6 September 2009

Bring Out The Blind People Who Have Eyes

(Kent Heaton)

The children of Israel struggled with idolatry and through the prophets were warned about their involvement with other gods. Their rebellion went to the heart of the Law of Moses that forbids worship of idols. “You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make to yourselves any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in the heavens above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth” (Exodus 20:3-4). Jehovah forbade bowing down to idols and yet the people allowed the influence of the nations around them to corrupt their allegiance to the one true God. The prophet Isaiah cried out to the nation of Israel to “Bring out the blind people who have eyes, and the deaf who have ears” (Isaiah 43:8).

The futility of idol worship is described by Isaiah in Isaiah 44. It is absurd for man to take a tree and use part of it to warm him, part of it to cook his food and then a remaining part he bows down to worship as his god to deliver him (Isaiah 44:9-17). The totem often is nothing more than a representation of what man looks like himself. But the eyes of the idol cannot see nor do the ears hear. Those who worship an idol are the mirror of the idol itself as they have eyes but cannot see the uselessness of idol worship and ears but cannot hear the truth of Jehovah God. Isaiah is crying out for the people to open their eyes and open their ears. They have the capability of seeing and hearing but refuse to do so (Isaiah 42:18-20).

Rebellion is at the heart of idol worship. “Son of man, you dwell in the midst of a rebellious house, who have eyes to see and see not. They have ears to hear and hear not, for they are a rebellious house” (Ezekiel 12:2). The heart of man rebels against the worship of the one true God. “You shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them. For I Jehovah your God am a jealous God” (Exodus 20:5). When man worships man Jehovah is left out. Man creates his own law and his own righteousness. Man worships man. The law of God is rejected because man wants to set his mind upon his own will.

Idol worship is not a problem of the eye or ear but of the heart. While a few religions today still engage in idol worship the reality of idol worship is found in the hearts of those who refuse to see the saving truth of Jehovah’s will. Explaining the use of parables Jesus said, Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they see not, and hearing they hear not; nor do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah which said, "By hearing you shall hear and shall not understand; and seeing you shall see and shall not perceive; for this people's heart has become gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and they have closed their eyes, lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them" (Matthew 13:13-15). Man has eyes to see but will not see the truth of God. Man has ears to hear the word of God but desires only to hear what tickles his ear. “For a time will be when they will not endure sound doctrine, but they will heap up teachers to themselves according to their own lusts, tickling the ear. And they will turn away their ears from the truth and will be turned to myths” (2 Timothy 4:3-4).

Israel turned away from the truth and followed after idols. We must guard against the tickling of the ears to appease our own lusts. God wants all men to come to repentance (Acts 17:30) but we have to come to Him on His terms (Matthew 7:21). Idol worship takes on many forms today as man sets aside the will of God for his own way. The scriptures are written so that all men can read and understand the one truth (John 14:6; Ephesians 3:3-4). We are unlike idols that have eyes that cannot see or ears that cannot hear. God has given to man “all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who has called us to glory and virtue” (2 Peter 1:3). Paul’s mission was “To open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light, and from the authority of Satan to God, so that they may receive remission of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me” (Acts 26:18).

Does The Church Save?

(Franklin T. Puckett)

One of the most widely held beliefs of our day is the teaching that a man is saved by faith alone. Nearly all of the denominational creeds have the idea imbedded in their articles, either clearly stated as in the Methodist Discipline, or else clearly implied. It is taught that man is saved miraculously the very instant he believes in Christ, and that this belief is wrought in his heart by the action of the Holy Spirit. Man, in this view, is wholly passive and unable to do anything at all to bring about his salvation. It is all the work of the Holy Spirit. Neither the man's obedience, nor the commands of Christ are taken into consideration. It is purely a miracle.

This is surely one of the most damnable of all false doctrines which curse the land this day. It does more to produce indifference in the hearts of the people toward the church, and to diminish respect for the church, than anything I know. It leads men to deny the essentiality of the church altogether. So strong a grip has the doctrine secured on the hearts of men that it is a very common experience to hear devoutly religious people say, "Oh, the church is not important," "The church does not save," "One can go to heaven just as well without being a member of the church as he can in the church," etc. Now if by the word "church" such people mean some denominational institution, then surely no Bible student anywhere would argue with them. On the contrary, every informed person will agree fully with the idea that membership in a denomination (any denomination) is not essential to salvation.

But no person who has reached the age of accountability, and has transgressed God's law either by omission or commission, will ever reach heaven without being a member of the church which is revealed in the Bible. I call your attention to the fact that Jesus Christ is the "Savior of the body" (Ephesians 5:23). It is Christ who saves; Christ who is the Savior; and not the church. "The church" does not save; the church is the thing which is saved! "For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, being himself the savior of the body." What does Christ save? He saved THE BODY. But what is "the body"? It is the church (Colossians 1:18; 1:24; Ephesians 1:22-23). Christ is the head of the church—his body. And it is this body which is saved by Christ.

The conclusion is clear from this that if one does not belong to the church, he does not belong to that of which Christ is the Savior. It was the church which was purchased by the blood of Christ (Acts 20:28); and it is "to the church" that the saved are added. (Acts 2:47) There are no saved out of the church; there can be none. For everyone who is "saved" is "added" to the church by the same one who saves him—God.

The church was purchased by the blood of Christ. Unless we are willing to say that Christ was swindled when he bought the church, we must recognize that the value of the church is equal to the value of the blood of Christ. If the church is not valuable, then Christ was cheated when he purchased it with his own blood. The church is a "blood bought" institution. If one is to be saved by the blood of Christ, one must be a part of the church, his spiritual body, which was purchased by that blood. If one is a sinner, at enmity with God, then salvation and peace and reconciliation are to be had ONLY in the church, the blood purchased possession of Jesus Christ. "For he is our peace, who made both one, and brake down the middle wall of partition, having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law contained in ordinances; that he might create in himself of the two one new man, so making peace, and might reconcile them both in one body unto God through the cross, having slain the enmity thereby" (Ephesians 2:14-16).

Where are people reconciled to God? In the one body, the church. Where is peace found? In the one body, the church. The Bible says that the body is the church, and that peace and reconciliation are to be had in the body, and not out of it. Talk about being "saved by the blood of Christ!" My friend, if you are ever saved by the blood of Christ, it will be because you have come into that one body where you are reconciled to God by the cross of Christ. The blood which was shed for our redemption can save us only in the church. There is no other way.

Does the church save? Of course not. It is Christ who saves! But what does he save? He saves the body, the church. God exercised great power when he raised Jesus Christ from the dead and "made him to sit at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: and he put all things in subjection under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all" (Ephesians 1:20-23). So the church is the fulness of Christ. It was not some human institution, or some man-made denomination which he purchased with his blood; it was "the church." It is over this body that he reigns as head; it is here that the fullness of God dwells. It is here and here only that salvation is promised to the penitent sinner.

We are pleading with people to become members of the New Testament church. We are pleading that men and women in our day do exactly what they did in the days of the apostles. These people then heard the gospel, believed it, repented of their sins, and were buried through baptism for the remission of sins. And when that happened God added them to the church. Here they were reconciled to God, washed and made clean by the blood of Christ; they were then heirs of God, and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. They were IN the church—the saved of God.

Choosing The Good Part

(Jamey Hinds)

“Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.’ And Jesus answered and said to her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her’ (Luke 10:38–42).

One thing Americans take pride in is how busy we are. And it seems almost shameful to not be busy. So, when someone asks us, “How are you doing?” we quickly reply, “Busy!” With all the “busy-ness” of life we really need to consider our priorities — more now than ever. Satan doesn’t want us to enjoy a full spiritual life. So he encourages us to cram our schedules with activities that aren’t necessarily bad, but not essentially good.

Thinking a little more about Martha: What she was doing wasn’t necessarily bad, but when the opportunity came to sit still and listen to Jesus or be busy, worried, and troubled about many things related to service, Martha didn’t choose the good part. As followers of Jesus, we need to “Take Time to Be Holy.” This requires effort on our parts to sit still and read the word of God. We all want more faith, and we can have more faith if we’ll get it from the right place — “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6).

Taking time to be holy might also mean for us not watching the tv so much (or renting those movies we really want to see). Instead, we could use that time calling our brothers and sisters to “check on” them, to find out how they’re doing and if they might need help. We are a community — a family — and we really are our brother’s keeper (cf. Genesis 4:9). “Let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works” (Hebrews 10:24). This will require of us to choose the good part. As Jesus said it, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things [i.e., the necessities of life] will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).

“We should no longer be children . . . but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head — Christ — from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:14–16).

Just Drifting!

(Selected)

The Book of Hebrews declares that "we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip" (Hebrews 2:1). Another way of translating the final phrase of this verse is, "lest we drift away." Nothing in the world is easier than drifting. No person drifts upstream, only downstream. It is so easy. All you do is sit back and relax and let the boat go. You are soon lulled into a lazy stupor, not caring where you go. You may not even be aware you are drifting until it is too late and the boat is on the rocks. Satan is very wise. He seldom urges a Christian to leave the church or to give up his faith in the Lord. Instead he causes us to relax, rest on the oars, and drift along in the Christian life. All around us are Christians who have drifted into a state of coldness and indifference. They have stopped caring about others who need to hear the message of God's saving grace. Are you drifting? Wake up now! Grab the oars and pull. Your active concern is needed as we seek to lead others to find Christ and His will for their lives.