt and offend us. But there also circumstances where people can “sin against us” unintentionally, without knowing that they have done anything wrong. (We all have been guilty of this at one time or another.) Thus, we need to take the time to communicate with them about the matter. Then, once they have been informed, it is up to them to repent and make things right.

We must remember that forgiveness is not unconditional. It is always dependant on an attitude of repentance. Some may say: “I forgive everyone, even if they continue to sin against me!” How can that be? God only forgives us if we repent of our past sinful actions (Acts 2:38; 3:19; II Peter 3:9). We can do no more than what God does for us – He is our Creator (Isaiah 45:9 – 12; 64:8).

When the person who wronged us realizes that have they have sinned and approaches us with a spirit of true repentance then we should and must be ready to forgive them. This is to be forgiveness with a kind, loving attitude without any lingering resentment or ill-will on our part. Moreover, as our Lord and Master tells us in Luke 17, we should always maintain a spirit of forgiveness even toward those who frequently wrong us, even “…if he sins against you seven times in a day.” We can do no less for we should always remember how much God has forgiven us! Let us be reminded what Paul wrote to the brethren at Ephesus: “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32).

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