THE TRENTON BULLETIN

THE TRENTON BULLETIN

Trenton Church of Christ, Trenton, Florida

One approach by which the Lord has chosen to instill within us a sense of being proper examples, is to provide us with examples. Examples are effective in inspiring us to make a change. For instance, if a friend has just lost forty pounds, one may reason, "If he could lose forty pounds, surely I can lose my twenty." Bible examples are not recorded for merely interesting reading — they are recorded for our learning (I Corinthians 10:11).

The story of Joseph in the house of Potiphar recorded in Genesis 39:1-12 provides some interesting lessons. In verse 2, the text states, "And the Lord was with Joseph, so he became a successful man. . . ." Though this has reference to becoming materially prosperous, Joseph was also, of course, successful spiritually. One of the lessons that can be learned as the story unfolds is that even a spiritually successful person is not exempt from temptation. Paul warns, "Therefore let him who thinks he stands, take heed lest he fall" (I Corinthians 10:12). We must always be on guard against the schemes of Satan.

"The Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house on account of Joseph ." (v. 5). A second lesson to be learned is that even those outside the Lord can be blessed by simply having some contact with one who is in the Lord. The effective personable personal worker can be instrumental in leading many to Christ. The believing wife who is married to an unbeliever can have a profound influence for good on her husband (I Peter:1-2). Christians will often pray for non-Christians, even enemies. The influence of one who is in the Lord transcends the circle of Christians only.

Joseph was "handsome in form and appearance" (v. 6). A third lesson is traits that the world esteems can become stumbling blocks to those who possess them. For instance, the handsome young quarterback who is convinced that he is God’s gift to womankind or the beautiful cheerleader who considers herself on a higher level than anyone else has a mixed-up view of priorities. It is obvious from the text that Joseph did not allow his good looks to cause him to stumble. If you are a person who has been blessed with an attractive appearance, thank God for it but don’t stumble because of it. Always remain humble as our Lord was humble.

Godly Joseph queried, "...how then could I do this great evil, and sin against God?’ (v. 9). A disservice to one’s fellowman is foremost a disservice to God. When Nathan exposed David’s sin with Bathsheba, the king’s reply was, "I have sinned against the Lord’ (2 Samuel:13). Later, when David was reminiscing about his awful deed, he reflected, "Against Thee, Thee only, I have sinned, and done what is evil in Thy sight ..." (Psalm 51:4). Did David’s sin not effect others – of course it did, in many ways, but he realized that most importantly he had sinned against his God. When the prodigal son finally returned to his good senses, he vowed, "I will get up and go to my father and will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight" (Luke 15:18). Notice the order in which "heaven" and "in your sight" appear. What an important lesson to be remembered – when we sin against our fellowman, we first do a disservice to God.

Still, there’s another lesson to be gleaned. The inspired record informs the reader that Potiphar’s wife enticed Joseph not once, but rather "day after day" (v. 10). That means that she attempted to seduce him when he was weak as well as when he was strong. Some of life’s strongest temptations are those which occur "day after day." To the dieter, it’s not so much the one big meal that "does him in" as it is the day by day temptations for just one more bite. No wonder the AA organization strives to impress upon recovering alcoholics to live one day at a time – if they can get through one day without a drink, that’s quite an accomplishment!

Finally, Joseph’s response to his temptress’ attempt to force herself upon him is impressive. One word describes that response –"fled" (v. 12). Joseph had a choice – he could either stay and attempt to justify himself that after all, it was her doings and he had no choice, or, flee. One must be willing to accept the consequences of one’s own actions. It is never in order to say, "He/she made me do it." He may have contributed to the temptation but he didn’t make you do anything. Some years back, a man in Newport Beach, CA ignored signs which stated, "Danger! No diving – shallow water." When he sustained serious spinal injuries after diving into the water, he sued the city for damages. We must be willing to accept the consequences of our own actions.

These are some lessons which can be learned from this story of Joseph in Potiphar’s house. It appears, however, that the overriding lesson to be learned is moral purity. Honor, glory, and praise to God for giving us this example of moral purity for men of all generations.

By some strange travesty those who cry loudest for liberty are often the ones who mean liberty for their opinions only; and "non-sectarian" preachers have a way of becoming the most "creed-bound" of all. The absence of an official written "discipline" is no guarantee of an "open pulpit".

What is a "creed"? The word comes from the Latin "credo" which means, "I believe." Many creeds of today retain the form of the so-called Apostles; Creed, each article beginning with "I believe—." They are concise statements of belief, or doctrine, which identify the "position" of the maker.

Perhaps the first creeds were formulated in an effort to combat what was believed to be error— to state with clarity some matter that was being questioned— or simply an unashamed affirmation of principles upon which certain ones stood. Today our brethren write little creeds in tract form, to show what "we believe"; or as clauses in deeds to church property, to keep a church building in the hands of men who gave the same "I believe" as the original owners. (This seldom works, because of the failure to apply yesterday’s principles to tomorrow’s problems.)

Are such "creeds" wrong? Not necessarily! After all, "we do believe" certain things, whether we write them or not. But should we claim to state that which must be believed, anything less than God’s word is too little, anything more than God’s word is too much, and anything different from God’s word is condemned by this fact. A Christian’s "creed" may be stated as his confession that Jesus Christ is Lord— which recognizes the Son of God as having "all authority," and accepts everything taught in His covenant. We believe, accept, and practice— recognizing as a basis of fellowship with Christ and Christians— only those things which may be proven to be "by His authority."

The error of "man-written creeds" (as we call them) is (1) man’s presumption to shorten, lengthen, alter, or better arrange God’s revelation of truth; and (2) the setting up and acceptance of some man’s "I believe" as a standard of right and wrong.

"Creed-bound" minds are minds tied to one’s own or some other’s "I believe"— no longer free to approach God’s word objectively, to be changed by this unchanging divine standard.

Creeds and sectarianism have moved hand in hand through history. Certain "beliefs" are accepted as "orthodox," and become the standards for determining "fellowship." Tradition, majority rule, big churches, papers, preachers, and such like take the place of God’s word— and all who object must be marked and ostracized. These seem to think Rom. 16:17 reads, "mark them which cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine of our party and traditions." This is sectarianism, whether in or out of the church, and it will send souls to hell.

But someone asks, "Should we not ‘believe’ something; and should we not have firm convictions, wanting others to accept what we believe to be the truth?" We should indeed! And, we may state, even write, what we believe about a matter without being a creed maker, or "creed-bound." The difference lies in one’s attitude toward his beliefs. Have they become his standard, or is he still willing to "prove" them by God’s word??

Do we become angry if someone questions our "beliefs"? Are we unwilling to discuss them in the light of God’s truth? Do we refuse to consider any conclusion other than our own? Are we fair with ourselves in answering the questions of this paragraph? There is One who knows my heart— and yours!!

Religion seems so confusing. Look around the city and you’ll see hundreds of church buildings with various names. Investigate further and you’ll find that these various churches teach different doctrines. If you are like many people, you might be fed up with everything that is done in the name of religion. People are tired of the confusion. Which church is right? How does a person know what to do and where to go? It just seems hopeless sometimes.

The divisions that exist in the religious world do not represent what God wants, according to the Bible. Jesus prayed, concerning all believers:

"that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me" (John 17:21).

Jesus prayed for unity among believers. Therefore, when we see the divisions (denominations) that exist among those professing faith in Christ, then we know it is not what Jesus wants.

Sadly, the consequences of such division result in the world disbelieving in Jesus. This is what Jesus said would happen. It is no wonder that there is so much confusion and disbelief.

The common thought is that if you are a member of any church, then you must be a member of a denomination. This is not true. It is possible to be just a Christian without being a member of a denomination.

Read the New Testament. During the first century A.D., when the events of the New Testament were taking place, there were not a bunch of various denominations. There were Christians in various locations. In their own locations, they would meet with other Christians in order to carry out work that God desired for them to do together. But when one became a Christian, he or she did not have to become anything else. A Christian was just that (Acts 11:26), and there is nothing in the Bible to support the idea of joining a denomination. In fact, God directly spoke against fragmenting off into various groups and identifying with certain creeds or men. By inspiration, the apostle Paul wrote:

"Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are contentions among you. Now I say this, that each of you says, ‘I am of Paul,’ or ‘I am of Apollos,’ or ‘I am of Cephas,’ or ‘I am of Christ.’ Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?" (1 Corinthians 1:10-13).

Christians at Corinth were beginning to divide (denominate) themselves and call themselves after men. This was expressly forbidden. Why should we think it any different today?

Denominationalism is based upon division, and is therefore not what God designed. God designed a simple plan, wherein there would be "one body" (universally) and "one faith" (Ephesians 4:1-6). When we divide ourselves by men and doctrines into differing religious bodies with differing "faiths," we are not honoring God’s plan for His people, the church. This is why we must oppose denominationalism.

You can be just a Christian, nothing more or less, by obeying the gospel of Jesus Christ through faith (Romans 6:3-5, 17-18; 10:13-17; Hebrews 5:9; Galatians 3:26-27, etc.). By doing exactly what the people in the first century did to become Christians, you will become exactly what they were: Christians.

What did they do? The Scriptures teach that they were to believe on Jesus, repent of their sins, confess Him as Lord, and be baptized into His death (John 3:16; Acts 17:30-31; Romans 10:9-10; Acts 2:38; Romans 6:3-4). If you do this, you too can be just a Christian.