"What Is Written … How Readest Thou?": How Does God Speak To Mankind?

Posted on April 1st, 2003 in Bible, Authority, Subject Index by Osborne, Harry

A few years ago while in preaching in Lithuania, a nice young woman came up to me and asked if she could tell me something. When I told her that I would be happy to speak with her, she launched into a truly bizarre story. She told me that God spoke to her out of a spaceship. This close encounter of the strange kind left her absolutely certain that she knew all that she needed to know about spiritual matters. However, her claim to be the recipient of divine communication did not stop at that galactic vision. She further claimed that, after the space ship, God spoke to her through a horse, a cow, a light fixture, a frog and an image of the Madonna.

Though she seemed sincere, I did not decide to abandon Bible study and begin searching the night sky for a heavenly spaceship, nor did I launch out in pursuit of an intelligent looking frog. I seriously doubt any of those reading this article would suggest such methods for determining God’s will either. Why? Because we recognize that God does not deliver His truth through a holy cow, but through the Holy Scriptures (2 Timothy 2:14-17). It is just that simple.

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"What Is Written…How Readest Thou?": Source of True Encouragement

Posted on February 1st, 2003 in Edification, Study, Bible, Truth, Subject Index by Osborne, Harry

Paul’s letters to the church at Thessalonica were written in the midst of great concern among the brethren regarding death, the coming of Christ and the hope of those in Christ. When we read 1 Thessalonians 4, it is evident that some among their number had died while awaiting the promised hope at the Lord’s coming. Some wondered if the death of those saints separated them from that hope in Christ. No doubt, the thought of faithful brethren having been robbed of their hope by untimely death was discouraging and depressing to the saints.

When viewed in terms of the present reality of their severe persecution, the obvious concern existed as to the ability of evil men to take away their hope by killing them (1 Thessalonians 1:6). After all, martyrdom was a present fact in the first century (Acts 7:59-60; 12:1-2; et. al.). In the midst of affliction, the saints in Thessalonica needed strength and comfort to help them live with joy and hope. Where could they find the real, lasting and substantive encouragement they needed? What could be the source for such?

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Editorial: The Bible and Academia

Posted on May 1st, 2001 in Florida College, Open Letter, Modernism, Themes, Subject Index, Bible, Editorials by Cox, Stan
This entry is part 31 of 38 in the series, Open Letter.

The obligation to correct a brother who is entangled in sin is clearly revealed in scripture. In Galatians 6:1-2, Paul wrote, “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

This call to correct or restore the one caught in sin is in fulfillment of our responsibilities under Christ’s law. This law can be encapsulated in the command to love. If I truly love my brother, when I see his soul in jeopardy I will seek to warn and correct him.

James revealed the value of such correction while instructing brethren in this responsibility. He wrote, “Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins” (James 5:19-20). Surely all agree that “save (-ing) a soul from death and cover (-ing) a multitude of sins” is a laudable and important work.

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White Unto Harvest: In the Language of Everyman

Posted on February 1st, 2000 in Bible, Foreign Evang., Subject Index by Wallace, Steve

Producing Written Translations
 
Paul wrote in Romans 10:14, “How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?” Hearing this many missionaries might ask, “How shall they understand what the preacher is saying without proper translation?” From the time a worker enters into a work where a language barrier exists he will have to overcome it in order to be effective. This is especially true when producing written translations.If the Lord lets time go on, the tracts, correspondence courses, books, etc., that brethren today are producing will still be useful in teaching the word long after all of us have passed from the scene. Hence, it behooves us to spend some time considering things relevant to the process of producing such translations.

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Associate Editorial: Are We Led by the Holy Spirit?

Posted on October 1st, 1999 in Bible, Holy Spirit, Associate Editorials, Subject Index by Roberts, Tom

On different occasions, while talking with one of the Pentecostal or Assemblies of God persuasion, the subject of the Holy Spirit will be discussed. Since one of our disagreements lies in the area of the miraculous action of the Holy Spirit, when we deny that miracles occur today, the response is often a surprised, “Then you don’t believe that the Holy Spirit leads you today, do you?” His confusion is often compounded when my response is, “Of course I believe in being led by the Holy Spirit.” Brethren, that is not sophistry. We certainly should believe that we are led by the Holy Spirit of God in our lives.

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Editorial: The Bible

Posted on May 1st, 1999 in Bible, Subject Index, Editorials by Cox, Stan

Attacks on the Bible
The Bible has long suffered the disparaging attacks of men. However, in times past the enemies of God’s word were at least easily identifiable. More and more as of late men who claim to be friends of our Lord are casting aspersions upon the Bible. While they profess a love for the Lord, they disingenuously deny the miracles of the Bible, many of the recorded actions and words of Jesus, and the inspiration of His written legacy to us.

An example of this is the Jesus Seminar; a group of liberal, modernistic theologians who, in effect, sit around a table and vote on what words and actions of our Lord, recorded in the gospels, are actually genuine. Predictably, they deny the veracity of recorded miracles, as well as any judgmental language, seeing fit only to accept the gentle and loving side of Jesus nature. In doing so, they seek to remake Jesus in their own image, and do violence to the historical Jesus revealed in the inspired Word.

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The Word and the World: Equal Revelations of God’s Will?

Posted on April 1st, 1999 in Themes, Inspiration, Creation, Bible, Evidences, Creation, Evolution, Subject Index by Hafley, Larry Ray
This entry is part 2 of 19 in the series, Creation.

Creation VS Evolution

(Author’s Note: The material below was initially written in a casual, almost haphazard fashion in response to a request from a brother in Christ. I have “doctored” it up a little, but it retains the flow of a “typing out loud” article. Now, I have been asked to submit it as part of a special study in this issue of Watchman. Fearing that it will lack the polish of other articles in this issue, I make this little apology with a not so subtle appeal for sympathy for its shortcomings.)

I am afraid I am not much help here, but let me venture a few remarks for your study and reflection. The assigned title (purposely so submitted, I imagine), needs work. Someone must convince me that natural revelation is a revelation of God’s “will.” That it manifests his glory, greatness, grandeur, and Godhood, I doubt not, but does it make known his will? “I trow not.”

One must “search the Scriptures daily,” “proving and explaining” from the text in order to learn the “will of God” (Acts 17:2, 3; 11, 12; 28:23,24; Eph. 3:4; 2 Tim. 2:15; Titus 1:9–”as he hath been taught;” Cf. Jn. 6:44, 45; 2 Tim. 2:2; 3:14). However, the heavens themselves, by their very existence, declare the glory and handiwork of God, his eternal power and Godhead. As Whiteside observed, one may learn from nature that there is a sublime, supreme being of eternal power and Deity, but one cannot tell if he exists in a million persons or if he hates or loves or even cares about man. Such knowledge can only come from what is termed, “special revelation.” I call it, “the Bible.”

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Evidences of Faith: Many Books, One God

Posted on March 1st, 1999 in Inspiration, Bible, Evidences, Subject Index by Robson, Jim

Those who claim that the Bible is merely the work of human beings, without God’s guidance or inspiration, will also speak of the evolution of the writers’ concept of God. They claim that the earlier writers had a primitive idea of who God is, whereas the later writers had a more sophisticated notion. Indeed, this is what we would expect from a collection of books written over a span of some 1500 years. But, is it really the case? Did the picture of God change from Genesis to Revelation, or is it truly the same God described throughout? The way to answer this is to look at some specific aspects of God’s character, and see whether the early writers had a different notion of God than the later ones did. For reasons of space, we cannot look at all of the different characteristics of God in this issue. However, we can take a good look at two of them.

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Evidences of Faith: Attack of the Atheists

Posted on February 1st, 1999 in Inspiration, Bible, Evidences, Subject Index by Robson, Jim

I am not reporting any news when I write that atheists do not believe the Bible. Atheists, of course, consider themselves too intelligent and sophisticated to believe in God. If you have read this feature before, you know that Evidences is dedicated to providing examples of the hard evidence God has provided for us to analyze with our rational minds, and conclude that He is, and that He inspired the writers of scripture. So, if it is reasonable to believe in God and the Bible, on what grounds do the atheists assert the opposite? For one thing, they claim that the Bible is riddled with contradictions. Of course, if this is so, then there is reason to doubt its inspiration. Therefore, let us ask the question, “Does the Bible contradict itself?”

 

In order to answer this question, we will let the atheists have a crack at showing some contradictions. The following passages are cited on an “American Atheist” website as an example of a biblical contradiction:

 

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8)

 

One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. (Romans 14:5)

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The Simple Gospel: Bible Study

Posted on June 1st, 1998 in Study, Bible, Subject Index by Scott, Carey

Bible study has everything to do with growing. We all know that we are to grow, but do we really know how to grow? There are many important things that we must do in order to grow. While we would not say that Bible study is more important than anything else, we can say that it is foundational. It is like God’s plan of salvation. All parts are equally important even though they have different characteristics and functions. The bible records over twenty things that save us. Try to leave one out, and you cannot have salvation. To try and place a greater importance on some parts over others is outrageous. But, there is one that is more vital to us than the others. In the case of salvation the one thing that provides for salvation is our individual obedience. Without obedience, God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and everything else is useless for our salvation.

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