BEN M. BOGARD,*** etc. L. D. Perdue, Lester Mccalister & Roy M. Reed
Sermons & Lessons Baptist and Commoner 1915 to 1937 Prepared by Dr. Luther D. Perdue Forward: October 5, 2006, American Baptist Association and California History and Archives Committees of the Cooperative Missionary Baptist Association, Porterville, CA. Compiled by L. D. Perdue, California Chairman This collection of sermons by Ben M. Bogard and a few others is taken almost entirely from the Baptist and Commoner, dating back almost 100 years. The Baptist World had reprinted a few of them and credit is given. All of them were scanned and transferred to Word. Over the years Brother Perdue spent considerable time in the Missionary Baptist Seminary library making copies of the Baptist and Commoner where many of the original copies are stored. In addition to the original copies, the microfilm of this paper, along with its predecessors, are stored in the History and Archives room of the American Baptist Association located in the Little Rock Seminary Library.
TableofContents Forward
Feast of The Lord
Antioch Missionary Baptist
God Almighty
The Paper Drive
God, Glorious Gospel of the Son
Acceptable Service
God's Grace
Angels
God's Great Fundamentals
Angels, Their Ministry
God's Great Love
Angels, Who Are They?
God's Peculiar People
Atonement
God's Mighty Love
Attributes of God
God, The Great Healer
Bad World Conditions and the Remedy
Holy Spirit, Who Is He?
Baptism, Presbyterians Bible
Holy Spirit, Why Pray For The Leadership of The Spirit?
Bible Doctrines, Baptist
Heavenly Father
Bible Mysteries
Heaven, A Place As Well As A Condition
Bible, Rule of Faith
Heaven, God Speaks
Born Again
In Essentials Unity, In Non-Essentials, Liberty
Bride of Christ
Joshua, type Of Christ
Bride, Mystery of the Church as The Bride of Christ Bride of Christ, Who? Bride of Christ, Church Bride, Church
Judgment of the Believer; What Shall Our Reward Be Kingdom Question Sermon to A. B. A. Preacher, Will The Lord Qualify Him?
Bride, The Lambs Wife
Precepts of God are Reasonable
Bride, The Spirit
Prayer, Old Testament
Chances, Two To One
Redemption
Child of God, What it Cost to be one?
Resurrection
Christian
Resurrection of Christ
Church, Glory In
Rebuilding The Walls
Church Polity
Salvation
Compliments, Divine
Salvation And Sin
Covenants With Men, God's
Salvation By Grace
Death, Heaven, Hell, the Grave, Future Punishment
Salvation Satisfies
Death Triumphant
Salvation, The Way
Death, Eternal Unseen
Second Coming of Christ
Deliverance, Petition
Second Coming, Signs of the Times
Doctrinal Paragraphs
Security of The Believer
Doctrine, Election (1)
Seven Pillars
Doctrine, Election (2)
Stewardship of Opportunity
Doctrines of Giving
Strength In Weakness
Doctrine of Tithing
Suffering
Eternal Choices
Suppose It Is True After All, What Then?
Established In Faith (Jerusalem Council)
Trinity
Excuses Offered by Sinners
WHAT KIND OF BAPTISTS ARE WE?
Faith
Wisdom THE BAPTIST WAY-BOOK
THE STORY OF A SERMON
Forward
MY RECOLLECTIONS OF DR. BEN M. BOGARD By L. Douglas Perdue My first meeting with Brother Bogard was in the middle of July 1944. I had just arrived in Little Rock, my first trip outside of my home state of California and did not know a living soul. I caught a streetcar from the bus station to 21st and Brown Street and walked down to Brother Bogard's house. When I knocked on the door, this stocky short man came and opened it. He did not have on a shirt but under his suspenders he had on long johns. I must admit I was somewhat taken aback since I had expected a very dignified man in a suit to answer the door. He looked up at me and in a very gruff voice said, "What do you want?" I told him who I was and that I had
come to enroll in the Missionary Baptist Institute. He then said "Fine, go on down this street to the top of the hill and you will see a house on top of the hill. Brother Guthrie lives there and he will take care of you." I then told him that I was new to the area and did not know anything about it and could he give me more instructions. He said in a gruff voice once again, "Go on, you can't miss it." I did not miss it. The Guthrie family received me very warmly. Brother Bogard told me later that he treated all the boys roughly when they first came to enroll in school in order to weed out the ones who did not have "stickability." Brother Bogard taught the first class beginning promptly at 8:00 A.M. He let us know the first day that class did not start at 8:01 and if we were a minute late he would remind us of it. Believe me; we would not forget it either. I would sit on the front row right in front of him, thrilled as he taught the Word of God. Several times he would look at me and say, "Douglas, did you get that?" After I said I did, he would say, "Fine, if you did, everybody did." One week the young people of Antioch were given permission to hold a week long revival with Roy Reed, Jerry Crumley, Wilson Garner, David Abbott and myself as speakers. On the night that I preached, I used a lot of scriptures and did what I thought was a great job, thinking that Brother Bogard would really commend me. As I stood at the back of the building, everyone was bragging on me and Brother Bogard came up behind me and slapped me on the back and said, "Douglas, straighten up there, you look terrible!" So much for the commendation! About a year later I was pastoring a church. One Monday morning, he came up to me and asked the question "Douglas, how did you do yesterday?" I said, "Brother Bogard, I did the best I could." He replied, "You did not! When you look back, you can always see where you could have done better." To this day I do not say that I did the best I could. I could give many more incidents from my recollections of this great man of God, as could thousands of other students who sat at his feet. Whenever I visit Little Rock, I enjoy going by the cemetery and spending a few quiet minutes at his tombstone, thinking about how much he impacted my life in the Lord's work. As I put these sermons together I was reminded of the many years of classes and Dr. Ben M. Bogard teaching the word of God. Even though he has been with the Lord for fifty-five years, the great Antioch Church, Missionary Baptist Seminary and so many ministries of the Lord's work still stand as a testimony of his great work.
Antioch Missionary Baptist Church (Ben M. Bogard, Pastor, Orthodox Baptist Searchlight, 12-10-1937)
What Antioch Missionary Baptist Church of Little Rock Ark., Believes and Practices We believe the Bible is the perfect and all-sufficient rule of faith and practice. II Tim. 3:16-17. We believe in salvation by grace without works to procure it. Eph. 2:8-10. We believe that those who are saved by grace will show it by their good works. Titus 3:8. We believe that salvation by grace, that shows itself by good works, is obtained on the merits of the suffering of Christ as our substitute. Eph. 1:7, Isa. 53rd chapter. We believe that those who are saved by grace are born again, or born of the Spirit of Christ. John 3:3-16; I John 5: 1; I John 4:7. We believe that baptism is a burial in water to symbolize the burial and resurrection of Christ. Rom. 6:4; Col. 2:12; Acts 8:36-45. We believe that no one should be baptized until he has proof that he has been saved. Acts 10:4048.
We believe the Lord's Supper is to commemorate the Lord's sacrificial suffering, His broken body and shed blood. Luke 22: 19-20, 1 Cor. 11:26. We believe that no one should partake of the supper except those who are actual Church members, having been saved and baptized and are living an orderly life according to the Scriptures. Matt. 28:18-20; Acts 2:41; II Thess. 3:6. The command to "let a man examine him self (I Cor. 11:28) was not given to the world but to Church members only because it was the Church of God at Corinth to whom Paul was writing. Hence people who are not actual Church members have no right to even examine themselves. We believe in doing missionary work and that is why we have the name Antioch Missionary Baptist Church . Matt. 28:18-20. We believe that when one is saved he can not so fall away as to be lost. John 5:24; John 10:27 30; Rom. 8:28 ; Ps. 37:23-24. When a Christian falls, he is still a child of God in error who will be chastised If the reader will take his mother's Bible and read these passages for himself, he will be wonderfully helped. Antioch Church teaches only what is found in your mother's Bible. The Church Covenant shows what the church has agreed to do. Every member should preserve this issue of the Gospel Broadcaster so as to have this Covenant in his possession. To live the life set forth in this solemn Covenant will make good citizens as well as church members.
THE CHURCH COVENANT On profession of our faith, having been baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, we do now most solemnly and joyfully enter into covenant with one another as one body in Christ. We engage, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, to walk together in Christian love; to strive for the advancement of this Church in knowledge, holiness and comfort; to promote its prosperity and spirituality; to sustain its worship, ordinances, discipline and doctrines, to contribute cheerfully and regularly to the support of its pastor, the expenses of the Church, the relief of the poor, and the spread of the gospel throughout the world by methods in harmony with Acts 11:22; 13:1-4; 19:25-28. We also engage to maintain family and secret devotion; to religiously educate our children; to seek the salvation of our kindred and acquaintances; to walk circumspectly in the world; to be just in our dealings, faithful in our engagements, and exemplary in our department; to avoid all tattling, backbiting and excessive anger; to abstain from the sale and use of intoxicating drinks as a beverage and to be zealous in our efforts to advance the kingdom of our Savior. We further engage to watch over one another in brotherly love; to remember each other in prayer; to aid each other in sickness and distress; to cultivate Christian sympathy in feeling, and courtesy in Speech; to be slow to take offence, but always ready for reconciliation, and mindful of the rules of our Saviour to secure it without delay. We moreover engage that when we remove from this place we will, as soon as possible, unite with some other Church, where we can carry out the spirit of this covenant and the principles of God's Word. Note: This Covenant shall likely fall into the hands of church members who hold membership in some church away from Little Rock . Did you know that the church where you hold membership has this same Covenant? If you do what your OWN CHURCH expects you to do since you have moved away from them, you will as soon as possible join another church of the same faith and order. Antioch Missionary Baptist Church extends to You a hearty welcome
The Paper Drive Article by D. N. Jackson , Baptist and Commoner, 1-1919 (For a number of years D. N. Jackson, J. L. Brown, Mrs. Ben M. Bogard and Mrs. Mildred Northern worked with Ben M. Bogard in putting out the Baptist and Commoner. Almost all of the sermons in this Sermon Book were published in the Baptist and Commoner. The Baptist World republished many. LDP) Sunday, December 15, 1918 the writer launched a local paper drive in the County Avenue Baptist Church, Texarkana, Arkansas, the primary purpose of which is to place The Baptist and Commoner in every home that holds membership in this church. The pastor will make special announcements of the drive from the pulpit and then glean the ungathered sheaves by making personal visits to every home and laying the important matter before their intelligence. The importance of one's reading a paper that possesses the featured characteristics as The Baptist and Commoner does, ought not to be lowered to the standard of secular papers, but should be understood and the idea entertained that its standard is as sacred as the truth that adorns its several pages. Often the standard of importance of one's reading the paper is depicted in the circumstances that gave rise to the subscription. For instance, one may say to another, You should read your paper, because I sent in your subscription as a Christmas, New Year, Birthday or memorial gift. While the paper is of such nature that it would make an excellent gift for any one of these occasions, yet one should not be taught the idea that he should read his paper or pay for it at the end of the first year either simply because of this, but he should subscribe for and read the paper primarily because it's for his religious welfare. Moreover the looking after the religious bearing and welfare of all the members of a church is a duty incumbent upon the pastor of that church, and whereas the reading of The Baptist and Commoner has a telling power in cultivating and developing the moral, spiritual, mental, and also the physical prosperity of man, he should exercise special care and sacrifice valuable time in placing the paper in every home having connection with the church. It should not be a matter of momentous surprise to any one to find lethargy in so many of the churches, when even the pastors never take any pride in seeking to develop the religious side of life of the members. Therefore, it should be the pastor's prayerful and devoted purpose to bring out the very best in the various members, and by getting the members to read The Baptist and Commoner, the pastors will be greatly aided in doing this noble work; and also missionaries may sow this kind of seed, the harvest of which will be most telling in heaven.
Propositions and Suggestions. 1. That every pastor launch a paper drive in the church or churches of which he is pastor, putting The Baptist and Commoner in every home for the period of one or more years. 2. That Brother Smith allow an Honor Roll in the paper, giving the names of the pastors and churches that launch the paper drive, and also the per cent of homes that subscribe for the paper, after the drive has been made. 3. That at the expiration of the subscriptions, the pastors be instrumental in securing the renewals. 4. That missionaries, colporteurs, evangelists and lecturers encourage people to read The Baptist and Commoner, and when authorized by the Editor, secure subscriptions for the Paper.
Why the Baptist and Commoner Should Be Read. 1. Because by reading the paper others will be encouraged to imitate the example. 2. Because it is a sound, orthodox and dependable paper. 3. Because it stands foursquare for the principles laid down by the inspired writers of old and for which our forefathers often suffered martyrdom.
4. Because it sustains the sacred principles of democracy, holding that it emanated from Jesus Christ who is the only Potentate and Head over His churches. 5. Because it stands for church supremacy and church basis of representation in associations, and that it sounds the alarm against the Convention idea, of money, numerical, society and associational basis of representation. 6. Because it condemns the grossly mistaken doctrine, "Take the world for Christ;" but set over against this doctrine, it teaches that "take Christ to the world." Its columns are always open to discussions of the necessity of Home and Foreign Missions, but the discussions must be of the Pauline type before they can get the stamp of approval from the paper. 7. Because it casts the missile of truth at the very heart of the Roman Catholic monster, and drags the Romish sentinels from their portals of fame of degradation's heights. 8. Because its truths will save the world from war; the presidents, kings and rulers from diplomatic controversy; men from the penitentiary, electric chair and bawdy house; women from scandal and disgrace, from the Moslem harem, the Catholic convent and the priestly rapes; children from the reform school and from the vile association of wickedness, and all men from the everlasting destruction that awaits all the finally incorrigible wicked. 9. Because its truths will elevate depraved humanity, morally, mentally, spiritually and also physically, and serves as an important factor in overcoming the many religious blunders of life. 10. Because it will aid pastors to develop their members into real useful workers, and help to reach the lost in the homes that receive the paper. 11. Because it emphasizingly teaches orthodoxy and strongly condemns heterodoxy or all forms among all creeds. 12. Because it honors the church so supremely high that to endeavor to lower it to the basis of the "church federation" rot, or the unionist sham, or the Y. M. C. A, frivolity, is a shameful slap in the face of the immaculate Savior. 13. Because it will give one a greater working knowledge of the Bible and 'ground him' in the faith for which the saints of old were commanded to contend. 14. Because it stands for freedom of speech and press and the power to worship God wholly apart from the dictatorial mandates of an unholy and God-defying pope, and places its stamp of disapproval upon the Romish and fiendish doctrine and practice of destroying the very lives of men who use the sacred pulpit, the lecture platform, or the prom to contrast the holy principles of Christ with, the hell-born tenets of Rome. 15. Because at the crucial hour, when the supreme test comes, when the dark clouds show their thundering and violent head from over the top of the mountain of church and state confederacy and the restoring of the lamented lost temporal power of the Pope, it will stand in the front ranks of the thickest battle. 16. Because it stands for all the sacred doctrines and practices of Christ and serves as a bureau of information, or a medium of communication for the various State and General Associations, and also stands for our Sunday School literature as no other paper will.
A Question. Who will join me in this Paper Drive, the purpose of which, as heretofore set forth, is to place The Baptist and Commoner in every home having church relationship, for the period of one or more years, then gather renewals?
Acceptable Service Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 12-29-1920 "So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, we are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do," (Luke 17:10).
I. There is no such thing as a work of supererogation. The Catholic idea that we can do more than is our duty and thus get indulgences is contrary to this text. When we have done all that we possibly can we have still done only our duty. One should never do less than his duty. God does not balance accounts with us. Some think that we may do good and it will be set to our credit, and when we do evil it will be charged against us, and if the evil overbalances the good we shall be lost and if the good overbalances the evil we shall be saved. But such an idea is contrary to the scriptures. We are expected to do right in our every act and the smallest deviation from the right is sin. The soul that sins shall die is plainly taught in the Bible (Ezek. 18:40). The sinner has only one way to escape and that is by the mercy and grace of God. We can't merit heaven since, when we have done all possible; we must consider ourselves unprofitable servants, as we shall have only done our duty. II. All our services should be reasonable service. "I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service" (Rom. 12:1).
All service of the Lord is reasonable. The command to be baptized is reasonable for it is a symbol of the doctrine of the resurrection. The observance of the Lord's Supper is reasonable for it is a symbol of the suffering of the Lord. Christian giving is reasonable for it expresses our devotion to Christ. So with all the duties enjoined by the Lord. No unreasonable thing is commanded. Too many are controlled by impulse. Their feelings are their guides. A gentleman told a prominent preacher he could not believe in close communion because his mother was a Presbyterian and was the best woman he ever knew; yet, she had never been baptized, and why should she be shut away from the supper. The preacher simply answered: "How pious must one become to be justified in disobedience to the command of the Lord?" The man dropped his head and said "Good day," and went out. To be governed by impulse is dangerous for the devil may cause the impulse. An ignorant person may, under the impulse of a good sermon, shout the praises of God. On his way home, a sight of a fine roost of chickens may cause the impulse to steal chickens. Where nothing but impulse controls he may both shout and steal. J. M. Newburn tells of addressing a crowd on prohibition and he worked them up by rising vote to declare themselves for prohibition and they all promised to vote for prohibition at the approaching election, but after he made his speech, a liquor man came along and addressed them and they all promised to vote against prohibition. The man who is governed by impulse is controlled by the latest impulse, whether right or wrong. Too many are controlled by convenience. Millions of people know their duty but are unwilling to overcome difficulties to do their duty and, hence, duty remains undone. If duty lies along an easy road, they will do it but will not do it against odds. A king put a pot of gold under a big rock in the middle of the road. Men drove around the rock. But one man stopped and removed the rock and was rewarded by securing the pot of gold. There are great blessings in store for the one who does his duty in the face of difficulties. However difficult, we should let God's word control. Too many are controlled by popularity. They never ask if a thing is right but they want to know if it is popular. Henry Clay was told that he could be president if he would not advocate
certain principles. He made the famous answer: "I had rather be right than president." I wish some Baptists had that spirit. Even our parents should not be our guides except as they follow the Bible. It will be found to be expensive to be right but the reward is great. We must be willing to forsake parents to be worthy of him.
Angels By B. M. Bogard, Baptist Commoner 1-29-19
Angels are created spirits. Psalms 148:1-5: "Praise ye him, all his angels; praise ye him, all his hosts * * "for He commanded, and they were created."
Angels are spiritual, not material, beings, Heb. 1: 13-14: "But to which, of the angels said He at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy foot stool? Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?"
Angels are not good people who have died, and gone to Heaven. Luke 20:35-36: "They which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: Neither can they die any more, for they are equal unto the angels."
The expression, "equal unto the angels," shows that redeemed people are not angels, because it would he silly to say angels were equal to themselves.
Angels are very wise. II Samuel 14:20: "My God is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all things that are in the earth."
Angels are not as wise as God. I Peter 1: 12: "Unto whom it was revealed that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are reported unto you by them that have preached the Gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from Heaven; which things the angels desire to look into."
The mystery of salvation is too deep for angels.
Angels are mighty in power. 2 Thess, 1: 7: "The Lord Jesus shall be revealed front Heaven with His mighty angels." Psalms 103:20: "Bless the Lord, ye His angels that excel in strength."
Angels do not have the same nature as men. Heb. 2:16: "For verily He took not on Him the nature of angels; but He took on Him the seed of Abraham."
Angels are very numerous. Rev. 5:11: "And I heard the voice of many angels."
Angels are not all equal in rank and power. I Thess. 4:14: "For the Lord Himself shall descend from Heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel." If there is an "archangel" there must be others of inferior rank.
Angels are organized. Matt. 26:53: "Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and He shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then shall the Scriptures be fulfilled that it must be?"
Angels were all originally holy. Gen. 1:31: "And God saw everything that He had made, and, behold it was very good."
Angels are not all holy now. II Peter 2:4: "God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell: and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment."
Angels in Heaven rejoice when sinners are saved. Luke 15:10: "There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth."
Angels watch over Christian people. Matt. 18:10: "Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, that in Heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven."
Angels should not be worshipped. Col. 2:18; "Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels."
Angels protect God's children. Daniel 6:22: "My God hath sent His angel, and hath shut the lion's mouth, that they have not hurt me." Psalms 91:15. "For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways."
Angel: are used as ministers of vengeance. II kings 19:35 "The angel of the Lord went out and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand." Acts 12:23 "The angel of the Lord smote him (Herod) because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms and gave up the ghost."
Angels will come with Jesus when he returns to this earth. Matt. 25:11: "The Son of Man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit on the throne of His glory."
God's people shall judge angels. I Cor. 6:3: "Know ye not that ye shall judge angels? How much more things that pertain to this life"
Angels will accompany redeemed souls from earth to heaven. Luke 16: 22: "And it came to pass that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom. What a comfort to know that Gods angels protect us here, and escort us to heaven when we die! "O come angel band, Come and round me stand; Oh bear me away on your snowy wings To my eternal home."
Angels, Their Ministry Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 6-24-32 A study of the ministry or angels is interesting and profitable. There is much said of angels in the Bible, yet there is astonishingly little known about them. What are angels? They
are not people who have died and gone to heaven, as many believe, but they are created beings who have existed long before the creation of the world and their name means "messenger." They are God's messengers. Angels are exceedingly wise. In 2nd Samuel 14:20, David is spoken of as having the "wisdom of an angel." Angels are in two classes, the good and the bad. Rev. 9:ll speaks of the "angel of the bottomless pit," and Jude (verse six) speaks of "angels that kept not their first estate, reserved in chains of darkness," etc. There is good reason to believe that modern spiritualism is the Work of bad angels or demons who impersonate the dead and write mysterious massages, it is at least a subject worthy of study. God deals with men both in wrath and in mercy through angels. When David sinned by numbering Israel (2nd Samuel 24) God gave him choice of famine, defeat by his enemies or pestilence. David chose pestilence and God sent an angel to send the pestilence and seventy thousand people died, and when the angel came to Jerusalem the Lord "said to the angel that destroyed the people, it is enough; stay now thy hand." It was a destroying angel that God sent to kill the first born in Egypt and which passed over the Israelites who dwelt there. When the King of Assyria came with his great army against Jerusalem (2nd Kings 19), Hezekiah prayed God for help, "And It come to pass that night that the angel of the Lord went out and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred four-score and five thousand (185,000), and when they arose in the morning they were all dead corpses." The remnant of his army returned to tell the news that nearly all their men suddenly died. They knew not what killed them. When wicked King Herod made his blasphemous oration. "Immediately the angel of the Lord smote him because he gave not the glory to the Lord and he was eaten of worms and gave up the ghost. (Acts 12:23). Numerous instances of angels sent in judgement could be given and it is a subject that should be studied with painful interest by the wicked. These angels sent in judgment "excel in strength (Ps 103:30) and they can as we have seen, defeat and destroy an army, take the life of a king on his throne, visit a nation with pestilence. In these visitations of judgment many innocent people suffer as well as the guilty, but the purpose for which they came as God's messengers of judgement is always accomplished There are angels who come as messengers of mercy. It was an angel who announced to the shepherds in the field (Luke 2:10-11) that the Savior was born, and it was an angel who appeared to Joseph (Matt. 2:13) and said, arise and take the young child and his mother and flee into Egypt. For Herod will seek the young child to destroy it." "Angels came and ministered unto Jesus" (Matt. 4:11) after His struggle with the devil's temptations in the wilderness and His forty days fast. In the Garden of Gethsemane, when the Lord was sweating great drops of blood, an angel came and strengthened Him (Luke 23:44). It was an angel that came and broke off the chains that bound Peter and led him out of the prison and through the city gate that opened of its own accord (Acts 12). It was an angel that stood by Paul on the ship that was to be wrecked. And time would fail us to mention the angels that appeared to Abraham and Lot, to Jacob at Bethel, to all the prophets and patriarchs. To the apostles and apostolic Christians. They sang an anthem when the Savior was born (Luke 2:13, 14) and these same angels rejoice when a sinner repeats of his sins, for "there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that that repenteth." The angels bear news to heaven when a soul is converted and thus heaven is made to shout for joy over sinners saved by grace. Angel's carry the Lord's children to heaven when they die as they did the beggar Lazarus who died at the rich mans gate (Luke: 16-22.) The angel of the Lord encampeth round about
them that fear Him, and delivereth them." (Psalm 34:7), "Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister to them who shall be heirs of salvation?" (Heb. 1:14). A poor wreck of a man, forsaken by his former friends, an outcast of society, despondent, wretched, miserable, cries out like the Publican, "God be merciful to me a sinner," He is pardoned, justified, adopted, sealed and like an electric current, the angel carries the message to the skies and the mother of the man hears it and claps her hands and shouts while the angels sing, "Glory to God in the highest with a hallelujah chorus. A fallen woman, who once was as pure and sweet as any, but who now occupies a hovel, discarded, old, forsaken, falls upon her knees and prays: "O thou God of Magdalene, thou God of the wicked woman whom thou did save at the well of Sychar, thou God of the woman who was a sinner, but who did in penitence wash thy feet with her tears and wipe them with her hair, O thou God who didst send the Savior to seek and to save the lost, have mercy on my poor, wicked, leprous soul" And the Lord answered, "I do not condemn thee, Go sin no more." And the angel flies to heaven with the news, and it sets it wild with joy. Would to God that, someone who reads this may repent so that an angel may take the news to heaven that there may be "Joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth." How much better than to sin against God until He sends an Angel in judgement to cut you off?
Angels, Who They Are and What Is Their Work? Ben M. Bogard Baptist World 3-1969 Many people have the erroneous idea that angels are good people who have died and gone to heaven. Just where this idea came from is mysterious because there is not a word in the Bible that conveys any such idea. Angels are not saved people and no man on earth will ever be an angel. We frequently hear people speak of their "angel mother" referring to the dear mother who has passed away. Many times a mother is comforted by sympathizers by being told that the dead baby "is an angel now." There is not the slightest intimation that good mothers and babies will be angels when they die. Then who are the angels and what is their work? Angels are created spirits who existed before the world was brought into existence. Psalm 148:2-5, "Praise ye him, all his angels. Let them praise the name of the Lord; for he commanded, and they were created." Note the fact that this passage says that the angels were "created." There were only two human beings who were created and they were Adam and Eve. All the rest of the human race have been born into the world and not created. But the angels were said to be spirits "created." There were only two created people. Job 38:7 says that these angels "shouted for joy" when God created the world which shows they existed before the earth was created. Angels are spirits who serve men and women. Heb. 1:14, "Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister to them who shall be heirs of salvation?" It is wonderful to think that the Lord's people have angels for servants. The fact that good people do not become angels when they die is proved by the fact that Matt. 22:30 and Luke 20:36 tell us that when we pass over to the other side we shall "be AS THE ANGELS" and certainly we could not be AS ANGELS and be angels at the same time. The idea in these passages is that the Lord's people will not live in the marriage relation in heaven but will be "as the angels" in that particular. Angels are not of the same nature as men. Heb. 2:16, "He (Jesus) took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham." Jesus took human nature and here human nature is contrasted with angel nature which shows that angels and men are not the same order. The fact that angels and disembodied spirits are mentioned in the same passage shows that they are not the same. Heb. 12:22-23, "We are come unto Mount Zion, unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to "the
General Assembly of the church of the first born," etc. Here the redeemed people in the "church of the first born" are mentioned along with the "innumerable company of angels." When two sets of individuals are mentioned in the same passage it proves that they are not the same. Redeemed human beings are superior to angels and shall judge them, I Cor. 6:3, "Know ye not that ye shall judge angels? How much more things that pertain to this life?" What an exalted position the redeemed of the Lord are given, that they shall be superior to angels and shall sit in judgment over them. Angels rejoice when a sinner is saved. Luke 15:10, "There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth." The angels watch over God's people, his little ones that believe on Him. Matt. 18:10, "Take heed ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you that in heaven their angels do always appear before the face of my Father which is in heaven." What a wonderful thought that we have guardian angels and that they have constant access to our heavenly Father. Angels are mighty in power. Psalm 103:20, "Bless ye the Lord, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto his voice." It is very comforting to know that powerful angels guard us day and night. Such security against the wiles of the devil is very encouraging. In II Thess. 1:7 we read, "To you who are troubled, rest with us: when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels." Other passages revealing the wonderful power of the angels might be quoted but these will suffice. To have such powerful beings as our guardians should rejoice our hearts. Why should we fear what may come to pass under such conditions. Angels are in great-organized bands. Matt. 26:53, "Thinketh thou that I can not pray the Father, and He shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?" This certainly indicates organization. In Rev. 19:14 these angels are called the "army of heaven." These numerous angels with mighty power organized as they are, under the direction of the Almighty and woe be unto the man or nation against whom they may come and blessed be those who have their protection. Angels are not all of equal rank and power. I Thess. 4:16, "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel." If there is an archangel there are of necessity those of lesser rank. Jude 9 speaks of "Michael, the Archangel" and incidentally, mentions the fact this wonderful being had charge of the body of Moses who had been buried secretly by the Lord and defeated the devil's purpose to get possession of the body of the great law-giver. Angels protect the Lord's people and supply their needs in a marvelous way. I Kings 19:5 tells of the angel who came to Elijah who lay under the juniper tree discouraged and praying that he might die because he was persecuted by that wicked woman, Jezebel, "And as he lay and slept under the juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat. And he looked, and, behold there was a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again. And the angel came the second time, and touched him, and said, arise and eat, because the journey is too great for thee." Then in Psalm 91:11, "He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways." When Daniel was thrown into the lions den we read in Dan. 6:22, "My God has sent his angels, and hath closed the lions mouths, that they have not hurt me." When our Lord had been tempted forty days in the wilderness and was weak and hungry we are told in Matt. 4:11 that "Angels came and ministered unto Him." A marvelous manifestation of this angelic host used of God to protect His children against their enemies is found in II Kings 6:17 where Elisha was traveling with a young man who did not understand so well about such things and the young man was troubled about the strength of the enemy and he exclaimed, "Alas, my master! How shall we do? And he (Elisha) answered, fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with
them." This was hard to be understood for Elisha and his young friend seemed to be alone and the enemy was a great host. Then "Elisha prayed and said, Lord I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and behold the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round Elisha." Then it soon followed that these angels, in the form of fire horses and chariots, smote the enemy with blindness. When we fear opposition in our work for the Lord we should remember such things as these. Angels are used as ministers of destruction against the Lord's enemies. II Kings 19:31-35, "I will defend this city to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant, David's sake. And it came to pass that night the angels of the Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand." Who knows how many battles have been won by the Lord's people by the intervention of angels and who knows how many times the enemies of the Lord's work have been destroyed or defeated by angels? That unseen army should be taken into account in all our affairs and a nation should not forget that not always the most powerful earthly force will win. Remember Gideon's Army, a mere handful won the victory without themselves touching the enemy. God's angels stand ready to interfere whenever it becomes necessary. When wicked king Herod arrayed himself in royal robes and made an oration and the people worshipped him as God then it was that we read: Acts 12:23, "Immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost." Thus Herod was made to bite the dust by means of an avenging angel. Wicked men need to be afraid. How can they know when the angelic hammer shall fall on their head? Woe be unto them when it does. There are wicked angels reserved in chains of darkness. Jude 6. "The angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, He hath reserved in chains under darkness, unto the judgment of the great day." Then in Matt. 25:41 we read, "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels." The devil was himself an angel but by transgression fell and led with him a great host of angels and they have been subject to him since that terrible time. Ezek. 28:12-26 tells us that the one addressed as the "King of Tyrus" had "been in Eden, the garden of God." We know very well that no one was in Eden except Adam, Eve and the devil. But this one addressed as "the King of Tyrus" was in Eden and since he was neither Adam nor Eve he must have been the devil. He was called that "cherub that covereth." A cherub is an angel. So the one addressed as "the king of Tyrus" was an angel and he was the angel who was in Eden. The reason for his fall is given in this wonderful chapter. It was his attempting to rival God. He was beautiful and very wise and was `PERFECT FROM THE DAY THOU WAST CREATED UNTIL INIQUITY WAS FOUND IN THEE." So whoever this "king of Tyrus" was (not the "prince of Tyrus" mentioned in the first of the chapter) he was a CREATED BEING and we know that no human beings were created except Adam and Eve. It followed therefore that the devil was an angel of God and fell and became the leader of a great host which Jesus denotes "the Devil and his angels." Those who finally make their beds in hell do not go into torment to a place prepared for them, but they go to a place "prepared for the devil and his angels" and they do it by deliberate choice since God forces damnation on no one. But if they will not come unto Jesus for salvation, they choose the devil for their master, and go to hell, the place prepared for the devil. Better choose the Lord and escape the damnation of hell. Good angels will come to escort a child of God to heaven when death comes. Luke 16:22, "And it came to pass that the beggar died, and was carried by angels into Abraham's bosom." It does not say a word about any funeral for the poor beggar. What does it matter about a gorgeous funeral if the soul is lost in hell as was the case with the rich man who died and was buried as that same Scripture relates. Who cares about the funeral if a convoy of angels come to bear us to heaven? Unless God is a respecter of persons an angel band will come for you if you have repented of your sins and believed on the Lord Jesus Christ.
"When Jesus comes back to this world, and He has promised to do so, He will be accompanied by a host of angels." When the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory." What if He should come today? Are you ready? In such an hour as ye think not He will come. The salvation given by Jesus' blood, if accepted by repentance and faith, will assure you protection in this life and eternal glory in the world to come. It is better to be a man than to be an angel because Jesus did not die for angels and the merit of His blood was not set to their credit and the consequence is that they must live a perfect life every moment of their existence or they shall fall and forever be lost. They are standing on their own merits. But a child of God does not have to live a perfect life to enter heaven because the merits of Jesus Christ have been set to his credit and he stands not on his own goodness but on the Lord's righteousness imputed to him. Paul, in Rom. 4:6 says: "David describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works." So a very imperfect man may be saved by the grace of God but the slightest imperfection on the part of an angel will be his ruin. We are not as strong as angels, we are not so good as the holy angels, and we are not so wise as the angels are but if we have accepted Jesus Christ we are a long ways safer than angels. Many angels have fallen from their high and holy estate and will be with the devil in hell throughout eternity, but not one of the blood-washed host of God's people will ever so fall as to be lost in hell. John 5:24 says "He that heareth my words and believeth on Him that sent me, hath everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation but is passed from death unto life." What a wonderful salvation! Safer than the angels. Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift.
Atonement J. E. Cobb, Sheridan, Ark. Baptist and Commoner, 4-9-24 The doctrine of "the atonement" is the greatest doctrine in the Bible as far as the relation of God to man is concerned. It is the cardinal force of our redemption. We may have a false conception of some doctrines of the Bible, c. g., baptism, millennium, etc., and yet know Christ lovingly, but we can not be wrong on the doctrine of the atonement without being wrong in our spiritual relation with God. It is the life principal. After hearing many preachers preach on this subject, and also after reading the articles of those writing on the subject in different papers, I have been led to believe they do not understand the distinction between the terms atonement and sacrifice. The purpose of this article, therefore, is, if possible, to make clear the difference in meaning of these two terms. If we can thoroughly understand these terms we can the more readily see whether or not they are synonymous, and furthermore we can the more easily come to a decision whether or not the atonement is limited or universal. The English noun, atonement, is formed from a phrase, at one-at-one-meat. I define the term thus: That efficacious act of Jesus Christ whereby Gad and the sinner are perfectly reconciled and made "at one." Webster defines atonement us follows: "Reconciliation, as between God and man; restoration of friendly relations; agreement; concord." Webster defines sacrifice as follows; "To make an offering of a consecrate, or present to a divinity by way of expiation or propitiation; or as a token of acknowledgement or thanksgiving; to immolate on an altar in order to atone for sin, to procure favor, or to express thankfulness." It seems to me that no one with these definitions before him could become confused as to the distinction between the two terms. The idea of atonement presupposes a sacrifice. In other words there can be no atonement without a sacrifice first having been made. But a sacrifice might be made and no atonement made. For instance, a father and his son may become angered at each other; the father in his
anger may be about to take the life of his son; the mother in her love may offer her life instead of her son; the father may accept her sacrifice, and his wrath become appeased, in which case she would atone for her son; but the father may disregard the sacrifice of the mother and take the life of the son, in which case there would certainly be no atonement. Now let us look for a moment at the definition of atonement as given by Webster and I think the most obstinate among us can readily see the folly of arguing an unlimited, universal atonement. If Christ's death on the cross was the atonement and if it was unlimited and universal, making reconciliation between God and men, then not a son nor daughter of Adam will be lost in hell. And even more than that, the scriptures tell us that "God so loved the world." World here is the translation of the Greek word "kosmos" and has reference to the entire universe. The universe includes everything outside of God. The devil and the fallen angels are in the universe. Then if the death of Christ His sacrifice is synonymous with atonement then the devil and his angels will be redeemed. This doctrine has been taught and believed by some, and it would seem to be but a logical consequence of the doctrine of all unlimited, universal atonement. The universe will be regenerated, but the devil nor his angels, nor neither all men will be redeemed. The Hebrew word "kaplmr" in the Old Testament is rendered atonement. It means to cover, hide, wash away, obliterate sin. See B. D. B., page 497. This of course had reference to the offering of animals by the priests and was only typical of the real atonement made by Christ. And because of this God covered, or passed over their sins in view of the real atonement made by Christ. We notice that the sacrifice was made outside the Tabernacle, but the atonement was made by the priest in the Holy of Holies, by sprinkling the blood upon the Mercy Seat and before the Mercy Seat. Jesus made the sacrifice on the earth upon the Cross but He made the atonement in heaven, the Holy of Holies. See Lev. 16 chapter. The Hebrew word "chata" means to make a sin offering, and so corresponds to our English word sacrifice. Both these words are found in Lev. 16:6. The word atonement occurs one time in King James translation of the New Testament and is used for the Greek word "kat-allaege." It means reconciliation and not sacrifice. The Revised Version uses reconciliation instead of atonement. The Greek word meaning to sacrifice is "thuo," but it never means to reconcile. It may as in the case of Jesus Christ be made with a view to reconciliation. The Greek verb "pros sphero" may also mean to offer, but never to reconcile, only with a view to reconciliation. Let us not become Arminianistic or Universalistic by teaching an unlimited, universal atonement.
Attributes of God Ben M. Bogard, Baptist & Commoner, April: 30, 1919, Baptist World 5-73 Text: "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect," Matt. 5:48.
The perfect God is here set forth as a standard and we should strive to be like God in every particular for we are not only advised to be perfect as God but we are positively commanded to be perfect as God is perfect. In this life no man will ever be able to fully obey this commandment but we can all try to obey it and a constantly grow into the character set before us as a standard. The perfection of God not only gives us a standard for imitation which gives us room for infinite development, but it forever puts to silence the boasters who claim sinless perfection in this life. Certainly no man is sinless when he constantly disobeys a command of God. A command of God is that we be as perfect as God is perfect. No man's obedience is perfect in this world. This one passage of scripture forever refutes the less perfect heretics and causes all of us to see that we must be saved, if saved at all, by the grace of God, shown in His wonderful mercy.
What are the attributes of God? By attribute is meant that which pertains to or is inherent in God. God is perfect in all His attributes. God is eternal. He is self-existent. The infidels and evolutionist sneer or smile at this and declare that this could not be. If God cannot be self-existent, prey tell me how can matter be selfexistent. The world exists, yea, the universe exists, and it is either self-existent or it had a creator. If self-existent, it is just as difficult to conceive of as it is to conceive the self-existence of God. Wherein is the difference so far as the difficulty is concerned? There is perfect order and evident design in created things and this reason would demand, shows that matter was brought into existence and order by INTELLIGENCE, and if so this INTELLIGENCE WAS SELF-EXISTENT. From all eternity God existed and in Him all things were made. "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" (Gen. 1:1). The agnostic or skeptic who scoffs at this can believe that nonexistent "protoplasm" brought itself into existence, and without any power in it at all exerted power enough to start a movement that caused life to be and this life of its own motion rolled itself into all shapes and forms of creation until man finally came into existence. HE HAS WONDERFUL FAITH IN "PROTOPLASM" BUT REFUSES TO HAVE FAITH IN GOD. God is infinite. Infinite means He is without limitation, boundless. Instead of Him filling the immensity of space, as we sometimes hear, space is in God. David said of the infinite God in the 139th Ps. "Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it. Whither shall I go from Thy spirit? Whither shall I flee from Thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven Thou art there, if I make my bed in hell, behold Thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there shall Thy hand lead me and Thy right hand shall hold me. If I shall say, surely darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from Thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to Thee." Such a feature in the character of God will make the saint rejoice because God is ever with him, and it will make the sinner tremble for he, no matter how he may try cannot hide and cannot escape from God. God is holy. He is holy in the primary sense of the word, and perfect in holiness. God will a1ways do right. When we fear because of our little knowledge concerning what God may do under this or that circumstance, we may rest assured that GOD WILL DO WHAT IS RIGHT. Whatever is right ought to be and we will want the right to be done if we are in harmony with God. When a loved one dies about whose condition we are uncertain, we should remember that God will do right about it. He is holy and therefore will never make a mistake as to what should be done. Jesus exemplified holiness in His life and defied His enemies to show Him one thing He ever did that was wrong. "Which of you convinceth me of sin?" (John 8:4), He boldly challenged them. We worship a sinless God. He showed us His character in the person of Jesus Christ. The Lord is "holy in all His works," (Psalm 145:17). Isaiah caught a vision of the Lord and relates it in Isaiah 6:1-3: "I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple. Above it stood two seraphims; each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is filled with His glory." The glory of the Lord will one day fill the whole earth. God is just. God, "without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work" (I Peter 1:7). In Revelation John saw a great host and they were singing: "Great and marvelous are Thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are Thy ways, Thou king of saints" (Rev. 15:3).
"He hath appointed a day, in which He will judge the world in righteousness, by that man whom He hath ordained; whereof He hath given assurances to all men that He raised him from the dead" (Acts 17:31). If you think to escape the just judgment of God you will find sooner or later that you have made a fearful mistake. There is a day coming when every sinner shall stand speechless before the judgment seat, Are you ready for the judgment? God is merciful. Nehemiah 9:31, "For Thy great mercies sake Thou didst not utterly consume them, nor forsake them; for Thou art a gracious and merciful God." God shows mercy to those who are justly condemned when He sees them in Jesus Christ. Out of Christ there is no mercy. Jesus pays the debt, the fine imposed because of sin, and justice is satisfied. If you owe a debt that you cannot pay, or if you have had a fine assessed against you that you cannot pay, a friend may pay it for you. Thus the justice of the law is satisfied and you go free. The mercy in the arrangement is in allowing you to use a substitute and not compelling you to pay the debt yourself. Jesus paid it all, all the debt I owe and hence, mercy reached me because of what Jesus did for me. Those who refuse to accept Jesus miss mercy and are compelled to stand for themselves in the judgment and of course will go down in ruin. David sang of this arrangement when he said: "Surely His salvation is nigh them that fear Him; that glory may dwell in our land. Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other" (Ps. 85:9-10). "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). God is omnipotent. Omnipotent means He is unlimited in power. No thinking man will say that there is nothing God can't do. By omnipotent is meant that anything that does not involve an absurdity or a contradiction in terms, God can do. The Bible plainly says that God cannot lie: "It is impossible for God to lie" (Heb. 6:18). Infidels may quibble over silly difficulties, but all of them fade in the light of reason and the Bible. God cannot make a stick with only one end, nor a six months old calf in five minutes, nor two hills with no hollow between, and other absurdities one may think of. The omnipotence of God gives comfort to the saint because such power is able to keep him from the power of the devil and from ruin. Such power guarantees that even the work of the devil shall be overruled for his good. Security, calmness, joy is the portion of those who trust such power. But the sinner may rest assured that the omnipotence of God will bring him to justice and his puny opposition to God will be compelled to yield. Who art, thou that fightest against God? Those who fight Him will come to hopeless ruin. God is able to maintain Himself against all opposition. When the nations war, and the people go mad, God reigns. When all is dark and no man can see his way, God still reigns. When infidelity and skepticism scoffs, God declares that He will one day laugh at their calamity. "The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth. The Lord shall laugh at him: for He seeth his day is coming" (Psalm 37:12-13). God is unchangeable. "Thou, Lord, in the beginning has laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of Thine hands: They shall perish; but Thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; and as a vesture shalt Thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but Thou art the same, and Thy years shall not fail" (Heb. 1:10-11). If you are not in harmony with God you must do the changing God will not change for your benefit. Here is the need of conversion, and regeneration. God remains the same forever and He will not adjust Himself to suit the changes wrought by time and effected by men. God will not bend to suit age, and therefore the age must bend to suit God. God's word will be true when men who oppose it are languishing in hell. We hear a great deal about keeping up with the times, but we had better have the times to conform to the will of God. God is love (I John 4:8). It is a joy to know that He will exercise all His attributes in love. God manifested His love for us by sending Jesus Christ to live, suffer, and die for us. Jesus was
God made plain, God manifested. Jesus used His power, His wisdom, His justice, His mercy, and all His attributes to help men. Only those who refused to accept His help failed to get it. "Whosoever will may come and drink of the water of life freely." If you suffer the severity of His justice it will be because you refuse His love and mercy.
Bad World Conditions and the Remedy Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 1-10-1936 The Bible says that "Evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived," II Tim. 3:13. We therefore should not expect the world to get better until Jesus comes again. Bible students recognize that these worldwide bad conditions have been caused by sin, sin against God, who has a way of bringing the people to realize their sinful condition. That many are seeing in all of this the hand of God is evident by the increased church attendance and the good revivals all over the land. People are turning toward God and the present distress is causing them to think seriously. After every Great War there has been a moral declension. I have recently read extracts from the life of the great evangelist. Chas. G. Finney, written by A. B. Strickland, of New York. Finney came in as an evangelist right after the revolutionary war period and was used of God in bringing the people back to a sense of sin and of need for repentance. Mr., Strickland described the conditions that prevailed right after the Revolutionary War. Here is his description:
RESULT OF WAR "The Revolutionary War was followed by another war in which infidelity organized its forces internationally and set out to exterminate the church and Christian civilization. It was their boast that the church would not survive two generations. "The war had played havoc with the spiritual life of the churches. Leonard Bacon says of the post-Revolutionary period: The closing years of the eighteenth century show the lowest water mark of the lowest ebbtide of spiritual life in the history of the American Church." "Our colleges, which had been brought into existence as nurseries for training a spiritual leadership for church and state, had become hotbeds of infidelity. Princeton, in 1792, had only one student who professed to be a Christian. The College of William and Mary was a nest of French infidelity. Yale, according to Lyman Beecher, was in a most ungodly state. The college church was almost extinct, most of the students were skeptical and rowdies were plenty. Wines and liquors were kept in many rooms; intemperance, profanity, gambling and licentiousness were common. Most of the class before us were infidels, and called each other Voltaire, Rousseau, D'Alembert, etc." "President Jefferson's Secretary of War, General Dearborn, declared that we could not hope for good government and progress as long as the churches exist. He called a Congregational church edifice a painted nuisance. In this new country where we were experimenting in a government without a king, many of the statesmen desired to have also a country without God. "There were notable exceptions among statesmen and scholars. Many like George Washington, John Quincy Adams and Ben Franklin had not bowed the knee to Baal. Franklin wrote Thomas Paine concerning a manuscript, which he would not print: He that spits against the wind spits in his own face ... if men are so wicked with religion what would they be without it"? "At such a time there came the inevitable moral breakdown. The Presbyterian General Assembly in 1774 reported: The profligacy and corruption of the public morals have advanced with a progress proportionate to our declension in religion. Profaneness, pride, luxury, injustice, intemperance, lewdness and every species of debauchery and loose indulgence greatly abound.
"Our national existence was endangered. George Washington saw the trend of the times, and said that he had more fears for the safety of the republic than he had in the darkest times of the Revolutionary war." Under the leadership of Finney there was a revival that spread over the world and why should we not expect a revival to follow the widespread moral declension that is an aftermath of the world war?
MORAL DECAY As to boys and girls drinking now it is a fact that they have always done so. I have a memory that runs back many years before prohibition came to us. I know that boys and girls did drink when I was a boy. I know that in my college life it was a problem with the faculty how to prevent boys and girls from having their drinking parties and many a time did the students find themselves under discipline for drinking. Let me read to you a description of a football game between two great colleges back in 1897. The daily papers published the following on Nov. 22, 1897, and that was twenty-three years before prohibition came: "One of the most disgraceful scenes ever witnessed must have been the drunken revels of Yale and Princeton students in New Haven on the occasion of the football game, November 21. It is said that there was little sleep for forty hours while the howling mobs had possession of the city. The saloons were packed full of drinking, betting students and the day and night carousals beggared description. The night following Yale's unexpected victory is characterized as a night in bedlam. Our special correspondent says that in spite of the instructions of the mayor and superintendent of police to arrest no one unless he became so boisterous as to make it necessary, the lockup was full early in the evening. It is estimated that there were one thousand drunken students. A mob took possession of the Grand opera house and stopped the performance, and a squad of police had to be called to quell the riot. Lewd women were abroad in the land, and saloons were open all night. The half cannot be told. Such orgies are a shame and a disgrace to our civilization."
RESULT OF SIN The fact is sin has always produced such results and it is silly for us to look for, any other cause. So long as men rebel against God, such conditions will continue, sometimes worse than other times but always bad. We can pass law but so long as men are lawless in heart they will find a way to express their lawlessness. We do not need to do away with our protective laws. These laws really help to make conditions better but we need not expect to make people good at heart by law. No matter what law is passed somebody will violate it and to contend that we should do away with a law because people violate the law is the same thing as to advocate anarchy because if we do away with all laws that are not observed we shall have no laws left. I notice in the papers where they are bootlegging gasoline. Why do away with the law against that? Lindbergh's baby was kidnapped in spite of the law against that terrible thing. Let's do away with the law against kidnapping. Almost every day we read of stores and oil station robberies. It seems that the robbers just will not observe the law. Shall we do away with the law against robbery? A man during our prohibition experiment made the remark that he could go to any town of two thousand inhabitants and buy a quart of whiskey inside of twenty-four hours. Of course he could do that very thing and he could also in less time than that steal a coop of chickens. So then let's do away with the law against chicken stealing. Another man recently published an article in which he said he took his young daughter into a speakeasy and purchased the drinks-no trouble at all to do it, He said. But the poor boob did not seem to realize that he could have SOLD HIS DAUGHTER for at least fifty dollars in that same speakeasy. She would easily have brought that sum. He could have hired that same daughter out for ten dollars a day to some licentious
man so long as he might have been willing to do so. Men right there would have taken her. No trouble at all to do a thing like that. To argue, that we should do away with the law on such a pretense as that is to make a laughing stock of you. They have so-called liquor control in both the United States and Canada and bootleggers and moonshiners continue to do business. Sin is at the bottom of all lawlessness and it will go on no matter what laws we pass and it will go on if we shall repeal all of the laws we have. The trouble is on the inside of people. It is heart trouble and evil men and seducers will continue to ply their trade so long as their hearts are not right in the sight of God. I am not a fanatic on any part of the ground. It amuses me when I hear a fanatical prohibitionist talk as if the enforcement of the prohibition laws would have solved all our problems. I am equally amused at the whiskey men talking as if the repeal of prohibition would bring temperance. Neither the law nor the absence of law will change men's hearts. Is thy heart right in the sight of God? It will take the grace of God to get the heart right and hence I am delivering these radio sermons trying to get men to repent of their sins and get right with God. That will solve your personal problem and nothing else will.
THE DEATH TRAP Sin is the cause of all our troubles and sin brings death, death of soul and body. A terrible asphalt pit near Los Angeles, Calif., illustrates how sin catches its victims. That pit was formed by the explosion of the gas from the oil below and the funnel-shaped cavity thus made was filled to the brim by the oil and sands that then rushed into them. Part of the sand of the pit in time became a thin crust over the top, and the rains falling upon this surface collected in pools upon it. The sight of water to stop and drink lured thirsty animals roaming over the vast plains. Always it was their last drink, for sinking into the soft ooze they were soon suffocated. Their frantic efforts to escape only increased their peril and attracted to the spot other bloodthirsty animals that sought prey. They, too, sank into the pitiless jaws of this death trap. In this pit fossil beds are found. Solid masses of bones that have not yet been classified and thousands of bones of animals found have been put in skeleton form and placed in museums. Some of the bones are of very old animals; some are of young or middle-aged mammals. Most plentiful of all are bones of the great fierce wolf, the terror of the desolate plains that preyed upon large creatures, and whose species is now extinct. There are two thousand such skeletons. Most of the bones are those of flesh-eating animals thought to have come to devour those unfortunates caught in the sticky oil. Two hundred sixty-eight skulls of the saber tooth tiger have been excavated, and seventeen elephants from a small area, thirty-five feet below the surface. The "Elephant Pit" held a mass of bones of these huge creatures grouped together, drawn down to death singly or centuries apart, or perhaps in one sad company, no one can tell. The flesh from the bodies of beasts or birds was not preserved by the oil in the fossil pits, and eventually fell away while the bones became permeated with the brown oil and took on its tar color. When we get this description, we think of another great death-trap, fully as insidious and subtle and a thousand times more destructive. Across its treacherous surface are livid pools of sparkling crystal, inviting, not wild beasts, but living, vigorous youths to satisfy their thirst for pleasure and the thrill of human passion. Lured on by the enchanting appeal, they approach its attractive edges and proceed to drink, only to find that what they imagined to be solid footing is but a flimsy crust through which they sink, gradually but certainly, into ruin. These skeletons taken from that death trap are a picture of the ruin that comes to those who give themselves to a life of sin. There is but one remedy, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
What joy can compare to that of possessing the salvation of one's soul to eternal life to know that his sins are forgiven; that he can never perish; that heaven is as surely his portion as if he were already there. Can anything compare with such a portion? All else is only for time; this covers all eternity.
FOR ALL ETERNITY Does any crave for it? Is any one weary of sin? Sick of vanity? Burdened in heart and in conscience? To you this blessed salvation addresses itself. Before you it spreads its charms to win your heart and satisfy it, to cleanse your conscience of all guilt, to guide your feet in a path which, shining more and more, ends in the perfect day. Does any one question that such a perfect assurance may belong to a man here? Turn, then, to God's blessed word, and see for yourself. As to the possession of eternal life, hear His own words: "verily verily, I say unto you, he that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent. Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life. (John 5; 24) As to the forgiveness of sins; "In whom (Christ) we have redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins." (Col. 1.14). As to the certainty of the end for all believers: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand" (John 10:27-28). You do not have enough merit to take you to heaven no matter how you may behave. It will take the blood of Jesus Christ to save you and if you were as rich as Rockefeller was you could not pay your way to heaven. I recently heard a story about Rockefeller that I will relate. Remember as you hear this story that Mr. Rockefeller controlled nearly all the gasoline in the world: Mr. Rockefeller possesses quite a fondness for little girls. One afternoon he was going out for a ride in his big car, and they met some little girls, on their way from school, and Mr. Rockefeller invited them to get in with them and take a ride. The little girls were only too glad to accept this invitation. So they joyfully got into the big car with Mr. Rockefeller and his company and were speeding along the highway, filled with the utmost delight at such a treat. When one of the little girls said: "Mr. Rockefeller, where are we going?" Mr. Rockefeller said: "I do not know. We may go to heaven." One of the little girls said "Oh no, Mr. Rockefeller, we cannot do that. You do not have enough gasoline to go to heaven." Little did this little girl think great truth she was expressing. No material wealth, of whatever character it may be stocks and bonds, houses and lands, gold and silver will take a man to heaven; neither will philanthropy, deeds of valor, fame, distinction, exploits on land or in the water or in the air, win any one a pass to heaven; neither will intelligence, culture, refinement, or good looks atone for sin and give any man the right to heaven. Jesus said: "For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matt. 16:26). We shall all have to appear at the judgment bar of God, and when we come there we cannot hold up material possessions, intellectual attainments, and good appearances, and say: "Lord, here, take me on the merit of these things." They are nothing but filthy rags. Nothing but the blood of Jesus can atone for sin...
Baptism, Presbyterian Ben M. Bogard Baptist World, August, 1972 While I was pastor in Princeton, Ky., more than fifty years ago, I preached on baptism one Sunday night and there were several young men present who were ministerial students in the Presbyterian College there. I told the young men to go to the College President Dr. Allen, and ask him to get the Greek Lexicon (dictionary) that he used in his class room in teaching Greek
and turn to the word "baptizo;" the Greek word that stands for baptism, and let them read the definition of the word which is in plain English. I cautioned them to tell the Greek scholar, their College president, that they wanted to see the definition of the word as found in the Greek dictionary that he used in that Presbyterian College. I told them that I would abide by what they found in that text book in that Presbyterian College. They took me at my word and went into the office of the President Monday morning and asked him to turn to the Greek word in the Lexicon HE USED IN TEACHING GREEK and let them read the definition of the word. The good President got fighting mad and denounced me for sending them there. They tried to explain by telling their teacher that I had not told them what the word meant but sent them to him, their Presbyterian teacher, to show them the meaning. He flatly refused to do it. Later, meeting me on the street, he gave me a dressing down for sending the boys to him in that way. The result was I baptized two of the young men. The word means to immerse, to dip, and there is no Greek dictionary on earth that does not give that definition. While I was pastor in Searcy, Ark., the president of the Spears-Langford College was a Presbyterian pastor, Dr. R. B. Willis. He and I were good friends, many times meeting in friendly conversation. He engaged me to teach Latin for him while his Latin teacher was on a six weeks outing for some reason and we freely passed and repassed as neighbors and friends. Dr. Willis taught Greek across the hall as I taught Latin on the other side of the hall, substituting for his absent teacher. One of the students we both taught was a ministerial student intending to be a Presbyterian teacher. This young student came to me one day and asked me to baptize him as he had come to believe in immersion for baptism. I told him I should be glad to do so, and told him to be at church next Sunday morning and unite with the church for baptism and that I would have the baptistery filled in the afternoon and he could be baptized that night. He said he did not want to be a Baptist but be immersed and remain in the Presbyterian Church. I explained to him that his baptism and church membership went together, that his present so-called baptism was as good as his church. He saw the point and then said he did not want to offend Dr. Willis, his teacher, and the Presbyterians had been good to him, and what should he do? I told him to go to Dr. Willis and tell him what he intended to do and get out honorably. He did not have the courage to do that for he was only a young man and Dr. Willis was a dignified Presbyterian scholar and College President. So he decided to write to him instead of talking to him face to face. My telephone rang the next day and Dr. Willis asked me to come over to his office as he had an important matter to talk to me about. When I went to his office he said in substance: "You have stolen one of my sheep and I have a very unusual document I want you to read." He then showed me what the young man had written and the heart of it was when he said: "Dr. Willis, you have taught me Greek and I appreciate you as a teacher, and I ask you a question that I cannot see any answer to. Why did the Holy Spirit use the word "baptizo" which means to dip, immerse, if he meant for us to be sprinkled?" Dr. Willis then said, "Brother Hobson is a good young man and I hope he may make a good Baptist, for I see I have lost him." I then said, "Dr. Willis, before I leave you I want to know what your answer to that question is: "WHY DID THE HOLY SPIRIT USE THE WORD 'BAPTIZO' WHICH MEANS TO DIP, IMMERSE, IF HE MEANT FOR US TO BE SPRINKLED?" The great Presbyterian scholar gravely replied, "I have no answer to that question. I never studied the baptism question. I graduated from Union University and we never had a lesson on baptism while I was in school. I have never read any books on it, I have a small pamphlet on baptism in my library but I have never read it." That young man's question has remained unanswered, and I baptized him.
Famous D. B. Ray's Experience With Presbyterian Wife The historian, D. B. Ray, whom I knew very well fifty years ago and who wrote the great book, "Baptist Church Succession," married a Presbyterian wife and all went well until a baby came. The good Presbyterian wife honestly wanted to bring her baby up as her Presbyterian parents had taught her, asked Dr. Ray about having the baby baptized. He readily consented but added that it was a rule with Baptists to always use a passage of Scripture when they performed any religious ceremony and that she could look up a passage of scripture that authorized INFANT BAPTISM and then the baby could be baptized. She thought that would be easy so she went to reading the Bible and finally came to him and asked him to find it for her as he was better informed on Bible subjects than she. He told her he was too busy and that she should go to the nearby Presbyterian pastor and get him to show her the passage. This she did and was amazed and dumbfounded when the Presbyterian pastor told her that there was no passage that mentioned infant baptism. Result was that she joined the Baptists and was baptized.
Dr. J. B. Jeter's Experience With Presbyterian Wife "J. B. Jeter's third wife was a Presbyterian. A baby was born in that home. His wife said something about like this: "Mr. Jeter, you knew I was not a Baptist when you married me. As an honest Presbyterian I believe that our baby ought to be baptized." He consented on condition that she would consent to his holding the baby while the ceremony was performed. She thought it would be a feather in her cap to have the most prominent Baptist preacher in Virginia and one of the best known Baptist editors in the South to hold their baby while a Presbyterian preacher sprinkled it. So she consented. J. B. Jeter announced in his church in Richmond, Va., that he would be out of his pulpit to be present at the Presbyterian church and why. That church was jammed and packed. The scholarly and dignified Presbyterian preacher preached then announced that those who had babies to be baptized would please bring them forward. Brother Jeter and his wife arose and he took the baby in his arms and they walked to the front. He was careful to get at the end where they were to begin. Quite a number of other parents had children present for that purpose. Just as the honored pastor of that Presbyterian church raised his hand to say the baptismal formula and baptize the baby, Brother Jeter said something like this: "My brother you and I have been good friends for many years. My wife has been a member of your church for years and I have never tried to proselyte her to my faith. But as a Baptist I believe that we ought to be able to give a "Thus saith the Lord" for all that we do. This is my baby as well as my wife's. Before you sprinkle my child I want you to take your Bible and read out of the Book your authority for what you are about to do." The scholarly old-school Presbyterian preacher slowly raised his hand and pronounced the benediction. Mrs. Jeter soon became a Baptist. She said that her pastor was one of the most scholarly Presbyterian preachers in the entire South. If he could not find infant baptism in the Bible then it must not be there. If infant baptism was not in the Bible, she had never been baptized for infant baptism was all she ever had. With an open Bible she soon was led to the truth and obeyed her Lord in baptism. The Bible was written to make Baptists and it will do the work in every regenerate heart if they will only read it and obey it.
Bible Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, May, 1972 What is the Bible? Where did the Bible come from? How to study the Bible? What is the central thought in the Bible? Much ignorance about the Bible is inexcusable. Many seem to think the Bible was written in heaven and dropped down from the skies. Others think it is a fraud. The parties who hold these opposing views are grossly ignorant of the Bible. I never saw a skeptic
who really knew the Bible. Of course one who is so ignorant as to think God wrote the Bible and sent it ready made to the earth doesn't know the Bible. Illustrative of this I recently received a letter from an unknown "agnostic" who, after recounting the facts concerning the life of Jesus and coming to his death on the cross, which he said was similar to that of thousands of others during that period, said, "Thus ended the dream of this youthful Galilean who was going to establish his kingdom and make the Jews the rulers of the world." So thought the devil when Jesus died on the cross, but the devil and his followers, such as my agnostic correspondent, fail to remember that Jesus foretold His own death and actually said He would lay down His life of Himself and no man could take it from Him. Hear Him in John 10: 17-18, "I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again." Now read Matt. 16:21: "From that time forth began Jesus to show unto His disciples, how that He must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day." In the face of these plain statements this agnostic says the death of Jesus ended His dream. The poor ignorant man doesn't know enough about the Bible to know death was a part of His so-called dream and His purpose included His death and without His death the salvation of men would have been impossible. This same agnostic said in his letter that Jesus never dreamed of taking Gentiles into His system. Paul came on the scene and changed things up so that Christianity became a world religion. The poor ignorant man seems never to have read the great commission where Jesus commanded His church to go teach all nations (Matt. 28:18-20). If Jesus had in mind a Jewish Kingdom to dominate all other kingdoms, why did He command His disciples to go teach all nations? Skepticism is based on ignorance of the Bible. Skeptics repeat stock objections, which have been answered, thousands of times and they are in blissful ignorance of the answers that have been made over and over again. This same agnostic declared that Jesus could not read and write. He is in blissful ignorance of the account where Jesus went into the synagogue and opened the Old Testament and read to those assembled "as his custom was" (Luke 4:16). He is also in ignorance of the fact it is recorded that Jesus stooped down and "wrote on the ground" (John. 8:6). If skeptics would only read the Bible and actually learn what it says, it would knock out their objections. This same agnostic declares Peter could not understand why Jesus should show Himself to Paul after His resurrection and not show Himself to Peter and others. This ignorance is refreshing. The fact is Jesus showed Himself to all the apostles and many others a long time before he showed Himself to Paul. He spent "forty days with them speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God" (Acts 1:3). This same ignorant agnostic declares Paul cared nothing about Jesus nor His gospel and "never even mentions Jesus in any of his epistles." This ignorance is inexcusable and shows plainly he is copying blindly from some infidel liar without investigation. The fact is Paul mentions Jesus Christ over and over again in his epistles. The first of Paul's epistles as published in our Bible is Romans and he mentions Jesus six times in the first chapter and specifically mentions the "Gospel of Christ" in verse 16. Besides this six times in the first chapter he mentions Jesus forty nine times further on in the epistle to the Romans. I suggest to my skeptical correspondent that he read Romans and see how reading infidel literature has misled him. Nine out of ten skeptics swallow whatever they read in such literature without investigation. Let me suggest further, if such skeptics are really honest when they find that the literature they have depended on is a bundle of falsehoods they surely will lose confidence and begin to investigate for them. The Bible was not written by God and dropped down from the skies; neither is it a fraud. The Bible is really not a BOOK at all, but a library. It consists of sixty-six books or pamphlets
written by at least forty different men. It wasn't written all at one time but through a period of about fifteen hundred years. These forty writers had no opportunity to compare what each had written; yet when their writings were brought together it was a marvel for harmony. There are no contradictions. There are some apparent contradictions but upon investigation these apparent contradictions are found to be harmonious. If there had been collusion between the writers there would have been no apparent contradictions for men in collusion would have ironed out all such apparent contradictions. Thus the so-called contradictions themselves become a powerful argument in favor of the divine origin of the Bible. Such a book could not have been a frame-up. The Bible is divided into the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament consists of types and shadows and in connection with these types and shadows we have a history of God's dealings with His chosen people, the Jews. In the New Testament we have the fulfillment of these types and shadows in Jesus Christ. You will never understand the Bible unless you learn this primary fact. Nobody was ever saved by observing the Old Testament Law for Paul says, "If there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law" (Gal. 3:21). He also says "...It is not possible that the . . . blood of bulls and goats should take away sin" (Heb. 10:4). Jesus Christ saved people back in the Old Testament in promise and that same Jesus Christ saves us; the only difference is they looked forward to Him and we look back to Him. There is no difference in the salvation whether before Christ came or since He came. In the fourth chapter of Romans we are told we are saved now just as Abraham was. Abraham was saved through faith in the coming Saviour and we have faith in Him since He has come. Our faith in both cases is in the same object (Jesus) and for the same purpose. The foolish idea that people were saved by obedience to law then and that we are now saved by grace is contrary to Scripture for men were saved by grace before Christ came the same as we are now since He came. Doesn't the Bible say we are justified by works? Yes, but justification by works is the justification of one who has already been saved by grace. Abraham was justified by faith to the saving of his soul and then forty years after he had been saved through faith he was justified by works "when he offered up Isaac" (Jas. 2:12). Justification by faith is for the salvation of the soul and justification by works is for the one who has had his soul saved and it is for the purpose of obtaining a reward in addition to his salvation. Salvation is given to us and then after receiving FREE SALVATION we work for a reward, and "every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor" (I Cor. 3:8). Justification by works is never recommended to an unsaved man, but always to one who has been saved in order that the saved one may obtain a reward. An illustration will help you to understand. I was born of my parents and thus became their child. But my parents offered rewards for good behavior, which I worked for. Over and over again I was promised some sort of a reward for service. Once my father offered me all I could make on four acres of ground if I would work it. I did so and got the reward. I was justified in that case by works. But I was not working to become his son for I was already that. I was working for a reward. That ought to make it clear. We are taken into God's family FREE, not by works. But we work after getting into God's family in order to get the reward. So Abraham was justified by faith and was thus saved, then, after becoming a child of God by faith, he was justified by works in order to receive a reward. Baptists have always preached salvation by grace then AFTER being saved the saved ones are urged to do their duty. Hence the emphasis we put on baptism. We want saved people to show it by obedience and in baptism we simply show our allegiance to Christ. A saved man wants to obey God. If you hear a man say he would not be baptized if he did not think it saved him or helped to save him you may know by that very remark that he does not love God for if he was saved and loved God he would want not only to be baptized but to do everything else the
Lord commands. When the Jew offered up his sacrifices he didn't do it in order to be saved but he did it as an expression of his faith in the coming Saviour. So we observe baptism, the Lord's Supper and other duties not for the purpose of being saved but to express our faith in Jesus who has saved us. A correct understanding of these primary principles will enable us to intelligently study the Bible. So many have a habit of reading a chapter at random and never thinking what it is all about. You must learn the difference between the types and shadows, and the reality, between the symbols and the things symbolized, between salvation by grace through faith and justification by works. Unless you do the Bible will continue to be a jumble of confusion to you. A rule for Bible study is to carefully note who is speaking and to whom he is speaking and then note what he is speaking about. Sometimes an individual is being addressed as when Paul wrote to Timothy in two epistles. Sometimes a church is addressed as when Paul wrote two letters to the church at Corinth. Then, in these epistles different subjects are discussed. Be careful to notice what subject is under discussion. If you will notice some of these primary things it will make a Bible scholar of you. But you may read it until you die with old age and never know anything about it if you read at random and do not note these primary principles. The Bible came from God through men inspired of God and it is too important to trifle with. That the Bible is inspired of God is shown by several considerations. First, there has never been a contradiction found in it, all supposed contradictions can be harmonized. Second, an error of any kind has never been found in it. It isn't a history but when it speaks of a historical matter, it speaks correctly. It isn't a book of science but when it touches on a matter of science, it speaks accurately and, marvel of marvels; it foretold scientific discoveries thousands of years before these discoveries were made. This would have been impossible unless the writers had been inspired for to guess such things was impossible. Third, the Bible contains many prophecies, which have been fulfilled to the letter. These three facts stare any skeptic in the face and he cannot meet the argument. It has been tried several times and always to the discomfort of those who are against the Bible. Clarence Darrow has been parading over the country debating with such so-called Christian and Jews who are about as skeptical as him and has been gaining victories over them. He could not be induced to debate with a representative fundamentalist. I put the challenge up to him when he was coming to Little Rock. He and Rabbi Sanders both backed squarely out. If they are so anxious to debate why don't they accept such challenges as the one I presented? I believe they are conscious of their inability to stand before a real believer in the Bible. By their fruits any man or institution may be known. Wherever a man has tried Jesus Christ as a Saviour he has proved what He said to be true. A truly scientific man will not condemn anything until he has put it to the test. I challenge any skeptic to try it. Repent of your sins and accept Jesus as your Saviour and it will actually work. A drunkard will become a sober man; a liar will become truthful. A brute of a man will become a good husband and a thief will become honest. Such are the fruits. Why didn't Christianity prevent the world war? Because the world has never tried Christianity. Some individuals have tried Christianity but the masses have not. You certainly should not blame the doctor when the patient refuses to take the medicine, even if the patient dies. You can't blame Jesus Christ when the world refuses to accept Him and do what He says, no matter what terrible thing happens. I offer salvation to all who will accept Jesus Christ.
Bible Doctrines Peculiar to Baptists that have Distinguished them from the Religions of the World in All Ages U. W. Jarrel, Baptist Commoner, 9-28-1916. Regenerated memberships This is a Bible doctrine that has, and does today, distinguish the Baptist as a people, from every other denomination in the world. Church Independence Church Sovereignty. Each church a separate government, independent of every other church, yet cooperating with each other in the Master's work, on principles of love and fraternal union; with loyalty to their Great Head. No church being bound or obligated by the action of any other church, yet maintaining a fraternal comity and fellowship, one with the other, as workers together with God for the building up of His kingdom in the world, and the salvation of the lost. Maintaining the ordinances in their scriptural order, form and design. This peculiarity has saved to the world the great symbolic ordinances instituted by Christ and given to the church, which has kept them through the ages, just where He placed them, in form and design. The constant preaching of the doctrine of baptism as a symbolic ordinance in which the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is pictured to the world, in which a chart of the atoning work of Jesus Christ is constantly held up to the world's view, by which the death of Christ for the sins of the world and His resurrection for the believer in Christ is shown in beautiful symbols, and as the legitimate outgrowth of the constant contention for the Bible doctrines and ordinances of the church. Baptist have kept the Lord's Supper where Christ placed it: In the church as a church ordinance, and not merely as a Christian ordinance. Baptist have always demanded the scriptural qualifications for its reception, which are "Membership in the Body and fellowship with the Body." Whoever meets these conditions has an unquestioned right to partake of the Lord's Supper. Loyalty to this scriptural rule has preserved this ordinance in its sacred precincts, and prevented is prostitution to the baser uses to which many religious orders have subjected it.
Bible Mysteries Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 11-4-33 The word mystery means something difficult to understand, hidden, or half-hidden. Several things are spoken of as MYSTERIES in the Bible. The MYSTERY OF UNION BETWEEN THE JEWS AND THE GENTILES is mentioned in Eph. 3:2-11: "If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God how that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; and make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God according to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord." When we consider that the Jews looked upon all others as being only Gentile dogs and felt themselves to be far above all others, that they never once thought of such a thing as allowing the Gentiles to share in their religious blessings, except on very humiliating terms. We can understand how that it took a miracle to convince Peter that the Gentiles should be allowed to share spiritual blessings with the Jews. In the tenth chapter of Acts we find the Lord taught Peter that he must not call the Gentiles common or unclean when the Lord accepted them. It took the Jews a long time to become reconciled to this mystery. But before the apostolic age
ended we see both Jew and Gentile sitting together in the Lord's Body, the church, the middle wall of partition having been broken down. The UNION OF THE HUMAN AND THE DIVINE IN JESUS CHRIST is called a mystery. I Tim. 3:16: "Great is the mystery of Godliness; God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels... believed on in the world, received up into glory." In John 1:1-14 we read that Jesus "was God," and "by him all things were made" and that he "became flesh and dwelt among us, the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." Jesus was not half God and half man but He was COMPLETE GOD and COMPLETE MAN. He was no hybrid, but was PERFECT GOD and PERFECT MAN both God and man. It is indeed a mystery, God, yet VIRGIN born. Great is the mystery. The mystery of the CHURCH AS THE BRIDE OF CHRIST. In Eph. 5:23-32, we read of the church being to Christ what a wife is to a husband. The husband loves the wife and Paul uses that as an illustration of how Jesus loves His bride. The husband and the wife are one in a mysterious sense and so the church in a figurative sense is a member "of his body, of his flesh, and his bones." As the wife, in every way an equal of her husband, is subject to her husband, so the church, the BRIDE OF CHRIST and in that sense EQUAL TO CHRIST, is subject to him in all things. Paul adds: "This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church." A true bridegroom is married in heart to the bride BEFORE THE ACTUAL MARRIAGE, so Christ and His bride are married IN HEART BEFORE THE ACTUAL WEDDING TAKES PLACE. The church is now the VIRGIN BRIDE of Christ. So Paul said in II Cor. 11:2: "I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." The wedding day will come later on when the bride is completed when the last saint has been saved and the "CHURCH OF THE FIRST BORN" is assembled at God's throne (Heb. 12:22-23). The bride is now growing, not yet complete, but when Jesus comes FOR HIS SAINTS and we shall be caught up in the air along with all the righteous dead who shall be raised to meet the Lord in the air, then shall the wedding take place. You can read of the wedding in Rev. 19:7-9: "Let us be glad and rejoice and give honor to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white for the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. And he with unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb." Thus it is clearly revealed that there shall be some at the supper as guests, who are no part of the bride. This is the advantage of being in the church that Jesus established. Others may be saved, actually be at the wedding supper, but they will not have the honor that the BRIDE receives. It will be wonderful to even be there but it will be GLORIOUS to be a part of His bride. This is a great MYSTERY and many fail to comprehend. The mystery of OUR BEING PARTAKERS OF THE DIVINE NATURE, having been born of the Spirit is more than the unregenerate mind can understand. Nicodemus asked: "How can these things be?" Jesus told him it was as mysterious as the wind which blows where it will and we cannot tell about its movements, so is every one born of the Spirit. Col. 1:26-27: "The mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: to whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory" Our identity with Christ (by His grace) is set forth in Gal. 2:20: "I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." If once it dawns upon a man that when Christ was crucified every believer was also crucified, since Jesus is our substitute, and now that Jesus has arisen from the dead WE LIVE ALSO for Christ lives in us, then he would lose all fear of ever being lost for his life is WRAPPED UP IN JESUS and he is considered one with Him.
The RAPTURE OF THE SAINTS at the second coming of Jesus is a mystery. Paul said in I Cor. 15:51: "Behold I show you a mystery; we shall not all sleep (not all die) but we shall all be changed, in a moment, at the last trump." If Jesus should come today the righteous dead would be raised and we who are alive would be changed instantly and be caught up with the resurrected dead to meet the Lord in the air. I Thess. 4:15-17, "We which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them (shall not go before them) which are asleep (dead) ... the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." What a wonderful thing it will be for an old man, crippled with rheumatism, with bent body and enlarged joints, and sore muscles, and grieved spirit, to hear the voice of Jesus and to IMMEDIATELY be transformed into a healthy, vigorous, athletic, and perfectly comfortable body, a body like the LORD'S BODY, without a disease germ in it, without a pain in it, with all uneasiness of mind gone. Happy glorified INSTANTLY! This is a profound mystery. THE MYSTERY OF INIQUITY that will result in the development of the Man of sin, the Antichrist, is mentioned in II Thess. 2:1-12: "The mystery of iniquity doth already work; only he who now letteth will let until he be taken out of the way." In this chapter Paul tells the Thessalonians that the Day of the Lord will not come "until there be a falling away first, and that Man of Sin be revealed." This working of the MYSTERY of iniquity will continue until the HOLY SPIRIT IS TAKEN OUT OF THE WORLD, for that is what is meant by "he that letteth will let." The word "let" is an obsolete word that means to hinder. The Holy Spirit is holding back, hindering, the working of the MYSTERY OF INIQUITY. When the Holy Spirit is removed from the world then the MAN OF SIN WILL IMMEDIATELY APPEAR. Then will begin that terrible tribulation through which the world shall pass, after the Lord's BRIDE has been caught up out of the world into the glorious rapture. Some worry themselves about the terrible tribulation that is sure to come. We need not worry if we are the Lord's children for ALL OF THEM will be taken away just before the TRIBULATION shall begin. Some of these Lord's people will constitute the BRIDE and the rest of the Lord's people will be guests at the wedding, but ALL OF THEM will be with the Lord. Woe be unto the world that is left behind. The thought of that terrible tribulation is enough to alarm any unsaved man and it is enough to cause great concern on the part of God's people who have loved ones who may be left behind to pass through it. The small antichrists, which have appeared from time to time, have developed because of the MYSTERY of INIQUITY. The Holy Spirit prevents the full development of the final ANTICHRIST and will continue to prevent it until HE IS TAKEN OUT OF THE WORLD. This MYSTERY OF INIQUITY accounts for the fact that evil gets into everything that we do. No matter now pure our motives, no matter how zealous we are, we can do no good thing without the appearance of evil right in the midst of it. The churches, the Lord's own churches, are beset with evil without and evil within. It is the LEAVEN IN THE MEAL that our Lord spoke of when He said the kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal. Evil works like leaven, mysteriously, certainly, ruinously, all the time. The FINAL GATHERING TOGETHER OF ALL THINGS IN CHRIST is a mystery. Eph. 1:9-10: "Having made known unto us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He hath purposed in Himself: that in the dispensation of the fullness of times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in Him." Final victory is coming, IN CHRIST. We cannot comprehend the meaning of it all but VICTORY IS COMING. Seeming defeat is the Lord's means of victory. It keeps us guessing but if we have faith, when we cannot understand we can trust, and by and by, when the mists have
rolled away we shall fully understand. At present, as God holds our hand He will safely lead us on. I could speak of the Mystery of Babylon, the Mystery of Jewish blindness, the Mystery of the Kingdom of Heaven and other mysteries but these suffice. We need not worry about Mysteries. They are all about us. Our very existence is a mystery. Some of the simplest things we do are in reality mysteries. The existence of God is a mystery and if we decide there is no God then the mystery of existence becomes a greater mystery. When we shall have been in Heaven's school under the Master Teacher for a billion years we shall possibly be able to understand. Until then we can TRUST.
Bible Is the All-Sufficient Rule of Faith and Practice Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner 1-15-1930 Just how may we know what to do as children of God and how may the churches know what practices to encourage and what doctrines to preach is a controverted question which this lecture will consider? What or who is authority in the Christian life? Some tell us that our own conscience is our guide. They strangely forget or they have never learned that conscience is largely a matter of education. Our conscience will tell us what is right or wrong according to the way our conscience has been taught, educated. If from infancy we have been taught that a thing is wrong our conscience will alarm us when we start to do the thing we have been taught to believe is wrong. If we have been taught from infancy that a thing is right our conscience will approve when we do it. This never fails. A Hindu mother will throw her babe to the crocodiles with a clear conscience; she actually thinks she is doing right when she does it because she has been taught from infancy that this will appease the wrath of her false god. But a properly taught woman would be horrified at the idea of doing such a terrible thing. The conscience of the Hindu mother approves and the conscience of the Christian mother condemns such a practice. The Roman Catholic has been taught that he should go to confession and in the confession tell the priest all the sinful things he has done and if a Catholic stays away from confession his conscience hurts him. But a Baptist has been taught that such a practice is wrong; he has been taught that the confessional is evil and dangerous and if a Baptist should go to confession his conscience would hurt him. The conscience of the Catholic approves and the conscience of the Baptist disapproves of the very same act. If a Catholic should allow his baby to die without baptism his conscience would hurt him because he has been taught that the baby can never come into the presence of God without baptism; he thinks the unbaptized baby can never reach heaven, according to Catholic teaching, and, of course, his conscience will hurt him for failing to provide a place in heaven for his babe. But a Baptist would have a perfectly clear conscience in failing to have the baby baptized because he has been taught that infants will all be saved in heaven by the grace of God. Thus we see that in this case a Catholic conscience condemns and the Baptist conscience approves. When one man's conscience approves a thing and another man's conscience condemns that same thing it is perfectly manifest that both can not be right. The conscience can be deadened and even seared over until it does not act even where it has been properly taught. Paul tells us that the conscience of some is "seared over as with a hot iron" (I Tim. 4:2). How can that sort of a conscience be a safe guide? The fact is that if conscience is to be the guide we shall be left without any authority, without any guide at all and every man will be a law unto himself and the result will be religious anarchy. Some tell us that the Church is our guide. What Church? Whose Church? If the church is to be our guide then it would follow that every man must investigate for himself and determine what is the Church and who is authorized to speak for the Church. How in the world can an
ordinary man ever determine what the true Church is? Such an idea places a burden on the average man that he is not able to bear. In what way can he learn what is the true Church? Take away the Bible, by what standard is that important matter to be determined? Take the preacher's or priest's word for it? What preacher or what priest? Take the Baptist preacher's? Why not, if any preacher's word is to be taken? The Baptist church is the oldest church in the world. It was established by Jesus Christ Himself and some hundreds of years after Christ established the Baptist Church the Catholics came into existence. If age is the thing required, the Baptists have the Catholics defeated to begin with, but the Catholic may say that this is not true and declare that the Catholic Church is the oldest. So there now. Who is telling the truth? Here are two churches claiming to be the oldest. Which one is really the oldest? No other Churches lay claim to such antiquity and these younger churches, such as the Methodists, Presbyterians, Nazarenes and Lutherans declare that age should have nothing to do with it and so there we are. Again I ask WHAT CHURCH should be the guide? Certainly that matter never could be settled. Talk about God leaving such an important matter as this to the Church and then leaving in doubt just what the Church is and who represents it! It would be like a civil law that declared that certain matters must be determined by the Supreme Court and yet a half dozen or more bodies of men claiming to be the Supreme Court and the average man left with no means of determining who constituted the Supreme Court and yet he must carry his case to that court! What in the world could be done in such a case? This thing of the Church being the final authority was invented by the Roman Catholic so as to force all to surrender to that church. Also with that was another pure fabrication, namely that the Catholic Church is the mother Church. Both positions are untrue but when you accept either one of the false positions the other will force itself upon you. The fact is instead of the Church being the final authority it is itself UNDER, AUTHORITY and that authority is expressed in the Bible, the all-sufficient rule of faith and practice. Many of us believe the Bible to be the all-sufficient rule of faith and practice. There are some objections to this idea, which I will now notice. First, it is said that the common people do not have intelligence enough to understand the Bible and must have some one to tell them what it means. It is strange that these common people can understand the priest who frequently speaks in broken English, being himself a foreigner with imperfect knowledge of our language, or he speaks broken Spanish in Mexico, for instance, as many of the priests are not native Mexicans; it is strange, I say, that the common people can understand the priest when they can not understand the plain language of the Bible. The fact is that the "common people heard Him gladly" (Mark 12:37) when Jesus was on earth and they do the same thing today. The Bible is as easily understood as any other book if we read it as we do other books and just let it say what it wants to say and not obscure it with one sided interpretations. Second, we are told that there are so many different ideas held by individuals that it would be impossible to have uniformity. Suppose this is true. God never intended dead uniformity among the people. There is infinite variety in nature. No two leaves on a tree are exactly alike, no two animals are exactly alike, no two blades of grass are exactly alike, yet there is wonderful unity in this infinite variety So, when ever one is permitted to go directly to the Bible for his doctrine and practice there will be variety of opinion on minor matters but there would be wonderful unity along with this variety. The variations of doctrine and practice would only emphasize the unity that in general would prevail. Variety in unity is God's plan plainly written in nature and why not also in the realm of grace. The forest is one with its almost infinite variety of trees and plants. Even so the Lord's people would be one with many varieties of opinion on minor matters if all would really come direct to the Bible for their doctrine and practice. The small differences would not break the fellowship. It is man made doctrines and
church imposed creeds that cause the discord and break in fellowship that prevails. No two carpenters will saw a board exactly alike. If one carpenter saws a board by one that another carpenter has sawed and keeps that up for a time it will be found that the length of the boards will vary so much that they won't fit into the building. But if each carpenter will go back each time to the original measure and each one for himself cut the boards by the original measure, while there will be slight differences, the differences will not be so great as to destroy the unity and all the boards will fit more or less perfectly into the building. Even so in interpreting the Bible, when we allow any man or set of men, even if we allow a Church to decide what we are to believe and practice we shall gradually get further and further away from the truth. But when each one of us for himself, goes right back to the original pattern (the Bible) none of us will ever get very far wrong. The Bible says "Every one shall give account of himself to God" (Rom. 14:12). This can not be if we are not permitted to decide for ourselves what God wants done. The minute we turn our responsibility over to anybody, even the church, that minute we will be unable to give an account of ourselves to God. If my conduct is to be determined by another, even if it is the church that determines it, that moment my personal responsibility ceases. Then when I shall be called before the great Judge I could say, that I was not responsible for my conduct because it had been determined by another and that whosoever it was should be judged in my stead. It, in that case, might be reasonable to make me responsible to the church but certainly I should not be made responsible to God when I am not allowed to decide what God wants me to do. It seems to me that any one who uses his common sense would be able to see this. The Bible claims to be a perfect rule of faith and practice. In II Tim. 3:16-17 we read that the Scriptures "are given by inspiration of God, that the man of God may be perfect; thoroughly furnished unto all good works." If the Scriptures thoroughly furnish us unto good works we certainly do not need any additional furnishings. Paul commended Timothy because he had known the Scriptures from the time he was a child having been taught the Scriptures by his mother and grandmother (II Tim. 15: 5-15). Here women were commended for teaching this child Timothy the Scriptures. If mothers can not understand the Scriptures how can they teach them? But if the mother and grandmother of Timothy did understand the Scriptures so as to be able to teach Timothy and the child, Timothy, could understand, then it follows that women may now understand the Scriptures so as to be able to teach others so they can understand and hence it is not necessary for some priest to explain it to them. The ordinary man and woman can understand. The Bereans were commended by Paul because they searched the Scriptures to see whether the things spoken by Paul were true. (Acts 17:11). The Roman Catholic idea is that the word of the priest should be taken implicitly, without question, and certainly a Catholic would not be commended by a priest for doubting what he taught, enough to look into the Scriptures to see for himself whether the priest is telling the truth or not. They would call that "private interpretation" of the Bible. But that is exactly the thing Paul said was the noble thing to do. I think it safer to follow Paul than it is to implicitly take the word of preacher or priest. No true preacher objects to, but rather desires, his listeners to search the Scriptures for themselves to see that he is preaching in harmony with the Bible. When a preacher or priest objects to his listeners making personal investigation for themselves, reading for themselves, it shows that such preacher or priest is trying to put something over on his hearers that will not bear investigation. There would be a wholesale breaking away from some preachers and churches if the people would only read for themselves. A preacher who is really preaching the truth is glad to have the people search for themselves to verify what he says and a true preacher will be glad if any one will call his attention to an error he may have preached because by having his attention called to it he can correct it and in the future avoid it. It is a mark of fraud and deception when a preacher
does not agree with Paul and does not encourage the people to search the Scriptures for themselves. If the church is infallibly inspired to give direction to the people why have the Scriptures at all? Why encumber the earth with a book that can not be understood? Why not leave the whole matter with the church to begin with? The very fact that God gave us the Bible that all Christians acknowledge to be God's word, shows that God meant for us to read it and understand what it says. If the Bible is not a perfect guide then it is worse than useless because it might even mislead the people. If it is a perfect guide then we should each one take it as the man of our counsel, as a "lamp to our feet and a light to our pathway." There are mysteries mentioned in the Bible. We may not be able to understand the mysteries mentioned but we can understand what the Bible says about those mysteries. There are mysteries mentioned in school histories, as for instance certain things that have taken place that nobody understands. But it would be silly to say we could not understand what the history says about those mysteries just because we cannot understand the mysteries themselves. Even so with the mysteries of the Bible we can understand what the Bible says about those mysteries even though we may not be able to understand the mysteries themselves. In science, who understands SPACE? The idea of space is beyond us because space is infinite and our finite minds can not grasp the infinite. But we can understand what the books of science say about space. Even so we can not understand the idea of the SELF-EXISTING GOD. Such an idea is as incomprehensible as the idea of space, but while we can not grasp the idea of the SELFEXISTING GOD we can understand what the Bible says about him. We cannot grasp the idea of eternity that the Bible speaks of but we can understand what the Bible says about eternity. We can not understand the foreknowledge of God and how that consists with our own freedom. Yet we can understand what the Bible says about it. That foreknowledge does not destroy our freedom is certain and a feeble illustration may help. I know that an explosion of a stick of dynamite will kill a child. I am looking out a window and see a child striking a match to light the fuse that will explode the dynamite. I know in advance just exactly what will happen. I know that the lighted match touched to the fuse will cause the dynamite to explode. I know also that this explosion will kill the child. I cry out from my window and tell the child there is danger. The child does not believe me and acting with perfect freedom he explodes the dynamite and is killed. My foreknowledge of what would happen did not do away with the child's freedom of action. So God's foreknowledge of what would come to pass in this world does not destroy our freedom of action. But after all this is a mystery but what on earth has that to do with our personal responsibility to God? His word reveals His will and we are held accountable to Him for our actions. In the realm of duty, in the realm of faith and practice, there are no mysteries that cannot be understood. The doctrine and practice revealed in the Bible are plain and easily to be understood and what the people ought to do is to read for themselves and do what they find to be right and it will be found to be the greatest unifier that has ever been known. The Bible is the all-sufficient rule of faith and practice and so long as men shift their responsibility to another, even to the church, divisions will continue to curse the world.
Born Again Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, Spring- Summer, 1978 John 3:7: "Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again."
It matters not what else may come into your life, unless you have been born again, you shall be forever lost in hell. Some preachers and some churches have not been emphasizing this
most important doctrine, and the result is that our churches are being filled with unsaved people and unless that error is corrected ruin is just ahead.
THE NEW BIRTH IS A NECESSITY. Jesus did not tell Nicodemus that he could be born again, or that he ought to be born again but that unless he was born again he could not see the kingdom of God. Why should we preachers mince words when Jesus was so emphatic? Nicodemus, to whom the Lord was speaking, was a high-class gentleman. He was a member of the Jewish Supreme Court and was in every way a fine citizen. There is not so much as a suggestion against him. No doubt he was what the people who knew him would call a good man. Yet he was told plainly that he must he born again.
THE NEW BIRTH IS FROM ABOVE. It is a birth of the Spirit. Jesus said in John 3:6: "That which is born of the Spirit is spirit." It is a spiritual birth ... our spirits are made to partake of the DIVINE NATURE. It does not change the body except as the inner spiritual life may affect the body. The new birth cleanses the spirit so that the spirit becomes free from sin. In I John 3:9 we read: "Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God." Since the spirit does not sin, after the new birth, and the flesh remains in the unregenerate state, and hence does sin, there is a conflict that begins immediately after the birth from above, between the new born spirit and the flesh. This conflict is discussed in Rom. 7:1523. Here we read: "For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I." Every saved person has had this experience this war within himself. Before being born again he was in harmony with himself but the moment he was born from above, the moment the new spiritual life was imparted to him, he felt the war to begin. This is one of the best evidences of having been born again ... he finds himself doing what he hates and failing to do what he greatly loves. Paul, the inspired writer, goes on to say in the seventh chapter of Romans, "For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. I find then a law, that when I would do good, evil is present with me. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: but I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind". When one finds this conflict in his personality, he should rejoice because it is proof that he has been born again. There was no such conflict in him before he was born again and the conflict is proof that he has had the DIVINE NATURE IMPARTED and that he is a child of God. If someone should say that this was Paul's experience before he was sanctified and that if we will read on into the eighth chapter we shall find where he got rid of this conflict, the answer is sufficient and complete when we read in Rom. 8:23, where it says, "Ourselves also, which have the FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body." This passage plainly states that he and others had "the FIRST FRUITS of the Spirit," just as the seventh chapter of Romans said, and that he and others were waiting for something else which he calls the "redemption of the body, "so the body is not yet saved after we get into the eighth chapter of Romans. Paul declares in that same chapter, we "are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it." This certainly is plain enough. We are waiting for something; our salvation is not yet complete. The spirit has partaken of the DIVINE NATURE but the body WAITS for redemption.
The New Birth Is Plainly Seen In Those Who Have Received It. The evidences are clear and plain. The love of God has been shed abroad in the heart of the newborn child of God. He serves God because he loves God and not because he is trying to work his way to heaven, neither is he trying to escape hell. He is prompted by love; he delights to obey God. He does not feel as if he had taken out a fire insurance policy and that he must keep his premiums paid up lest he forfeit his heavenly insurance. He loves God's people and hence he wants to live with them and work with them. That is why he joins the church. He has his candle lighted and Jesus instructed his disciples that they should put their lights on God's Candlestick and he explains in Rev. 1:20 that the "candlestick" is the church. A child of God has the light FIRST, and then he puts the light on God's Candlestick. This shows salvation comes BEFORE CHURCH MEMBERSHIP and yet it should result in church membership. We are told that a child of God loves the brethren, I John 3:14, "We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren." Naturally we love to associate with those we love and hence we join the church because we love the brethren, not because we are afraid of hell and come into the church to keep out of hell. A newborn child of God has the love of God shed abroad in his heart and he obeys God because, he loves God. I John 4:7: he "that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God." That is why we keep the commandments of God. John the inspired writer declares that "this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous." (I John 5:3). So long as a man dislikes to obey God, so long as he would prefer not to obey God, if he thought he could get to heaven without joining the church and without being baptized, then he would refuse to obey, just that long such a man is not born again. I have heard some say that if they thought they could get to heaven without it they would not be obedient, would not be baptized, would not come into the church. All who talk like that show they do not love God and need to be born again. When I was born again, when 1 received the FIRST FRUITS of the Spirit, when the love of God was shed abroad in my heart, I lost all fear of hell and had an intense desire to obey God. I wanted to be baptized and since I loved God's people, "loved the brethren" as John expressed, really wanted to get into, church and live with them and work with them. I was anxious to be baptized and told the preacher so. He suggested that I could wait until warm weather before being baptized, as it was freezing weather at the time. He told me that it was not necessary to salvation and that there would be no risk in waiting until warm weather, but I told him that I wanted to be baptized right then and so the ice was cut out in an open pond and I was buried with Jesus in baptism. Why? If it was not necessary to salvation why go into the cold water? The answer is, I loved the Lord and wanted to obey Him and I loved the church and wanted to get into it and it was the LOVE I HAD IN MY HEART for God and the brethren that prompted me to be baptized. If a man goes into the water hoping to be saved by it he is not prompted by love and hence has not been born again and the very effort he is making to save himself only aggravates his damnation. He is hell-scared and not love-bound. We have too many hell-scared church members. If a man has been born again he will show it by his actions. He will feel impelled by love and he will obey God because of that impelling love. Some people seem to think that a home in heaven can be bought by good conduct. But heaven is a gift and we obtain it by grace, not by doing good work. But we do SHOW OUR NEW BIRTH BY OBEDIENCE. James, the inspired writer, says, "Show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works." Faith that will not produce works will not save to begin with.
Faith saves and after the man is saved by grace through faith, then that same faith that saved him PUTS HIM TO WORK immediately after saving him and the work is the evidence of salvation and not the cause of it. In saving him He poured out his love into the heart and that makes obedience easy and delightful and makes him keep in subjection that fleshly nature that has not yet been saved. It is a pity to see a man trying to work his way to heaven and who spends his time vainly trying to escape hell. If he had been born again he would be guided by love and not, through fear of death, be in constant bondage and dread. No man has to be threatened with punishment to get him to do what he loves to do. A man who has to be threatened with hell to get him to live with his wife shows he does not love his wife. A man who would not live in the church if he were not afraid of hell shows he does not love the church, and a man who would not obey God in baptism unless he fears he shall go to hell if he fails to be baptized shows that he does not love God and instead of the love of God he has been scared lest he go to hell. Hell-scared church members must live a miserable life. There certainly can be no joy when a man is watching his step all the time lest he fall into hell. To live in dread of such an end may make one miserable but it can not fill one with joy.
PAUL WAS A FINE ILLUSTRATION OF THE NEW BIRTH. He was a high-class citizen, a Pharisee, and a member of the Jewish Supreme Court. We know he was a member of the Jewish Supreme Court because he cast his vote ("gave his voice") when Stephen and others were condemned to death (Acts 26:10). He would have had no "voice" in such condemnation if he had not been a member of the Sanhedrin, that Supreme Court. Very zealous he was against the Lord's people, and yet thought he was doing right when he persecuted them even unto death. This shows one can be perfectly sincere and yet be wrong. Paul was very wrong yet he thought he was doing right in killing off the Christians. He killed the followers of Jesus on the same principle that he put criminals to death and on the principle that one would kill a mad dog. He felt that he was doing God's service. But he was wrong. There was but one way to stop him and that was to convince him that he was wrong and show him the right way. While he was on a trip, engaged in this wicked persecution, Jesus met him and said, "Saul, Saul, why persecuteth thou me?" He expressed astonishment when he heard the question but it was Saul's arrest and he was told that when he persecuted these Christians that Jesus took it to Himself and that in reality he was persecuting Jesus (Acts 9th chapter). What a shock! He at once cried out, "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" He was fully persuaded that he was wrong and he now knew that Jesus was what He claimed to be and he made a complete and full surrender. He was soon baptized and began to preach the very Jesus that he had been opposing. Now he adores Jesus, now he loves the Christians, now he obeys the Lord gladly and it was he who wrote fourteen of the epistles of the New Testament and he it was who emphasized more than any other writer in the Bible, the great doctrine of Salvation By Grace. It was Paul who said in Eph. 2: 8-10, "By grace are ye saved, through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works." The new birth means a NEW CREATION and the one thus made over becomes a doer of good works because of the love of God shed abroad in his heart. He now loves the things he once opposed and hates the things he once loved and delighted in. He is a new creature in Christ Jesus.
Bride of Christ: "Jerusalem From Above, the Mother of Us All" The Bride, the Lamb's Wife Or, Who Are The Father And Mother Of A Child Of God? Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner June 27, 1928 Campbellites are given to quoting Rom. 7:4 to prove that the CHURCH is married to Christ. It says no such thing, but it does say that we are dead to the law that we SHOULD be married to another. It does not say that we HAVE BEEN married to another, even to Him who is, risen from the dead. The wedding has not taken place yet. It will take place at the end of time for we read in Revelation 19th chapter that the wedding would be after the great "whore" had been judged and so on. In 2nd Cor. 11:2, says the church is a "CHASTE VIRGIN" to be presented to Christ. If the church is a VIRGIN, certainly she is not a married woman. The wedding has not taken place yet. The espoused bride is keeping herself pure for the prospective Bridegroom. Gal. 4:26 says nothing about the church when it says that the "Jerusalem which is from above is the mother of us all." The contrast in Galatians is between LAW and GRACE. So it is not the CHURCH that is the mother of us all but GRACE that is the mother for does not the Bible say that "by GRACE are ye saved." Nowhere does it say by the CHURCH are ye saved. The silly Campbellites certainly ought to be able to see that since Christ is our ELDER BROTHER he is not at the same time our FATHER. Again they ought to be able to see that if the church is our mother and WE CONSTITUTE THE CHURCH then we are OUR OWN MOTHER, an absurdity that anybody ought to see. Again, if the church is the mother and she is married to her ELDER BROTHER then she is living in incest for being married to her brother. Again, since the church is made up of CHILDREN OF CHRIST that would make Christ be married to his own offspring and we have incest again. God is the Father and GRACE is the mother and we all are the CHILDREN OF GOD BY FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST. These children of God are real brothers and sisters of Christ since they have been born of the Spirit that is begotten by the Spirit, begotten of God for God is the Spirit and in a FIGURATIVE SENSE ONLY ARE WE ESPOUSED AS A CHASTE VIRGIN TO CHRIST TO BE MARRIED TO HIM AT THE END OF THIS AGE. There are a number of FIGURES used to convey the idea of the various relations we sustain to Christ. We are SHEEP, certainly not real sheep with wool on our backs and walking on all fours. We are a HOUSE; certainly not a literal house made up of stone and timber. We are BRANCHES while He is the vine, certainly not literally so. Even so are the children of God and brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ called the "VIRGIN" espoused to Christ and as a prospective BRIDE waiting for her BRIDEGROOM and one day, at the close of this dispensation, there will be the "CHURCH OF THE FIRST BORN," all the church gathered together in Heaven, and then will come what is figuratively called a MARRIAGE. The man who makes figures go on all fours and thus tries to figure it out that we must be BORN OF THE CHURCH in order to be saved and then turn around and declare that we must be born of WATER, meaning baptism, they do say, will either make TWO births or else the church is made up of WATER and water really becomes our mother. Why not be sensible and not twist the scriptures? Just take the common sense interpretation of the Bible and let the Bible say what it wants to say and in that way keep out of such abused situations. But Campbellites can compress more error into one paragraph in a newspaper or magazine article than any people I know of and they actually think that if they can rattle off passages of scripture, no matter whether these passages teach what they want them to teach or not, they actually seem to think that just quoting the scriptures prove they are right. If merely quoting scripture proves a position or doctrine to be true then the man who can read the
fastest can defeat his opponent in debate. To quote scripture that does not apply to the subject proves nothing. But Campbellites seem to be in blissful ignorance of this fact that all PRIMARY students of the Bible ought to know.
Bride, The mystery of the Church as the Bride of Christ Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 11-4-33 In Eph. 5:23-32, we read of the church being to Christ what a wife is to a husband. The husband loves the wife and Paul uses that as an illustration of how Jesus loves His bride. The husband and the wife are one in a mysterious sense and so the church in a figurative sense is a member "of his body, of his flesh, and his bones." As the wife, in every way an equal of her husband, is subject to her husband, so the church, the BRIDE OF CHRIST and in that sense EQUAL TO CHRIST, is subject to Him in all things. Paul adds: "This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church." A true bridegroom is married in heart to the bride BEFORE THE ACTUAL MARRIAGE, so Christ and His bride are married IN HEART BEFORE THE ACTUAL WEDDING TAKES PLACE. The church is now the VIRGIN BRIDE of Christ. So Paul said in II Cor. 11:2: "I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." The wedding day will come later on when the bride is completed when the last saint has been saved and the "CHURCH OF THE FIRST BORN" is assembled at God's throne (Heb. 12:22-23). The bride is now growing, not yet complete, but when Jesus comes FOR HIS SAINTS and we shall be caught up in the air along with all the righteous dead who shall be raised to meet the Lord in the air, then shall the wedding take place. You can read of the wedding in Rev. 19:7-9: "Let us be glad and rejoice and give honor to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white for the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. And he with unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb." Thus it is clearly revealed that there shall be some at the supper as guests, who are no part of the bride. This is the advantage of being in the church that Jesus established. Others may be saved, actually be at the wedding supper, but they will not have the honor that the BRIDE receives. It will be wonderful to even be there but it will be GLORIOUS to be a part of His bride. This is a great MYSTERY and many fail to comprehend.
Bride of Christ, Who? Baptist and Commoner, 11-23-16 The following question has been raised. We answer in a line below: Lincoln, Ala., Oct. 31, 1916. Brother Bogard: I noticed in the issue of the Baptist Commoner, Oct. 19th, a question; "Who will be called to the marriage supper of the Lamb?" And the answer was All children of God who are not a part of the bride herself. Will you please answer this question for me? Who are all the children of God that do not constitute a part of the bride herself? Answer through the Commonor. Vauban Jones. Answer-The bride, the Lamb's wife, will be the members of the church; the guest will be all the Christians who are not members.
Bride of Christ, Church Ben M. Bogard, 11-21-23 Baptist and Commoner God's people here, those who are saved by the grace of God on the merits of our Saviour's blood, and who have come into the church that Jesus established, will be the Bride of Christ.
Paul tells us that we are now, if saved by the blood, as a" chaste virgin" waiting for Christ our Bridegroom to appear and claim His bride. Hear him: "For I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." (II Cor. 11:2). Then in the 19th chapter of Revelation we read of the wedding day. In that wonderful account of the coming wedding we learn that the bride has on a robe of spotless white and all heaven is ringing with joy. I want to go there just as soon as my Lord says I have finished the work He has given me to do here. But while I am not ready, I am prepared to die. There is a big difference between being ready to die and being prepared to die. I have been prepared to die by the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus, and will be ready when my work on earth is done. Life is worth living if we live for God, if we live with our heart centered in heaven, but life is not worth living if we live for the temporal things of this life, and miss the glories of heaven.
Bride, Church BEN M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 2-18-1931 The church is the bride of Christ to be married to Him during the rapture, when Jesus shall come for His people. II Cor. 11:2-3, "I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." The church is the VIRGIN BRIDE OF CHRIST. The, marriage will take place during the glorious rapture. Revelation 19:7-9. Meantime, as the VIRGIN BRIDE of Jesus, the church should keep herself clean and constantly honor the coming GROOM. Eph. 5:25-27. Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 7-1972 Some one may raise the question as to whom we shall reign over. That can be answered in either one of two ways and I do not know which is the correct answer. One way to answer the question is that there will be unsaved people in the world even during the Millennium and the saints shall rule over them. If that is the Lord's plan, I shall be glad. The other answer is that the Lord's BRIDE, HIS CHURCH, will reign with Him over the rest of the people who are saved but are not a part of the bride, the Lamb's wife. That, to me, is the most satisfactory answer. Not all of God's people will be a part of the BRIDE because the bride is the church and many saved people have never united with the church. By failing to unite with the church, they will only be guests at the wedding (Rev. 19:89) and be subjects in His kingdom.
Bride, the Lamb's Wife Sermon Outline by B. M. Bogard Rom. 7:4: "Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God."
I. The Church Is The Espoused Bride Of Christ. The wedding has not yet taken place but it will come to pass in the Lord's own good time. The church at the present time is keeping herself clean awaiting the return of the Bridegroom. 1. A prospective bride tries to please her prospective husband not through fear of punishment, but for love. What bridegroom would want a wife who dreaded him and who would go contrary to his wishes if she were not afraid of him? A bride held through fear of punishment might be a slave but never a loving wife. 2. A true bride lives for her prospective husband. She has other interests but the central thought in her mind is to please her husband. She goes where it will please him, she talks to please him, she dresses to please him. Her mind is occupied with him.
3. The love of a bridegroom means he is jealous of her affections. 2nd Cor. 11:2, "I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." A prospective bride will not keep company with other men for she is devoted to her husband. Other men do not attract her for her bridegroom is her ideal. So long as a woman cares for another man she is not a true bride.
II. The Bridegroom Is Absent From His Bride For The Present Time. He is away to prepare for her a home. John 14:2-3, "I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am there ye may be also." John 17: 24, "Father, I will that they also, whom Thou hast given me, be with me where I am that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me." Every true bridegroom wants his waiting bride to be with him and no matter how far apart they may be He wants the bride to be with him. Thus the church, the Lord's bride is preparing herself for the time when the BRIDEGROOM shall come and take his bride to himself in the place he has gone to prepare. What if the Lord should come back to the world and find his bride flirting with the institutions of the world? He will think of it about as a bridegroom would think of a bride who flirts with other men. A bridegroom does not want his wife to compromise herself at any time. Hence the Lord's bride should steer clear of all compromising situations.
III. The Wedding Day Will Be A Happy Day. Rev. 19:6-8, "I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude saying Alleluia for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine line, clean and white, for the linen is the righteousness of the saints," Some invited guests will be there. Saved people who are not in the church, who have failed to unite with the church, will be in heaven but not as the bride. Rev. 111:9, "Blessed are they who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb." These invited guests are saved but they do not have the honor and joy of being a part of the bride of Christ. The church does not save, neither do we have to become members of the church to be saved, but there is a distinct benefit in being in the church as the CHURCH is THE BRIDE OF CHRIST and will be as much more in honor as a bride is in honor above the invited guests. If you are saved you should in addition delight in becoming a part of the bride of Christ which is His church that shall be presented to Him a "glorious church without spot of wrinkle or any such thing." (Eph. 5:27)
Bride; the Spirit J. L. Brown, Baptist and Commoner, 6-24-32 The Spirit and the Bride say come. Revelation 22:17. The Bible abounds with calls of God to the children of men. Such calls have come though angels, through Prophets and through dreams and visions. Our text has a call in it. The agents contained through whom He makes this call is the Spirit and the Bride. It is through them that He says, "Come". In the discussion of this text, we wish to note the following points. 1. The Church that Jesus organized and left in the world. 2. Conditions that caused the church to wear the title of bride. 3. The relationship existing between the Spirit and the Bride. 4. The persons called by them.
5. The methods used in calling them. I. There seems to be no room for doubt that the church stands as the "Bride of Christ" as shown by the following scriptures; first, the testimony of John the Baptist, "Ye yourselves bear me witness that I said; I am not the Christ but that I am sent before Him. He that hath the bride is the bridegroom, but the friend of the bridegroom, who standeth and heareth Him, rejoyceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice; this joy therefore is fulfilled. John 3:28, 29. A marriage relationship is a covenant relationship; in all covenants there are two parties, for a covenant consist of an agreement or contract between two parties, as between God and Abraham, or God and Noah and in a marriage covenant the contracting parties are the bridegroom and the bride. Certain things cause them to enter into the covenant of marriage relationship; among them we mention: 1. Love for each other. In the absence of love, marriage is itself only legalized adultery, for without true love there cannot be true or binding relationship. Love may be spontaneous as the love of a mother for her child; or it may be begotten through the love and kindness of another, as the benefited is made to love their benefactors. 2. In all true marriage, we find the element of faith; no marriage should take place when each party cannot fully trust the other. 3. In marriage each party assumes certain responsibilities. First, there is a promise to forsake all others, for each other. Second, the husband agrees to provide for and to protect his wife. He assumes responsibility for her indebtedness. Third, the bride promises to love, obey and to cleave to him. All these principles are combined in the covenant of redemption. First - Christ loved the sinner long before any sinner loved Christ, "In this was manifest the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world that we might live through Him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 1 John 4:9-10. In verse nineteen we read, "We love Him because He first loved us" Second - All unsaved sinners are bankrupt. They are debtors to the law to do the things required by the law. The law demands death for sin, so to redeem man from under the curse of the law, Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures. 1Cor. 15:3. Third - In marriage the man proposes marriage; his love for her prompts him to make the proposal of marriage to the bride. It is optional with the woman to accept the offer or to reject it. So Christ offers salvation to all alike but forces it upon no one. Paul says, "Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey whether of sin unto death or of obedience unto righteousness, Romans 6:16. Christ first offered salvation to the Jews as a nation. They rejected His offer, but as many as received Him to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believed on His name. John 1:12. Sinner, you don't have to accept Christ unless you will to do so. You can go on flirting with the devil here, and make your home with him in the hereafter, if it is your wish to do so. All are invited to the feast of salvation but man can use his land, his oxen, or his wife as an excuse to remain away if he so wills. Again as the strength of the husband protects his wife, so Christ keeps us with His own power so that none can pluck us out of His hand walking with His church down through the ages. The gates of hell have not been able to prevail against it. The husband is given the scriptural right to govern his own house. God never intended for woman to wear the britches but some usurp that power. The husband is said to be the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church. Eph. 5:23. II. When Jesus went back to heaven, He left the church as His bride in the world to keep house for Him and to carry on His work till He comes again. He gave her the worldwide and agelasting commission to go into all the world and make and baptize disciples. He not only gave the
command but He also made the promise that the Holy Spirit would go with them as a helper, so the Spirit and the bride are united together in their work. The Holy Spirit helps the church by furnishing her an inspired Bible through which God speaks to men. Next, He goes with her to help her understand and preach the word. Paul's messages were powerful not because of human wisdom or human power, but because he preached a spirit filled gospel. He tells us in 1 Cor. 2:4, "My speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power." The Holy Spirit does not now make a new gospel, but He puts a convicting power in the good old gospel. David, with his simple shepherd's sling and a small stone from the brook, felled the mighty Philistine giant: but the Spirit of Almighty God gave direction and force to the stone that enabled him to do it. So God has chosen through the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe the gospel. But the author of that gospel through the power of the Holy Spirit convicts the unbelieving hearer of the word and also puts the love of God in the heart of the believer of that word. Romans 5:5. Through that love it testifies to him that he has passed from death unto life. 1 John 3:14. III. The Spirit and the Bible calls through the divine word to lost sinners to come to God through a penitent faith in Jesus and drink of the waters of life and live forever. Sometimes the truth of a song, or the truth of a sermon, or truth in a friendly conversation, or truth in a letter, may be used by the Spirit of God to lead lost souls to Christ. The grace of love, like living water, flows freely for all that whosoever will may drink of it freely.
Chances, Two to One THE BAPTIST WORLD, April, 1970 Ben M. Bogard Duet. 32:31: "For their rock is not our rock, even our enemies themselves being judges."
In an age of controversy and contradictions, when contending religions are making their plea and claims of opposing doctrines confront us, we are indeed happy if we can find a position that practically everybody will endorse. Is there such a position? If so, would you not like to know what it is? I claim to occupy a position and to hold to doctrines that everybody is compelled to acknowledge to be safe and sound. I shall begin at the outer edge of the circle and come to the center and show that all men necessarily concede that the position I hold is safe and if there is any doubt it is concerning positions and doctrines which oppose that for which I contend.
The Atheist Tells Us There Is No God. If I concede that he is right, what advantage has he over me? If, indeed, there is no God, I am just as well off as the Atheist because, according to his doctrine, we shall both land in the same graveyard and there is no future for either of us. If the Atheist is right, I shall get just as much out of it as he. But if I am right, and indeed, there is a God, I shall enjoy His holy presence forever. So I have the Atheist's chance and one more. It is no wonder the Bible says. "The fool hath said in his heart there is no God." It is a fool that won't take two chances to one when he can get it. The Atheist himself is bound to concede that my two chances are better than his one.
The Universalist Tells Us That All Men Will Be Saved In Heaven. Suppose we grant that he is correct, wherein am I worse off than the Universalist? If all men shall certainly be saved, that certainly takes me in and I shall be in the same heaven the Universalist will enjoy. My doctrine that some men shall be lost in hell does not make it so, if the Universalist is right. But, suppose the Universalist is wrong and there is such a thing as hell and the wicked shall indeed be cast into hell, I have accepted Jesus Christ as my Saviour and shall escape the damnation of hell while he will be forever lost. So I have two chances to the Universalist's one, he being the judge. His "rock is not as my rock," even the Universalist being
the judge. Why take the Universalist's one chance when I have that already whether I believe his way or not, when I can have, along with his one chance, another chance on my personal acceptance of Christ, "who is able to save to the uttermost all who come unto God by him?"
The Future Probationist Claims That We Shall Be Given An Opportunity To Be Saved After Death. Suppose he is right about it. I certainly can accept his second chance if I miss it here in this world. So I have the chance my doctrine gives me, for I have accepted Jesus Christ as my Saviour, and if I have erred in what I have done, I shall be able to take the chance to be given after death. But suppose the future probationist is wrong about it. He misses the opportunity he could have accepted here in this life and loses in the future. So I have two chances to the future probationist's one, the one I am depending on now and if I miss it, I can accept what he says will be for us after death. I would be silly not to take two chances to one.
The Legalist Teaches Salvation By Good Works. Suppose he is right and one must actually save himself by living right. Has he had any advantage of me? None whatever because, he being judge, those of us who believe in salvation by grace ACTUALLY DO AS MUCH GOOD WORKS AS OTHERS and if that is indeed the way to be saved, why not be saved that way when I obey fully as well as the one who thinks he must do it to be saved? If quinine is good to kill malaria germs and I take the quinine, the germs will be killed just as effectively as if I had taken it for that purpose. So if good works save the soul, the people who believe in salvation by grace do just as good works as others and if good works save, nobody stands a better chance of salvation than those who believe salvation comes by grace. But turn it around. If salvation is by grace, through faith, the legalist misses it because he refuses to depend on Jesus for salvation and insists on saving himself by good works. He has faith in himself and not in Jesus Christ and hence he will be lost. So, he being the judge, I have two chances to his one. If good works save, I have as much good works as he (and if grace through faith saves, I have that). Any way you take it, I have two chances to his one. A man shows evidence of insanity that would not rather have two chances than to have just one. There are many that teach that sprinkling, pouring or immersion is baptism. They contend that it really makes no difference which way it is done and that being true, they being witnesses, I have actually been baptized. My baptism would be accepted in any of their churches. I can offer myself to any denomination on my immersion and they will not call it in question, they will all take it without a word. Suppose there are three pieces of money presented to you and you are told that two of the pieces will be accepted by a large number of people as being good coin but they will be rejected by many others as being spurious, counterfeit. But one of the pieces will be accepted by everybody as good money. Which piece of money would you prefer? Of course, you would take the piece of money that everybody would accept without question. Then why should I not be wonderfully well satisfied with my immersion when all denominations will accept it? They being the judges my baptism is good and if there is any doubt about any of it, the doubt is concerning the sprinkling and the pouring. So on baptism, I have two chances to one. If they are right about all three forms being baptism then certainly I am right in being immersed. If they are wrong, I am still right, they being judges. Why be satisfied with that about which there is reasonable doubt when you can have that which all will accept?
The Liberalist Teaches That One Church Is As Good As Another Is. Some of us do not believe that. But suppose the liberalist is right about it. What advantages have others over me? If one church is as 'good as another, then it follows that the one I am in is just as good as any other; if the liberalist is right, I certainly am also because, he being judge, the church of which I am a member is as good as any. But if I am right in believing that
the church our Lord established is better than others which have been established by men, then the liberalist is wrong about it. So on the church question I have two chances at being right to the liberalist's one. What is the use in being in an organization about which there is honest doubt when you can be in one about which we agree? Those who believe that one church is as good as another should practice what they preach by beginning with the smallest, and disband and each join some other church and keep up that process until all of them are in one church and thus stop this division and confusion by maintaining so many different denominations. There are some of us who do not believe one church is as good as another is and we can not conscientiously join the others. But those who do honestly believe that one is as good as another certainly could come our way and not violate their consciences. If they believe what they say, they will do it.
If We Ever Expect To Get Unity, We Must Get On Common Ground And Not Persist In Holding Positions That Cause Division. To be responsible for division is a serious matter and I do not want that charge laid at my door, I am not conscious of holding any doctrine or occupying any position that causes division among God's people. It is not what Baptists believe and practice that causes division for everybody endorses what they believe and practice. For instance, all denominations accept immersion for baptism. Everybody accepts immersion but the division comes over the sprinkling and pouring. Everybody accepts the baptism of believers as held by Baptists. Then where does the division come in? It comes where infant baptism is added to believer's baptism. You see Baptists do not hold the belief that causes the division. They hold what all denominations accept and the division comes over something that is in addition to what all accept. All denominations will accept one who professes to have been born again and being born again is a Baptist doctrine. Then where does division come in? It comes when others decide to take people into the church that do not profess to be born again. So it is all the way through. I do not hold a single thing that causes division. The division is caused by what others hold. Somebody may ask, "What about Baptist closed communion?" Hold on a minute. If we were to all get together on the other things about which we agree we should then all be one and closed communion would be impossible. Open communion is based on division and unless there is division among God's people, there could be no such thing as open communion. Division is wrong and, therefore, open communion is based on an evil to begin with. If all would lay down the things which cause division and get together on common ground, such as Baptists hold, the communion question would be forever settled. If we accept Jesus Christ, the Rock of Ages, it logically involves accepting what He has taught and we learn what He taught in the New Testament. The New Testament is the ALLSUFFICIENT RULE OF FAITH AND PRACTICE. Any other basis for union is impossible. External bands of church organization can not permanently bind people together. Earthly leadership can not unite the Lord's people. But if each one will accept the same TEACHER, and each one for himself endeavors to do what the Master Teacher has recorded in the New Testament, there will be but little chance for serious error. When we follow leaders we will be sure to imitate the faults of those leaders and thus in succeeding generations we shall get further and further away from the truth. But when each one for himself seeks to imitate the Lord Jesus Christ and each one for himself endeavors to do what the New Testament teaches, each one may make mistakes but they won't all make the same mistake at the same time and thus it will be impossible for any great departure from the truth by the great mass of the Lord's people. We may learn a lesson from carpenters. The carpenter cuts the timber by the same measure and does not cut one piece and then cut another by that, for if he does, he will find that there will be much difference between the first and the last piece he cuts. But when he goes back to the same measure every time the difference will not be noticeable. So when I cut my coat by your pattern
and another in turn cuts his coat by my pattern and on and on, it will not be long until there is a great difference between somebody's coat and the original pattern. That is why there have been such grievous departures from the New Testament, so many follow men instead of each one going back to the New Testament every time for his rule of faith and conduct. Any union worthwhile must be voluntary and not compulsory. To compel worship by law may result in external conformity, but there is no heart union. But where each one for himself accepts Jesus Christ as Saviour and after being saved accepts Him as the example and practice, we have union based upon His word as the rule of faith on LOVE and the law of love controls. Men serve the Lord because they want to serve Him and obey His commandments because it is a pleasure to do so and when that sort of condition is found we have real union. This wonderful arrangement is so different and so superior to anything the world has ever invented that we can truly say: "Their rock is not as our rock, even our enemies themselves being judges.
There Is An Organized Effort To Destroy The Foundation. "Such opposition to the religion of Jesus Christ has never been seen before as we now see. Millions in money is back of the destructive movement. They are attacking the virgin birth and the Deity of Jesus Christ. They are attacking the authenticity, inspiration and credibility of the Bible. They are attacking the doctrine of the immortality of the soul and they are pushing that attack into our educational institutions. Under the guise of friendship, preachers are trying to undermine the faith of our youth and if this sort of thing goes on unchecked, we shall have a generation of infidels in a short time. David said in Psalm 7:3, "If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?" I am not afraid of Jesus Christ being destroyed but I do fear that many will be induced to try some other foundation, rest their hope on some other rock that is not "as our rock, our enemies themselves being witnesses." The Bible will remain true and Jesus will continue to be what He claims to be, but if the people choose to build on sand instead of the Rock of Ages, they will be ruined. I am not the least bit uneasy about the Bible being destroyed or even injured, but I am uneasy lest the people may be destroyed because they are led to believe the heresies advocated so persistently at this time. But it is a comfort to know the "FOUNDATION OF GOD STANDETH SURE HAVING THIS SEAL THE LORD KNOWETII THEM THAT ARE HIS" (II Timothy 2:19). But woe be unto those who build on the sand...
Child of God, What it cost to be one? Baptist World, 10-67 Ben M. Bogard (Radio Sermon Over KARK, Little Rock, Arkansas) Luke 14:28, "Which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it."
Everything worth having costs something, and the more valuable the possession the greater the cost. Might as well say in the beginning, that we cannot buy salvation. Many a man would be willing to pay thousands of dollars to obtain salvation but money cannot buy this priceless gift. Yet it costs something in the sense that we must give up certain things in order to be saved.
A Man Must Humble Himself Luke 14:11, "Whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted." No man can come proudly to God and demand salvation. There are several examples of people who humbled themselves before the Lord and obtained salvation. The woman who was a sinner (Luke 7:27-38) presented herself at the Saviour's feet and wept over her sins so much that her tears wet the feet of Jesus and He said to her, "thy sins are forgiven thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace." So far as we know this woman said not a word. The Lord knew the state
of her heart. It is not so much what we say as what we feel that moves the Lord. Her humble heart surrendered to Jesus and He saved her soul.
A Man Must Be Convicted Of Sin Luke 23:32-43 relates the story of the thief on the cross. He came to see that he deserved the punishment he was getting. He did not excuse himself but said of himself and his partner in crime: "We suffer justly." So long as a man thinks he is a fine fellow and that he does not deserve punishment for his sins he is in no condition to be saved. He does not feel the need of it. How people do need to learn that sin is exceeding sinful and that sin has pierced the heart of the Son of God. If they could see this they would understand their sinful condition, and feeling the need of salvation they would cry unto God for relief, and pray for mercy. The dying thief received assurance from Jesus, "Today shalt thou be with me in paradise." Saved! What a wonderful ring it is when received by a humble penitent, who has prayed for mercy!
A Man Must Repent of His Sins Luke 13:3 says, "Except ye repent ye shall all perish." In Luke 15: 7, we read that, "There is joy in heaven over one sinner that repenteth." It is such an important matter that when a sinner repents, it sets heaven wild with joy. Repentance means a change of the mind. You have been thinking mighty well of yourself and repentance means that you change your mind about yourself and thank that you are corrupt and guilty. You have been loving sin and repentance will mean that you have changed your mind and now desire to live a clean life. You have been thinking that you intended to turn over a new leaf just before you die and be a better man but repentance will cause you to decide that it will do you no good to turn over a new leaf because your wicked nature would remain unchanged and you would soon have the new leaf as blurred and blotted with sin as the one you have been using. You decide that so far as your own efforts are concerned that you cannot accomplish anything and that you see that your only hope is to fully commit yourself to Jesus who is able to save to the uttermost. Repentance means that you will change your mind about trying to help yourself out of the trouble and instead of helping yourself leave it all with Jesus, who came for the very purpose of taking care of such sinners as you. REPENTANCE COMPLETED RESULTS IN FAITH, DEPENDENCE UPON JESUS CHRIST. So long as you imagine that you can help yourself out of your trouble by anything you can do, just so long you have not repented. To give it up in despair and QUIT TRYING TO HELP YOURSELF OUT, and then leave it ALL WITH JESUS is what we mean by repentance. The secret of so many wanting to buy salvation by good works, such as baptism, observing the Lord's Supper, and by being charitable and liberal with contributions to help good causes, the secret of all that sort of effort is that the one who holds such views has not repented, his mind has not changed. If this sermon will cause just one to give up in despair and in desperation turn it all over to Jesus, it will have accomplished its purpose. As you will notice when one has thus repented he cannot but believe in, rely upon Jesus Christ for salvation. The Bible says (Acts 16:30-31) "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shall be saved." The word believe is used in the sense of TRUST, trust Jesus and thou shall be saved. Will you trust Him?
A Man Must Forsake All He Has Luke 14:33, "Whosoever he is of you that forsaketh not all that he hath cannot be my disciple." Everything must be turned over to the Lord; nothing reserved, in order to fully submit to Jesus. This does not mean that we shall be left in destitution because when we have thus turned all over to Him He will make us stewards of His property. After accepting Jesus HE OWNS ALL WE POSSESS, and it will all be subject to His orders, but He will continue to allow us to possess it and get the benefit of it, only now we have an eye single to His glory when we use
what we possess. A willingness to surrender all, even our lives, if necessary, is what the Lord requires.
What Do We Get When We Obtain Salvation? We have shown what it costs and now it is right that we should see the gain. If we gain the whole world and lose our souls we are terrible losers. Some are playing the fool at this point. One man, who a few months ago was saved, in relating his experience said that he had to give up his stubborn will before he was saved. He declared that he stayed away from church for several months because he knew that if he kept coming he would be compelled to surrender. The longer he waited the worse he felt and the greater his misery and so at last he gave up and I baptized him, one of the happiest converts I have seen in a long time. What did he get? Why was he happy when he surrendered? He obtained everlasting life. John 5:24, "He that heareth my words and believeth on Him that sent me hath everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation but is passed from death unto life." EVERLASTING LIFE HERE AND NOW. Everlasting UNION WITH GOD and the assurance that there can be no condemnation. No wonder he was happy. Some of you, who are listening in, are actually staying away from church because you are afraid that if you come you will be compelled to yield. This is a great compliment to the church and preacher but it is a dangerous thing for anybody to do. Shake out of that, friend, and come on to church-come tonight and hear the Gospel and yield your own soul to the Lord's keeping and be made happy. You will be miserable so long as you continue to resist the Spirit. There is joy ahead when you yield. In my mind I am looking right into the face of some of you who have quit coming. Come on back.
What Of The Future When One Is SAVED? First, he escapes hell. Just as well contend there is no heaven as to contend that there is no hell. One is just as plainly revealed in the Bible as the other. As well decide that there is no God as to decide there is no devil for the Bible says that both exist. I have gone through the Bible from Genesis to Revelation with pencil in hand and a tablet lying on the table and have carefully noted what the Bible says about future punishment and I find that the doctrine of future punishment is in every book of the Bible except one and that one is the short book of Philemon. There are sixty-six books in the Bible and SIXTY-FIVE of them teach future punishment. What are you going to do about it? You had just as well face the facts. You cannot believe the Bible and believe that there is no hell, so why try to argue yourself into the idea that there is no hell? You will change your mind about that before you are in hell five minutes. Better change it now. To be saved means that you ESCAPE THE DAMNATION OF HELL. It also means that you will be admitted into the JOYS OF A REAL HEAVEN. When the Lord's disciples were sent on a missionary journey, they were given power to do many wonderful things in His name. But Jesus said to them (Luke 10:20) "Not withstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven." Is your name written in heaven? What does it amount to, if you have riches here and fail to obtain heavenly riches? What will you gain if you have a great inheritance here and miss the "inheritance, incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for us?" (I Peter 1:4). No wonder people commit suicide when they have no hope in this world and have made a miserable failure in life and then have no hope of heaven in the future. When we have a home in heaven we can joyfully wait amidst poverty and pain while we stay here looking for the heavenly inheritance into which we shall soon enter. What a joy to conduct a funeral when we can say that the loved one has entered into that heavenly home and that we shall soon be reunited with him on the other side. You are making a terrible mistake when you allow the devil to persuade you to
put the matter off even another day. Now is the time. Right now while we pray won't you surrender? Right now. Let us pray.
The Christian Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 7-71 I. "And the disciples were called Christians first at Antioch." Acts 11:26. It was at least ten years after the organization of the first Gospel Church, that the disciples began to be called Christians. It began at Antioch. It was a name given to the followers of Christ by way of derision and is not a name of Divine appointment. It is like the name "Baptist." Baptists did not name themselves, but the world began to call them "ana-Baptists," that is, re-baptizers, because they baptized over again all that came to them from other religious bodies. Finally the "ana" was dropped and they were called Baptists. Neither the name "Christian" nor "Baptist." is of our own choosing, but we wear both. Both names were given in derision and by way of reproach, but both titles have become honorable, and we are proud of them. The history of our names is like the history of the Chinaman's cue. When China was in subjection to the Tartars the inhabitants were compelled to shave the front of their heads and wear a cue behind as a badge of their servility. They wore the cue until they got used to it and then were proud of it, and today there could be no greater insult offered a Chinaman than to cut off his cue. We have worn the contemptuous titles of "Christian." and "Baptist" until we are proud of them. II. The question as to what we shall be called does not amount to so much as the other question, what are we? What of our life and character? We would be just what we are whether we are called by that name or not. Then the question that especially concerns us is what are we? Let us, in the light of God's word, seek an answer. 1. The Christian is a believer in Christ. John 3:36: "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him." Faith in Christ precludes faith in yourself or faith in your obedience or faith in your surroundings. Many a man and woman make a fatal mistake here. A young man recently professed conversion and coming to me, flushed with excitement, said, "I have settled it now." I told him I was glad, and then he said, "Pray for me that I may keep it and hold it." I said, "My boy, whom are you trusting?" He said, "I am trusting Christ." "Then," said I, "let Christ attend to it." He was, I am very much afraid, not putting his faith in Christ at all, but was putting his faith in himself and had made up his mind to try to be a good man and finally make his way to Heaven. The fear of personally falling from grace does not dwell in a Christian heart. 2. The Christian is a saint. The word saint is badly misunderstood. Every Christian is a saint. He may not be as good a saint as he might be but he is none the less a saint. Some people say, "I am a Christian but I am not a saint." In this they are mistaken. Every Christian, in spite of his imperfections, is a saint. None of us are perfect, but all of us are saints. Saints, but not perfect saints. I Cor. 1:2, "Paul addresses the church at Corinth as "saints." "To them which are sanctified in Christ Jesus." Yet in that same chapter he reproves them for their quarrels and divisions and asks them, "Is Christ divided?" (Verse 13). In the third chapter he tells them that they were "carnal" and were "as babes in Christ." In the fifth chapter he told them that there was "fornication" among them and directs them to exclude the wicked man. In the sixth chapter he reproves them for "going to law" with one another. In the 11th chapter he corrects their sinful manner of observing the Lord's Supper and even forbids them eating the Lord's Supper while their present divided condition prevailed. Yet remember that Paul called these imperfect people "saints," "sanctified in Christ Jesus."
3. The Christian is a disciple. Matt, 28:19-20, the Lord directs the church to "go into all the world and make disciples" of all nations. A disciple is a learner, a student. We are all students of God's word and Providence and in that school we shall never graduate in this world, for the field of investigation is inexhaustible. 4. The Christian is a worker. I Cor. 3:9. "We are laborers together with God." There is no work that requires so much time. But it is a consolation to know that whatever we do may be the Lord's work if we intend it for His glory. 5. The Christian is a light. Our Saviour said: "Let your light so shine, that men seeing your good works may glorify God." Put your light on the candlestick the church. 6. The Christian is a soldier. Paul instructed Timothy (I Tim. 6:12) to "fight the good fight of faith, and he claimed for himself, at the close of his eventful life, that he had "fought a good fight." To engage in a fight there must be somebody on the other side. It means an enemy. If we live as we should, godly lives, we shall suffer persecution and the Saviour pronounces a "woe" on us "when all men speak well of us." The best recommendation you can give a man is to call him a "fighter." It may not be the popular thing but it is the right thing. It may not be the easy thing but it is according to the will of God. 7. The Christian is a friend of Christ. John. 15: 14-15, "Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants, for the servant knowth not what his Lord doeth: but I have called you friends." When Lazarus had died, Jesus said, (John 11:11) "Our friend Lazarus sleepeth." He is a friend where we need a friend. We can get many friends when we are getting on well, have plenty of money and a good position, but such friends are not friends in need. Christ became our friend when we felt that we were ruined without one, and He sticketh closer than a brother. "What a friend we have in Jesus, All our sins and grief's to bear, What a privilege to carry, Everything to God in prayer." 8. The Christian is a pilgrim. This world is not our abiding place. We are seeking a better country. Heaven is our permanent home. Jesus has prepared that home for us (John 14) and will come and take us to it. Heb. 11:16, "But now they desire a better country, that is a heavenly: whereby God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city." Such is the life, character, position, dignity and destiny of a Christian, all of which reminds us of the wonderful goodness and grace of God which made us what we are no matter what we are called.
Glory in the Church Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 22-18-1931 Text: "Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end." Eph. 3:21.
WHAT IS THE CHURCH? 1. It is an organization established by Jesus Christ. Acts 1:21, ".. which have companied with us all the time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us beginning from the baptism of John." This shows that Jesus had a COMPANY with Him during His personal ministry, which began from the baptism of John. John prepared the material with which Jesus organized His church. 2. The church is an ORGANISM as well as an organization. She is alive and compared to the human body. I Cor. 12:12-27. 3. The church is the PILLAR and GROUND of the truth. I Tim. 3:15, "The house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth." TRUTH RESTS UPON THE CHURCH AND IS SUPPORTED BY HER.
4. The church is established upon the PERSONALITY OF JESUS CHRIST and shall never die. Matt. 16:18, "Upon this rock (the rock Christ Jesus) I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it (her)." The church is spoken of as FEMININE instead of masculine. "Will build" means edify, cause to grow. There is growth in the church much like the human body grows. Just as the human body takes in outside, foreign, material and ASSIMILATES it so the church takes in those who are being saved and assimilates them, and each new member becomes a real part of the organism. While the church is ORGANIZED she is not a MECHANICAL, dead organization. She has her various parts ORGANIZED together, but when thus organized she becomes a LIVING WHOLE. This wonderful ORGANIZATIONORGANISM will live forever. 5. The church is the bride of Christ to be married to Him during the rapture, when Jesus shall come for His people. II Cor. 11:2-3, "I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." The church is the VIRGIN BRIDE OF CHRIST. The, marriage will take place during the glorious rapture. Revelation 19:7-9. Meantime, as the VIRGIN BRIDE of Jesus, the church should keep herself clean and constantly honor the coming GROOM. Eph. 5:25-27.
JESUS SHOULD HAVE GLORY Jesus is worthy of glory. I Peter 2:9, "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people, that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light." HOW IS JESUS GLORIFIED? 1. Jesus is glorified when we confess Him before men. Phil. 2:1011, "At the name of Jesus every knee should bow and that every tongue should confess that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of the Father." 2. Jesus is glorified when we offer our bodies to His service. Rom. 12:1, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." Our bodies are "holy" which means that our bodies are sacred and they should be laid on the altar a LIVING sacrifice. When we take up our crosses, it means we should stand ready to die if need be for Jesus. Our bodies ALIVE on God's altar but ready to die any moment if that would be to God's glory. 3. We glorify Him by letting our lights shine so as to permit people to see our good works. Matt. 5:16, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may SEE YOUR GOOD WORKS, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." By our good works others are provoked to enter the service of the Lord. Our examples are valuable. The mere fact that you regularly attend church services, that you are found in prayer meeting, and put all other matters in a secondary position will mean very much in the success of your Christian life. The Church, God's Organization Organism, was instituted for the express purpose of glorifying God. The Church is not a club, nor a society for mutual enjoyment or admiration. We can and should enjoy our church life, but our pleasure is not the purpose for which the church was established. The church, as the BRIDE OF CHRIST, should sing the praises of Jesus and constantly invite the world to accept Him. In Rev. 22:17 we read, "The Spirit and the BRIDE say, Come." The Spirit USES THE BRIDE OF CHRIST as his means of evangelism. The ONE BUSINESS OF THE CHURCH is to win souls to Christ. When this organization spends its energy on ITSELF, to preserve its own existence, and when the ORGANISM forgets the purpose for which she has been made alive by the Spirit, just then a revival is badly needed.
The Church Made Of Base Material Composed Of Nothings, God Chose To His Work. I Cor. 1:27-31. Where can I find a Gospel Church and Gospel Baptism? The above question came from a Methodist girl - at least, a girl of Methodist parents. That the Lord has a church is beyond dispute if the Bible is true. Matthew 16:18 "Upon this rock I will build My Church" Jesus said. This shows He has a church. He goes on to say that the "gates of hell shall not prevail against it." It therefore follows that His church is still in the world. The Lord gave His commission to His church, Matthew 28:18-20: "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them .. Teaching them to observe all whatsoever I have commanded you and, lo I am with you always, even unto the end of the world." This promise can mean nothing else except that He will not only see to it that the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church, but He will be with it to the end of the world and the church is commanded to baptize the people who accept Christ. Certainly, nobody is authorized to do the baptizing except the church. Naturally, it follows that baptism which he commanded is the same He submitted to. Matthew 3:16. "Jesus, when he was baptized, came up straightway out of the water." When Philip baptized the eunuch (Acts 8:36-40), "they went down into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. And when they were come up out, of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip." These passages show how it was done. Nobody was ever commanded to have water sprinkled on him for baptism. In the Old Testament they sprinkled with blood and with water mixed with ashes and such like, but that was before baptism came into existence. What we go by now is the New Testament, and, if any contend that we should have the Old Testament sprinkling of blood and water mixed with ashes, then why not burn incense and offer animal sacrifices and such for all that was in the Old Testament too?
Church Polity Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 7-19-1922 A Baptist church is a pure democracy. Each congregation of Baptists is within itself a complete church, and it is the only kind of church that is scriptural. This democracy is exercised only in the execution of the laws given once for all by Jesus Christ our Lord. The church is in no sense a legislative body. It is executive, and executive only. Within the laws given by Jesus Christ the church transacts its own business, and is sovereign and independent. In that sense, it is a pure democracy.
CHRIST THE LAW GIVER We read in Acts 1:3-8, that Christ "showed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them above forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God; and being assembled together with them, commanded that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me ... and ye shall be witnesses unto me, both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." What a great school that must have been. It lasted for forty days. Jesus Christ was the Teacher and the Jerusalem church, the school. The fact that the apostles and early disciples worked harmoniously proves that they were controlled by a higher intelligence. No two men think alike unless a common teacher leads both. But here, multitudes were thinking and acting alike, transacting business in the same way. They were taught of the Lord, who spent forty days with them "speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God."
WHAT SAITH THE SCRIPTURES? The church in Jerusalem was a democracy. Every member had a voice in its affairs. The whole body transacted the business of the church. Acts 1:15-16 gives an account of the election of a successor to Judas: ".. Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples and said, (the number of names together were about one hundred and twenty) wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that He was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection." Did Peter take a few of the leading members off to themselves and make this statement? Was it done before a board of stewards or deacons, or before the mission board? No. "He stood up in the midst of the disciples," all of them, and did the matter before the entire body in true Baptist style. Two were nominated, Joseph and Matthias. Prayer was offered as follows: "Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, know whether of these two thou hast chosen; and they gave forth their lots and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles." The same sort of thing was done when men were chosen to serve tables, Acts 6:1-6. "Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them and said wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report." The whole multitude was called together, and the whole multitude was instructed to select seven men. "And the saying pleased the whole multitude; and they chose Stephen . . ." The whole multitude acted, and the apostles accepted the men whom the multitude chose, "and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them." We could further see how this model church sent out Barnabas on a missionary journey (Acts 11: 22). We do not read of a committee of nine "far-seeing" brethren being appointed to send Barnabas. The whole church did it. This Jerusalem church was not an episcopacy - it was a democracy.
THE APOSTOLIC CHURCHES ENTIRELY INDEPENDENT Each church was a separate and distinct body, with no sort of organic connection with any other congregation. The apostolic congregations were bound together by nothing but ties of love. We read of the church in Jerusalem (Acts 11:22), the "churches throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria" (Acts 9:31), also of the church of God which is at Corinth (I Cor. 1:2, II Cor. 1:1). We read of the "churches of Galatia" (Gal. 1:2) and the "seven churches of Asia" (Rev. 1:4). Thus we might go on at great length. The apostolic churches were separate congregations, entirely independent of each other. The congregations were churches within themselves, not parts of a provincial or state church.
APOSTOLIC CHURCHES ELECTED THEIR OWN PASTORS Acts 14:23, "And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord." The Greek cheir, hand, and ieino, stretch forth, are combined (cheirotoneo): to stretch forth the hand, and is here translated "ordained." Phillip Schaff, Presbyterian, and Adam Clark, Methodist, concede (and the concession is against them) that the passage means the apostles caused elders (pastors) to be elected in all the churches by taking the up-lifted hand vote of the people. No man who cares for his reputation as a scholar will contradict this interpretation of the passage. The apostolic churches transacted their own business, elected their own officers, and sent out missionaries. They were not Episcopal bodies - they were independent democracies, with no law giver but Christ, and to Him alone are they compelled to report their doings. He takes knowledge of all their doings and rewards and prospers them for faithfulness (See Rev. l). We have the teaching of the Scriptures on church polity. With Baptists this is sufficient, because we think the "Holy Scriptures are the only and all-sufficient rule of faith and practice." But there
are many who believe that if "smart men" say a thing is so, it must be so, for "how can so many smart men believe in it unless it is so?"
WHAT DO THE "SMART MEN" SAY? We shall not quote a single Baptist in this connection. We do this not because there are no great and learned men among us, but because we only want the testimony of those who are opposed to Baptists. If those who are opposed to us testify in our favor, it is because the facts compel them to do so. If a witness in court testifies against himself, it is evident he is telling the truth. FIRST WITNESS. Mosheim, a Lutheran historian and scholar, says in his great ecclesiastical history, page 17, Vol.: I "When we look back to the commencement of the Christian church, we find its government administered jointly by the pastors and people." Again, on page 87: "In those early times every Christian church consisted of the people and their leaders . . . The people were undoubtedly first in authority; for the apostles showed by their own example that nothing of moment was to be carried on or determined without the consent of the whole assembly ... It was, therefore, the assembly of the people which chose their own rulers and teachers, or received them, by free and authoritative consent, when recommended by others. The people rejected or confirmed, by their suffrage, the laws that were proposed by their rulers to the assembly, excommunicated profligate and unworthy members of the church, restored the penitent to their forfeited privileges, passed judgement upon the different subjects of controversy and dissension that arose in the community; examined and decided the disputes which happened between the elders and deacons; and, in a word, all that which belongs to such as are invested with sovereign power." On page 92: "The churches in those ancient times were entirely independent; none of them subject to any foreign jurisdiction, but each governed by its own rulers and its own laws. For though the churches, founded by the apostles, had this deference shown them, that they were consulted in difficult and doubtful cases, yet they had no judicial authority, no sort of supremacy over the others, nor the least right to enact laws for them. Nothing, on the contrary, is more evident than the perfect equality that reigned among the primitive churches." On page 102 he says that the expulsion of members was vested in the church: "The right was vested in the church . . . and was exercised by each Christian assembly upon its respective members." Page 145 tells the story of the beginning of episcopacy "During a great part of this (the second) century the Christian churches were independent of each other; nor were they joined together by association, confederacy, or other bonds but those of charity. Each Christian assembly was a little state, governed by its own laws, which were either enacted or approved by the society. But in process of time all the Christian churches of a province were formed into one ecclesiastical body . . ." On page 209 he says: "This change in the form of ecclesiastical government was soon followed by a train of vices which dishonored the character and authority of those to whom the administration of the church was committed." From this we learn that the early apostolic churches were Baptist churches, independent congregations and they gradually lost their independence by organizing until only a small remnant was left. This remnant has emerged from the caves and other hiding places and has now become a respectable people on whom the Lord has showered His blessings. Let; Baptists beware of organizing this apostolic independence out of themselves. Unless the present tendencies are checked it will be done within a quarter of a century.
SECOND WITNESS Philip Schaff, a Presbyterian historian and scholar, says in his Apostolic Church, page 501: "The apostles were chosen directly of Christ, as instruments for laying the first foundations of the church. But so soon as there was a community of believers, nothing was done without its active participation. This was the case even in filling the vacant place of the traitor, after our Lord's ascension (Acts 1:15-26). Peter here lays the necessity of an election to complete the sacred number twelve whereupon not merely the apostles, but the whole body of disciples, nominated Joseph Barnabas and Matthias as candidates; all prayed to be informed of the divine will (verses 23, 24); all cast their lots (verse 26), and thus Matthias was elected. Much more must we expect the general rights of the Christians to be regarded in the choice of the ordinary congregational officers..." On the same page he tells us that the pastors or elders were elected by the congregations, by taking the vote of the people. THIRD WITNESS Prof. Kurtz, a Lutheran and author of a valuable church history, says, page 55, Vol. I: "The autonomy (independence) of the churches in respect to organization government, discipline and intended administration is made prominent (in the epistles) as the very basis of their constitution. He (Paul) never interferes in these matters, enjoining and prescribing by his authority, but always, whether personally or in spirit, only as associated with their assemblies (I Cor. 5:3), deliberating and deciding in common with them. Thus his apostolic importance shows itself not in assuming the attitude of a lord (II Cor. 8:24), but that of a father (I Cor. 4:14) who seeks to lead his children on to form for themselves independent and manly judgment (I Cor. 10:15, 11:13). FOURTH WITNESS Edward Gibbon, a skeptic, who was therefore anything but a Baptist, says in his Roman Empire, page 555, Vol. I: "Such was the mild and equal constitution by which the Christians were governed for more than a hundred years after the death of the apostles. Every society formed within itself a separate and independent republic; and although the most distant of these little states maintained a mutual as well as friendly intercourse of letters and deputation's, the Christian world was not yet connected by any supreme authority or legislative assembly." FIFTH WITNESS Adam Clark, a Methodist and the foremost commentator Methodism has produced, says in his comment on Acts 11:22: "A Christian church means a company of believers in Christ Jesus, united for purposes of Christian fellowship and edification in righteousness. `They sent forth Barnabas.' It seems, then, that the church collectively had power to commission and send forth any of its own members whom it saw God had qualified for a particular work." Quotations from great scholars, historians, and commentators might easily be multiplied, but this will suffice to show that Baptists not only have the Bible on their side, but "smart men" are compelled by the facts to testify in favor of the Baptists and against themselves, which makes the case a very strong one in favor of the Baptists.
Compliments, Divine Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner "They loved the praise of men more than the praise of God." John 12:43.
This text refers to some of the chief rulers who became convinced that Jesus was what He claimed to be but would not confess Him, "lest they be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God."
I. For fear of losing their standing many refuse to do their duty. They fear criticism and quail in the presence of men. It is not what is right but what is popular that so many ask, The praise of men will only last for a season, and only while you continue to truckle to their whims, and one is foolish to seek it. II. There were eight persons who were praised by the Lord during His ministry on earth. A study of what they did will help us to know what pleases the Lord. (a) He praised the centurion for his faith. The centurion's son was healed by the Lord. He told the Lord to speak the word only and his son should live. He told the Lord that he did not feel worthy that He should come under His roof and that the Lord's word would do the work. Jesus said, "1 have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel." Matt. 8:10. (b) He praised John the Baptist for his greatness. "Among them that are born of women there has not arisen a greater than John the Baptist, nevertheless he that is least in the Kingdom of heaven is greater than he." Matt. 11:11-12. John's greatness consisted in two things at least. His HUMILITY. His life was lowly, his clothing plain, his food coarse. He did not seek advantage, but sought to please the Lord. His HEROISM was another element of greatness. He spoke boldly the whole truth. He told the proud Pharisees that they were "vipers" and in danger of the "wrath to come" and he rebuked Herod for living in adultery. His heroism cost his life but won him a crown. "Be thou faithful UNTO DEATH and I will give thee a crown of life." This passage does not mean be good till you die and after death you will get a crown. It means be faithful to the point of giving up your life for the truth, and die a martyr's death and the crown of life will be given. John won the crown of life by dying a martyr's death. (c) He praised Nathaniel for his sincerity. "Behold an Israelite indeed in whom there is no guile." John 1:47. Nathaniel had doubted that it was possible that the long promised Messiah should come out of Nazareth, but when he was convinced, he openly confessed the Lord. He was sincere; too many are only trying to make believe. An honest doubter, if he is sincere, is to be commended. That sort of a doubter will believe when shown the truth (d) He praised Mary for her devotion. "Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her." Luke 10 42. Martha was busy about providing comforts for the Lord, but Mary was so devoted to Him that she forgets to help. She was content to sit at His feet and listen to His wisdom. Martha was not rebuked but Mary was commended. (e) The tenth leper was praised for his gratitude. "Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger." Luke 17:17-18. Ingratitude is a great evil and gratitude is to be praised. How often we forget to praise God for His benefits. "Count your many blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord hath done." (f) The woman of Canaan was praised for her importunity. "O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt." Matt. 15:21-28. She was rewarded by her daughter being healed that same hour. We are here taught to be persistent in prayer, yet humbly submissive to the Lord's will. (g) Peter was praised for his good confession. Peter said: "Thou art the Christ the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar Jonah: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee but my Father, which is in heaven." Matt. 16:18. The Lord is pleased when we boldly confess Him. If we confess Him before men He will confess us before the Father in heaven. (h) He praised the poor widow for her contribution. "And He looked and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury. And He saw a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites. And He said, of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they Luke 21:1-4. Certainly the Lord did not care for the pitiful sum of two mites. It was like casting in a copper in one of our collections. It amounted to almost nothing so far as money value was
concerned. It was not the amount she gave but the fact that she gave all. In His sight it was more than all of the others put together. Our gifts are not measured by the amount we give but by the amount we have left after giving. If a rich man gives his thousands and has his thousands left, he is not giving as much in God's sight as the poor man who gives his dollars and has but little or nothing left. God is not influenced by our gold. It is the heart He sees. Many excuse themselves from giving liberally by saying that they are giving the "widow's mite." No man can give the widow's mite until he gives all he has. The small, penurious giver, who says he gives the "widow's mite," has yet to learn what pleases God. When we sacrifice, when we do our best, is when we please God. III. In view of these compliments, paid by our. Lord, can you think of even one thing the Lord would compliment you for? Do you please God? If Jesus were here in body, and talked with you as we talk with one another, would He compliment you? Do you not think we should mend our ways and seek to live so that we shall deserve the compliments of the Lord? I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." Matt. 25:21. The rewarding day is coming. It will pay us to be faithful: and use our opportunity for doing good as the servant used his talents for his master. Note: After I preached this sermon at Antioch a brother came to me and said, "I know of another case where the Saviour complimented a woman. It was where the woman anointed the Saviour with the precious ointment and Judas objected to it because he said it was a waste. And Jesus said: "Let her alone, why trouble ye her? She hath wrought a good work on me - she hath done what she could: she came afore hand to anoint my body to the burying. Verily I say unto you, that wheresoever this gospel is preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken for a memorial of her." Mark 14:3-9. In this case the woman was praised for her affection. She loved the Lord and did this anointing to show her love. Did you ever do anything for the sole purpose of pleasing Jesus? Would you come in her class and receive a compliment from the Lord?
Covenants With Men, God's Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 9-72 A covenant is a contract or agreement between two or more parties. God has made a number of covenants with men and a misunderstanding concerning them causes confusion about many other things. The purpose of this editorial is to make clear what the different covenants are and what they have to do with the people who live at this present time.
THE EDENIC COVENANT Genesis 1st and 2nd chapters, was made in the Garden of Eden between God and the first human pair. That covenant consisted of the following items: 1. Adam and Eve were to increase and multiply and replenish the earth. This shows that the earth was once made empty before Adam and Eve were created. The earth because of sin was brought to ruin and chaos. The sin of pre-Adamic angels - spirits. How long it remained in ruin we do not know. But Adam and Eve were a new start, a new beginning; they were to replenish the earth. Adam and Eve were to dress the garden and to keep it. They were limited to a vegetable diet for they were instructed to eat of the things that grew in the Garden of Eden with only one restriction, they being forbidden to eat of the tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Adam and Eve broke this covenant by their disobedience of the one restriction and the penalty was Immediate Spiritual Death. Physical death, which finally came was no part of the penalty, but a result of the penalty, which was spiritual death - separation from God. There was no grace in this covenant for there was no mercy offered for disobedience. Adam and Eve stood on their
merits; so long as they were obedient they would continue to enjoy the garden. When they disobeyed --they would be put out. Adam and Eve were created in the spiritual or character image of God, truly so because God is not a physical being. God is a Spirit and a "spirit does not have flesh and bones" and Jesus said, "God is a spirit" (John 4:24) it follows that Adam and Eve were in the image of God in their spirits and character. This proves that man has a spirit distinct from his body else he could not be in the image of God. Adam and Eve did not fall from grace for the very good reason that they were not under a covenant of grace, but a covenant of good conduct, a covenant of strict obedience with the penalty of spiritual death for disobedience.
THE COVENANT OF PROMISE Genesis 3rd chapter. After the death of Adam and Eve (Spiritual death) God promised a curse on the serpent that was used by Satan to cause their downfall and then cursed the earth so that it would bring forth weeds and thorns and poisonous vegetation, with disease, and other evils, and pronounced a curse on Eve because she led in the disobedience. The special penalty put on her was that she should have multiplied conception, and pain in childbirth. This multiplied conception no doubt means that several children should be born at one time, such as twins, triplets and even more. This accounts for the multiplied millions who soon inhabited the earth. Only so many were mentioned in the Bible as was necessary to the revelation God made to us, such as Cain and Abel, and Seth and a few others. But it does not follow that just because only a few were mentioned that many others were not born. When we come to understand that possibly Eve was the mother of several hundred children, for she lived to be over nine hundred years old, and during that long period she could have been the mother of a thousand or more children, when we come to understand this simple fact, such silly questions as where Cain got his wife, would never be asked. Cain married his sister of course. Such marriages were a common practice many years after Cain had passed away. But along with these curses placed on the first pair came a promise. It was "the seed of the woman shall bruise the serpent's head." There is the promise of the Saviour. If Adam and Eve were ever saved (and I think there can be no reasonable doubt that they were) they were saved by grace through faith in the promised Saviour. There has never been any other way of salvation. Those who were saved before Christ came into the world looked forward to Him and we who are saved since Christ came look back to Him. But salvation has been by Jesus' blood in all ages. The fact that salvation was by grace back there in the morning of the world is seen when Cain's offering of the works of his own hands was rejected and Abel's offering of the Lamb, symbolic of the Lamb of God, was accepted. There was nothing in Cain's offering that would picture the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. But the dying and bleeding lamb offered by Abel made a wonderful picture of the suffering, bleeding and dying of our Saviour. Cain showed he had no faith in the promised Saviour but Abel showed he was trusting in that Promised Lamb of God. Salvation by works was pictured by Cain's offering and salvation by grace was pictured by Abel's offering.
THE NOAHIC COVENANT Genesis 8th chapter. The world went to ruin under the Covenant of works and worse until God destroyed the world by the great flood. Noah and his family, in all eight persons, were saved from the wreck. After the waters dried on the earth God made a covenant with Noah that He would not again destroy the earth by a flood. He did not change any part of the Covenant of Promise and Noah lived under that covenant the same as did the people before the flood. But the covenant with Noah was that he should increase and multiply and again replenish the earth, which was once more empty only now there were eight persons to start over again when in the first place there were but two. The rainbow was given as a token that a flood would never again
destroy the earth. If some one who knows why rainbows exist should say that the rainbow is made by the sun shining through the falling rain, it will be enough to call their attention to the fact that the rain in connection with the flood was the first rain that ever fell. In Gen. 2:5-6 we read: "God had not caused it to rain upon the earth-" but there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the face of the earth. This passage tells us that at first there was no rain and since the rainbow was a new thing at the time of the flood it follows that the first rain was the rain that came with the flood. The Lord promised that while the earth should last "seed time and harvest, cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease." Noah worshipped God by building an altar and offering up burnt offerings to the Lord showing he was trusting in the Promised Saviour.
THE ABRAHAMIC COVENANT The Abrahamic Covenant is misunderstood more than any other covenant. (Genesis 12th chapter). This covenant is unconditional. God promised to make Abraham (Abram at first) great. He promised him a large posterity. He promised to make him a blessing to the world in that all the nations of earth should be blessed because of him. He further promised him the land that is now known as Palestine. The Jewish Nation (Hebrews) sprang from Abraham as a result of this covenant. It never was given to any body except Abraham and his natural descendants. The sign of that covenant was circumcision. In a spiritual and figurative sense all children of God by faith in Jesus are children of Abraham but that has no reference to the covenant. The Abrahamic Covenant was a land covenant and a promise of a great posterity through whom all the world should be blessed. The fulfillment of that was the fact that Jesus Christ was born from the Jewish race. Abraham was under the Covenant of Promise the same as others. Abraham was saved by grace through faith in the Promised Saviour. Gal. 3:14: "That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ: that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith." Paul in Galatians and Romans tells us that we are now saved just as Abraham was saved, through faith in Jesus Christ. There never has been any other way to be saved. The different covenants, including the Abrahamic Covenant, did not alter the Covenant of Promise, of salvation by faith in a crucified Redeemer. Abraham was justified by faith when he believed God. He showed his faith when he "builded an altar unto the Lord, who appeared unto him." (Gen. 12:7). Abraham proved his faith in God and showed he was a saved man when he offered up Isaac in sacrifice on the altar. Thus Romans and James are harmonized, one saying, Abraham was justified by faith and the other that he was justified by works. He was justified by faith when he believed God and built an altar. Forty years later he was justified by works when he offered up Isaac. He was seventy-five years old when he built the altar and was justified by faith. (Gen. 12:4, 7, 8) He might have been saved before that but we have evidence of it when he was seventy-five. He was a hundred years old when Isaac was born. How old was Isaac when Abraham was about to sacrifice him for the burnt offering? Not less than fifteen years old which would make it forty years after Abraham was saved by faith in the promised Savior before he was justified by works in offering up Isaac. We are all saved by grace through faith and then afterwards we are justified by works, every time we do any sort of good works.
THE MOSAIC COVENANT The Mosaic Covenant consists of the Law, which is found in Exodus and Deuteronomy. It was the first covenant to the Jewish nation. It consists of the moral precepts found in the Ten Commandments and other parts of the law, and of the ceremonials, which were symbolic of the work that Jesus did when He suffered and died on the cross. Some people ignorantly speak of the moral law and the ceremonial law. There are no such laws. The law is one law with moral
precepts in it and ceremonials in it, not two separate laws, one moral and the other ceremonial. The law was never intended as a Saviour. The moral precepts show our need of a Saviour since we so far fail to keep them. The ceremonies of the law symbolized the work Jesus did for our salvation. But men and women were never saved by obedience to the law for the law only taught them the need of a Saviour. Paul asks: "Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid, for if there had been a lawgiver, who could have given life, verily righteousness would have been by the law. But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe." Those who were under the Mosaic Covenant, or Law Covenant. consisting of moral precepts and ceremonials, which were never intended to save any body, these Jews (for no one else was under the Mosaic Covenant) were all the time under the covenant of promise the same as Adam, Abel, Noah, Abraham and others. We are told in Heb. 10:4, that "It was not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins." Thus we see that salvation has been by grace through faith under all covenants, for the covenant of promise has never been changed nor abrogated. We now have the promise in actual fulfillment in our Lord Jesus Christ. This law covenant, (the Mosaic Covenant) is called by contrast the "first" covenant in Hebrews 8:7. It was to the Jews to whom Paul wrote. The new Covenant is only the covenant of promise fulfilled. We are now living under the new covenant, that is to say the covenant of promise fulfilled. The Mosaic Covenant was the first one made to the Jews as a nation and that is why it is called the first covenant in Hebrews. We know that the Edenic and Adamic or Promise Covenant, and the Noahic and the Abrahamic covenants all came before the Mosaic covenant did. But with reference to the Jews the Mosaic was the first. Paul in writing to the Jews in the book of Hebrews for that reason called it the first to the Jewish nation. It was imperfect and hence done away. Now what have we? We have the New Covenant which is the covenant of promise fulfilled: we have the Noahic Covenant still in force; we have the Abrahamic land covenant still in force for Palestine still belongs to the Jews and will be finally occupied by them, and circumcision for them is still the sign of that covenant. The Mosaic Covenant. The law has been done away. (Col. 2:14-17). We now live under the new covenant, which means we are under the law of love. Laws and precepts do not bind us, we are not under ceremonies but we rely upon the blood of Jesus. He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified." (Heb. 10:14) and have the "love of God shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost." (Rom. 5:5). How happy we should be. "The law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." (Rom. 8:2). We are free and safe and happy and after awhile we shall be glorified.
Death, Heaven, Hell, The Grave, Future Punishment Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 12-69 A lady gave me a slip of paper and asked me to answer the questions on it and give the meaning of the passages that were referred to on that same slip. The questions are old and easy and the passages are the same that Adventists, Russellites, Christadelphians and other materialists have been asking for many years. It is amusing to note the superior feeling these people show when they ask such questions and refer to such passages. First Question: "If hell is a place for immortal souls through the ceaseless ages of eternity who will have charge of it after the devil has been destroyed? Heb. 2:14 says the devil will be destroyed." Answer: Hell is a place. See Luke 16:28, where the rich man was who requested that Lazarus be sent to his five brethren that they "come not to this PLACE of torment." Immortal souls will stay there through eternity, for we read in Matt. 25:46: "These shall go away into everlasting punishment." The devil after he is "destroyed" will suffer in hell along with his victims. The word "destroy" does not mean to put out of existence; it means to bring to ruin and
great misery. Job said, "Thou hast destroyed me and I am gone" (Job 19:10), yet Job was still in existence and still talking and in terrible suffering. Our materialistic friends guess at it when they use "destroy" in the sense of putting out of existence. Second question: "Where will the wicked go after hell dies?" Rev. 20:14, Answer: These catch questions may be smart but they betray a lack of Bible knowledge. The passage in Revelation referred to says, "death and hell shall be cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death." All of God's people will LIVE, that is be united with God, and those who belong in the category of DEATH will be cast together into the lake of fire which is the second death. If you are in a house and the house is thrown into a lake I should think you would go into the same place the house went. So those who are in the dominion of DEATH will go into the lake of fire, the final place of torment. Up to the time of the resurrection of the body the saved are not in their final state of glory and the wicked are not in their final state of punishment until their account is fully made up and they have their resurrected bodies restored to them. In the Judgment day the sum of all lives, both good and bad will be manifested. The righteous shall then get their full reward and the wicked will then get their full punishment. Third question: "Does it not say in John 13:33, that whither I go, ye cannot come, and the same thing is said in John 7:33-34? How then can we go to heaven when we die? That would be going where Jesus is and He said we could not go where He is." Answer: When Jesus said that where He was they could not come He was talking to the wicked Jews and was warning them concerning their wickedness. Certainly the wicked can not go where Jesus is. In John 13:33-36 Jesus said to His DISCIPLES that what He said to the Jews so He would say to them, only added that "Whither I go thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt follow me afterwards." So that exactly covers the case. Where Jesus is the wicked can not go and He told His disciples that they could not follow him at that time but should "do so AFTERWARDS." That knocks into ruin the materialistic idea. The trouble is that our materialistic friends take disconnected passages of scriptures and piece up a theory with them. The Bible must be read intelligently, taking the passages in the connection. After asking these questions the writer of the slip of paper gave several references which are thought to teach the soul ceases to be when what we call death comes. Here is one and it covers the idea. "The soul that sinneth it shall die." (Ezek. 18:4). Certainly and so we all believe and teach. But what does the word "DIE" mean? It all depends on what that word means. I Tim. 5:6, says: "She that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth." Does that mean that the woman was out of existence while she was living? Certainly not. Death means SEPARATION and to die means the separation of something. What we call natural death means the separation of spirit and body and what we call spiritual death means separation from God. So the pleasure-loving woman, while alive naturally, her body and spirit were still united; yet she was dead-separated from God. Yes, the "soul that sinneth shall be eternally separated from God." That is what is meant. The writer of the slip says that the word "immortal" is found only one time and it applies to God. That one time is found in I Tim. 1:17. True as far as the King James Version is concerned. But the Greek word that is translated immortal is found a number of times and does not always apply to God. The expression in I Tim. 6:16 where it says: "Who only hath immortality," referring to God, means that God only has inherent immortality. All the rest of us have it by creation. God gave man immortality and did not give it to beasts. God only has immortality to impart. This passage does not say that mankind did not obtain it from God in creation. The Greek word translated IMMORTAL is aphlhario. It is found in Rom. 2:7 where it says: "Seek for glory, honor, immortality." It is also rendered INCORRUPTIBLE in I Peter 1:5, where it says, "To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you." So there is an INCORRUPTIBLE inheritance RESERVED IN HEAVEN for
us. That knocks out the materialistic idea that nobody goes to heaven. We have an INCORRUPTIBLE inheritance reserved IN HEAVEN for us. That other passage (Rom. 2:7) says that we "seek for IMMORTALITY." Does the word, which is thus translated ever, apply to the soul? Turn to I Peter 3:4, where it says: "But let it be the hidden man of the heart, which is not corruptible." This "hidden man of the heart" which is "not corruptible" and therefore immortal is called the "inner man" in Eph. 3:16, which says: "Strengthened with his might by his spirit in the inner man." Then in II Cor. 4:15 we read: "Though the outer man perish, yet the inner man is renewed day to day." Paul plainly says in Rom. 7:22-25 that there is an outward and an inward man. But bear in mind Peter says, as referred to above (I Peter 3:4), that this "hidden man of the heart" is "NOT CORRUPTIBLE." A thing that is not corruptible is necessarily immortal. So the word IMMORTAL (Greek aphtharto) does not apply to man. Eccl. 9:5 is another passage noted in the slip. That passage says, "the dead know not anything." Yes, but the specific statement is made in that same connection (please read the connection) that "the dead know not anything" UNDER THE SUN. It says it both before and after the statement the materialists want us to see. That passage just shows that the Spiritualists are wrong when they teach that the dead are actively connected with the affairs of the world. The dead do not know what is going on in this world for they "know not anything UNDER THE SUN." Then a number of passages which speak of the wicked "perishing" and the thoughts "perishing" at death and about the soul dying are given for my consideration. Such as Psalm 145:20, "the wicked will be destroyed," and Psalm 146:4 where "their thoughts perish," and Ezek. 18:4, where the "soul that sin it shall die," and in Gen. 3:19 where it says, "Dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou return." The only question to consider is what is meant by "destroy" and "perish," and "die." I have already shown that death means separation and not to be put out of existence. Even so have I shown that the word "destroy" does not mean to put out of existence because Job said he was "destroyed" and yet he continued to exist and suffer and now what does the word "perish" mean? It does not mean to go out of existence. Read Jeremiah 7:28 where it says, "TRUTH IS PERISHED." Does that mean that truth has gone out of existence? Certainly not. It means that truth has become submerged, put to one side, trampled under foot, ignored. So the wicked will be put to one side, humiliated, ignored and their cries will not be heard. I have answered all these questions and noted the Scriptures and they are such as are always put forward by Adventists, Russellites, Christadelphians and others. It is no trouble to answer them. The only thing necessary is to not allow them to define words for us. They are wrong in their definitions and their doctrine of dirt will not stand a Scriptural test. They have the silly idea that the BREATH is the soul. Just one passage will knock that idea into eternal ruin. Read Luke 1:39-44, where we have the account of Mary visiting her cousin Elizabeth and when she came into her presence John the Baptist, who was not yet born, "leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost." Here is an unborn babe alive and filled with joy before there was any "breath" in it. Yes, man has an immortal soul in danger of hell.
Death Triumphant Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 6-67 "The sting of death is sin; and the power of sin is in the law; but thanks be to God, who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." I Cor. 15:56-57. These words were written by Paul to the Corinthians and constitute a portion of that great resurrection-the fifteenth chapter of I Corinthians. As we study them closely, they present to our minds three thoughts: The fact of death, the trial of death, and the victory over death. Around these thoughts we shall build our lesson.
I. The fact of death. 2. With reluctance, we accept the fact of death. We are forced by its very presence, to acknowledge its power. We are born to die. Long before we came to live, the sentence of death was passed upon us. "It is laid up for men once to die." (Heb. 9:27) Even if we should try, we could not forget the fact of death. So many things remind us of its presence - the graveyards, the daily obituary notices, the passing funeral procession, the departure of friends and relatives. Good health, modern science, and cautious living cannot hinder death; they can only postpone it. Only one thing can hinder death-the coming of the Lord. Death visits the righteous as well as the unrighteous, the youth as well as the aged. "Even young men in the prime of their age are subject to death. The sons of Jacob, when they came to the table of Joseph, sat down, the eldest according to his age, and the youngest according to his youth: but death observes not this method; he takes not men in seniority, but sometimes sends them first to the burial that came last from birth, and those that came last from the womb, first to the winding sheet." -Fuller. You, my friends, will come to the gate of death through one of five avenues: 1. Disease. The human body is a target for unseen and insidious foes. 2. Accidents. We live in a world of disorder and commotion. The unexpected often happens. 3. Murder. Perhaps you have made an enemy, consciously, or unconsciously, who may strike you down without warning. 4. Suicides. During the hectic storm of life, men often lose their mental balance and will deliberately take their own lives. 5. Decay. The human machine, in process of time, will wear out and must stop. What is death? What does it mean? Some things concerning this grim monster we do not understand and will never understand until we come face to face with him and feel his firm grip from which we cannot wrench ourselves. We have made certain observations and the Bible has taught us much. While we are living in the world, the spirit and the body are together-the spirit dwells within the body. At death they separate, the body going to the earth and the spirit to God who gave it. Death is that stern voice which calls a halt to men in every walk of life. When it speaks, the farmer lays aside his plow, the carpenter his tool, the author his pen. There is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave, whither thou goest" (Eccl. 9:10). Some Biblical representations of it: It is a man on a pale horse (Rev. 6:8). It is man's enemy-his last enemy (I Cor. 15:26). It brings the dissolution of man's earthly house (II Cor. 5:1). It is as water spilt upon the ground (II Sam. 14:4). It is the folding of the shepherd's tent (Isa. 38:12). It is a thread cut by the weaver (Isa. 28:12).
II. The trial of death. Though we have never tasted it and though the teeming millions who have gone before have given us little or no information, we know that death must be a trial-an ordeal, a thing of horror. All of our waking and sleeping hours we have been moving toward it. All of our lives we have been waiting for it and the anticipation has given us no pleasure. What, let us ask, are the things which make death a trial, a dreaded thing? Men draw back from it with a shudder. 1. Because of the love of life. God gave life. Sin brought death. Therefore, we love life and hate death. There is an instinctive cleaving of every living creature to its own existence. That unutterable thing which we call our being-the thought of having to give it up is agony. The chief interests of all living beings-from the lowest to the highest-is to live. We want to live! Man will give up his money, his home, his land, his eyes, his limbs-all that he has if only he can retain his life. Life is the last thing that man surrenders, or is willing to surrender. We shrink from that which endangers life. We draw back from that which threatens. We know that when we die, we must give up our being in this world. The Bible
tells us of another existence, brighter and better, but this life-the being that we now haveis the only one we know. 2. Death is an adventure-an untried journey. As we live day by day, we become accustomed to life with its various angles and problems, but death is another thing. It is an old thingabout as old as mankind-and yet it must remain new to all the living. To us, death is a mysterious something. There is a certain amount of darkness that hovers about the final resting-place. There is always a sense of dread and fear when we embark on an unknown sea, or face that situation concerning which we know so little. We become familiar with life, but death must remain a stranger as long as we live. 3. Death is a lonely thing. We can think of nothing as lonely as death. We walk through life hand and hand with devoted friends and companions, but we must die alone. We go on this dark, untried journey without the presence of those who know us here. They stand by the bed and touch the cold brow, but can go no farther. They descend with us to the brink, but we are obliged to embark in the darkness of the night in a lonely canoe. Moses of old died in mysterious solitude in a mountain valley. To me, this is a parable of every man's death. All who have died have found death a lonely experience as far as human companionship is concerned. It is strangely pathetic that the being, who has a craving for companionship, should have to die in solitude? 4. Death separates us from the people and things we love. The normal man is an emotional being. He is affectionate by nature. In his youthful days he makes certain attachments-he falls in love with people and places. Friendships are formed and made stronger with the passing of years. He builds a home and finds delight with his wife and children by the fireside. Tender ties entwine themselves around his inmost soul. The longer he lives, the deeper his affections. When Lot left Sodom, the younger members of the family went gladly along. It was the aged one who stopped and looked behind to the home with which so many memories were connected. When the parting time comes, there seems to be an instinctive lingering over the things which ere long must vanish forever from sight. With every setting sun, as the father (or mother) gathers his children around him, there is a filling of the heart with an emotion that is as strong as life itself. There is upon his soul the thought of parting - that strange separation from all in this world that he loves, making death a bitter experience. 5. "The sting of death." With all of the above horrors, doubtless, in his mind, it was none of them that Paul selected as the crowning bitterness of dying. It was not the thought of parting with life, or the adventure of death, or the solitude of the grave, or the farewell to friends that gave to death its horror. It was "the sting" which "sin" gives to death that makes death so horrible to the dying. A "sting" is no pleasant sensation. Most of you know the meaning of the sting of a bee, an ant, a wasp, or a snake. Sin carries with it a venom-a power to hurt men. It hurts men while they live. It hurts them more in the dying hour. Death, at its best, is a hard experience. It is made a thousand times harder by sin-the guilt of sin upon the soul. A guilty conscience adds a crushing weight to the soul. Untold sensations, I am persuaded, crowd into a man's being when he comes to the end of the way when those who love him gather around his bed. His entire life with its neglect, his unkindness, his unholy desires and intentions, his ugly words-is relived in his memory in a few moments of time. The memory of sin-sin unforgiven-haunts him, staring at him with a strange fixity. It stings. It bites. It hurts. It adds horrors to death. "The strength of sin is the law," said the apostle. This means that sin would not be so violent if it were not for the attempt of the law to check and restrain it. Law makes sin strong. No wrong can be long controlled by law. Law can only make sin struggle and rebel. The love of God, as revealed in the gospel of Christ, is the only thing that can win in the contest with sin.
III. The victory over death. Christ is the victorious leader, the captain of our salvation. He goes forth conquering and to conquer. He has gained victory after victory over the forces, which shadow mankind. He won over Satan and sin. Through His own death, He has brought to nought him that had the power of death, and delivered them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. (See Heb. 2:14, 15). Christ shares with his people the fruits of his victory. Through him we conquer. 1. Through Christ we conquer the fear and dread that hovers about the grave. Faith in the Lord and his precious promises gives one a calm confidence in the parting hour. Pagans may steel themselves against the coming ordeal, but only Christians, whose life is hid with Christ in God, can approach the tomb "like one that wraps the drapery of his couch about him, and lies down to pleasant dreams." 2. Through him we gain a victory over the loneliness of death. Though bereft of human companionship, the dying Christian has a sustaining power in the presence of Him, who has said, "I will in no wise forsake thee." As the sheep of the good shepherd, we may sing with Israel's sweet singer, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me." 3. Through him we gain a victory over "the sting of death." Through his own precious blood, Christ has removed the sting and guilt from the souls of his people. As the Burden-Bearer, he has lifted the crushing load. All of our sins and iniquities have been cancelled - forever removed. God's children die in peace. So, we may exclaim with Paul the apostle, "O grave, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?" 4. Christ gives to His people victory over the confines of the tomb. It gives us a horror beyond power to describe, to look into the open grave and to think that our bodies, which we have nourished throughout the years, shall be eaten of worms and become as insensible clod. But Jesus conquered the grave and brought life and immortality to light. He gives to His people the unspeakable gift of life eternal. "We shall be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. But when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written, "Death is swallowed up in victory." 5. Christ gives us victory over the losses sustained by death. Though separated from the earth-life, with all that it holds dear to us, we are raised from the tomb and ushered into the very presence of God and the glory world, where "death shall be no more; neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more: the first things are passed away."
Death, the Eternal Unseen Ben M. Bogard. Baptist and Commoner, 2-18-31 "Things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal." 2nd Cor. 4:18. It were better to be a hog and come to an end in the slaughterhouse than be a man with nothing but this world to live for. The hog enjoys his food possibly better than a man and he has no conscience to bother him and there is no future for him and when he dies nobody misses him. But a man has a conscience that troubles him when he goes wrong, and friends to grieve for and who will grieve after him when he dies and after all that, he must face eternity. If there is no eternity of joy for him he had better be a hog.
No matter what we may accumulate here in this world we must leave it all behind when we die. Rockefeller will take nothing away with him and unless he has laid up treasures in Heaven he will enter eternity a pauper and his soul will be lost in hell. Fortunes come and go, pleasures are fleeting, and power is uncertain and dangerous, and fame fades away. Only a few can even name the kings of Great Britain and the vast majority can not even name the presidents of the United, States. How many can tell who are the members of the Supreme Court of the United States. If such high positions do not bring satisfaction and if even the presidents and Supreme Court judges are so soon forgotten what is the benefit of rising in the world to such positions? The rich fool we read of in the twelfth chapter of Luke had accumulated a great fortune but he heard the awful words: "This night thy soul shall be required of thee." Belshazzar, king of a most powerful and rich nation, while enjoying, a banquet with his lords and concubines was terrified at the handwriting on the white wall of his palace which declared that he was "weighed and found wanting" (Dan. 5) and that night he died and faced the eternal future unprepared and ruined. He had great riches in this world but was "not rich' toward God." The eternal things he had neglected and he lived entirely for things that were seen and he found when it was too late, that the things seen are temporal If we surrender to God and are saved by the blood of Jesus Christ we have "an inheritance, incorruptible, undefiled and that fadeth not away reserved in heaven, for us" (1st Peter 1:4). If we are established on Jesus Christ we have the assurance that the "foundation of God standeth sure" while all "other ground is sinking sand." Our Savior raised the -question: "What shall it profit a man If he gains the whole world' and lose his soul?" This is a problem in profit and loss that our young mathematicians should try to solve. But to solve it one must first learn the value of the soul. To lose the soul, is eternal ruin. The only reason for a church to exist is to glorify God in the salvation of men and women and thus secure their eternal inheritance.
Deliverance, Petition Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner 2-5-35 (Matt 6:13) "And, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil."
The word "temptation" means TEST and we are praying to not be brought into a severe test. God does not tempt any one to sin, and certainly that is not what we are praying to be delivered from, as there is no danger of that. In James 1:13 we read: "Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God can not be tempted with evil, neither tempteth He any man; but every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed." God never leads us into sin because he does not want us to sin. Job was severely tested. The devil was allowed to do his worst except he was not allowed to kill him. When Job really thought that he might be killed he declared that, "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in Him." (Job 13:15). Many situations test men. Our strength may be tested and we may break. Peter was put to a test for his own good. He had boasted that all the other disciples might forsake the Lord, but not he. He declared that he would die for the Lord but not deny him. (Matt. 26:33, 27:69-75). He was conceited and was spiritually vain. The Lord permitted him to be severely tested and he fell. He shamefully denied the Lord, and even cursed and swore to back up his denial, UNDER A TEST HE FAILED. So might we. Peter's experience taught him a lesson he would never forget and it was overruled for his good, but he nevertheless broke under the strain. The lesson he learned was that he should not think of himself as being better and stronger than his brethren and that he should feel constantly his weakness and his dependence own the Lord. Thus, the test was overruled for Peter's good. The cases of Job and Peter fairly illustrate what being put to a test means. So we pray, "Lead us not into a severe test"
(temptation) thus recognizing the keeping power of our Lord. "Deliver us from evil," Literally this means to deliver us from the "EVIL ONE," the devil. The devil goes about seeking whom he may devour and when he finds he is unable to destroy a child of God, he cripples his influence for good. He sows dissention in churches. He almost ruined the church at Corinth for he caused "envy, strife, and division" (I Cor 3:1-4) among the members. He influences individuals to do such things as will hurt them as representatives of Christ, as for instance the man who was living with his stepmother as his wife, his own father's wife (1 Cor 5:1) and it became necessary to exclude him from the church in order to save him from utter ruin. The devil causes churches and individuals to become lukewarm in their service. The Laodicean church (Rev 3:14-18) was in that condition and that seems to be the prevailing condition now among the churches. Neither hot nor cold (indifferent). They do not take the work of the Lord seriously. We should pray to be delivered from the evil one. The devil causes many to become egotistic, self-importance, feeling too big to take a small place and feeling hurt because we are not placed on a Pinnacle of honor because of our superior ability. (Rom 12:3) "For I say, through the grace that is given unto me, to every man that is among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith." A man's usefulness is ruined the moment he gets the idea that he deserves an exalted place in the kingdom of God. The two disciples who sent their mother to Jesus to request that her two sons be permitted one to sit on His right hand and the other on His left in the kingdom (Matt. 20:20-21) illustrates the evil idea the devil puts into good men. We should pray to be delivered from this influence of the devil. When we surrendered to the Lord and were saved it was that we serve Him and enjoy Him forever, but we shall be beset by the devil every step. Hence the need of this prayer, "Lead us not into temptation (severe testing) but deliver us from evil (the evil one).
Doctrinal Paragraphs By B. M. B. Baptist and Commoner, 3-1-22 I recently read an argument on the Sabbath question where the writer declared that the Ten Commandments were never abrogated and are still in force, hence we are commanded to keep Sunday as the Sabbath. But the fourth commandment found in the ten Commandments, says we must keep the SEVENTH as the Sabbath and, if that command is still in force, we violate it every time we keep Sunday, which is the first day of the week. We are, in the Ten Commandments, told to keep the seventh day not the first. The fact is the Ten Commandments are not in force now. They were abrogated when Christ was nailed to the cross. We are under the New Testament now and in the New Testament, all the moral precepts found in the Ten Commandments are plainly recorded for our guidance; but the Sabbath is no where commanded in the New Testament. Where it is recorded that some kept the Sabbath "according to the commandment" it means the Old Testament command found in the Ten Commandments and that was said of those who were Jews and thought they should continue to keep the commandments. The same thing can be said of all the Old Testament commands. The convened Jews continued to observe them and it took a long time to teach them better. That was what the Jerusalem Council was for, to settle the law question. (See Acts 15.) No man will ever understand the Bible until he learns enough to know we are not under the Ten Commandments, but under the moral precepts of the New Testament. But are not substantially the same things, in the New Testament as we find in the Old so far as the moral precepts are concerned? Certainly, with the Sabbath left out. We have the example of Christ after His resurrection and of the apostles for our Sunday but beyond that we can go no further.
Doctrine of Election? Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 12-71 Certainly all Missionary Baptists believe in election, predestination and foreordination, etc. The Bible uses these terms over and over again and we must believe in these doctrines to believe the Bible. The controversy comes over the meaning of these doctrines and the definition of these terms. By election is meant that God elected certain persons for certain definite purposes. He elected John the Baptist to be the forerunner of Jesus Christ and he was filled with the Holy Ghost from birth. This was a definite case of election. John never was regenerated because he was a saved man from birth-"filled with the Holy Ghost from his mother's womb." (Luke 1:15.) Mary was elected to be the mother of Jesus-it was no choice of her's and she was amazed at it when the announcement was made to her. (Luke 1:26-35.) Out of the millions of women in the world Mary was elected for this honor. God picks out certain persons for certain purposes-elects to do through certain individuals what He wants done. He elects to save all who believe in Jesus Christ, and He elects to carry safe to glory all who are saved, and He elects to prepare a place for the ones He carries home to glory. His election stands sure. It is therefore UNCONDITIONAL. John the Baptist had no option as to what he would be. He was BORN THAT WAY - filled with the Holy Ghost from his mother's womb. What did he have to do with it? What did Mary have to do with it when she was selected to be the mother of Jesus? What did any of us have to do with it when God elected to save those who believe? He fixed that Himself. Hard-shells say He elected to save FIRST and then cause the belief afterwards. But Missionary Baptists and the Bible teach that He elected to save when one believes. Since election is UNCONDITIONAL the Hard-shells can't change what God has done by putting salvation before faith. Neither can Campbellites change God's election by putting good works, such as baptism, in BEFORE salvation, for God fixed it, He ELECTED to save when one believes, not BEFORE ONE BELIEVES and not AFTER ONE IS BAPTIZED. He elected to KEEP SECURE ALL THE SAVED and not to keep them on CONDITION that they do so and so. By predestination is meant what God predetermines shall come to pass. There could be no certainty in prophecy if God had not predetermined what is to be in the future. Along with predestination goes the freedom of the will in man. But God KNOWING IN ADVANCE what men would freely do could with certainty predestinate the things He wills to be done, and yet not do violence to the will of man. For instance, it was predestinated that Christ should die - He stood as a "lamb slain from the foundation of the world." (Rev. 13:8.) Jesus Himself foretold His crucifixion (Matt. 16:21-24.) Yet He was crucified by wicked men who acted with perfect freedom. (Acts 2:22-24.) The wicked men in crucifying Christ acted as freely as if God had not predetermined anything. They did exactly what they wanted to do, acted with PERFECT FREEDOM yet they were, without knowing it, carrying out God's predestined will. So even the "wrath of man shall praise him and the remainder of wrath he will restrain." (Ps. 76:10.) Herod acted freely when he sought the young child's life yet it was the reason why Joseph and Mary fled into Egypt and thus prophecy was fulfilled. While we are not able to fully grasp the mystery of God's sovereignty and man's free will yet it is plainly taught in the Bible. It is a poor idea to go to seed on either extreme. The right way is the Missionary Baptist way of BELIEVING IN BOTH THE FREEDOM OF THE WILL AND GOD'S SOVEREIGNTY.
(Doctrine of) Election Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 7-74 The Apostle believed and gloried in the doctrine of election and predestination. No man believed more strongly than he in the great doctrine of salvation by grace without works and yet
we see him groaning in spirit and having great heaviness over the spiritual condition of the Jews. So we may believe in election, predestination, foreordination, and all kindred doctrines and glory in them and yet the command stares us in the face; "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." Paul felt this and acted upon it. He braved the wilderness and the sea. He underwent persecutions from heathen and Jews, and was in peril night and day, that he might obey Christ in preaching the Gospel to every creature. Let us never use Paul or his doctrine as an argument against missions. Even while the apostle is discussing the terrible decrees of God he makes an argument in favor of missions. He makes the statement in Rom. 9:15-20, that God raised up Pharaoh to do the mischievous work which he did and comments on it by saying, "Therefore hath He mercy on whom He will have mercy, and whom He will He hardeneth," and supposing that some would raise an objection, said farther: "Nay but, 0 man, who are they that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? Hast not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honor and another unto dishonor." This is certainly a strong statement of the doctrine of predestination yet hear him a few verses further on in Romans 10:1: "Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved." He was longing for the salvation of the Jews. Do we long and pray for the salvation of the Jews? Do we even long and pray for the salvation of our own Gentile people? If we could only get the people to praying for the salvation of all men they would soon be as enthusiastic as Paul was, then they would be willing to make some sacrifice that those who now sit in darkness might be brought into the light and liberty of the children of God.
Doctrines of Giving Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 9-1-27 There are some who seem to think that there might be some difference in the doctrine of Christ as taught by Him, during His personal ministry, and the doctrines of the apostles as they taught after His ascension. But it is a fact that Christ taught all of the doctrines that is found in the epistles as written by the apostles after His ascension. The writings of the apostles only developed the doctrines already taught by the Lord. 1. The Divinity of Christ. This is taught by Him in John 5:18 and John 14. 2. The Humanity of Christ. That He was a complete and perfect man, as well as the complete and perfect God, is taught in John 5:27. 3. The Messiahship of Christ. That he was the Messiah of the Prophets is taught in Luke 24:27. 4. The Priesthood of Christ. That He was the priest who would make a sacrifice for our sins is taught in Mark 10:45. 5. Salvation by Christ. That He came to save the lost is taught in Luke 19:10. 6. The Spiritual Kingdom. That His kingdom is spiritual and not temporal is taught in John 18:36-37. 7. The New Birth or Regeneration. That the new birth is necessary to salvation is taught in John 3:3-18. 8. The Christian Code of Morality. This is found in the wonderful Sermon on the Mount and summarized in Mark 12:30-31. 9. Baptism and the Lord's Supper. He submitted to baptism (Matt. 3:16) and He baptized through His disciples (John 4:1-3), and He instituted the Lord's Supper (Luke 22:19), and He commanded the church to observe all things He had commanded and that was
equivalent to commanding them to observe baptism and the Lord's Supper, for He had commanded them and observed them. (Matt. 28:19-20). 10. Special Providence. The general providential work of the Lord is taught in Matt. 5:45. He bestows blessings on the just and the unjust. 11. Special and Particular Providence. He watches over the children of God in a special and particular manner, and not a hair on their head shall escape His eye, and He is careful for their welfare. This is taught in Matt. 6:26. 12. Divine Control of Nature. The God of nature is not subject to natural laws, but is master of them. This is taught in Mark 4:39. 13. Perfect and Infinite Knowledge of All Things. Matt. 6:32 and other passages teach the minutest knowledge of even the so-called insignificant things. A knowledge of such details necessarily implies a knowledge of all things. 14. To Rely on God for Support and Protection. To rely on the Lord under all circumstances, depending on Him to protect and support us is taught in Matt. 6:25. 15. Sin Is In The Heart. That the Lord looks on the heart as the seat of all sin is taught in Matt. 15:19, and hence the need of a new heart. 16. Future Eternal Punishment. The doctrine of future and eternal punishment is taught in Matt. 25: 46 and Luke 13:3. 17. Satan the Author of Sin. Sin is of the devil and God is not the author of sin, either directly or indirectly, is taught in John 8:44. 18. The Holy Spirit. Jesus taught that the Holy Spirit was the Comforter (John 14:16-17) and the guide (John 16), and the author of the new birth (John 3:3-17), the giver of power to honor and serve the Lord (John 7:39), the reprover of sin (John 16:8). 19. Prayer. Jesus taught His disciples to pray and gave illustrations of acceptable and prevailing prayer. (See Luke ll, Matt. 6:54 and Luke 18:9-14, John 14:13). 20. The Resurrection of the Dead. The resurrection of both the wicked and the righteous is taught in John 5:28-29, and that there will be a literal resurrection of the body (John 5:28) and Christ is the author of the resurrection.
Don't Preach Doctrine, Just Preach Christ And Him Crucified "Just preach Christ and Him crucified and leave off doctrine" is the cry all over the land and there are some that submit to that sort of devil broth and let up on doctrine. They cite us to Paul's statement that he "determined to know nothing among you save Jesus and Him crucified." So why preach doctrine? To preach Christ and Him crucified as Paul did means more than just constantly proclaiming the fact of His death and resurrection. Certainly we should proclaim that glorious fact. But you are short sighted if you can't see that ALL THE DOCTRINES OF THE BIBLE CLUSTER ABOUT THAT PROCLAMATION. Let us specify: It is necessary to preach the sin and depravity of the human race so they may feel the NEED of Christ and Him crucified. If people are not convicted of sin what care they for the death of Christ? Then salvation by grace should be preached so that people who are convicted of sin may know that salvation is for them, that the benefits of the crucified Christ may be applied to them. It is impossible to preach salvation by grace intelligently unless you show, as did Paul that salvation is NOT OF WORKS (Eph. 2:8-10). When you do that, you cross nearly all religionists, from Catholicism to Campbellism. To preach BAPTISM, as Paul, is to hold up the symbol (God's very own symbol) of the resurrection to eternal life because of the benefits of the death and resurrection of Christ. We preach the Lord's Supper and in doing so hold up the Lord's death till he come." (I Cor. 11:26).
When we preach the origin and perpetuity of the church of Jesus Christ we are preaching about the organization that is called the "pillar and the ground of the truth" whose business is to carry the Gospel of the death and resurrection of Christ to all the world. The Gospel has been committed to the church and to let that go down will destroy the very vehicle the Lord ordained to carry the good news (the Gospel), concerning the death and resurrection of Christ to a lost world. Thus every doctrine of the Bible (no need to specify more of them) is based on and is necessary to the central doctrine of Christ and Him crucified. The namby pamby stuff about letting the doctrine go and just preach Christ and Him crucified is of the devil and should not be tolerated a moment by any lover of the Lord. It is like the idea of "saving soul" being used to discredit the church of Jesus Christ and used as the entering wedge of every heresy. We should preach all the truth found in the Bible. Preach every doctrine found in the WORD and leave out none, thus rightly dividing the word of truth. If God thought enough of it to put it in the BOOK I ought to think enough of it to preach it.
Doctrine of Tithing Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 8-1-28 Legal tithing is an Old Testament provision and not binding on Christians. It is as much a part of the old law that was done away with by Christ as circumcision and the burning of incense were. It is no more binding than the Sabbath observances of the Old Testament. But just as we have New Testament ceremonies (baptism and the Lord's Supper), and instead of the Sabbath we have the Lord's Day or Sunday, even so GIVING is a Christian duty notwithstanding the law of tithing does not apply now. Giving is for our good not for the benefit of the Lord. He needs nothing. The cattle on a thousand hills are His and He would not tell us if He were hungry. He needs no money, as He is the creator of the gold and precious stones. The fish in the sea are all His. He is not an object of charity. We should never make the church a beggar and certainly we should never ask people to give because "the church needs it." The church should never play the role of beggar. But the people should be taught to give and give liberally because it is for THEIR GOOD. Prov. 3:9-10: "Honor the Lord with thy substance and with the first fruits of all thine increase; so shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine," This teaches we should put GOD FIRST. Not give what is left after we have spent on ourselves all we want but give God the FIRST FRUITS OF ALL OUR INCREASE. That is only one instance of the principle to "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added." One reason so many people do not prosper is because they selfishly withhold these fruits from the Lord. Prov. 11:24-25: "There is that scattereth, yet increaseth, and there is that withholding more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty. The liberal soul shall be made fat and he that watereth shall himself be watered." Make God take second place and He will chastise. The doctor and the undertaker will come around and collect. Misfortune, sickness and death follow in the wake of placing selfish interests ahead of God. Fatness, plenty, joy follows "putting God first." To put God first in our money matters is to lay up treasures in heaven, Matt. 6;19-21: "Lay not up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and trust. doth corrupt and where thieves break through and steal; but lay up treasures in heaven where moth and rust doth not corrupt and where thieves do not break through and steal, for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." Where is your heart? The thing you think about most, the thing you like best is where your heart is. If your heart is right you will think every day about how you can honor God. You
will love and serve God's church and you will think every time you undertake anything about what effect your conduct will have on the church. Will what I am doing help the church and honor God? Not how bad I can do and get by with it but in what way can I best honor God and serve Him and build up His church. We have the promise that we shall prosper in proportion to our liberality. 2nd. Cor. 9:6-7. "He that soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully, shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give, not grudgingly, or of necessity; for God loveth a cheerful giver.. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye may always have all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work." It has been tested out a thousand times that both material and spiritual prosperity come in the wake of liberal giving. Another scripture along the same line is Luke 6:38: "Give and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that you mete withal shall it be measured to you again." If infidelity consists in being untrue to God's word and disbelieving what the Bible says then there are many church members who are infidels. About one in a hundred believe the passages I have quoted. It is pitiful and sickening and even distressing. Nine out of ten church members after they have blown in their money on purely selfish interests, such as joy riding, burning up gas at the rate of a dollar or more a day and buying cigars and tobacco, and going to the picture shows two and three times a week or oftener, and buying extravagant clothes. If they have anything left over give a part of the left over to the cause of Jesus Christ! And yet expect God's blessing! Jesus Christ set the example of liberal giving. 2nd Cor. 8:9: "For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be made rich." Jesus gave all for us. What are we willing to do for Him? When you receive your pay for a job of works what is the FIRST thing that comes to your mind? Is God in that first thought? Do you decide FIRST that a part of this shall go to the cause of Jesus Christ and that you will live on what is left or do you decide FIRST on your personal interests and if there is, any left to give part of the leavings to the Lord?
Building the Tabernacle Turning to Ex. 25:1, 2, we have these words: "And God spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they take for me an offering: of every man whose heart maketh him willing ye shall take my offering." There can be no doubt here as to the kind of offering God wanted-viz., an offering from a willing heart. This statement made God say, I do not want any other kind of offering... But did they obtain' enough as a result of this call? Turning to Ex. 36:5-7, we have this report: "And they spake unto Moses, saying, The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work which God commanded to make.... So the people were restrained from bringing. For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much." This looks very much like the children 'of Israel' just then were one hundred percent right with God. There seems to have been no slackers among them. And listen to this: If the church today were as they were then, we would have more money in the treasury than we could well spend. Instead of calls for help having to be repeated until we are discouraged with begging, a sufficiency would be on hand and more than enough to meet the needs. The tabernacle of Moses we understand to be a type of the church of our Lord. And when we turn to instructions to the members about giving, note how much it sounds like the command to Israel: "For if there be first a willing mind," it is acceptable according as a man hath, not according as he hath not." (2 Cor. 8:12.)
The Disciples in Book of Acts Here your attention is called to Acts 11:27-30 with these words, brim full of thought, taken from this reference: "And the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren that dwelt in Judea: which also they did, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul." This seems to be a case of one-hundred-percent giving. Every man gave. Every man determined to give according to his ability. And we are not surprised to read, "which also they did," for people always do what they determine to do. What would be the results if we could, taking every disciple on earth, get every one that makes money, that has money, to make this determination? Would there be anything lacking? The very fact that something is always lacking in almost every congregation and in every mission field proves to our shame that we are falling far short of being indeed "New Testament Christians" when it comes to giving.
The Churches of the New Testament Let us now turn to 2 Cor. 8:1-5 for another example of one-hundred-per-cent giving. Here are the outstanding points on giving in the churches of Macedonia: (1) "The abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality." (2) "First they gave their own selves to the Lord." (3) "For according to their power, I bear witness, yea and beyond their power, they gave of their own accord, beseeching us with much entreaty that we would receive the gift." I do not know how to excel this example of giving. The whole secret of it lies in the fact that they first gave themselves to the Lord. When you can get the human soul to do this, any duty then comes naturally in loving obedience. They gave of their own accord; they did not have to be taught to give. They gave according to their power, and, not satisfied with this, went even beyond their power. And instead of having to be taught to give and begged to give, they were begging the apostles with much entreaty that they receive and use their gifts for God's glory and to help the poor saints. I ask again: What would be our condition today if every child of God on earth were such a giver? Would there be anything lacking? Most certainly not. But there is much lacking; hence, we are falling far short of coming up to the Bible teaching on giving.
Put the Kingdom First We are falling far short in our teaching on the fundamental principle that the human soul must embrace when he starts out to live the life of a disciple, or follower of Christ. What is it? Put the kingdom of heaven first. Read it in Matt. 6:33 as uttered by our Lord himself. We are not driving this home to the human heart as duty demands. And I fear this is due to the fact that our teachers and preachers themselves have never been thrilled with the joy that comes from such a surrender. The sole desire for wanting to make money and trying to make it should be for the kingdom's sake. My brother, get hold of that heart of yours and be honest. Why do you want to make money? Why are you trying to make it? The kingdom must be first in the desire to make money. What is the motive in Eph. 4:28? "Let him labor, working with his hands the thing that is good, that he may have whereof to give." If the Bible does not teach that we must make God first, Jesus first, their kingdom and church first in our hearts, I know not one thing about the teaching of the Bible. A brother has launched a great financial program. But why? He wants to lay up something for old age and for his children when he is gone. Where does Jesus come in? Well, He is not in; He is left out of the program entirely, except for the crumbs that may fall from the abundance of this man's table. Christ and His kingdom are not in such financial programs. And let me tell you now, as strongly as words can put it: All such moneymaking is a curse to the maker. Make money that you may have to give -MAKE TO GIVE and it shall be heaped into your bosom.
"Whether we eat or drink or whatsoever we do (that includes making money) do all for the glory of God." We can make money for the glory of God.
Eternal Choices Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 5-69 II Cor. 4:18: "We look not at the things which are seen, but at things which are not seen, for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal" Many spend their lives trying to accumulate a fortune and while a few succeed they find after all that earthly riches are unsatisfactory. As one gets richer he finds that the demands are greater and the worry of wealth robs him of much of the pleasures he expected to get from riches and even at the best he finally comes to where he must lie down in death and leave it all. The wealth is only temporal. Many times the accumulated fortune takes wings and flies away and leaves the former owners in destitution, and nothing is more pitiful to see than a man who once rolled in luxury brought down to poverty. The things of this world look good but they are temporal and no one can have any certain assurance that he will be permitted to keep his wealth. Many bank failures and business crashes bring forcibly to our minds that the "things seen are temporal." Many men and women are now happy in the midst of their families but it is certain that all of these families will soon be broken for one by one they will die and even if they live long the end of every family is certain. The happiness found in the happiest homes at the best will soon come to an end. When Roman Emperors led triumphant processions there went before them men who burned flax and chanted, Sic trancit gloria mundi," which is the Latin for, "So passes earthly glory." This had a double meaning. One meaning was that real earthly glory was passing in the procession. The other meaning was that just as the smoking flax would soon pass away even so the greatest of emperors would soon be no more. The power and glory of the greatest will soon be a thing of the past. The Bible says, "If in this life only we have hope we are of all men most miserable." In this world it is failing health, lost fortunes, disappointments and finally death. John D. Rockefeller, one of the richest men in the world, had dyspepsia and could not eat the things he relished and he once said that he would give a million dollars to any physician who could cure his disease and when he died he did not take a dollar with him. There is no pocket in a shroud. "We brought nothing into this world and it is certain we can take nothing out." All that we may get of earthly riches, happiness, power or glory are things temporal and if we have not prepared for a better world we shall have a miserable ending of an unsatisfactory life. The old year (1937), is dying but it will not be dead before many people who are now in good health will have died and the sad part of it is that many of them have made no preparation for eternity. Millions of people who shall enter the New Year will be entering the year of their death. The Lord said to the prophet, Hannaniah (Jer. 28:16), "This year thou shalt die, because thou hast taught rebellion against the Lord." And Hannaniah died. Belshazzar was told by the prophet Daniel, that "The God in whose hand thy breath is thou host not glorified," and that night Belshazzar died (Dan. 5th chapter). Thus a great and luxurious king was hurled from his throne and was compelled to die. His luxury and licentious happiness were temporal and it must have been an awful thing to be thrown from his kingdom into hell. The rich man, of whom we read in the 12th chapter of Luke, had very much of temporal property which he thought would make him permanently happy and he said to his soul, "Soul, take thine ease, eat, drink and be merry, for thou hast much goods laid up for future use," and as he was preparing to tear down his barns and build greater to have a place to store his fortune, God said to him: "Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee. Then whose shall all these things be?" Certainly his
wealth was very temporal. He was living in luxury and yet only one half day this side of hell. It is a foolish thing to boast of tomorrow for tomorrow may never come. Carter Harrison, the mayor of Chicago during the time when the great world's fair was held there, addressed a convention of mayors who had gathered at a banquet. He told these mayors that he expected to live to see Chicago the largest city in the United States. He told them that he had taken a new lease on life and told the other mayors to look well to their laurels because he intended to see that Chicago outstripped all of them. That afternoon he lay down for a little sleep and while sleeping his door bell rang and awakened him and he went to answer the bell and when he opened the door an assassin shot the life out of him. Such was his new lease on life. The apostle James tells us that our life is like the grass of the field, for today it flourishes and tomorrow it is cast into the oven and it is like a vapor that arises in the morning and soon vanishes away. Yet, with these awful facts staring us in the face many live for just what they can get out of this life. They live as if they thought the only thing worth living for is the temporal good they can get out of this life. If we live for the unseen, live for the eternal things, our lives will be worth while. Our natural eyes can not see God but He is a SUBLIME REALITY. To submit our lives to Him mean that when we die we shall have a home in heaven, a mansion in glory. Paul says: "If our earthly house of this tabernacle be dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heaven" (II Cor. 5:1). If we live for God we shall find that even the troubles of this life will add to our glory in the world to come. Paul says: "Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." In John the 14th chapter we read that Jesus said: "I go to prepare a place for you, and if I go and prepare a place for you I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am there ye may be also." What do we know about the unseen, eternal heaven? No man has been permitted to describe heaven to us. Paul was caught up into heaven, which he calls Paradise, but he did not tell us what it looked like; he heard words not lawful to utter and hence his lips were sealed and he who actually saw heaven was not permitted to tell much about it. But why should we care to know just exactly what heaven is when we know that our Saviour is there? A good doctor often talked with his patients about their souls as he administered to their bodies. One day a patient, a skeptic, said: "Doctor, what do you know about heaven any way? Have you ever been there? Have you ever seen anybody who has been there? Just how do you know you will be pleased with heaven when you know so little about it?" Just at that moment the doctor's dog, which had followed him that day, pushed the door open and crawled up near the doctor's feet. Then the doctor said, "I will let my dog answer your question." "What does your dog know about it, and besides that how can the dog tell me?" answered the skeptic. The doctor said: "My dog was never in this house, and he had never been told what was in the house and he knew nothing about the way the house was furnished. But he wanted to come in because he knew his master was in the house. So that is why I know I will like it in heaven, because I know my Master is there, and I want to be with Him where He is." Since the greatest Architect has built the house for us, and the greatest Housekeeper has furnished it for us, the greatest Lover will occupy it with us, why should we want to know more about it, for the great unseen heaven is eternal, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heaven." God's people here, those who are saved by the grace of God on the merits of our Saviour's blood, and who have come into the church that Jesus established, will be the Bride of Christ. Paul tells us that we are now, if saved by the blood, as a "chaste virgin" waiting for Christ our Bridegroom to appear and claim His bride. Hear him: "For I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." (II Cor. 11:2). Then in the 19th chapter of Revelation we read of the wedding day. In that
wonderful account of the coming wedding we learn that the bride has on a robe of spotless white and all heaven is ringing with joy. I want to go there just as soon as my Lord says I have finished the work He has given me to do here. But while I am not ready, I am prepared to die. There is a big difference between being ready to die and being prepared to die. I have been prepared to die by the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus, and will be ready when my work on earth is done. Life is worth living if we live for God, if we live with our heart centered in heaven, but life is not worth living if we live for the temporal things of this life, and miss the glories of heaven. My great purpose in delivering these radio sermons is to seek to win to our Saviour those who are lost. Jesus came into the world to seek and to save the lost. If you are a bad man or woman you are the very one He came to save. If your soul is sick with sin, He came to heal. If your life is unsatisfactory He can satisfy your soul. If you are too weak to live as you should, He will give you His strength. If your sins are many He will forgive them all. Will you listen to me while I tell you how you may be saved and be given a home in heaven? You are not saved by being good, for if that was the way none could, for "all sin and come short of the glory of God." How is a man going to be saved by BEING GOOD when he is NOT GOOD? Since none are good then all hope of being saved by being good is gone. Parents sometime, tell their children a lie that was invented by the devil by saying to the little ones that "If you will be good you will go to heaven when you die." There is not a word of truth in such a statement. In Titus 3:5 we read that salvation is, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done but by His mercy He saves us by the washing of regeneration. Then why tell your children a falsehood that must be preached out of them before they can ever be saved? You are not saved by joining the church. The church is not a Saviour for the church is SIMPLY A HOME FOR SAVED PEOPLE to live in here and to do better service for God. Nowhere in the Bible are we told to join the church to be saved. You are not saved by being baptized. Those who are saved should be baptized because baptism is a symbol of the burial and resurrection of our Lord and we observe the beautiful symbol in obedience to His command and that is why Paul tells us that, "we are buried with Him by baptism" (Rom. 6:4). You are not saved by partaking of the Lord's Supper. The Lord's Supper is a symbol of the broken body and shed blood of Jesus, and while it is an important and beautiful symbol it was never intended to be a Saviour. Baptism and the Lord's Supper are symbols, not the thing symbolized. They are shadows, not the substance. Why will men take the shadow for the substance, and take the symbol for the thing symbolized? Baptism and the Lord's Supper are signboards; so to speak, they point toward the Saviour but will not take you to Him. Baptism and the Lord's Supper are pictures of the way Jesus saved us. He saved us by the Gospel and Paul says the Gospel is the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord. See I Cor. 15:1-5. Since the Bible here says we are saved by the Gospel itself we are not saved by the symbols or pictures of the Gospel. You cherish your mother's picture, but you have sense enough to know that the picture of your mother did not give you birth-you were born of your mother and not born of your mother's picture, so you are saved by the Gospel; the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and not by the symbols of the Gospel. Salvation is the most costly thing in the world. Do you say that you thought it was free? It is free to you and to me but it cost the life of the Son of God. When we offer salvation free it is done because the awful price has been paid by the Lord Jesus Christ. A young man, clean in speech, and who never spoke of girls except in chaste language, and who had a holy reverence for the very name of mother (when her name was called, he showed the deepest concern and sometimes his eyes would fill with tears) was asked one day by a friend how it was that he was such an athlete, so strong physically and yet so tender in his feelings concerning the very word mother, and he told the following story. He said: "When I was born the good doctor who attended my mother took my father to one side and said that he could not save the mother and babe both, that one of them must die. He
could save the life of my mother by killing me. My mother overheard what the doctor said and she said, 'Doctor let me die but save the baby,' and she died that I might live. Her death saved my life; she sacrificed her life for me. That is why I love her name and one day I shall see her and tell her how I love her for giving her life for me. My life was given to me free but it cost the terrible price of my mother's life-she died for me. Then I remember that Jesus died to save my soul. I love mother because she died that I might live and I love Jesus because He died that I might have everlasting life." G. Campbell Morgan said: A coal digger came to me at the close of one of my services and said: "I would give anything to believe that God would forgive my sins, but I cannot believe that He will forgive them if I just turn to Him. It is too cheap." I looked at him, and said: "My dear friend, have you been working today?" "Yes, I was down in the pit." "How did you get out of the pit?" "The way I usually do-I got into the cage and was pulled to the top." "How much did you pay to come out of the pit?" "Pay? Of course I didn't pay anything!" "Were you not afraid to trust yourself in that cage? Was it not too cheap?" "Oh no," he said, "it was cheap for me, but it cost the company a lot of money to sink that shaft." And without another word the truth of that admission broke upon him, and he saw if he could have salvation "without money and without price," it had cost the Infinite God a great price to sink that shaft and rescue lost men.
Established in the Faith (Jerusalem Council) Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 11-21-23 "And so were the churches established in the faith, and increased in number daily." (Acts 16:5)
I. There had been a council at Jerusalem, which had decided the question of keeping the Jewish law. In the fifteenth chapter of Acts we see that certain advocates of the Jewish law had disturbed the churches and declared that the law must be observed and that circumcision must be observed and practiced. "There arose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to keep the Law of Moses." (Verse 5). 1. This Judaizing doctrine caused the Gentile churches to send messengers to Jerusalem to consult the mother church there and get a decision. The Apostles were at Jerusalem and the mother church was there, and they were all Jews, and the apostles were inspired, and certainly they would render a correct decision. You understand that the New Testament had not been written then, and it was necessary to depend on direct inspiration for instruction. We now have the inspired record and the decision of the apostles and the mother church is for our instruction as it is recorded in the New Testament. The record of the inspired decision is in the 15th chapter of Acts. 2. The inspired decision settled the trouble. Acts 15:23-29: "Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas, namely, Judas surnamed Barnabas, and Silas, and they wrote letters by them after this manner: The apostles and elders and brethren send greetings, unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia: Forasmuch as we have heard that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave no such commandment, it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things; that ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood; and from things strangled, and from fornication from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well." This decision settled the question as to the keeping of the law. If they had been still under the Mosaic Law it would have been so decided. But it was not so decided. Live a clean life and
abstain from all connection with idolatry was all that was required so far-as any future of the old law was concerned. The question of ordinary morals was not raised, and hence the decision did not touch on that feature. But the specific question of keeping the Law of Moses was raised and it was decided against keeping the Mosaic Law. Unless we find it taught in the New Testament we are not to observe any law or ceremony. II. "So were the churches established in the faith." In this way the truth became known and the churches established in the faith. The churches appealed to the inspiration of the apostles for their faith and practice and not to the Old Testament Scriptures. We have the inspired testimony of the apostles in the written New Testament and are better provided for in that particular than the early churches were. They were getting the truth in installments, as Paul said, they "knew in part and prophesied in part, but when that which is PERFECT is come then that which is in part shall be done away." (1st Cor. 13). We now have the PERFECT thing, our New Testament, which is a perfect rule of faith and practice. We therefore have better opportunity of knowing the truth than the early churches had. 1. To be established in the faith we must know the faith. We can know the faith by reading our rule of faith and practice, the New Testament. We should "study to show ourselves approved unto God, workmen that need not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." (1 Tim. 2:15). We need not depend on the inspiration of men now for we have the inspired record that fully furnishes us unto all good works. 2. To be established in the faith means to be settled, grounded in the truth. When one is settled in the faith he is not moved about by every wind of doctrine. He knows what he believes and can prove it by the New Testament and such a child of God is a power for good. 3. To be established in the faith is to know the doctrines in their correct order of importance. While all of the doctrines of the New Testament are important yet some are more important than others. There, are fundamentals and ceremonials. The fundamentals are more important than the ceremonials. Repentance, faith, the new birth, justification, security and hope of eternal glory are first in importance. Then comes baptism, the Lord's Supper, and the giving of our substance to help on the work of the Lord. We are "created in Christ Jesus UNTO GOOD WORKS." (Eph. 2:8-10). 4. To be established in the faith is to accept all the teachings of the New Testament without question. These doctrines may cause separation in families, and cause alienation of friends, but there they are just the same, and a man established in the faith will not hesitate to stay with the doctrines no matter what the cost. We may be accounted foolish and even mean, but the doctrines of Christ have always been counted foolishness with men. 5. An established church is a mighty power. It may not be strong in numbers, nor in wealth, nor in social prestige, but if it is established in the faith no manner of evil can defeat it. The craze for numbers and for wealth has almost destroyed many churches, and the craze still prevails. Evangelism is good but it should be scriptural evangelism. We should preach the truth and leave the results with God. Many (even many supposedly sound Baptists) get impatient when there are but few or no conversions in our meetings. This impatience causes many preachers to yield to the temptation to get numbers whether they have been saved or not. With a well established church a new member is always welcome if he gives evidence of genuine repentance and faith, and shows proof of being saved. All others are not wanted.
Excuses Offered By Sinners Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 4-23-25
"I would like to be saved but don't know what to do" Rev. 22:17: The spirit and the bride say come. . . . and whosoever will let him take of the water of life freely." Salvation is free and you do not have to work for it.
"I am not ready. There is time enough yet." James 4:14-15: "Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow, for what is your, life? It is only a vapor that appeareth for it little time and vanisheth away."
"I am not good enough." (a) Titus 3:5 "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy He saved us through the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the holy Ghost." (b) Romans 3:20: "For by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin."
"I try to be good:" (a) James 2:10: "Whosoever shall keep the whole law and yet offend in one point is guilty of all." (b) Deut. 27:26: "Cursed be he who confirmeth not in all the works of His law to do them." Thus you see that it is impossible for one to live good enough to satisfy the demands of the law.
"I am not so great a sinner." (a) Matt. 22:37-31: "Jesus said unto him, thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment." Do you do that?
"The Christian life is too hard." (a) Matt. 11:31: "My yoke is easy and my burden is light."
"Will hurt my business:' (a) Matt. 16:26: "What is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul, or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul."
"I can't hold out." (a) Phil. 1:8: "He that hath begun a good work in you will perform it unto the day of Jesus Christ," God holds for you. " (b) John 10:27-29: "My sheep hear my voice and 1 know them, and they follow me, and I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hands."
"My heart is too bad:" (a) Ez. 26:36: "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you, and I will give you a heart of flesh."
"I am too great a sinner" (a) I Jno. 1:7; "'the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin: (b) Isa. 1:18; "Come now let us reason together saith the Lord. Though, your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow though they be red like crimson they shall be as wool." (c) I Tim. 1:15; "'This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners of whom I am chief."
"Does God want the salvation of all?" (a). II Peter 3:9; God is not slack concerning His promises as some men count slackness but is longsuffering to us ward not willing that any should perish but all come to repentance." (b) Ezekiel 33:11; "Say unto them as 1 live saith the Lord God, l have no pleasure in the death of the wicked but that the wicked turn from his evil way and live."
"Don't feel right." (a) Matt. 11:28; "Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest." God will give you rest. The Bible does not say "feel:" It says believe.
"Does the Bible promise forgiveness when I believe?" Acts 10:43; "To him give all the prophets witness that through his name whosoever believeth should receive remission of sins."
"There are so many hypocrites in the church; I don't care to come in." Romans 14:12: "Every one of us shall give account of himself to God." The hypocrite must answer for himself.
Faith Ben M. Bogard. Baptist World, 6-71 The words "faith" and "believe" are practically the same and are used in the Bible interchangeably. But "believe" is the weaker of the two words. To believe in a thing or a person is to rely upon, to TRUST. The belief that a thing exists is not necessarily believing in that thing. You may believe a bad man exists and be able to call his name and tell where he lives and what he does but you surely do not BELIEVE IN such a man. You believe in the existence of Buddhism or Mohammedanism, but surely you do not BELIEVE in these systems of error. You believe in the existence of a certain Bank or Trust Company and yet you may not BELIEVE IN THE institution for you are not willing to trust it, and you keep your money in another bank that you do believe in, that is one that you are willing to trust. Some people believe in the existence of banks and trust companies and yet do not BELIEVE IN ANY OF THEM and they bury their money or keep it hidden in an old sock or in a drawer somewhere. Such people have faith in, believe in, the hole in the ground or the old sock or the drawer for that is what they are trusting to keep their money. What You TRUST, what you RELY upon is what you believe in. Just to believe that what the Bible says is true is not to BELIEVE IN JESUS CHRIST. The devil believes the Bible is true yet he does not BELIEVE IN JESUS CHRIST. He is an opponent of Christ and does not DEPEND ON CHRIST FOR ANYTHING. Just to believe all the Bible says about Jesus Christ is not FAITH IN CHRIST. If so, then to believe all the Bible says about the devil would be FAITH IN THE DEVIL. Anything short of COMPLETELY RELYING UPON JESUS CHRIST, anything short of FULLY DEPENDING ON JESUS CHRIST, is not faith in Christ. To believe in Jesus Christ is to depend on Him. To partly trust Christ and partly trust what we do, to partly depend on our good works is to stop short of faith in Jesus Christ. So when one asks you what to do to be saved you can give a Bible answer with perfect assurance: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved" (Acts 16:30-31). But this does not mean to merely believe what the Bible says about Jesus Christ. That would be believing things about Jesus Christ and not TRUSTING HIM FOR SALVATION. A sinner FIRST believes that there is a God and that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. That sort of faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Rom. 10:14). Believing that there is a God the sinner recognizes that he is a sinner condemned and lost and that Jesus is man's only Saviour. Feeling condemned, convicted for sin, he repents of his sins which means his mind
changes concerning sin, he resolves in that repentance, as a part of his repentance, to turn away from sin and look to Jesus, depend upon Jesus, to rely upon Jesus for salvation and that dependence, that reliance, that looking to Jesus is faith in Jesus Christ. The belief he had before he repented was a mere belief of the facts about himself and about Jesus Christ. Now in his repentance, in the changing of his mind, he comes to FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST as his Saviour. In Matt. 21:32 we are told that some would not "repent that they might believe." In other words they would not change their minds so that they might DEPEND ON JESUS CHRIST. In Acts 20:21 we read: "Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ." It would be impossible to BELIEVE IN JESUS CHRIST without first changing the mind toward Him. The unbeliever MUST CHANGE HIS MIND or he of necessity will remain in unbelief. If he does change his mind in order to believe that is what the word REPENTANT means. It means, to change the mind. In repentance the mind undergoes a change from unbelief to faith, from enmity against God to LOVE FOR GOD, from love of sin to hatred of sin. When repentance is complete it becomes FAITH AND LOVE, otherwise the mind would not be fully changed. So REPENTANCE AND FAITH ARE INSEPARABLE. It is impossible to believe in Jesus Christ without repentance and it is impossible to repent without exercising faith in Jesus Christ. Logically repentance comes first as the mind must change to get to faith, but in point of time, chronologically, they come at exactly the same time. The long drawn out discussion over which comes first, repentance or faith, comes from the fact that those who contend that faith comes first have no other conception of faith than the mere belief of the facts recorded in the Bible and they do not think that any body ever needs to FULLY TRUST JESUS CHRIST, the thing we mean by faith, because they rely on their good works, such as baptism, and church membership, and charitable works and such like to save them and have never conceived the idea of fully relying on Jesus Christ for salvation. Alas! They may think they have believed on Jesus Christ when the fact is they are BELIEVING ON, that is depending on, WHAT THEY HAVE DONE OR MAY DO. They may believe about Jesus Christ before they repent but they certainly cannot BELIEVE ON JESUS CHRIST, that is FULLY RELY ON HIM until they have repented, that is changed their minds. The devil believes what is recorded in the Bible about Jesus Christ and he trembles. (Jas. 2:19). The faith that saves is a faith that relies on Jesus Christ, and that RESULTS IN GOOD WORKS. (Jas. 2:26). Faith without works is a dead faith. But the faith that saves does two things. First, it brings salvation and then after saving the soul it causes the one thus saved to SERVE THE LORD. We are "saved by grace through faith" but when thus saved we become new creatures, "Created in Christ Jesus UNTO GOOD WORKS" (Eph. 2:8-10). Instead of good works producing salvation it is salvation that produces good works. Saved by grace through faith but the salvation means that we are born of God, and receive the Divine Life (John 3:1-18) and being alive the life EXPRESSES ITSELF IN GOOD WORKS. Good works do not have anything at all to do with saving the soul. The sinner is saved by grace. In Rom. 4:5-6 we read: "To him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness without works." From this passage we see that a man is as fully saved before he works any at all as he ever will be but so soon as he is saved, made secure forever, then he naturally begins to LIVE THE NEW LIFE THAT HAS BEEN IMPLANTED IN HIS SOUL and thus we see his saving faith RESULTS IN A GOOD LIFE but the good life certainly does not cause the salvation. The believer's heart is purified by faith. Read Acts 15:8-9, "And put no difference between them and us purifying their hearts by faith." Thus we see that both Jews and Gentiles are under the same rule, the heart of the Gentile the same as the Jew is purified by faith. God does not have one way to save a Jew and still another way to save a Gentile. Both are saved "By grace through faith - not of works lest any man should boast" (Eph. 2:8-10).
The believer, the one who DEPENDS ON JESUS CHRIST, has eternal life. John 3:36, "He that believeth on him hath everlasting life." If the life obtained at faith is EVERLASTING it follows that there can be no end to it and thus we are assured that perfect safety is ours in Jesus Christ the perfect Saviour. The believer is a child of God. Gal. 3:26-27 says that as "many of you as have been baptized into Jesus Christ have put on Christ." Salvation which means becoming a child of God, comes when we believe and then in baptism we outwardly express that fact by "putting on" Christ. What is meant by "putting on" Christ? It means to IMITATE Christ. The words "put on" come from a Greek word (enduo) which means to IMITATE. So after we become children of God we IMITATE CHRIST BY BEING BAPTIZED. Jesus was baptized and we IMITATE HIM by our baptism. Nobody but a child of God could put on Christ, that is, imitate Him. Christian people, those who undoubtedly had already been baptized, were also told to "put ye on the new man" (Col. 3:9; Eph. 4:24). So while being baptized is indeed imitating Christ it is not the only way we can imitate Him. We imitate Christ. "PUT ON CHRIST" by living a correct life. It only proclaims the fact that we belong to Christ after having become the children of God by faith in Jesus. A wonderful thing about the believer is that he stands justified. Rom. 5:1, "Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ." To be justified means that we are acquitted and are looked upon as if we were perfect, not guilty. This is accomplished on the merits of the blood of Jesus Christ. The Lord does not count sin against one who is justified by the merits of Jesus Christ because His righteousness is set to the believer's credit and the sins of the believer is laid on Jesus Christ. In Isaiah 53 we read that, "On him was laid the iniquity of us all." Jesus Christ became our sin offering and was a complete and perfect SUBSTITUTE for us. Since our sins are laid on Him-Jesus being our life time substitute - it would not be justice to compel us to account at the Judgment bar of God for the sins that Jesus assumed for us. If some one thinks this a dangerous doctrine let me remind you that along with this wonderful security we have the NEW BIRTH which causes us to LOVE GOD and since we love God we serve Him BECAUSE WE WANT TO DO SO. We are not serving God to keep out of hell but we serve Him because we love Him. Surely service rendered because of love is better than service rendered from a fear of punishment. Too many people are hell-scared and not love-bound. I am not serving God in order to get to heaven but I am serving God because I love Him. Since I LOVE THE SERVICE there is no need of threats of hell to scare me into it. If you are trying to work your way to heaven I pity you for that very fact shows you are not trusting Jesus, that very fact shows you never have BELIEVED ON JESUS CHRIST and since you have not trusted Him you are lost no matter how much you may be trying to work your way to heaven. This doctrine, this glorious fact, of salvation by grace through faith, excludes all boasting. Since the Lord did the work for us and keeps us by His power, we have nothing to boast of. But we do have something to be thankful for. Rom. 3:27: "Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? Nay; but by the law of faith." We may not boast of saving ourselves. Faith, according to the Scriptures, precedes baptism. No one should be baptized until after he has fully trusted Jesus Christ. We should believe "WITH ALL OUR HEART" (Acts 8:36). To believe with all the heart means to TRUST FULLY. To trust fully as we have seen brings salvation. So it follows that only those who are saved should be baptized. In Acts 10:43-48 we find a house full of people who first accepted the Lord and were shouting happy and then they were commanded to be baptized. Who in Acts 10th chapter were commanded to be baptized? Those who had "received the Holy Ghost." We are told in John 14:17 that the "world cannot receive the Spirit" and since the world cannot receive the Spirit it follows that those who were in Cornelius' household had ceased to be of the world before they were baptized. Even so should all sinners first TRUST FULLY, that is what we mean by faith, and then after getting salvation by
grace through faith and being born again and thus becoming children of God by faith, they should be baptized. If some one asked what is the use in being baptized if we are already saved it betrays an unregenerate heart. No regenerated man will talk back to God like a saucy child and ask God "what is the use?" A child of God has the love of God shed abroad in his heart (Rom. 5:5) and he loves God and does not ask God "what is the use?" but says, "Speak, Lord, thy servant heareth." But the Lord has explained the use of baptism. It is to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In Rom. 6:5 we are told that we are "planted together in the likeness of his death." It is a picture of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In 1 Peter 3:21 we are told that "The like figure baptism saves us." Saves in a figure. Not in fact but a FIGURE, a SYMBOL of the way by which we are saved. Might as well ask what is the use of having a picture taken of your mother since you already have a mother. The picture of your mother is taken in order to get a likeness of your mother. Even so baptism is a "likeness of his death." A "figure" of the way He saves us. Alas, too many take the figure for the fact and the shadow for the substance. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Trust Him. Not works of any kind.
Feast of the Lord Baptist and Commoner 5-14-35 Ben M. Bogard There are seven great feasts mentioned in the Old Testament and they were symbolic, they were shadows of things to come. Leviticus 23rd chapter describes all of them.
THE PASSOVER This feast consisted of each family taking a lamb and killing it and eating its flesh for supper and sprinkling its blood upon the door posts of their houses. This was to commemorate the deliverance of the Israelites out Of Egypt. When it was instituted, the blood protected the families where the lamb had been eaten and the blood sprinkled on the doorposts for the Lord passed over the house when he saw the blood, hence; it was called the Passover. This was a type of the sacrifice of Christ. I Cor. 5:7 says, "Even Christ our Passover was sacrificed for us." This is a wonderful picture of salvation by grace. It was not the good character of the dwellers in the house that made them safe, but it was the blood on the doorposts. There were many in Egypt who were just as good as those who were under the blood, but they lost the first born in the family not because they were worse than others but because they did not sprinkle the blood on the doorposts. The threat was that the oldest child should be killed where there was no blood and the promise was that they would be perfectly safe if the blood was sprinkled on the doorposts. So we are taught that we are safe under the blood of Jesus our Passover. This was an annual feast and thus once a year the Jews commemorated their escape from Egypt. That Passover was to the Old Testament what the Lord's Supper is to the New Testament, one commemorates the deliverance of Israel from Egypt and the other commemorates our deliverance from the power of the devil by the blood of Jesus Christ. Should the Lord's Supper be observed only once a year, as was the Passover? I do not say. The Bible says, "As oft as ye eat this..."
THE FEAST OF UNLEAVENED BREAD This feast began the next day after the Passover. The Passover signified deliverance from bondage and the Feast of Unleavened Bread signified the new life which began at Passover, It typified the daily walk of those who are saved that we should "purge out the old leaven" and use the "unleavened bread of sincerity and truth." I Cor. 5:7-8. It also typified our feeding on CHRIST, the bread that came down from heaven. Jesus warned his disciples against the "leaven
of the Pharisees" meaning the doctrines of the Pharisees (Matt. 16: 6-12). Cleanliness of life and purity of doctrine were typified by the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
THE FEAST OF THE FIRST FRUITS was observed following the Unleavened Bread feast and it was on the day following the Sabbath. It consisted in bringing the first sheaf harvested in the field and waving it before the Lord in the temple, recognizing the Lord us the giver of the harvest and it typified the resurrection of Christ, who was the first fruits from the dead. 1 Cor. 15:23; "But every man in his own order; Christ the first fruits, afterwards they that are Christ's at his coming."
THE FEAST OF PENTECOST The word Pentecost means fifty and so fifty days after the feast of First Fruits the feast of Pentecost was observed. At this feast two loaves were eaten made from the new wheat of the harvest. At the feast of First Fruits, stalks of grain were waved before the Lord, but at Pentecost the new wheat was made into bread and eaten. Pentecost therefore represented the enjoying of the First Fruits of the harvest. It was not the beginning of the church on the day of Pentecost but the church enjoying the first fruits of the new harvest. Thus the type showed the absurdity of the church beginning on Pentecost but instead showed that the church enjoyed the first fruits of a glorious harvest, not the beginning of the sowing but the blessings of the harvest.
THE FEAST OF TRUMPETS The Feast of Trumpets was used to call the assembly by the blowing of two trumpets made of atonement silver money, and it ushered in the Jewish New Year. It was a type of the time when the Lord shall descend from heaven and call unto himself his people, for "the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God" (I Thess. 4:16). Again we read: "We shall not all sleep (die) but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of all eye, at the last trump, for the, trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed" (I Cor. 15:51-52). How wonderfully the great events in the work of the Lord are pictured by these shadows in the Old Testament.
THE FEAST OF ATONEMENT. The Day of Atonement was the day of symbolic cleansing in Israel. Animals were offered in sacrifice as a substitute for the people. Lev. 16 gives the details of this symbolic atonement and all of this shows how that Christ would become our substitute in suffering and that the SINLESS suffered for the SINFUL. "He who knew no sin became sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." (II Cor. 5:21).
THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES This was the last of the seven set feasts. It continued seven days (Deut. 16:13). The people dwelt in booths during the seven days and they rested. This was symbolic of the rest they enjoyed when they came out of Egypt and typified that rest which we shall enjoy when the battle is over and we rest in Millennial glory. The seven days of rest typifies the complete and final rest of the Lord's people. Any symbolism is likely to be misunderstood, The Jews in many instances took the shadow for the substance. They took the type for the thing typified. Many Jews thought observing these Feasts and other ceremonies gave them salvation when the fact is they should have thought of the Lord Jesus Christ and His FINISHED WORK, which would have saved them. Even so, many people today take the forms and ceremonies of the New Testament as saving ceremonies and think they are saved by observing baptism and the Lord's Supper and Confirmation and anointing with oil and such like instead of looking to Jesus who is man's only Savior. These forms and ceremonies each year among the Jews brought to their remembrance the fact that they were sinners saved by grace. The blood of
bull and goats did not take away sins but did typify the Lamb of God shedding His blood for our salvation. Baptism is a beautiful ceremony and full of instruction if we look upon it as a symbol of the way the Lord saves us, but it becomes a curse when it is thought to actually save us. The Lord's Supper is a beautiful symbol of the suffering of Christ, but it becomes a curse when we take the Lord's Supper us a Savior. The entire symbolism of both the Old and New Testaments teach in pictorial form the doctrine of Salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Those forms are schoolmasters to lead us to Christ. They are signboards to point the way to Christ, but they will never take us to Him.
God Almighty Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 4, 5, 6,-1976 "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty" (Revelation 1:8).
INTRODUCTION While this text identifies Jesus with Jehovah, thus proving His divinity, it also clearly states the nature of the Almighty God. Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, and might, with propriety, be translated, "I am the A and Z." The alphabet begins with A and ends with Z. So all created things begin with God and end with Him. He is the original great first Cause, and at His will, created things will cease to be. "I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty." Beyond conception is the nature and being of God. The language used to define His attributes is the strongest, yet it fails to give a perfect comprehension of God. We cannot know God in the fullest sense, yet we can know Him sufficiently to love and reverence Him. We can admire His lofty character and bow in submission to His will.
THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD We comprehend some of His attributes but we cannot comprehend Him. He is self-existent. "I am the beginning and the ending." In Exodus 8:14 God announces to Moses, "I am that I am." There is no accounting for His being and there is no way to account for the existence of any thing without Him. He is the incomprehensible "I am." The infidels attempt to rule God out of the universe. They have failed because they have failed to account for the existence of anything without Him. The idea of the eternity of matter is harder to believe than the eternity of the "Great I Am." Dead matter is devoid of intelligence, and as a stream never rises higher than its fountain, the present numerous intelligent creatures, such as the lower animals and man, cannot be accounted for from the infidel standpoint. Matter might originate from mind, but we cannot conceive of mind originating from dead matter. The thing cannot be thought of. The existence of God is the only intelligent method of accounting for the existence of anything. The self-existence of God is the most sublime thought that can enter the mind. He is immutable. Heb. 13:8 informs us that "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and for ever." Mal. 3:6, "I, the Lord, change not." The triune God is the only Being that never changes. Men change, things change, the devil changes, but God is always the same. Change implies imperfection. A change must be for the better or for the worse. God cannot change for the better because He is already perfect. He
cannot change for the worse for that would destroy His divinity and He would cease to be God. He cannot change Himself for that would imply the power of self-annihilation and it is the nature of God to exist forever. If He is capable of being annihilated, He is not God. Those Scriptures, which seem to regard God as changing, are to be understood as figurative language. For instance, in order to express the divine displeasure with man, it is said: "It repented the Lord that he had made man" (Gen. 6:6). This language is used so as to convey to the finite mind some idea of God's displeasure. There are conditional promises and threats in the Bible, and when the conditions are fulfilled, as the case may be, the action of God seems to change. "The soul that sinneth, it shall die," (Ezek. 18:4), that is, if it does not repent. "Yet forty days and Nineveh shall be overthrown." But God did not destroy Nineveh for the city repented. The immutability of God is a great comfort to the righteous, but it is a terror to the ungodly. Argument may change men but not God. When He speaks, that ends all controversy. Unchangeable as you find Him today, so you will find Him tomorrow and forever. The Bible says, "God is angry with the wicked every day." He never ceases to be angry with the wicked and it is only a question of time when they will be cut down and consumed. There is no dodging or evading Him. His eye is continually on every sinner and an accurate account of all his misdoing is kept. Their only hope is to get into harmony with God-they must change, God will not. "Except ye repent ye shall all likewise perish." God is one. The old heathen idea that there were many gods was an erroneous idea. "The Lord our God, is one Lord." This does not contradict the idea of the Trinity. We know that many things exist in three forms. Man is matter, mind and spirit. God was manifest in the flesh, in the person of Christ. He is the life giving being in the person of the Holy Spirit, and He is Maker and Ruler of the universe in the person of Jehovah. These three are one. Just how three persons can be one in essence is beyond our comprehension, but is true notwithstanding. The connection between mind and matter is incomprehensible but true. I raise my arm, I do not know how I do it, but it is true and so common an act that we do not think of the mystery. These three are one is a fact but an incomprehensible fact. When we contemplate the wonderful character of God, it humiliates us. How small and insignificant are we when compared with God. Then who am I to rebel against Him? Who am I to question His wisdom or to substitute anything for His positive commands? God could blot me out of existence and He may do it. What good can I do rebelling against Him? Yet, with all His greatness, God is kind, merciful and just. "I pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.
God, Glorious Gospel of the Son Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 12-1973 The word "gospel" means good news. There is great confusion in the minds of some concerning the gospel. I may shock some of you when I tell you that there is very little of the Bible that is the "gospel." There is much in the Bible besides the "good news." Paul tells us that the gospel, the good news, is the DEATH, BURIAL, and RESURRECTION of Jesus. In I Cor. 15:1-5 he says: "Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel ... how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried and that he rose from the dead the third day." Surely the inspired apostle knew what the gospel is and surely he would not have said what is not true in telling us plainly what the gospel is. If Paul, the inspired writer, knew what he was talking about and told the truth, then we know for a certainty what the Gospel is-it is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Let us take an excursion through the Bible and see if all of it is the gospel. I do not think it will take a scholar, nor a theologian to decide when the facts are faced. In the first chapter of Genesis we read that "God created the heavens and the earth." Is that statement a part of the gospel? Anybody can see it is an important historical fact but it says nothing about the death and resurrection of Jesus. It is no part of the good news that Paul says is the gospel Going a little further in Genesis we read that Cain killed his brother, Abel. Is that account of the first murder the gospel? If so please tell me in what sense does that account of murder proclaim the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ? If it does not proclaim the death and resurrection of Jesus, then it is not the gospel. There is much history in the Bible, important in itself, that is not gospel. A little further on in the book of Genesis we read of the flood that destroyed the earth. In what sense was that the good news, the gospel? It is a terrible historical fact but I can't figure out how it, could be good news to anybody. Remember the word gospel means good news. We learn many instructive lessons while reading such history but just why any one should think that such historical narratives are the gospel is more than I can understand. Later on in the pages of the Old Testament we read the history of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the other patriarchs. We read of Joseph being sold into bondage and later how he became the deliverer of his family from starvation and still later how Moses led the Israelites out of Egyptian bondage. What sort of good news was that? Did these historical narratives proclaim the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus? Coming to the prophets, they undoubtedly prophesied of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. This is especially true with the prophet Isaiah. Thus we have the gospel in prophetic vision, the gospel foretold. In the types and shadows of the Old Testament we have the gospel foreshadowed, as, for instance, in the Passover, which in a figure told of the suffering Saviour. In the tabernacle services the offerings of the lambs and the bullocks were types of the suffering of Christ. Thus, we have the gospel in type, the gospel pictures that made those who brought the offerings to understand what Jesus would do for the world when He came into the world to suffer. Bleed and die, then rise from the dead. Those types and shadows were not the gospel. They were types, pictures of the gospel. Just as an architect makes a drawing, a picture of the building he intends to build, so that those concerned can see what sort of a building it shall be, so the types and shadows of the Old Testament were drawings, pictures, of what Jesus would do when He came into the world. But it would be a foolish man who would get the idea that the architect's drawing, his blue print, was a part of the building. A little child would laugh at his ignorance if a man should say that the architect's drawing, his blue print, was in reality a part of the building. The little child, while laughing at such ignorance, could explain to the ignorant man that the drawing was only a picture, not the building itself. Thus we see that many things in the Bible, valuable in themselves, very important in their places, and very helpful to us if we understand them, are no part of the gospel. The gospel is the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. So said the inspired apostle, Paul. Coming over into the New Testament we have many very important things recorded. If we understand these historical records we shall be greatly benefited. But it's foolish to think all these important things are a part of the gospel. When Jesus turned the water into wine at the feast of Cana, His first miracle, was that the gospel? I feel sure all will say, no, that was not the good news. It was in no way a part of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
When Jesus healed the blind man and cleansed the leper, in what way was that a part of His death, burial and resurrection? When Jesus walked on the water, could that have been a part of His death, burial and resurrection? Remember Paul defines the gospel for us in I Cor. 15:1-5 and tells us that the gospel is the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus and anything that is not a part of that cannot be the gospel Repentance is no part of the gospel. Repentance is BECAUSE OF THE GOSPEL. When the sinner hears the gospel, when he is convinced that Jesus died for him and that Jesus was buried and arose again in order that he might be saved, this good news, this gospel, causes the sinner to repent. Repentance is a change of the mind with reference to the gospel and is necessary to accepting the gospel, not a part of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. Faith is no part of the gospel. By faith we believe in the gospel, for we are told that if we believe from the heart that God raised him from the dead we shall be saved. I may believe in a National Bank as a financial institution but my BELIEF is no part of the bank. So I believe in the death, burial, and resurrection, but my faith is no part of the death, burial and resurrection. By faith I accepted the merits of the death, burial and resurrection, but my faith is no part of that glorious event. The Lord's Supper is no part of the gospel. It is a beautiful picture, a symbol, of the suffering and dying Saviour, but the supper is no part of the actual suffering of Jesus. When we partake of the Lord's Supper we show our faith in the suffering Saviour and say by our actions that we believe the Lord shall return to the earth again. But this beautiful symbol is not a part of the thing it symbolizes. Baptism is no part of the gospel. It is a" LIKENESS" of the burial and resurrection, but it is not a part of it. Paul, in Rom. 6:5 says, "We are planted together in the likeness of His death, and we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection." The same Paul who said that the gospel was the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, also said that baptism is a likeness of the same death, burial and resurrection. II Peter 3:21, Peter said: LIKE FIGURE, whereunto even baptism doth also now save us," Peter says baptism saves in a FIGURE. He said baptism is a LIKE figure. Like what? He is writing about Noah being saved by water and says that baptism is a "LIKE figure." Noah was a saved man a long time before the water of the flood came, but when the water of the flood came it PROVED, it MANIFESTED, SHOWED Noah's salvation. So a child of God is first saved and later his baptism SHOWS it, MANIFESTS it. For that reason Peter says that just as Noah was saved in a figure by water so we in a similar or like figure are saved by baptism. Unless the water of the flood ACTUALLY MADE NOAH A CHILD OF GOD, then baptism does not actually make us children of God. But if the water of the flood MANIFESTED the fact that NOAH was a saved man, even so the water of baptism MANIFESTS the fact that we are saved. In I Cor. 4:15 Paul says of the Corinthians: "In Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel." The word translated "begotten" is the same word that is translated "born" as, for instance, when Jesus told Nicodemus he must be "born again." It is the same word used everywhere in the New Testament for the new birth. The word means to bring into life. The Greek word is egenesa and is the only word to express the idea of the NEW BIRTH. So Paul said to these Corinthians. Read in I Cor. 1:14-17 where that same Paul said to these same people: "I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius . . . also the household of Stephenas . . . for Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel." Put these statements together. Paul brought into life all of them BY THE GOSPEL, but he DID NOT BAPTIZE THEM. If it takes baptism to bring a sinner to life then Paul certainly did not do what he said he did. He SAID he BROUGHT ALL OF THEM INTO LIFE by the gospel, but he DID NOT BAPTIZE THEM. It won't do to say that these Corinthians were baptized by
others and others helped to save them, because Paul said HE DID THE THING that brought them into life. "I have begotten" (egennesa literally did beget) you through the gospel." But I DID NOT baptize you. He did not say he helped others to bring these Corinthians to life. He did not say he had a part in their having been BROUGHT TO LIFE, but he said he did it himself. "I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU TO LIFE through the gospel," but I did not baptize you. This proves that baptism is no part of the gospel, any more than your mother's picture is a part of your mother, nor more than the architect's drawing of the prospective building is a part of the building. It is a beautiful picture, a "LIKENESS" and symbol of the gospel, but not a part of it. Paul said: "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ (the good news): for it is the power of God unto salvation, to everyone that believeth" (Rom. 1:16). That same Paul says, I Cor. 15:1-5; "Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel . . . by which also you are saved." SAVED BY THE GOSPEL, and he explains in the next clause of that passage that he meant by the gospel, the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. That glorious fact saves, not the picture of it. Faith does not save. The GOSPEL saves THROUGH faith. Repentance does not save, but the GOSPEL saves when we repent. Baptism does not save, but the GOSPEL, of which baptism is a beautiful picture, does save. I was born of my mother, not born of my mother's picture. I point to my mother's picture and say: That is my mother, and any simpleton would understand that I meant that it was my mother's picture. So I point to baptism and say that baptism saves and any simpleton ought to know, in the light of the Scriptures, that I mean baptism is a likeness, a figure of my salvation. The Jews got the idea that the Old Testament types, such as the burnt offerings and the Passover, were for the purpose of saving them. Paul explained that the blood of bulls and goats could not take away sin (Heb. 10:4). But many a Jew lived and died in hope of salvation by observing these ceremonies. The ceremonies, the types and shadows of the Old Testament were intended to help the Jew to look forward to Jesus who was the real Saviour for them. But many never got the idea and they died trusting types and shadows. So with many in this age. They take the shadow for the substance. The symbol for the thing symbolized, and never gets the true idea of trusting Jesus, the crucified, buried and risen Jesus, for salvation. When I presented this Biblical view a few years ago to an opponent in debate, he thought he discovered a wonderful objection to the Baptist Church and said, "Since baptism is no part of the gospel and you can't be a Baptist without being baptized, then it follows that the gospel alone will not make a Baptist. I said, "Certainly the gospel alone will not make a Baptist. The gospel saves the soul and then the saved one is qualified for baptism and when baptized he will be a Baptist." It is better to be a Baptist than to be merely a Christian for a Baptist is an OBEDIENT Christian. I might come back and ask if one must partake of the Lord's Supper in order to obtain the forgiveness of sins and any intelligent Bible reader will say that we are forgiven, born again, before we partake of the Lord's Supper. Then since we obtain salvation before we take the supper it follows that the Lord's Supper is not a part of the gospel for it is certain we cannot obtain salvation without the gospel and we do obtain salvation - present salvation -before we partake of the supper. If some one says that all the New Testament commandments are in the gospel, then it will take obedience to ALL OF THE NEW TESTAMENT COMMANDS to obtain forgiveness of sins or present salvation. That is absurd, for if that be true, then one must contribute his money to help the poor before he gets remission of sins and that would put salvation on a MONEY BASIS! The GOSPEL SAVES and obedience to all the commands follow. The new birth first, then obedience follows. When one is born again, the love of God is shed abroad in his heart and he obeys because of love. In this sermon we have seen that we have the gospel in PROPHECY, and in TYPES AND SHADOWS, and that, we have the FACTS OF THE GOSPEL, and, after
that, the symbols of the gospel, in baptism and the Lord's Supper. It is a joy to declare unto you the gospel, by which you are saved, how that Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures, and that He was buried, and arose again the third day according to the scriptures and if you believe from the heart this gospel you shall be saved.
God's Grace Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World; 7-74 (Paper read by Ben M. Bogard at Brother's Union, Mexico, Mo.)
"For by grace are ye saved through faith," Eph. 2:8. Paul's greatest theme is grace. More is said of grace in Paul's fourteen epistles than is found in all the Bible besides. It seems he was especially raised up to emphasize this greatest subject and there is no excuse for any one to misunderstand since Paul has made it so plain. Paul's epistle to the Romans is his greatest epistle and I shall merely reproduce his argument on the subject as it appears in his epistle.
I. The Need of Grace, Rom. 1:18 "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men" This includes all of us for we are told in another Scripture that "there is none righteous." The condition of the world and its natural state of sin is described in Romans 1:28-32: "And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do things which are not convenient, being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity, whispers, back-biters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, with-out natural affection, implacable, unmerciful; who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them." When we consider that perfection is the
only standard, which will please God and then read this faithful description of natural depravity we have a forcible reminder of the fact that we need grace, that is, unmerited favor. A description of the dreadful condition of the world is given in Romans 3:9-19; ".. For we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin; as it is written, there is none righteous, no, not, one; there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of their way, they are, together become unprofitable there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips; whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness; their feet are swift, to shed blood; destruction and misery are in their ways: and the way of peace have they not known: there is no fear of God before their eyes. Now we know that what things-soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God." If this is a true description of man's
natural condition, he stands greatly in need of grace. He can never merit the favor of God, then if he gets any favor from God it must he unmerited favor which is the definition of grace. The apostle states very plainly that we cannot be saved by works, however good works may be done. Rom. 3:20; "Therefore by the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified." He says the same thing, only in other words, in Ephesians 2:9: "Not of works, lest any man should boast." So it is useless for a sinner to endeavor to bring himself into favor with God by obedience to the law. It is by grace we are saved. Romans 3:24-31; "Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus; whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood ... to declare (I say), at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? Nay, but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law. Is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also of the Gentiles?
Yes, of the Gentiles also; seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and the uncircumcised through faith. Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law." The idea here is clear. All who are not Christians are held under the law.
They are expected to keep the whole law. When they fail to keep it they must pay the penalty themselves. The matter is altogether different with the child of God. He is "no longer under the law but under grace." Christ meets all his obligations for him by becoming his substitute. Christ becomes a protector-he stands between the Christian and danger. To illustrate. A large building is being erected on a busy street. The passersby are in danger because of falling brick and other building material. In order to protect the people a scaffold is built over the sidewalk the full length of the building. The law of gravity has as much power as it ever had and the brick will fall as they ever fall but they will spend their force on the scaffold instead of the people's heads. The sinner is represented by the people who pass by the building before the scaffold is erected. The law of gravity sends the brick toward the earth and they strike and kill the people so the sinner is condemned and crushed by the law of a holy God. The Christian is represented by the people who pass by the building after the scaffold is built for their protection. The bricks are sent toward the earth by the law of gravity and they fall with terrific force but they strike the scaffold and the people beneath are Not hurt. So Christ becomes a scaffold of protection. The righteous law of God is hurled toward the Christian, it strikes Christ, his representative. This is what grace does for us. That is what the Lord has decreed and truly we can say, "by grace are we saved."
II. This grace is reserved for no special race of people. The Jews thought it belonged exclusively to them. Only the circumcised had a right to God's favor according to Jewish ideas. Paul meets this heresy by using Abraham as an illustration. He showed that Abraham received grace and was a favorite child of God before he was circumcised. Rom. 4:9-12; ". . . For we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness. How was it, then reckoned? When he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision. And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all them that believe though they be not circumcised; that righteousness might be imputed to them also, and the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised."
The teaching of all this is that grace is not given because of family, race, ceremony, or any earthly distinction. The highly civilized need it as much as the Hottentot and the educated need it as much as the ignorant or unlearned. The Jew with all his other blessings needs grace as much as any Gentile. The church member cannot live one moment as a Christian without grace. The infidel will be lost not because of his infidelity but because he has not received grace. We are saved by grace or lost for the lack of it.
III. This doctrine of grace is not an inducement for a Christian to sin. In discussing this question we will frequently meet with people who will say: "If I believed that my salvation was altogether in the hands of God, and my works had nothing to do with bringing about my salvation and if my works can have nothing to do with my future state, I would simply turn myself loose and take my fill of sin." When a man says this he convicts himself of loving sin. If a man wants to take his fill of sin, it is proof that he loves sin. If he loves sin he cannot be a child of God. A true child of God does right, not because he is afraid of Hell, not for the purpose of saving himself but he does right because he loves to do right. In his new birth "old things passed away and behold all things became new." If there were no Heaven or
Hell he would still do right from the love of it. Rom. 6:11-14: "Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin, therefore, reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin; but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead. and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you; for ye are not under the law, but under grace."
IV. The doctrine of grace does not do away with the use of the law. The law still has its use. The law teaches us right from wrong . It condemns the sinner and shows him the necessity of grace. Rom. 7:7: "What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet."
The law is like a mirror. A mirror will show us a dirty face, but a mirror was never known to wash one. The law is like a signboard. A signboard will show us how to go, but it was never known to take a man anywhere. So the law holds up a standard of perfect righteousness and thus the sinner is condemned and forced to surrender to Christ or acknowledge that he ought to perish. But the law never saves; it merely shows the need of a Saviour.
V. This grace makes us secure. Rom. 8:1; "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus." (1) The fact that no sin is counted against us but it is all counted against Christ makes us safe. Rom. 4:8, "Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin." A Christian has no sin counted against him. His sins are all laid on Christ, his Substitute, who is able to bear them. (2) The fact that our righteousness is an imputed righteousness makes us secure. Rom. 4:5, "But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." (3) The fact that God has from all eternity purposed the salvation of the Christian makes him secure. He not only has grace but this grace is according to his eternal decree. Rom. 8:28-31: "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that He might be the first born among many brethren. Moreover, whom He did predestinate, them He also called: and whom He called, them He also justified: and whom He justified, them He also glorified. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?"
VI. The doctrine of grace does not diminish our interest in the salvation of the whole world. Paul was an active missionary and sacrificed his life for the cause. His language on the subject is unmistakably plain. Rom. 9:1-3, "I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost, that I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart. For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh." Could language be stronger? So much in earnest is Paul about the Salvation of the Jews that he said he "could wish himself accursed for his brethren." Not his brethren in Christ but his "kinsmen to the flesh." I fear we are not so much in earnest as this. The Apostle believed and gloried in the doctrine of election and predestination. No man believed more strongly than he in the great doctrine of salvation by grace without works and yet we see him groaning in spirit and having great heaviness over the spiritual condition of the Jews. So we may believe in election, predestination, foreordination, and all kindred doctrines and glory in them and yet the command stares us in the face; "Go ye into all the world and
preach the gospel to every creature." Paul felt this and acted upon it. He braved the wilderness and the sea. He underwent persecutions from heathen and Jews, and was in peril night and day, that he might obey Christ in preaching the Gospel to every creature. Let us never use Paul or his doctrine as an argument against missions. Even while the apostle is discussing the terrible decrees of God he makes an argument in favor of missions. He makes the statement in Rom. 9:15-20, that God raised up Pharaoh to do the mischievous work which he did and comments on it by saying, "Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth," and supposing that some would raise an objection, said farther: "Nay but, 0 man, who are they that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? Hast not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honor and another unto dishonor." This is certainly a strong statement of the doctrine of predestination yet hear him a few verses further on in Romans 10:1: "Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved." He was longing for the salvation of the Jews. Do we long and pray for the salvation of the Jews? Do we even long and pray for the salvation of our own Gentile people? If we could only led the people to praying for the salvation of all men they would soon be as enthusiastic as Paul was, then they would be willing to make some sacrifice that those who now sit in darkness might be brought into the light and liberty of the children of God. Paul concludes this part of his argument by saying: "For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall they preach except they be sent? (Rom. 10:12-15). Verily the apostle who talked most of grace and election and foreknowledge was the most enthusiastic missionary and made the best arguments for mission work, and made the greatest sacrifices in working as missionary making three long, laborious mission tours. Paul believed in salvation by grace but he also believed God used means to bring about His salvation and although grace is free, it is brought to the sinner in earthen vessels.
God's Great Fundamentals Baptist Commoner, 4-23-1919 That there is a great self-existing God, the Creator of all things, is the only reasonable solution of the mystery of existence. The evolution theory of existence denies the existence of any first great Cause. It starts with "protoplasm" but fails to account for the existence of "protoplasm" whatever that may be conceived to be, for, bear in mind, no man every saw any protoplasm. It is at best a guess, or, as the evolutionists themselves declare, only "a working hypothesis" which means a working guess or supposition, so evolution starts with a guess and is based on a supposition. A theory that has a guess for a start and a supposition for a foundation should, at least, be modest in its claims. EVOLUTION, as an explanation of the existence of all things material, is UNREASONABLE. What is reason? It is judging that which we do not see and have not actually experienced by what we do see and have experienced. We reason that corn, if planted in wintertime, will rot and we shall not enjoy a harvest. Why do we thus conclude? Because we have seen it done over
and over again and, also, have the record of it having been done for generations in the past. What is may have been and may continue to be. That is reason. We also see that corn, under certain cultural conditions, will change in form and in quality. This cultivation and breeding may continue indefinitely, but to what limit no one knows. We also know that corn will not improve itself. The most highly improved corn, if planted under ordinary conditions and the cultural methods continue to be neglected, will revert back to its old primitive condition. So with the breeding and developing of animals. They are subject to a very high development by cultural methods but that same fine stock, thus developed, will, if let alone, revert back to the old scrub stock from whence it came. There is nothing in nature to show that anything let alone by a higher power, will develop, but, under the culture of a higher power, the development may be indefinite. Thus, a man is a higher power than a hog and a man may develop the hog to wonderful limits as has been done, but in the development, the hog remains a hog-just a developed hog-not developed into some other sort of animal. Let the hog alone for a few years and discontinue the cultural methods and that same breed of hogs will revert to the old scrub stock from whence it came. This is true of vegetables, fruits and animals. It is true of mankind. The habits of life, climate and culture develop different types of people, hence the different races, colors, sizes, morals and intellect. But, if by some means the type found in one part of the earth can be transplanted to another environment, the type will change, but in all the changes, the type, one and all continues to be men and women, and not some other sort of animal. Thus, we see there is nothing in what we see or have experienced or have any record of that will show one sort of animal has developed until it changes to some other sort of animal. Since no one ever saw such a change, no one ever experienced such a change, and we have no record of such a change ever having been made, it follows that it is contrary to reason such a change ever has been made. It will, therefore, necessarily follow that evolution is unreasonable. We are reasonable beings and why should we throw to the winds our reason by adopting a notion created in an infidel brain? The Bible tells us God created of one blood all nations of men (Acts 17:26). The Bible tells us everything produces after its kind Gen. 1:24-25). We find in actual experience and observation that this is true, so the Bible furnishes us the only reasonable statement of the existence of things. It, therefore, follows that it is reasonable to believe what the Bible says, for what the Bible says conforms to reason and evolution does not. The Bible declares that God created the heaven and the earth. The order of creation mentioned in Genesis is the exact order discovered by geologists in their examinations of fossils found in the earth. The order mentioned in the Bible is: 1. Mineral life 2. Plant life 3. Animal life 4. Human life. Science says it, but the Bible said it first. The Bible declares that the first animal life was in the water, then came birds, then dry land animals, then the human being (Gen. 1:222). Geology declares it too, but the Bible said it first. This proves that the Bible is of supernatural origin, that it was not invented by men, for it was written in advance of such knowledge among men. It is, therefore, of divine origin. The Bible, being of divine origin, declares there is a God. Reason cannot contradict this statement. The statement is supported by the very good reason that all the facts, even the very order of existence, is mentioned in the Bible in perfect harmony with the known facts discovered in science. The only contradiction existing between the Bible and what we know as science is where science goes to guessing. When science speaks with knowledge, there is always perfect harmony between science and the Bible. Then, it must be the reasonable thing to believe the Bible.
There is a God. This, the Bible declares and reason corroborates and we should enquire as to who He is and what He is. At best, men only worship a concept. No man has seen God at any time. We have evidence there is a God both from the Bible and from nature, for the God of the Bible is the God of nature, but we have not seen Him. We must, therefore, arrive at some conclusion as to what God is and our conception of what God is will be our God. If you have a false conception of what God is, you will be worshipping a false God. If you have a true conception of God you will be worshipping the true God. Look well to your conception of God. After Jesus rose from the dead He met His disciples suddenly and they thought they saw a spirit, but Jesus said, "Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have" (Luke 24:39). So, to make a physical image of God is the ignorance of idolatry. But if you have such an image in your mind when you worship, how much better is it than to have it in stone? When I was a boy, I thought of God as an old man, a perfect giant in stature, very tall, with long, white whiskers. In my childish prayers, I prayed to the old man. The older people about me had impressed this idea on me by calling God "the good man," and the devil, "the bad man." When I prayed to such a man, I was worshipping an idol and did not know it. It was an idol created by my own brain. Do you worship an idol, or do you worship the Spirit God? God is a Spirit. You must get a spiritual conception of Him. The spiritual conception of God is when we find what He has revealed Himself to be and we combine the attributes of God into one Being and worship that. God is GOOD. God is PERFECT. God is LOVE. God is MERCIFUL. God is ALL-POWERFUL. God is OMNISCIENT-that is, He has perfect knowledge. God is SUPREME. Combine all these elements in God's character and worship that and you are a true worshipper of God. The careful thinker will see that if this position is correct, and it undoubtedly is, then there are many who think they are worshippers of God who are really worshippers of idols of their own creation, what they conceived to be God. Worshipping this false conception of God, not God Himself. Knowing men could not get a correct conception of God by their own reasoning, God not only stated His attributes plainly in the Bible, but He revealed Himself in Jesus Christ. Jesus was God manifested and those who want to get a correct understanding of the character of God can get it by observing the character of Jesus as He is revealed in His wonderful life and death on the cross. Jesus was LOVE, Jesus was POWERFUL, Jesus was MERCIFUL. Jesus was KIND, Jesus was JUST, Jesus was RIGHTEOUS, Jesus was perfect in KNOWLEDGE. In fact, He displayed in actual bodily life all the character of God. As Paul puts it, ". . . God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory" (I Timothy 3:16). "He that loveth is born of God" (I John 4:7). "If ye love me keep my commandments," said Jesus. Is the Bible conception of God, as revealed in words and in the life of Jesus, what you love? If so, you are a child of God. If you are not in love with righteousness, mercy, justness, perfectness, omnipotence and goodness, then you are a stranger to God. If you love these things, it will make a good man of you, for you have been born of God and, thus, partake of the divine nature.
God's Great Love Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 11, 12- 1976 John 3:16: "For God SO LOVED the world, that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
We are prone to think of God as a mighty Being who rules the universe and forget His GREAT LOVE. God is love and it is a joy to think of Him in terms of love. God is not a blind force for He loves. 1. God is Powerful. We see that manifested in creation and in His supporting and controlling the universe. I like to think of His POWER because that power will be exerted in my behalf in time of need. He loves me and will use all His power for my benefit. 2. God is Omniscient. He knows all things and it is a joy to think that He can not be outwitted by the devil. All his wisdom and knowledge will be used for the benefit of those He loves. 3. God Is Omnipresent. He is everywhere and hence nothing can be hid from His all-seeing eye. Since He is everywhere I love to think that His love will not permit me to get away from Him for He is with me always, even to the end.
GOD'S LOVE IS MANIFESTED IN SEVERAL WAYS 1. In His Providence. The word providence means PROVIDENCE. He has provided all we need and for every ill He has an antidote. We are assured by the Apostle Paul that "all things are yours-things present and things to come." (I Cor. 3:21-23). 2. In His Protection. He protects us from evil. He overrules evil for good. He even forces the devil to work for our good. Romans 8:28 says: "All things work together for good to them that love God." 3. In His Instructions. His written instructions are in the Bible and it is the "all-sufficient rule of faith and practice." We do not need to grope in darkness for His word is "a lamp to our feet and light to our path." We would not know what to do if it were not for His written word. 4. In Giving His Son to Die. He so loved us that He gave His only begotten Son to die for us. Jesus gave us a perfect example and we should follow in His steps. But the example would do us no good if He had not died for us. 5. In Warning Us of Danger. He is my friend who warns me of danger. God willeth not the death of any but warns us of danger and calls all to repentance.
LOVE OUTRAGED IS A TERRIBLE THING God does not FORCE people to repent and believe. He will take none to heaven against their will. To take a man to heaven against his will would be cruelty to him for he would be out of harmony with heaven's people and heaven's music and glory. The things the unsaved man likes will none of them be in heaven. The things he has disliked and spurned will all be there. The company he has kept all his life will be on the outside of heaven and all the company he has disliked and avoided will be in heaven. What greater punishment could be heaped upon a man than to put him into such uncongenial company and to force him to serve God and praise Him forever, which he has all his life refused to do? It would be mercy to such a man to send him to hell where he would have his old companions and fellowships.
WHEN ONE REFUSES GOD'S LOVE AND DIES IN HIS SINS HE WILL BE OUT OF REACH OF GOD'S LOVE. Prov. 1:24-30: "Because I have called and ye refused, I have stretched out my hand and no man regarded; but ye have set at nought all my counsel and would none of my reproof; I will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh-then shall they call upon Me and I will not answer-for they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord."
God's Peculiar People Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 2, 3-1976 "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light" (I Pete r 2:9). God's people are peculiar in the following particulars: 1. They are a chosen people, chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world" (Eph, 1:4, The text announces they are a chosen people and Paul declares they were chosen "before the foundation of the world that they should be holy and without blame before him in love." This choosing was not an arbitrary, fatalistic choosing, but they were chosen in Christ. We get into Christ by faith. God, in other words, chose for His people only those who are Christ. Those outside of Christ are children of the devil. Jesus said to the Pharisees: "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do" (John 8:4) Thus, God's people are distinguished from the children of the devil. 2. They are all priests. "A royal priesthood" declares the text, and therefore we do not have special priests to whom we go for He, " Jesus," is our High Priest and each of us common priests go directly to Him without the intervention of an earthly medium. When Jesus died on the cross the veil of the temple that shut out the people from coming directly to the holy of Hollis for themselves was rent in twain from top to bottom. (Matt. 27:51). Thus, we see God tore that veil away and now every man can come directly to God himself. The Roman Catholic priesthood, the Mormon priesthood, and other priesthood's are an imitation of the old Jewish priesthood that was done away in Jesus Christ. But the priestly idea seems to prevail among many who do not have formal priests. Many seem to think that we are saved by what somebody else does for us and seem to think it impossible for a man to come to God for himself and, therefore, we have baptismal salvation, and such like. But, the Lord will admit any man to His audience who comes confessing his sins. 3. They are peculiar in that they are sacred in the eyes of the Lord. "An holy nation" means they are sacred in God's sight. Certainly, the word holy is not used in its primary sense of sinlessness for none are sinless but it is used in the secondary sense of sacred. God's people are sacred to Him, as sacred as a true wife is to a true husband, and whatever is done to one of the Lord's people is considered as if done to the Lord Himself (Matt. 25:31-36). Whatever we have done unto the very least of God's children He says "ye have done it unto me." We have a jealous protector in our Father in Heaven. 4. They are peculiar in that they have been "born again." The text puts it under the idea of being brought "from darkness to light." Satan's kingdom is a kingdom of darkness and those who follow Satan walk in darkness, but we are children of the light. This does not mean physical darkness, or physical light. So far as physical darkness and light is concerned, the wicked have as much of both as we do. In that particular there is no difference. The Lord's people have spiritual light. They have become partakers of the nature of God. Born again by the power of God's Spirit. (John 3:1-7). "Except a man be born again he can not see the kingdom of God," that is, he cannot perceive, does not enjoy the light of God's glorious dominion over the hearts of men.
God's Mighty Love Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 2-22-1922 "To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col. 1:27).
That the Gentiles should have the gospel and be saved by Christ was a great mystery to the Jews who had always been made to believe that salvation was for the Jews only. But Paul was chosen as the special apostle to the Gentiles and made it known that both Jew and Gentile could be saved. The middle wall of partition was broken down by the death of Christ and now there is neither Jew nor Greek, bond nor free, but all are one in Christ. To have Christ enthroned in the heart means much, and it may be itemized as follows: 1. The conscience will be purified. Many think the conscience is a safe guide, but the fact is the conscience is in many cases, very deceptive and impure. Heb. 10:22: ". . . Having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience . . ." Those who take their consciences as guides should remember that the conscience may be controlled by the devil. Some consciences are without feeling. ". . . Having their conscience seared with a hot iron . . ." (I Tim. 4:2). But with Christ in us we have our conscience purified. 2. Our Understanding will be cleared by the Word of God. II Tim. 3:15: "From a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus." The Bible is God's word and we should not depend on dreams or impressions but hide the Word of God in our hearts and then we shall have real understanding of God and His ways. 3. The imagination will be exalted. By imagination is meant the images, which come into the mind when we meditate. We visualize the glories of heaven and the future state of the righteous. We meditate upon divine things. Our affections are set on things above. Col. 3:2: "Set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth." Imagination may cause great good or great evil. It all depends on where the imagination soars. 4. An imperial will installed that controls our lives. The will is a great power that God respects. It is the will that controls actions and it is the will that accomplishes results. The will of man is almost omnipotent. It can accomplish wonders where it seems impossible. The sinner must will to be saved or he shall be lost. The child of God must will to do the will of God and then he shall know of the doctrine. John 7:17: "If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God." The reason so many remain in ignorance of the truth is because they do not want the truth. Once you come to the point you are determined to know the truth you have the promise that you shall know what the truth is. You may read the Bible with preconceived opinions until you die and never learn the truth, but when you read the Bible with this determination that you want the truth and that you will sacrifice everything for the truth even to leaving your family and friends and even to leaving your church, which you have loved all through the years, then you have the assurance that you shall have the truth. The result is that glory awaits the one who has Christ enthroned in his heart. "Christ in us THE HOPE OF GLORY." Not the hope of salvation, for we already have that, if Christ is in us, but have not yet entered into glory and so we hope for it. But the hope is sure and steadfast and we shall not be disappointed.
God, the Great Healer Ben M. Bogard Baptist World, 2-1970 We are to be concerned as to the best methods of dealing with sickness and suffering, whether the cause be a breach of moral law or ignorance of and variance with the physical laws. The first great reference to physical healing is found in Exodus 15:23-26. The late Dr. A. T. Pierson once said that generally when a doctrine is first mentioned in the Bible, there one finds its principle outlined and defined. So here it is. As a rule the heart of this portion is taken out of its context, so that we venture to quote the passage in full, as follows: "And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter; therefore the name of it was called Marah. And the people murmured against
Moses, saying, 'What shall we drink?' And he cried unto Jehovah and Jehovah showed him a tree, and he cast it into the waters, and the waters were made sweet. There he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them; and he said, `If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of Jehovah thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his eyes, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases upon thee, which I have put upon the Egyptians, for I am Jehovah and healeth thee."
As a rule the quotation of this portion is begun with the words, "There he made for them a statute," and the concluding words are triumphantly quoted: "for I am Jehovah that healeth thee." We are thankful that God here revealed Himself as JEHOVAH ROPHI, THE LORD, THE HEALER. At once our friends, whose mistake at this point we are anxious to correct, make the assertion that, the Lord being our Healer, we do not need any other, and the use of natural methods, or the service of the doctor, becomes unnecessary, if not actually wrong. But let us consider the passage.
The Occasion of the Covenant The people were journeying through a tropical country and came to the bitter waters of Marah. Great numbers of Missionaries in the tropics come to similar pools breeding disease and death. Anyone who knows of these conditions would know what the effect would be upon an army of people having no other supply. The Israelites murmured against these conditions and against Moses. "And he cried unto Jehovah, and Jehovah showed him a tree, and he cast it into the waters, and the waters were made sweet." The primary assumption of our friends at this point is expressly contradicted. When God undertook to be healer of His people instead of discrediting and prohibiting the use of means, He expressly guided Moses to their right employment and, by the use of a tree, healed the bitter waters, and, we have no doubt, at the same time healed His people. When disease has all but wiped out expedition after expedition of missionaries in tropical lands, many a heart cried out to God, and God showed us a tree (the Willow---quinine tree) which has counteracted the deadly effects of the malaria mosquito-infected region where white men could scarcely ever survive, until today missionaries in the same regions have health records that compare favorably with those of the homelands. We claim, therefore, that God has chosen to use means and to guide in their right selection for the healing and health of His people.
Six Great Natural Laws When God undertook to be the Healer of His people, instead of making unnecessary the observance of the health laws, He undertook to instruct His people in them. Through Moses He gave to the Children of Israel the basic principles of health, and placed that nation on a physical plane so advanced that our modern science is only beginning to stumble up to it. The six great laws of health, divinely given, if observed today with the teaching of God, would insure the healthfulness of any nation submitting to them. For the benefit of any of our hearers and readers to whom these are not apparent, let me state the great laws. 1. SANITATION. Around the camp of Israel all fetid matter was to be either burned or buried. Exodus 29:14. Even the offal from the sacrifices was to be entirely consumed in the great incinerating plant, which was kept perpetually burning outside the bounds of Israel's encampment. God's instructions to Moses were that the camp was to be kept so clean that it should be fit at any time for divine inspection, and ready for the Divine Presence. Deut. 23:12, 14. The enforcement of this sanitation law and the two succeeding ones reveals the reason why Moses was able to lead an army of more than a million for forty years without a single epidemic, except those directly due to sin.
2. STERILIZATION. Whenever an Israelite touched that which was unclean or diseased, he was commanded to wash himself. The contact of his vessels of eating and drinking with any form of defilement was to be remedied by thorough washing or by passing through the fire. The most modern antiseptic ideas were embodied. Lev. 11:29-40. Num. 19:11; 31:22 Very few people pay much attention to these laws. 3. QUARANTINE. Immediately there was any indication of an infectious disease in the camp of Israel, the subject was put out side the camp with all Dispatch and the strictest quarantine enforced. Num. 5:4; Lev. 13, 14. We make bold to say that no other provision is necessary to prevent the spread of infectious diseases than the strict observance of these two laws: cleansing against infection and isolation against contagion. Our modern doctors have yet some things to lay aside in this regard. They need to learn in other spheres what Lister taught them in surgery, that all that was necessary was absolute antiseptic condition; no healing lotions and salves but sterile water being required. At this point we would ask our friends who believe that God's way of healing is only by supernatural means, why Jehovah, the Healer, issued such instructions relative to infectious diseases. Why order His people when thus afflicted to be put outside the camp and to be subject to a weekly examination instead of ordering the priests to pray and claim immediate supernatural healing? 4. HYGIENE AND DIETETICS. As the conserver of the health of His people, God taught them concerning their diet. The divine classification in Lev. 11 was as perfect as any set of laws to govern a nation could be. In a day when germs had never been discovered by the microscope, and, in consequence, methods for counteracting their malign influence were unknown, God ruled out the scavengers of the heavens, the earth, and the great deep as unfit for food. God eliminated the danger points from the diet of His chosen people. 5. PHYSICAL CULTURE. Many of the ills of civilization are due to our sedentary life. Professional men were a suburban lot. They could only minister in their sacred office for a few weeks at a time, and then they returned to the country garden. Josh. 21:13-19; Luke 1:8-23. By divine appointment every male had to appear three times each year at Jerusalem, and this involved days of journeying to and fro. During the Feast of Tabernacles the people spent two weeks in the open air under their leafy booths. Deut. 16:16. 6. RECUPERATION. God ordained that His people should observe the seventh day as a rest day. The seventh week and the seventh month were also marked off for physical and spiritual rest, having embodied in their feasts sabbatical conditions. Then, too, the seventh year had rolled around, and both the forty-ninth and fiftieth were to be perfect years of rest. No nation of people could honor God in the observance of so many Sabbaths, without adding years to their life, and without marked physical blessings. Those who rigidly observe even one day in seven are marked for longevity These six laws are embodied in the statutes, which God gave to Israel. They were physical laws, and the breach of them involved penalties. The Jews made the mistake of regarding them as moral laws and believed that the eating of things forbidden in Lev. 21 involved moral impurity, and that to eat with unwashed hands implied the same. Our Lord Himself made distinction between the ceremonies and the morals of the law and showed that eating and drinking does not defile the heart.
God's usual way in dealing with the ills that flow through the ignorant breach of physical laws is by the use of natural means, and to instruct His people how to adjust themselves in harmony with those laws.
The Great Seventh Law. The healing covenant, which we are studying, involves the obligation of keeping the commandments of God. Breach of His moral precepts is often visited by physical derangement and disease. We have case after case in the history of Israel where such occurred. A typical instance is that given in Numbers 25:1-9. Where sickness is due to the breach of the moral precepts regarding idolatry and adultery, the plague carried off twenty-four thousand people. Where sickness is due to the breach of the moral precepts, God's way of healing is by atonement for the sin, when forgiveness and healing may follow as a consequence. It is the failure to observe this in the Old Testament, as well as similar principles in the New, that is at the bottom of most of the error of those who profess to believe in divine healing. Their great slogan is that "Divine healing is in the atonement." I deny this. If we say sickness needs atonement, THEN WE SAY AT THE SAME TIME THAT SICKNESS SEVERS THE SOUL FROM GOD; and some of the saintliest people who have ever lived rise up to deny such a doctrine. For they can bear witness that the sickbed has been to them the place of the Divine Presence. And some, through long years of suffering, have enjoyed the highest and deepest fellowship with God. But when SICKNESS IS THE RESULT OF SIN, GOD'S WAY OF HEALING IS THROUGH the atonement for sin. There is a very great difference in this, and its recognition will solve many of the mysteries of those who, in seeking to maintain their theory of healing in the atonement, find it impracticable and disappointing. Sickness needs no atonement, but sin does; and where SICKNESS IS CAUSED BY SIN THE ATONING SACRIFICE IS ESSENTIAL FOR THE FORGIVENESS of sin, and must first be sought ere healing can be expected from God. But the atonement was for sin, not sickness. Israel's history verifies this at many points. In Numbers 16:41-50, the sin of Israel brought down divine judgment and over fourteen thousand perished with the consequent plague, and then it is written that Aaron "made atonement between the dead and the living, and the plague was stayed." The sin of Israel brought about the judgment of the fiery serpents, and when the people cried out, "We have sinned," and requested Moses to pray, God used the great type of the uplifted Christ to deal with their sin, and He provided thereby healing for the bitten ones.
Holy Spirit, Who is He? Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 3-1973 The Holy Spirit is the third person in the Godhead. In the King James Version of the Bible He is sometimes called the Holy Ghost, but whether Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost the same personality is meant. The word Ghost in the Bible doesn't mean a "spook" or something to be frightened of as we imagine when speaking of ghosts. The word has no such meaning in the Bible. The word Ghost comes from an old English word, which means guest, so the Holy Ghost is our Holy Guest, the Divine Being who has taken up His abode with us as a Guest. The attributes of personality are ascribed to the Holy Spirit. (a) Knowledge. I Corinthians 2:11, "Even so, the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God." (b) Will. I Corinthians 12:11, "The self-same spirit dividing to every man severally as he will." (c) Feeling. Romans 15:30, "I beseech you brother, for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake, and for the love of the Spirit." The Holy Spirit is further said to instruct men, and to be grieved by backslidden, disobedient Christians. Actions are ascribed to the Holy Spirit that only a person can perform. Romans 8:26, He "maketh intercession for us." I Corinthians 2:10, "For the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God." The Holy Spirit taught.
"The Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things" (John 14:26). The work of the Holy Spirit as the great Comforter, who was to take the place of the personal presence of the Saviour Himself, is a work that could be ascribed only to a Divine Person.
BEGINNING OF HIS WORK The Holy Spirit began His work in this world at the time of creation. Genesis 1:2, "The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." The word "moved" comes from a word that means to brood and, so, thus translated, it would read, "The Spirit of God BROODED upon the face of the waters." In Job 26:13, we read that God's Spirit "garnished the heavens." Rude chaos was then reduced to order; light was caused to spring out of darkness, the heavens were elevated to the firmament above us; the sea and dry land were divided; the heavens were adorned, with sun, moon and stars which should be "for Signs and seasons and days and years." All this was the work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is seen striving with men dwelling in Joseph, inspiring Eldad and Medad; filling Bezaleel (Exodus 31:3), filling Joshua with wisdom (Numbers 27:18), filling Othniel making him a judge (Judges 3:10). Inspiring Gideon (Judges 6:34). In His hands are the issues of life and death (Isaiah 40:7), The Holy Spirit sends forth the Son (Isaiah 48:16). He is put upon the promised Messiah (Isaiah 61:1). Joel saw and announced the coming of the Spirit at Pentecost (Joel 2:28-29). Malachi closes the Old Testament Canon with the assurance that God has "the residue of the Spirit" for His people (Malachi 2:15). Thus, we trace the being and work of the Holy Spirit from the beginning to the end of the Old Testament. The Old Testament opened with the Spirit "moving upon the water," and the New Testament opened with the Incarnation of Christ by the same Holy Spirit. Without the Incarnation there could have been no death, and "without the shedding of blood," there could have been no redemption. Jesus Christ was the offspring of the Holy Spirit and without His creative energy there had been no "Babe in the manger." He was incarnated "by the Holy Ghost" of the Virgin Mary. For as much as the children are partakers of flesh and blood He also took part of the same (Hebrews 10:5). Preparing this body of our Lord is ascribed to the Holy Ghost (Matt. 1: 18). He was Incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin Mary. "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee," "therefore, also that holy thing shall be called the Son of God." The Holy Spirit is spoken of as so associated with the Father and Son as to compel the belief that they are equal. Christ through the eternal Spirit offered himself to God"' (Heb. 9:14). Here is Christ offering Himself to God, through the eternal Spirit, which clearly marks the three personalities.
ADMINISTRATOR Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit to become the administrator over the Kingdom that Jesus established while here on earth. Jesus was the administrator over His own kingdom while He was on earth and the Holy Spirit became the administrator on the day of Pentecost when the church, which Jesus had established before He left the world, was baptized in the Holy Spirit. WHAT HE DOES. Let us hear what Jesus said this baptism in the Holy Spirit was to do. "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, He shall TEACH YOU ALL THINGS, and bring all things to your REMEMBRANCE, whatsoever I have said unto you" (John 14:26). "He shall TESTIFY of Me" (John 15:26). "And when He (the Spirit) is come, He will REPROVE the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth is come, He will GUIDE YOU into ALL TRUTH: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear,
that shall He speak: and He will SHOW you things to come. He shall glorify me for He shall receive of mine, and SHALL SHOW IT UNTO YOU" (John 16:8-14). Note the fact that the Holy Spirit was not to speak of Himself but was to testify of Christ. Those who have the Holy Spirit will show that fact by thinking of Jesus and speaking of Jesus. If a man is constantly talking about the wonderful things the Spirit has done for him and is always boasting of being filled with the Spirit and of being baptized by the Spirit, it is positive proof he does not have the Holy Spirit because the Spirit doesn't talk about Himself but He testifies of Christ. Thus, Jesus leaves no uncertainty for us to guess at, about the baptism in the Holy Spirit, but tells us in plain words the exact purpose of this baptism. It was "to teach" His apostles, "to show" them, "to guide them," to bring to their "remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you," and "to testify" to the world of Jesus through them. At that time, there was no New Testament to tell people how to be saved and how to live, hence Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to guide His apostles into what to teach sinners and Christians. The Spirit guided them so perfectly that they spake only "as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts 2:4). Thus guided and controlled by the Spirit, they could teach and testify exactly what Jesus wanted taught to the people and could prove their words were given them from heaven by confirming them "with signs and wonders, and divers miracles" (Heb. 2:4). What they taught and did, how the sinners heard and believed it and became Christians, and how Christians should live is written in the New Testament for our guidance because we are to observe the same teaching. Therefore, when we hear the teaching of the New Testament, we hear the Spirit speaking to us. When we obey what it teaches, we walk after the Spirit and are led by the Spirit and are the children of God, saved and sanctified. "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God" (Romans 8:14). Paul says, "Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things we also speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Spirit teacheth" (I Cor. 2:12, 13). By those words given to and through the apostle, we are taught and guided today (See I Peter 1: 12).
SPIRITUAL GIFTS God gave the apostles power to lay their hands upon certain ones and give them gifts of the Spirit (Acts 19:6, 8:18, II Tim. 1:6). "For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kind of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues; (I Cor. 12:8-10)." These "gifts" were not the baptism in the Spirit. Paul says that these gifts are to cease "when that which is perfect is come." He says, "But whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease: whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. For we know in part, and we prophecy in part. But when that which is perfect is come (which is the perfect law of liberty-James 1:25-the completed New Testament), then that which is in part: shall be done away" (I Cor. 13:810). Paul did not teach that anything necessary for our salvation or Christian life would be, "done away." Hence, these gifts are not necessary for salvation or Christian living, or they would not have ceased. The Scriptures do not even INFER that those who received these supernatural gifts were made better or holier Christians but were only better able to teach others who, when they obeyed, were made better and holier. Do not forget this important fact.
PURPOSE OF GIFTS The Corinthians, like many people today, did not understand the purpose of these Spiritual gifts, and Paul makes a very plain explanation in the 12th, 13th and 14th chapters which all should diligently study. These powers were given to the apostles and part of them was given to a few others on whom the apostles laid their hands (See. Acts 2:43, 5:12, Acts 28:3-5, 19:6, 11, 12, Heb. 2:4. These signs were to confirm the word and not to cure our physical sicknesses or Paul would have cured Epaphroditus (see Phil. 2: 25-30) and Trophimus (II Tim 4: 20). Didn't Paul care if they were sick and suffering? He did not heal them. "Gifts of the Spirit" were the powers given by the Spirit to do the things Paul mentioned in I Corinthians 12:8-10 while "the gift of the Spirit" is the Spirit Himself given to all that believe.
BAPTISM OF THE HOLY SPIRIT The baptism of the Holy Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit as Jesus has explained were to teach and guide the recipients thereof which they did. What the Spirit guided them to say and to write we have now as the New Testament which is a "perfect law of liberty" in Christ Jesus (James 1:25, II Tim. 3:16, 17, I Peter 4:11). Paul says, "But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away" (I Cor. 13:10). Not to believe they were "done away" would be to disbelieve God because Paul was taught this by the Spirit of God. The Bible records but three instances of persons being baptized in the Holy Spirit-the apostles (Acts 2nd chapter), Paul (Acts 9th chapter) and the household of Cornelius (Acts 10th chapter). Although the apostles were baptized in Holy Spirit, they baptized their converts in water (Acts 2:41, 8:36-39, 10:48, 16:15, 33, 18:8, 19:5, 22:16). This is what Jesus commanded them to do (Matthew 28: 19) and this is what the church is now commanded to do. At the beginning of the church there were two baptisms-one in the Spirit and one in the water. When Paul wrote Ephesians 4:5, about A.D. 64, he said there is "one baptism," showing that Spirit baptism had been "done away" before that time leaving only water baptism. The Holy Spirit baptism was seen and heard by those present. Acts 2:2, 3, 33. See also, Mark 1:10, 11, John 1:33). If such heavenly proofs could be seen and heard today, few would doubt Holy Spirit baptism now, therefore, "let no man deceive you by any means," for no living person is now baptized in the Holy Spirit, but many have been deceived because they have believed false teachers instead of the Bible. Neither Jesus nor His apostles ever taught that sinners or Christians need a baptism of the Holy Spirit nor any spiritual gifts of I Corinthians 12:8-10 to be saved. Paul says, "Follow after charity (love), and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy" (or teach). Paul did not consider spiritual gifts of great importance. He said, "Yet in the church I had rather speak five words with my understanding, that by my voice I might teach others also, than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue" (I Cor. 14:19). As spiritual gifts have ceased, let us now desire the greater privilege of teaching others God's word exactly as the apostles preached it, lest we receive the curse (Rev. 22:18, 19, Gal. 1:8)).
WE NEED THE SPIRIT We all need the Holy Spirit for "if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His" (Rom. 8:9). And God gives Him to those only who believe (Acts 5:32). The new birth, being born of the Spirit, is not restricted to the New Testament. Jesus said to Nicodemus, "Art thou a master (teacher) in Israel and knowest not these things?" (John 3:1-16) Why should Jesus make such a statement if Nicodemus could not have learned of the new birth of the Spirit in the Old Testament?"
The regenerating work of the Holy Spirit has gone on all through the history of the world. The abiding presence and being filled with the Holy Spirit were experienced by men and women before Christ came into the world. Luke 1:67, "Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost." Simeon was led by the Spirit and received revelations from the Spirit before Christ was born (Luke 2:2526). John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit from birth (Luke 1:15). The Holy Spirit came upon Mary, the mother of Jesus, when the birth of Jesus was announced to her (Luke 1:35). Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:41). The Holy Spirit had worked with and in men all through the history of the world, but His administration over the kingdom and His miraculous baptism did not exist until the Pentecost after the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. The confusion that exists in the minds of many on this subject is deplorable. So many think the baptism of the Spirit is the same thing as the birth of the Spirit and the leadership of the Spirit. The birth of the Spirit, the indwelling of the Spirit, and the leadership of the Spirit, have all been enjoyed by the Lord's people from the time of creation until now. The administration of the Spirit and the baptism of the Spirit began at Pentecost.
WHAT HAS BEEN DONE AWAY? The baptism of the Spirit and the miraculous gifts of the Spirit were done away when the "perfect thing'' came (I Cor. 13:8-10) and, as expressed in different words by James, "The perfect law of liberty" came (James 1:25) when the church came into "the knowledge of the Son of God" (Eph. 4:11-14) which means the revelation of Jesus Christ was completed by the finishing of the perfect rule of faith and practice which we know is the New Testament. Since this perfect thing, this "perfect law of liberty" came, this knowledge of the Son of God" came--since that blessed day, no one has had the baptism of the Holy Spirit and no one has been able to work a miracle because the gifts which enabled men to do that sort of thing were done away, ceased, and now we have the indwelling of the Spirit, the comfort of the Spirit and sinners are born of the Spirit, but nobody is baptized in the spirit and nobody has the miraculous gifts of the Spirit.
THE DEVIL IS A MIRACLE WORKER Are any miracles worked now? Can anybody heal the sick or speak in unknown tongues now? You may be surprised when I tell you that, possibly, some are able to work miracles even now. But such miracles are not of God. They are of the devil. When Moses worked miracles in Egypt, the magicians "also did in like manner with their enchantments" (Ex. 7:11, 22; 8:7) over and over again. The devil has counterfeited God's work in all ages. The devil is still counterfeiting God's work by working miracles. The devil enables his subjects to work miracles (see Rev. 13:13-14). Thus, we plainly see that the devil is still working miracles and if I were to see a miracle and knew it to be a miracle-if I were to see a man heal the sick or even raise the dead-I certainly would not be convinced he was of God because of that. Instead of the miracle causing me to believe the miracle worker was of God, I would be convinced of the exact opposite for the very good reason that the miraculous gifts have been withdrawn from the church and all miracles are now of the devil. Can apparently good men who praise God, shout, preach, pray, be under the power of the devil? Most assuredly. "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel: for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as ministers of righteousness" (II Cor. 11:13-15). So we see the devil has ministers, the devil has miracle workers and, since we know by the Scriptures that God's ministers do not now have the gift of healing, the gift of tongues and such things because they have been done away when the "perfect law of liberty'' came, when the church came "into the knowledge of the Son of God. Since we know miracle working is a thing of
the past in the church of Jesus Christ, then we can as certainly know that any miracle worker we now see is of the devil, no matter how wonderful and no matter how religious he may seem to be. The more prayers, shouting and praising God there is attached to it, the more danger there is of deceiving the unsuspecting. These plain words are necessary now because so many are claiming these miraculous gifts. They are making loud claims. We had better prepare to meet them for they are only different varieties of the same vicious species.
SPIRITUALITY A hue and cry is going up all over the land for "more spirituality." That is well and good provided it is sure enough spirituality wanted. What is meant in many cases is emotion, demonstration, the so-called baptism of the Spirit and a goody, goody sort of feeling. The devil is back of all such demands. Spirituality of a Bible sort is to be in harmony with the Holy Spirit. To be in harmony with the Spirit is to respect His written Word, to obey His written commandments, to be submissive to His written will. To be governed by dreams, emotions, and feelings and then not be willing to hear what the Holy Spirit says in His word is positive proof that individuals so governed are not spiritual. A spiritual man loves the Bible and does not get angry when the preacher preaches the words of the Spirit on baptism, the Lord's Supper, church government, laying by in store of the money God has placed in His hands and thus being a liberal contributor to His cause. To get angry at a sermon preached on contributing money and then cry for spiritual preaching is a certain indication that the one so exercising is anything but spiritual. The man or woman who can sit and listen with pleasure to a doctrinal sermon. a sermon that plainly shows God's Word loves true spirituality. One who is made to weep over deathbed stories and rejoice over emotional illustrations and cannot rejoice in a sound, doctrinal message, shows a lack of spirituality.
CONCLUSION If we are led by the Spirit, we shall do what the Spirit teaches us to do. If we are filled with the Spirit, we shall rejoice in what the Bible teaches. If we think of Jesus and want to honor and obey Him, we are spiritual. The Holy Spirit testifies not of Himself but of Jesus. If He is our Guest, He will fill us with the love of Jesus and we shall not think of the Spirit Himself-we shall feel unworthy of the Lord's service instead of boasting of our spirituality. Spirituality produces humility and never the Pharisaical feeling that we are so very good.
Holy Spirit, Why Pray for the Leadership of the Spirit? Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 6-71 Every saved person IS LED BY THE SPIRIT. Romans 8:14: "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are sons of God." Who and how many are led by the Spirit? The SONS OF GOD-all of them-for AS MANY as are led by the Spirit are the sons of God. NO MORE AND NO LESS. ALL WHO ARE SONS ARE LED BY THE SPIRIT and we are told distinctly that "if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his," Rom. 8:9. Since every child of God has the Spirit and if one has not the Spirit, he is none of His, and then to be told that "AS MANY," no more and no less, "as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God" it follows for certain that ALL CHILDREN OF GOD ARE LED BY THE SPIRIT. Then why pray for the leadership of the Spirit? We already have the leadership of the Spirit; every one of God's children has that leadership right now. Then why pray for it, since you already have it? Don't you think you had better pray that we shall be willing to FOLLOW THE LEADERSHIP OF THE SPIRIT? The Spirit leads all of God's children, but some of them fail or
refuse to follow where He leads. Let us pray that we may be willing to follow that leadership, and when we can truthfully say, "Thy will be done," our difficulties will be over and our life will be what the Spirit wishes. Mark you, the Spirit LEADS but he will not FORCE. When we fail or refuse to follow the leadership of the Spirit, we make our failures in life and sometimes wreck our usefulness. What about the parable of the three loaves in Luke 11 where Jesus said that the Father would "Give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him?" That parable FIRST TEACHES the Lord's DISCIPLES to pray, but, beginning at verse 10, He broadens the lesson to include "EVERY ONE WHO ASKS" and says in that connection that just as certainly as a father will give his children what they need when they ask, so the Heavenly Father will give the Holy Spirit to them that ask for the Holy Spirit. What sense would there be for one who ALREADY HAS THE SPIRIT to ask for the Holy Spirit? Every one of God's children already has the Spirit, for if "ANY MAN HAVE NOT THE SPIRIT OF CHRIST HE IS NONE OF HIS" (Rom. 8:9). This shows that an UNSAVED MAN MAY ASK FOR SALVATION and be saved, and thus, filled with the Spirit. Then once enjoying the personal presence of the Spirit, he is insured of the leadership of the Spirit, for "AS MANY AS ARE LED BY THE SPIRIT, THEY ARE THE SONS OF GOD." We get SALVATION, which includes receiving the Spirit, by asking for salvation. For Romans 10:13 says, "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." When we receive the Spirit at the time we believe, thus being saved, that insures us the LEADERSHIP of the Spirit ever afterwards. In Acts 19:2, Paul asks those Ephesians, "Did ye receive the Holy Ghost (Spirit) when ye believed?" (Revised Version) which indicates that all believers RECEIVED THE SPIRIT WHEN THEY BELIEVED. The HOLY SPIRIT COMES INTO YOUR LIFE AT THE TIME YOU ARE SAVED. You get salvation WHEN YOU ASK FOR IT (Rom. 10:13) and also John 4:1-10, where Jesus told the woman at the well if she would ASK HIM, He would give her "the water of life." ONCE SAVED, ONCE HAVING RECEIVED THE SPIRIT, we are assured from that moment on we are LED BY THE SPIRIT, for AS MANY (just as many) AS ARE LED BY THE SPIRIT ARE SAVED people. Why then ASK for what you already have? Having the Spirit, you are assured of the LEADERSHIP of the Spirit, because every child of God is led by the Spirit. Better beware of the man who comes before an audience (for instance a Baptist Association) and asks that all engage in prayer for the leadership of the Spirit before we vote on a matter, for nine times out of ten, he has what he wants already written out and in his pocket to spring on the assembly so soon as he gets them to think they are LED BY THE SPIRIT. Selah! We already have the leadership of the Spirit. Why ask for it?
Heavenly Father Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 7-73 Matthew 6:9, Our Father, which art in heaven."
When we address God in prayer and call him Father, what do we mean? Matthew 13:38 says some are "the children of the wicked one." In Acts 13:10 we read where the Apostle Paul called Elymas, the sorcerer, the child of the devil, saying, "0 full of all subtlety and all mischief, thou child of the devil." In John 8:44 Jesus said to the Pharisees that they were children of the devil: "Ye are of your father, the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do." In I John 3:10 we read: "In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil." Nothing is plainer than the fact that the Bible teaches wicked men are not the children of God. It therefore follows that an unsaved man should not address God as Father in prayer or in any other way.
God is the Creator of all men in the sense that He created Adam and Eve. But He is the Creator of horses and cows and dogs and frogs and birds also. No one would seriously say He is the Father of these lower animals. How do men become children of God? Galatians 3:26 says, "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." When we exercise faith in Jesus Christ, we are born again. Jesus said: "Marvel not that I said unto thee, ye must be born again" (John 3:7). Our spirits are born of God (John 3:6) and that is why God is called the "Father of Spirits" (Heb. 12:9). He is the Father of all spirits who have been born again. When one is born again, God thereafter deals with him as with a son and he is no longer in danger of going to hell, but is in danger of being chastised as a son. Heb. 12:5-11, "My son despise not thou the chastening of the Lord ... If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? . . . No chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous; nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruits of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby." Chastisement is sometimes corrective, sometimes punitive, and sometimes preventive, but always in love, as a father with his children. Suffering is not always chastisement, but many times suffering is PROVIDENTIAL - a means to a good end. The suffering of Job was not for any wickedness on his part but to manifest the devotion and security of a child of God in spite of the work of the devil which the man who was born blind illustrates (John 9:1-3). In the blind man's case the Lord said he was born blind that "The works of God should be manifest in him," and not because anybody had sinned. So, if you suffer, it may be that God is using your suffering as a means to carry out a good purpose. Then it may be corrective chastisement - something in your life, not necessarily wicked, may need correction, some good trait may need developing, some evil tendency stopped, or it may prevent your plunging into evil, not always punitive. Sometimes physical death is sent upon God's children as a chastisement. Moses was put to death because he disobeyed (Deut. 34:5). Uzza was struck dead because he put his hand on the Ark of the Covenant, which nobody was allowed to touch except the priests (I Chron. 13:9-10). Paul said that the bad conduct of the members of the church at Corinth was the cause of sickness among them and some "sleep" (I Cor. 11:30). Saved by the blood of Jesus, we are not in danger of hell, but God deals with us as with sons and chastises us for our own good and the chastisement will be sufficient punishment for our evil doing.
Wonderful Love Shown In Permitting Us To Be Children "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is" (I John 3:1).The Loving Father Knows What We Need And Will Provide. Luke 12:28-31: "If then God so clothe the grass, which is today in the field, and tomorrow is cast into the oven; how much more will He clothe you, 0 ye of little faith? And seek not what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. For your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. But rather seek the kingdom of God, and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you."
Our Heavenly Father Is Merciful And We Need Mercy. Luke 6:36, "Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful." If He chastises us it is always an act of mercy - for our good. If He dealt with us in strict justice we should all be cast out.
Our Heavenly Father Will Stand By Us When Earthly parents Forsake Us Psalm 27:10, "When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up." If one can do so bad that an earthly father and mother will forsake him and yet the Lord will then take him up, where goes the doctrine of falling from grace which teaches that God will cast us off because of sin? Such is the Father we address in prayer. It gives us courage to come boldly to a throne of grace with the assurance that we shall find grace to help in time of need If you are not a child of God by faith in Christ Jesus, the devil is your father and you have no claims on our loving Heavenly Father. This very day you should repent of your sins, and come to God and beg for mercy, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be admitted into God's family and have for your brothers and sisters the redeemed of the Lord.
Heaven, A Place As Well As A Condition Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 1969 The following poem by an unknown author expresses the experience of many devout souls concerning their views of Heaven: Life changes all our thoughts of heaven; At first we think of streets of gold, Of gates of pearl and dazzling light Of shining wings and robes of white, And things all strange to mortal sight. But in the afterwards of years It is a more familiar place, A home, unhurt by slights or tears, Where waiteth many a well known face. With passing months it comes more near: It grows more real day by day, Not strange or cold, but very dear, The glad homeland, not far away, Where none are sick, or poor, or lone. The place where we shall find our own. And as we think of all we know. Who there have met to part no more, Our longing hearts desire home, too, With all the strife and longing o'er.
John 14:2-3 says: "I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you I will come again and receive you unto myself; that where I am there ye may be also." If the Lord did not mean what He said why did He say it? The resurrected body of our Lord ascended to Heaven and being a real body it required a real, literal place for its abode, and the Lord distinctly says that where He is His disciples shall be also. I Peter 1:4 says we have "An inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in Heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time." Since the inheritance is in Heaven we shall certainly have to go to Heaven to enter into our inheritance. Just what that is we do not know, for the Lord has not revealed what the glorious inheritance shall be, but whatever it is we shall enjoy it when we get to Heaven. When Stephen was put to death (Acts 7th chapter) we read: "But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into Heaven, and saw the glory of God, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God, and said, Behold I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God . . And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Thus we see that Stephen, being enabled by the Holy Ghost, actually saw Jesus standing by the right hand of God and he evidently thought it was real and
asked the Lord to receive his spirit. Since the resurrected body of Jesus was in Heaven, and Stephen saw him there it must be a place and Stephen, inspired of God, certainly indicated that he expected to be with Jesus in Heaven. To speculate on where Heaven is may be of interest but at most it is speculation. The Bible reveals the fact that it is a place, somewhere out in infinite space where God has His throne and where Jesus is in His resurrected body and where saved spirits go at death. Whether it is made up of some or all of the other worlds mentioned in the Bible I do not know, and it would not be profitable to know. Whether this earth shall ever become a part of the wonderful realm I do not know and it is not profitable to know. There are some scriptures that seem to teach that the earth shall be a final abode of the saints. Rom. 8:19-23 teaches that "THE WHOLE CREATION GROANETH AND TRAVAILETH IN PAIN TOGETHER TILL NOW' and that the "whole creation" shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption. That is a glorious prospect but whether it means that this delivered CREATION shall become a part of Heaven is another question. That there are other planets, other worlds, similar to the one we live on is clearly revealed in the Bible. Heb. 11:3: "Through faith we understand the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things that are seen were not made of things which do appear." In Heb. 1:2 we read: "Hath in these last days spoken to us by his Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds." The Bible speaks of those who worshipped "the sun and the moon and the PLANETS" (II Kings 23:5). The planets are spoken of with just as much certainty as are the sun and the moon. It follows that other planets exist. Are these other worlds, planets, inhabited? Do they need redemption? Does the expression in Romans 8, where it speaks of the "WHOLE CREATION" being in bondage of corruption include these other worlds, planets? Just what part of the Universe is Heaven? Is Heaven one of these WORLDS? Or several of these worlds? Or is it a fact that all of the CREATION except the place called Heaven is in need of redemption as is the earth on which we live? All these are interesting questions and they might lead into endless speculation. But there are suggestions, yes-plain statements in the Bible that are not speculations concerning these other worlds. The "heavens" is a word that refers to other places than our earth. In Col. 1:20: "Having made peace through the blood of the cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself; by Him, I say, whether they be things in earth or things in heaven." So then there are some things in what is here called "heaven" to be reconciled to God. That certainly is not the Heaven that Stephen saw where Jesus was standing by the right hand of God. What does Peter mean when he says: "We, according to His promise, look for a new heaven and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness" (II Peter 3:13). Certainly he does not mean a new heaven by having the one made over where God's throne is. Then it must be the other places in what we call the "heavens" that are to be redeemed and made new like this earth is. In Rev. 21:1 we read: "I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away." These are only indications that in God's great universe are other places that need redemption, that need reconciliation to Him and that the glorious work of Christ will accomplish it and since all of it is to be brought to God, all of it glorified, all of it returned to purity, why not all of it become a part of heaven-additional territory added to the present glorious Heaven? I do not know, but I believe that this will be true. So it follows that those who are now in Heaven have not entered into all that is in store for them. To confine Heaven to this small earth is to depreciate the inheritance of the saints and to lower our conception of the Lord's preparation for His people. He said: "In my Father's house are many mansions." What does that language mean? I think this means we shall not be confined to one locality, but as the angels even now go from one point of the Universe to another, as for instance when they come from Heaven to the earth, why not redeemed spirits do the same? Does not the Bible say we "Shall be as the angels?" (Mark 12:25). It does not say we
shall be angels, for it is certain that we shall not be angels, but it does say we shall be "AS THE ANGELS." It is certain that angels are not confined to one locality and why should the Lord's redeemed be thus confined? I confidently expect to visit the other planets, and enjoy the other worlds our gracious God has created. "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath entered into the heart of man the things God hath prepared for them that love Him." (I Cor. 2:9). The greatest ambition in this life should be to prepare for the prepared place that Jesus has gone to prepare for us. Whether our speculations regarding it are correct or not it still remains a certainty that it will be LARGE AND GLORIOUS BEYOND CONCEPTION. Will there be an intermediate place, such as purgatory, where the soul must get further preparation before entering Heaven? That is a practical and interesting question. I was talking with a lady some time ago and she said she did not dread death but she did dread the long term in purgatory which her church taught her she must endure before being prepared to enter Heaven. They do say that sin cannot enter Heaven and that if there is any sin in us that we must get it out before we can come into the presence of God. Here is where the truth is made to uphold a false doctrine. True it is that no sin can enter Heaven. But while that is true we should not forget that the "Blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin." (I John 1:7). If the blood of Jesus cleanses us from ALL SIN there will be none left for the purgatorial fires to cleanse. The false doctrine that we are to be saved by our good conduct instead of by the grace of God leads to the doctrine that if the conduct is not perfect in this life so as to entitle us to Heaven, then we must have it fixed up after leaving this world by purgatorial fires. If the dear people would only accept Christ as their Savior and quit trying to save themselves by good behavior they would experience a joy of salvation that they have never known and it would take the dread of purgatory out and leave them resting in the arms of Jesus who "saves them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him." (Heb. 7:25). It is the blood of Christ that cleanses and not good works in this life nor purgatorial fires in the next. If the doctrine of Purgatory be true how are we to account for Stephen going directly to Heaven when he was put to death? (Acts 7th chapter). How are we to account for the thief on the cross going that very day to Paradise, which Paul said is Heaven? (Luke 23:43; II Cor. 12:1-4)). These people did not have to pass through the purgatorial fires in order to enter Heaven. Certainly the thief on the cross-needed it if anybody ever did. If the blood of Jesus is not sufficient to admit us to Heaven and it takes purgatory to finish the work, then please explain how it was that Stephen and the thief went directly to Heaven, when they died. When the rich man died (Luke 16th chapter), he was buried and "in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments" and when Lazarus died he "was carried by angels to Abraham's bosom." That does not look like purgatory to me. In Matt. 25:1-3 we read that the wise virgins were ready and went right on into the wedding and they did not have to first go to a purifying place to make ready. It says (verse 10) "they that were ready went in with Him to the marriage." If it takes purgatory to get people ready please explain how the wise virgins were ready without it? The sacrifice of Jesus Christ is sufficient to admit us to Heaven. Gal. 2:21: "I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness comes by the law then Christ is dead in vain." Rom. 4:5-8: "But to him that worketh not but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without work, saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin." Then read Heb. 10: 12-14: "But this Man (Jesus), after He had offered one sacrifice for sin forever, sat down upon the right hand of God-for by one offering He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified." Nothing could be plainer. Jesus offered "one sacrifice FOREVER"-it is therefore never to be repeated that by that sacrifice He "hath perfected FOREVER them that are sanctified." The word sanctified means to be set apart. It does not mean perfect in conduct or
character. But notwithstanding our personal imperfection we are PERFECTED FOREVER THROUGH OUR SUBSTITUTE, JESUS CHRIST. God does not look upon us but He looks upon our substitute. We are saved by Jesus Christ and not by our personal character or good behavior. If the ones who listen in or who may read this sermon will accept Jesus as their substitute, will trust Him for salvation, will rely on His shed blood, and accept His wonderful grace, they will have no fear of purgatory but will feel sure of going to Heaven when they die. What will be our occupation in Heaven? Shall we spend eternity in idleness? The Scriptures teach that we shall have plenty to do in that glorious realm. Yes, we shall rest. Heb. 4:9 tells us there "remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God." It will be a rest from earthly trials and worries. It will be a rest from the temptations of the devil. But it will not be idleness. Rev. 22:3: "There shall be no more curse; but the throne of God and the Lamb shall be in it; and His servants shall serve Him." There will certainly be the service of God. Just what God shall have for us to do I leave to be revealed to me when I get there, but it shall be real service. In Rev. 19 we read that we shall have a wonderful time worshipping God. Read it: "And I heard a great voice of much people, saying, Hallelujah; salvation, and glory, and honor and power, unto the Lord our God." Yes, there will be shouting and singing in Heaven. The "Harper's shall harp with their harps" (Rev. 12:2-3). They shall "sing a new song" (Rev. 14.31). There will be wonderful music in Heaven, both vocal and instrumental. There will be glorious company there. The finest and best who have ever lived on the earth and possibly billions of those who have lived on the earth. Heb. 12:23: "Ye are coming to Mount Zion, and into the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church the of the first born, which are written in heaven and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect." What a wonderful company! Such company. I want to go there, don't you? The passage just quoted says there is an innumerable company of angels. They shall come for us when we die. (Luke 16:22) for a company of angels came for Lazarus when he died and carried him home to glory. Angels shall be our servants in Heaven (Heb. 1:14; I Cor. 6:3). Angels are ministering spirits sent forth to minister to them who shall be heirs of salvation! What a wonderful honor to be served by angels! It is much better to be a child of God and be protected by angels while we live and be carried by them to Heaven when we die, and served by them throughout eternity than it is to be an angel. I do not want to be an angel. We are honored above angels and they shall serve us in Heaven forever.
Heaven, God Speaks Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, June 1972 God thundered his law from Mt. Sinai as the Jews were assembled at the foot of that mountain. He now speaks from Mt. Zion (Heaven) to ALL the world. "But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and unto an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect" (Hebrews 12:22-23). The book of Hebrews is an exposition of the law. The law was given at Mt. Sinai. Explanation of the types and shadows shows how Jesus Christ is our high priest and also our Sacrifice. Hebrews brings out the church as typified in the tabernacle. The Jews, a limited assembly-limited to the Jewish nation heard God speak from Mt. Sinai, and Paul, the writer, explains what it all meant. But now, "Ye are come to mount Sion the heavenly Jerusalem" and it is no longer a limited assembly, all nations of the world and this world assembly is conceived of as standing before God to hear Him speak from heaven. An innumerable company of angels
witness what is going on and they serve when needed, as, for instance, when they sang at the birth of Jesus, and were present to sustain and guide the disciples. Angels are created spirits who existed before the world was created. They were the "sons of God" who "shouted for joy" (Job 38:7), when the world was created. Many of them fell when they followed Lucifer in his rebellion against God, when Lucifer sought to gain a place "in the sides of the north" (Isa. 14:13), and thus rival God as controller of the universe. But while many of them sinned and fell and are now the devil's angels, yet an "innumerable company of angels" remained true to God and are in His presence now. It is comfortable to know we have guardian angels to watch over us in life's dangerous way. These angels are present with us in this general assembly (the world) as we stand before God. We also are come to the church age, "Ye are come to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly (the whole world) and the church of the first born, which are written in heaven." Paul indicates that they had left Sinai, where God spoke from Mount Sinai, and they were now before God in a great world assembly and with a great company of angels and with the church of the first born. They had left the Law Age and had come to the Church Age-the church whose members had their "names written in heaven." The church was not in heaven but the names of the members were written in heaven. Now, says Paul, we are before God the Judge of all, and note the wonderful statement, "the spirits of just men made perfect." The Lord said man's spirit is born again (John 3:6) and then note John says in his first epistle, "Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed abideth in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God' (I John 3:9). There are those who think the "spirits of just men made perfect" are the redeemed in heaven because it speaks of the members of the "church of the first born" who have their names written in heaven. True, their names are written in heaven, but they are still on earth. Jesus told His disciples that they should rejoice "because your names are written in heaven" (Luke 10:20). These disciples to whom He spoke were certainly on the earth at work for Him while He said their names are written in heaven. So, Paul in Hebrews, writing to a Jewish audience, said they were no longer at Sinai, in a limited assembly composed entirely of Jews, but were in a world assembly standing with the rest of the world before God who now speaks from heaven instead of Sinai. They were no longer in the Law Age but in the Church Age-"the church of the first born, which names are written in heaven." Paul says (verse 25): "See that ye refuse not Him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused Him that spake on earth, much more shall we not escape, if we turn away from Him that speaketh from heaven." This makes it unmistakably clear that Paul is speaking of things right here on earth and not speaking of heaven. Nearly all who quote this scripture seem to think it refers to heaven and that the "general assembly and church of the firstborn" means the universal church. There is no such thing as the universal church and certainly this passage does not teach it. The general assembly is the whole world, and the church, those who are called out from the world. Note that it says "the general assembly AND church of the first born," both the general assembly, the whole world, assembled before God, also the "church of the first born." It would be nonsense to say Mr. Jones and Mr. Smith if Jones and Smith are one and the same. It certainly would be nonsense to say the general assembly and the church if the church and the general assembly are one and the same. The general assembly is an expression to contrast with the limited assembly of the Jews who stood at the foot of Sinai and the whole world that stands before God as He speaks from heaven now. The general assembly means the wicked world, not the church. God speaking from Sinai called into being the Jewish theocracy, the Law Age. God, speaking from heaven, called into being the New Testament Dispensation, the Church Age. He warns that if they did not escape when God was refused as He spoke from Sinai
that certainly we cannot escape if we refuse to hear Him when He speaks from heaven. Paul tells us the voice that spoke from Sinai "shook the earth" (see verse 26). Paul further says what He is relating signifies that God would remove the things which were shaken (see verse 27). He adds that those things which cannot be shaken will remain. Then he concludes, "Wherefore we receiving a kingdom, which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear" (verse 28). It is strange how so many Bible commentators say all this refers to heaven when the present tense is used throughout. He says, "Ye are come unto mount Sion." All of this is present tense: "Ye are COME to the heavenly Jerusalem," not will come to it. "Ye ARE come to the general assembly AND church of the firstborn," not will come to these things. "Ye are come ...to the Judge of all, and to the spirits of Just men made perfect," not will come to all this. Whatever is meant it is in the present time. Paul was explaining that, as they had been living under the law as spoken by God before the assembly of the Jews which was a small assembly of Jews only, now "Ye are come," to a great general assembly not limited to Jews. It was a general assembly, not merely of one nation, the Jews, to a general assembly composed of all mankind. Not at Mt. Sinai, but it was at Mt. Zion meaning heaven itself. Since none could escape who refused to hear when God spoke from the earthly mountain, no one can escape if he refuses to hear when God speaks from heaven. What God was speaking to and about when He spoke from Sinai would "be removed" but what He speaks from Mt. Zion shall never be removed. "Wherefore we receiving (present tense) a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably." We who live in the church age, whose "names are written in heaven;" are highly honored because we are living in the age where the things in the Jewish, Law Age, that were typical are fulfilled. They had things in shadow. We have the substance. The general assembly-the whole world-now stands before God to hear Him speak from heaven, which He does through the inspired writings of the Bible. He has spoken His entire will in the Bible. We who have heard that word spoken from heaven and have been called out from the general assembly enjoy fellowship in the "church of the firstborn." The expression, "the church of the firstborn," does not mean a great universal church. The family is the foundation of civilization. When we say "the family" do we mean a great universal family? Certainly not, but we mean family as an institution. So when we say "the church of the firstborn" we mean the church as an institution. When we say "the jury is used in trying court cases," do we mean a great universal jury? Certainly not, but the jury as an institution When we say "the husband is the head of the wife" do we mean a great big universal husband who is head of a great universal wife? Certainly not. There is no universal husband and no universal wife. There is no universal jury and no universal family, neither is there a universal church. When the Bible speaks of the church, it means any local congregation just as when the Bible speaks of the wife it means any individual wife. It is astounding how many people want to live at Mt. Sinai, under the Law, instead of living at Mt. Zion, under grace. God has changed His methods of dealing with the world. God never changes in character, for He is the same yesterday, today and forever, but the unchangeable God changes His methods of dealing with the world. At first, He dealt with the world through the Jewish race as He spoke from Mt. Sinai. Now God assembles the whole world and speaks from heaven, from Mt. Zion. Under this plan, each man and woman is personally responsible before God. Individuals who hear the call of God from Mt. Zion, come out from the general assemblythe whole world-and associate with others who have heard God's call and are formed into
churches of the "firstborn" and their "spirits having been made perfect" by the new birth, have their "names written in heaven." A church is never larger than a local congregation and can always meet within four walls. When it gets so large that it cannot conveniently meet in one place it should divide and form another "church of the firstborn." Thus, by division, multiply the number of churches and so evangelize the world, calling as many as possible out of the general assembly which stands in God's presence, and make the angels shout for joy over sinners repenting. That "innumerable company of angels" is shouting happily when the "general assembly" loses a member and one is added to those whose "names are written in heaven" (Luke 15:7-10). From Mt. Sinai, God spoke to a small assembly, the Jewish nation only. To the Jews He gave His law, the "Oracles of God" (Rom. 3:1-2, "What advantage then hath the Jew? ... much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God." Through the Jews, as a nation, His will was made known. Now, God speaks to the general assembly, general in the sense all nations are included in the assembly, speaks from heaven, Mt. Zion, instead of Mt. Sinai and He speaks by His inspired men through His written revelation, the Bible, to all the people of the world. His means of conveying His word to all the world is "the church of the firstborn" to which He gave the great commission, "Go ye therefore, and teach (evangelize) all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost (Spirit): and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world (age)" (Matt. 28:19). "The church of the firstborn" being thus honored, and upon which the great responsibility rests, should be honored. The church is not a Savior, but the message of salvation is carried by the church to all mankind, therefore, "Unto Him be glory IN THE CHURCH by Christ Jesus throughout all acres, world without end" Eph. 3:21.
In Essentials Unity, In Non-Essentials, Liberty Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 10-7-1935 Dr. T. T. Eaton, the great editor of the Western Recorder for about twenty five years, and one of the soundest of the sound Baptist, and who was a personal friend of this editor, frequently asserted that we should not be intolerant toward those who do not agree with us and should insist on unity in essentials and in non-essentials there should be liberty.
Old Fashioned Orthodox Baptist I think no one will doubt that I have fought for old-fashioned Baptist orthodoxy-fought more public debates for that sort of thing than any other man living and have been at it longer than most of them. I am a firm believer in all the old time Baptist doctrines and practices. I am a great admirer of J. R. Graves and he was a personal friend and worker of J. N. Hall. Until very recently my orthodoxy has never been called in question. Some youngster and one jealous old man have recently decided that I am not much of a Baptist. The real reason is jealousy and the poor fellow can not help that. They have not been recognized in certain quarters and I have and they do not like it. I forgive them, but shall not change my position to please them. I still, with Dr. T. T. Eaton and J. N. Hall, declare that in essentials there should be Unity and in non-essentials there should be Liberty .
No Non-essentials? Take the annual call of pastors. Some churches call the pastor for just one year. Is that an essential? If so every church that does not practice the annual call is not a true Baptist church. Other churches practice the indefinite call. Is that essential? If so, all those who do not so, are out of order. I had an idea that such as that was a non-essential and the churches can use liberty as to how they call a pastor. Been thinking so all the time but if there are no such things as non-
essentials then somebody is badly out of order. Take protracted meetings for instance. Some churches invite an evangelist for the preaching in the protracted meeting and others have the pastor do the preaching. Is it essential to have an evangelist? Then the churches that do not use evangelist are out of order. I had all along been thinking that it was not essential to call an evangelist. I had an idea that the evangelist was a non-essential and the churches had the liberty and right to use an evangelist or not use him. But it seems that there is no such thing as a non-essential.
Take the matter of Mission Methods. I had thought that a church can co-operate with other churches in mission work or that the church could do its mission work alone by sending out a missionary and that the churches were at liberty in such matters. But is it essential that a church work in some association? If so all those churches which stand aloof as the church where the brother who said there is no such thing as a non-essential does, then all the rest of us are out of order. If on the other hand it is essential that each church stand-alone and not be in some association, then all of those churches that work in an association are out of order. I had been cherishing the idea that the method of doing the work, while important, was not essential and that there should be liberty as to the method.
Varied Opinions on Kingdom Question There are different ideas about the kingdom. Baptists have been debating that subject among themselves for a mighty long time, ever since I can remember. Some say the kingdom was established during the personal ministry of Christ, other Baptists say it was established on the day of Pentecost and still others that it has not yet been established on the world but will be when Jesus comes back to the earth again. Personally, I believe that Jesus established His kingdom while He was here in person on the earth. Eld. J. A. Scarboro, of blessed memory, whom I respected as a sound Baptist, declared that the kingdom would be established when Jesus comes again. I had been looking on the opinions of the dear brethren on that subject as being non-essential and that they were at liberty to think as thy please about it. But it seems that there are no non-essentials and therefore since I am right then our departed brother, J . A. Scarboro, was a heretic and I shall have to non-fellowship him even though he is dead. It sorter makes me think of the Catholics digging up the bones of the saints and burning them, but I guess I shall have to do it since there are no non-essentials and I am right and all the rest of the brethren are wrong. See? See?
On Predestination Then we have a number of brethren who believe that God predestinated the salvation of each one who is saved and that the number is fixed so that nobody but the Elect can ever repent. There are others of us who do not believe that way. I had been cherishing the idea that on such controverted doctrines we could disagree and still be brethren, especially since all of us agree on the essential that the Gospel should be preached to all men and only differed on what the results of the Gospel might be. But it seems that since there are no non-essentials that I must declare non-fellowship with such brethren as J. H. Grimes of Tennessee, J. P. Boyce, the greatest theologian we have ever had, and J. B. Moody , the most profound thinker and finest scholar and preacher that has lived among us, and last but not least, I must declare non-fellows hip with J. R. Graves who taught the same thing, There are no non-essentials we are told. We do not have liberty to think in such matters. My orthodoxy is correct and you are wrong, dog-gone you, and I rule , you out of the fellowship meetings. True, J. B. Moody, and J. N. Hall got along fine for over thirty years , and even published a paper, "The Baptist Gleaner," and they were joint editors, when Hall believed like I do on
election and predestination and Moody was almost as hard as the Hardshells on that subject. If these great men should rise from the dead and should appear at a fellowship meeting one or the other would be ruled out. Alas! What have we come, too? My orthodoxy has killed off the strongest men we have. Just can't work with them , because there are no non-essentials you know and they don't agree with me,
Christ's Personal Reign I believe in the millennial reign of Jesus on earth. My friend and Brother , Elder E. E. Rice of Florida , does not , agree with me on much of that millennial doctrine. So out goes Rice for I am right and anybody who disagrees with me is wrong and there is no such thing as Liberty of opinion on controverted points and since my "doxy" is orthodox; and every other man's "doxy" is heterodox then out you go if you don't agree with me. It looks like the dear brethren who advocate such foolishness a s that would go to a mirror and see themselves as they really are and laugh themselves to death. The rest of us are laughing at them. Have you no sense of humor?
True Baptist Fellowship Seriously I can give the hand of fellowship to any Baptist who believe s in Salvation by grace; Immersion in Water of One who is saved; The Security of the Believer; The Second coming of Christ, whether pre-millennial or post- Millennial, just so he is looking for His coming, and who believe in and practices mission work in taking the gospel to the lost, whether he agrees with my ideas of how it should be done on not, and who believes the Bible to be wholly inspired, the very word of God, and not just containing the word of God. If a Baptist believes the above doc trines, I have Baptist Fellowship for him. On the points where we disagree I shall try to teach him the way of the Lord more perfectly. I shall contend for Regular Baptist Church Baptism and debate against alien immersion, as J. R. Graves did When he dealt with the alien immersionist, J. M. Pendleton, and I hope by reasoning and teaching to get my alien immersionist brethren right, as Graves finally got Pendleton right. I shall contend against coventionism and debate with any of them against conventions but at the same time try to get my convention brethren right on the subject. I shall not work in the convention but I shall not break fellowship with the convention men personally. I shall not practice alien immersion nor shall I accept alien immersion when done by others. I look upon that as an error and shall try to teach my alien immersion brethren the way of the Lord more perfectly. But I shall not break fellowship with them. I still think these are some non-essentials and in essentials unity; in non-essentials liberty. I do not want to make myself a laughing stock by saying there is no such thing as a nonessential. We can teach the old fashioned Baptist doctrines without putting the brethren who differ from us on minor points into a straight jacket and compel them to toe the mark with us on every detail.
Do Something One of the finest ways for us to get together on details , on non-essentials, is to g et exceedingly busy preaching the word and baptizing converts and developing the new converts in the teaching of the Bible. To stick our thumbs in our mouths and pout because some brother does not agree with us is poor policy. To spend our time chasing field mice while the corn needs cultivation means we lose our crops. Don't you think we had better get on our knees and ask God to bless and the Holy Spirit to lead us in a great work rather than be forever fighting each other? May God save us from folly.
Joshua - A type of Christ The book of Joshua gives the record of victory for the Israelites under Joshua. After Moses had given the law with ample explanations, his ministry was ended. He died without bringing
the people into the Promised Land. Joshua succeeded him and led the Israelites across the Jordan River into Palestine. He drove out the inhabitants and took possession of the land. In several particulars, this typifies the Second Coming of Christ and the Millennium.
FIRST, THE Law of Moses, UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF MOSES DID NOT BRING VICTORY. The type is that the law not only cannot save the soul, neither can it give final victory. Rom. 8:2-3, "The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh." Victory must come through Christ and not by our efforts. Read Heb. 7:19, "For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh to God."
MOSES WAS A type OF CHRIST IN THIS DISPENSATION. Victory did not come under Moses. Thus, we see in type that we shall not take the world in this dispensation. Those who hope to get the world converted and everybody saved, and to have evil expelled from the earth by our efforts during this dispensation, are doomed to disappointment. The Bible plainly teaches that "evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse" (II Tim. 3:13) and the Lord asked, "When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8). He did not ask this question for information but to call attention to the fact that there is no hope of getting the world converted to Christ during this dispensation. Our hope is in the Second Coming of Christ.
THE TAKING OF PALESTINE UNDER JOSHUA IS A type OF THE LORD TAKING CONTROL OF THIS WORLD AT HIS SECOND COMING. Some strangely believe that the Promised Land is a type of heaven. How strange such an idea is may be seen when we consider that when Joshua crossed the Jordan with the Israelites he found it occupied by enemies who had to be destroyed. Certainly, there will be no enemies in heaven who shall have to be destroyed when we get there. It is manifestly a type of our conquest of the world at the Second Coming of our Lord. The enemies of the Lord will have full possession of the world when Jesus comes back to the earth again and He shall destroy them by the brightness of His presence (II Thess. 2:8) and take possession of the earth and reign with His people for a thousand years. Rev. 20:2-6, "He laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit. And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years." How any one can doubt the fact that Jesus some day shall take the world and reign over it with His people for a thousand years is more than I can understand since it is plainly stated in these exact words. There seems to be no room for misunderstanding. There might be room for misunderstanding as to HOW LONG the thousand years shall be as it is prophetic and a day might in this case stand for a year. If that be true, then the exact period of this earthly reign, which we call the Millennium, would be three hundred and sixty-five thousand years, but whether it will be an exact thousand years it matters not since it will be an actual reign of Christ on earth.
The saints "shall inherit the earth." (Matt. 5:5). That is the important thing for us to think about and WE SHALL REIGN WITH HIM. Glorious prospect! Some one may raise the question as to whom we shall reign over. That can be answered in either one of two ways and I do not know which is the correct answer. One way to answer the question is that there will be unsaved people in the world even during the
Millennium and the saints shall rule over them. If that is the Lord's plan, I shall be glad. The other answer is that the Lord's BRIDE, HIS CHURCH, will reign with Him over the rest of the people who are saved but are not a part of the bride, the Lamb's wife. That, to me, is the most satisfactory answer. Not all of God's people will be a part of the BRIDE because the bride is the church and many saved people have never united with the church. By failing to unite with the church, they will only be guests at the wedding (Rev. 19:8-9) and be subjects in His kingdom.
GOD'S HATRED OF SIN AND THE FINAL EXTERMINATION OF SIN IS TYPIFIED in the book of Joshua. Some have thought it terrible that such wholesale extermination of the people should be ordered as was seen under Joshua. But we must understand that the Canaanites were terribly wicked, so much so that their bodies were diseased to such an extent that to allow them to propagate their kind meant a polluted offspring and it would have been an injustice to the children born under such terrible conditions. The wicked inhabitants got their just deserts and it was an act of mercy to not permit them to live on and bring children into the world amidst such wickedness. The extermination of this wickedness is typical of the final extermination of wickedness from the earth. The paradise, which once was on the earth when Adam and Eve lived in blessed innocence in Eden, shall be restored to this earth so long cursed by sin.
THE WORD JOSHUA MEANS JEHOVAH-SAVIOUR. Hence, the very name indicates that he was a type of our perfect Saviour whose work will be complete, in its results, when the world has been reclaimed and He is reigning with His people on the earth. Matt. 1:21: "Thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins." He saves from the POWER of sin, the CONSEQUENCES of sin and the PUNISHMENT of sin. Note the fact that this passage does not say He will save regenerate sinners from their unregenerate condition. Jesus does save such sinners and then when thus saved they become "HIS PEOPLE," and after they become HIS PEOPLE then we learn from this passage that "He shall save HIS PEOPLE from THEIR sins." The Lord's people sin but HE SAVES THEM FROM THEIR SINS. It does not say he KEEPS THEM FROM sinning but after they sin he saves them from their sins. Glorious fact!
Judgment of the Believer; What Shall Our Reward Be? Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 10-1969 There is much confusion in the minds of many concerning the Judgment. Some think, in fact the great majority, that all the world will be gathered together in one place at one time and a sort of trial will take place, which will determine whether one shall be saved or lost. Such people believe that we are on a sort of probation now and when the Judgment comes we shall have our cases decided as to our future, whether we shall inhabit heaven or be consigned to hell. This crude idea is based on the doctrine of salvation by works and makes God a sort of bookkeeper who keeps our records and if we do more good than evil we shall be admitted into Heaven and if more evil than good we shall be consigned to hell. This crude idea is a gross perversion of the teaching of God's word. THE BELIEVER HAS BEEN JUDGED IN CHRIST AND THE PENALTY OF HIS SINS HAS BEEN PAID BY THE SACRIFICE OF CHRIST ON THE CROSS. Romans 10:4, "Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth." I Peter 2:24: "Who His own self bear our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness."
Gal. 3:13: "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." For this reason we read in Rom. 8:1-2: "There is therefore now no condemnation (NO JUDGMENT, Revised Version) to them which are in Christ Jesus ... For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." John 5:24: "He that heareth my word, and believeth on Him that sent me, hath everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation (JUDGMENT, Revised Version); but is passed from death unto life." The believers' JUDGMENT was in Christ and took place on the cross. The believer was judged as a sinner in Jesus Christ, his substitute, who took the believer's place and was condemned on account of sin and paid the penalty for sin, suffering the equivalent of damnation in hell for the sinner for whom he substituted. 11 Cor. 5:21: "He hath made him to be sin (a sin offering) for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." OUR SINS WERE LAID ON HIM AND HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS WAS CHARGED TO OUR ACCOUNT. Isaiah 53:6." On Him was laid the iniquity of us all." If our sins were laid on Him, that ends the sin question for us. We have been set free. Romans 5:1: "Therefore being JUSTIFIED BY FAITH, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." In that Judgment which we received by means of Christ as our SUBSTITUTE, we were not only acquitted from sin but were JUDGED TO BE SONS OF GOD. I John 3:1: "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God." As sons of God we are henceforth considered not as aliens or strangers. In Heb. 12:7: "God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?" Thus we see that instead of coming into JUDGMENT and CONDEMNED because of our sins we are dealt with as SONS and instead of condemnation were CHASTENED because of our sins. I Cor. 11:31-32: "If we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are CHASTENED OF THE LORD (the Lord's judgment of his children is CHASTISEMENT), that we should not be condemned (judged) with the world." So our duty is to SELF-JUDGE ourselves and come under the chastening rod of our HEAVENLY FATHER and thus we are dealt with. To the believer there is coming a day in which he will be JUDGED AS TO HIS REWARD. This will be after the Lord's people have been caught up into the air during the GLORIOUS RAPTURE. There it shall be determined just what our reward shall be. Our work will then be finished and the rewarding day has come. II Cor. 5:10: "For we (that is the believers) must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad (profitless)." Revelation 22:12: "Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be." Thus we see that the rewarding day will be when Jesus comes again. Couple that with I Thess. 4:17: "We which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them (the ones raised from the dead) in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." Thus it is clear that the believer shall be caught up to meet the Lord in the air and in that state of rapture he will be judged as to how much reward he shall have, for the rapture and the rewarding time both come at the same moment and there shall he enter into that degree of glory that is justly due him. We are saved from sin by being judged in Christ who took our place as a sinner. After being saved from sin and having become "children of God by faith in Christ Jesus," (Gal. 3:26) we are ever after dealt with as sons and as sons we are rewarded according to our works. SAVED FREE, BUT REWARDED IN ADDITION TO OUR SALVATION. I Cor. 15:41-42, "For one star differeth from another star in glory, so also is the resurrection of the dead." We know the stars differ in glory one from the other. All we need to do to convince us of that is to go out on a dark night and look at the stars and we can see the great difference between them. "So
also is the resurrection of the dead." Your works will determine just how much glory YOU shall have. Not rewarded for the AMOUNT OF WORK DONE but you will be judged according to your FAITHFUL PERFORMANCE OF THE WORK ASSIGNED YOU BY THE LORD. Dan. 12:3: "They that be wise shall shine as the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars forever and ever." The Lord, at the judgment of works, will give His people crowns to designate the degree of glory they have received. 'There are five crowns mentioned in the Bible. The "crowning day is coming by and by."
THE CROWN OF LIFE will be given to those who have sacrificed their lives for the cause of Christ. The crown of life is the martyr's crown. Jas. 1:12: "Blessed is the man that endureth temptation, for when he is tried he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him." Rev. 2:10: "Be thou faithful unto death (be faithful if it costs your life) and I will give thee a crown of life."
THE CROWN OF RIGHTEOUSNESS will be given to all who love His appearing I Timothy 4:8 "Henceforth 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." I am wondering how many can truly say they love the Lord's appearing. He is coming again and shall we gladly welcome Him? If so a crown of righteousness will be ours.
AN INCORRUPTIBLE CROWN will be given to those who have curbed their baser passions and have kept their bodies under and led clean lives. I Cor. 9:25-27" Every man that striveth for the mastery, is temperate (exercises self-control) in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown but we an INCORRUPTIBLE . . . I keep my body under and bring it into subjection." The incentive to lead a clean life is not that we may be saved. That was settled when we were judged in Christ and He became our substitute and bore our sins on the cross. But the incentive to live a clean life is that we may wear the INCORRUPTIBLE CROWN. That crown is something to strive f or.
THE CROWN OF GLORY is the preacher's crown. I Peter 5:24: "Feed the flock of God which is among you; taking the oversight thereof not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; neither as lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear (note it will be when He comes) ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away." That crown of glory is the preacher's reward. What a pitiful thing it is when we find a preacher who preaches for money's sake, for filthy lucre. He should preach for the glory of God and the salvation of souls and to edify the Lord's people. Their duty is to support such a preacher. But no preacher should receive money for his preaching if he is preaching in order to get money. But when he preaches for the glory of God and for the salvation and edifying of souls he deserves full support and it should be gladly given by God's people and at last, when Jesus comes having His reward with a Him, a true preacher shall be crowned with a CROWN OF GLORY.
THE CROWN OF REJOICING will be given to the soul winner, 1Thess. 2:19 "For what is our hope, or CROWN OF REJOICING? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming?" Note the fact the crown of rejoicing will be given AT HIS COMING. Any one may win souls. You may win your associates to Christ and every day should be so lived as to influence some one to accept
Jesus as Saviour. He that winneth souls is wise and it will bring a crown of rejoicing when the saints are in glorious rapture caught up into the air to the Judgment of rewards at the Lord's coming for His people. What a wonderful arrangement the Lord has made for us ... saves us by having us JUDGED IN JESUS ON THE CROSS AS OUR SUBSTITUTE as to our sins, so that our sins are no more counted against us, and then admitting us as sons into His family with the promise of rewards according to our faithfulness in serving Him.
Kingdom Question Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 9-1971 The Kingdom, Past, Present, and Future Explained A Badly Misunderstood Subject Made Plain.
Six Kingdoms found in the Bible There are SIX DIFFERENT MEANINGS connected with the word KINGDOM in the Bible and the connection of each passage must be carefully noted if we get the correct meaning in many of the passages. I. The WHOLE WORLD, including the wicked. All men are in the kingdom in that sense. I Chr. 29:11, "Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all." Psalm 103:19, "The Lord hath prepared His throne in the heavens; and His kingdom ruleth over all." Psalm 47:7-8, "For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding. God reigneth over the heathen (nations). God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness." Matt. 13:41, "The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity." Dan. 4:3, "How great are His signs! And how mighty are His wonders! His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and His dominion is from generation to generation." Psalm 145:13, "Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations." Matt. 13:47-50, "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world: angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth."
II. The JEWISH THEOCRACY, the Jews being the kingdom. Acts 1:6, "When they therefore were come together, they asked of Him, saving, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?" II Chr. 29:20-21, "Then Hezekiah the king rose early, and gathered the rulers of the city, and went up to the house of the Lord. And they brought seven bullocks, and seven rams, and seven lambs, and seven he goats, for a sin offering for the kingdom, and for the sanctuary, and for Judah. And he commanded the priests the sons of Aaron to offer them on the altar of the Lord." II Chr. 13:7-8, "And there are gathered unto him vain men, the children of Belial, and have strengthened themselves against Rehoboam the son of Solomon, when Rehoboam was young and tenderhearted, and could not withstand them. And now ye think to withstand the kingdom of the Lord in the hands of the sons of David; and ye be a great multitude, and there are with you golden calves, which Jeroboam made you for gods." Obadiah 21, "And saviors shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the Lord's. III. ALL THE SAVED OF ALL AGES. In that sense the kingdom means the family of God. Matt. 13:38, "The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one." I
Cor. 15:50, "Now I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption." Matt. 6:33, "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." Mark 10:23-26, "And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved?" Luke 18:17, "Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein." John 3:3, "Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." Col. 1:13, "Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son." IV. THE CHURCH, the organized expression of the kingdom. Luke 22:30, "That ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel." Luke 11:20, "But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you." Matt. 11:11, "Verily I say unto you, among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he." Luke 17:20, "And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation." Matt. 16:18-19, "And I say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." Matt. 13:31-32, "Another parable put He forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof." Matt. 13:33, "Another parable spake He unto them; the kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened." V. The FUTURE MILLENNIUM, the thousand years reign of Christ on the earth with His saints. Acts 14:22, "Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God." II Tim. 4:1, "I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom." Matt. 6:10, "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." Luke 11:2, "And He said unto them, when ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth." Matt. 20:20-21, "Then came to Him the mother of Zebedee's children with her sons, worshipping Him, and desiring a certain thing of Him. And He said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto Him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom." Rev. 11:15, "And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever." Luke 13:28-29, "There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, When ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out. And they shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of
God." Luke 12:32 "Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." Luke 19:12-15, "He said therefore, a certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for Himself a kingdom, and to return. And He called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come. But His citizens hated him, and sent a message after Him, saying we will not have this man to reign over us. And it came to pass, that when He was returned, having received the kingdom, then He commanded these servants to be called unto Him, to whom He had given the money, that He might know how much every man had gained by trading." VI. HEAVEN, our final home. II Pet. 1:11, "For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." Mark 9:47, "And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire." Gal. 5:21, "Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."
Sermon Preached to the Messengers of the Churches Composing the American Baptist Association March 16, 1949 BEN M. BOGARD Recorded in the Baptist World, 2-1972
I Cor. 3:9, "Laborers together with God." We must work with God in everything if we succeed in life. Life is a failure if not in harmony with God. The farmer must plow and plant in harmony with God else he will fail as a farmer. As a free man, he may plant corn in January but there will be no harvest. He may, if he will, plant cotton in February, but there will not be a boll of cotton result. God has fixed a planting time and the farmer must conform. God furnishes the soil, the rain, the sunshine, but the farmer must plow and cultivate. God could raise a crop of corn or cotton if He wishes, but He never has done so. Man could not raise these crops without God. God and man work together on the farm. God and man work together in commerce. By commerce, I mean the exchange of products by means of railroads, steam ships, and airplane. God could have built the great railroads and steam ships and airplanes, but He did not. But man took the material God had made and built the railroads, and steamships and the airplanes. The material was made ready by the Almighty from the very beginning of the world, but it took man thousands of years to learn how to use it. The iron, the wood, were in great abundance in the forests and in the hills and mountains, but man ignorantly failed to use them to build the railroads and steamships. I owned an airplane seventy years ago, and it flew beautifully. I had a kite which is an airplane with the string as the motor; the boy's legs were the wheels that are now under the plane. So long as the boy pulled the string, the air caused the kite to fly. The finest airplane is nothing but a development of the kite. It took man a long time to discover the principles of the plane but God had it for him all the time. When these older people were boys and girls back yonder sixty-five and seventy years ago, all we knew about lightning was that it was dangerous. We saw it strike trees and destroy them. We saw it strike houses and burn them down. Sometimes lightning killed a man. We were afraid of it. What man dreaded and was afraid of, was God's provision for wonderful things. We have harnessed the lightning and it lights our houses, runs our machinery, cooks our food, washes our clothes, irons our linens, and
with our houses properly wired and grounded, we have eliminated the danger and have made this once very dangerous thing our servant. God had it for us all the time, but it took man thousands of years to learn to use it. Many are dreading the atom bomb but we need not be afraid. Just as we harnessed the lightning, so will we harness the atom. It is even now being harnessed to our machinery, one day it will be used to drive our cars, plow our fields and eliminate the need of gas and electricity. Are you afraid that some enemy may drop a bomb and destroy us? Already we have developed the death ray, which will be a perfect protection from the danger of the bomb. The death ray has been tested. Out in the desert, a metal target was set up, and at a distance of eighteen miles, the death ray melted the metal target as if it were pewter. Every great center will be protected by the death ray, and an airplane bearing the atom bomb, will be melted like lead before it can get near a city. The danger has already been eliminated. Now we shall see the atom brought into service just as we have seen lightning turned into a servant. When we learn to cooperate with God we shall see wonders. What is meant by education? By education, we do not mean book stuffing. The book stuffing process has turned out many that are known as educated fools. The word educate is made up of two Latin words, "E" and "DUCO" and it means "to lead out." "E" means out and "DUCO" means to lead, to lead out. When the Latinos led a horse out of the stall they called it "educating" the horse. It is certain they could not lead a horse out of the stall unless there was first a horse in the stall. Even so God has put certain facilities in us, and we can lead them out. If God has put music in a man, he can be a musician. If God did not put the music faculty in him, he can never be a musician. If God has put the mechanical faculty in a man, he may become a great builder, but if God did not put the mechanical faculty in a man, he can never be a builder. So the parent should find out what is in the child, the GOD PLANNED FACULTY, and develop that. In that way the child will become well educated. But many persist in trying to make a lawyer out of a boy who would make a good blacksmith, or a fond mother tries to make a preacher out of her darling boy when God did not put the preaching faculty in him and did not call him to preach. She may succeed in making a MANMADE preacher of her boy but no matter what training she may give him, unless God has called that boy to preach and has put the preaching faculty in him, he will never be a true preacher. I have often emphasized the fact that in the schools, we have for the education of preachers, we do not MAKE PREACHERS, but we take such preachers as God has called and we train them so that they will be better preachers, but our schools are not preacher incubators. We can help those whom God has called to preach to develop and become stronger and better preachers. GOD AND MAN WORK TOGETHER IN SPIRITUAL THINGS Before man can work with God in spiritual things, he must become a child of God by faith in Jesus Christ. He must be born again. Unless a man has had the life of Jesus Christ imparted to him and become a new creation in Christ Jesus; he can never work with God in spiritual things. If I had attempted such a thing as that, it would have shown I did not have faith in the doctor. Any attempt on my part to help the doctor would have hindered him and ruined everything. Faith in the doctor meant that I leave it all with him and that I do nothing. Faith is the only thing a man can do without doing anything. To accept Jesus Christ as Saviour means that I leave it all with Him. To attempt to help Jesus save me shows I do not have faith in Him. COMPLETE SUBMISSION, COMPLETE DEPENDENCE ON JESUS CHRIST IS FAITH. Whatever or whoever you are TRUSTING for salvation is what you have faith in. A fine old man who lived not far from here and who is well known to some that are present this morning, did not believe in banks-he was afraid to leave his money in the bank. He and his good wife saved every gold coin that came into their possession (for at that time gold was in
circulation) and put the gold into fruit jars then buried the jars in a corner of their garden. I have been told they had seventeen thousand dollars in gold buried in those fruit jars. One day a neighbor came in, and that neighbor is present here this morning hearing what I say and he said, "Uncle Jay, suppose some thief should come here some night and steal that money you have buried in those fruit jars out in your garden?" Uncle Jay said, "What do you know about the money buried in the garden?" The neighbor said he did know. That destroyed Uncle Jay's faith in the fruit jars. They went out, dug the money up and brought it into the house. Now what should they do with it? The old man was persuaded to take the money to a bank and deposit it. When he deposited the money in the bank, he then had faith in the bank. He went off home and LEFT IT IN THE BANK. He did not stand out in front of the bank with a gun to help the bank take care of his money. So, we deposit our souls with Jesus and He takes care of them. Anything short of that is not faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus saves us by transmitting to us His own life. The blood is the life and Jesus shed His blood for us. Then, after shedding His blood for us, we accepted it, and it was imparted to us; thus the blood of Christ became ours, and His life was put into us; Jesus Christ lives in us. When I was in the very jaws of death in that hospital, and was perfectly conscious of the fact, I was told that I must have a blood transfusion. I did not know where the blood was to come from. My own blood was not sufficient and I must have the life of some friend poured into my veins. As I lay in bed one evening while passing through this crisis, a young friend of mine named Frank stood by my bedside and said, "I have come to make a donation of my blood." The nurse told him how to find the blood bank. He went there and shed his blood for me. He came back in about an hour and told the nurse he had shed his blood for me. But that blood did not do me any good until I accepted it. I could have refused to accept it and have died without it. But I gladly accepted that blood shed for me and the next morning I saw Frank's blood run out of the bottle through a tube into my veins. I was told it trickled through fifty-two drops a minute. I watched it trickle through into my veins and thus put Frank's life into me. I had plenty now, yet not I but Frank's blood ran through my veins, I live yet not I but the life of Frank lives in me. Even so Jesus shed His blood for all men but some are not saved because they will not accept that blood and they die in their sins and go to hell, but the blood of Christ was shed for them and they could have accepted it. Christ shed His blood for me back yonder on Calvary's cross. I accepted it and it became a part of me. His blood became mine, and I live yet not I but Jesus lives in me. Gal. 2:20 says, "I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I but Christ liveth in me: and the life, which I now live, I live by the faith of the Son of God." If this wonderful passage teaches anything, it teaches that when we have accepted the blood of Jesus Christ, we become identified with Jesus: we died with Him, "CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST," and we arose with Him and now live "yet not I but Christ liveth in me" and from now on out to the end, we live, not by our faith in Him but by his faithfulness to us. We LIVE BY THE FAITH OF THE SON OF GOD." It is the faith of Jesus Christ that sustains us, not our faith in him. It is God's Son's faith that sustains us. Praise be to God, our salvation came when we submitted by faith to Jesus Christ and ever after that our salvation is maintained by His FAITH for us. He is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day." (II Tim. 1:12). "We are created in Christ Jesus unto good works," Eph. 2:10. We are saved to serve and after obtaining this wonderful spiritual life we then: COOPERATE WITH GOD IN SPIRITUAL THINGS. God and man together brought the Bible into existence. God could have made the Bible and rained copies of it down from heaven, but He did not. He chose to use man in producing the Bible. He used about forty men to write the Bible. Men wrote under the superintendence of the Holy Spirit and not an error is found in the Bible. There is not a word in the original scriptures that God does not want there and there was not one word left out that God wanted in the Bible.
What an honor that God used men in producing the Bible, and God now uses men in carrying the Word of God to the world. God and man work together in preaching the Word of God all over the world. We cooperate with God in prayer. Prayer does not cause God to do anything. God foresaw all our needs and prepared for them in advance and He is not taken by surprise at anything that may come to us. We are told to enter the "CLOSET" (Matt. 6:6) when we pray and the word "closet" means a storehouse, supply house, where everything we need is ready for us and all we need to do is to select what we want of the bounty already prepared by the Lord. I was visiting in a good home in the Cumberland Mountains in Kentucky, and the good lady said, "Let me show you my basement." I went with her to the basement where she stored canned meats, canned vegetables and fruits of every kind in great abundance. That basement looked like a first class family grocery. When company came, the good lady did not have any problem about what to serve. All she needed to do was to go to the basement and select what she wanted for the meal-it was there ready prepared. So with God. He has stored away in His "closet" what we need in every emergency. Enter into the "closet" and make your selection and anything that is within God's will, we may have. This room where we are is right now full of music but we do not hear it. If I had a small radio set on this stand, I could tune the dial and in a moment get the music. The radio would not produce the music. It only enabled me to hear what was already in existence. So my prayer does not cause God to produce anything, but prayer enables me to appropriate what God in His infinite wisdom and foreknowledge foresaw I would need. There it is waiting for me, hence, when we pray within God's will, we are sure to get what we need. EVERY MAN AND WOMAN HAS HIS PLACE IN GOD'S PLAN If I find my place and work, there I shall succeed, but out of my place, I shall be a failure. There are many that think that no one is called into God's work except preachers. But the fact is, farmers are called to farm, carpenters to build, women to be homemakers and teachers to teach. Looked at it this way, there is no secular and sacred, for every honorable occupation is sacred. In I Cor. 7:17-24, we have some wonderful statements, and very few have ever considered seriously these wonderful statements. The inspired writer says: "God hath distributed to every man, as the Lord hath CALLED EVERY ONE, so let him walk. And so ordain I in all churches. .. Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called. Art thou called being a servant? Care not for it ... For he that is called in the Lord, being a servant, is the Lord's freeman. Likewise he that is called being free, is Christ's servant . . . Let every man, wherein he is called therein abide with God." It is impossible for one to ABIDE in a place or position if he is not in that place or position. It is therefore impossible for EVERY MAN to abide in the calling wherein he was called unless he has that call. If I should tell each of you to abide in the seat you now occupy, it implies that you have a seat. Since each one of us is told to abide in the CALLING wherein we have been called, it follows that each of us has a calling for God and we should stay where God has assigned us. Has God called you to be a farmer? Then farm for the glory of God. Farmers feed the world, and why should a farmer despise his calling? But for farmers, there would be no church houses and no preachers because the farm supports all of us. Are you called to be a carpenter or bricklayer? Then build houses for the glory of God. But for builders, we should not have this commodious and beautiful Temple where we now meet. Are you called to be a housekeeper and homebuilder? You should praise God for calling you to do the most important work in the world. The home is more important than the church, for God established the home before He did the church, and if home life is destroyed, down will go civilization, and without civilization the churches.
If you realize that you are plowing for the glory of God, and if you realize that you are building houses for the glory of God, and if the dear women could realize that they are building homes for the glory of God, they would see that their work is just as sacred as the work of a preacher. That idea fixed in the mind will take the preacher down from his pedestal built by superstition, and place him on a level with the humblest dirt digger, for the dirt digging is just as much the work of God as preaching. All honorable work is sacred and religious. That is what is meant by sanctified. The word sanctify means to be set apart for God's service. You in your corner and I in mine, and though you may occupy a lowly place, it is God's place for you, and you should abide in that same calling wherein God has called you. Art thou called a servant? Care not for it. God needs servants, and God needs masters. If all were overseers, who would do the work? Some men can lead and God so intended, but the leader is no more important than the humble servant who follows his leader. Several years ago, I was preaching along this line and after the sermon, was invited to lunch with a fine family. At the table, the lady said, "Your sermon broke my heart this morning. I never was made to feel so bad in my life." I asked her what in the world I said that could have hurt her so. She said that I had shown in the sermon how that farmers are called to farm and teachers to teach and preachers to preach and she felt that she was left out entirely, as all she could do was to keep house, sweep floors, wash dishes, and take care of the family-nothing she could do for the Lord. I said to her that I regretted that I failed to finish the sermon by including the homemakers. I said to her, "You have made a home for your family. You have reared eight boys and all of them are saved. You brought them up in an atmosphere, which led them to Christ. A home is the most important place in the world, the corner stone of civilization. Without the home you women make, the churches would die. From such homes come all our workers, for the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world." Great tears of joy welled up in her eyes and she said, "Thank God, there is an important work for me." SUPERSTITIONS AND DELUSIONS CONCERNING GOD'S CALL There is a Divine Call to preach. A man who is not called of God to preach should stay out of the ministry. This call consists in a strong, overwhelming desire to preach. Paul said, "Woe is me if I preach not the Gospel," and he also said, "If a man desire the office of a bishop he desireth a good work." Then circumstances will hinge him about and make it unpleasant for him if he does not preach. He may be afraid he is not equal to the work, and hesitate to undertake it, but that deep desire is there. A man who really does not want to preach is not called of God. But some tell wonderful experiences about being called of God to preach. One young man came to the Missionary Baptist Institute and told me his experience. He said that he was sitting at the table reading the Bible and an angel appeared on the opposite side of the table and said to him, "Go preach the Gospel." I explained to him kindly that angels do not appear to men now in any such manner and that he no doubt had a dream while he dozed or that a toxic condition of the brain made him see what was not real. He said, "If that was not a call to preach, then I have no call." He soon left the school and I have never heard from him since. I heard of another young man who said he was out in the field and saw three letters up in the sky, "G. P. C.," and he said he interpreted that to mean, "Go Preach Christ." An old deacon said, "Young man I do not dispute that you saw the letters, GPC, in the sky but that does not mean Go Preach Christ, it means "Go Plow Corn." The day of miracles has passed and God does not use dreams and visions now. We have the infallible Word of God to guide us now. Much of this supposed calling of God is nothing more or less than a romantic idea of going a way off yonder somewhere to work for God, when the one having such an imaginary call will not try to lead souls to Christ at home.
One young man tells us he is called of God to go to China to lead Chinese to Christ, when he would not walk around the corner to lead Jim Wing at his laundry to Christ. A young lady working in my office about twenty-five years ago told me one day she had been called of God to go as a missionary. I said, "That is fine. Where do you think of going?" She said God had called her to Africa. Then she asked me where she might go to get the proper training to go as missionary to Africa. I said, "Miss Maggie, the best place to go will be to go down on West 9th street here in Little Rock in what is called African Central, get you a room and live among the Negroes, visit in Negro homes, help Negro women with their children, attend Negro church, and do your best to lead the Negroes to Christ." She flared up and said she would do no such thing. I then very solemnly said, "If you are not willing to work among the civilized Negroes here in Little Rock, how do you expect to work with heathen Negroes in Africa?" My talk took all the African call out of the young lady. Some have told us that they were called of God to go to the foreign field but were PROVIDENTIALLY HINDERED. In other words, God called the brother to go and then fixed it so he could not go. One brother said he was called of God to go to the foreign field. He tried it, and his wife could not stand the climate. In other words he accuses the Holy Spirit of ignorancecalling a man to go where his wife can't stand the climate. Such as that is near blasphemy. Some tell us God called them to preach, but they "Jonahed" and God had to chase them down for several years, even killing their children, and afflicting their wives, and almost ruining them, and finally God caught them and forced them to submit to ordination. After God put himself to all that trouble, the man can't preach after he is caught. Rest assured if God has called a man to preach he will be willing to preach, and he will have somebody to hear him when he preaches. This thing of saying you have been called to preach, but there is no place you can go is absurd. The field is the world and anywhere you are in the world is the place for you to preach You may not have a great church, but you will have a hearing, and God will bless you in your preaching. If A Man is Called of God to Preach, He Will Be Willing To Prepare Himself to Preach. The superstition that if God calls a man to preach, he will qualify him is contrary to God's Word. Timothy was called of God to preach but Paul told that young preacher to "study to show thyself approved of God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (II Tim. 2:15). If a young preacher should study to show himself approved unto God, as Paul commanded Timothy to do, he certainly can study better if he has good teachers. For that reason our young preachers should seek the best possible preparation for the Lord's work. The great forest, which God planted, has wonderful harmony, but infinite variety. Each tree is distinct and individual yet each one is where God put it and stays there contentedly. We make a mistake when we try to put our Baptist people into straight jackets. Each one should be permitted to do as he pleases, yet each one should seek to please the Lord. If each one will do his best to live within the will of God we need not worry about division, for we shall find ourselves standing very close together. The Bible is our instructor; the plans and specifications for the Lord's work is in the Bible and what is not found in the Bible should be left out of our plans. We should not fall out with one another about such things as schools, for the more schools we have the better. In the Bible we read of a school conducted by two individuals, Brother Aquila and Sister Priscilla who taught Apollos the way of the Lord more perfectly (Acts 18:20). That was a school with two teachers and one student, but what teachers and what a student! If some individual wishes to start a school let him do so and we should bid him Godspeed. There was the school of Brother Tyrannus as we read in Acts 19:9-10. It was good enough for Paul to tarry a long time-for two years and teach in it. The Antioch Church in Acts 13th chapter had teachers and certainly they were not idle, so there is a church school. If the truth is taught, and men and women are trained for the Lord's work, we should rejoice.
Let Us Not Discount The Individual Some men work best when left alone. If some little David walks out to slay Goliath we should cheer him and not jerk at his coattail and try to hinder him. This thing of demanding that there be a committee, or a board or a convention or an association behind every man before we recognize his work is contrary to the mind of God. We should not demand that all learn the goose-step, but we should, while working together, recognize individuality and praise the work done by the individual worker. WE SHALL RECEIVE A GLORIOUS REWARD FOR FAITHFUL SERVICE Jesus said, "Be thou faithful unto death and I will give thee a crown of life" (Rev. 2:10). The crowning day is coming by and by. We shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ and every man shall receive a reward according as his work shall be. Since each of us must appear in person before the judgment seat of Christ, our chief concern should be to please Christ. Queen Victoria who ruled England for sixty years, had her army to pass before her in review, and, as the soldiers passed, each one paused in the presence of the queen, and she, with her own hands, pinned a badge of honor on the lapel of each soldier's coat, and, as she did so, these soldiers felt a thrill at the touch of the queen's hand. Their hearts leaped for joy as she spoke kindly words to them. One day, I expect to stand before the King of kings and he will not pin a badge of honor on my coat, but He will place a crown on my head, a crown of righteousness which the righteous judge shall give to me, and not to me only but to all who love his appearing.
Preacher, Will The Lord Qualify Him? Ben M. Bogard From Baptist & Commoner, December 1, 1926. I have a letter from a dear brother who says he is glad we have our Missionary Baptist College and is glad for all the good it can do with the young people and then says: "As for the preachers why not let the God that calls them also qualify them? I have never been able to find where the Lord ever called a man to preach and then sent him to some college to learn how and what to preach, but instead he says to one of His prophets, Jeremiah 1:5, "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee, and before thou camest out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations." And in 6:1-6 we read: "Ah Lord, God, behold I can not speak for I am a child." Did the Lord tell Jeremiah to go to a theological school and learn what to preach? Jeremiah was not a mere child naturally speaking but a child in the ministry like every Godcalled minister and he felt his littleness. But the Lord told him: "Say not I am a little child for thou shaft go to all that I shall send thee and whatsoever I command thee thou shaft speak." Now why did not the Lord tell Jeremiah to go to school and learn of men what to speak? Because that was not his way. "Then Paul in I Cor. 2:4, 5, says: `My speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.' Again he says: `We speak wisdom yet not the wisdom of this world-but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the foundation of the world.' "Education is good, but not to fit preachers, for that is God's job. He begins it and will finish it. Tell me why the Lord passes up the wisdom of this world and goes to the cornfield to call His preachers? Why should they stay out of the service while they are in school? In the school they are taught the wisdom of men. "God sent Moses- who was of stammering tongue and did not tell him to go to school and learn the wisdom of the world. Now when one of God's ministers feels a call to preach I do not think he should lock his Bible up but he should study instead to show himself approved unto God a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth."
The above is word for word what the dear brother said. I thought he was making the best argument I ever heard against educating preachers (but no real argument can be made against it), and lo and behold! He turns right around at the end of his article and answers himself. The last statement was that the God-called preacher should take his Bible and actually study it so as to be able to rightly divide the Word of truth. Well, that is all any of us mean by educating the preacher. The preacher studies the Bible. That is all. He can not study the Bible to save his life if he can't read so it is necessary for somebody to teach him to read. Even if he can read it is impossible for him to understand the Bible without some knowledge of the language and hence he must study grammar and learn what a sentence really means when he reads it. A teacher is necessary in order that he may learn his own native tongue or language. There are historical references and scientific references, and geographical references and philosophical reference in the Bible that no man on earth can understand unless he is taught. Hence the need to go to school to learn enough to understand HOW TO STUDY THE BIBLE. The dear brother refers to Jeremiah and to Paul and to Moses. It is especially unfortunate for his position that he refers to Moses and to Paul because both of them were highly educated. Paul was educated at the feet of Gamaliel (Acts 22:3), and Moses was educated in all the learning of the Egyptians (Acts 7:22). Besides all this Moses and Paul were inspired and so was Jeremiah. None of us are inspired now. In I Cor. 13 we are told by Paul that "We know in part and we prophesy in part but when that which is perfect is come then that which is in part shall be done away." In other words God gave His wisdom to Paul by installments, just a little at a time, and as God gave him this wisdom a little at a time Paul gave it out to the world, but when the "PERFECT" THING CAME, which means the written word of God, then that inspiration Paul was using should pass away. We now have the Bible, the PERFECT THING has come and hence we can not receive information from God any more except as He has revealed it in His Word. It was necessary that men be inspired before the Bible was written because there was no Bible, no PERFECT THING, or rule of faith and practice, for men to go by and they had to depend on inspired men for information as to what God had commanded. Hence Jeremiah was to speak the things that God commanded. He learned what God commanded by inspiration. But since God has had His commandments all written out in the Bible we only need to read that in order to learn what the commandments are. You can not read the Bible unless you learn to read and learning to read is not just spelling out words and calling them out. Our language is made up of Latin; about fifty per cent of it is Latin and Greek; about ten per cent of it is Greek and Anglo Saxon; about twenty-seven per cent of it is Anglo Saxon and the man does not live who can really read (READ. I said), who does not have some knowledge of these languages and in order to learn them he must have teachers. That is why we need schools for the preachers. The dear brother says that the schools teach "man's wisdom." I wonder if he thinks the BIBLE IS MAN'S WISDOM. If teaching the Bible is teaching man's wisdom then God pity us for we have no other means of knowing God's will except by reading the Bible and if that is man's wisdom unto whom shall we go. If folks would do a little thinking and not presume that we are still being inspired as Paul and Jeremiah were, it would help wonderfully. The, brother says he never knew of a preacher after being called of God in Bible times to go school. Well, I do know of at least one. Do we read of Apollos who was taught by- Aquila and Priscilla the word of the Lord more perfectly? (Acts 18:26). If Apollos needed to be taught and if he could learn by being taught why not preachers now a days? Did Apollos do wrong by going to school to Aquila and Priscilla? Did Aquila and Priscilla do wrong in teaching this preacher the way of the Lord more perfectly? If they did right (and who will say they were not right?) then we do right in having our young preachers taught the way of the Lord more perfectly.
Another thing we all notice. When the cause is to be defended in debate, educated men are asked to come and defend it. When books are to be written and papers are to be edited educated men are asked to write. That shows the need of educated preachers. God does not give men knowledge these days. The gift of knowledge passed away when the PERFECT RULE OF FAITH AND PRACTICE CAME (I Cor. 13). It says, "Whether there be knowledge it shall vanish away." KNOWLEDGE as a gift and the gift of tongues, and the gift of prophecy were all to pass away when the Bible was completed, when the "PERFECT THING" came. When John wrote the book of Revelation the PERFECT THING had come, and from that day on we must read the Bible to learn what God wants preached. When He sent His disciples out two by two He told them not to think what they should say for it should be given them in that self same hour what they should say for it was not they who spoke but the Spirit of God that spoke in them. But when God spoke all He wanted us to know and when the PERFECT RULE OF FAITH AND PRACTICE came in the completed Bible then that sort of thing passed away. In Eph. 4 we read that the GIFTS were to cease when we came "into the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ." We got that knowledge of Jesus Christ in the Bible and when the Bible was completed we got all the knowledge of Jesus Christ the Lord wanted us to have and hence the gifts ceased for they were to last "TILL WE COME INTO THE KNOWLEDGE OF JESUS CHRIST." That settles it. If a dear brother expects the Lord to qualify him he will be sadly disappointed. God does not qualify anybody. He calls them into His work and then plainly instructs them to become students - "study to show thyself approved unto God" -and Paul told Timothy to "give attention to reading." Why that, if a man is "QUALIFIED" by the Lord? The fact is those who wait for the Lord to qualify them goes through life without being qualified. Those who study privately and then like Apollos avail themselves of good teachers will get the qualification they need and they will not be learning MAN'S WISDOM either but the WISDOM OF GOD FOUND IN THE BIBLE. Hence we should insist on the young preachers doing like Apollos and avail themselves of as good teachers as possible.
Precepts of God are Reasonable Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 5-28-1919. Text: "Be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear" (I Pet. 3:15).
The Bible is a reasonable book. Every doctrine and practice set forth in it is reasonable. We are commanded to be able to give a reason for the hope we have. If you do not know the reason for your hope, how can you give it? The sad fact is that many think they hope when they only wish and they have no reasonable hope. Their faith is mere credulity, or a mere notion. They do not know the reasons for the things taught in the Bible. Paul "reasoned of righteousness, temperance and judgment to come" (Acts 24:25), and he made a king tremble on his throne. A preacher who merely exhorts and does not give substantial reasons for the doctrines he preaches will never convince thinking men. One great reason there are so many skeptics is that when they raise an objection to the teaching of the Bible the majority of preachers are unable to meet the objections and that confirms the skeptic in his belief. If someone should tell us preachers that we are not reasonable, some of us would be offended, but such is the sober fact. Many preachers are not reasonable, for they do not give reasons for what they proclaim. They are good proclaimers and good exporters but poor reasoners. We take too many things for granted.
THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD There is not an unreasonable commandment in the Bible. There was a reason for every commandment given to the Jews in the Old Testament Dispensation. The Ten Commandments and the many others deduced from them were especially applicable to the Jews, but they were all reasonable. In the New Testament Dispensation the commands are all reasonable. It has always been reasonable, in all dispensations, that we should not kill, steal, lie, and commit adultery. Why? Because society would be disrupted if these things were permitted. Chaos and anarchy would reign supreme. It has always been reasonable that we should recognize the supremacy of our Great Creator for without constituted authority no order could prevail among men. It has always been reasonable that one day in seven should be devoted to rest and the special worship of God. Actual experience shows that men live longer, and can do more work and do it easier while they do live by resting one day in seven. In the year 1849 there were many who crossed the country to California because the gold fever was on in full force. Some were in such a hurry get there that they drove all day Sunday the same as other days. At first they were much in the lead of the more conscientious one who went into camp and rested the Lord's day, but before they reached California the ones who rested on Sunday passed the ones who did not rest. Those who drove on the Lord's day gave their tired horses no rest and the result was the horses were worn out before the journey was ended. The horses that rested were always fresh and could stand the journey better. It has always been reasonable that children should obey and honor their parents. Where this is observed, good citizen's result and where it is not observed, young people go to ruin. No need to mention all the commandments for all reasonable men will concede that the commandments are reasonable.
THE DOCTRINES OF GOD There is not an unreasonable doctrine in the Bible. Let us begin with PREDESTINATION. Is the doctrine of predestination true? Certainly. Is it reasonable? Certainly. Predestination means the destiny or end fixed before hand. It would be more unreasonable to think that an intelligent God has no end in view, that He just sails on without knowing where He is going to land. A farmer predestines what he will do when he plows and plants. He may fail to do what he predetermines to do and he may change his mind on the way, but he would be silly not to predestinate what he wants. Is God to be prevented from doing His will? Is He to be forced on by blind force not knowing where He is to go? It would be most unreasonable to think God had not predestinated the end He has in view. This is not saying that every man's idea of predestination is reasonable. Far from it. Many men have unreasonable conceptions of this great doctrine, but the doctrine itself is true, and reasonable. The doctrine of the TRINITY is reasonable. God has a triple-personality. He sometimes manifests Himself in one of these personalities and sometimes in another. But He is the ONE GOD each time. We do not worship three Gods. The doctrine of PRAYER is reasonable. A father hears the cry of his child, and why shouldn't God hear us? It would be unreasonable to suppose that God created man and then refused him access to his Creator. I used to think it unreasonable that our prayers could reach heaven, but since we can talk to one another while hundreds of miles apart, and even talk by wireless telephone with a man thousands of feet in the air or out in the middle of the ocean, the mystery all disappears.
REPENTANCE FOR SIN is reasonable. "Except ye repent ye shall all perish" has no mystery when we remember that the word repent primarily means to change the mind. If a man is set in sin, it will only be a short time until sin will be his ruin. This we know from actual experience. If his mind never changes he will of course persist in sin and therefore perish. If repentance meant a mere doing of penance to punish yourself for sin it would be unreasonable, but when it is so very real as to mean a radical change of mind from wrong to right, it becomes a most reasonable doctrine. It would be true if there was no God and if we had no such command.
The doctrine of FAITH is reasonable. Without faith a man cannot do anything at all worth while. The farmer has faith when he plants that the seed will germinate and grow, else he would not plant. He may not fully understand agriculture but he believes. His belief saves him as a farmer. The husband has faith in his wife else he would not risk her out of his sight and his faith in her saves his family from ruin, while disbelief in the wife would destroy the family. Faith saves and disbelief damns. It is true in everything under the sun. It is true in religion. Faith in Jesus Christ simply means that we believe in His pure, true, righteous and loving character, and that we entrust ourselves to such a One for safe keeping. To believe in such a character is to grow into His likeness. We will imitate the character we believe in; hence we will do right when we believe in Jesus Christ. It; therefore follows that faith in Jesus Christ is the hope of the world from a moral standpoint. Faith in Christ saves, and unbelief damns.
The practice of the LORD'S SUPPER is a reasonable practice. It sets forth in beautiful symbol the fact of Christ's suffering and death and reminds us of His mercy and His substitutionary suffering. The perversion of the Supper as practiced by Catholics where they think that they are partaking of the actual body and blood of Jesus, is of course unreasonable, but transubstantiation is not a Bible doctrine. It is an invention of men. Men have invented many absurd theories and doctrines but we cannot blame the Bible with them. What the Bible teaches is true and reasonable.
The practice of BAPTISM is reasonable. It is not a mere performance without reason, but it is a symbol of the resurrection of the Lord-a picture of the dead. It is not a saving ordinance but it sets forth in symbol of the work the Lord did in saving the world. To make it a saving ordinance is to make it an arbitrary and unreasonable command of it, but leave it where the Lord left it and it is a beautiful symbol.
The doctrine of REWARDS is reasonable. We are saved by grace and not by works, but WE ARE REWARDED FOR OUR WORKS. Salvation means safety, and the Lord practices safety first and then rewards for service. A public school teacher teaches the child for nothing, that is, the child does not have to pay tuition. The school is free, but the teacher may offer a reward for a good behavior. The child gets the tuition free but he does not get the reward free. So we get salvation free but we work for our reward. Every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor. This furnishes us the highest incentive for good behavior and is far more effective than threats of punishment would be.
The doctrine of HEAVEN and HELL is reasonable. Sin produces suffering here and now and there is no reason to believe that it will cease to produce suffering in the world to come. There is nothing in death to change a man's character, and he dies in sin and goes into eternity sinning. If sin produces suffering here it will hereafter, and eternal sin will mean eternal suffering. What is may be, and since we see men sin on in spite
of the suffering it produces and continue until death in sin, what reason have we that they will not continue in sin in the world to come? Mark you, I am reasoning now. I am not trying to prove the proposition by the Bible. We know the Bible teaches the awful doctrine of hell. But is the doctrine reasonable? Unless we change our habit of reasoning that we use in everything else we must conclude that the doctrine of hell is reasonable. It would be most unreasonable to suppose that God would turn the wicked into heaven to despoil the city and mar the happiness of the righteous. Men act the part of reason when they incarcerate the wicked in prisons here, in this world. Is God less reasonable? That there is a heaven for the redeemed is reasonable. A father wants his children with him and God, the father of the redeemed people, will want them gathered into the heavenly home. The reasonable thing for all to do is to escape the damnation of hell by repentance and faith and prepare to live a glorious eternity in heaven. When we meet with mysteries in the Bible we should remember that there are mysteries in everything. There are mysteries in nature and we are mysteries to ourselves. David said we are "fearfully and wonderfully made." But there is nothing unreasonable in the bible. We may find that which is above our reasoning power but with another it may be plain and easy. The mind of the infinite God dictated the Bible and he not only put primary lessons in it for the ignorant but advanced lessons for the wise, and some of the lessons are so deep and wonderful it may take not only a lifetime but all eternity to learn them. Thus there is room for everlasting study and development. The most easily comprehended and yet the most mysterious and wonderful character in the Bible is Jesus Christ. Make Him your ideal and serve Him and you are wise. To deny Him is folly that ends in the ruin of your soul.
Prayer, Old Testament Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 1-12-1921 There are some notable illustrations of prevailing prayer in the Old Testament. We do well to study them and learn how the saints of old prevailed with God in prayer. We are living in an age when most men play instead of pray and the result is a flippant and contemptible attitude toward religion, and it means ruin for the great majority.
I. Abraham pleading for Sodom is remarkable. Lot had moved to Sodom to better his material condition. He had an eye to business and settled among wicked people and got into the so-called "best society" in Sodom. It came near being his ruin. God revealed to Abraham that He was going to destroy Sodom with fire rained down from heaven. We find the account in Gen. 18:23-33. 1. We learn that God sometimes spares a town or community for the sake of the righteous. Abraham prayed that God would spare the city if fifty could be found righteous. God told him He would spare it for fifty. But the fifty could not be found. Abraham came down to forty-five, then to forty and then to thirty and then to twenty and at last to ten. God told him He would spare the city if even ten righteous persons could be found in it. The number could not be found and the city was destroyed. Had it ever occurred to you, sinner that you may be out of hell this minute because of the righteous people who live about you? Their prayers prevail with God and you are spared by this invisible power, while possibly you scorn the God who spares and the people who pray! What our country needs most of all is old-fashioned religion, the preserving sort of religion. Politics may plaster over evils, and reform may cause the leaving off of some exterior faults, but regeneration changes the heart and makes men righteous. Nothing short of it will save the country.
2. The ones in whom Abraham was most particularly interested were saved from the destruction. If we can't save the whole community we may be able to save some. We certainly are encouraged to pray for our immediate families and near kin. Lot, who was spared with his family, was a nephew of Abraham and it was for him especially Abraham prayed. His prayer was answered so far as his greatest desire was concerned. 3. Lot's wife escaped the fire but died before she reached the mountain heights. Thus many are saved from hell but never reach the glory heights of the Christian religion. They are cut off from the highest joy and sweetest privileges by too much longing for and love of the world. Lot's wife looked back, no doubt with desire to return to her fine home in Sodom, and was for that reason not permitted to reach the mountain.
II. Jacob's prayer for protection from his angry brother is recorded in Gen. 32. Jacob was a bad child of God. He was a natural born rascal and gave way to his weakness. He suffered as a result as all of God's children will suffer for their transgressions. God's children are not lost in hell for their transgressions but they suffer in the flesh for the sins of the flesh, as did Jacob. 1. Jacob felt the need of protection. His brother was coming with a powerful force to destroy him. He was helpless in his brother's power. His only hope was that God would rescue him and he did not know how that would be done. 2. He pleaded the promise of God. God had promised that he should return to the land of his father and had promised him protection. God had promised to make his seed as the sand of the sea. How could God keep these promises if he allowed Esau to kill him? God let him remain in the dark until he became very humble. 3. He did all he could to help answer his own prayer. He divided up his flocks and herds and sent them on ahead in-groups, and his servants were instructed to tell Esau, when they met him, that these cattle were presents to Esau. He kept back behind hoping that Esau would be appeased by the presents before meeting him. He was also trying to make restitution for the stolen birthright he had taken from Esau. A man in dead earnest spares neither trouble nor expense when he wants a favor from God. 4. He confessed his sin to God. The Lord asked him his name and he answered, "Jacob." The word Jacob means a supplanter. Thus the Lord pulled from him the confession that he had wronged Esau by supplanting him when he stole Esau's birthright. We must always confess our sins to God if we expect to get our prayers answered and expect the Lord to help us out of trouble. 5. When the blessing of security came it came in disguise. He was crippled by the angel with whom he wrestled, the angel touching his thigh so that it withered away. Thus his weakness was increased and his helplessness completed. It was now impossible for him to even run away. When Esau met him he was moved to pity by his crippled condition and instead of killing him forgave him and received him as a brother. Thus it is that God finds it necessary to cripple us sometimes in order to bless, us. The greatest blessings come through adversity, and "God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform." He did all he could to help answer his own prayer. He divided up his flocks and herds and sent them on ahead in-groups, and his servants were instructed to tell Esau, when they met him, that these cattle were presents to Esau. He kept back behind hoping that Esau would be appeased by the presents before meeting him. He was also trying to make restitution for the stolen birthright he had taken from Esau. A man in dead earnest spares no trouble nor expense when he wants a favor from God.
III. Moses prayed for Israel. They had sinned and we find God threatening to destroy them and raise up another people to do His will and glorify Him. The prayer of Moses is found in Numbers 14: 19: "Pardon I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now." He did not plead the worth or merit of the Israelites. He put his plea upon the high plane of God's wonderful mercy. We do well to use the same method. At best we are bad and there is nothing in us to commend us unto God. Even if we do all we have been commanded we are still unprofitable servants, since we have only done our duty.
IV. Daniel's habit of prayer is an example for us all. We read of this in Dan. 6. Even the king's command did not stop his devotions and for it he was cast into the den of lions. But God delivered him out of the mouths of the lions, and Daniel answered the King, when he came to the den next morning, saying, "My God sent His angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that they should not hurt me." This shows one of God's methods of taking care of His people. The ministry of angels is a very comforting doctrine. "Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister to them who shall be the heirs of salvation?" Heb. 1:14. 1. Daniel's habit of prayer did more good than his preaching. It got the attention of the king and resulted in a decree to all the king's dominions that Daniel's God should be respected. And Daniel prospered for many years thereafter. Nothing should interfere with our prayer habit.
V. David prayed a model prayer for a backslider. Psalm 51 gives us the substance of the prayer. Many are in backslidden condition and need to come as backsliders and get their joy restored. Backsliding is not falling from grace. To fall from grace is impossible, but to grow cold and get out of duty is not only possible but also very probable in the lives of many. God's kingdom endures a lot of imperfection. 1. David confessed his sin. "Against thee and thee only have I sinned and done this evil in thy sight." 2. He prayed that the Holy Spirit be not taken away from him. This shows that he was not in a lost condition. He still had the Holy Spirit and he said: "Take not thy Holy Spirit from me." In his case the Holy Spirit was not giving joy but was rebuking and chastening. 3. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation." Very many are not enjoying religion. They are in conscious disobedience, and are miserable. Many are living beneath their privileges. It is our privilege to live on the mountaintop of joy. 4. David made a promise. "Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee." There can be no successful service, nor soul winning, while we live out of the joy of salvation. Prayer is the great restorative. Let us pray as a duty, and as a privilege, and as a necessity. Prayer availeth much with God.
Redemption Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 1-1969 "And they sung a new song, saying thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation and hast made us unto our God kings and priests; and we shall reign on the earth" (Rev. 5:9-10). This passage calls our attention to the mixed multitude that shall be in heaven. They will be out of "every kindred, tongue, people and nation." In another place we are told that the number will be so great that "no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues clothed with white robes, (Rev. 7:9).
There are some small sects who teach that nobody will be saved except their own members. The Christadelphians tell us that no one will be saved who is not a Christadelphian and that no infants will be saved. There are not twenty thousand of them in the whole world and they had their beginning in A. D. 1848. Just tell me, please, where the great multitude will come from if nobody but members of that sect will be saved? In the first place their number is so small that it would be but little trouble to number them and in the second place they are not in every nation and of every kindred and people. I asked a good friend of mine, a former school mate and long acquaintance and a member of the Christadelphians, where he would get his crowds in future glory if nobody but him and his brother Christadelphians would be saved and no babies at all would be saved, and he hesitated, started to say something, and then stopped and never did try to answer the question. Baptists believe that great multitudes will be saved who never even heard of the Baptist Church We believe all infants will be saved by the blood of Jesus, and all others who trust Jesus for salvation will be saved and those who have repented of their sins and trusted Jesus for salvation are found in all countries and among all peoples and sects. If one can be saved without being a Baptist what is the use of being a Baptist? Might as well ask if one can be saved without getting married why get married? Every decent man would answer that he got married because he loved the lady he married and wanted to establish a home. The family was established before the Church was and is even more important than the Church. But getting married, while taught in the Bible, and while the family is God's institution, and is very important in its place, is not necessary to salvation, and nobody but a simpleton would contend that getting married is necessary to salvation; so with being in the Church, that other institution that God established. The Church is very important and does a deal of good and God is with those who come into situation. But neither being married nor being a church member is necessary to salvation. If a man should tell his wife that he never would have married her if he had not been afraid he would go to hell if he did not, I think she would feel highly insulted and if she had any spunk she would leave him and tell him he could go to hell if that was the reason he was living with her. Wonder if Jesus does not feel insulted when He hears people say they would not obey Him by coming into His church if they were not afraid that they would go to hell if they stayed out of the church? When one talks like that it is only another way of saying that he does not love the Lord, and is only obeying Him to keep from going to hell. He is not obeying because of love, but for fear of hell. He is hell-scared and not love bound. Such service as that cannot be happy service, but a certain dreadful fear of hell fills their souls and they go through life with a dread and uneasiness lest they may miss it somewhere or some way and finally slip into hell. If I believed that way I should be afraid to go to sleep at night. But having been saved and having as a result the love of God in my heart, I obey God because I love to do so; it is a joy and a delight to do so. And when I get to Heaven I shall join in the song found in the text: "redeemed by thy blood and am made a king and priest unto God and shall reign on the earth." What honor, what glory there is in being redeemed by the blood? The word blood is a symbol of suffering. So the passage means that we are saved by the suffering of Jesus who died for us and paid the penalty of our sins for us. Will there be any babies who will help to sing this new song? I think all believers in the Bible will answer that certainly there will be many babies who shall be in that great number who shall be singing that BLOOD REDEMPTION song. Then, it follows that babies are redeemed by the blood. Jesus died for babies and that shows they needed the death of Jesus. Babies are by nature sinful. They are not held accountable because Jesus shed His blood to cover the ADAMIC SIN, the inherent depravity because the death of Jesus covers that evil. Hence babies will all be saved if they die in infancy. They are UNCONDITIONALLY SAVED but those who arrive at the age of accountability must accept the sacrifice of Jesus for themselves if they are saved. To those who are accountable, to those who are the subjects of Gospel address, I am
saying that except you repent you shall perish. Possibly there are some who hear me today who are thinking that they intend to accept Jesus; they expect to repent before they die but they intend to put it off as long as possible. That is as much as to say that they want to serve the devil just as long as they can because they love the devil and his ways so much better than they do God and His ways that they will go on in sin until they have wasted their lives serving the devil and then throw the worn-out, filthy rags of their sinful life at Jesus and say to Him that they did not care enough about him to serve Him while they were some account, but now that they have spent their life serving the devil they will condescend to let the Lord have what is left. It is as if a man should spend the best of his life running around among low women and when he gets old and he cannot run around with bad women any longer he hunts up some sweet, pure woman and says to her that since he can't have any more fun among the bad women he will allow the sweet, pure woman to have the remnant of his wicked life What decent woman would hitch up with such a man? Do you say no good woman ought to marry such a man? Then what do you think of a man who wants to do God that way? It seems that a man would be ashamed to undertake such as that. If you have any regard for decency, any regard for honor, any regard for God, don't put off salvation with any such intentions as that.
The Word "Redeem" Means To Buy Back That carries with it the idea that the sinner is a slave and is owned by the devil and must be redeemed. The price paid is the blood (suffering) of Jesus. There is no other price that can be paid. If you had the wealth of Rockefeller you could not buy your salvation. Salvation must be accepted at the hands of Jesus who paid the price to set you free. The text says that they sang: "Thou hast redeemed us by Thy blood." Men are seeking to devise some other way but they cannot succeed. Some are trying to buy their way to Heaven by doing deeds of charity. That would put salvation on a money basis. The Lord does not need your money. The cattle on a thousand hills are His. The gold of California is all His. If He were hungry He would not tell you. Then you may ask why do the Lord's people contribute their money to the Lord's work? They give their money as a matter of worship, because they love the Lord, not to buy their salvation. People contribute money to pay the expenses of this radio service. Why? Not to buy their salvation but because they love lost souls and want to help pay the expenses of the radio service so that lost souls may be reached in this way who might never be reached in any other way. I thank God some have been saved by listening in at the radio services. I have baptized several that were saved by hearing the Gospel over this radio. When a soul is saved by this means those who help support it get their reward in the joy they feel over a sinner who has repented. A brother said the other day in a conversation with me that he did not think I ought to call for money over the radio. I told him I was not able to pay the radio station for the use of the time and somebody had it to do or the radio service would stop and if the radio service stops then the chance to reach lost souls by this means would stop and those who love the Lord think it is a pleasure to help keep the good work going. I do my preaching free of charge and it is the radio station that is paid for the use of their machinery to send the message out. If we sent the sermon by mail it would cost a great deal more in postage stamps and printing, but in any case it takes money. Not that you pay for the salvation of the soul but we pay the expenses of carrying the Gospel to the people. Water is free, but it is expensive to dig a well. The well must be paid for, and so must the well bucket that hangs in the well and so must the dipper with which you drink the FREE water. So with the radio by means of which I preach free salvation by the blood of Jesus. Salvation is FREE but it cost the blood of Jesus to pay the price. In that sense salvation is very expensive. But since others have paid the price of your salvation, then YOU CAN OBTAIN IT FREE. After you are saved you will appreciate it so much that you will want to help carry the blessed good news to others.
Redemption Includes All Features of Salvation Redemption includes the FORGIVENESS OF SINS. Eph. 1:7: "In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace." Forgiveness wipes out the terrible past. When your sins are forgiven, then God no longer holds the past against you, the past is forgotten and your sins are pardoned. Forgiveness secures you against the penalty of sin. The damnation of hell is no longer your portion. Forgiveness sets you free. A prisoner is condemned to die by the court. The day of execution has been set, but the governor pardons the criminal. He goes free not because of his merit but because of the mercy of the governor. The Lord will have mercy if you ask Him. If you refuse to petition the governor of the universe for a pardon you have no one to blame but yourself. The Bible says: "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved," If you do not call who is to blame?
Redemption Includes Justification Rom. 5:1: "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Justification means that God looks upon us as being innocent. We are counted as being perfect. We are looked upon as if we never had sinned. His BLOOD COVERS US. He does not count sin against us. In Rom. 4:7-8 we read: "Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin." God can not see the Christian's sins through the blood of Jesus.
Redemption Includes the New Birth John 3:7: " . . . Ye must be born again." Forgiveness in itself does not change our nature. It does not make us any better. Justification causes God to look upon us as perfect, to reckon us to be innocent. If there were only forgiveness and justification we should be still in harmony with the devil and yet safe and that would make us very dangerous men and women. That sort of thing would make us safe in wickedness. But the Lord does more than forgive and justify. He REGENERATES. He imparts to us the DIVINE NATURE and we become lovers of God, and lovers of God's people, and we are so changed that we are brought into harmony with the commands of God and we begin to obey God because we actually want to, because we love that which is right and we would ever after serve God from love, even if we should be convinced that there is no hell. We are not controlled by fear of punishment but by love of God and love of that which is good. The NEW BIRTH makes us better.
Redemption Includes Sanctification John 17:17: "Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth," Sanctification is a Bible doctrine. It is clearly taught as is the new birth or forgiveness of sins or baptism or any other doctrine. Sanctification means to set apart for God's service. Sanctification does not make us any better. The NEW BIRTH did that, but sanctification gives us a PLACE, sets us APART for service. Sanctification gives the saved man a NEW JOB. It does not make him better, but does give the man who has already been made better by the new birth, gives that man a better position, a better work to do. Some are sanctified for one thing and some for another thing. A preacher, called of God to preach, is sanctified to preaching, and a teacher to teaching, and a farmer to farming, for when one becomes a child of God by faith in Jesus Christ, he then is set apart for service where he can do the most good. Farmers can serve God just as well farming as a preacher can preaching, and the farmer is just as honorable and his work is just as profitable to the Lord as is preaching. But for farmers preachers would starve to death. The whole world depends on the farmer and he should feel his importance and magnify his office. So with every honorable work that man can do. In whatever way you can serve God and mankind, that is what you are sanctified to.
Redemption Includes Preservation Jude 1: "Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ." The Lord takes care of His people. In Romans 8:28 we read: "We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." It is certain that if all things work together for my good then I can not fall from grace and go to hell because it is certain that such as that would not be for my good. This passage being true the devil himself must work for my good. If that is true how could the devil drag me down to hell? That passage being true, it proves that God will overrule my sins for my good, so that even my sins will not be able to destroy me, but will be so overruled by the Lord that I shall be benefited by the imperfections. Some one, who has never been born again, may say that if this is true, then he would take his fill of sin. He gives himself away. He thereby confesses that he LOVES SIN and only abstains from sin for fear of hell and that shows he has never been born again. A man who has experienced the NEW BIRTH does not want to take his fill of sin. If a man feels like he would take his fill of sin if he thought the Lord would preserve him anyway, shows he is a child of the devil and needs to repent of his sins so that the love of sin will be killed in his heart by the new birth. We who are born again do sin, but we hate it and we try to keep out of it. But we are happy that when we do sin, GOD OVERRULES EVEN THE SIN FOR OUR GOOD. That makes us wonderfully safe. If some sinner who hears me today says he would like to be a Christian but he is afraid he can't hold out, I will say to him that God preserves those who accept Him and the newborn child of God does not even try to hold out. He lets God hold him. Redemption Includes Our Resurrection and Glorification I Peter 1:3-5: "According to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again to a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed at the last time." Wonderful REDEMPTION. Will you seek it?
Resurrection Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 6-11-1919 Text: "Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you that God should raise the dead?" Acts 26:8.
Paul appealed to Agrippa's reason. If there is a God at all, and no doubt Agrippa believed there was a God, then why should not God be able to raise the dead? It is most unreasonable to believe there is a God, a mighty Supreme Being, a Being who created the world, and yet not believe that such a God can raise the dead. The evolutionist believes that life came into being without any creative power, yet that same evolutionist declares he cannot believe that life can be restored where it once existed! An evolutionist, to be consistent, should even believe that the dead could come to life without any divine power, since he thinks life began in the first place without any supernatural power. BUT THERE IS NOTHING SO INCONSISTENT AS SKEPTICISM. The skeptic can have marvelous faith in anything that is opposed to the Bible, but he cannot believe his own eyes if it is in favor of the Bible! Just why? Because his eyes are blinded by the power of the devil, but if he were only willing to it, the Lord would open his eyes.
THE RESURRECTION TAUGHT IN THE OLD TESTAMENT I Sam. 2:6: "The Lord killeth and maketh alive; He bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up." Thus sang Hannah as she praised the Lord for His answer to her prayer for a son.
Job, in his great affliction and temptation, declared: "I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at that latter day upon the earth: and though after my skin worms destroy this body yet in my flesh shall I see God." Job 19:25-26. Isaiah prophesied of the death and resurrection of Christ in the fifty-third chapter: "and he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death . . . yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand." Isa. 53:3-10.
THE RESURRECTION IN THE NEW TESTAMENT Just as every other doctrine is fuller and plainer in the New Testament, so is the doctrine of the resurrection. Jesus taught His disciples that He would be put to death and would rise again (Matt. 16:21). When he did arise from the dead it was proclaimed by angels (Matt. 28:2-3) and then the Lord showed Himself alive ten times after He arose from the dead and taught His disciples "concerning the kingdom of God" (Acts 1:1-3). He afterwards appeared to Saul (Acts 9:16) and Saul became a preacher of the Christ he had been persecuting. Stephen declared he saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God at the time the first Christian martyr was being stoned to death. There were infallible proofs of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, and the resurrection of Jesus guarantees the resurrection of His people. 1. He first appeared to Mary Magdalene whom he had dispossessed of devils during His ministry among men (John 20:3-181-Mark 16:9-10). She became the first proclaimer of the resurrection, and she actually made the announcement to men. Women may today tell the story of the Gospel, the newest news of the world, news to every man who comes into the world, for anything is new to a man who first learns it. There are many today that have never learned of the resurrection of Christ, and many that have heard it do not believe it. Let us tell the news. 2. His second appearance was to two women, the other Mary and Salome, and He told these women to go tell the disciples that he had risen from the dead and commanded them to make an appointment for a meeting with the disciples in Galilee (Matt. 28:9-10). It is significant that Jesus made women bearers of the news to the others and used them to make the appointment in Galilee. Woman was first in the transgression but she was also first in accepting the Saviour and in announcing His resurrection from the dead. 3. He appeared to Cephas before He appeared to any of the other apostles (I Cor. 15:5), "he was seen of Cephas and then of the twelve." It was Cephas who had cursed and sworn and lied and then vehemently denied the Lord when the Master was under trial. He especially told the women to tell Cephas of His resurrection. Just as a parent has more affectionate interest in a wayward child, so Jesus thought especially of the unstable Cephas who broke His heart by denying Him. Jesus had told Peter (Peter was his Greek name) that Satan had desired him but he had "prayed for him that his faith fail not" (Luke 22:31-32). Peter's courage failed, and he proved himself to be unstable, and a coward, but he NEVER LOST his FAITH IN JESUS AND HENCE NEVER LOST HIS SOUL WHEN HE ACTED SO BADLY. This is encouragement for us, when we do wrong. The Lord is merciful and displayed His mercy especially in Peter's case, and singled him out especially when He told the women to tell His disciples, and Peter." 4. His next appearance was to reasoners. "Behold two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus and they talked together of all these things which had happened. And it came to to pass, that, while they communed together and REASONED, Jesus himself drew near and went with them" (Luke 24:13-15). Then the Saviour revealed Himself to them and taking His text from the prophets He preached a wonderful sermon
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to them concerning the things that all the prophets said concerning Himself. Jesus thus honored reasoning: He would not have us blindly accept a doctrine or practice. God said, even in the Old Testament times, "Come now let us reason together" (Isa. 1:18). The man who shuts his mind up against reasoning will not get many favors from the Lord. God is a reasonable God and the Bible is a reasonable book and Jesus, God manifested, honored two reasoners as He did no others after His glorious resurrection. The fifth appearance was to all of the apostles except Thomas, who for some reason was not present in the prayer room with the others (Luke 24:36). Thomas was a doubter. He declared he just could not believe that Jesus was risen from the dead, and he would not believe unless he could examine for himself the nail prints in His hands and the wound in His side made by the spear. If doubting Thomas could still be a Christian, and there is no doubt of it, then doubters of the resurrection may now be Christians. Thomas loved the Lord, and "he that loveth is born of God" (I John 4:7). But Thomas was not a good theologian and did not understand the necessity of the Lord's resurrection. It was even true that some of the saints at Corinth doubted and even disputed the resurrection of the dead (I Cor. 15:12). Yet Paul declared that they were "saints," and had been "washed," and were "sanctified," and certainly saved. It is a good thing that we have this example of doubting Thomas. It shows that grave imperfections in faith may exist and yet the individual be a saved man. But doubting Thomas accepted the evidence when he saw it. All honest men will accept the truth when they see it. At the sixth appearance all the apostles were present. It is distinctly mentioned that Thomas was there (John 20:26-29). When Jesus showed Thomas the nail prints and the spear wound, Thomas exclaimed: "My Lord and God!" Thomas was a skeptic in some particulars, but when evidence was presented he saw what it meant. If Jesus arose from the dead He was more than man, He was God. The deity of Jesus Christ was proved. He had claimed to be God, God manifested and His resurrection proved His claim to be true. He said to Thomas: "Because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet believed." The seventh appearance was to some of the disciples as they were fishing (John 21:1-17). The Lord worked a miracle and caused a great net full of fish to enter the nets. This is called the ''third time he showed himself to his disciples" and it was the third time He had showed Himself to the apostles, but the seventh time in all, counting the women and the individual appearances, rather His appearance to individuals. He here especially questioned Peter as to whether he loved him and commanded him to feed the flock. Peter's experience was a wonderful One and the very relation of the Lord's dealing with him was food for the soul. His eighth appearance was on the mountain (Matt. 28:17-20). Here Jesus gave the (Great Commission, commanding them to preach the Gospel and baptizing the converts and then instructing them to continue in all things whatsoever He had commanded. The commission is the marching" orders of the church today. The order laid down in that commission is the order we must observe today. First, make disciples, and then baptize the disciples, then teach the baptized disciples to observe the supper and other thin-s the Lord had commanded. To violate that order is sin. There were five hundred or more brethren present when the Great Commission was given on the Mountain of Galilee (I Cor. 15:5-7). Thus the Commission was not given to the apostles alone but to the assembled church. The ninth appearance was to James (I Cor. 15:7). James was to have his seat at Jerusalem and lead the first church, which Jesus had Himself organized. This special meeting possibly had to do with special instructions concerning the things pertaining to the
Kingdom. The Lord was careful in the preparation of His disciples for the work they had to do. He did not have an untrained man in the number, and after His resurrection He spent forty days teaching them, sometimes singly and sometimes in-groups, the things pertaining to the kingdom of God. 10. His last appearance was to all His apostles (I Cor. 15:7, and Acts 1:1-9). At this meeting He commanded the church to wait for the power of the Holy Spirit. THE CHURCH WAITED. On the day of Pentecost the endowment with power came upon the church which Jesus had organized and trained, and the Holy Spirit brought to their remembrance what Jesus had taught them. We are now under the administration of' the Holy Spirit, and will be till Jesus comes again. There is no better-attested fact in history than that Jesus arose from the dead. You recognize Jesus every time you write a letter or date a business document. Every Sunday morning, we are reminded that Jesus arose from the dead just as the Fourth of July reminds us of the independence of the United States. Every time we witness a baptism we see a picture of the resurrection of' the dead (Rom. 6:4). No wonder Blackstone said: "The resurrection of Jesus Christ is a case made out." That was the decision of the world's greatest lawyer.
Resurrection of Christ Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 4-1969 "But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the first fruits of them that slept." -I Cor. 15:20.
Death is called a sleep in this text. The resurrection will be like awakening a man from deep sleep. If death is a sleep then it certainly does not mean extinction. Our beloved dead are asleep and Jesus shall awaken them from sleep at the resurrection. Paul said he met Jesus face to face while he was persecuting the saints and Jesus said: "I am Jesus whom thou persecutest." (Acts 22:8). If Paul told the truth then Jesus had arisen from the dead because this was several years after the Lord's death on the cross. Paul, in defending his right to be an apostle, said: "Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen the Lord Jesus?" In order to be an apostle one must have seen the Lord Jesus after He arose from the dead as well as to know His history from His birth, Paul said before he could qualify for the office of apostle. Our Mormon friends, and possibly others, claim to have apostles. HAVE YOU SEEN THE LORD JESUS? An apostle was an ambassador, and a witness. A witness is one who tells what he KNOWS, not one who relates what he has heard. I BELIEVE Jesus arose from the dead because I have read it in the Bible and it is a well-authenticated fact in history. But I do not KNOW He arose because I was not there and did not see it. I could not qualify for the office of apostle because I am not a WITNESS of His resurrection. I preach His resurrection, based on the evidence I have that He actually arose, but I have never seen Jesus face to face, hence I do not know He arose. Paul said that if we "confess the Lord Jesus and BELIEVE from the heart that God raised Him from the dead thou shalt be saved." (Rom. 10:9). I do from my heart believe that Jesus arose from the dead and I have God's word for it that I am saved. But I do not KNOW He arose from the dead. If you go into court and tell what you have heard or believe, no matter why you so speak, the court will rule such testimony out. To know is one thing and to believe is another. What is meant by believing from the HEART? I can explain by some illustrations. A lady teaches school but does not have her heart in the teaching and wishes all the time that she did not have to teach. Her heart is not that of a teacher. Another lady LOVES to teach; she delights in children and delights in her work. Her heart is in the schoolroom. A farmer trudges along at his task, wishing all the time he did not have to farm. He farms to keep from starving, but his
heart is not in his work. Another man LOVES the farm and delights to cultivate the soil. His heart is in his work. With these illustrations let us approach the resurrection of Jesus. One may believe that Jesus arose from the dead just exactly as he believes that Washington was the first president of the United States. It is simply a historical fact with him. He cares nothing about it beyond merely assenting to the historical evidence. As an intelligent man, with the evidence before him, he believes that Jesus arose from the dead. But his heart is not in it. But another man sees in our Lord's resurrection his hope of heaven. He delights in the fact that Jesus arose from the dead. He is GLAD that Jesus died for his sins and arose again for HIS JUSTIFICATION. His heart is in his belief. He believes from the heart. If there is no joy in believing this glorious fact then he is not a saved man. But if believing that Jesus arose from the dead gives him joy, that's what is meant by believing from the HEART. Paul said that if we believe from the heart we shall be saved. Here is where heart-felt salvation comes in. Some people erroneously call it heartfelt religion. Religion is what we do and is not felt. But salvation is what we receive and is felt. Love is a feeling, and joy is a feeling, and gladness is a feeling, and HEART BELIEF means JOYFUL, GLAD, LOVING belief, and Paul says that when we have JOYFUL, GLAD, LOVING belief we shall be saved, for that is exactly what HEART belief is. Do you believe from the heart that Jesus arose from the dead? When Philip preached to the eunuch (Acts 8) he told the eunuch he could be baptized provided he "believed with all his heart." That is if he believed with JOY, GLADNESS. Philip required of the eunuch that he have HEARTFELT SALVATION before he would baptize him. When the eunuch walked down into the water to be baptized he did it joyfully, gladly, lovingly. If a man simply gets alarmed at the danger of going to hell, and comes forward and gives the preacher his hand and then agrees to be baptized so that he may escape hell, and all the time experiencing no joy, no gladness, and does not love the Lord, but is simply striking a bargain, as he thinks, with the Lord so that he may escape hell he is not saved when he walks into the water. Neither is he saved when he comes up out of the water. He goes in a dry sinner and comes out a wet sinner. The only change in him has been from dry to wet and his name goes on the church book and he is enrolled as a member but he is not a saved man. God does not "look on the OUTWARD appearance, but looks on the heart" (I Samuel 16:7). When God looks into that heart and sees that the man is not being baptized because he loves the Lord, that he doesn't feel a joy and gladness because Jesus arose from the dead; when He sees that the man's heart is not in what he is doing, and if he was not afraid of hell he would back out and refuse to be baptized; when God sees that he is only trying to strike a good bargain with the Lord so as to avoid hell, God knows that the man is only a poor lost sinner, still on the way to hell, no matter how deep into the water the preacher puts him. The same thing is true when a preacher gets up an Easter Class and lines them up and takes them into the church, just because the dupes have been convinced that it is the proper and the stylish thing to do while at the same time they are still in love with the things of the world, and their HEART IS IN THE BASEBALL PARK AND THE WRESTLING MATCH AND THE PICTURE SHOWS AND MAYBE WORSE THINGS. The same thing is true when a DECISION DAY is observed where the Sunday School teachers are supposed to line up their classes on that day and bring them into the church, while their hearts are anywhere else except in the church. It is all an empty mockery and such as that leaves the so-called converts in a worse condition than they were before. Such as that accounts for church members attending Sunday School and deliberately walking out and going away from the preaching service of the church. Their going to Sunday School is one of the nice things they formed the habit of doing and they care nothing about the service of the Lord; they are not glad that Jesus arose from the dead and hence want to serve Him because they love Him.
That accounts for so many church members spending much more on tobacco, and chewing gum, drinks, picture shows and other frivolous stuff than they do on the church work. Their heart is in the light and frivolous things of life and their hearts are anywhere else than in the church where they can glorify God. What care they for the glory of God? What care they about the glorious resurrection of Jesus from the dead? What they want is fun, frolic, shows, ball games and lust. ACCORDING TO THE BIBLE THE AVERAGE CHURCH MEMBER IS ON THE ROAD TO HELL. He is not GLAD THAT JESUS AROSE FROM THE DEAD. He is not the least bit interested in the matter except that he accepted the preacher's proposition to strike a bargain with God so as to keep out of hell. The preacher told him that if he believed that Christ Jesus is the Son of God (and any intelligent man believes that) and then be baptized he would escape hell, and he being hell-scared wants to escape hell, accepted the proposition and he therefore feels that he drove a sharp bargain with God and is now safe provided he does not commit some terribly gross sin, and now he can go on with his heart anywhere else except in the service of the Lord and get by with it. I do not want to face God in the judgment with such as that laid at my door. I may not get so many so-called converts by insisting that there must be a joyful, glad, loving belief that Jesus arose from the dead before I will baptize a man, but I at least will have my hands clear before God. I sincerely believe that multiplied millions will in the great day of accounts point their fingers at the preachers who have misled them by getting them to be baptized and come into the church when they had not been born again. I think I had rather be in hell myself than to have a thousand fingers pointed at me accusing me of causing them to be lost by my eagerness to get large numbers to join the church. In the city of Little Rock that terrible work is going on constantly. Two children showed up in the Sunday School of Antioch church and knowing them to belong to a family that affiliated with another church I wondered why the change. The mother told me later that they were taken out of another Sunday School because in that school they were pressed to join the church on DECISION DAY and because they refused they were made sport of by others. After they had been out of that Sunday School a few weeks the pastor who was running that incubator of hell called upon the mother and asked why the children were not coming on to Sunday School. She told him that she did not want her children to join the church unless they had been saved. She did not want them dragged into the church before they had been born again. For that reason they were sent to Antioch church where the pastor insists that the converts must GLADLY RECEIVE THE WORD, must believe from the HEART that Jesus arose from the dead, must be born again before they are baptized. The pastor tuned up and wept and told her that he was sorry for all that had happened, but she told him it was too late. She could not permit her children to come under such influences as that. At Antioch church we have the children to sit on the front seats during the preaching service and they have the right of way with us, but we do not take advantage of their tender years to drag them into the church before they have been born again. The answer that Philip gave the eunuch, "If thou believest with all thine heart thou mayest," is given to all that seek membership in Antioch church. We do not get members as rapidly as we would if we did the other way but those who do come in at LEAST PROFESS TO HAVE BEEN SAVED. Back yonder in Apostolic days the resurrection was the burden of the preacher's message. By preaching the resurrection three thousand were saved on the first public meeting after the Lord ascended to heaven. Later five thousand believed from their hearts and were added to the church. Cornelius (Acts 10) believed the glorious doctrine and he and all his household were saved. The same message will cause souls to be saved today. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is the only hope of a lost world, "If Christ be not risen, your faith is vain" (I Cor. 15:17). In Acts 2:24, Peter said it was not possible that Jesus
should "`beholden of death." We have some wonderful types of the Resurrection of Jesus in the Old Testament. As we study them it sheds light on the glorious doctrine. The reforming of the originally perfect earth is a type of the resurrection. When God created the heavens and the earth it was a perfect work. But in the first chapter of Genesis we read that the earth was "without form and void" which Hebrew scholars say means the "earth became a chaotic mass" or waste. God created it perfect and something happened to it that brought ruin and then at the beginning of the period of the earth's history, which especially concerns us, God brought order out of chaos and created man to occupy it. The reforming or recreating the earth, which had been ruined by the sin of angels, is a type of the resurrection. This is a deep subject and some that are ignorant of the Hebrew language may flare up and object, but the fact remains just the same. The skins of animals with which God clothed Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:21) is a beautiful picture of salvation in the crucified and risen Christ. Before the clothing could be made from the skins the animals had to be killed and in their death Adam and Eve could see the death of Jesus. Being clothed with the skins was a beautiful type of our being clothed with the righteousness of Christ's, and he is "made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, sanctification and redemption" (I Cor. 1:30). The believer is risen with Jesus spiritually and that guarantees the resurrection of the body. Col. 3:1-3, "If ye then be risen with Christ seek those things which are above . . . for ye are dead and your life is hid with Christ in God." In John 14:19, Jesus said: "Because I live ye shall live also." In Gal. 2:20 we read: "I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live; yet not I but Christ that liveth in me." So we are now to "Reckon ourselves (count ourselves) to be dead indeed into sin, but alive unto God." (Rom. 6:1). We are so certain of the resurrection that we live with it constantly in view. Does His resurrection give you joy?
Rebuilding the Walls Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 7-14-1920 "So built we the wall for the people had a mind to work" (Nehemiah 4:6).
I. Nehemiah saw a great need. The walls were down. Jerusalem was under par, even disgraced. He said, "The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down and the gates thereof are burned with fire. And it came to pass that when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven," Are we thus concerned about the interest of Zion? Let's examine ourselves and see. Nehemiah manifested his interest as follows: He asked the king for permission to rebuild the wall. He was in the service of the king and it was necessary to get such permission, Nehemiah 2:5, "And I said unto the king, if it please the king, and if thy servant have found favor in thy sight, that thou wouldst send me unto Jerusalem, unto the city of my father's sepulchres, that I may build it." If a man really wants a thing done, he will set about to find ways to do it. He asked the cooperation of the people. It takes cooperation of the Lord's people to accomplish much in the Lord's work. "One shall chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight." We should learn to do team work in the Lord's service. Church cooperation is as important as any other feature of church work. Some want to take the work clear out of the hands of the churches and they call that cooperation, but it is far from scriptural cooperation. Here is the record of what Nehemiah did, "Then said he unto them, ye see the distress that we are in, how
Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire: come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach" (Neh. 2:17). The people fell into line at this request and said: "Let us rise up and build."
II. He met with opposition. Every good thing is opposed. The devil is always on the alert and sees to it that every good thing is opposed, and, if possible, defeated. The enemies laughed at them. The enemies told them it could not be done. "But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Geshem, the Arabian, heard it, they laughed us to scorn, and despised us" (Neh. 2:19). When the Lord's people start to do anything worthwhile the outside world begins to scoff and say it can't be done. Some of the Israelites themselves didn't cooperate. It's a sad fact that many of our loud talking Baptists do not stand to the work when there is a little opposition. They hate conflict and confusion so very bad that they would rather suffer defeat than to face the foe and fight. "Their nobles put not their necks to the work of the Lord" (Neh. 3:5). They talked against the work using discouraging words: "The strength of the bearers of burdens is decayed, and there is much rubbish, so that we are not able to build." Such talk as that is very discouraging. One such man on the inside can discourage a whole church. Those who talk that way, very likely are only trying to evade the responsibility of contributing to the work.
III. They were ready to fight as well as to work. "For the builders, everyone had his sword girded by his side, and so builded." There is always need for fighting the good fight of faith. In both Testaments we read of the necessity of being soldiers as well as builders. Some contend that we should not fight the enemy but just go on and build. We are not permitted to do this for the enemy will take the country while we are thus defenseless. They were ready to fight but kept to the work. To do nothing but fight is as bad as to do nothing but work. We should do both. Work AND fight. BUILD and, as you build, FIGHT THE OPPOSERS of the building. The wall was finished, for the people had a mind to work. Nothing can stop a band of determined people who are set for the right.
Salvation Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 11-1968 Those who believe in salvation by ceremony necessarily believe that as the ceremonies change from one dispensation to another that the plan of salvation changes with them. These ceremonials think that the people who lived under the Old Testament Law were saved by keeping that law and since these ceremonies have been done away, and we now have baptism and the Lord's Supper, they think, of course, that we are saved by being baptized and partaking of the supper. There are others who think that the people in Old Testament time were saved by observing the Law of Moses but when Christ came they think all that was changed to salvation by grace under the present dispensation. But the truth is that people have been saved by grace in all dispensations and the law never did save anybody. Law condemns but does not save. The law showed two things: the NEED OF A SAVIOUR and in shadow, in type showed HOW THE SAVIOUR SAVES. Paul tells us in Hebrews (Heb. 10:4), that "it was not possible for the blood of
bulls and goats to take away sins." Those Old Testament ceremonies did not save but they pointed to the Saviour. They were like signboards on a roadside. The signboard points to a town or city but it will never carry one to that town or city. Follow the directions of the signboard and you will reach the place toward which the signboard points but one would never get anywhere trying to ride a signboard. So those who observed the ceremonies of the Old Testament had a clear revelation of what Jesus would do for the sinner but the ceremonies were not able to save the sinners. They were shadows of the work of Christ but it is a great mistake to take the shadow instead of the substance. There are some who think that ALL THE JEWS WERE BORN IN A SAVED OR COVENANT RELATIONSHIP and that since all Jews were born children of God it was necessary for the Jew to FALL FROM GRACE, so to speak, before he could be lost. Such an idea confuses the Jews as a NATION and the Jews as INDIVIDUALS. The Jewish NATION as such was indeed God's people but each individual Jew repented for himself and believed for himself and must be regenerated for himself just exactly as all of us must now do in order to be saved. John the Baptist said to the Jews who came to his baptism: "0 generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: and think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham." (Matt. 3: 7-9). Thus we see that being children of Abraham did not help them in their personal salvation. It only benefited them as a nation. When Nicodemus came to Jesus for instructions (John 3rd chapter), Jesus told him plainly: "Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again." Did Nicodemus, a moral, upright Jew, need regeneration? Jesus said he did. If Nicodemus must be born again, it follows that all Jews needed the new birth. If they all needed the new birth then they were certainly not born in a saved or covenant relation. They were not natural children of God. Has that been true all the way back? Most assuredly it has been the way of salvation all the way because Jesus said to Nicodemus: "Art thou a master of Israel and knowest not these things. We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen-If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe if I tell you of heavenly things?" If this language does not mean that it was surprising that a TEACHER (master) in Israel should not have known about the new birth it teaches nothing. The only way for Nicodemus to have known anything about the new birth was by the teaching of the Old Testament and by experience. If the Old Testament taught the new birth then it is no new thing. In the New Testament Jesus told him that he was speaking to him of "earthly things," not something that would take place in the future, but that which is done right here on the earth. Not something NEW but something that Nicodemus ought to have known about since he was a teacher of the Old Testament Scriptures. It follows therefore that the Jews were not saved by ceremonies nor were they naturally the children of God, but they were born again just as we are in this dispensation. Paul in Romans declares that we are saved just exactly as Abraham was. Here is what he says: "If Abraham were justified by works he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. For what saith the Scriptures? Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works." (Rom. 4:1-6). Since we are saved as Abraham was (actually saved BEFORE THE CEREMONIES OF THE OLD TESTAMENT WERE IN EXISTENCE), it follows that we are not saved by observing ceremonies and that ceremonies never did save. Those who depend upon salvation by observing ceremonies have missed salvation altogether. You can not believe in salvation by ceremony and at the same time be saved by grace. These ideas are the opposite of each other.
Forty years after Abraham was saved, forty years after he was justified by faith, he offered up Isaac and was justified by works as James puts it. (James 2:21). A child of God is justified by works but he is a child of God first and his works, no matter how good they are, do not help to save him because he is already justified by faith, and by faith came into salvation as did Abraham. Then after being saved by grace through faith the CHILD OF GOD engages in good works and is justified by works, but this Justification by works does not save him for the very good reason he is saved BEFORE HE GETS THE JUSTIFICATION BY WORKS, for the inspired writer, Paul, says: "By grace are ye saved, through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus UNTO GOOD WORKS," (Eph. 2:8-10). Since we are "CREATED IN CHRIST UNTO GOOD WORKS" it can not be that our good works cause us to come into the new birth. Abraham is the finest illustration we have of salvation by FAITH yet after being saved he OBEYED GOD and was justified as a child of God by his obedience. Paul in Hebrews declares that the Old Testament service of ceremonies were figures of the work of Jesus Christ and that these ceremonies, these figures, "could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience; which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal offerings, imposed on them until the time of reformation -But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands-neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us" (Heb. 9:12). Thus we see that these "figures" did not save but they did show in type what the SAVIOUR, JESUS CHRIST, DOES FOR US. In verse 15, same chapter, we are told that he DIED FOR THOSE WHO LIVED "UNDER THE FIRST TESTAMENT." The only difference is that those who lived in Old Testament time LOOKED FORWARD to Christ and we LOOK BACK to Him. But there is no difference in the way of salvation. Salvation has always been by faith in Jesus Christ. When Adam and Eve sinned they were promised a Saviour when God said to Adam, "The seed of the woman shall bruise his (Satan's) head" (Gen. 3:14). That "seed of the woman," not the seed of man, was Christ. Then after the promise of Jesus Christ was made, a sacrifice of animals was made to teach Adam and Eve what death meant and what suffering meant and in the shedding of the blood of that sacrifice Adam and Eve were shown in type how the "blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin." How do we know that animals were slain? We know it because God made a coat of skins to clothe Adam and Eve and it was necessary to slay animals to get the skins (Gen. 3:21). Thus the "fig leaves" of their own making, typifying the effort of man to save himself by good works, were taken off and GOD CLOTHED THEM WITH THE SKINS OBTAINED IN ANIMAL SACRIFICE which typified the righteousness of Christ set to our credit. Thus we are taught by this animal sacrifice that we are clothed with the righteousness of Christ and not our own righteousness. In the book of Hebrews (Heb. 11th chapter) we have an honor roll of those who were saved in the Old Testament time. This wonderful chapter gives the ACHIEVEMENTS OF FAITH. Of course faith in the heart must exist before it can work and "Faith worketh by love" (Gal. 5:6). Faith never works except by love and when love exists in the heart it is because the "Love of God is shed abroad in the heart by the Holy Ghost" (Rom. 5:6) and when the love of God is in the heart it proves we are saved because the Bible says: "He that loveth is born of God and knowth God" (I John 4:7. It follows therefore that these men and women mentioned in Hebrews the 11th chapter, not only had faith but their hearts were filled with love to God and therefore they were saved and what they did was a result of faith. Did they have faith in Jesus Christ before he came into the world? They certainly did. Read Heb. 11:24-26: "By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter-esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt." If Moses had faith in Christ and esteemed the
reproach of Christ" more than he did the riches of the king's household, then it follows that unless God made an exception of him, the other Old Testament believers were trusting Jesus Christ for salvation. In the Scriptures quoted in this sermon we find that Abraham was saved by faith without works as a cause, and that works, obedience followed his salvation. We find that David described the blessedness of the man who was saved without works, yet of course works followed salvation. But the point is that works, or ceremonies do not procure salvation. Then we find that Moses believed in Jesus Christ and suffered for Him. Then coming to the teaching of our Lord we find that He told Nicodemus that the new birth was a thing that actually had taken place on this earth and that the Old Testament Scriptures taught the new birth and of course that involves the work of the Holy Spirit because the new birth is by the Holy Spirit. The whole thing was in the Old Testament and that being true, then salvation by grace, which is wrought in us and for us by the Holy Spirit in the new birth, belonged as much to the Old Testament as to the New. In the New Testament we have it more fully explained and exemplified than in the Old. But there is no difference as to the fact. Salvation has been the same in all dispensations. "Except a man be born again he cannot enter the Kingdom of heaven" no matter what time he lived on earth
Salvation and Sin Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 1-23-1918 In Adam the whole human race fell. Romans 5:12-19, "By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned By one man's disobedience, many were made sinners." Ephesians 2:3, "We all had our conversation in time past in the lusts of our flesh . . . and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others." By this fall mankind became totally depraved. This does not mean that all men are as bad as they can be but that all are bad, and bad in all their faculties. Romans 8:7, 8, "The carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God." If "they that are in the flesh cannot please God, (that is those who are in the unregenerate state), it is certain there is nothing good in them, for God would be pleased with anything good. Whatever the world may think of a man or whatever he may think of himself, if he has not been born from above, he is bad in every part of his being. The doctrine of hereditary and total depravity is, beyond reasonable doubt, a Bible doctrine.
There are three theories of the plan or method of salvation: 1. Salvation by works 2. Salvation by grace 3. Salvation by a mixture of grace and works. The great majority of people believe in either salvation by works or by a combination of works and grace. The Word of God teaches plainly that salvation is by grace alone. Ephesians 2:8, 9, "By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should boast." To those who are working in order to obtain salvation, the Holy Spirit says: "To him that worketh is the reward not reckoned by grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David describeth the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works" (Romans 4:4-6). In other words, if salvation comes because of good works, then God is in debt to us; we perform the work required, and God owes the salvation. That would bring the
infinite under obligation to the finite. Then all the teaching of God's Word concerning salvation being by grace, that is, the unmerited favor, would be meaningless. No amount of argument can explain away the glorious truth that we are saved by the unmerited favor of God, and that God can extend His mercy to us on principles of justice because of what Jesus Christ has done for us. He took our place under the law and suffered in our stead. Hear what the Holy Spirit says: "He was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed" (Isaiah 53:4, 5).
Instances of Salvation by Grace 1. The sinful woman (Luke 7:36-50). This woman did no works. She was not baptized, nor did she join the church or perform any outward act in order to the forgiveness of her sins, but she showed penitence by her every act, she wept over her sins, and she showed faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Saviour said: Her sins which are many, are forgiven; And they that sat at meet with him began to say within themselves, who is this that forgiveth sins also? And he said to the woman, thy faith hath saved thee. Go in peace." 2. The man with the palsy (Luke 5:17-26). In this case the man who was saved from sin did nothing. His friends let him down through the roof to where Jesus was, "and when he saw their faith he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee," and when his power to forgive sins was questioned, he commanded the palsied man to get up and walk, and he did. The palsied man did no work, he observed no rite or ceremony; it was free grace, unmerited favor that saved him. 3. The dying thief (Luke 23:39-43). This man, commonly called a thief, must have been a highway robber, as Roman law did not put men to death for theft. To say the least, he was a bad man, and he confessed his guilt, for he said to his partner in crime: "We suffer justly, but this man (Jesus) hath done nothing amiss." In this confession, which Jesus heard, he acknowledged his sin and expressed confidence in Jesus Christ. Then he said to Jesus: "Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom." In this prayer he expressed a faith in the divinity and power of the Lord Jesus Christ, for unless Christ was divine it was nonsense to even think of His coming into a kingdom under the circumstances. If he was a mere man it would soon be over with him. When, therefore, this penitent thief confessed his sin and asked for mercy the Lord said: "Verily, I say unto thee, today shah thou be with me in Paradise." Here was no ceremony, no works, but here was salvation. If salvation were not of grace, it could not reach such extreme cases as that. 4. Cornelius and his household. (Acts 10:44-48). Here Cornelius was converted and made happy, even receiving the miraculous gift of the Holy Spirit before any works were performed. He was "saved by grace, through faith," but this grace which reached him and his through faith, put him and his to work, for Peter said, "Who can forbid water that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? And he commanded them to 'be baptized in the name of the Lord." Salvation is by grace through faith without works, but when grace saves it puts the saved one to work for his Saviour.
Salvation By Grace J. Louis Guthrie, Baptist and Commoner, 3-7-1937 Salvation by grace is a doctrine found in the writings of the men who knew the apostles. This teaching is so clearly put in the letters of these men, that they are a great help in proving the apostles did teach this grace of God. Everywhere in their writings is the teaching found, with no wording to the contrary. The writings of Herman (the brother of Pius, who was pastor of the Church at Rome and wrote the Visions and Similitude's) have been so manipulated by the
various Latin versions of these writings that they cannot be relied upon as the true writings of Herman. It is thought that Herman knew Paul. Yet he wrote about the close of the first century of the Christian era. He must have been a very young man when Paul was in Rome. In the writings of Herman we find some other teachings for salvation than that grace of God so strongly taught by the pupils of the apostles. That, however, could be due to corruptions of the manuscript of the Herman' writings for they were written in Latin and always kept in the records of the Roman Church. Herman was clerk of the Church of Rome during the pastorate of his brother Pius. He gives some verses, or rather the manuscript that we have received this late gives some verses of teaching of works and obedience to the church for final salvation. At Rome sometime during the existence of this manuscript these verses must have crept into this writing. There is mention also made of the Mariology and Mariolatry of the Virgin worship of Mary. This proves that the manuscript received interpolations from Roman Catholics. The Roman Catholics consider many of the writings outside of the Bible as a part of that book of books. They claim they gave the Bible to the world and they have the right to change it as they will. They consider the Roman Catholic church infallible, and then every writing of the inspired men of the church is of the Bible. Thus the Pope is infallible, when speaking "Ex Cathedra." Yet none of the writers who knew the apostles made any such claim nor did they consider that other writings besides those closing with the book of Revelation, should be the word of God. These writers were very careful to speak of the writings of the Old and New Testament as the word of God. I Clement 4:8-9: "Howbeit, they repenting of their sins, appeased God with (by) their prayers: and were saved, though they were strangers to the Covenant of God (this is concerning the Ninevites). Hence, we find how all the ministers of the grace of God have spoken by the Holy Spirit of repentance. And even the Lord himself declared with an oath concerning it." The grace of God is here a term for all God has prepared for sinners, but for them to come under grace, they must repent and pray. Grace was not alone for the sinner, but for those already saved, as I Clement 2,4:4 states, "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you and with all that are anywhere called by God through Him." We find that these men delineated the fullness and superabundance of grace unto the saved just as clearly as it is stated in the New Testament. They had been hearing the apostles preach and listening to their messages of grace. Surely these men were of the same faith and order as we Missionary Baptists. In the letter of Barnabas, chapter 8, verses 13-14, the doctrine of the free grace of God is just as clearly put as we can put it. "And because the cross was that by which we were to find grace; therefore, He adds 300, the note of which is T (the figure of his cross), Where-fore by the two letters I, H, he signified Jesus, and by the third his cross." (He is speaking of the circumcision of the 318 in the household of Abraham). "He who has put the engrafted gift of His doctrine within us, knows that I never taught to any one a more certain truth; but I trust that ye are worthy of it." Barnabas certainly affirms to the doctrine of grace of God. He was so sure of it that he called every saved man to witness to his truth. Barnabas should have known what he was talking about. He was for a time an associate of Paul. He was sure of his ground in this great Baptist doctrine of salvation by free grace and as a gift. We can certainly accuse Barnabas of believing the doctrine of grace just as the Missionary Baptists believe it, without shading into the doctrines of men. Ignatius has the same teaching large in his works. In his letter to the Ephesians (1:1) ". . . being united and chosen through his true suffering according to the will of the Father, and Jesus Christ our God; all happiness, by Jesus Christ and His undefiled grace." These ancient writers all believed that the immediate person of the grace of God is the Son of God, Christ Jesus. They
say that God revealed his grace to mankind through and in the person of Jesus. Ignatius also declares that the grace of God and the Lord Jesus is extended to men by the prayers of others. So he expected to be favored of the Lord by the prayers of the saints. In his letter to the Ephesians (4:15), "But if Jesus Christ shall give me His grace through your prayers . . ." He was really asking that they pray that he might he favored of the Lord for a special task to write them a letter. In his letter to the Philadelphians, he says (2:18), "For I trust in the grace of Jesus Christ, that He will free you from every bond." Polycarp's letter to the Philippians declares (1:5), "Into which many desire to enter; knowing that by the grace of God ye are saved, not by works but by the will of God through Jesus Christ." He was speaking that many desired to enter eternal joy, knowing, etc. Not until we come to Hermas, do we find anything else excepting grace. Not one of these writers say anywhere that baptism has anything to do with repentance, but they every one precede baptism with repentance and belief and salvation. These passages declare the most of the direct places in the writings of the men who knew the apostles concerning grace in salvation. Recently there fell into my hands a book called the Didache of the Apostles, which is a very valuable little book in the Greek. The book has 360 lines of Greek text. This is a very ancient work. It is not exactly what it purports to be, but only extracts of what the apostles taught, written down by some early Christians and then reduced to manuscript form about the second century of Christianity. The most valuable piece of work in this manuscript is a statement concerning baptism short though it is a valuable statement of Baptist teaching on baptism so early in the history of the church. Lines 158 to 1564, "Concerning the baptism, thus baptize, having stated all these things, submerge into the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit in living water. If you do not have living water, into other water submerge, and if you are not able in cold, then in warm." Here is the surest of the statements of the ancients concerning this much-disputed point. These men should have known the preference at their time as to the method, which was employed, for baptism. Later to this there was added about 600 A. D. a little instruction as to what to do about baptism when water was insufficient, "But if thou hast neither (i.e., cold or hot), then pour out upon the head water three times into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. There is, however, no doubt that even these late pourers considered plenty of water was necessary even in the pouring, as this is shown from the very makeup of that word "pour" out. Even when those early effusionists varied from the submerging idea of baptism, they considered plenty of water was necessary. With this later addition to the Didache, there were also some directions to the person to be baptized and the one baptizing him to fast beforehand. Others were also advised to fast with them. Soon I shall write an article about this Didache, for I have the original text, and will discuss it from the standpoint of the writers who were acquainted with the apostles, for in some places it resembles their writings, especially those of Barnabas.
Salvation Satisfies Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 2-1969 Rev. 22:17, "Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely:'
Nothing of a worldly character satisfies. Men are running in every direction seeking something to fill the aching void of dissatisfaction only to be disappointed. Happiness in some form is the desire of every normal person. But the manner in which happiness is sought may be as varied as differences in individuals. Some people are occupied only in the pleasures of the present world, while others are looking forward to the rewards in heaven. Yet both are seeking to gratify their thirst for happiness. Generally speaking there are only two classes seeking happiness. One class is composed of all of the people who bring their
cups to the broken cisterns of the earth in the effort to quench their thirst. The other class is composed of the people who are drinking from a perennial spring. Then, there are only two classes of fountains, one failing and the other unfailing. Jesus one day sat by a well and said to a woman of Samaria: "Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst" (John 4:13, 14). It does not require much effort to discover that a great proportion of humanity is seeking to quench its thirst by drinking from wells, which run dry. Among the many examples that might be considered we suggest that one FAILING FOUNTAIN IS PLEASURE. There are two kinds of pleasures. One is good and the other is bad. All pleasures should not be condemned. God did not create the world in order to make life miserable but pleasurable. Everything in the beautiful picture of the Garden of Eden described in Genesis shows that God meant for his creatures to be happy. God means for us all to be happy in the right way. We sin when we make pleasure an end in itself rather than a by-product of character. So that the person who seeks happiness through the enjoyment of sinful pleasures only finds that his thirst for happiness remains unquenched. The GREATER THE INDULGENCE IN SINFUL PLEASURE THE GREATER THE THIRST. There can never be true happiness in sinful indulgence. Another failing FOUNTAIN IS POPULARITY. It is well to be popular if popularity results from being and doing right. All of us enjoy being well thought of, or admired. But when the desire for admiration becomes so strong that a person seeks to satisfy that desire in the wrong manner then he defeats himself. Popularity cannot be purchased and he who seeks to win it at the expense of principle, will at last find himself failing to realize his desire. I have in mind two young men who entered college the same year. One man neglecting his studies spent his money on his fellow students in an effort to win their admiration. The other young man, not stingy, yet frugal, spent his time preparing his lessons. The young man seeking to be popular did not return the second year while the man who did his work faithfully did return and continued in school until he finished. Today the young man who sought to be popular among the student body is unknown, whereas the man who did his work is now one of the most popular men. The man who sought to purchase the esteem of his friends failed to satisfy his thirst for popularity. "Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again," said Jesus. Still another FAILING FOUNTAIN IS POWER. It is a good thing to have influence provided the influence is for good. But the man who seeks power over his fellowmen for the purpose of making others subservient to his purposes rather than for the purpose of benefiting them will at last realize that he is drinking at a dry well. A man must control himself if he is to be a power. "He that ruleth his own spirit is greater than he that taketh a city." It requires more strength to manage one's self than it takes to be Governor. It is said of the warrior, Alexander the Great, that he wept because there were no other worlds to conquer. His thirst for power was never quenched. He did not rule his own spirit. At last he died drunk. His thirst was never quenched. Died thirsting. One more FAILING FOUNTAIN IS PROSPERITY. Money is a value but its value must always be instrumental. He who makes wealth an end in itself can never be satisfied. "He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver" (Eccl. 5:10). So these earthly fountains: pleasure, popularity, power, and prosperity, are only examples of hundreds of other failing fountain. "Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again," said Jesus. Turning to the other side of the question Jesus says, "Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst." Two questions arise that demand an answer. One question is, what is this water which Jesus says if we drink we shall never thirst'? Is there one who does not know the answer to this question? Does any one doubt the experience of the woman
of Samaria who left her water pot and went running to her friends to tell them the glad tidings about meeting the Saviour? The water spoken of by Jesus is eternal life, salvation. Jesus gave the believing Samaritan a new heart, a new desire, a new way of living. No longer are her own selfish desires the center of her interest but they are lost in her desires to be a blessing to others. The other question may not be so easily answered. The question is "Why does this water which Jesus gives satisfy?" Salvation brings satisfaction, which nothing else can give. Why does it do so? The person in fellowship with the infinite God finds peace. Why is this true? It is true first because salvation is inward. Jesus says, "The water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life." Salvation is a matter of character. Externalism, for example a system of worship, may be beautiful and well worth while but is so only in that it is an expression of an inward experience. True happiness does not depend upon external conditions nor outward circumstances. True happiness depends upon an inward condition or attitude. Paul and Silas were in a foreign land, in jail, bound hand and foot. Yet at midnight they were offering up prayers of gratitude and singing praises to God. They were happy not because of WHERE THEY WERE but because of WHAT THEY WERE. Salvation satisfies. Darkness may be all about us but we carry in our own hearts a light, which illuminates our pathway. Jesus promises peace to those who follow him. He promised peace to James who was beheaded, to John who was exiled, and to Peter who died a martyr. These men of God had a happiness or peace, which was sufficient for all their needs and which SATISFIED THE DEEPEST LONGINGS OF THEIR HEARTS. Again genuine fellowship with the Infinite satisfies because it makes the providence of God a benediction. "In all thy ways acknowledge him and he will direct thy path. We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose." It is satisfying, to be assured that God cares for me, and that all the providence of heaven is in my favor. Nothing in the world can bring a peace so satisfying, so assuring, or so permanent as these promises from Him who rules the world. Finally SALVATION SATISFIES BECAUSE IT GIVES A SATISFACTORY ANSWER TO THE QUESTION; "IF A MAN DIE SHALL HE LIVE AGAIN?" The answer that satisfies is the answer of Jesus when he says, "Ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you, and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also" (John 14:1, 2, 3). I am happy that Jesus used the simple and beautiful illustration of water. Salvation, like water, is free. Salvation like water is necessary; you can't live without it. And salvation like water satisfies. I am glad that the experiences resulting from fellowship with my Saviour are as interesting, vital and varied as the forms of water. John B. Gough said, "Sweet, beautiful waterbrewed in the running brook, the rippling fountain and the laughing rill-in the limpid cascades, as it joyfully leaps down the side of the mountain. Brewed in yonder mountain top, whose granite peak glitters like gold bathed in the morning sun-brewed in the sparkling dewdrop; sweet, beautiful water, brewed in the crested wave of the ocean deep, driven by the storm, breathing its terrible anthem to the God of the sea-brewed in the fleecy foam and the whitened spray as it hangs like a speck over the distant cataract-brewed in the clouds of Heaven; sweet beautiful water. As it sings in the rain shower and dances in the hailstorm-as it comes sweeping down in feathery flakes, clothing the earth in a spotless mantle of white. Distilled in the golden tissues that paint the western sky at the setting of the sun, and the silvery tissues that veil the midnight moon-sweet, health-giving, beautiful water: Distilled in the raindrops of earth, and whose roof is the sunbeam in Heaven-sweet beautiful water." (Heartthrobs, page 128). There may be many varieties of religious experiences but they are all, if true, the result of drinking from the fountain that never fails. This was not the last time that Jesus spoke of water
as an illustration of salvation. He spoke to John on the Isle of Patmos just before the last words of the Bible were written, before the curtain should finally fall to end God's message through his Book. He spoke to John and said, "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely" (Rev. 22:7). Do we seek happiness? We shall not find it if we drink from the broken cisterns of earth, but we will find it at the eternal fountain of life. "Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst" (John 4:13, 14)
Salvation, the Way Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 5-1-1967 We sometimes hear preachers speak of the PLAN of salvation but what they mean is THE WAY OF SALVATION. The word "PLAN" carries the idea of some sort of scheme to be worked cut by the person to be saved. God no doubt has a plan but so far as we are concerned we have simply to be saved and the Lord does the saving. But it is our privilege to learn from the scriptures the Way of Salvation. Salvation wholly by Grace is a Bible doctrine and Baptists have always emphasized that doctrine all through the ages. Baptism is a symbol, which represents the work Jesus, did for us in order to accomplish our salvation but baptism does not save nor does it even help save. The Lord's Supper is a symbol, which represents the broken body and shed blood of our Lord without which, we cannot be saved, but the Lord's Supper does not save. Baptism and the Lord's Supper symbolize what Jesus did to save, just as a photograph shows what your mother looks like, but as the photograph did not give you birth neither does baptism and the Lord's Supper give life in Christ Jesus. I Peter 3:21, tells us that "The like figure whereunto baptism doth also now save us, not the putting away the filth of the flesh but the answer of a good conscience toward God." Since the Bible here plainly says that baptism is only a figure of the way we are saved it cannot be the actual Saviour. Eph. 2:8-10, "By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works." Note the fact that we are CREATED IN CHRIST JESUS UNTO GOOD WORKS and certainly that excludes the idea of working ourselves into becoming new creatures in Christ Jesus. The new creation, the new birth, brings us to where we can work for God--created in Christ Jesus UNTO GOOD WORKS. Neither is salvation a mixture of grace and works. There are those who think we do our part and then God does his part and thus by a combination of His grace and our works we are saved. But the scriptures contradict that idea. Rom. 11:6-7, "If by grace, then it is no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace: otherwise work is no more work." Thus we see that grace and works combined is impossible-it must be salvation by one or the other, never by a combination of grace and works. The meritorious ground of salvation is suffering and death of Christ Eph. 1:7; "In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of his grace." The time when a sinner becomes saved is at the point of faith. None are safe before faith and all are safe after faith. John the Baptist came preaching that men should repent and Jesus Christ preached repentance and the disciples went out and preached repentance. Repentance is a change of the mind from unbelief to faith, from enmity to love, from the love of sin to a hatred of sin. When repentance is complete faith results. Repentance and faith are inseparable graces and one is not
complete without the other. Repentance is unto life because the change of mind- REPENTANCE-always ends in faith and the following passages show that one is saved the moment he exercises faith. John 3:16 says the believer "shall never perish." John 3:36 says, "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life." Rom. 5:1 says "Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Gal. 3:26 says "Ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." Acts 15:9 says, "And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith." These passages may, to some, seem to teach differently: Gal. 3:27 says: "As many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ." Some think that this means we actually become children of God by being baptized. But that can't be because we have just been told that we become children of God by faith. How then, is this explained? The words "put on" are from a Greek word which means to imitate and so it means to imitate and so it means that those who have become children of God by faith imitate Christ by being baptized. Our Lord was the Son of God before He was baptized and His baptism only manifested Him as being the Son of God. Even so we become children of God by faith BEFORE we are baptized and then MANIFEST our sonship by being baptized-in other words we follow the example set by Jesus Christ in being baptized, imitate Him. But does it not say we are baptized into Christ? Yes, and it says the children of Israel were baptized into Moses ofter they were under the leadership of Moses and the Red Sea baptism did not put them under the leadership of Moses. I Cor. 10:1-2. Even so our baptism into Christ does not put us under the leadership of Christ but only manifests it. 'Thus we see that there is no contradiction in the verses but when properly understood all of it teaches salvation by grace without works. We are created in Christ Jesus UNTO GOOD WORKS. Works will come after we have been saved, not in order to he saved.
Second Coming of Christ
Baptist World, 8-1969 The Second Coming of our Lord is the hope and comfort of the believer, Titus 2:13. "Looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ."
That he will come the second time is as certain as his having come the first time. Acts 1:11. "This same Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven." It would take a lot of explaining away these plain words. He is just as certain to come again as it is certain that he went away. There are some that think the second coming means our death because at death we go to be with Jesus where He is. Luke 23:32-43, the Lord said to the dying thief, "today shalt thou be with me in paradise." But at death we go to where Jesus is, not Jesus coming to earth where we are. A clear refutation of the idea that the second coming does not mean our death is found in John 21:21-23: "Peter saith unto Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man (John) do? Jesus said unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me. Then went the saying abroad among the brethren that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him he should not die; but if I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?" Thus it is expressly said that to die does not mean that Christ has come again. Death is an enemy to be dreaded and an enemy that shall finally be destroyed (1Cor. 15: 26) while the second coming of Christ is glorious hope to be cherished. The time of his coming is uncertain. No man knows the time. Mark 13:32-35: "But of that day and hour no man knoweth, no not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father." The time setters have always failed in their predictions. We only know that He is coming but do not know the time. Hence the need for constant watching. Nothing could have a more wholesome effect for good than the constant expectation of the coming of our Lord. There are many things you would never do if you thought the Lord might come and catch you in the act. On the other hand there are many things we would be busy in if we thought the Lord would come at any moment to reward us for our labor. When the Lord comes the second time the dead saints will be raised from the dead and the living saints will be so changed that it will have the same effect as if they had died. I Cor. 15:51: "Behold, I show you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye at the last trump; for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." Those raised from the dead and those who still live and are thus gloriously changed will be caught up into a state of rapture to meet the Lord in the air. I Thess. 4:15-17, "For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent (go before) them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord." Thus we see that the second coming of our Lord is to take His people away from the earth. That coming will be unseen by the unsaved Matt. 24:40-42: "Then shall two men be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; one shall be taken and the other left. Watch therefore; for ye know not when your Lord doth come." This second coming of our Lord will be silent and unseen so far as the unsaved are concerned. But they will miss their loved ones. The husband will wonder what has become of his godly wife and will search for her in vain. The wicked mother will wonder what has become of her babe and will search in vain for it. It will be a time of confusion and woe. The Modernist preacher will come to his pulpit and wonder where his best members have gone, but their seats will be empty. He will preach his Spiritless sermons to unsaved church members such as he himself is. Some congregations of worldly church members will wonder where their pastor is and will be looking for another pastor to supply their pulpit. These godless people will not understand.
The second coming means the crowning and rewarding of his saints. II Tim. 4:8, "Henceforth 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 that love his appearing." Then read Rev. 22:12, "Behold I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give to every man according as his work shall be." The child of God will not come into a judgment in the sense of being tried as to whether he shall be saved or lost because he has already been judged in Christ his substitute. But he will come into a judgement of REWARDS. At the second coming of Christ it will be determined what each one's reward shall be. We are saved here and now by the grace of God; we do not work for salvation, it is given to us on the merits of Jesus Christ; but we do work for REWARDS. We shall be rewarded according to our works at the second coming of Christ. At the second coming of Christ, while in the glorious RAPTURE, while caught up with Jesus in the air, the wonderful wedding shall take place, the MARRIAGE OF JESUS TO HIS BRIDE, THE CHURCH. At present the church is in her VIRGINITY STATE. II Cor. 11:2, "For I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." For this reason the church, as a chaste virgin, should keep herself pure and clean. She is waiting for her coming BRIDE-GROOM. How he shall rejoice over his VIRGIN CHURCH when he comes to take her to the wedding. So read Rev. 19:7-9, "Let us rejoice, and give honor to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. To her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white, for the white linen is the righteousness of the saints. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they who are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb." Here is the advantage of being a member of the Church that Jesus established. That church shall be the bride of Christ. Others of God's people who have neglected the important duty and privilege of joining the church, will be at the wedding as guests, be seated at the wedding feast, but they will not be a part of the BRIDE. You are invited to become a part of the VIRGIN BRIDE of Christ. Are you contented to be a guest only? After this glorious rapture and wonderful wedding, Jesus shall come back to the earth again, his THIRD COMING. This time he will come WITH HIS BRIDE-his saints. When He comes with His saints it will be to take vengeance. Rev. 1:7, "Behold he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him; and all the kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him." Jude 14, "Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, to execute judgment upon all." There are some that scoff at the idea of the Lord's coming. They declare that every thing is going on as things have gone on for the past two thousand years and what is the use in becoming interested in such far fetched theories as this? The Bible speaks of such people. Read II Peter 3:2-7, "Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking in their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation. For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water perished; but the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men." I wonder how many that understand these things can say from their hearts, "Even so, Lord Jesus, Come quickly." If Jesus is your friend why should you not want to see your best Friend, face to face? If you are not a friend of Jesus why not, right now, become reconciled to him and become a child of God by faith in Christ Jesus? There is no need to wait another minute. Now is the time, today if ye hear his voice, harden not your heart.
Second Coming, Signs of the Times Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner Matthew 24:3: "Tell us when shall these things be, and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?" Everybody who cares for the teaching of the Bible is interested in the coming of Christ and the end of the world. We cannot know the date for that is a secret known only to God, but we can see many unmistakable indications of the near approach of that day.
THE GENERAL FALLING AWAY FROM THE FAITH Paul said must come before that day has taken place before our eyes. II Thess. 2:3: "That day shall not come except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed." The falling away from the faith has come to pass and we can see the beginning of the Man of Sin. There has never been so widespread skepticism and downright infidelity as we see now, the DECREASE in true faith and fidelity to the cause of Christ. Great numbers many times mean nothing but increased WEIGHT and with the INCREASE in weight there is a DECREASE in strength.
FALSE TEACHERS HAVE MULTIPLIED In fulfillment of prophecy: II Tim. 4:3-4; "The time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lusts they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables." When a preacher preaches the truth of the Bible such people (and they are a majority) say he is dry and uninteresting. They want stories, entertainment, pep, fables. They refuse to take life seriously and think only of pleasure. They turn away from sound doctrine, such as a regenerated church membership, salvation by grace, security of the believer, baptism of believers, restricted communion, and scriptural church government. They demand FUN, PLEASURE, A BIG TIME and they dance on with never a care for the future. We are living now in the time foretold by this prophecy.
SCOFFING AT THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST Was foretold: II Peter 3:3-4; "There shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation." Even preachers who solemnly preside at the Lord's Supper, which is an ordinance especially designed "to show the Lord's death TILL HE COME" are among the scoffers. With the majority those who watch are regarded as weak minded fanatics and when they are too polite to laugh aloud they do laugh in their sleeves when the subject is mentioned. Thus in their ignorance they are unconsciously fulfilling the prophecy which foretells the coming of the Lord.
DOCTRINE OF DEVILS, SPIRIT MANIFESTATIONS Are foretold: I Tim. 4:1 "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrine of devils." I have been asked if I believe that spirits communicate with the MEDIUMS who claim to call up the dead and I have answered that very likely they do, only it is not the spirits of departed loved ones but wicked demons, devils, who, impersonate the dead and thus make believe that then are loved ones talking. Of recent years, especially since the great world war, the spirit mediums have done a great business. Anxious mothers have wanted to know about their boys who went over and did not come back. These evil spirits who impersonate the dead never acknowledge Jesus Christ as Savior; they never tell of a future place of torment, they never bring ANY IMPORTANT `MESSAGES. Their drivel is about little nothings. To consult
such mediums if not done for the purpose of investigation. If done seriously for divination is wicked and is strictly forbidden in the Bible. Even good people are sometimes carried away by this delusion. To seek information from those who profess to have occult powers is to DENY THAT THE BIBLE IS OUR ALL-SUFFICIENT GUIDE in faith and practice. All we need to know about what our duty is, all the LIGHT WE SHALL EVER GET is found in the Bible. But of these wicked spirits, who are subject to the "Prince of the power of the air," the Devil, we are warned in the prophecy just noted.
THE SELFISH RICH ARE FORETOLD In prophecy. James 5:1-6: "Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. Your riches are corrupted; your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver is cankered; and the lust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh, as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your heart, as in a day of slaughter. Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you." After this terrible description of what has been seen all over the world, the inspired penman added: "BE PATIENT THEREFORE, BRETHREN, UNTO THE COMING OF THE LORD." The world seems to be in the exact condition described. And the second time the inspired writer said: "Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts; for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh." if the Bible thus holds up such conditions as an indication that the Lord will soon come, I feel safe in doing so.
THE DISTRESS OF NATIONS Was foretold. Luke 21:2427: "There shall be signs in the sun, and signs in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations with perplexity; the seas and waves roaring; men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth; for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. Then shall ye see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory." The distress of nations, with perplexity" is upon us. "Men's hearts failing; them for fear" is upon us as never before. This prophecy says that at such a time the Lord will come. When'? How soon? Are we ready?
THE LUKEWARM CONDITION OF THE CHURCHES Was foretold: Laodicean church, the last one of the seven, which was addressed in Rev. 3:14-22, was symbolic of the present age. That church was self-satisfied, lukewarm, and had "need of nothing.' That church had shut Christ out of his counsels and He was represented as OUTSIDE knocking for admittance. How very like the average church of the present day. But the Spirit said that notwithstanding its earthly riches, it was "miserable, wretched, poor and blind." The threat was that the Lord would "spue it out of His mouth." Churches today (the vast majority) are not asking what the Lord wants done. They are using worldly wisdom and conduct their business according to COMMERCIAL IDEAS instead of by the teaching of the New Testament. Since such a condition ACTUALLY EXISTS, may we not expect the soon coming of the Lord?
RELIGIOUS FORMS WITHOUT POWER, ACCOMPANIED WITH GREAT WICKEDNESS II Tim. 3:1-5: "In the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those who are good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof."
TIMES TO BE AS IN THE DAYS OF NOAH Was foretold. Luke 17:26-27: "As it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of Man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage until the day that Noah entered into the Ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all." The point to this passage is that the world was not in the least expecting the flood to come. They had been warned by the preaching of Noah but they did not believe. They went right on as if they expected to stay on earth forever. Is not that the condition today? God was not in all their thoughts. To them the flood was a great surprise, but when it came it was too late for them. Only a few were watching and ready and when that few (eight persons in all) entered the ark it was symbolic of the comparatively few of the Lord's people who will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air while the great majority will be left to go through the great tribulation, the most terrible calamity that shall ever come upon the world. Can You Say, "Even So Come, Lord Jesus?" I listen for the coming of His feet, He is coming with His everlasting peace, His reward will be wonderful and sweet, His coming will bring us glorious release. It may be in the morning or the noon, It may be in the midnight dark and drear, But I know He is coming very soon And with Him shall all His saints appear. He is coming! O my spirit what a joy From the heavens with His holy angel band, Our bodies cleansed as gold without alloy, We shall then with Him forever stand He will come with trumpet sound and glorious tread, With His body glorified and complete With His voice He shall wake the sleeping dead, How I long to hear the stepping of His feet.
Security of the Believer Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 3-11-1931 A brother whom I esteem very highly writes and asks that I give him some passages on the subject of the Security of the Believer, as he needs it in his work. Well, here they are and while they are helping him they may help others. Ephesians 2:8-10: "By grace are ye saved . . ." Not, are ye going to be saved, but ARE SAVED. To be saved means to be SAFE. One is never safe so long as he is in danger. Romans 8:28: "We know that all things work together for good to them that love God." If all things work together for good to one who loves God, then it follows that nothing can stop him from loving God for that would not be for his good. If he is thus kept in the love of God, he cannot fall from grace. I John 3:3: "Every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself." If EVERY ONE who has this hope purifieth himself, it is certain there will be none left who do not purify themselves and thus we see, none will so corrupt themselves as to be lost. I John 2:19: "They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us they would no doubt have continued with us; but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us." If nobody goes out except those among us who are not
really of us, it follows that none of those who are really saved will ever fall from grace. Their going out only demonstrates the fact that they were never at heart children of God. Children of God may sin but when they do, it does not cause them to fall from grace. Psalm 37:23-24: "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand." Every time we sin, we fall. That is what is meant by falling. But such falling does not ruin us, for the Lord declares that we "SHALL NOT BE UTTERLY CAST DOWN." To fall from grace and be lost in hell would be to be UTTERLY CAST DOWN but we are assured this shall never be. John 5:24, " . . . He that heareth my words, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life." If a believer HAS EVERLASTING LIFE then it would be impossible for that life to cease. If it ever ceases it was not everlasting to begin with. A thing that is everlasting has no end. John 10:27-31: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish." If the Lord told the truth none of His sheep shall ever perish. Not only does He say that they have eternal life but adds a double assurance that "they SHALL NEVER PERISH." Such passages could be multiplied but where two or three witnesses are introduced every one shall be established. If they will not believe these plain words they would not believe though one rose from the dead. Parables and other suggestion found in the Bible should not be made to contradict these plain passages. Rather explain the plain passage. The many passages which show that the Lord's people actually sin and fall are explained I Psalm 37:23-24, where it says that even if they do they shall not be utterly cast down for "the Lord upholdeth them with his hand.
Seven Pillars Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 8-2-1922 "Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars" (Prov. 9:1).
I. This is primarily a reference to the new temple, which Solomon had built. The temple of Solomon was a most wonderful building and it was typical of the church. 1. Every stone was prepared for the temple before being placed in the building. So every one must be prepared for admission to the church. 2. It was built by God's order and direction. The church was set up in accordance with God's will. It is not a man-made institution. 3. The temple was to uphold and propagate the Jewish nation. So the church is the pillar and ground of the truth. ... The house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth" (I Tim. 3:15). The one purpose of the church is to propagate and uphold the truth.
II. The church rests on seven great pillars. Seven is a word that denotes completion. The church rests on a perfect foundation. Christ is that foundation, but seven principles represent what Christ is to the church. When you know these seven doctrines or principles you know Christ.
Pillars of The Lord's Temple 1. Repentance and faith. Repentance and faith are one and inseparable. Repentance is that radical change of mind with reference to God and His demands that results or rather ends in a perfect trust or faith in Jesus as a personal Savior. The one is never found without the other. Repentance is not complete without resulting in faith and there can be no trusting (faith) in the Lord without repentance. 2. Confession of Christ. Peter made a good confession when he said, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matt. 16:16). No one can be a follower of the Lord who refuses to confess Him. If we are ashamed to confess Him before men he will be ashamed to confess us before the Father in Heaven. 3. The new birth. "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (John 3:3). There are many inventions and schemes thought out by men, but none will be sufficient to set aside the new birth. Jesus said to Nicodemus: "Marvel not that I said unto thee, ye must be born again" (John 3:7). 4. Baptism. The New Testament commands baptism (Acts 10:48). It is an indispensable prerequisite to church membership. In fact, a church cannot exist without baptism. Christ set the example of being baptized BEFORE HE ORGANIZED HIS CHURCH. We must be baptized to be admitted to the church that Christ built. 5. Soul Liberty. When Jesus saves He sets free. "If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed" (John 8:36). We are made "free from the law of sin and death" (Rom. 8:2). We are no longer in bondage to Satan, but are free men in Jesus Christ. Neither are we subject to priestcraft. Every one stands as a free man before God and to God only do we bow. 6. Security in Christ. Psalm 89:29-34: "His seed also will I make to endure forever, and his throne as the days of heaven. If his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments; if they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; then will I visit their transgressions with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes. Nevertheless my loving kindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail." What a wonderful provision. The Lord punishes his children in the flesh for the sins of the flesh, but will not send them to hell. 7. Fellowship-Partnership. Every church is a mutual partnership and we have fellowship-union and all for the Lord. We are not bound together by external laws, but by heart affection and a common purpose.
III. Why have a church with seven pillars? That God may be glorified, for "unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages" (Eph. 3:21).
The Prophets Witness "To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins" (Acts 10:43).
I. Man was created in God's image. "And God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness" (Gen. 1:26). Being in the image he was pure and clean and without sin. God is a Triune Being or Trinity and that shows that man is also a trinity. God is FATHER, SON AND HOLY SPIRIT, and it is impossible to separate them, yet they are distinct one from the other. When you see a man you see only ONE OBJECT, yet he is in fact a trinity. When we shall see God we shall see only ONE OBJECT, yet that God is three in one, the Father. Son and Holy Spirit. 1. Man fell and the image of God was marred. This fall caused a separation from God, which is called spiritual death. Christ died for all and made provision for the salvation of all. "We thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead" (II Cor. 5:14) 2. The word dead is used in the sense of separation from God. All were separated from God. The death of Christ on the cross was for the purpose of causing a reconciliation. There is no other name given under heaven or among men whereby we can be saved. 3. The awful condition of men is described in Romans 3:9-19: " . . . There is none righteous, no, not one: there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no not one ... there is no fear of God before their eyes... that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world become guilty before God." 4. In such condition man needed a Saviour.
II. That Jesus is the Saviour, all the prophets bear witness. Gen. 22:18: "In thy seed shall all the nations of the earth he blessed." Thus Abraham voiced the words of God concerning the coming Saviour. The nation out of which the Saviour would come is thus designated. He was to come out of the descendants of Abraham-the Jews. 1. The tribe among the Jews is designated in Gen. 49:10. "The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet until Shiloh come." Thus we see He was to come out of the tribe of Judah BEFORE Judah ceased to function as a government. The Saviour must have come before the Jewish nation was scattered over the earth and ceased to function as a government. That time has long passed, and if He has not yet come, as the Jews declare, then He cannot come for that Scripture prophesies that it must be before a lawgiver has ceased to function in Judah. 2. The time when He was to come was foretold. Dan. 9:25-26: "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and three score and two weeks." Prophetic time is counted a day for a year. Measuring in this manner we find that from the command to rebuild Jerusalem it would be four hundred and eighty one years until Christ should come. That date fits into the time He did come. 3. Christ was to come, according to the prophets, while the second temple was in existence. Haggai 2:7-9, "The desire of all nations shall-come: and I will fill this house with glory ... the glory of this latter house shall be greater than the former." The second temple has long since been destroyed. So the Saviour must have come at the time appointed. 4. The identical place of His birth was foretold. Micah 5:2, "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth
unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." He must come from Bethlehem of Judah. And it was there the wise men and the shepherds found Him with His mother as He lay in the manger. 5. The 53rd chapter of Isaiah tells in advance of His suffering and death. "To him give all the prophets witness."
Stewardship of Opportunity Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 3-27-1937 Luke 12:48: "For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required; and unto whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more." As we have opportunity we should use what we are and what we have in our possession in the interest of our Master. Opportunity means OPEN PORT, and when we see an open port we should sail in for our Lord. 1. We should use every opportunity to do good. Gal. 6:10: "As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith." The same opportunity will not come again. There may be similar opportunities, but when we miss one it is gone forever, and another one of the same sort may never come again. Evangelist Moody was holding a protracted meeting in Chicago and he preached a great sermon one night and said at the close of the sermon: "On tomorrow night I will explain the way of salvation." But that very night the great Chicago fire destroyed his tabernacle and took the lives of many who were attending the meetings. Tomorrow night never came and how many souls may have been lost by his failing to use the opportunity he had that night will never be known this side of eternity. He said he never intended to allow another opportunity to pass without offering salvation to all that were present. 2. We are not responsible when we do not have an opportunity. Phil. 4:10: "I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at the last your care of me hath flourished again: wherein ye were also careful, but ye lacked opportunity." The members of the church in Philippi were willing to help Paul in his missionary work but they lacked opportunity. He commended them for using the first opportunity that came. Have you not had opportunity? Can you truthfully say that you would have done this or that service but you did not have the opportunity? If you miss an opportunity you sin. We are stewards of the opportunity that God gives us. He gives us these opportunities that we may use them for Him. The city of Jerusalem had a wonderful opportunity but they rejected it and Jesus wept over their plight. Matt. 23:37-38: "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate." All who hear the Gospel have an opportunity and they are foolish not to use it for the glory of God in their own salvation. God gives the opportunity and we are stewards of our opportunities. 3. Churches have set before them opportunities that should be used. Rev. 3:8, "I know thy works: behold I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it." A church should be aggressive. To merely strive to exist, to try to save the church from decay and death is a very poor ideal. If our object is to save the world, to do our very best to benefit mankind, and bend every energy to that end, the very effort to save others will save the church. In giving our lives for others we enlarge ourselves and really begin to live when we live for others. We have opportunity in the Sunday School and in the prayer meeting, and in the preaching service and in personal contacts and we are accountable for the way we
use these opportunities for God. The opportunity is given by our Master and should be used for Him. The opportunity to enlarge our sphere of usefulness should never be missed. 4. Failure to use our opportunity is sleeping on our rights. Luke 19: 41-44: "He beheld the city and wept over it, saying, If thou hadst known even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong to thy peace! But now they are hid from thine eyes. For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee-because thou knewest not the time of my visitation." The Saviour had done all he could for them and they had failed to use their opportunity and now certain destruction was their portion. Do we allow great opportunities to pass us without using them? They had their day-this thy day-their opportunity. Alas! 5. Opportunities used means spiritual enrichment. Eccl. 11:1 "Cast thy bread upon the waters; thou shalt find it after many days." The man who does not use the opportunity to sow seed shall fail to get a harvest. In the ancient manner of sowing on falling waters the seed was left in the mud to sprout and grow and later there would be a harvest of golden grain. It must be sowed at the right time when the water was leaving the lowland and not when it was rising. The opportunity of sowing on falling water must be used at once or failure was the penalty. 6. We have Bible instances where people used their opportunities. In Luke 19:1-7, we find where Zaccheus, used his opportunity to see Jesus and was rewarded with salvation. The Canaanite woman (Matt. 15:21-28) used her opportunity to secure the healing of her daughter and "her daughter was made whole from that very hour." The thief on the cross used his opportunity to get salvation and was promised a home in Paradise (Luke 23:4243). Life is a great opportunity and our life was given us by the Master that we might use it for him. It is a misappropriation of funds, figuratively speaking, to use our lives for selfish purposes. Our life belongs to God and it is not our own property. Suicide is a crime for our life does not belong to us, hence we have no right to destroy it, and every day of our life should be used for our Master, "whose we are and whom we serve." Many people fail to use their opportunity to do good. Every Sunday some may be seen with their fishing tackle making for the lake instead of going to church and Sunday School. Some spend their Sundays on the golf links or some other place of sport. Surely they ought to know, that such as that, while not wrong in itself, it is wrong to so use the Lord's day, the day God set apart for public worship and rest. Men need the one-day in seven for rest and worship. It is a matter of record that in 1849 during the gold rush to California that those who were in such a hurry to get to California that they did not spend their Sundays resting actually wore out their teams and did not make as good time as those who stopped and rested a full day on Sunday one day in seven. Even machinery needs rest. God knew what He was doing when he set aside one day in seven for rest and worship. Men who ignore God's arrangements find when it is too late that their life, is cut short and their happiness hindered. Next Sunday morning each one of you should make a firm resolution to be in your places at Sunday School and church and make that a regular habit the rest of your lives and when the time comes to die you will not regret it.
Strength in Weakness Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 12-15-1920 "And he (God) said to me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in
persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong" (II Cor. 12:910).
I. This is a paradox. A paradox is an apparent contradiction, but when understood is no contradiction. It has been the experience of God's children all through the ages that our weakness is God's opportunity to manifest His power. Weak in ourselves; strong in the Lord. If weakness is strength, the converse is true that strength is weakness. We can assuredly say that when we are strong, then are we weak. 1. It is a fact that men break down at their strongest point. The best swimmer I ever knew was drowned. Rich men allow riches (and riches is power) to overthrow them. Their strength becomes their weakness. Thus the means for accomplishing much good becomes the cause of much harm. 2. Abraham, the father of the faithful, broke down at the point of faith when he failed to trust God in the presence of a wicked king and said his wife was his sister when he ought to have known that God would protect him. He who had faith to go out into a strange land at God's bidding, and who had faith to offer up his only son in sacrifice, trusting God for rescue, quailed in the presence of the king and denied his wife (Gen. 12:11-19). 3. Elijah was one of the boldest of men and in the presence of four hundred priests of Baal, his courage never faltered, but he was scared out of his wits by Jezebel, a wicked woman (I Kings 19:1-18). 4. Moses was noted for his meekness and yet he lost his temper and smote the rock when God told him to speak to the rock. For this failure he was denied a place in the land of promise he had his heart set on (Num. 20:10-12). 5. Peter was a brave man and was willing at one time to risk his life for the Lord, yet he stood trembling in the presence of a girl and denied that he even knew the Lord (Matt. 26:69-75). 6. And we see James and John, who were the mildest and sweetest characters in all the Bible, asking Jesus to call fire down from heaven on certain ones who were doing wrong (Luke 9:51-56). 7. At the point of your greatest strength is your greatest danger. When a man is strong at any point, he is most likely to depend on his own strength instead of looking to the Lord. Hence he fails because he forgets God. When he knows he is weak at any particular point he is especially careful to trust in the Lord for help and hence the Lord's strength is given him.
II. As individuals and churches we should watch this point. A church of a very large membership is too likely to depend on the strength of numbers. A church made up of rich people is too apt to depend on the power of money. 1. Churches break down by the strength of organization. The Roman Catholic Church came into existence by Baptist churches entering into combines and then still stronger combinations until, as the organization became more and more powerful the spiritual power of the churches became less and less. This went on until spiritual was gone and organization, the strongest in the world, was found to be without God. History is repeating itself in the modern tendency to centralization. If you want to find real piety you must now go to the small congregations made up of the poor. There are exceptions but I have stated the rule. Christ is crowded out of most modern churches. 2. Money is a power for good in the churches. Finding this to be true some have piled up money and are even offering it as an inducement to young men to enter the ministry. About five thousand volunteered to enter the ministry or go as missionaries during the campaign for
seventy-five millions in the Southern Baptist Convention, and we may look for many to enter just for the money and this very power will become weakness. We need money, we need men, and we need scriptural organization, but all will become weakness if we begin to depend on them. The stronger we get on a given point the more we should depend on God for support at that point.
Suffering Ben M. Bogard, Baptist and Commoner, 9-10-1930 "Beloved, Think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you; but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy." I Peter 4:12-13.
I. The world is full of suffering. To escape it is impossible. Do we understand it? Why this suffering? Some suffer from sin and imprudence. Suffering is often sent as a punishment for sin. We see this often in the case of the Israelites in the wilderness. Murderers, thieves, adulterers may expect to suffer. Suffering is a direct result of such conduct. Some suffer as Christians. The word Christian is used in the Bible as a term of reproach and the early followers of the Lord were stigmatized as "Christians." It was intended as an insult. The disciples were first thus insulted at Antioch (Acts 11:26). Peter says (I Peter 4:16): "If any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf." The very fact of there being children of God caused them to suffer. They who live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
II. The reason for such suffering is found in the Bible. All that God does or permits is reasonable. God overrules all things to His glory and to His people's good. Suffering comes as chastisement to God's children (Heb. 12:5-8: "My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son in he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards and not sons . . . No chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them who are exercised thereby." This is sufficient to prove that the modern holiness heresy is wrong. If the Lord chasteneth us it must be because we need it. We should not need it if we lived perfect lives. But He chastens all, hence it follows that all are short of perfection and need the chasenings to improve in righteousness. There is a big difference between chastisement and punishment. Punishment is for alien sinners, while chastisement is for the Lord's children. Punishment is a penalty while chastisement is correction for our good. Children are chastened, criminals are punished. Suffering comes sometimes as a refiner of character. Gold is subjected to the refiners' fire. It is put in the crucible and heated to a very high degree of heat for the purpose of burning out the impurities. So the child of God is refined by suffering (I Peter 1:7). "The trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ." Suffering comes to work for us a glorious future (II Cor. 4:17). "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." Our suffering is the dark background of the glorious picture God is painting for us.
II Tim. 2:12: "If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him." Rom. 8:17-18: "If children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Jesus Christ; if so he that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall he revealed in us."
III. We have Bible examples of Christian suffering. Moses suffered as a Christian (Heb. 11:25). This shows that there were Christians in the Old Testament. Paul suffered beyond comparison (II Cor. 11:23-27). In prisons, on the sea, beaten with cords and rods and stoned and worse things. How many in this ease loving age ever suffer for their religion? God forbid that we should prove to be bastards and not sons.
Suppose it is true after all, What then? Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World Two friends were talking on religious topics. They discussed the question of punishment for sin in a future life. They settled to their own satisfaction that there was none. They decided that hell was a myth. They argued that God was a God of love and could not consign His creatures to everlasting punishment. The conversation dropped when a Christian, who had been a silent listener to the discussion said: "Suppose it is true after all." The words seemed to fall on the ears of the other two with crushing force. The power of God seemed behind them, as it ever is behind the truth. Solemn silence reigned for many minutes. God had spoken. Suppose it is true after all that God must punish sin? How would you stand before Him? What could you say to Him? How would you fare before the Judge? "Because He hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that Man whom He hath ordained; whereof He hath given assurance unto all men in that He hath raised Him from the dead" (Acts 17:31). Suppose it is true after all that Hell is a reality? A skeptic sneeringly asked: "Where is Hell?" The ready and true answer came: "At the end of a Christ-rejecting life." Let me ask you: What lies at the end of the path you are now treading? The Scripture says: "It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment" (Heb. 9:27). Suppose it is true after all that the Lord Jesus is the only means by which you can be fitted for God's presence? What if you neglect Him? "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?" (Heb. 2:3). What think ye of Christ? This is the test. To try both your state and your scheme. You cannot be right in the rest unless you think rightly of Him. Suppose it is true after all that the much despised "Blood of Jesus" is the only thing that can cleanse you from your sins. Has it cleansed you before God or are you still in your sins going on at a frightful pace to the eternity of the lost? "The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin" (I John 1:7). Suppose it is true after all, as Scripture states, that salvation is not of works ("For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God; not of works lest any man should boast" Eph. 2:8, 9), then what is all the churchgoing, Sunday school teaching, sick visiting, and the like worth if you rely upon any of these as good works to save or to help to save you? Worse than useless. A fatal mistake, if persisted in. "To him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness" (Rom. 4:5). Suppose it is true after all. Ah! If it were all-untrue, the believer has the best of it in this world, and is no worse off in the next. But if it is true after all, how terrible will be your doom if
you "Die in your sins" (John 8:21). Haste thee to Christ and be saved. "Whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire" (Rev. 20:15) Be assured that it is true and act on it. "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sins, and will heal their land." -II Chron. 7:14 This is the divine specific for our ills today. No man can improve on it, and so we pass it on to our people everywhere, breathing the prayer that they may comply with the conditions wholeheartedly and that the promises may be fully realized.
Trinity Ben M. Bogard, Baptist World, 12-1972 "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all" (II Cor. 13:14). Who is referred to in Paul's benediction? These three are one. I John 5:7, "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one." The great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20 commands that baptism be "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." If there are not three personalities, why speak of them in such a way? There are three persons in the Godhead but there is only one God, Deut. 6:4 says there is "ONE GOD." Eph. 4:5-6, ".. One Lord, one faith, one baptism." In Mark 12:29-32 we are plainly told that there is "ONE LORD," Jesus plainly saying that "The Lord our God is one Lord." It does not follow that because he is ONE that He is not a TRIPLE PERSONALITY. He is three, yet only one. How can this be? A few simple illustrations may help those who are confused to understand. The FOUNTAIN, the STREAM, and the WATER are one. But nobody knows that they are three. There can be things truthfully said of the fountain that cannot be truthfully said of the stream or the water and there can be things truthfully said of the stream that cannot be said of the water or the fountain. Many things may be truthfully said of the water that cannot be said of the stream or the fountain. They are three and yet one. Ice, snow and frost are one vet they are three. Even a child knows that snow is not ice or ice is not frost and frost is neither snow nor ice yet these three are one. It does not require argument to convince any intelligent person that these three are one-just frozen water. The sun, which gives light and life to the world, is a trinity. The sun is HEAT, and LIGHT, and POWER. But the sun is one. Then why balk at the idea of God being Trinity and yet ONE GOD? If this is a mystery, so are many other things that are undoubtedly true mysteries. The conception, birth and growth of a human being are a great mystery but none the less true. The blade of grass at your feet is a mystery but a fact none the less. If we refuse everything that is mysterious we shall have almost nothing left. Electricity is a mystery but a fact. The radio is a mystery that no man understands, but a fact. Our very existence is a mystery but who will dispute the fact of our existence? Gravitation is a mystery but true. When you raise your hand from your side to your head you have performed a wonderful mystery. No teacher of physiology or anatomy in the world can explain how this is done. We just do it and that is all we know about it. A little schoolteacher said she understood and proceeded to tell me that the brain sent a telegram by way of the nerves to the arm, the arm responded and the result was that the hand was raised. Just how she thought that cleared up the mystery is more than I can explain. I asked
her how the brain sent that telegram and just why the arm would know when the telegram came and she answered not. No other human being can answer. Mysteries are all around us and in us. If we refuse to believe that which is mysterious we shall have to cast aside almost everything in existence. Even so the TRINITY IS A MYSTERY but no greater mystery than thousands of other things. GOD AS CREATOR AND FATHER is the Being Who brought into existence all things in the universe. He is Creator of all things and the Father of those who accept Jesus Christ as Savior. Gal. 3:26, "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." The unsaved can claim God as the cause of their existence but only the saved, those saved by the blood of Jesus, can claim God as their Father. Gen. 1:1, "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." Psa. 33:9, "For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast." God, as the originator of all things is CREATOR AND FATHER. Jesus Christ is the SON OF GOD and He is the SON OF MAN. He is neither the Son of a man nor a Son of any man. The expression "The Son of man" (Luke 11:10) means a perfect expression of real manhood. Adam was a perfect man but Adam fell and became imperfect. Jesus was the SECOND ADAM, that is the second expression of perfect manhood. Jesus did not fall and hence could, after fulfilling the law by strict obedience, act as our substitute in paying the penalty of the broken law. That Jesus was the second Adam, the second expression of perfect manhood is seen in I Cor. 15:45-47, "the first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. The first man is of the earth, earthly; the second man is the Lord from heaven." Thus, we see that babies are not born in the same condition that Adam was when he was created. Adam was a perfect being, but babies are born very imperfect, the tendency to sin is in all of them, but Jesus Christ is the second Adam and the tendency to sin was not in Him. He was without sin in any sense, either by actual transgression or by any evil tendency. He was in glory before the world came into existence. John 17:5, "And now O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was." John 8:59, "Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. Jesus said in John 14:9, ". . He that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father." This language cannot be understood unless we acknowledge that J e s u s claimed to be God and to have existed before the world was. Col. 2:9, "For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead, bodily." He was God in the flesh. In I Tim. 3:16 we have unmistakable language concerning Jesus Christ: "Great is the mystery of godliness; God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory." Note the fact that it was GOD who was "received up into glory" after being "manifest in the flesh." Thomas addressed Jesus as God, John 20:28, "And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God." Jesus did not correct him but accepted the title and that settles it that Jesus claimed to be God. We have John's account of our Lord coming into the world in John 1:1-14. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men . . . And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us . . ." Nothing could be clearer than that Jesus was God clothed in flesh. Jesus was a man. Jesus was God. Not half man and half God, but both man and God. As God He knew all things but the man, Jesus, did not know all things. Mark 13:32 declares that Jesus did not know when He would return to this earth. As a man Jesus developed from infancy
to manhood and "increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man" (Luke 6:2:52). As a man He suffered and was tired and weary. As a man He bled and died. As a man He prayed to God in the garden of Gethsemane and asked that "if it be possible let this cup pass from me, nevertheless not as I will but as thou wilt" (Matt. 26:39). Jesus was both man and God, a mystery that cannot be explained any more than we can explain the existence of God to start with; a mystery that cannot be explained any more than we can explain the Trinity; a mystery that cannot be explained any more than we can explain how we raise our hands from our side to our heads; a mystery that can no more be explained than we can explain gravitation and space and eternity. If we are to take the Bible as our guide we accept what it says about the HUMANITYDEITY of Jesus Christ just as we accept all of the other things it reveals. As a man Jesus can sympathize with us in our weakness and as God He can lift us up to Himself in glory. The Holy Ghost IS A PERSONALITY. The word "ghost" is from an old Anglo-Saxon word that means GUEST. So it means the Holy Guest. It does not convey the idea of a spook but the Holy Ghost is God's Spirit. The Bible speaks of the Holy Ghost (or Holy Spirit) in the masculine gender. It is never right to speak of Him as "it." It would be insulting to speak of a man as an "it." Certainly it is wrong to speak of the Holy Spirit as "it." A favorite expression of modern holiness people is, "It will come upon you" and "it will burn out your imperfections." A great many speak of "getting the Holy Ghost." We do not and we cannot get Him. We "RECEIVE" Him as the Holy Guest. Those who are God's children receive the Holy Spirit as the Holy Guest of their lives. Jesus said, "I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him. But ye know him, for he dwelleth with you and shall be in you" (John 14:16-17). Notice the Bible speaks of the Holy Ghost as masculine, "HE" and "HIM" not "it." Some think of the Holy Spirit as a fluid or possibly a sort of electricity and not as a personality. They speak of getting a "measure" of the Spirit or a "portion" of the Spirit. It is wellnigh blasphemy to speak of the Spirit being ladled out to us in parts or portions or in any sort of measure. John 3:34, "God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him." A lady might as well say she had a portion or a measure of a husband --as for us to say we have a portion or a measure of the Spirit. We either have received the Holy Spirit or we have not. We certainly cannot get Him by piece meal. The Holy Spirit inspired the writers of the New Testament. John 14:26, "The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you." In John 16:13-15 we read the words of Jesus concerning the work of the Holy Spirit in inspiring the writers of the New Testament: "When he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth; for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak; and he shall show you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you." When you hear people boasting of having the Spirit and "getting the Spirit" you may be sure they are either trying to deceive or they are themselves deceived. If they really were under the power of the Spirit they would be so filled with the thought of Jesus Christ that they would do all their talking about Him and not be talking of and glorifying the Holy Spirit for the simple reason that the Holy Spirit does not glorify Himself but glorifies Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit works upon men to get them to come to Christ and when they have yielded to the influence of the Spirit and have accepted Christ, then they spend their time not boasting of the Spirit but in glorifying Christ.
The Holy Spirit inspired the New Testament writers to write WHAT JESUS HAD TAUGHT BY WORD OF MOUTH and not to give something different. The WILL OF CHRIST was complete before He ascended into heaven and the New Testament writers merely reduced it to writing as they were inspired to do so by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit does not inspire men now for the very good reason the Bible is a perfect rule of faith and practice. It is called the "PERFECT LAW O F LIBERTY" (James 1:25) and is "that which is perfect" which Paul said was to come (I Cor. 13:10) and when it came then "that which was in part should be done away." It is the recorded "knowledge of the Son of God" (Eph. 4:13) which was to come, then the special gifts, among them inspiration, would end. The Father is God, the Son is God, the Holy Spirit is God, but there is only ONE GOD for these three are one. God the Father is the Creator of all things and is over all. God, the Son, is our Saviour and Example, He is God manifested to us. God the Holy Spirit is our Comforter, our GUEST who abides with us forever. The Father is God OVER us, the Son of God is manifested TO US, and the Spirit is God IN us. IMPARTED TO US. All there is of God is the Father; all we see of God is the Son; and all we FEEL of God is the Spirit. If it is so hard for you to comprehend I wonder how you comprehend the fact that we draw WATER from the well; we put a block of ICE in the ice box; and we watch the beautiful SNOW as it falls and purifies the air. But while the water, snow and ice are distinct - really three - yet they are ONE. We admire God the Father and worship Him. We accept Jesus, the Son, and are saved by Him. We received the Holy Spirit into our lives and are comforted by Him-really three-yet only ONE. When we get to heaven we shall not see three Gods for there will be only one but the ONE GOD will have the triple personality, the ONE GOD will still be a TRINITY-three in one-and the MAN, Jesus, will he there too, the same man whom the ALMIGHTY used to manifest Himself to the world. That JESUS will be at the right hand of God, glorified, and when we shall see him we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is (John 3:2). That same Jesus who, while hanging on the cross, cried out: "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (Matt. 27:46) will be at the right hand of God. For a time DIVINITY FORSOOK JESUS AS HE HANGED ON THE CROSS-. He was left to suffer the pangs of hellforsaken by God and men. The blackness of that darkness will only be known to those who are lost in hell. But Jesus suffered the pangs of hell for us and is our only hope of salvation. Bear in mind that Jesus was a real man mysteriously blended with God, "God manifest in the flesh." God is a Trinity and in the SON He manifested Himself to men and by that Son we are saved. You do not have to understand the Trinity to be saved any more than you have to understand digestion and assimilation of food in order to eat. You do not have to understand the Trinity in order to be saved any more than you have to understand electricity in order to send a telegram or a telephone message. You do not have to understand the Trinity in order to be saved any more than you have to understand the radio in order to tune in on the program. When the jailer cried out: "What must I do to be saved?" the answer came back immediately from the apostle: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved" (Acts 16:30-31). To believe on Jesus Christ is to rely upon Him, trust Him, and depend upon Him. That is what is meant by faith in Christ, not a mere acceptance of the truthfulness of what the Bible says about Jesus. I believe what the Bible says about the Devil but I do not have faith in the devil. I also believe what the Bible says about Jesus Christ and in addition to that I have FAITH IN HIM. I trust Him, rely on Him. "Believe on (trust) the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." You reach that point of trusting by repenting of your sins and that repentance-changing of the mind brings you to the foot of the cross where you trust (believe) on Jesus and are then and there saved.
The reason I discuss the subject of the Trinity is that it is a Bible subject and helps us understand other things in the Bible and not because I think the understanding of it is necessary to salvation. Another reason is that skeptics and infidels use the doctrine of the Trinity in their derision of the Bible. I want to show that they are wrong in everything. -From Baptist and Commoner, September 10, 1930.
WHAT KIND OF BAPTISTS ARE WE? Moderator's Opening Speech California State Association at Tulare, California April 13, 1965 by Roy M. Reed There is probably no person among us today who has not been asked the question, perhaps a great many times, "What kind of a Baptist are you? There are so many different ones I can't tell the difference." It is true that among modern denominations, Baptists are most prominent; it is also quite true that among Baptists there are a great many variations. Many of these different Baptist groups have much in common, sharing the same basic doctrines and contending generally for the same fundamental truths. Others have so radically departed from the historic Baptist positions, as to disqualify them from any ties with our ancient Baptist forefathers. In a few moments today, I would like to take this opportunity to briefly answer the question: "What kind of Baptists are we?" Among the different groups of Baptists in the world are what used to be called Northern Baptists, now known as the American Baptist Convention; Southern Baptists, Fundamental Baptists, Bible Baptists, Primitive Baptists, Conservative Baptists, Regular Baptists, United Baptists, Free-Will Baptists, Orthodox Baptists, Independent Baptists and Missionary Baptists. Our group of Baptists is, of course, known far and wide by the general and generic term of Missionary Baptists, When I consider the identifying name of other Baptist groups I find that the name Baptist may be modified in many ways, and still identify the group assembled before me today, in this capacity, as messengers from the Missionary Baptist Churches of California.
WHAT KIND OF BAPTISTS ARE WE? 1. We are Fundamental Baptists. By this statement I do not mean that we are a part of the modern fundamentalist movement which was publicized and spawned by the late J. Frank Norris. We are not Fundamentalists by name, but we are fundamental in belief and practice, in the sense that the word means that which is fundamental, and pertinent to a foundation or basis. Missionary Baptists regard as absolutely fundamental the adherence to Bible teachings and examples as the norm for our faith and practice. Who use that term as a part of their name, but we hold that the Bible is the only guide book and authority for the church today. Missionary Baptists literally preach the word of God and nothing else. 2. We are Bible Baptists. We have no real association with those who use that term as part of their name, but we hold that the Bible is the only guide book and authority for the church today. Missionary Baptist literally preach the word of God and nothing else. 3. We are Southern Baptists in the sense that most of the churches and people of our fellowship are of southern origin. 4. We are Northern Baptists in the sense that in recent times our Missionary Baptist churches have sprung up in the northern states, and we have extended our arms of fellowship to people in the North as well as the South, East and West. 5. We are American Baptists. Our National Association carries the name "The American Baptist Association," and has worn that name since 1925, which was 35 years before the Northern Baptist Convention adopted the name American Baptist Convention for their
national organization We are certainly American Baptists in the sense that our people espouse good citizenship and Americanism on the part of all citizens of this nation. We are proud to salute the flag of the United States and pledge to that flag and to the Republic for which it stands. We are proud to uphold its laws and to defend its liberty with our very lives. 6. We are Convention Baptists in the sense that convention means fixed and generally accepted custom. We Missionary Baptists honor the conventions and customs of our Baptist forebears, because we believe them to have been born of wisdom based on a multitude of counsel. BUT MAKE NO MISTAKE ABOUT IT-we have no affiliation, nor do we espouse or defend those organizations known as the American Baptist Convention nor the Southern Baptist Convention. We believe the churches composing those organizations; though in the majority among Baptists, have radically departed from the beliefs and practices of old time Missionary Baptists. 7. We are Primitive Baptists. We hold no belief for the doctrines and practices of that group of hard-shell, anti-missionary, fatalistic, unconditional election churches, which use the word primitive as a part of their name; but we certainly contend for our primitive Baptist history, which dates back to the days of Christ on earth, and spans an unbroken chain of churches from the days of Christ until now. 8. We are Conservative Baptists in the sense that our people have a universal and unanimous opposition to socialism in any form, whether it is in a political government or in a church organization. We are for mere local control and against centralized government on a national, state and local level as well as in our churches. 9. We are regular Baptists in the sense that we have made no radical departures from the generally accepted practices of Baptists down through the ages, from the days of Christ until now. 10. We are United Baptists in the sense that we abhor the doctrine of isolationism. We believe in doing things together. We believe in carrying on mission and Christian education in a united effort because we believe that in unity there is strength, and that in isolation there is nothing but loneliness, frustration and inadequacy. 11. We are Independent Baptist. Every Missionary Baptist church in our fellowship is a completely autonomous body. Each local congregation is completely self-governing and is sovereign under Christ. I defy any person in the world to prove that there are any churches more independent than the local, visible Missionary Baptist churches such as are represented by their messengers here today. What kind of Baptists are we? It is probably evident to this listening audience by now that names by themselves mean very little. One might hang a sign around the neck of skunk, which says "This is a rabbit," but that wouldn't make it so, and sooner or later the smell would tell people the difference. The name of this association does not, by itself, tell people about the kind of Baptist we are. . This association is known by the name "The Cooperative Association of Missionary Baptist Churches of California." We use the word "Cooperative", in our name because we believe it describes the Scriptural practice of our churches in carrying out the Lord's work on earth. As evidence of this practice we submit that the churches of this association, last year gave over sixty thousand dollars to mission activities and nearly thirty thousand dollars to Christian education, in the support of two Bible Institutes in the state. On a national level these same churches cooperated with other churches throughout the nation in supporting over 50 missionaries in the 50 states and 17 foreign countries.
We are Missionary Baptist because we believe fervently in missions. We believe in Scriptural propagation of Bible truths to every creature in the world, without regard to race, color or national origin. We are an association instead of a convention. Our assemblage here today are messengers but not delegates. They represent their churches as individuals with no delegated authority. They are here to counsel together and to recommend hut not to legislate. The late and lamented Dr. Ben M. Bogard illustrated an association such as ours by the example of two horses standing side by side, being in opposite directions, using their tails to swat flies from each other's face. They were thus achieving the ultimate cooperation and association, but without surrendering their individual identities, nor their independence and sovereignty. They were independent of each other but interdependent upon each other. It is in this manner that we associate together in the work of Christ. This is our objective here today. We are in California with California on our hearts. We are not here to legislate to the churches nor to compromise their sovereignty in any way. But we are here to work, to serve, to build, to evangelize, to teach and preach the truth until Jesus comes. My brethren and sisters in Christ, it is with great pride, mingled with sincere humility that I now open this 15th annual session of the Cooperative Association of Missionary Baptist Churches of California.
Wisdom Baptist & Commoner 5-24-22 By Ben M. Bogard "The price of wisdom is above rubies." Job 28:18. Wisdom can not be bought. Job 28:15 "It can not be gotten for gold, neither shall silver be weighed for the price thereof." 1. Wisdom and knowledge are not the same. Knowledge must be acquired by study, observation, and research, but wisdom is a gift. Knowledge, according to Webster, means to "Be informed, to perceive the facts." Wisdom, according to Webster, means "knowledge practically applied, prudence, foresight, skill in affairs." Figuratively, knowledge is a kit of tools; wisdom is the USE OF TOOLS. The same kit of tools may be used to construct or to destroy a building. It is not the tool but the USE of the tool that determines whether the tools are useful or destructive. So knowledge may be useful or ruinous, for it all depends on the "application of knowledge," that is WISDOM, as to whether the knowledge does any good or not. 2. In the Apostolic age, one of the spiritual gifts was knowledge. But "whether there be knowledge it shall vanish away." (I Cor. 13:18). It vanished away when the Bible was completed for the Bible being a perfect revelation from God; the gift of knowledge was no longer needed. We can now learn all we need to know of God's will by reading the Bible, but before the Bible was completed God imparted knowledge of His will directly and that was called the gift of knowledge. Those who now expect knowledge direct from God will be disappointed. 3. Wisdom is a gift of God, but does not come under the head of miraculous gifts, but under the ordinary working of the Spirit (Jas. 1:15). "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God and it shall be given him." We now receive the Holy Ghost, but not the "BAPTISM" of the Holy Ghost; we now receive power to serve God but not the MIRACULOUS power to serve Him. So we now receive "wisdom" but not the miraculous wisdom mentioned under the head of "Spiritual gifts" in I Cor. 12:1. 4. There is Wisdom of God and a wisdom of the World. (James 3:13) "Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? Let him show out of a good conversation (life) his works with meekness of wisdom. This wisdom decendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. But wisdom that
is from above is first PURE, then PEACEABLE, GENTLE, and easy to be ENTREATED, full of MERCY, and GOOD WORKS, without PARTIALITY and without HYPOCRISY." 5. The world's wisdom is foolishness with God. I Cor. 3:19. "The wisdom of this world is foolishness with God." God's ways are contrary to the ideas of worldly men. Commercial methods, worldly plans, that are plans formulated by unsound men, are always different from the plans of God. The plans that make a worldly institution succeed will ruin a church. A good rule is to find exactly how worldly men would conduct church affairs and then be sure NOT TO DO IT THAT WAY. The New Testament is the ONLY RULE OF FAITH AND PRACTICE. . I Cor. 4:6. "That ye might learn not to think of men above that which is written." The words, "of men," are in italics and that means they were supplied by the translators and not in the original. Hence, it would read, with these words left out, "Not to think above that, which was written." In the Revised Version it reads: "Not to go beyond that which is written." Staying with the BOOK is the wise thing to do always. To go beyond the things written is to adopt the wisdom of the world. 6. The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom Pro. 1:7. In Job 28:28 we read "Behold the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; to depart from evil is understanding," This does not mean to be afraid of God but to have the reverential fear that goes with love, the fear of a dutiful child toward a fond parent. No man is wise, who remains out of Christ. No man is so wise that he never acts a fool. Solomon, the wisest man, played the fool. He finally saw his folly and repented. Eccl. 12:13-14. "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter, Fear God and keep His commandments; for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil."
THE STORY OF A SERMON By DR. BEN M. BOGARD and DR. DAN GILBERT Second Edition 1950; Printed By Seminary Press Little Rock, Arkansas
PREFACE This story of a sermon is concerning a sermon preached by Ben M. Bogard, while he was pastor of Antioch Missionary Baptist Church, Little Rock, Arkansas. Dan Gilbert relates in his own words what came to him when he heard it. But there is a record back of the event related by Dr. Gilbert that is very interesting which I am now relating. Ben M. Bogard, Pastor Emeritus, Antioch Missionary Baptist Church and President Emeritus of the Missionary Baptist Seminary, of Little Rock, Arkansas
INTRODUCTION: ORIGIN OF THE SERMON When I was a young preacher and pastor of the Baptist Church in Searcy, Arkansas, a good deacon, J. J. Crow, came to me one day and said: "I am an old man and you are a young preacher. If you will not be offended, I would like to offer a suggestion about your preaching." I assured him that I would be glad to hear his suggestion and then he said: "You preach too much doctrine. Every time you preach you pour in the doctrine. I like it and many of the older brethren like it, but it offends some who hear it. I hesitate to bring anyone to hear you preach, if he is not of our denomination. I brought Judge Cypert to hear you a few Sundays ago and you poured it in on him until I feel sure he will never come to hear you again. Why don't you stop that sort of preaching and preach something else?" I said, "Brother Crow, there are two reasons why I preach so much doctrine. One is we cannot expect people to accept our doctrine unless it is preached. If we do not preach what we believe, how can we expect those who do not believe what we do to accept our teaching? Again,
my habit is to select a passage of Scripture as my text and carefully study that passage to find what it means. All the passages I have selected have doctrine in them." "That is exactly what is the trouble," he said. "Why do you not select some of the passages that have no doctrine in them and preach from them? The Bible is full of other things and why use the doctrinal passages all the time?" I said, "Please tell me a passage, I could use as you say." He said: "That is dead easy, try John 3:16, which tells of God's love." That was a fine suggestion. I had never preached from John 3:16 and strange to say, I had never heard a sermon from that text. I had heard preachers quote it, but I had never heard a sermon from it, never using it as a text myself. I went to my room and gave John 3:16 a careful study to learn just what was in the passage. My findings were original so far as I was concerned for I had no help from any source, and I have never used commentaries in preparing my sermons, for I think commentaries have made many a Dr. Dry-as-dust preacher but never a live wire one. In much prayer and diligent study, I made my sermon and preached it on the next Sunday. Instead of there being no doctrine in that great text, I found all the doctrines there, either expressly stated or implied. When Brother Crow heard the sermon (bless his memory--he has long gone to be with the Lord) he was astonished beyond bounds and came hastily to the pulpit as soon as I had finished preaching and said, "Young man, preach what you please from this time on out, for I think you must be right about all the passages in the Bible being full of doctrine." I thanked him heartily for his suggestion and I have been preaching from John 3:16 ever since. John 3:16: "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life." This wonderful text and the sermon I preached from it were the turning point in my ministerial life. I have been a different preacher since then and the Lord has blessed that sermon more than any other, as much as all the other sermons put together, since I began to preach it.
VISIBLE RESULTS FROM PREACHING JOHN 3:16 I have preached this sermon all over the United States and I have seen results that were astonishing; only a few times have I used it when nobody made a public profession of faith, and no telling what the results were even when no one made public their acceptance of Christ at the time the sermon was preached, for at the time I preached it in Little Rock with the Atheist, Dan Gilbert, present, nobody publicly accepted my invitation that night, but it caught Dan Gilbert and haunted him night and day until he fully surrendered to the Lord, as he tells you in his own words which you will read following this introduction. I preached it in Cloverdale, Oregon, while attending the meeting of the Middle Oregon Association and a young man, named John Blalock, was gloriously saved. He is a successful preacher and has been, for years, missionary in China. Over and over again men and women have come to me and said: "I was saved under your preaching of John 3:16," as they named the place where they heard the sermon. This has been a joy to me. John 3:16 For Ten Days At A Time I have held several protracted meetings in which I used no other text. All of these meetings have been successful. In all of them souls were saved and we had what is commonly called a good revival. I shall mention two of these times in particular. One was at Prattsville, Ark, where the windows of heaven were opened and God poured out His blessings, thirty-five souls being saved, and Pastor J.W. Kelly baptized them in Saline River. The other was at Hodges, Alabama, where such a revival as they had never seen before was enjoyed and fortythree souls were saved. I baptized them with my own hands in the beautiful lake nearby. In at
least four other places I used John 3:16 for the entire protracted meetings and in each one precious souls were saved. The Most Outstanding Conversion But the most outstanding conversion, under the preaching of John 3:16, was the wonderful conversion of Dan Gilbert as related by him in this book. The story as told by him follows, and following his account, is the sermon itself as preached that memorable night he heard it, only slightly enlarged so as to get in all the arguments I ever use to refute the doctrines of infidels and atheists. The arguments that convinced Dan Gilbert are all in the printed sermon and a few more thrown in for the benefit of the reader. Put This Book Into The Hands Of Sinners This book should be widely scattered over the world, If you have a skeptical friend, if you know of a young man or woman who has been to some school where the teachers misled the students, and his mind is poisoned with modernism, evolutionism, or any form of unbelief, you should not fail to put this book into his hands. Dr. Gilbert says that the arguments which convinced him should convince other young people who are like he was when he heard the sermon. With a prayer that many may be saved from the modernistic skepticism caused by false teachers, this book is sent forth. May the reading of the sermon, and the story of Dan Gilbert, be as effective as the preaching of it has been. Yours, UNDER THE BLOOD OF CHRIST, and with praise to God; "Who so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life," and I am Very Sincerely,
Ben M. Bogard
Dan Gilberts Own Story Concerning His Wonderful Conversion From Atheism to Christ This is really not the "story of Dan Gilbert." It is, rather, the story of a sermon--and what it did to Dan Gilbert. For, if Dan Gilbert had not heard that sermon, and if the Lord had not used it to do what He did to Dan Gilbert, there would be nothing about his life that any Christian reader would care to know about. Strangely, we tend to think of sermons as quite ordinary things. Often as not, church congregations will enjoy the music, but expect to be bored when the preaching begins; and, often as not, they go home with the dull consciousness that all their expectations were abundantly realized! Preachers know this; and that is why they frequently try to "spice" up their sermons with jokes about their dryness, dullness, and long windedness. A recent survey of "pulpit humor" (so-called) revealed that preachers jokes about their own dryness had surpassed even the stale old variety about "the trials of married life" as the type of alleged "funniness" most frequently inflicted by the pulpit upon the pew. By sad experience, many preachers have learned to regard their sermons as just about the most trivial things that enter into the busy lives of the laity. Woe unto the preacher who dares to assume that what he has to declare is to be compared with importance to the noon-day Sunday meal! There is no fury known to Christian womanhood like that instantly aroused by the unthinking pastor who doesn't act upon the knowledge that the unpardonable sin is to make his people "late" in getting out of church on the Lord's Day morning. Twentieth century man and woman regard sermons as trivial, tiresome and commonplace. Yet, the fact can be demonstrated that they are the most mysterious, wonder-working and potent things that can touch the heart and life of humanity. God has implanted strange and wonderful power in the tiny atom; when the atom is "cracked" and the latent energy is released, a whole city may be blown up. But God has implanted infinitely greater power in these simple things
known as sermons. Empires have risen and fallen, as sermons have been preached, releasing Divine power a billion times greater than atomic energy. "Make these Christians stop their preaching or they will wreck my empire," cried Diocletian, the most blood-thirsty of all the Roman persecutors of the early church. Diocletian's "gestapo" murdered the Christians by the millions; but they went on telling the story of Jesus and His love, and all the "iron legions" of the Roman system could not keep the Empire from toppling into dust. Twentieth century man "marvels" at the "wonder-working" sulpha drugs. A doctor pumps some of this mysterious substance into a person's veins and germs are quickly killed. What is so remarkable about that: that one substance in the blood stream should overcome another substance in the blood stream? But doctors know nothing about the most poisonous of all diseases in the life of man: hatred, greed, malice. There is no drug that can "get at" sin hidden in the heart of man. Only a sermon can do that! God uses sermons to drive hatred and greed out of the hearts of men and bring then to Christ. How incomparably marvelous and wonderful! A sermon is just words. Yet a combination of words, spoken by a human tongue, is so freighted with wonder-working power by the Holy Spirit, that a man hears those words and becomes a changed, new creature. The drunkard becomes sober. The murderer becomes kind. The liar becomes truthful. The sinner becomes a saint! Faith comes by hearing. God uses little things, simple things--like sermons--to accomplish those life-transformations which are beyond the comprehension or understanding of the greatest scientists who ever lived. This is the story of a sermon: the greatest sermon I ever heard; the sermon that God used to do for me what nothing else on earth could do for this lost sinner. I was born in California. In my junior year in high school, I was led into atheism by an infidel-evolutionary instructor. This man taught atheism in the name of science. Evolution was true; the Bible was false. There was no creation and is no Creator. I was fourteen years of age at the time. Cunningly, he led me--and many other students-to turn our backs upon the Bible. At fourteen, I had never had an experience of salvation. But I had grown up in Sunday school. Like many churches, ours did not "stress" the New Birth. The preacher "believed" in it, he said, but felt it came about "gradually". We were taught to read the Bible, pray, do good, and "gradually" we would be "regenerated." So long as we read the Bible and lived right, God would take care of us and get us all to heaven. Slowly, this teacher broke down my boyhood belief in God. Finally, he had me convinced-that evolution is true, the Bible is false; there is no Creator and there was no creation. The darkest hour in my young life was the night that I decided to go to sleep without saying my prayers--taught to me in the cradle. I really didn't want to give up praying, but I felt I must. I must be "honest" as the teacher said, if science proved there was no God, one would he a hypocrite or a fool to keep on praying to Him who did not exist. The only honest thing, the only "manly" thing, the only "scientific" thing was to stop praying. Many times I had gone to bed feeling so sleepy, that I couldn't stay awake long enough to say my prayers. But somehow I had always managed it--although sometimes it had been hard. Now, I no longer felt obligated to stay awake and pray. But strangely, I couldn't go to sleep. I got up and looked out the window. The stars seemed to frown upon me. The sky was blue, but it looked black. There was a blackness in my soul. Like the man with a jaundiced liver who sees everything in yellow tones, the outside world was black--black as my heart and soul within.
Once committed to godlessness, I threw--or the devil threw--my whole being into the "crusade against God." A group of us, converted to godless evolution, by the teacher, formed a high school Atheist society. I wrote to Charles Smith, president of the[This link is to a Must Read article "Human-Ape Hybridization: A Failed Attempt to Prove Darwinism" by Jerry Bergman, Ph.D.-ESN] American Association for the Advancement of Atheism, Incorporated, in New York City. Moscow, Russia, is the world headquarters of the anti-God combine. The No. 1 infidel of the English speaking world was Charles Smith, scholarly, brilliant, vigorous, born in the United States, but committed to Moscow in the bold program to destroy the church of the living God on a world-wide scale. I told Mr. Smith that we wished to affiliate with the 4-A as the American Association for the Advancement of Atheism was called. Mr. Smith wrote back that his organization had thousands of school teachers engaged in bringing students into infidelity; that they had many student branch organizations over the nation, and that we "would be welcome to join the ranks of the militant godless." He added, however, that we would have to adopt an official name; then the 4-A in New York City would issue us a charter with our name upon it. What should we call our high school atheist group? We had to have a name. Finally, we hit upon one. We would call ourselves the 4-H--after the parent body, known as the 4-A. When we wrote him, giving the name we had chosen, he commented, "That is the finest name of any young people's group in our whole organization. You are to be congratulated as a genius: that name makes your group the roughest, toughest, most militant, most aggressively radical godless youth club in the entire nation." The 4-H stood for: THE HEDONIC HOST OF HELL-BENT HEATHENS. (The word "hedonic" simply means "pagan" Hedonism was the Greek equivalent of paganism.) Mr. Smith quickly promoted our group to "top-hilling" in the atheist publications. Within six months, the Hedonic Host of Hell-Bent Heathens was the most widely publicized and highlytouted of all youth branches of the American Association for the Advancement of Atheism. As president of the 4-H, I was instrumental in forming high school atheist clubs in more than a dozen California cities. I wrote articles which Mr. Smith had published in the New York atheist-Communist press. I graduated from high school at the age of 15. Mr. Smith advised me that their Executive Secretary was going to South America to live, and a vacancy. Had been created. The position of Executive Secretary was No. 2 in the organization. If I took this position, I would be next to him. I would be his "junior associate." He realized I was very young, he said, but he thought I could handle the job. I had proved my ability: as a writer of articles published in the New York radical press, and as an organizer of the California high school branches of the anti-God combine. There is a modern tendency to sissify and babify young people in their teens. Yet, it should not be forgotten that some of the greatest soldiers during the war were teen agers. Some of the greatest poems in the English language were written by teen-agers, such as Keats. Some of the greatest sermons ever preached, and some of the greatest songs ever sung, were by teen agers. We should not underestimate what a teen-ager can do for God--or for the devil. After all, it had been a teen-ager who had thought up that prize-winning name for the atheist club, Hedonic Host of Hell-Bent Heathens. And it was a teen-ager by the name of Dan Gilbert who was chosen by the English-speaking world's most notorious infidel, Charles Smith, to be his "junior associate" in directing the anti-God combine in America.
I accepted the assignment with great enthusiasm. Mr. Smith told me to come to New York City. But, at the last minute, he changed his instructions. He wired, "meet me in Little Rock, Arkansas." I did as I was instructed. Mr. Smith explained that he had come down to Arkansas to "rescue the state from the anti-evolutionary fanatics." At that time, the people were getting ready to vote on a proposed law to ban the teaching of evolution in tax-supported schools and colleges. Mr. Smith regarded himself as a greater infidel than Clarence Darrow. Darrow had engaged William Jennings Bryan in battle at the Scopes trial in Tennessee some years before. Now, Mr. Smith felt it was his duty to combat Christianity in Arkansas. I arrived in Little Rock two days before Atheist Smith arrived. (He delighted in being known as Atheist Smith. An agnostic is one who doubts God; an Atheist is one who denies Him. Mr. Smith prided himself on being an Atheist. "Agnostics are cowards and fools," he argued. "When a child finds out there is no Santa Claus, he does not say he doubts Santa's existence. He says, I know there is no Santa Claus. Well, I know there is no God--for the same reason that even the dumbest Christian knows that there is no Santa Claus, no spooks, no ghosts, no fairies, and no goblins. "There is," said Mr. Smith, "as much evidence for the existence of God as there is for the existence of ghosts--no more and no less.") Mr. Smith had directed me to go to the Lafayette Hotel. But it was overcrowded. I then went to the Marion. When Mr. Smith arrived, we sent out invitations and had an "all-Arkansas convention of atheists." He then said we needed a downtown headquarters. Walking around the business section we found a vacant store building on one of the main streets. It had what Mr. Smith wanted: an eye-catching plate glass display window. Mr. Smith rented the store room, and placed his antiGod tracts and leaflets in the display window. Few customers for the free literature came in. Probably not many people noticed the literature in the window as they went by. Mr. Smith said, "We must do something to drum up trade, to stir up the fanatics. We want to put tons of this literature into distribution. Let's see if we can get the people to come after it." A twinkle shown in Mr. Smith's clear blue eyes. He was a strange character, with fine, corn-silk hair, he looked like he might be a prosperous business man or lawyer, especially when he put on his glasses: the kind that perch high up on the nose with no "visible means of support." Charles Smith was the very opposite of the "unwashed," alien type of soap box agitator. Born in Oklahoma, Mr. Smith was brought up by a godly mother who sent him to seminary to train for the ministry. An earnest, conscientious lad, Charles Smith was "shocked" when professors in the seminary told him the Bible was not to be believed. These professors were "modernists." They laughed at the story of Jonah and the whale. Outraged, Charles Smith stormed out of the seminary, never to return, saying, "Religion is a fraud. If one cannot believe the Bible, then he cannot believe anything. I will be an honest infidel, rather than a religious hypocrite." Instead of studying religion, Mr. Smith went to studying colleges and universities. Instead of becoming a preacher of the Gospel, Mr. Smith became "the greatest infidel since Bob Ingersoll." The Scripture declares that there are degrees of punishment in hell. Christ warned that it would go easier with Sodom and Gomorrah than with some of the godless to whom He spoke. What shall we say of the modernistic professor, entrusted with making a preacher of Mother Smith's boy-- who made, instead, an atheist of him? What shall we say of these "liberals" who broke down his boyhood faith in the Bible as the Word of God? Could any "honest infidel" be as responsible as those dishonest theologians who, in the name of religion, break down faith in the Bible!
But to return to our story. To stir the people of Little Rock up, to get them to come in and take free literature, Mr. Smith purchased some paint. I held the box upon which he stood, while he painted on the plate glass window this sign: EVOLUTION IS TRUE THE BIBLE IS FALSE GOD'S A GHOST Blazoned in large letters, such a sign could not go unnoticed. Mild commotion was caused on the sidewalk in front of "atheist headquarters" on the Saturday afternoon that the sign was painted on the plate glass. Sunday we remained closed. Sunday night, Mr. Smith said, "Let's go see how the fanatics behave as they worship their non-existent ghost of a God." I said, "You mean, we are going to see these holy rollers in action?" "No," said Mr. Smith. "They just put on a show that appeals to the ignorant. The intellectual leader of the fundamental forces in Arkansas is Ben M. Bogard. Bogard has brains-something you don't find in the average Christian. Bogard will carry this state for the antievolutionists. He may sweep the South and whole nation for fundamentalism, if the rest of the bigots will get behind him. Bogard is smarter than Jennings Bryan ever was, and he's almost as good a talker." The twinkle came back in Smith's eyes." You know, Danny, there is keen competition among the fundamentalists as to who is to wear W. J. Bryan's mantle. If the fundamentalists ever get united behind Bogard, they will control the country. Our hope is that they will divide and feud among themselves. They have a lot of leaders, but none who are willing to play second-fiddle." "If this Bogard is the best man they have, why don't they get behind him?" I asked, knowing little of the behind-the-scenes rivalries, that Smith seemed to be so familiar with. "Well," he chuckled, "Christians are not very smart--or they wouldn't be Christians. You see, there are quite a number of them that have some ability. But Bogard is the only one with all of what it takes for effective leadership. He has as good an intellect as Mark Mathews, as much eloquence as J. Frank Norris, as much scholarship as W. B. Riley. These others are strong in some lines, but not well-rounded." Mr. Smith said we would go to the Antioch Missionary Baptist Church and hear Dr. Ben M. Bogard, just for the fun of it. "Bogard has a pretty good head, but he only uses part of it. Any Christian is a half-wit--or at most a three-quarter wit." "In other words," I said, "if a man's a fundamentalist, he's still a fool--no matter how smart he is." Charley Smith roared, "Yeah, Danny, you have it figured out about right." When we arrived at the Antioch Baptist Church, every seat was taken. Some were already standing. Mr. Smith, always polite and soft--spoken when he wasn't blaspheming, spoke to the head usher, "Tell Dr. Bogard that Charles Smith is here. Ask him if he objects to our coming in." The usher took the message up to Dr. Bogard who came back and personally escorted us up front. He whispered to two people sitting on the front row. They got up and started to leave. Mr. Smith remonstrated, "O don't make them leave just to make room for us. We're enemies--they're friends." Dr. Bogard simply said, "You are our guests. I am glad you have come." He motioned for us to sit down in the two front seats that had been vacated. During prayer, Mr. Smith held his head high and whispered to me, "Talking to God is sillier than talking to yourself. All these people belong in an institute for the feebleminded."
When Dr. Bogard began to preach, I forgot that Atheist Smith was beside me. I lost consciousness of the crowd in the auditorium. Dr. Bogard was preaching on John 3:16. "For God so loved the world--" But I lost consciousness that there even was a world. GOD LOVED ME. Christ died for me. Dr. Bogard, whom I had never seen before, was preaching to ME. His words struck like fiery darts into my mind, and heart, and soul. It was as though I were all alone--in the middle of eternity. Christ died for me. Dr. Bogard was giving this "good news"--this GOSPEL--to me. What was happening to my philosophical framework of "militant atheism ;" all the "scientific" arguments against the existence of God? Dr. Bogard was dealing with them, one by one. He was smashing them. He was battering them down with merciless logic. This sermon he was preaching was not just a call to repentance. It was a scholarly presentation of the Truth of God. Once in the middle of it--only once--I remembered my "boss" beside me. I glanced at Atheist Smith. His eyes were not twinkling; they were aflame with rage. His lip was curled in a sneer. He was trying not to be mad, but he was mad. I knew what he would say when we left; he would wisecrack and laugh, in a forced sort of way. But he wasn't laughing now. Deep down in his heart, the truth was striking home--and it hurt. When the sermon was over, Mr. Smith turned to mc and barked, "Let's get out of here-fast." Outside, I said, "What's the matter--why the rush?" "Oh, I can only stand so much of this fanaticism," grumbled Atheist Smith. Back in the hotel, Smith had regained his composure. The twinkle was back in his eyes, "See what I told you, Danny? Bogard knows how to dish it out. He is an artist. He makes religion intoxicating, seductive. If he gets you under his spell, you might even join him." "But he didn't whoop and holler," I commented. "He didn't rant and storm, He didn't weep and moan. He just presented his message the way you would expect the Truth to be presented." "That's because he's smart," Smith explained. "Didn't I tell you so?" "Sure you did," I replied. "But you also said he was a fool." "Of course he is," snapped Smith. "He's a fundamentalist, isn't he? Only a fool can believe the Bible from cover to cover." A little later, Smith said, "I don't think we will go to any more church services." "Are you afraid something might happen?" I asked. Smith started to say something, then apparently changed his mind. He bit his lip and said quietly, "No, it's just a waste of time." Late Sunday night, Atheist Smith got a wire from New York. He did not tell me its contents. After reading it, he asked if I would go immediately to New York. I agreed. He gave me instructions as to personal and confidential work I was to do for him there. The next morning at 8, I left for New York City. Mr. Smith opened up the Atheist headquarters in downtown Little Rock. At 10, a mob formed in front of the atheist display room. The plate-glass window with the blasphemous sign was smashed. Mr. Smith's "tons" of free literature were torn up. Twenty minutes later, Mr. Smith was being led down the street with a rope around his neck. Reinforcements from the police station rescued Atheist Smith from the mob and put him in jail for safe keeping, under an anti-blasphemy statute.
I arrived in New York City and was ushered into the heart of the atheist combine. I was deeply involved in more than one way. I was pushed, cajoled, lured and maneuvered by Satan and all his minions: deeper and deeper into godless radicalism. The radicals boast that no one ever leaves their ranks-- except feet first in a casket. But wherever I went and whatever I was obliged to do--the sermon delivered by Ben M. Bogard was with me in my heart. It seemed to echo and re-echo there. It would not be silent. I could not forget it. It seemed to be growing there--like a flower or a tree. As time went on, it seemed to be blossoming. I am not telling the rest of the steps involved in my conversion. Later, God intervened decisively in my life. Christ drew me unto Himself. I gave my heart to Christ in Tucson, Arizona, while on my knees in the home of the leader of the Bible Club at the University. But it all began that night that I heard the greatest sermon ever preached--to me. That sermon was the first pull of Heaven to draw me out of the atheist camp. That sermon planted seeds of Scriptural truth in my heart that never died--but that finally brought me to Christ. If the sermon could do that for the founder and president of the Hedonic Host of Hell-Bent Heathens, why cannot it be the means of leading multitudes of unbelieving students out of evolutionary darkness into the light of Christ? I hope and pray that you, Christian reader, will circulate the printed copy of this sermon by the tens of thousands. A copy should be put into the hands of everyone of our 9,000,000 high school and 2,000,000 college students. ---Dan Gilbert
THAT THERE IS A GOD My text is John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlast ing life."
This is the most comprehensive passage in the Bible. It contains all of the great doctrines of the Bible. To fully discuss what is taught in the text would require writing a large book. It is my purpose to bring out some of the great doctrines that stand out on the face of the passage. That THERE IS A GOD is clearly seen. The text says: "God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son" to die for the world. We do not need the Bible to prove that God
exists. All nature proclaims it. The Psalmist said: "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork." It is amazing how an intelligent man can study the stars and not see proof of the Creator of the stars. If you had never seen a watch and were shown one of these little time keepers, and saw how the watch measures time, would you get the idea that the watch came into existence by chance? You would, as an intelligent man, decide that some one designed it. You might as well think a watch came by chance as to think that the heavenly bodies came into being by chance; that they move with certainty and perfect accuracy through space by chance. Did you know that our clocks and watches are set every day by the movement of the stars? Observations are taken every day and the EXACT TIME is found by the position of the stars, then the correct time is wired to all parts of the world every day. This correct time is taken from God's clock which never varies a second in a thousand years. The movement of the heavenly bodies is so accurate that the exact time for an eclipse of the Sun or Moon can be told a thousand years in advance. There is a marvelous thing concerning the movement of the heavenly bodies. EVERYTHING MOVES FROM LEFT TO RIGHT. The earth turns on its axis from left to right, causing our day and night. The earth whirls around the Sun, every three hundred and sixty-five days from left to right, and astronomers have discovered that the TIME used in this journey of the earth around the Sun is exactly three hundred and sixty-five days, five hours, forty-eight minutes and forty-eight and SEVEN-TENTHS SECONDS--it makes the journey from left to right to a SPLIT SECOND, and NEVER MISSES even so much as a split second. But we do not need to study the stars. Just go into your garden and see the bean vines that twine around the pole, from LEFT TO RIGHT, every one without exception. That holds true with every twining thing; all of them twine around the trees from LEFT TO RIGHT. The whirlwind that goes across your field, moves from left to right. The terrible cyclone that destroys lives and property whirls from LEFT TO RIGHT without an exception. If the universe came into existence BY CHANCE why has not something been found that went the other way? This universal REGULARITY and this EXACT movement, even to a split second, shows that it is absurd to think of all this coming by chance. There must be a Great Designer, a CREATOR with INTELLIGENCE to bring it all into being. Fulfilled Prophecy Fulfilled Prophecy Proves there is a God. That the Bible is God's Word is proved by the fact that it is filled with predictions that have been literally fulfilled. We may guess concerning the future but our guesses will more than likely fail to come to pass. If you were to predict what would come to pass next year, you would be almost certain to miss it. But the Bible has foretold the entire future of the world and we see these predictions coming to pass before our eyes. The downfall of Babylon was foretold in Isaiah 13:17-22. It was a most unlikely prediction because Babylon was the greatest kingdom on earth and it was least likely to fall. But the prophet ol God boldly foretold its downfall. This prophecy was written B. C. 712 and about two hundred years later the terrible fall came. The scattering of the Jewish nation was foretold in Duet. 28:64. That was a most unlikely prediction. But the- Jews are scattered all over the earth right before our eyes. Nobody will dispute this. The rise and fall of the Roman empire was foretold in Dan. 2:27-44, and the historian Gibbon, who was a skeptic and bated Christianity, wrote the history of the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. In that way, he unwittingly proved the fulfilling of this prophecy. Although scattered all over the earth, the PRESERVATION of the Jewish Race was predicted in Luke 21:22, where Jesus said, "This generation shall not pass away until all these things be fulfilled." The word "generation" is from a Greek word that means RACE. In other
words, Jesus foretold what we all know to be true--that the路 Jewish Race would be preserved. The Jews have not amalgamated with other races and they are a pure blood people to this day. Are all these predictions just guesses? if so the prophets were wonderful guessers. Suppose you try your hand at guessing at the future and you will be convinced that you can't successfully be a prophet. Details of The Destruction of Babylon Some things are impossible to guess. One might guess a major matter even such as the destruction of a city or country, but to give the details thousands of years in advance is impossible. If such details are given, it proves that a SUPERNATURAL MIND foretold the details. In Isaiah 13, we are told of a路 detail in the destruction of Babylon which is nothing short of marvelous. The language of the prophet is: "It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation; neither shall the Arabian pitch his tent there, neither shall the shepherds make their fold there. But the wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there. And wild beasts of the islands shall cry in their desolate houses and dragons in their pleasant palaces: and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged." (Isa. 13:20-22).
Imagine, if you please, some man talking like that concerning New York or Chicago. Imagine the man saying that the houses shall be inhabited by the wild beasts and dragons occupy their palaces. Remember Babylon was a city about the size of New York. Several millions of people lived there and Babylon was a RULER OF THE WORLD at that time. Isaiah, the prophet, certainly was not believed by the people he spoke to. There was no earthly benefit he could receive for talking like that, yet he spoke boldly, confidently, and we have lived to see his prophecy fulfilled to the letter, down to the smallest details. Babylon was destroyed and is a barren waste to this day, thousands of years after its destruction. Wild beasts do inhabit the houses once occupied by the proud Babylonians--not a human being lives there to this day. Tourists visit the place where the city once stood to see its waste and ruin, for that is all they see. The blast of God's wrath and the blight of God's curse rests upon the place. There can be no answer the skeptic can make, for it could not have been a mere happen so. Such details were impossible to guess. "The Arabian shall not pitch his tent there." I reserve this detail for a special discussion and to emphasize the wonderful prophecy. The prophet said: "The Arabian shall not pitch his tent there." How could the prophet have known such a detail as that? Is it true that the Arabian will not pitch his tent there? It is true to this day. Dr. W. A. Whittle, a world traveler whose body lies buried in a Little Rock cemetery, wrote a book giving his experience as he traveled in Bible lands. The book is entitled, "A Baptist Abroad," and he relates that he had an Arab guide who knew the language of the country and was familiar with the English language, a very efficient guide to whom he paid good wages. When they came to Babylon's waste, Dr. Whittle wanted to spend more time there than he usually used at a place and he deliberately decided to remain there over night so he would have plenty of time to make observations. He told his Arab guide to settle for the night, pitch the tent and have the evening meal, then go to their cots to sleep until morning when he would complete his observations of the ancient city of Babylon. The guide refused to pitch his tent there. Dr. Whittle relates that he told the guide he was PAYING HIM FOR HIS SERVICE and demanded that he settle for the night. The Arab refused. He then offered him more money, to settle for the night and still the Arab refused. If Dr. Whittle stayed there for the night, he would have to stay
by himself for the Arab refused positively to stay. Then Dr. Whittle remembered Isa. 13th chapter where the prophet had for told that "the Arabian shall not pitch his tent there." All the skeptics in the world cannot give a reasonable answer why the Prophet Isaiah knew several thousand years in advance this marvelous detail. The Arabs know nothing about the prophecy for they are neither Christian nor Jew, neither would they care if they did know about it, but they WILL NOT PITCH THEIR TENT THERE. This one fulfilled prophecy is enough to convince the worst Atheist that the Bible is an inspired book and written under the superintendence of a SUPERNATURAL MIND, and if so, what the Bible says is true, and, if true, then woe be unto the skeptic who rejects it. The Bible And Science Nowhere does the Bible contradict any known fact of Science. I have challenged the world to find just one supposed contradiction that I cannot successfully answer. By this is not meant the guesses of half-baked scientists. By this is not meant the so-called hypothetical theories of half-baked scientists, but I mean any known fact of science. This is why the greatest scientists who have ever lived accepted the Bible as being true, and why many great scientists accepted Jesus as their Savior. Scientific Inventions Foretold In The Bible Remember the Bible was written hundreds of years before any books of science were, yet there is in the Bible every basic fact of science. Radio and Telephone Foretold Within the memory of many old people the telephone was invented. Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor, died a short time ago, and some very young people can remember when the first radio was used. But the telephone and radio were foretold in the Bible THOUSANDS OF YEARS before they came into being Job 38:35, says: "Canst thou send lightnings that they may go and say Unto thee, here we are?" It is harnessed lightning that gives us the telephone and the radio--lightning made to talk! It is now so common that we think nothing of it. The first message that was sent over the Atlantic Cable was: "WHAT HATH GOD WROUGHT!" Is such a prophecy in the Bible? Most certainly. TNT And The Bible The first TNT successfully made in America was at Heidelberg, Pennsylvania. Eight thousand pounds were manufactured, only one pound of impurity was being found in it. That was transported by rail, "right past your doors," and was finally landed on Black Tom's Island, Hoboken, awaiting transportation by ship. There its instability caused by that one-eight thousandth part of impurity set it off, and the cost of the damage in insured window glass alone, in New York and Brooklyn was one million dollars. The second lot, with but one pound of impurity to sixteen thousand pounds of TNT was safely started from Boston on its way to France. In Halifax harbor, that one-sixteenth thousandth exploded and destroyed half the city. Then the chemist knew not where to turn. They had heard that the German chemist had gone to the Swiss Alps to get snow for his laboratory. Immediately experimentation began, resulting in the discovery that at four degrees above zero, Centigrade water is ready to turn to snow, and this "snow" is absolutely pure. It was the one necessary ingredient for a fully stable product and the problem was solved. Then questions of transportation were decided by their work with freezing water. So the terrible explosive, sublimed to the highest degree, w a s transported t o Europe. First it went to Italy, and immediately, as far as the Austrian line was concerned, the war was over. Its effect on the German front was equally marked. Job 38:22-23:
"Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow? or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail, which I have reserved against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war? Thirty-eight centuries ago, the Lord uttered t h e s e words, yet it remained for the present-day chemists to make their scientific application. And it is a full application, for TNT is of no use for peaceful purposes. Farmers cannot dynamite with it. It destroys the qualities of the soil. It is useful alone in the "day of battle and war" as Job said. The BIBLE FORETOLD THE MOST WONDERFUL INVENTIONS PRODUCED BY SCIENCE. Not only is the Bible true to the established facts of science, but the inspired writers foretold the working of science accurately hundreds, and i-n some cases, thousands of years, before their accomplishment. This could not have been if the Bible were the product of human wisdom. God, who knew all about science, knew all about what science would invent and discover; hence, the men who wrote the Bible, being inspired of God, wrote accurately of the wonders of what science would produce. (1) The Electric Light Foretold Psalm 77:18 "The lightning lightened the world." Again in Job 37:21 we read: "And men see not the bright light which is in the clouds." It won't do to say that men did not see lightning. But there was a light in the clouds that men had not seen at the time the writer mentioned it. WE SEE IT NOW and enjoy our electric lights thus foretold. (2) Airships Were Foretold Isaiah 60:8, "Who are these that come flying as the clouds and as doves to their windows?" Thus we see that the prophet saw in prophetic vision the wonderful air ships. He saw people flying. (3) The Automobile Was Foretold Nahum 2:1-2 "The chariots shall be with flaming torches in the day of preparation--the chariots shall rage in the street, they shall jostle each other in the broadways; they seem like torches, they shall run like lightning." Such a thing was never dreamed of in human wisdom at the time the Bible was written and therefore it follows that they wrote not from their own knowledge but from knowledge given them by a SUPERNATURAL MIND which we call God. (4) The Army Tank Was Foretold Nahum 3:1-3 "The noise of the whip, the rattling of the wheels, and the prancing of horses, and of the jumping chariots." Those who have seen the army tank in operation will note how they jump--apparently over ditches and logs--"jumping chariots." (5) The Submarine Was Foretold Psalm 107:23-30 "They go down to the sea in ships, they do business in great waters; these see the works of the Lord in the deep--they mount up to heaven, they go down into the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble. They reel to and fro like a drunken man, and are at their wits end." Just remember they had no ships at that time that would first be on the surface and then go down to the depths. Such foresight was supernatural and therefore the Bible is a supernatural book. It can't be the production of men. Our Witness Is Evidently Trustworthy The facts related show the Bible to be of Divine origin and that it could not have been written by man's wisdom for the very reason the scientific facts revealed in the Bible were unknown at the time they were written. The fore-knowledge shown in the prophecies concerning
the wonderful inventions of science was entirely beyond human understanding. These prophetic statements could be multiplied. When we introduce the Bible as a witness in the case against evolution we are taking the testimony from a witness fully qualified to speak. The Bible says: "IN THE BEGINNING GOD CREATED THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH." Gen. 1:1. The statement is either true or false. If true, evolution is false. In that same chapter we are told that God created man in his OWN IMAGE and that is either true or false. If true then man was not brought into existence by any process of evolution. It does not say that God created protoplasm and from protoplasm evolved all things, coming on up to where an anthropoid ape evolved man. If the Bible had said such as that it would have been true because we have found the Bible to be a truthful witness. But it does not say that and hence the guesses of infidels are at best only guesses that contradict the word of God. SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERIES Scientists Have Discovered That All Life Reproduce After Its Kind We do not sow turnips and reap cabbage. We do not plant corn and reap watermelons. We do not breed sheep and produce cows. We do not mate monkeys and produce men. Farmers all understand this and act accordingly. By careful selection of seed he can improve his corn and cotton but by no method of selection can he plant cotton and get barley. Farmers also know that seed "runs out" as they call it. Unless there is careful and continued selection of the best seed the quality will run down. By grafting and selection and cultivation the scrub peach can be developed into the fine elberta. But by no manner of selection and grafting can a different sort of fruit be produced. Mr. Burbanks, with all his skill was never able to develop a NEW SPECIES-he only succeeded in getting a great variety of the same species. When he produced the PLUMCOT it was flaunted by evolutionists that he had produced a new species, but nobody knew better than Mr. Burbank that the plum and the apricot are only different varieties o f t he VERY SAME SPECIES and he only succeeded in combining these two varieties of the PLUM, bitt they were PLUMS to begin with. He has cultivated the thorns off the cactus but it remains cactus still. Plant the seed from any of these cultivated fruits and it will revert back to the original stock. The SEED produces AFTER ITS KIND. So long as this FACT stands, evolution is impossible. The TRANSMUTATION OF SPECIES has never been accomplished, not even in one single instance, and hence there is NO FACT OF SCIENCE to base the theory of evolution on. We can challenge the world safely on this point, but there MUST BE AT LEAST ONE CASE of that sort of thing before the theory of evolution can find the slightest foundation on which to rest. Doctors Tell Us That the Blood is the Life There was a time when doctors bled their patients until they would become so weak they could not turn over in bed. They did it on the theory that the bad blood should be taken out of them. But doctors, by scientific training, have learned that the blood is the life and now they seek to keep all the blood in the body they can. They even practice blood transfusion and pump into the patient the blood of another in order to give him more blood, because the blood is the life. It took tile doctors hundreds of years to find that out. But the Bible had that very thing in it fifteen hundred years before the doctors learned it. Lev. 17:11-14 forbids the eating of blood by the Jews because "the blood thereof is the life thereof." It took the doctors nearly two thousand years to catch up with the Bible. The God who made man and animals knew this FACT, hence he inspired men to write it. Science Teaches That the Universe was at one Time A chaotic Mass of Matter All existing matter was floating in space and was without form. Strange to relate, the Bible says "the earth was without form and void." Hebrew scholars tell us that this passage literally translated is "the earth became an empty waste." Science has found this true. To be
"without form" is to be chaotic, just as science teaches. But the marvelous thing is that the Bible gave this information thousands of years before science discovered it. If the writer had been guessing at it, he would never have supposed anything of the kind. But the God who created the universe knew HOW it was and inspired the writer of Genesis to write it as he did. Science Teaches That Matter is Composed of Atoms and These Atoms are Composed of Electrons and so on to Infinity No man ever saw an atom, not even with the most powerful microscope. Atoms are invisible. Thus matter is composed of invisible particles strangely joined together by an invisible force. But the Bible declared that very thing at least fifteen hundred years before science discovered it. Heb. 11:3, "By faith we understand the worlds were framed by the word of God, and things that are seen were not made of things that DO APPEAR." Matter is composed of atoms. Such a thing could not have been guessed at, for the very good reason that such an idea is impossible until after it was worked out by the investigations of science. Science Teaches That the Earth is Like a Ball Floating Out in Space and Rests on Nothing Every school child is taught this simple fact, but it has not always been known. The fact was unknown to the ancients. They thought the earth was flat and was resting on a solid foundation. They did not stop to ask what the FOUNDATION ITSELF rested on. Correct thinking forced the conclusion that the earth floated in space. Nobody with any intelligence will deny this fact. But the Bible recorded it before it was discovered by scientists. Job 26:7, "He stretcheth the north over the empty place and hangeth the earth on nothing." How came this correct scientific fact in the Bible before science discovered it? It was evidently because the writers were guided by a supernatural MIND that we call God. Science Teaches That the Earth is Round And not Flat or Square The egotistic and insulting newspaper reporter who asked W. J. Bryan if he believed the earth was flat is a sample of the ignorance of otherwise intelligent men concerning the Bible. That silly reporter thought that to believe the Bible to be literally true, would necessitate the belief that the earth is flat, He had no doubt heard, possibly never read for himself, about the Bible speaking of the "four corners of the earth" and he drew the conclusion that the Bible teaches that the earth is flat. He seemed unable to comprehend a figure of speech. A college professor uses the same sort of language also, and means by it the four quarters or sections of the earth, which literally exist. But to the scriptures: Isa. 40:22, "He sitteth upon the circle of the earth." A circle is necessarily round. The Bible says the earth is a circle. How came this conception in the Bible so long before science discovered it? Anything short of DIVINE INSPIRATION can not account for it. Science Teaches That the Earth Turns on its Axis Once Every Twenty-four Hours So does the Bible, only the Bible taught it first. Job 38:12-14: "Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days, and caused the DAY-SPRING to know his place; that it might take hold of the ends of the earth.. . .It is turned as clay to the seal." The "DAY-SPRING" is the sun and he knows HIS PLACE and he taketh hold of the ENDS OF THE EARTH" the north and south poles, and the earth is "turned as the clay to the seal." There is no way to account for this correct scientific fact being in the Bible except on the ground that the Bible is inspired of God.
Science Teaches That There are Numerous Planets Similar to the Earth There is even talk of possibly being able sometime to communicate with these other planets by means of the radio. Every educated man understands this. In 2 Kings 23:5 we read of people who burned incense to the "planets." How did the writer know about "planets" before science discovered them? This wonderful astronomical fact was certainly unknown at the time the Bible was written and yet, here it is in the Bible In the absence of a SUPERNATURAL MIND to guide the writer, he could not have written with such scientific accuracy. Physical Geography Teaches that Moisture is Caught up by The Sun and is Formed into Clouds Which Float Back to the Mountains and Come Down in Rain Again This accounts for the oceans not running over with all the rivers pouring into them all the time. The oceans give out in evaporation as much as the rivers pour in and thus it goes on forever. This remarkable fact, well known to scientists was in the Bible from the very beginning and we read in Eccl. 1:7 "All the rivers run into the sea yet the sea is not full: unto the place from whence the rivers came thither they return again." Day and Night End at the North and South Poles It is a well known fact that I day and night are produced by the earth revolving on its axis hail, at the North and South Poles, it is daylight all the lame necessarily so. Scientific discovery has made this fact known. But the Bible had this wonderful fact revealed hundreds of years before anybody knew there were such things as the North and South Poles. Job 26:10: "He hath compassed the waters with bounds until day and night come to an end." The so-called six months night is not dark but twilight. Something like it is between sundown and dark. There is no way to account for such knowledge except on the ground that the writer was inspired by the Spirit of God. Scientists Condemn Evolution Dr. Etheridge, famous fossilologist of the British museum, one of the highest authorities in the world, said: --"Nine-tenths of the talk of evolutionists is sheer nonsense, not founded on observation and wholly unsupported by facts. This museum is full of proofs of the utter falsity of their views. In all this great museum, there is not a particle of evidence of the transmutation of species." Is a man in that position not a creditable witness? Prof. Beale, of King's College, London, a distinguished physiologist, said: "There is no evidence that man has descended from, or is, or was, in any way specially related to, any other organism in nature, through evolution, or by any other process. In support of all naturalistic conjectures concerning man's origin, there is not, at this time, a shadow of scientific evidence." Prof. Virchow, of Berlin, a naturalist of world-wide fame, said: "The attempt to find the transition from the animal to man has ended in total failure. The middle link has not been found and never will be. Evolution is all nonsense. It can not be proved by science that man descended from the ape or from any other animal." Prof. Agassiz, one of the greatest scientists of any age, said: "The theory (of the transmutation of species) is a scientific mistake, untrue in its facts, unscientific in its methods, and mischievous in its tendency There is not a fact known to science, tending to show that a single kind has ever been transmuted into any other." Sir William Dawson, an eminent geologist, of Canada, said: "The record of the rocks is decidedly against evolutionists, especially in the abrupt appearance of new forms under specific types, and without apparent predecessors Paleontology furnishes no evidence as to the actual transformation of one species into another. Certainly no such case is known. Nothing is known about the origin of man except what is told in Scripture."
Greatest Minds in the World Believe Bible The greatest minds in the world have believed in the existence of God. Gladstone, the greatest English Statesman who has lived in the past two hundred years believed in God. He wrote a great book entitled: "The Impregnable Rock Of Holy Scripture." Blackstone, the greatest legal authority on what evidence is, said: "The resurrection of Jesus Christ is a case made out." George Washington, the father of his country, was a Christian, and at first a member of the Episcopalian Church, then later became a Baptist, being baptized in the Potomac River by John Gano, a Baptist preacher. Washington died a member of the First Baptist Church, New York City. Abraham Lincoln was a Christian and called his cabinet to prayer during the great struggle between the states., There has not been an Atheist or Infidel who has been elevated to the Presidency of the United States. I do not offer this as proof that there is a God, but I introduce it to show that the men with the greatest intelligence have believed in the existence of God and they worshipped Him as their Creator and Savior. It is very disgusting to hear a young lawyer declare his skepticism, when we remember that the greatest authority on EVIDENCE, Blackstone, said the evidence was sufficient to prove the resurrection of Christ. It is equally disgusting to hear a young doctor declare he does not believe in God when the greatest doctor and scientist in recent years, Howard Kelly, of Johns Hopkins University, was a devout follower of Jesus Christ. Patrick Henry said of the Bible, that it "is a book worth all the other books ever printed." It is contemptible to hear a freshman in literature argue for skepticism when we recall that Benjamin Franklin said: "Young man, my advice to you is that you cultivate an acquaintance with, and a firm belief in the Holy Scriptures." As a practical man you should ask yourself what you hope to get out of Atheism, or any sort of infidelity. Leaving out the Bible, we all know by observation that it is true, "By their fruits ye shall know them." What has skepticism ever accomplished that has benefited mankind? It has produced criminals, blighted hopes and ruined homes, but never saved a drunkard from his plight, never made a bad man good and never made anybody happy. What do you get out of it? A Christian Has Two Chances To One A Christian has two chances to your one. If the Atheist is right, what has he gained by it? He being judge, he will finally die like a beast and go to dust. He being judge, the Christian will do just that. The Christian and the Atheist will land in the same graveyard--both will come to the same hopeless grave, but if the Christian is right, then it follows that the Atheist will land in hell and the Christian will go to heaven to be in rapturous glory forever. A man is a fool who refuses to take two chances to one when he can get it. Psalm 14:1 says, "The fool has said in his heart, there is no God." But we do not need a Bible to tell us that, for anybody knows that no one but a fool will refuse to take two chances to one when he can get it. That is just exactly what the Atheist, Skeptic, Agnostic and any other sort of infidel is doing--refusing to take two chances to one. We must all stand before God some day and the most important thing in the world is to be prepared to meet Him in peace. There is no way to God except through Jesus Christ. Submit yourself to Jesus Christ and he will save you forever. Jesus told Nicodemus that God so loved all of us that he gave his Son that "whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life." To live forever with God is the highest ambition we can possibly have. I am begging you to accept Jesus as your Savior right now. The Only Begotten Son Some profess to be unable to believe that God has a Son. They say they can't see how God and the Son are ONE. Jesus is eternal, existing before the world began and it was by him that all
things were made. God is a trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost or Spirit--Ghost and Spirit mean the same thing, with this shade of difference, The word "gheist" is an old Anglo Saxon word that means guest and when the Holy Spirit is our GUEST it is correct to call Him Ghost. He is the Holy Guest of all saved people. It is good to have a distinguished guest in your life and what a wonderful thing it is to have the Holy Spirit as our Guest. As the Creator, God is the Father; as the sustainer of all things, God is the Spirit; as manifest in human form, God is the Son. These three are one. Skeptics declare they can't see how God can be THREE and yet only ONE. I think I can even make a skeptic see that this is not so difficult. Go out on a cold morning and take your ten year old little brother with you. You can show him, frost, snow, and ice. Ask your little brother what that white substance is that he sees on the fence, and he will say it is frost, then ask him what is that hard clear cake that lies before him and he will tell you ice; ask him to tell you what that white soft substance is lying all over the ground and he will tell you snow. There are THREE and any child can see the three very distinct substances. Then get a bucket and put a handful of the frost into the bucket, and another handful of the snow into the bucket, then take a piece of ice and put it into the bucket also. Take the bucket into tile house where it is warm and in a few minutes there will he only ONE SUBSTANCE in the bucket, JUST WATER. Frost, Snow, and ice are separate, distinct, different, so much so that even a child can see the three, and yet these three are one. Frost, snow and ice are three different manifestations of water. Why then should it be difficult to believe God--the ONE GOD--manifests Himself in three ways, one as the Father, One as the Son, and still in another way as the Spirit? He is the glorious Trinity. The only way we can know God is through Jesus, "God manifest in the flesh." In Jesus we can sec the power of God, we can see the Love of God as he goes about doing good. In Jesus we can see the mercy of God as He forgives sin. From Jesus we can learn the will of God as we read the instructions he gave us in the Bible. As we observe the character of Jesus, we can learn the perfection of God, because he lived without sin. As Savior, we can see loin die on the cross, suffering in our stead, for "ON HIM WAS LAID THE INIQUITY OF US ALL" Isa. 53rd chapter. Trust him and he will save you from sin and hell. Some half-baked educated people say they cannot believe the Bible because they have studied Science and they think they know better than to believe some things the Bible says. They have studied geography and have learned the earth is round like a ball and they declare the Bible says the earth is FLAT and square because it says that the earth has "four corners." These skeptics have heard this objection to the Bible but have never troubled themselves to find the answer. Before giving the answer, let me say that College professors and University Presidents also speak of the "four corners" of the earth. When President Wilson appointed Herbert Hoover Food Administrator during the first World War, the newspapers reported that Mr. Hoover brought food from the "four corners of the earth." Did any of the skeptics tell these learned reporters that they were ignorant and that they believed the earth is FLAT WITH FOUR CORNERS? They did not. All intelligent people understand this figurative language to mean that food was brought from the FOUR QUARTERS of the earth, from Europe, one quarter, from Asia, another quarter, from Africa, another quarter and from America, another quarter--food from the four quarters of the earth, figuratively called "four corners" of the earth. Instead of criticizing the learned reporters for saying "four corners" of the earth, they saved their criticism, for the Bible which uses the same figurative language, but did you know that the Bible spoke of the four corners (quarters) of the earth BEFORE AMERICA WAS DiSCOVERED? At the time the Bible was written, only THREE QUARTERS ("corners") were known to man. But GOD KNEW OF AMERICA and when he inspired the Bible writer, he had him say FOUR instead of THREE which is only another evidence that the Bible is inspired, being scientifically correct in everything it says.
But I can relieve my skeptical friend by telling him that instead of the Bible saying the earth is FLAT, it distinctly says the earth is ROUND. In Isaiah 40:22, we read: "He sitteth on the CIRCLE of the earth." Thus, we see that the Bible says the earth is a CIRCLE (ROUND) instead of saying it is flat. Skeptics tell us that the Bible says the sun rises and sets and they have studied science and know better for they know the earth turns on its axis and makes the sun seem to rise and set. Therefore the Bible is wrong, they jubilantly declare. But do not they know that ALL SCIENCE, ALL COLLEGE PROFESSORS use exactly the same sort of language? The newspapers report the time of sunrise and sunset. Do these skeptics criticize the college teachers and the newspapers for saying the sun rises and sets. They understand the learned teachers and editors use the language of accommodation, the language Of appearance, and it is understood. Even so with the Bible. They do not criticize the writers of books and newspapers and charge them with ignorance, but they save their criticisms for the Bible. This only shows the natural enmity they have against God from which they need to be converted. But to satisfy my skeptical friends, let me tell you that the Bible teaches that the EARTH TURNS ON ITS AXIS instead of being stationery and that the SUN ACTUALLY CAUSES THE EARTH TO TURN ON ITS AXIS. You will find this in Job 38:12-14 where it says: "Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days, and caused the DAYSPRING (Sun) to know his place, that it might take hold of the ends of the earth (north and south poles). It is turned as the clay to the seal." What a wonderful scientific statement is this idea. Long before any man knew anything about the earth turning on its axis and long before anybody knew anything about the SUN CAUSING THE EARTH TO TURN, here it was in the Bible. So it is with every criticism of the Bible. All of the objections have been answered over and over again but the trouble is that these skeptics read the objections to the Bible and ignorantly decide that there can be no answers and settle down without ever knowing that, all their objections have been answered. The Bible is not a book of science but it is a scientific book. It does not teach science but since science is CLASSIFIED and SYSTEMATIZED, God, who knows ALL THINGS never contradicts any fact. God knows all the facts and in the revelation of His will to men found in the Bible, He inspired men to write in PERFECT HARMONY WITH ALL THE FACTS, and the result is that not a fact of science is contradicted by the statement found in the Bible. I challenge the world to name one supposed scientific objection to the Bible that I can not answer successfully. Some guesses of scientists do not agree with the Bible, but I am talking about established facts. Why should people adopt the guesses of half-baked scientists and believe the easily answered objections to the Bible, thus imperiling their souls and taking chances on going to hell? Atheism, nor any other form of skepticism, has never made a man happy in the hour of death. Millions have found peace and victory by trusting in Jesus. If you are honest, you will really seek God. The Bible says: "If any man wills to do His will he shall know of the doctrine." (John 7:17). Put God to the test and find for yourselves. The Atheist Nelson, a lawyer, went to his office and decided he would be fair to himself and put God to the test. He closed the door so as not to be disturbed and prayed an infidel prayer. He said: "God, if you really exist, I want to know it. If the Bible is thy book, I want to know it. Have mercy on my soul, if I have a soul. I shall read the Bible honestly and if it is from God I want to know it." He proceeded to read the Bible with this honest heart, and he contacted God and wrote a hook giving his experience. You can meet God if you are honest.
Inspiration of the Bible Abundantly Proved That there is a God is proved by reason, confirmed by science, and proclaimed by the Bible. Atheism does not offer any hope beyond this life. All forms of skepticism leave us in doubt about the future. The fact of God's existence and the Bible being a revelation from God is our only sure hope. The way to God is through our Lord Jesus Christ-----whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. The frightened jailor in Acts 16th chapter cried out, "What must I do to be saved?" and the answer came back promptly from the Apostle: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved." What do we mean when we say "believe" on Jesus Christ? It does not mean to believe ABOUT Christ. It means to, TRUST JESUS CHRIST. Depend on Jesus Christ. In discussion with a friend on this subject, he said that if all one-needed to do to be saved is to believe n Christ, then he had been saved all his life because he had always believed. I told him he did not believe now, that he had never believed on Jesus Christ in the sense the word "BELIEVE" is used in the New Testament. He declared he BELIEVED All THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT JESUS CHRIST and what more could he believe? I told him there was nothing more he could believe ABOUT Christ and still he did not BELIEVE ON CHRIST--he had not trusted Christ to save him. I asked him if he did not believe all the Bible says about the devil and he said he did. Then I said: "You have just as much faith in the devil as you have in Christ." I believe all the Bible says about the devil but I do not have faith, believe in, the devil. I believe in the existence of an undependable man, but I no not have faith in him, I do not believe in him. I would not trust him for anything. I believe in the existence of a certain wicked woman, but I do not have faith in her. I do not believe in the existence of my wife any more than I believe in the existence of that wicked woman, But I have NO FAITH in that wicked woman and do have faith in my wife--I am not afraid to risk my life in her hands. Until you get to the point you are DEPENDING ON CHRIST FOR SALVATION, you do not really believe in him. So long as you depend on what you do for salvation, that long you are failing to depend on, BELIEVE IN Christ; If you think your living right, your good behavior, your obedience to the commandments, your being baptized, is necessary to salvation, just that long you are failing to BELIEVE ON JESUS CHRIST. When you get to the end of your strength, get to the point that you despair of ever doing anything to obtain salvation, then you can TRUST THE LORD to do for you what you cannot do for yourself and he will save you. The text says: Whosoever believeth on him should not perish. Faith is trusting a PERSON and that person is Christ who is able to save to the uttermost all who come unto him. Salvation Is Free Salvation is free, for WHOSOEVER believeth on him shall not perish. Whatever we may believe about predestination, foreknowledge, and eternal decrees, the fact remains that men are FREE to accept salvation or to reject it. The last chapter in the Bible says: "Whosoever will may come and take of the water of life freely" If you are finally lost in he'll, you will have no one to blame but yourself. Salvation is as free as the water you drink but you must accept it from the bountiful GIVER. God loves you and offers salvation to you. When you accept Jesus Christ as your Saviour, you will be perfectly SAFE. Being saved does not leave you in DANGER,. You will not be made perfect in this life but you will he perfectly safe. When you accept Jesus Christ as your Saviour, he takes all your sins on himself. He is your substitute. He pays the sin debt for the entire lifetime. In Rom. 4:7-8, we read that our sins are covered, covered by the blood of Christ. The Lord imputes his righteousness to us and we do not stand in our own righteousness--we stand in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. The blood that covers us never takes a vacation; it is over us all the time, day and night. When we do wrong, as
we all do, we are not destroyed by our wrong doing, because we have Jesus as our ADVOCATE who ever lives to make intercession for us. (1 John 2:1; Hebrews 7:25). Are You Afraid? Some say they would like to be a Christian but are afraid they cannot HOLD OUT. You do not have to hold out, for Jesus holds you. You do not have faith in Christ unless you trust him, to begin the work and carry it on to the end. What if you sin and fall? The Psalmist answers: "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and he delighteth in his way and though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down for the Lord upholds him with his hand," Psa. 37:23-24). We have everlasting life. How long is everlasting? Your dictionary will tell you it means WITHOUT END. If everlasting life comes to an end, it was not everlasting to begin with. It is absurd to talk about EVERLASTING coming to an end. The very fact that we have everlasting life shows it will not be possible to fall from grace and finally go to hell. We are not saved today and lost tomorrow. When the Lord saves us, he takes us entirely out of danger. When you accept Christ as Saviour, you are not taking hold of uncertainty; instead, we have a hope that is "both sure and steadfast" (Hebrews 6:18-19). A thing that is sure has no uncertainty about it. If there is only one chance in a million for you to fall from grace and be finally lost, then your hope is NOT SURE. It does not take a scholar to see this. Then why not commit yourself to Him right now? If you accept Jesus Christ as your Saviour, heaven will be your eternal home, eternal bliss your portion. When Saved, We Love God If God so loved us, we should return His love. We love Him, because he first loved us. If we accept him, we will do our best to please him, for "this is the love of God that we keep his commandments" (I John 5:3). When we love God, we seek to live a correct life, for "every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself even as he is pure" (1 John 3:3). If some one says that if he thought Jesus would save him and make him perfectly safe, so that he could not be lost, he would take his fill of sin--the one who says a thing like that shows he loves sin and has never been saved. A saved person, one who is made perfectly safe, LOVES GOD and wants to serve God--not to keep from going to hell, but because he wants to please God, for the "love of God has been shed a-broad in his heart by the Holy Ghost." (Rom. 5:5). You do not have to threaten a man with hell to get him to do what he really wants to do. "Ye must he born again, said Jesus, and this NEW BIRTH, makes us want to serve the Lord. After accepting Jesus as your Savior, you will not he trying to keep a set of rules to avoid going in hell, but you will be living by love and love for God makes us want to live right. Do not allow another hour to pass without BELIEVING, trusting Jesus Christ. Now is the little, today if ye hear his voice, harden not your heart. Evolution Unscientific and Unreasonable The theory of evolution denies the existence of God. It denies the Bible account of creation. It denies that man fell from perfection into depravity. If the theory of evolution be true, the Bible is a tissue of falsehood and is unworthy of our confidence. If the theory of evolution be true, Jesus Christ was only a man and in no sense our Saviour. This great text says that God gave His Son through whom we may be saved and millions have accepted Christ and have been saved, but all this is denied by the theory of evolution. Evolutionists declare that all scholars believe in evolution and that all scientists teach evolution. When they make such claims they are telling a falsehood. The best scholars and the true scientists do not believe the theory of evolution and they do not teach it. The bold claim causes some to think favorably of the false theory. I deny the claim and call for the proof and I can prove that not only the claim is false but the theory of evolution is false and thoroughly unscientific.
Science means knowledge. We are glibly told that science teaches the evolution of man when it teaches nothing of the kind. A mere theory is not true science until proved. A man does not become a scientist by advocating an unproved theory, but by making some notable contribution to knowledge. These self-appointed scientists recklessly declare that the "consensus" of science favors evolution. We oppose evolution, not because it is science, but because it is not science. There is no conflict between Christianity and real science, but a fight to the death will with science falsely so-called. So-Called Scientists Have Nearly Always Been Wrong And the Bible Has Always Been Right Whenever a difference has appeared between so-called science and the Bible, time has shown that the Bible has always been right and science, so-called, has always been wrong. Just because some ignorant religionists misunderstood the Bible and THOUGHT it taught this and that, did not change what the Bible really taught. When ALL THE SO-CALLED SCIENTISTS WERE TEACHING THAT THE EARTH WAS FLAT, many religionists tried to be scientific, as they thought, and fell into the error of the so-called scientists. Since the so-called Scientists were teaching that it was the sun that moved and the earth stood still, and more like that, there were many religionists, ignorant priests, who fell in with the so-called scientists and actually put to death those who agreed with the Bible that the earth was round like a ball and that it turned on its axis, and flew around the sun once a year and other FACTS which we now know. But it was the false so-called science of the times and not the Bible that caused the trouble. The Bible kept right on being right no matter who misunderstood it and no matter how much the so-called scientists differed from its teachings. Vast Number of Stars Hipparchus, 150 B. C., gave the number of stars as 1,022. Ptolemy 125 A. D. found 1,026 stars. On a clear night, the unaided eye can see 1,160 stars. If we could survey tile whole sphere, we could see about 3,000 stars. Galileo's telescope a few centuries ago, startled the world with its revelation of countless hosts of stars. Lord Rosse's instrument revealed 456,000,000 stars. Herschel compared the number of stars to the dust. Now, astronomers call the milky way "star dust." Over 600 B. C. and 2,200 years before Galileo, Jeremiah said, "The host of heaven cannot be numbered." Who taught the prophet astronomy? (1) The host of heaven cannot be numbered. Jer. 32:22. (2) Man cannot number the stars. Genesis 15:5. Lowell's Challenge To Infidelity Blatant and broadspread as are the preachers of rationalism and infidelity today, not one of the champions of unbelief has been indiscreet enough to accept the challenge of James Russell Lowell, which was voiced in the following words. Lowell's challenge is unsurpassed as a brief defense of Christianity: "When the microscopic search of skepticism, which has hunted the heavens and sounded the seas to disprove the existence of a Creator, has turned its attention to human society and has found a place on this planet ten miles square, where a decent man can live in decency, comfort and security supporting and educating his children unspoiled and unpolluted; a place where age is reverenced, womanhood defended, and human life held in due regard; when skepticism can find such a place ten miles square on the globe where the gospel of Christ has not gone and cleared the way and laid the foundations and made decency and security possible, it will then be in order for the skeptical literati to move thither and ventilate their views. But so long as these very men are dependent upon the religion they discard for every privilege they enjoy, they may as well hesitate a little before they seek to rob the Christian of his hope and humanity of its Savior." --Ex.
Do You Want To Live Forever The desire to live forever is in every normal man. There is no hope of living on beyond what we call death except in the words of Jesus in John 3:16, which promises everlasting life to all who will accept Jesus as Savior. John 5:24 says: "He that heareth my words and believeth on him that sent me hath everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life." Everlasting life is a PRESENT POSSESSION for all those who accept Christ and since that is the only hope, it is foolish to reject it. Atheism holds out no hope beyond the grave. Evolution has nothing for us beyond this world. The happiest people on earth are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. Life is too short to fritter it away on the uncertainties of any form of skepticism. Do you not think it wiser to rest your hope on the Rock of Ages? You may do that very thing right where you are. God So Loved the World The word SO shows the intensity of God's love. How much does God LOVE ME? That love is so intense that he spared nothing that was possible for even God to do to save us while leaving us FREE to accept or reject. He did not make man a machine, without will power. The freedom of man's will is necessary, else he is not responsible for his actions. Man was created in the image of God which makes him God-like and that includes the freedom of the will. God does not FORCE men to be saved, but he does everything possible, consistent with man's free will, to save him. How wonderfully important must man be that God is mindful of him! He could have rejoiced in the rest of his creation--the sun and stars and other planets. The fact that God loves mankind and sought to save him from ruin, and, vet, leave him FREEDOM OF CHOICE shows man's importance. What a pity when he throws away this offer of mercy, spurns God's love and chooses the association of the devil. Some may say that if God really loves us he surely will not permit men to make their beds in hell, The unsaved should remember that outraged love is the most terrible thing in the world. "Mercy knows its appointed bounds and yields to justice there." Nobody goes to hell except those who CHOOSE TO GO THERE--who trample God's love under their feet. If you make your bed in hell, you will have no one to blame but yourself. A few years ago in St. Louis, a lady was sitting near the window. Looking out, she saw her husband boldly pass the window, arm in arm with a street woman. She loved her husband and her love was so great that she could not bear to see it spurned. She reached upon the mantle piece, secured a pistol and walked out and shot her husband. He fell dead at her feet BECAUSE SHE LOVED HIM. If she had seen me walking with that street woman she would have said she did not like to see me do a thing like that, and she would have rebuked me for it, but she did not love me well enough to kill me. Her love was outraged by her profligate husband and her fury knew no bounds. If you continue to trample God's love under your feet, His love will turn to fury. God says "Because I have called and ye have refused--and have set at naught my counsel--I will laugh at your calamity." (Prov.1:24-25.) Just One Reasonable Thing To Do If you realize that you are lost, there is just one sensible thing to do. Surrender your life to God, ask for mercy and he will have mercy and will abundantly pardon, for Jesus suffered for you and is willing to be your substitute. What He has suffered is perfectly satisfactory to God. Nothing you may do will be satisfactory to Him, for there is no other way to God except through Jesus, who bore our sins on the cross, and suffered the equivalent of hell-fire for you. If you are lost forever, it will be because you have not believed (TRUSTED) in Jesus as your substitute.
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." BOOKS BY BEN M. BOGARD The Golden Key The Baptist Way Book The Bible Proved by Science Christian Stewardship Total Hereditary Depravity Bogard-McPherson Debate Baptist Church in all Ages Fifty-Two Doctrinal Lessons A Study of the Kingdom Question
THE BAPTIST WAY-BOOK A Manual Designed for use in Baptist Churches By Ben M. Bogard, LLD. 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. (II Timothy 3:16-17). CONTENTS PART I ~ The Scriptural Way I. The Way of Salvation II. The Way of Baptism III. The Way of the Lords Supper IV. The Way of Church Polity V. The Way of Mission Work VI. The Way of Providence PART II ~ The Historical Way VII. The Way Our Fathers Trod, or Baptist Doctrine and Polity in History VIII. The Way of Mission Work in History IX. The Way of Blood, or Baptist Martyrs in Every Century X. The Way Traced From America To Palestine XI. The Historical Way Attested by Scholars PART III ~ The Present Way XII. The Way to Organize Churches XIII. The Way Churches May Associate XIV. The Way of Church Letters, Ordinations, Marriages, Funerals, etc Doctrinal Statement of the American Baptist Association Declaration of Faith Church Covenant Origin of Denominations
The Baptist Way PART I ~ The Scriptural Way The Bible is the all-sufficient rule of faith and practice and it is as much a rule of practice as it is of faith. The commission given by our Master in Matt. 28:19-20, commands the church to teach all things whatsoever I have commanded you. The specification of one thing in law is the prohibition of everything else. Since what the church is to teach is specified, viz., all things whatsoever I have commanded, it follows that all things not commanded are forbidden. It follows that the church is shut up to the things commanded. There is therefore no place for the exercise of private opinion except it be in our effort to understand the things commanded. Any doctrine or institution that is outside of the purview of the Scriptures is wrong.
In II Tim. 3:16-17, we read: 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. If this is true, and to dispute it is to contradict the words of inspiration, it follows that we are throughly furnished unto all good works. Then we do not need to invent plans for work, since the Scriptures throughly furnish us unto all good works. If the work we propose to do is good we can learn all about it in the Scriptures for the man of God is throughly furnished unto all good works. From these passages we are compelled to conclude that there must be a thus saith the Lord for all we do. We dare not organize a church, a prayer meeting, a convention, an association, a school, a board, a committee, an evangelistic movement, or anything else without a thus saith the Lord, because the Scriptures throughly furnish us unto all good works, and we are to observe all things whatsoever the Master has commanded, no more no less. By the Scriptures, the all-sufficient rule of faith and practice, must every doctrine and every truth be tried. If it be allowed that reason or sanctified common sense shall determine in matters of faith and practice, it shall still be an open question as to whose reason and whose sanctified common sense shall make the decision. If reason or common sense shall be the rule of any part of faith and practice then it is certain that we shall see division, contention, strife. Let the Bible be the rule of faith and practice and our only difficulty shall be understanding our rule. The primary difference between Baptists and Roman Catholics is that Baptists contend that the Scriptures are the all-sufficient rule of faith and practice, while the Catholics deny this and claim that reason, or sanctified common sense, of the church should be the rule of faith and practice. If Baptists forsake this cardinal and fundamental principle, it shall not be long until they shall cease to be Baptists. They shall be at sea without chart or compass. In the following chapters we shall examine what the Scriptures teach concerning the Way of Salvation, Baptism, the Lords Supper, Church Policy, Missions, and Providence. While we hear the Word of God on these subjects, let us remember that this Word is the only and allsufficient rule of faith and practice. CHAPTER I ~ The Way of Salvation Eph. 2:8-10: For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, etc. Salvation by grace is a fundamental Baptist doctrine. The Scriptures are clear and plain on the doctrine. The passage quoted teaches us that good works have nothing to do in obtaining salvation, and that instead of works bringing salvation, it is salvation that causes good works. Rom. 11:6-7: And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work. What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it and the rest were blinded {blinded: or, hardened} This passage perfectly exposes the error that salvation results from a mixture of grace and works. If salvation is by grace at all it is altogether by grace; and if it is by works at all it is altogether by works. Salvation is by grace. Work follows as a result of salvation. Faith without works is dead, but the faith the live faith is exercised first and the works follow. Titus 3:8: This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men. The kind of faith which does not result in works is not the saving faith referred to in Eph. 2:8-10.
The meritorious ground of salvation is the suffering and death of Christ Eph. 1:7: In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;. There is no good in men. That which we call good is unclean in Gods sight. Isa. 64:6: But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. The sinner obtains salvation the moment he exercises faith in Christ. The following passages make this clear: The believer is not under condemnation. John 3:18: He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. The believer shall never perish. John 3:16: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. The believer has everlasting life. John 3:36: He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him. The believer is justified. Rom. 5:1: Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: The believer is a child of God. Gal. 3:26: For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. Granting that the following verse means the ordinance of baptism, it does not mean that we literally put Christ on in baptism, but only that being actually children of God by faith we symbolically put Christ on in baptism, i.e., we imitate Him. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. Gal. 3:27. The heart is purified by faith. Acts 15:8: And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. The believer is born of God. I John 5:1: Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. {Is born: Gr. has been born} The believer is saved. Eph. 2:8: For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: If anything is clearly taught in the Scriptures it is that salvation is by grace through faith, and not by works or ceremonies. CHAPTER II ~ The Way of Baptism When the Lord commanded the church to baptize those who had become disciples, Matt. 28:19-20, what did He intend should be done? When He said baptize the newly made disciples He used a Greek word. To learn the meaning of a Greek word we should look for its meaning in a Greek dictionary. A few samples of what the Greek Lexicons say will suffice: Liddell & Scott: Baptism, to dip. Bagster: Baptism, to bathe, immerse. Sapulo: Baptism, to dip, to immerse. There is no Greek Lexicon that does not give to dip or immerse as the primary meaning of baptism. If the Lord had meant for the church to sprinkle the new disciples He would have used the word rantizo, which primarily means to sprinkle. If He had meant for the church to pour water on the heads of the new converts He would have used the word echeo, which primarily means to pour. If the Lord meant to sprinkle or to pour, why did He use a word which primarily means to
dip? This fact in itself is sufficient to establish the truth that He meant for the church to dip all who became disciples. John the Baptist baptized in a river. Mark 1:5: And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins. Jesus, our Master, was baptized in a river. Mark 1:9-10: And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan. 10 And straightway coming up out of the water, etc. The case of Philip and the eunuch shows that immersion was the act. Acts 8:38-39: And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. And when they were come up out of the water, etc. Baptism is called a burial. Rom. 6:4-5: Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection. Baptism is not a saving ordinance. It should never be administered to any except to those who are already saved. When Saul was told to arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, it only means the symbolic washing away of sins. When Peter, on the day of Pentecost, said: Be baptized for the remission of sins, he used the word for in its secondary sense, which means with reference to be baptized with reference to the remission of sins. A man is put in the penitentiary for stealing, that is, on account of stealing; certainly not in order to stealing. So we are baptized for remission of sins, but not in order to the remission of sins. Only believers were baptized in Apostolic times, and we have already seen that believers are saved, hence only saved persons should be baptized. Cornelius and his household were saved before they were baptized. Acts 10:44-48: While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. Then answered Peter, Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Those who believe that baptism is necessary to salvation generally try to make it appear that this is a special case and not the rule. But Peter says in Acts 15:8-9, that God put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. The church only has authority to baptize. It was to the church the commission was given. That to which the commission was given had the promise of continued existence to the end of the world, for after giving the command, the Lord said, Lo, I am with you alway, even to the end of the world. The individual Christians to whom He spoke lived only a few years after this commission was given, hence the Master could not have made such a promise to them. The apostles lived only a few years after these words were spoken, hence the Master could not have made the promise to them. But the church has had a continual existence and shall have to the end of time. Eph. 3:21: Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages. The church institution was the only thing present when the commission was given that could continue to the end of the world. It was therefore to the church that He spoke when He said: Go teach all nations, baptizing them and, lo, I am with you alway, even to the end of the world. Amen. The church only having authority to baptize, it follows that all baptisms administered without church authority are null and void. For this reason Baptists have in all ages refused t0 recognize the baptisms of those who were not baptized by the authority of a Scriptural church. It was to the church the commission was given and the church institution to which the commission
was given is in the world today, and if the Lord meant what He said, He is with that church today. The baptisms of that institution are valid and no other is. Scriptural baptism is the immersion of a saved person by authority of a Scriptural church. Since God called the forerunner, John the Baptist the baptizer called him Baptist because he did the baptizing, it follows that, if God made no mistake, that a CHURCH THAT BAPTIZES should be called a Baptist Church; a baptizing church. Since the baptizing church is a missionary church it is perfectly right to call it a Missionary Baptist Church. CHAPTER III ~ The Way of the Lords Supper The Lords Supper is a commemorative ordinance to be observed by the church in memory of the broken body and shed blood of the Savior. I Cor. 11:24: This do in remembrance of me. Only baptized believers have a right to partake of the Supper. The commission given by our Master commands that the newly made disciples be baptized and then teach them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you, Matt. 28:19-20. One of the things the Lord had commanded was the partaking of the Memorial Supper. The new disciples were first to be baptized then taught to observe the other things which had been commanded. To partake of the Supper before baptism is to violate this law, and if we encourage any to thus violate the law of the Lord on this subject we shall be partakers of their sin. To invite un-baptized people to partake of the Lords Supper is a sin. Open Communion is therefore a sin a transgression of the Masters law concerning the Supper. Acts 2:41-42: Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. And they continued steadfastly in the apostles doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. Note the order here indicated: 1. Gladly received his word: disciples. 2. were baptized: baptized disciples. 3. The same day were added: church members. 4. Continued in apostolic doctrine: sound in faith. 5. And in fellowship: united in faith and love. 6. Lastly, breaking of bread: partaking of the Lords Supper. This is the Divine order, and no man has a right to change it. If we observe this order we have Close Communion, the doctrine for which Baptists have always contended. Paul forbade the Corinthian church to partake of the Supper while divisions continued in the membership, I Cor. 11:16-20. If division in a local congregation disqualifies that congregation to partake of the Supper, what should be said of members of the various rival denominations coming together to eat the Supper? It takes a united congregation to scripturally partake of the Supper. To partake of the Supper when divisions or schisms exist is to violate the law concerning the Lords Supper. To violate law is sin. Open Communion is therefore a sin. To encourage the transgression of law is sin. We, therefore, sin when we invite or encourage persons of different factions or schisms to come together for the purpose of celebrating the Lords Supper. Is Christ divided? In addition to all these restrictions, the individual must examine himself before eating, I Cor. 11:28. The object of this self-examination is to ascertain whether we have met all the requirements made of those who would partake of the Supper. Some think that self-examination is the only prerequisite to the Supper, when, in fact, it is only one of many prerequisites. The New Testament teaches Close Communion.
CHAPTER IV ~ The Way of Church Polity There are three forms of church government or polity: the Episcopalian, the Presbyterian, and the Congregational. Episcopacy is government by bishops; Presbyterianism is government by presbyters or preachers; Congregationalism is government by the people a pure democracy. Baptists are Congregationalists. They do not claim the right to make or repeal laws, but recognize and obey the unchanging law of their King Jesus Christ. But in the execution of these laws of the Lord there is a pure democracy. Baptists regard the Scriptures as the only and all-sufficient rule of faith and practice, II Tim. 3: 16-17. The church has no fight to change one word of the Scriptures. It is the duty of the church to obey the Scriptures. The Scriptures teach that each congregation is entirely independent of every other congregation, and that each congregation the Commission was given. Each congregation is a complete church in itself. It is therefore not correct to speak of The Baptist Church. There is no such thing. There are thousands of Baptist churches, as each congregation of baptized believers is a church, but these congregations are not combined in any way so as to make the one great Baptist Church. There are many trees in the forest, but there is no such thing as THE TREE. In speaking of the duties and doctrines of the church we mean any Scriptural church, just as we speak of the duties of the husband and the wife. When we say the husband or the wife we do not mean that there is a great HUSBAND composed of all the husbands, and when we say the wife we do not mean a large WIFE composed of all the wives. Even so, when we speak of the Commission being given to the church" we do not mean a great Universal Church, but we mean each individual congregation. The following passage indicates the New Testament idea, Eph. 5:23: For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church. As well talk about a great Universal Husband, a great Universal Wife as to talk of a great Universal Church. In the New Testament we learn the following facts: 1. The congregation received members. Rom. 14:1: Him that is weak in the faith receive ye. The membership is here commanded to receive into their fellowship the weak in the faith. It is certain that the membership is told to do the receiving because the epistle is addressed, not to the bishops, not to the session, but to all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints. The whole church must therefore receive the new converts. The specification of one thing in law is the prohibition of everything else. Since therefore the whole church is commanded to receive it follows that the pastors, the session, or anything else violates the law of God when they presume to receive members. This duty must continue to rest on the church as a whole. 2. The congregations excluded members from their fellowship. I Cor. 5:1-5: It is commonly reported that there is fornication among you . . . In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power (authority) of our Lord Jesus Christ, to deliver such an one unto Satan, for the destruction of the flesh, etc. The church must be gathered together, to exclude the fornicator. There was no board of deacons or board of stewards, or session or bunch of elders to get off in a corner and do this work. The power to exclude carries with it the power to restore. In II Cor. 2:6-8, we read that this fornicator should be restored after he had repented: Sufficient to such a man is this punishment, which was inflicted of many. So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him, etc. We note the fact that Paul says this punishment was inflicted of the many; literally, by the majority. Pleionon is the Greek word used. In case of personal offenses, the party offended must first labor for reconciliation between him and the offender alone. This failing, he must take witnesses with him, and in the presence of these witnesses, make another effort for reconciliation. If this second effort fails, he must tell it
to the church, and if this fails, excommunication follows. Let him be unto thee as a heathen man and a publican. (Matt. 18:16-18.) 3. The congregations elected their own officers. Acts 6:1-6 Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men, etc. The multitude had been called together and the apostles instructed the whole multitude to look out among you seven men. The selection or election of the multitude was accepted by the apostles. Then the apostles prayed and laid their hands on them, ordained them, as Baptists do today. Acts 14:23: And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord. The Greek, of which this passage is a translation, literally means: And when they had elected elders in every church by a show of the hands. The Greek word used is cheirotonein, meaning to stretch forth the hand. Phillip Schaff, the modern Lutheran historian, in his great book, Apostolic Church, page 501, says: As to Presbyters, bishops (pastors) Luke informs us (Acts 14:23) that Paul and Barnabas appointed them to office in the newly founded congregations by taking the vote of the people, thus merely presiding over the choice. Such, at least, is the original and usual sense of cheirotonein. 4. The congregations elected their own missionaries. Acts 11:22-24 Then tidings of these things came unto the ears of the church which was in Jerusalem; and they sent forth Barnabas, that he should go as far as Antioch . . . he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith: and much people was added unto the Lord. This fact is set forth plainly by J. M. Pendleton in his Church Manual, page 110: The churches in Apostolic times sent forth ministers on missionary tours. When Antioch received the Word of God, the church at Jerusalem sent forth Barnabas, that he should go as far as Antioch, Acts 11:22. His labors were successful, much people was added to the Lord and at a subsequent period the church in Antioch sent out Saul and Barnabas, who made a long journey, performed much labor, returned and reported to the church all that God had done with them, Acts 13:1-3; Acts 14:26-27. With what deferential respect did these ministers of the gospel treat the church that sent them forth! When Dr. Pendleton wrote his Manual (1867), all Baptists agreed that churches should send out missionaries, but some are disputing this Apostolic practice now. The conclusion is clear. It was to the church that the Commission was given. It is therefore the duty of the congregation to do all that the Commission enjoins. The congregation is the unit in all the work contemplated in the Commission. There is not the slightest hint in the New Testament of their being authority on earth above a congregation of baptized disciples. Where we read of elders that rule well, the literal rendering is the elders that lead well. The elder or bishop, which is the Scriptural terms for pastor, is a leader of his flock over which the Holy Ghost has made him overseer. But he leads by teaching, by example, and not by authority. To exercise authority is expressly forbidden by our Master. Matt. 20:25-26: Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. But it shall not be so among you. In I Peter 5:3 Neither as being lords (masters) over Gods heritage, but being examples to the flock. The Episcopal and Presbyterian bodies have men of authority, men in control. The Master said: It shall not be so among you. The superintendent of missions, so common among Baptists, has authority to superintend the work of missionaries. The Master said: It shall not be so among you. Baptists should recognize only one Master, even Jesus Christ and only one Superintendent of Missions, even the Holy Spirit. A gospel church may exist with or without officers. The churches (Acts 14:23) in which elders were elected existed as gospel churches before they had elders, and if they could exist as gospel churches before they had elders, it follows that if the elders should die or move away, the churches could exist again as gospel churches without them. Elders or pastors are not necessary
to the existence of a church. A church is a gospel church with them or without them. So with the deacons. The church at Jerusalem was a gospel church (Acts 6) before the deacons were elected. If all the deacons should die or move away, it would continue to be a gospel church. As Pendleton put it in his Church Manual: Officers are not necessary to the being of a church, but they are necessary to its well being. CHAPTER V ~ The Way of Mission Work 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. {throughly: or, perfected} II Tim. 3:16-17 Is missionary work a good work? To ask the question is to answer it. Then the man of God is thoroughly furnished by the Scriptures for this good work. All that we need to know about mission work, all that we need to do in mission work, is necessarily revealed in the Scriptures if the Scriptures thoroughly furnish us unto every good work. The commission (Matt. 28:19-20) was given to the church as such. This has been made clear in the preceding pages of this book. The church as such is, therefore, the unit in missionary operations. Since mission work is preaching the gospel to every creature, it follows that the church must do the preaching. We therefore see the reason why the Jerusalem church sent forth Barnabas (Acts 11:22), and why the Antioch church sent Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13: 1-6), and we also see why these missionaries returned and reported their work to the church which had sent them out (Acts 14:24-27). Individual church members wherever they go may tell the story of salvation to those with whom they come in contact (Acts 8:4), and whoever even hears the message of salvation should pass it on to others. (Rev. 22:17)Let him that heareth say, Come. But the only organized effort recognized in the New Testament for the work of missions is the local congregations of baptized believers. This is confessedly true, even the leaders of conventionism being witnesses. None pretended to find Scripture for such organizations as the Southern Baptist Convention or the Missionary Union. These organizations are confessedly outside of the purview of the Scriptures. Since the commission to evangelize the world was given to the churches, it follows that the churches are the only organizations authorized to do mission work. Any other organization that may undertake the work is a usurper, a law-breaker, no matter how good the intention of such organization may be. To illustrate: In most of the states the county sheriff is the tax collector. In some other states the tax collector is called a trustee. The sheriff or trustee has a commission from the state to collect taxes. As long as he holds the commission no other man or organization has a right to collect taxes. No matter if he has poor business methods, no matter if he be incompetent, his poor business methods and his in competency do not alter the fact that he and he alone has the authority, the commission, to collect taxes. Suppose some citizens of the county should get together and organize a convention and appoint one of their numbers to collect the taxes, because they were not satisfied with the way the man who held the commission was doing the work? The whole outfit would be arrested and possibly imprisoned. Why? Because the sheriff has the commission to collect taxes, and whether he works to suit the people or not he, he only, has authority to collect taxes so long as he holds that commission. The Lord gave the commission to evangelize the world to the church. The church still holds that commission and any convention or board that presumes to do the work is going into the work without a commission and is a usurper, a violator of Divine law. The work must remain in the hands of the churches until the Master revokes the commission. Congregations may co-operate in the evangelization of the world, but they must do it as churches. The missionary Paul was sent out by the congregation at Antioch (Acts 13:1-6), but the
churches co-operated in his support. II Cor. 11:7-8: Have I committed an offense in abasing myself that ye might be exalted, because I have preached unto you the gospel of God freely? I robbed other churches, taking wages of them, to do you service. From this specification as to how the work was done we may learn how we should engage in mission work. Paul was sent out by a church, just one church. But he was endorsed and supported by churches took wages of churches. Sent by one and only one and supported by several. Only one church should do the sending but the support may come from as many as choose to co-operate and contribute. The writer did not invent this way of doing mission work; he only reads it in the New Testament. The only cooperation that can be discovered is in the matter of supporting the work. For this reason Baptists have associations of churches that the churches may work together in missionary work. Eph. 3:10 (revised version). To the intent that now unto the principalities and the powers in heavenly places might be known through the church the manifold wisdom of God. The work of making known the gospel must therefore be through the churches. God is the author of this way of missions. Dare any man to try to establish a new way! In II Cor. 8:18-19 we read: And we have sent with him (with Titus) the brother, whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches; And not that only, but who was also chosen of the churches to travel with us with this grace (gift), which is administered by us to the glory of the same Lord, and declaration of your ready mind:. Note the fact that here is a committee of the churches and for the churches, consisting of Paul, Titus and the brother whose praise was in all the churches; a committee of, at least three, an inter-church committee, a committee not of one church only, but a committee chosen of the churches, a joint committee. The duty of this committee was to travel with this grace (gift) and to minister this grace or gift to the glory of the Lord according to the declaration (instructions) of your (the church) ready mind. The gift or grace referred to was a contribution for the poor saints at Jerusalem. Thus we see a committee, acting under the instructions of co-operating churches, handling the finances of churches in benevolent work. This is altogether different from a board or committee engaging in a work on their own motion and incurring expenses, acting without instructions and then calling on the churches to pay the bills. This committee was appointed by the churches, and acted under instructions from the churches according to the declarations of their ready minds. Thus far may we go and no further. Nowhere in the Scriptures do we read of a convention appointing a board or committee for any purpose whatever. Such a thing as a convention is unknown to the Scriptures. Such a thing is therefore a usurper, a violator of Divine law and should not be tolerated by the churches. It was to the churches the commission was given and these churches themselves are under the law of their Master. The churches are free and independent within the limits of the New Testament law. Short of what the New Testament teaches they dare not stop; beyond what is there taught these churches dare not go, since the Scripture is the all sufficient rule of faith and practice in missionary work as well as all other church Work. CHAPTER VI ~ The Way of Providence By Providence is meant the care and superintendence of God over His people. Is there danger that the child of God may apostatize and be finally lost in hell? It is the belief of Baptists that no such danger exists and they think the following passages of Scripture abundantly prove their belief to be correct: John 3:36: He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life. If the life the believer now has is everlasting, then it can never end, and therefore apostasy is absurd.
Psalm 37:23-24: The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord; and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand. Thus we see that a child of God shall not stay in a fallen condition, even though he fall, for the Lord will lift him up again. Rom. 8:28, We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. It is certain that if a man apostatizes and goes to hell it is not for his good. Then nothing can bring this fearful condition to pass as we know all things work together for the good of them that love God. There are some seeming cases of apostasy. Men seem to run well for a while and drop out of the race, go to ruin and die in that condition. What about them? Let the Scripture answer: I John 2:19, They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us. An explanation would spoil this clear Scriptural answer. All of the arguments favoring apostasy are at best conjectures. To prove apostasy one must first prove that a man was actually in a saved condition and that he fell from that happy state and was lost in hell. Such a proposition is not provable. Here are some of the common conjectures favoring apostasy: Adam fell. Yes, but since Christ had not died and was not even promised, he could not have fallen from grace. He was standing on his own merits and fell from that, not from grace. But did Adam go to hell? Let him who dares try to prove it. The angels fell. The Saviour did not die for angels. They stood on their own merit and fell from that. The angels never received the benefits of the Saviours blood as have Christians. Judas fell. Yes, but from what? He fell from his office, his bishopric. (Acts 1:20) Judas did not fall from grace for he was a devil. John 6:64-71: But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him . . . Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil? He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve. When the parables are used to prove apostasy it is sufficient to reply that parables must not be made to go on all fours. After a doctrine has been established by plain statements of Scripture the parables may be used to illustrate the truth thus established. If we go beyond that we shall be involved in many absurdities. Evils of the Doctrine of Apostasy 1. It is based on the doctrine of salvation by works. The idea is that final salvation depends on what we do for ourselves rather than on what the Lord does for us. 2. It makes our final salvation depend on the, mercy of the Devil. The only way Satan can get a child of God is to overcome the power that keeps him, it is Gods power that keeps us. Then to get a child of God into his clutches the Devil must overcome God. If he overcomes God to get one, while he has God in his power, if he does not get all, will it not be because he does not want all? If the Devil, having God in his power, could get all and does not, ought we not to thank the Devil for permitting us to go to heaven? 3. It gives Satan more power than God. 4. It reflects on the merits of the Saviours blood. 5. It nullifies the work of the Holy Spirit. 6. It makes void the mediatorial work of Christ. 7. It makes God swear a falsehood. (Heb. 6:16-18.) 8. It leaves the world without hope. 9. It declares that God was either not wise enough, or not good enough, or not strong enough to effectually save a believer.
How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord, Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word, What more can He say than to you He hath said You who unto Jesus for refuge have fled. The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose, I will not, I Will not, desert to his foes, that soul though all hell should endeavor to shake. I'll never, no never, no never, forsake.
Baptists glory in the providence of God. With them the doctrine is fundamental. Psalm 23: The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
PART II ~ The Historical Way To establish our doctrine and practice by the New Testament is of chief importance. But the New Testament makes some declarations concerning the history of churches. When our Lord established His church He declared He would build it up, edify it, enlarge it, and the gates of hell should not prevail against it. (Matt. 16:18.) The Greek word oikodomeso, in Matt. 16:18 translated will build means will build up, enlarge, edify. His church was already in existence when He uttered these words, as can be proved by numerous passages; hence we are forced to so understand this passage. When did the company or congregation of baptized believers begin? Peter answers the question in Acts 1:21: Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from the baptism of John, etc. This passage affirms that certain men companied with Jesus and that this company began with the baptism of John. This makes it clear that the Lord had a company of baptized believers, a church with Him all through His personal ministry. He called it together Himself, choosing the material John the Baptist had made ready for Him, for John came to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. (Matt. 3:3; Luke 1:17.) These prepared people Jesus called into His company or congregation. In Luke 6:12-18, we find this company clearly distinguished from the mixed multitude. He took this company up with Him into a mountain to pray. He did not go to the mountain to originate His company or church, because He took it with Him into the mountain. While there He chose His apostles: Of them (the company) he chose twelve, whom he named apostles. Then the names of the apostles are given, and he came down with them and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people. The inspired writer speaks of the company of the disciples and a great multitude of people. There is no way to torture this language so as to fail to see that the Lords little company was separate and distinct from the multitude, even while mixing and mingling with that multitude. Peter says this company began with the baptism of John. All the Master did on the mountain was to pray and choose His apostles. The apostolic office was the Lords first spiritual gift bestowed on the church. In I Cor. 12:1, we learn that the subject there under discussion is SPIRITUAL GIFTS: Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant. In discussing spiritual gifts, the apostle declares that the first spiritual gift put in the church was the apostolic office. I Cor. 12:28: And God hath set some in the church, first apostles. It would have been impossible to set apostles or anything else in the church if the church had no existence. So the fact that Christ set the apostles in the church proves that the church existed before going up on the mountain. Eph. 2:20: Are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone. This is an instance when the possessive case is expressed by the preposition of. To illustrate: We say, That is the capital of Mississippi when we mean it is Mississippi's capital. That is the farm of Johnson when we mean it is Johnsons farm. So we are built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, that is, on the apostles and prophets foundation. In other words they have no advantage of us since we are built on the same foundation they are.
The apostles and prophets form no part of the foundation of the church. I Cor. 3:11: For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Thus we see that the church is founded on Christ Himself, that the Lord Himself established it during His personal ministry, using the people made ready for Him by John the Baptist, and that this company, or church, traveled with Him during His personal ministry, and that the apostolic gift was the first set in the church, and that this was done on the mountain, and it was to this church the Master gave the commission promising it perpetuity to the end of the world. (Matt. 28: 19-20.) Eph. 3:21: Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages. It therefore follows that the church should live in all ages, for there could not be glory in .a dead church. Neither should the church apostatize, for there could be no glory in an apostate church. If it can be shown that Baptist churches have existed in all ages since Christ, it will confirm our faith in the Lords words. If, on the other hand, it can be shown that no church institution in existence has come down uncorrupted through the centuries, it will be enough to make infidels of us all; for if the Lords promise has failed, if His Word be proved false, what confidence could we place in Him as our Saviour? The Lords promise has been kept. There has never been a day since He ascended in the presence of His church that a church just like the one which saw Him ascend could not be found on the earth. History abundantly establishes this position. CHAPTER VII ~ The Way Our Fathers Trod, or Baptist Doctrine and Polity in History The purpose of this chapter is to show by standard historians that Baptist churches are in every essential the same as the churches which we claim as Baptist churches that existed through the centuries of darkness. Mosheim, Vol. I, page 92, says: The churches in those ancient times were entirely independent; none of them subject to any foreign jurisdiction, but each governed by its own rules and its own laws. For though the churches founded by the apostles had this deference shown them, that they were consulted in difficult and doubtful cases; yet they had no judicial authority, no sort of supremacy over the others nor the least right to enact laws for them. Nothing, on the contrary is more evident than the perfect equality that reigned among the primitive churches. If Mosheim speaks the truth, where go the claims of the Roman Catholic Church that the Roman church is and always has been supreme, and that Peter was the first pope, and all that? Mosheim was a Lutheran historian and he struck a death blow to his own church when he used this language, because Lutheran churches are not organized in that independent congregational way. Gibbons Roman Empire, Vol. I, page 555: Such was the mild and equal constitution by which the Christians were governed for more than a hundred years after the death of the apostles. Every society formed within itself an independent republic; and although the most distant of these little states maintained a mutual, as well as friendly intercourse of letters and deputations, the Christian world was not yet conducted by any supreme authority or legislative assembly. If Gibbons speaks the truth all Episcopal or Presbyterian succession is here cut off. Neither the one nor the other can get within a hundred years of the apostles. It also destroys the claim of the Roman Catholic Church because there was no such organization during the first five hundred years after the death of the apostles. During the Apostolic age and for a hundred years after we find only Baptist church polity and government. And when we remember that the Saviour said that the church He started should continue to the end of the world, it becomes certain that none of the Catholic, Episcopal or Presbyterian bodies can be the true church. Mosheim, page 491, says, in describing the Waldenses, Wickliffites, and Hussites, called by these names because of the prominence of Waldo, Huss and Wickliffe, that they believed: That the
Kingdom of Christ, or the visible church which He established upon earth, was an assembly of true or real saints, and ought to be inaccessible to the wicked and unrighteous, and also exempt from all those human institutions which human prudence suggests to oppose the progress of iniquity, or to correct and reform transgressors. Since nobody disputes that the people who in history are called Waldenses, Wickliffites, Hussites, etc., have existed from the earliest centuries, it is interesting to note the fact that they believed: Christ established His church, that the church is an assembly that only converted people should be in it, and they would have nothing to do with human institutions which human prudence suggests. They were Baptists, no doubt, but not Convention Baptists, because institutions which human prudence suggests were opposed by them. Erasmus, writing of these Hussites or Waldenses, says: The Hussites renounced all rites and ceremonies of the Catholic Church; they ridicule our doctrine and practice in both sacraments; they deny orders and elect officers from among the laity; they receive no other rule than the Bible; they admit none to their communion until they, are dipped in water or baptized; and they reckon one another without distinction or rank to be called brothers and sisters. (Ivemys History of Baptists, Vol. 1, page 70.) Erasmus was a Roman Catholic and speaks of the Catholic doctrine and practice as our doctrine and practice. What he said of these Hussites he said as their enemy. Let us note what he said: They had nothing in common with Catholics, renounced all rites and ceremonies of the Catholics. They denied orders and were therefore congregational in government. They had no rule but the Bible. The Bible was therefore their only rule of faith and practice. They were close communionists since they admitted none to their communion until they were dipped. If such people were not Baptists, we have no Baptists now. Philip Schaff, in the Baptist Quarterly Review of July, 1883, pages 72-73, quotes Grebel, the great Ana-Baptist preacher and writer, concerning what was believed and practiced by them. Schaff is a Lutheran and has no interest in the matter beyond his reputation as an Ecclesiastical Historian. Here is what Grebel says: From the Scriptures we learn that baptism declares that by faith and the blood of Christ our sins have been washed away, that we have died to sin and walked in newness of life; that assurance of salvation is through the inner baptism, faith, so that water does not confirm and increase faith as Whittenburg theologians say, nor does it save. This quotation abundantly proves that the ancient Ana-Baptists were in harmony with Baptists of today concerning the way of salvation and baptism. They were neither Catholics nor Lutherans. This very extract from Grebels writings is in opposition to Whittenberg theology, the headquarters of Lutherism. What would such people be called now if they were among us? They would not be in agreement with Campbellites, they are opposed to Lutherans, and their doctrine is the direct opposite of Catholicism. Is it not clear that they were Baptists? But let us hear Grebel further, He says: In order to live a Christian life, there must be a change in the natural man, who is by nature sinful; and with no remedy in himself by which the wounds that sin has made can be healed. When a man has received this new life he confesses it before the church of which he is to be made a member, according to the rule of Christ; that is, he shows to that church that, instructed in the Scriptures, he has given himself to Christ to live henceforth according to His will and teaching.
He is then baptized, making in baptism a public confession of his faith . . . In other words, in baptism he confesses that he is a sinner, but that Christ, by His death, has pardoned his sins so that he is accounted righteous before the face of God. Note the faith and practice of the ancient Ana-Baptists: They believed that men are sinners by nature. That men are helpless to save themselves. That salvation consists of a new life. That to become a member of the church a public confession or change of life must be made. That he shows to the church that he is a changed man in order to become a church member. That baptism is a public confession of sins already forgiven. What would such people be called now? There is but one name for them. They were Baptists. Petro-Brusians, so called because one of the greatest men among them was named Peter de Bruis. They did not call themselves by that name, but historians have dubbed them that. What did they believe? Walls History of Infant Baptism, Vol. II, pages 256-259, says of their teaching: It is an idle and a vain thing for you to wash persons with water at such a time, when you may indeed cleanse their skin from dirt in a human manner, but not purge their souls from sin. But we do say till the proper time of faith and when a person is capable to know his God, and believe in him, then we do (not as you say, rebaptize him), but baptize him. From this statement of their faith by Wall we learn that: 1. The Petro-Brusians refused to baptize infants. 2. That they did not regard baptism as essential to salvation. 3. That they believed in immersion, since, they called it washing the persons with water. 4. They denied being rebaptizers, for they did not regard the so-called baptisms of others as valid. What were they? There is but one answer. They were Baptists. Whether called Montanists, Novatians, Petro-Brusians, Hussites, Waldenses or AnaBaptists, one and the same people is meant. Even today Baptists are called after the names of men as they were of old. Southern Baptists are frequently called Gravesites, because of the influence and prominence of Graves. Quite a number of Baptists have been called Crawfordites, because they agreed in their views of mission work with T. P. Crawford of China. A goodly number of Baptists have been dubbed Martinites, because they agreed with the great preacher, M. T. Martin in his views on the doctrine of Assurance. Thus the world has persisted in calling Baptists after the names of men. It is done by way of reproach, but Baptists have never acknowledged themselves to be the followers of men. So it was when Peter Waldo came among Baptists they were dubbed Waldenses. When Novatian came to the Baptists, bringing quite a party with him, they were dubbed Novationists. When John Huss became prominent among them they were dubbed Hussites and thus it has gone, but the Baptists have been contending for the same doctrines and practices under all these names. They were called Ana-Baptists very often because they re-baptized all who came to them, no matter by whom they had been previously baptized. There were irregularities among these ancient people. But there are irregularities among Baptists today. Some of them practiced sprinkling. Yes and some bearing the name of Baptists today practice sprinkling. This is common in England. The local independence of Baptist churches permits a church to go very far wrong and still wear the name of Baptist. The fact is, everything that opposed the dominant state churches was called Ana-Baptists, Waldenses, etc. Thus many were included under these names who were anything but Baptists. But there were true Baptists in great numbers among them, and the extracts which are given in
this chapter from their leaders, and from their enemies, show they were Baptists in every essential. That I am right in this conclusion will be seen by the following statements, made by standard historians: Mosheim, Cen. 14, Sec. 3, Chap. 3: They (Ana-Baptists) were subdivided into various sects which differed from each other in points of no small moment. Fisher, speaking of the Munster rioters, says: Under the name of Ana-Baptists are included different types of doctrine and Christian life. It is a gross injustice to impute to all of them the wild, destructive fanaticism with which a portion of them are chargeable. (Pages 424-425) Philip Schaff says: The excesses of a misguided faction have been charged upon the whole body. They were made responsible for the peasants war and the Munster tragedy, although the great majority of them were quiet, orderly and peaceful citizens, and would rather suffer persecution than to do an act of violence. (Schaff in Quarterly Review, Vol. 12, No. 43) There have been advocates of Baptist doctrines and polity in every century since Christ. The Lord has not been left without a witness on the earth. The gates of hell have not prevailed against the church which the Master Builder promised to build up, enlarge, edify to the end of the world. CHAPTER VIII ~ The Way of Mission Work in History The Apostolic Baptists were Missionary Baptists. This is abundantly proved by the Masters commanding the church to go teach all nations, baptizing them. It is seen in the Jerusalem church sending out Barnabas and the Antioch church sending out both Saul and Barnabas. But these Apostolic churches were not Convention Baptists. I propose to prove by unquestioned historic records that the Baptists of history were! Neither Hardshells nor Conventionites. Mosheim, page 491, says of the Waldenses, Hussites, etc.: Before the rise of Luther and Calvin, there! lay concealed, in almost all countries in Europe, particularly in Bohemia, Moravia, Switzerland and Germany many persons who adhered tenaciously to the following doctrine, which the Waldenses, Wickliffites and Hussites, but maintained, some in a more disguised, and others In a more open and public manner, viz.: That the kingdom of Christ, or the visible church which he established upon earth, was an assembly of true and real saints, and ought therefore to be inaccessible to the wicked and unrighteous, and also exempt from all those institutions which human prudence suggests to oppose the progress of iniquity. It will be seen that these ancient Baptists opposed outside organizations, adhering to the church as the one institution for the work of the Master. Orchard, speaking of the Paulicians, page 139, says: An evident mark of Apostolic spirit possessed by this people must be admitted by all. Without any funds or public societies to countenance or support the arduous undertaking, otherwise than their respective churches, the Paulicians fearlessly penetrated to the most barbarous parts of Europe, and went single-handed and single-eyed to the conflict with every grade of character. These were not Hardshells and they were not Conventionites. They had no organizations, otherwise than their respective churches, says Orchard. They practiced church missions. Davis History of Welsh Baptists, page 31:
At this time (1663) the Baptists met as Llantrisant. In the association held at Abergavamy, this church proposed to revive the old plan of supporting ministers in weak and destitute churches: which was for the strongest to help the weakest. Wm. Thomas was appointed home missionary for six months, and received from Swansea five pounds; Llantrisant, two pounds, ten shillings; Carmarthen, two pounds, ten shillings. These were not Hardshells. They had no board or convention. The churches were Scripturally associated in the work of missions. It was no new thing among them, because it was proposed to revive the old plan. They had only been neglecting their duty as thousands of Baptists today. The Kehukee Association was organized in 1765. It was not a Hardshell Association, and it was not a Board Association. It has since its organization drifted into Hardshellism and is now a Hard-shell Association. From Burkitts History, page 92, we read: This association agreed to consider the business of itinerant preaching. A committee was appointed for that purpose, and after deliberation thereon reported as follows: That not only ordained preachers, but young gifts also be advised and called upon by the churches to which they belong, to engage in the work, not only amongst the churches, but in other places where it may appear necessary. Whatever the Kehukee Association now is, it was at the beginning of its career, a missionary association. They believed in and practiced missions, but they had no board or superintendent to superintend the work. The missionaries to be sent out were to be called upon by the church to which they belonged to engage in the work. If the Kehukee Association has quit this way of doing and become a Hardshell Association, it is because they have departed from the faith and practice of their fathers. Possibly, the oldest church in the world is Hill Cliff Church, Wales. It was organized, no doubt, as early as the year 600 A. D. Evidence is abundant to show that it was one of the churches hid in the wilderness to avoid the cruel persecution waged against Baptists for a thousand years. The church is still in existence, and has regular worship every Sunday, and the church occupies the third stone building that is certainly known. There might have been other buildings in the dark past, but evidence of three exists. In 1653 the following significant action was taken by the church: Mr. Tillman, also, at this time was solemnly commended to the grace of God (like Paul when he left Antioch) in proceeding to Cheshire on a Missionary or Evangelistic tour. (See History Hill Cliff Church, by James Kenworthy, pastor, p. 46.) The author does not know what the custom of the Hill Cliff Church is now, but it did do mission work in ancient times without a board or convention. If it be now a board church, it has departed from its ancient practice. There never would have been any such things as Hardshell churches or Convention churches if there had not been a departure from the faith and practice of the ancient churches. Hardshellism is a recent invention, and so is Boardism. Both are in error. Hardshellism violates the Masters law by refusing to go. Boardism violates the law by trying to take the commission out of the hands of the churches, where the Master left it. The Evils of Hardshellism 1. Hardshellism is a negative. It stands for nothing and opposes everything. 2. Hardshellism repudiates the Great Commission. 3. Hardshellism lives on the converts made by others. It is a religious parasite. 4. Hardshellism logically repudiates baptism, since they repudiate the Commission, and baptism is a part of the Commission.
5. Hardshellism dries up benevolence and fosters covetousness. 6. Hardshellism makes beggars of their preachers. Instead of receiving wages for their preaching they receive it as alms. 7. Hardshellism teaches that the gospel is not necessary to salvation, and, therefore, flatly contradicts the Scriptures. 8. Hardshellism is a schism and should be treated as such. 9. Hardshellism never built an orphans home for sheltering, protecting and educating helpless orphan children. 10. Hardshellism never led a soul to Christ nor has it ever been instrumental in saving a soul, they themselves being witnesses. 11. Hardshellism was founded by Daniel Parker, and is of man, not of God. Minutes Kentucky General Association, Oct. 20, 1837, page 11: The anti-missionary spirit owes its origin to the notorious Daniel Parker. He was the first person called Baptist that lent a hand to the infidel and papist in opposing the proclamation of the gospel to every creature. This deliverance was made only five years after the division among Baptists over the mission question. The messengers of the churches who made this deliverance were personal ear and eye witnesses to the controversy which resulted in the split. They could not be mistaken, and if what they say is not true, we have the spectacle of a body of messengers from the churches putting to record for the deception of future generations, a positive and well known (at that time) falsehood. We cannot conceive of such a thing being possible. If this deliverance is true, Daniel Parker was the originator of Hardshellism. But let us hear Parker himself: It makes me shudder when I think I am the first one (that I have any knowledge of) among the thousands of zealous religionists of America that have ventured to draw the sword against this error, and to shoot at it and spare no arrows. (See Daniel Parkers address, p. 3) The question is settled. The Missionary Baptists, who were eye witnesses, declare Daniel Parker was the first to advocate Hardshellism, and Parker himself says he was the first. It is therefore absurd to talk of Hardshellism tracing a line of succession back of Daniel Parker. Evils of Conventionism 1. Conventionism ignores the law of Christ and sets up rules of its Own. 2. Conventionism gives one man authority over another, and the Master said, It shall not be so among you. (Matt. 20:25-26.) 3. Conventionism tends towards centralization and destroys congregationalism. 4. Conventions are unknown to the Scriptures. 5. Conventionism fosters liberalism and decries orthodoxy. 6. Conventionism is an invention of man and not a revelation of God. 7. Conventionism is a breeder of strife and confusion among the churches. 8. Conventionism is a departure from the faith and practice of the fathers. 9. Conventionism incurs needless expenses, and unjustly calls upon the churches to pay the debts they had no part in making. 10. Conventionism has a bad spirit. Those it can't control it seeks to ruin. 11. Conventionism is responsible in a large measure for Hardshellism, since the extremes of Conventionism drove many into repudiating all mission work. 12. Conventionism is fast becoming a schism, and unless reform or revolution comes speedily it must be treated as such.
13. Conventionism and Hardshellism are both departures from the historic faith and practice of the ancient Baptists. The great body of Baptists has never gone off with either faction and they never will. The Baptists through whom our lines of history run were plain Missionary Baptists; neither Hardshells nor Conventionites. CHAPTER IX ~ The Way of Blood, or Baptist Martyrs in Every Century Since Christ Baptist history can be traced in blood through the dark centuries of the past. Men and women have given up their lives for the doctrines and practices of Baptists. The way of Baptists has been a way of blood. First Century John the Baptist was the first Baptist martyr. For faithfully preaching the truth this first Baptist preacher became the first Christian martyr. In Matt. 15:1-12, we read that he was beheaded by order of King Herod. Stephen was stoned to death for preaching the doctrines held by Baptists, Acts 7:59-60, we read that while dying he prayed for his cruel persecutors. The Apostles all died as martyrs, except John, and he was banished to a lonely island, where he wrote the Book of Revelation. Second Century Orchard, Vol. 1, page 163 (old edition), says: Tile City of Lyons were again visited with the vengeance of the emperor. Severns treated the Christians of this city with great cruelty. Such was the excess of barbarity that the rivers were colored with human blood, and the public places of the city were filled with the dead bodies of professors. Many other instances of cruel persecution could be given, but it is the purpose of this chapter to give only brief specimens of the way our fathers suffered in each century. Third Century Jones History, page 145: After Perpetua had entered the theater among the wild beasts, singing praises to God, her execution is thus reported: Perpetua and Felicitus were first inclosed in a net and then exposed to a wild cow. But this struck the spectators with horror, as the former was a delicate woman, and the breasts of the latter were streaming with milk after her delivery. They were therefore recalled and exposed in a common loose dress. Perpetua was first tossed by the beast and being thrown down, she had the presence of mind to compose her dress as she lay on the ground. Then rising and seeing Felicitus much more torn than herself, she gave her hand, and assisted her to rise; and for some time they both stood together near the gate of the amphitheater. Thither Perpetua sent for her brother, and exhorted him to continue firm in the faith, to love his fellowChristians, and not to be discouraged by her suffering. Being in a mangled condition, they were now taken to the usual place of execution, to be dispatched with a sword, but the populace requesting that they should be removed to another place, where the execution might be seen to more advantage, they got up of their own accord to go thither; then having given each other the kiss of charity, they quietly resigned themselves to their fate. How many Baptist women are there today who would thus suffer and die for their principles? No doubt, there are many. Fourth Century Baptist Martyrs, page 14:
When Constantine and Licinian first came into power (A. D. 312) they gave equal religious toleration to all their subjects. But the attempt to settle the controversy in North Africa, between the Catholics and Donatists, by imperial intervention (4. 0. 316), was a departure front this impartial protection and equality before the law; and from that fatal moment persecution began under the Christian name. Orchard, Vol. 1, page 187 (old edition): The disputes between the Donatists and the Catholics were at their height when Constantine became fully invested with imperial power, A. U, 314. The Catholic party solicited the services of the Emperor, who, in answer, appointed commissions to hear both sides; but this measure not giving satisfaction, he even condescended to hear the parties himself, but his best exertions could not effect reconciliation. The interested part that Constantine took in the dispute led the Donatists to inquire, what has the Emperor to do with the church? What have Christians to do with kings? Or what have bishops to do at court? Constantine, finding his authority questioned, and even set at naught by these Baptists, listened to the advice of the bishops and court, and deprived the Donatists of their churches. This persecution was the first which realized the support of a Christian. Emperor Constantine went so far as to put some of the Donatists to death. Note the Donatists were what are now called Missionary Baptists. They were dubbed Donatists by their enemies, but they believed and practiced what Baptists believe and practice. The Roman Catholic Church was, in the years 251-600 A. B., in its formative period. It was not born full grown. What the Catholic Church now is was the result of a growth, a tendency, beginning A. D. 251, when they first began to centralize power in the hands of a few, and continuing till A. B. 610, when Boniface III was made Universal Bishop, or Pope. From the time the Catholics split off from the Baptists persecution by them began. Fifth Century Orchard, Vol. 1, page 61: The Catholic party, now accumulating power, saw in other churches rebaptizing a virtual renunciation of the baptism they had conferred upon those who went over to the other party * * * consequently a spirit of persecution was raised against all those who rebaptized Catholics. In the fourth Lateran councils, canons were made to banish them as heretics and these canons were supported by an edict in 413 issued by the emperors, Theodosius and Honorius, declaring that all persons rebaptized, and the rebaptizers, should be both punished with death. Accordingly Albanus, a zealous minister, with others, was punished with death for rebaptizing. What if it were punishable with death now for Baptists to baptize those who had been baptized by others? One thing is certain, alien immersionists, who are willing to take anybodys baptism, would not suffer; and another thing is equally certain, these alien immersionists have departed from a practice which ancient Baptists were willing to die for. Sixth Century Orchard, Vol. 1, page 101 (old edition) says: The Pope wrote to two African bishops, requiring them to exert themselves in every possible way to suppress the Donatists. Under this instruction Baptists suffered terribly, but no concrete example is on record worthy of reproduction here. Seventh Century Orchard, Vol. 1, page 134: A Greek officer named Simmeon, armed with legal and military authority, appeared at Coronia to strike the shepherd, Sylvanus, and to reclaim, if possible, the lost sheep. By
refinement of cruelty, this minister of justice placed the unfortunate Sylvanus before a line of his disciples, who were commanded, as the price of their pardon and as a proof of their penitence, to stone to death their spiritual father. The affectionate flock turned aside from the impious office, the stones dropped from their filial hands, and of the whole number only one executioner could be found. This apostate, Justus, after putting Sylvanus to death, gained, by some means, admittance into communion, and again deceived and betrayed his unsuspecting brethren, and as many as were treacherously ascertained and could he collected, were massed together in an immense pile, and by order of the emperor, were consumed to ashes. Eighth Century Orchard, page 135: From the blood and ashes of the first Paulician (Baptist) victims, a succession of teachers and congregations repeatedly arose. The Greeks, to subdue them, made use of both argument and arms, with all the terror of penal laws, without affecting their object. The great instrument of this peoples multiplication was alone the use of the New Testament, The Baptists of the eighth century took the New Testament as their only rule of faith and practice and suffered for it. Ninth Century Orchard, page 137: The severest persecution experienced by them was encouraged by the Empress Theodora, A. D. 845. Her decrees were severe, but the cruelty with which they were put in execution by her officers was horrible beyond expression. Mountains and hills were covered with inhabitants. Her sanguinary inquisitors explored the cities and mountains in Lesser Asia. After confiscating the goods and property of one hundred thousand of these people, the owners to that number were put to death in the most barbarous manner, and made to expire slowly under a variety of the most exquisite tortures. The Baptists must have been numerous in the ninth century for a hundred thousand of them to be put to death under the reign of one wicked empress. Tenth Century Orchard, Vol. 1, page 298 (old edition): During the kingdoms of the Goths and Lombard's the Baptists, or as they were called by the Catholics, Ana-Baptists, had their share of churches and baptistries in these provinces, though they had no communion with Rome, Milan, Aquilia, Ravenna, or any other hierarchy. But the Jaws of the emperors deprived them of their edifices, and transferred them to the Catholic party. Eleventh Century Orchard, page 147: After the ruin of these kingdoms (the Goths and Lombards), laws were issued by the emperor, to deprive them of their baptismal churches and to secure them to the Catholic clergy. Consequently the brethren worshipped in private houses, under different names. Note: After being driven out of their meeting houses they worshipped in private houses under different names. This gives occasion to remark that Baptists have never had a uniform name. Baptists today, believing and practicing substantially the same thing are called by various names. There are the Landmark Baptists, Regular Baptists, Missionary Baptists, Gospel Mission Baptists, United Baptists, etc. Yet they are all one and the same sort of Baptists. So in the past they were called Waldenses, Novationists, Petro-Brusians, Paulician, Ana-Baptists, etc.; called
by various names but none the less they were one and the same people. What we shall be called next nobody knows. Twelfth Century Baptists Martyrs, page 40: About the year 1137, a reformer appeared in Italy, who proved himself a powerful opponent to the Church of Rome, and who, in fortitude and zeal, was inferior to no one bearing that name, while in talent and learning he excelled most. This was Arnold of Brescia, a man remarkable for force of piety anti austerity of manners. * * * The Romish church took alarm at his bold attacks, and in a council condemned him to perpetual silence. * * * At length the Pope laid an interdict on the city. As the sword was no weapon in Arnolds panoply, the noble champion retired to Tuscany. There he was seized, brought back to Rome, crucified and burnt. His ashes were thrown in the river Tiber. On account of the prominence of this great man, the Baptists, among whom he labored, were dubbed Arnoldists. But call them what you may they were Baptists still. Thirteenth Century Jones History (quoted by Ray, page 373): The penalty for giving food, or showing any other favor to the hated Waldenses, was death, as for high treason. It was considered a crime worthy of death for even a Catholic to favor one of them with shelter from a storm, a piece of bread or a cup of cold water. * * * These scenes of slaughter and devastation which had been carried on against the Albigenses in the southern provinces of France for more than twenty years during the former part of the thirteenth century. * * * During the said twenty years it has been computed that one million persons bearing that name were put to death. Fourteenth Century Jones History: They fled to one of the highest mountains of the Alps with their wives and children * * * Their inhuman invaders, whose feet were swift to shed blood, pursued them in their flight until night came on, and slew great numbers of them before they could reach the mountains. * * * Four score of their infants deprived of life, many of their mothers also lying dead by their sides, etc. Thus the Baptists of the middle ages suffered and died for their principles. Fifteenth Century Jerome of Prague and John Huss were put to death, being burned at the stake. On account of the prominence of Huss the Baptists were called Hussites by their enemies. While the flames leaped up about his body he sang a hymn and prayed for his persecutors. Sixteenth Century Baptist Succession, page 376: In the early part of the sixteenth century the most cruel persecution continued to be urged against the Waldenses in the South of France; and in 1585 John Wiener led the Catholic forces against the Waldenses in Provence, France, and among other horrible cruelties, this inhuman wretch shut up about forty women in a barn full of hay and straw, and then set it on fire; and after that, the poor creatures, having attempted in vain to smother the fire with their clothes, which for that end they had pulled off, betook themselves to the great window, at which hay is commonly pitched into the barn, with an intention to leap out from thence, but were kept in with pikes and spears, so that all of them perished in the flames.
Seventeenth Century Mosheim, page 105: There were certain sects and doctors (teachers), against whom the zeal, vigilance and severity of Catholics, Lutherans and Calvinists were united, and in opposing whose settlement and progress these three communions, forgetting their dissentions, joined their most vigorous counsels and endeavors. The object of their common aversion was the Ana-Baptists. Eighteenth Century Belchers History Religious Denominations, pages 161-165, tells of Baptists being persecuted on American soil: Three Baptist preachers were brought to trial for preaching. The indictment brought against them was: For preaching the Gospel of the Son of God, contrary to the statute. Bloody persecutions were endured by the Baptists in the colonies of Massachusetts and Virginia. Baptists, smarting under these persecutions, organized the General Association of Virginia for the sole purpose of making a united effort to get a constitution and statutes in the United States guaranteeing religious liberty. They were successful and the clause in the constitution of the United States giving religious liberty to all was the work of Baptists. The American people owe their liberty of conscience to the much despised and terribly persecuted Baptists. Cardinal Hosious said: If the truth of religion were to be judged of by the readiness and cheerfulness which a man or any sect shows in suffering, then the opinion and persuasion of no sect can be truer than that of the Ana-Baptists, since there has been none for these twelve hundred years past that have been more generally punished or that have more cheerfully and steadfastly undergone and even offered themselves to the most cruel kind of punishment than these people. Note two things: Cardinal Hosious, a Roman Catholic, testifies that the people called AnaBaptists had endured cruel persecution, and that they had suffered twelve hundred years, almost the exact number of years that the prophetic woman, the symbol of the church, should stay in the wilderness. (See Rev. 12:6-14.) No other people have had a wilderness history. No other people have been compelled to hide from their persecutors for hundreds of years, hence no other denomination meets the conditions surrounding the woman of Revelation, who was to fly into the wilderness from the face of the serpent and there be sustained f or twelve hundred and sixty years a time, time, and half a time. Baptists have a goodly heritage. Their cause was planted by Jesus Christ, and it has been fertilized by martyrs blood. Shall we, like dogs, lick the hands that smote our fathers? Nay, verily, Baptists must remain a separate people. CHAPTER X ~ The Way Traced From America to Palestine The Baptists of America have direct connection with the Welsh Baptists. The Penepek Church of Pennsylvania came from Wales in a body in 1701. In 1663 John Miles, with several others, came from Swansea, Wales, and they organized a church in Massachusetts. (Davis History Welsh Baptists, pages 39-40.) When we get into Wales we find Baptists in large numbers as far back as the year 600 A.D. Benedict, page 343: But though the subject of baptism began now to be altered (597 A. D.), the mode of it continued in the national church a thousand years longer, and baptism was administered by dipping. From the coming of Austin, the church in this island was divided into two parts, the old and the new. The old or Baptist church maintained their original principles.
But the new church adopted infant baptism and the rest of the multiplying superstitions of Rome?
The Baptists were old in Wales in A. D. 597. The Catholics had not been there and Austin was the missionary of the Catholic Church, and his purpose was to gain these Welsh Baptists over to the Catholics. He succeeded in gaining many of them and caused a split among them, the old church adhering tenaciously to their old doctrines and practices, while those that went after Austin became Catholics. Whence came the Catholic Church in Wales? From Baptists. Baptists, as we have seen in the preceding chapters, were the first in Italy and Africa and they were on the ground first in Wales. In the year 597 the Baptists had been in Wales long enough to have at least one college and one association. Benedict, page 344: They also give the names of Faganus, Damicanus, Alban, Aaron, Julius, Gildas, Dyfrig, Dynawt, Tailo, Padran, Pawlin, Daniel Dcwi or David, as noted Baptist ministers in the time of Austin's visit and that Dynawt was president of the college or monastery of Banor at that time and was chief speaker in a conference or association of Welsh ministers or messengers, who met the famous Roman reformer and had a debate with him on baptism.
On the same page Benedict says that the Welsh Baptists have the fullest confidence that their sentiments have always lived in their mountainous retreats, from the apostolic age to the present time. Hear Benedict again: Welsh Baptists contend that Baptist principles were maintained in the recesses of their mountainous principality all along through the dark reign of popery. (Page 344.) Between our time and the years 579-600 A. D. we have the Hill Cliff Church, which was beyond reasonable doubt organized A. D. 600. While there was no record kept by the church because of their persecutors, there are records made in stone in the graveyard hard by, and the foundation of an ancient church with a baptistry was unearthed a few years ago, showing that far beyond the written records this church has lived. There stands the old church. When did it begin? The man who says it is of modern origin, let him prove it. The presumption is always in favor of existing institutions. There stands the church, and its origin is hid in the remote depth of antiquity.
Davis History Welsh Baptists, pages 6-9, says that in A. D. 300 Welsh Baptists suffered terrible persecution. They must have been there if they suffered persecution. This takes us back beyond the time when there was such a thing as the Roman Catholic Church and the Origin of the Welsh Christians still unaccounted for. Davis History, page 187: We have every reason to believe that Welsh Baptists had their associations, and that Dyfrig, Illtyd, and Dynawt were leading men among them long before Austin's attempt to convert them to popery * * * about the year A. D. 600.
The origin of the Welsh Baptists is accounted for by Davis in his history, page 6, as follows: In A. D. 63, while Paul was a prisoner at Rome, a Welsh lady and her husband, whose name was Pudens, visiting in Rome, were converted under Paul's preaching. They were referred to in Acts 28:30 and II Tim. 4:21. These people carried the gospel into Wales.
Thus, by the Welsh route, we find Baptists go back to the Apostle Paul. These Welsh Baptists have always been Missionary Baptists. Davis History, page 187: Every minister was both a pastor and a missionary.
Kenworthys History, Hill Cliff, p. 46 (1653): Mr. Tillman, also at this time was solemnly commended to the grace of God (like Paul when he left Antioch) in proceeding to Cheshire on a missionary or evangelistic tour.
The Ana-Baptist Route. As we have seen in the preceding chapters, Baptists have been called by various names, such as Montanists, Novatians, Donatists, Paulicians, Albigenses, Petro-Brusians, Waldenses, Ana-Baptists, Hussites, Arnoldites, etc. These names were not assumed by themselves, but were put upon them by their enemies. They have not cared so much about names as they have about doctrines and practices. In this Ana-Baptist route, the different periods of Baptist history shall be called links, and thus link by link a chain of Baptist history shall be formed from the Apostolic time to the present. FIRST LINK The Apostolic age continued through the first century. SECOND LINK Baptists were called Montanists in the second century. (See Armitage, page 177; Kurtz, Vol. I, page 131.) THIRD LINK Baptists were called Novatians in the third and fourth centuries and Robinsons Ecclesiastical Researches, page 126, says: A succession of them continued until the reformation FOURTH LINK The Baptists were called Donatists in the latter part of the fourth and in the fifth and sixth centuries. (Armitage, pages 200-201; Kurtzs History, Vol. II, p. 46; Schaff, Vol. I, p. 336.) FIFTH LINK Baptists were called Paulicians in the seventh, eighth and ninth centuries. (Mosheim, Cent. 8, part 2, Sec. I; Hase History, p. 159; Benedict, p. 12; Kurtzs History, Vol. I, p. 271.) SIXTH LINK Baptists were called Albigenses in the tenth, eleventh, twelfth and thirteenth centuries. (Mosheim, Cent. II, part 2, chapter 3, verse 2; Encyclopedia Britannica, Article Albigenses.) SEVENTH LINK Baptists were called Petro-Brusians in the latter part of the thirteenth and in the fourteenth century. (Kurtzs History, Vol. I, page 456.) EIGHTH LINK Baptists were called Waldenses from the fourteenth century to the reformation. (Armitage, pp. 302-303; Robinsons Eccl. Researches, p. 449; Jones History, p. 335.) NINTH LINK Baptists were called Ana-Baptists during the reformation and for over a hundred years thereafter, through a period embracing the fifteenth, sixteenth and seventeenth and a goodly part of the eighteenth centuries. They published a Confession of Faith in A. B. 1527. (See Armitage, p. 949.) TENTH LINK Modern Baptists. Mosheim, Cent. 16, part 2, chapter 3, section 2: Before the rise of Luther and Calvin there lay concealed in almost all the countries of Europe persons who adhered tenaciously to the principles of the Dutch Baptists. Mosheim, Cent. 16, section 3, chapter 3: It may be observed that they are not entirely mistaken when they (the Ana-Baptists) boast of their descent from the Waldenses and the PetroBrusians. New Royal Encyclopedia: They appear supported by history in considering themselves the descendants of the Waldenses. Robinsons Eccl. Researches, pp. 126, 127: When penal laws obliged them (the Baptists) to lurk in corners and worship God in private, they were distinguished by a variety of names, and a succession of them continued until the Reformation.
A fitting close to this chapter will be the testimony of two learned Pedo-Baptist historians, Drs. Ypeij, professor of theology at Granigen, and J. J. Dermont, chaplain to the King of the Netherlands. These learned gentlemen were appointed to write a history of the Dutch Reform Church. Religious Encyclopedia, page 796, quotes them as follows: We have now seen that the Baptists, who were formerly called Ana-Baptists, and in later times Mennonites, were the
original Waldenses, and who long in the history of the church, received the honor of that origin. On this account the Baptists may be considered as the only Christian community which has stood since the days of the Apostles, and as a Christian society which has preserved pure the doctrines of the Gospel through all ages. * * * And at the same time goes to refute the erroneous notion of the Catholics that their communion is the most ancient. The aforementioned book was published in Breda, A. D. 1819. Space forbids the author running a line of church succession through the ages, beginning in America and running back to the Apostle John, but sufficient has been presented to convince any who are willing to be convinced by testimony. Baptists are the only people who have had unbroken continuity through the centuries to the apostolic time. CHAPTER XI ~ The Historical Way Attested by Scholars Alexander Campbell: From the apostolic age to the present time the sentiments of Baptists and their practice of baptism have had a continued chain of advocates, and public monuments of their existence in every century can be produced. (Campbell-McCalla debate, p. 378, in 1824.) The Baptist denomination in all ages and in all countries has been as a body, the constant asserters of the rights of man and the liberty of conscience. (Campbell on Baptism, p. 409, in 1851.) Campbell, being the founder of the Campbellite Church, commands attention that other men would not. John Clark Ridpath: I should not readily admit that there was a Baptist church as far back as A. D. 100, though without doubt there were Baptists then, as all Christians were then Baptists. (See Baptists Church Perpetuity, p. 59.) Ridpath was a professor of history in DuPaw University and a Methodist. Benjamin Franklin: If popery was not too late, or too young, to be the true church, what shall be said of those communions born in the past three centuries? They are all too young by largely more than a thousand years. NO church that has come into existence since the death of the apostles can be the Church of the Living God. (Living Pulpit, p. 348.) Theodore Beza: As for the Waldenses, I may be permitted to call them the very seed of the Christian church, since they are those that have been upheld, as is absolutely manifest, by the wonderful providence, so that neither those endless storms and tempests by which the whole Christian world has been shaken for so many succeeding ages, and the Western part at length so miserably oppressed by the bishop of Rome, falsely so-called, nor those horrible persecutions which have been expressly raised against them, were ever able so far to prevail as to make them bend, or yield a voluntary subjection to the Roman tyranny and idolatry. (Jones History, p. 353.) Beza was a Presbyterian and the successor of John Calvin. Such testimony ought to have weight. Oliver Cromwell. Speaking of Waldenses, he says: Next to the help of God it seems to devolve on you to provide that the most ancient stock of pure religion may not be destroyed in this remnant of its ancient professors. (Jones History, p. 530.) Oliver Cromwell was dictator of England, and he calls the Waldenses the most ancient stock of pure religion. Dr. DAnvers: In the preface to the French Bible, and the first that ever was printed, they say that they have always had the full enjoyment of the heavenly truth contained in the Holy Scriptures ever since they were enriched with the same by the apostles themselves, having in manuscripts, preserved the entire Bible, in their native tongues, from generation to generation. (DAnvers on Baptism, p. 341.) The French Bible was a Waldenses publication. In the preface they lay claims to having come from the apostles and of having preserved the entire Bible in manuscripts. So the Catholic
boast that they alone preserved the Bible is found to be false. Baptists preserved the entire Bible during that awful period of darkness known as the Dark Ages.
PART III ~ The Present Way The Master has not changed His method of work. If He has, it is certain that He has not notified His servants of it, and until He gives notice of a change of methods Baptists should continue to work by the methods revealed in the Scriptures. The Scriptures are yet, as in the olden time, the only and all sufficient rule of faith and practice. Let us walk by that rule to the law and to the testimony. The following pages shall briefly set forth the New Testament way of meeting present conditions. CHAPTER XII ~ The Way To Organize Churches The Scriptures teach that the disciples should statedly assemble themselves together. In commanding them to not forsake the assembling of themselves together (Heb. 10:25), nothing less is meant than the disciples should habitually and regularly assemble for worship. An assembly of baptized believers is a church. A correct translation of the Greek word ecclesia, which is the original for the word church in the New Testament, would be assembly or congregation. This is seen in the seven churches (congregations) of Asia, etc. It is eminently proper for a congregation, as well as an individual, to give a reason of the hope that is in them with meekness and fear. (I Peter 3:15.) This reason concerning the hope that is in them may be stated orally or it may be written. If written, it is what is commonly called a Confession or Declaration of Faith. It surely is right for a church to tell the world what it believes the Bible to teach. Preachers do that every time they preach. Authors do that every time they write a book on religious topics, and why not a church of Christ do the same in writing concerning the things most certainly believed by its membership? Such declarations are not laws, but only statements of what the congregation understands the law of the Lord to mean. The Baptist creed is the Bible, but what they understand this creed to teach they express in their Confession of Faith. To object to such a declaration of doctrine is puerile. To fail to publish such a confession is to have the world in doubt concerning what we believe. The first step necessary in the organization of a new congregation or church is for as many as three baptized disciples to agree to meet statedly for worship, for mutual edification and united effort for the evangelization of the world. The object of a church is twofold, viz., that the membership may be mutually helpful to one another and to work for Gods glory in the evangelization of the world. The agreement to meet regularly for worship and work is commonly called a Church Covenant. The word covenant means agreement. This covenant should be in writing, lest some misunderstand the terms. When this covenant has been entered into the church is fully organized. This covenant is the organization. After the organization has been perfected by the members entering into the covenant with each other, the church (which is just as much a church now as it will ever be) may elect officers. A pastor should be elected, and if possible, deacons. Since it is proper that a record should be kept of the doings of the church, a clerk may be elected to commit to writing the business transactions of the congregation. In order to be known as a Baptist church a published Declaration of Faith should be spread on the minutes and made known to the public. If there is no Confession or Declaration of Faith already written that exactly expresses the doctrine of the newly organized church, let a committee be appointed to write a Declaration such as will express the doctrinal views of the new congregation. It is not necessary, but it is customary, for a council of brethren from neighboring churches, to be called to assist in the organization of new churches. Usually this is best, since there is less liability to error when wise brethren are present with their council.
After organization, it is customary for the church to petition for membership in some association of churches. This is done by writing a letter, giving their Declaration of Faith and other matters of interest, such as the number of members, the name of the pastor and clerk, the amounts contributed toward the support of the pastor and for missions. Messengers should be elected to bear this letter to the association, which letter is kept by the messengers until petitionary letters are called for, and the bearer of the letter will then go forward and present the letter to the clerk of the association. CHAPTER XIII ~ The Way Churches May Associate There is no Scriptural way by which churches may combine, but they may associate as equals. This associating does not consist in meeting at a given place, but the churches associate in the work. They may elect messengers but these messengers are not the association. These messengers represent the churches the churches themselves constituting the association. The association, properly speaking, never meets. Only the messengers, from the churches composing the association, meet arid while it is common it is not proper to speak of the meeting of the messengers as being the association. These messengers are nothing more nor less than a joint committee appointed by the churches for the purpose of consulting about the work which the Master commissioned each of them to do. Since the commission was given to the congregation as such, it follows that, the congregation as such are the units in all associate or co-operative work. They must, therefore, work together on terms of perfect equality. The large church or the rich is only a church and should have no special privileges on account of its size or wealth. Hence the numerical and financial bases of representation in associations or conventions are equally wrong. If the Lord gave the commission to individuals, the number of individuals should, of course, determine the number of messengers sent, or if the commission were given to churches according to their wealth, then the amount of money given should determine the number of messengers. But if the Lord gave the commission to the church, as such, it follows that an equal number of messengers should be sent from all the churches associating. There is no need of rehearsing the Scriptural arguments proving the commission was given to the churches, as such, for that ground has been fully canvassed in the preceding pages. To contend logically for the convention system of co-operation one must contend that the commission was given to individuals, to argue for the association system of work one must contend that the commission was given to the churches as such. The whole matter rests right here. What is called the association is not an organization in the common acceptance of the term at all. It is only an intelligent working together of independent organizations. It is only associated work working at the same thing at the same time and the same way, but working as individual churches, independent and free. Beyond this they cannot go without violating the law of the Master, who told the individual church, as such, to go teach all nations, baptizing them, etc. (Matt. 28:19-20.) That churches did associate in the Masters work in apostolic times is seen in II Cor. 8:19-23. Here was a joint work of the churches through messengers, a joint committee. Whether any do enquire of Titus, he is my partner and fellow-helper concerning you: or brethren be enquired of, they are the messengers of the churches, and the glory of Christ. Certainly the churches may elect messengers to carry on cooperative work, but they may not do it except on terms of perfect equality, and the churches as such must engage in the work. CHAPTER XIV ~ The Way of Church Letters, Ordinations, Marriages, Funerals, Etc. Form of Church Letter of dismission A church letter of dismission is only a recommendation of the member holding the letter. The letter of recommendation is of no value beyond the fact that it is a recommendation of the person holding the letter. That being the case, the letter should state the facts so that any other
church, to which he may apply for membership, may know the character of the person applying. The person getting the letter retains membership in the church giving the letter until he becomes a member of another church. Getting a letter does not put the one holding the letter out of the church. Another church is not bound to receive a member because he comes with a letter. A letter is only a recommendation and is in no sense a transfer. Where a person is well known to a church, of which he wishes to become a member, there is no necessity for a church letter. The church knowing him well, it does not need a recommendation of him. But, as a matter of courtesy toward the church of which a person is a member, it would be altogether right for him to ask for a letter before uniting with another church. A common form of church letter is as follows: Little Rock, Ark., Jan. 19 This is to certify that John Smith is a member of the church in good standing. At his own request he is hereby dismissed from us to unite with any other church of the same faith and order. His membership with us will cease when he shall have united with another church of the same faith and order. Done by order of the church in conference Jan.-. ----, 19-. JOHN JONES. Church Clerk. When it is known what church a person wishes to join the letter may be written directly to the church. The following is a good form: Little Rock, Ark., Jan. ., 19.. The Baptist church at.....; to her sister church at Dear Brethren: This certifies that John Smith is a member with us in good standing and at his own request is hereby dismissed from us to unite with you. When he shall have been received by you, his connection with us will cease. Done by order of the church. JOHN JONES. Church Clerk. Ordaining Preachers The method of ordaining preachers is to invite a council of preachersa presbyteryand the church through this council examines the candidate for ordination concerning his call and qualifications for the gospel ministry. After a careful and prayerful examination, which would fittingly be accompanied by fasting, if the presbytery deems the candidate worthy of ordination, the church is notified. Then the church, by vote, receives or rejects the report of the presbytery, as it may choose, the entire responsibility for the ordination being in the church. If the church accepts the report of the presbytery, the ordination follows, which consists in prayer and the laying on of the hands of the presbytery. Form of Ordination Certificate This is to certify that Brother was ordained to the work of the Gospel Ministry by prayer and the laying on of hands by the Presbytery, upon the authority of the church at on Nov 19 .The names of the elders comprising the Presbytery are______, _______...... . After a careful examination this Presbytery recommended his ordination. Our beloved brother, the bearer of this paper, has therefore, the entire approbation of the Presbytery recommending his ordination and of the church which ordained him, and is commended to the churches everywhere as being worthy and qualified for the work to which the Lord has called him. (Signed) ELD. JOHN JOHNSON, Moderator. F. H. HOLMAN, Clerk.
Marriages While marriage is a civil contract, made so by the laws of the land, it has become customary for preachers to perform the marriage ceremony. The matter of uniting a man and woman as husband and wife is a serious and solemn affair and should not be entered into lightly. A preacher should never perform a marriage ceremony where either party has been divorced, unless it be that the cause of the divorce was fornication or adultery. That should constantly be borne in mind. Preachers should put the ban of their disapproval on all divorces, except for the one Scriptural ground for divorce. (Matt. 5:31-32.) The author, in the year 1900, composed a marriage ceremony which he uses at all weddings. Marriage Ceremony God in His goodness saw that it was not good for man to be alone, and for this reason He created a helpmeet for him. Thus we have Divine authority for the sacred rite of matrimony. Please to join hands, (The contracting parties then join hands.) Today we stand before an altar which God Himself erected amidst the purity of Paradise, environed by the perfume of flowers, surrounded by angelic hosts and kissed into radiant beauty by the golden beams of youthful morn. This teaches that the purest state is that of marriage. Paradise was lost, but there remains of it this altar, which has come down to us through the vicissitudes of time, undisturbed by the horrors of war nor forgotten in times of peace, a relic of primeval beauty with Gods smiles resting upon it. Mr._____do you choose this woman to be your lawful and wedded wife, to love, cherish support, and comfort her through life, cleaving to her, and to her only, until parted by death? Answer: I do. Miss____(or Mrs., if a widow), do you accept this man to be your lawful and wedded husband, to love, cherish, comfort and help through life, cleaving to him, and to him only, until parted by death? Answer: I do. Then by the authority invested in me, as a minister of the Gospel, I pronounce you husband and wife, henceforth in interest and destiny one, to dwell together in the sacredness of wedded love until the last golden sunset of life's journey, never to be separated until the last evenings deepening shadow, death. Let us pray. Then follows such a prayer as the preacher may have in his heart to offer for the newly united pair. Funerals By all means avoid display at a funeral. A suitable scripture to read is the fifteenth chapter of I Corinthians. This read with brief comments and prayer, is enough religious exercises. On the life of the deceased, be careful not to make the impression that the wicked man has gone to heaven, and do not try to conceal the fact that even the best of Christians have their faults and that at best only the grace of God can save the soul. A word of warning to sinners is always in order at a funeral. Call attention to the certainty of death and of judgment. Urge them to prepare for the next world. There should never be any ceremony at the grave beyond the singing of a hymn and prayer. To hold the people in the hot sun or in the cold wind and the damp ground for a great length of time is wrong. We greatly need reform in funerals at this point. When death has entered a home it gives a good opportunity for the preacher to win the unconverted in the family to Christ, and a minister is wise if he uses this opportunity.
Doctrinal Statement of the American Baptist Association We, your committee on the statement of our doctrinal belief would respectfully submit the following and recommend: That this body reaffirm its acceptance of the New Hampshire confession of faith; so long held by our American Baptist people, and that it be printed in full in the minutes of this session. And we would further recommend that in explanation of said Articles of Faith and in view of the attacks being made by the advocates of modern science, falsely so-called, on certain fundamentals of the revealed truth, do most positively emphasize our adherence to the following: 1. We believe in the infallible verbal inspiration of the whole Bible. II Tim. 3:16. 2. The Triune God. Matt. 28:19. 3. The Genesis Account of Creation. 4. The virgin birth of Jesus Christ. Matt. 1:20. 5. The deity of Jesus Christ. 6. His crucifixion and suffering as vicarious and substitutionary. 7. The bodily resurrection and ascension of Christ and the bodily resurrection of His saints. I Cor. 15:1-58 8. The second coming of Christ, personal and bodily, as the crowning event of this Gentile age. Acts1:11. 9. The Bible doctrine of eternal punishment of the finally impenitent. Matt. 25:46. 10. We also hold in common what real Baptists have ever held: That the great commission was given to the churches only. That in kingdom activities, the church is the unit, and the only unit that the churches have, and equal authority and responsibility should be met by them according to their several abilities. 11. That all co-operative bodies, such as Associations, Conventions and their Boards or Committees, etc. are, and properly should be, the servants of the churches. 12. We believe that the great commission teaches that there has been a succession of missionary Baptist churches from the days of Christ down to this day. H. B. Pender, G. W. Crawford, J. H. Boyet, W. A. Jarrell, J. L. Brown, J. M. Stone, C. E. Smith, D.C. Dove, W. A. Crutchfield. Respectfully submitted. DECLARATION OF FAITH I. Of the Scriptures We believe that the Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired, and is a perfect treasure of heavenly instruction; (II Tim. 3:16-17) that it has God for its author, salvation for its end (II Tim. 3:15), and truth without any mixture of error for its matter; (Prov. 30:5-6) that it reveals the principles by which God will judge us; (Rom. 2:12; John 12:47-48) and therefore is, and shall remain to the end of the world, the true center of Christian union (Phil. 3:16), and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds and opinions should be tried. (I John 4:1; Isa. 8:20). II. Of the True God We believe that there is one, and only one living and true God, an infinite, intelligent Spirit, whose name is JEHOVAH, the Maker and Supreme Ruler of heaven and earth; (John 4:24; Psalm 147:5; 83:18; Heb. 3:4; Rom. 1:20; Jer. 10:10) inexpressibly glorious in holiness, (Exod. 15:11) and worthy of all possible honor, confidence, and love; (Mark 12:30; Rev. 4:11) that in the unity of the Godhead there are three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; (Matt. 28:19; John 15:16) equal in every divine perfection (John 10:30), and executing distinct but harmonious offices in the great work of redemption. (Eph. 2:18; II Cor. 13:14)
III. Of the Fall of Man We believe that man was created in holiness, under the law of his Maker; (Gen. 1:27, 31; Eccl. 7:29) but by voluntary transgression fell from that holy and happy state; (Gen. 3:6-24; Rom. 5:12) in consequence of which all mankind are now sinners, (Rom. 5:19; John 3:6; Psalm 51:5) not by constraint but choice; (Isa. 53:6; Gen. 6:12; Rom. 3:9-18) being by nature utterly void of that holiness required by the law of God, positively inclined to evil; and therefore under just condemnation to eternal ruin, (Eph. 2:18; Rom. 1:18, 31; 2:1-16) Without defense or excuse. (Ezek. 18:19-20; Rom. 1:20; 3:19) IV. Of the Way of Salvation We believe that the salvation of sinners is wholly of grace, (Eph. 2:5; 1 John 4:10) through the Mediatorial offices of the Son of God; (John 3:7; 1:1-14) who by the appointment of the Father, freely took upon Him our nature, yet without sin; (Phil. 2:6-7; Heb. 2:9, 14) honored the divine law by His personal obedience, (Isa. 42:21; Phil. 2:8) and by His death made a full atonement for our sins; (Isa. 53:4-5; Matt. 20:28; Rom. 4:25) that having risen from the dead, He is now enthroned in heaven; (Heb. 1:3-8; Col. 3:1) and united in His wonderful person the tenderest sympathies with divine perfections, He is every way qualified to be a suitable, a compassionate, and an all-sufficient Saviour. (Heb. 7:25-26; Col. 2:9; Heb. 2:18) V. Of Justification We believe that the great gospel blessing which Christ (John 1:16; Eph. 3:8) secures to such as believe in Him is justification; (Acts 13:39; Rom. 8:1) that justification includes the pardon of sin, (Rom. 5:9) and the promise of eternal life on principles of righteousness; (Rom. 5:17; Titus 3:5-6) that it is bestowed, not in consideration of any works of righteousness which we have done, but solely through faith in the Redeemers blood; (Rom. 4:4-5) by virtue of which faith His perfect righteousness is freely imputed to us of God; (Rom. 5:19; 3:24-28) that it brings us into a state of most blessed peace and favor with God, and secures every other blessing needful for time and eternity. (Rom. 5:1-3, 11; Matt. 6:33) VI. Of the Freeness of Salvation. We believe that the blessings of salvation are made free to all by the Gospel of Christ; ( Isa. 55:1; Rev. 22:17 ) that it is the immediate duty of all to accept them by a cordial penitent and obedient faith; (Rom. 16:26; Mark 1:15; Rom. 1:15-17) and that nothing prevents the salvation of the greatest sinner on earth, but his own inherent depravity and voluntary rejection of the gospel of Christ; (John 5:40; Rom. 9:32) which rejection involves him in an aggravated condemnation. (John 3:19; Matt. 11:20) VII. Of Grace in Regeneration We believe that in order to be saved, sinners must be regenerated, or born again; (John 3:3,6-7) that regeneration consists in giving a holy disposition to the mind, (II Cor. 5:17; Ezek. 36:26; Rom. 2:28-29) that it is effected in a manner above our comprehension by the power of the Holy Spirit, in connection with divine truth; (John 3:8; 1:13; James 1:16-18) so as to secure our voluntary obedience to the Gospel of Christ; ( I Peter 1:22-25; I John 5:1; Eph. 4:20-24 ) and that its proper evidence appears in the holy fruits of *repentance, and faith, and newness of life. (Eph. 5:9; Rom. 8:9; Gal. 5:16-23; Eph. 3:14-21) *[or, newness of life because of repentance and faith--F. C. Miller] VIII. Of Repentance and Faith We believe that repentance and faith are sacred duties and also inseparable graces, wrought in our souls in regeneration (Mark 1:15; Acts 11:18; Eph. 2:8; I John 5:1) whereby being
deeply convinced of our guilt, danger, and helplessness, and of the way of salvation by Christ, (John 16:8; Acts 2:37-38; 16:30-31) we turn to God with unfeigned contrition, confession, and supplication for mercy; (Luke 18:13; James 4:7-10) at the same time heartily receiving the Lord Jesus Christ as our Prophet, Priest, and King, and relying on Him alone as the only and allsufficient Saviour. (Rom. 10:9-13; Acts 3:22-23; Heb. 1:8) IX. Of Gods Purpose of Grace We believe that election is the eternal purpose of God, according to which He graciously regenerates, sanctifies, and saves sinners; ( II Tim. 1:8-9; Eph. 1:3-14; Rom. 11:5-6 ) that being perfectly consistent with the free agency of man, it comprehends all the means in connection with the end; (II Thess. 2:13-14; Acts 13:48; John 10:16) that it is a most glorious display of Gods sovereign goodness, being infinitely free, wise, holy and unchangeable; (Exod. 33:18-19; Matt. 20:15; Eph. 1:11; Rom. 9:23-24; 11:28-36) that it utterly excludes boasting and promotes humility, love, prayer, praise, trust in God, and active imitation of His Free mercy; (I Cor. 4:7; 1:26-31; Col. 3:12) that it encourages the use of means in the highest degree; (II Tim. 2:10; I Cor. 9:2; Rom. 8:28-30; John 6:37-40) that it may be ascertained by its effects in all who truly believe the Gospel of Christ; (I Thess. 1:4-10) that it is the foundation of Christian assurance; ( Rom. 8:28-31; 11:29 ) and that to ascertain it with regard to ourselves demands and deserves the utmost diligence. (II Peter 1:10-11; Phil 3:12) X. Of Sanctification We believe that sanctification is the process by which, according to the will of God, we are made partakers of His holiness; (I Thess. 4:3; 5:23; II Cor. 7:1) that it is a progressive work; (Prov. 4:18; II Peter 1:5-8; Phil. 3:12-16) that it is begun in regeneration (John 2:29; Rom. 8:5; Phil 1:9-11) and that it is carried on in the hearts of believers by the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, the Sealer and Comforter, in the continual use of the appointed means especially, the Word of God, self-examination, self-denial, watchfulness, and prayer. (Phil. 2:12-13; Eph. 4:11-12; I Peter 2:2) XI. Of the Perseverance of Saints We believe that such only are real believers as endure unto the end; (John 8:31; I John 2:27-28; 3:9) that their persevering attachment to Christ is the grand mark which distinguishes them from superficial professions; (I John 2:19; Matt. 13:20-21) that a special providence watches over their welfare; (Rom. 8:28; Matt. 6:30-33) and that they are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation. (Phil 1:6; 2:12-13; Jude 1:24-25) XII. Of the Harmony of the Law and the Gospel We believe that the law of God is the eternal and unchangeable rule of His moral government; (Rom. 3:31; Matt. 5:17; Luke 16:17) that it is holy, just; and good; (Rom. 7:12-14; Gal. 3:21) and that the inability which the Scriptures ascribe to fallen men to fulfill its precepts, arises entirely from their love of sin; (Rom. 8:7, 8; Jer. 13:23) to deliver from which, and to restore them through a Mediator t& unfeigned obedience to the holy law, is one great end of the Gospel of Christ, and of the means of grace connected with the establishment of the visible church. (Rom. 8:2-4; 10:4; Jude 1:20-21; Matt. 16:17-18) XIII. Of a Gospel Church We believe that a visible church of Christ is a congregation of baptized believers; ( I Cor. 1:1-13; Matt. 18:17; Acts 5:11; 8:1 ) associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the Gospel of Christ; (Acts 2:41-42, 47; II Cor. 8:5; I Cor. 5:12-13) observing the ordinances of Christ; (1 Cor. 11:2, 23; 2 Thess. 3:6; Rom. 16:17-20) governed by His laws; (Matt. 28:20; John 14:15, 21; I John 4:21) and exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His Word; (Eph.
4.7; I Cor. 14:12; Phil. 1:27) that its only Scriptural officers are bishops or pastors and deacons; ( Phil. 1:1; Acts 14:23; I Tim. 3:1-13 ) whose qualifications, claims, and duties are defined in the Epistles of Timothy and Titus. XIV. Of Baptism and the Lord's Supper We believe that Christian baptism is the immersion in water of a believer, (Acts 8:39; Matt. 3:5-6; John 3:22-23) into the name of the Father, and Son, and Holy Spirit; (Matt. 28:19: Acts 10:47-48) to show forth in a solemn and beautiful emblem our faith in the crucified, buried, and risen Saviour, with its effect, in our death to sin and resurrection to a new life; (Rom. 6:4; Col. 2:12) that it is a prerequisite to the privilege of a church relation; and to the Lord's Supper, (Acts 2:41-42; Matt. 28:19-20) in which the members of the church by the sacred use of bread and wine, are to commemorate together the dying love of Christ; (I Cor. 11:26; Matt. 26:26-29) preceded always by solemn self-examination. (I Cor. 5:1, 8; 11:28). XV. Of the Lord's Day We believe that the first day of the week is the Lord's Day; (Acts 20:7; Col. 2:16-17; John 20:19: I Cor. 16:1-2) and is to be kept sacred to religious purposes, (Exod. 20:8; Rev. 1:10; Psalm 118:24) by abstaining from all secular labor and sinful recreations, ( Isa. 58:13-14; 56:2-8 ) by the devout observance of all the means of grace, both private (Psalm 118:15) and public; (Heb. 10:24, 25; Acts 11:26; 13:44) and by preparation for that rest that remaineth for the people of God. (Heb. 4:3-11) XVI. Of Civil Government We believe that civil government is of divine appointment, for the interests and good order of human society; (Rom. 13:1-7; Deut. 16:18; II Sam. 23:3) and that magistrates are to be prayed for, conscientiously honored, and obeyed; (Matt. 22:21; Titus 3:1; I Peter 2:13; I Tim. 2:1-8) except only in things opposed to the will of our Lord Jesus Christ, (Acts 5:29; Matt. 10:28; Dan. 3:15-18; 6:7-10) who is the only Lord of the conscience, and the Prince of the kings of the earth. (Matt. 23:10; Rom. 14:4; Rev. 19:16; Psalm 72:11) XVII. Of the Righteous and the Wicked We believe that there is a radical and essential difference between the righteous and the wicked; (Mal. 3:18; Prov. 12:26; Rom. 6:16) that such only as through faith are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and sanctified by the Spirit of our God, are truly righteous in His esteem; (Rom. 1:17; 7:6; 6:18-22; I John 2:29; 3:7)while all such as continue in impenitence and unbelief are in His sight wicked, and under the curse; ( 1 John 5:19; Gal. 3:10; John 3:36 ) and this distinction holds among men both in and after death. (Prov. 14:32; 10:24; Luke 16:25; John 8:21-24) XVIII. Of the World to Come We believe that the end of the world is approaching (I Peter 4:7; I Cor. 7:29-31; Heb. 1:1012; Matt. 24:35); that in the last days Christ will appear in the heavens (Acts 1:11; Rev. 1:7; Heb. 9:28; I Thess. 4:13-18; I Thess. 5:1-11); that at His coming the dead saints will be raised from their graves, and the living believers caught up with them to meet the Lord in the air (I Thess. 4:16-17; I Cor. 15:51-53); that the saints will be judged for rewards according to their works (II Cor. 5:10; I Cor. 3:11-15); that Christ will descend to the earth with His saints, personally and bodily (Jude 1:14; Zech. 14:4: Acts 1:11); that Christ will reign over the earth in peace for one thousand years (Isa. 2:1-4; Isa 65:18-25; Rev. 20:1-4); that at end of the thousand years the wicked dead shall be raised and forever consigned to the lake of fire (Rev. 20:5, 11-15); that the righteous shall enter into eternal joy with the Lord (Rev. 7:15-17; 22:1-7); that these judgments
will fix forever the final state of men in heaven or hell, on principles of righteousness (Rom. 3:56; II Thess. 1:6-12; Heb. 6:1-2; Rom. 2:2-16 ) Church Covenant On profession of our faith, having been baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, we do now most solemnly and joyfully enter into covenant with one another as one body in Christ. We engage, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, to walk together in Christian love; to strive for the advancement of this church in knowledge, holiness and comfort; to promote its prosperity and spirituality; to sustain its worship, ordinances, discipline and doctrines, to contribute cheerfully and regularly to the support of its pastor, the expenses of the church, the relief of the poor, and the spread of the gospel throughout the world by methods in harmony with Acts 11:22; 13:1-4; 14:25-28. We engage to maintain family and secret prayer, to religiously train our children, to seek the salvation of the unsaved about us, to walk circumspectly in the world, to be just in our dealings, faithful in our engagements, upright in our deportment, to avoid tattling, back-biting and excessive anger; to abstain from the sale and use of intoxicating drinks, and to be zealous in our efforts to advance the kingdom of our Saviour. We further engage to watch over one another in brotherly love; to remember each other in prayer; to aid each other in sickness and distress; to cultivate Christian sympathy in feeling and courtesy in speech; to be slow to take offense, but always ready for reconciliation, and mindful of the rules of our Saviour, to secure it without delay. We, moreover, engage that when we remove from this place we will as soon as possible, unite with some other church, where we can carry out the spirit of this covenant, and the principles of God's Word. ORIGIN OF THE DENOMINATIONS BAPTISTS, A.D. 31, by Jesus Christ. CATHOLICS, separated from the Baptists in A.D. 251 and gradually drifted into the papacy. The first universal Bishop or Pope was Boniface III, who was made such by Emperor Phocas, A.D. 606. LUTHERANS, A.D. 1530, by Martin Luther. PRESBYTERIANS, A.D. 1535, by John Calvin. EPISCOPALIANS, A.D. 1540, by King Henry VIII. METHODISTS, A.D. 1729, by John Wesley. CAMPBELLITES, A.D. 1827, by Alexander Campbell. FREE WILL BAPTISTS, A.D. 1780, by Benj. Randall. MORMONS, A.D. 1830, by Joseph Smith. HARDSHELL BAPTISTS, A.D. 1832, by Daniel Parker. QUAKERS, A.D. 1648, by Geo. Fox. SEVENTH DAY ADVENTISTS, A.D. 1843, by William Miller. NAZARENES, A.D. 1885, by S. F. Breese. RUSSELLITES, A.D. 1884, by Pastor Russell. HOLY ROLLERS (Church of God) in 1914. McPHERSONITES by Aimee McPherson, 1925. ***Ben M. Bogard received his theological education at Bethel College, Russellville, KY which retained the influence of James M. Pendleton and Reuben Ross, who were Missionary Baptists in belief and practice. Dr. Bogard was very influential in Missionary Baptist associations and publications during the period of the 1901-1920 division, and the organization of the Arkansas State Association and the General Association, which in 1924 became the American Baptist Association. In the Baptist Way-Book, published about 1908, he carefully delineated the “Evils of Hardshellism” and the “Evils of Conventionism.” This publication was important in clearly establishing the doctrines and practices of Missionary Baptists, as distinguished from the Southern Baptists and the Primitive Baptists. Thus, it should be obvious that Missionary Baptist doctrine and practices grew out of three significant developments within the State of Kentucky:
1. The union of the Separate and Regular Baptists to become United or Missionary Baptists. 2. The leadership of Elders Matthew Floyd and Reuben Ross in advocating the position that Christ died for all men, thus avoiding the extremes of those who became hardshell or primitive Baptists, and: 3. The leadership of Eld. James M. Pendleton, followed by men such as J. N. Hall, who was followed by Ben M. Bogard in developing church truths and scriptural plans of associational and mission work. James M. Pendleton wrote Pendleton’s Church Manual, and also Christian Doctrine, A Compendium of Theology. In the Church Manual, Dr. Pendleton printed the New Hampshire Confession of faith, which was included in the Baptist Way-Book, edited by Dr. Ben M. Bogard about 1908. The New Hampshire Confession set forth the plan of salvation and the doctrines of the church more in accordance with contemporary Baptist teachings. Many Baptist churches have been organized according to the principles expressed in Pendleton’s Baptist Church Manual, which is still in print and continues to be utilized. Therefore, the biblical principles and practices set forth by Pendleton and Graves, and consequently Ben M. Bogard, continue to exert significant influence on contemporary Baptist principles and practices. Taken from: Contending for the Faith An Updated History of the Baptists by Robert Ashcraft © Baptist Sunday School Committee, 2006