The Gospel Spotlight
(Electronic Edition)
(Romans 1:16)
November
The Gospel Spotlight is a
publication of the
Editor and Evangelist
Don McClain - donmccla@msn.com
Previous issues of the "Gospel Spotlight" can be
viewed on our Web-Site - http://www.w65stchurchofchrist.org/My_Homepage.html
Contents
The Need For Restoration:
Lessons From
Ezra and Nehemiah
By Don McClain
In 539 BC. Cyrus the Great conquered
Led by Zerubbabel, about 42,000 Jews returned
to
After the death of Cyrus, the Arabic tribes
seized the opportunity to slander the Jews and their efforts, and by letter,
presented their case before Ahasuerus, (probably Cambyses II, the son of
Cyrus), (4:6-16). They were temporarily successful in putting a halt to the
Jews progress and for some sixteen years “the work of the house of God ceased.”
(
The result – apathy! Haggai and Zechariah
scolded the Jews for “living in their houses while the house of God lay in
ruins,” (Haggai 1:4). The rebukes produced their desired results, (5:1,2), and the work resumed but not without resistance,
(5:3-17). Tattenai wrote a letter to king Darius I in an attempt to prove false
the Jews claim of the earlier decree by Cyrus. A record of the original decree
was found, and Darius decreed that the work continue “diligently.” (6:1-12).
Over twenty years after the decree by Cyrus was given, the temple was finally
finished. (Restoration takes effort and determination)
The task of rebuilding the city of Jerusalem
proceeded slowly, and about 445 BC, Nehemiah,
the cupbearer of Artaxerxes I, (Nehemiah 2:1), was given permission to direct
the reconstruction. During this same period, Ezra was also allowed to return to
Ezra was a man equipped to lead the cause for
restoration in that he “had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the LORD, and
to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in
Nehemiah contains a more detailed account of
the restoration efforts under the direction of Ezra than the concluding
chapters of the book that bears the scribes name. (Nehemiah 8-13). There are
some profitable lessons for us as well!
The Need To Restore Worship:
The feast days were again established according to the “prescribed
manner,” which was found in the Law. The Jews restored their practices in areas
that had not been observed since the days of Joshua, when the people first
entered the land of promise, (Nehemiah
The Need To Restore Respect For The House of God:
Nehemiah records an incident that took place in the temple – where
Eliashib the priest prepared a large room for Tobiah. When
Nehemiah learned of the “misuse” of the house of God, he immediately through
Tobiah out, along with his household goods, (13:1-13). Many today have
brought their own “Tobiahs” and “household goods” into the church, (the
present day house of God, 1 Timothy
The Need To Restore Dedication and Service To God:
Nehemiah forbade the buying and selling of things on the Sabbath. He
commanded that the gates be closed and that no commerce could be engaged in
with those who came to
The Need To Restore Purity:
Nehemiah scolded the people because half their children “spoke the
language of
The Need To Restore Allegiance To God in Repentance and Obedience:
Finally, Ezra commanded that they put away their unlawful marriages,
(Ezra
Repentance precedes baptism, which is a command of the Lord, (Acts
Conclusion:
Restoration is not an easy process – many are too lazy, and apathetic
for such commitment and dedication. Others will stand in opposition to
restoration because the Lord’s prescribed manner of work and worship differs
from theirs. Human wisdom and a lust for recreation and entertainment, have the
eyes of many blinded to the need for restoration. Many are too enamored with
“things” to give the Lord their whole-hearted devotion – so they resist the
idea of restoration. The love many have for sin will keep them from purging it
from their lives, thus preventing their restoration to a right relationship
with God.
The restoration movement is much more than an ideology espoused by
gospel preachers within the last two hundred years. It is the restoration of a
relationship severed by sin. It is a choice that we make to allow God, through
His Word, to guide us back into this right relationship with Him on His terms.
Having this relationship restored demands our complete and total submission to
His Divine authority. Do you believe that it is important to do all things as
God has prescribed? – Ezra and Nehemiah did! – They were true restorationists!
Are you?
Who Should Attend Bible Classes?
Mark White
Should
the elders of the church?
Would you want men to serve as
spiritual overseers who do not believe in the Sunday morning and Wednesday
night Bible studies they have arranged? Could our Bible classes really be
successful without the support, encouragement, and attendance of the elders?
Should
the deacons?
Can men selected to serve the
church in special areas of work perform their services faithfully and
effectively if they do not support the teaching program of the church? If they
do not attend both Sunday morning and Wednesday evening classes, how can they
be deacons?
Should
the preacher?
Would you really want a preacher
who did not come to the Bible study arranged for the congregation? Is he under
more responsibility to attend than the rest of the members? What about his wife
and children? Is the preacher more responsible for attending on Wednesday night
than members who attend infrequently, or not at all?
Should
the teachers?
How could someone calling himself
a Bible class teacher not be here? How could he teach others about
faithfulness, obedience, and spiritual priorities when he doesn’t participate
in a class himself?. Any teacher who thinks it
unnecessary to come unless they are teaching does not deserve a class. Actions
speak louder than words!
Should
every able member of the church?
Isn’t something amiss when we
habitually miss Bible study to involve ourselves in civic matters, business
deals, political parties, or other personal matters? Is it really possible for
a Christian to be putting the kingdom first if God’s people and their study of
His word are not priorities with him?
"When Complacency Replaces Sacrifice" -
Frank Macy
Paul
urged the church in
As we read through the New
Testament, we find first-century saints following in Christ's footsteps. They
sacrificed their jobs (Mk. 1:16-20; 10:28; etc.), physical possessions (Acts 2:45;
4:36,37); money (Acts 11:29; 1 Cor. 16:1-3), former religious training (Phil.
3:4-7), and, as with Stephen (Acts 7:58-60), James (Acts 12:2), and nameless
others (Acts 22:4; 26:9-11), even their physical lives. Their willingness to
sacrifice everything for the cause of Christ brought glory to His name,
converts into His church, and "turned the world upside down" (Acts
17:6).
Unfortunately, such sacrificial
living is becoming increasingly less common in twenty-first century churches
everywhere. We are dying for lack of willingness to live and die for Him (Matt.
Spiritual complacency is one of
the most debilitating and damaging attitudes a body of saints can adopt.
Webster defines complacency as: "a feeling of quiet pleasure or security,
often while unaware of some potential danger, defect, or the like; self satis-
faction with an existing situation, condition, etc." Christians cannot be
complacent about their mission or that of His church.
God's people should never be
satisfied with their understanding of His word (2 Tim.
The future of the Lord's church
depends on devoted, unselfish, self-sacrificing Christians willing to live and
give their lives in service to Christ. Men and women who need a Savior are
depending on us to show them the way. How can we be complacent about their
souls? Let us renew our commitment to Christ and recapture our willingness to
sacrifice anything and everything in service to Him. Let's "turn the world
upside down", for this is our "spiritual service of worship."
After all, didn't Jesus sacrifice everything for us? ----Frank Macy in Focus,
Vol. 6, No. 4, July/ August, 2002.
(Received from Jim Sasser via
Bible Matters List)
The Motor Is Running But
Brethren Are In Neutral
Dennis
Reed
Just about my first memories of
the term "neutral" was that it had to do with placing the gear shift
on the Model "A" Ford in a position where you could release the
clutch when the motor was running (we called them motors - not engines, as in
"Ford Motor Company"). When you were in "neutral", there
was no movement of the car - it was just a "do
nothing" position. You also had to remember, when parking your car on an incline, that it would surely roll backward or forward if
you left the gear shift in "neutral". Neutral simply meant that you
were not in gear - you had no influence whatever on the motion of the car!
I am seriously afraid that a lot
of our brethren today are determined to operate in "neutral"! They
don’t want to make any distinction between a false teacher and a sound teacher.
They don’t want to take a position on fellowship which would make a distinction
between darkness and light, between truth and error, or between sinfulness and
righteousness - they simply want to smile and stay "neutral". For years
we have been trying to tell them that neutral (no position) is an open stand
for the Devil - but they simply smile and go about their merry way being
perfectly satisfied with staying in "neutral" - not really standing
for anything and not really standing against anything! These
brethren are about as useless to the cause of Christ as a Model "A"
crank is to a new Ford automobile!
These brethren want to be
identified with the "it just doesn’t really matter" philosophy which
is being openly advocated by so many brethren today! With the neutral position,
they never have to open their Bibles to give an answer to anyone (1 Peter
But the "neutral" folks
seem to be the ones that so many of our brethren are considering as being the
leaders of the church in the future! Wow! Here are folks in "neutral",
just sitting there with their motor running, who won’t really take a stand for
or against anything - and they are going to be the future of the Lord’s church!
Talk about a frightening thought! But as difficult as that is to comprehend,
this is undoubtedly the direction in which the majority of our brethren are
being blindly led. Great numbers of brethren are sitting like baby birds in a
nest - their eyes closed and their mouths wide open - just waiting for the next
"neutral" thought that someone is going to feed them.
We now have a Bible publishing
company advertising a "gender neutral" Bible (?), we are living in
the age of so-called "gender neutral" marriages (?), we are more and
more expected by the world to be "neutral" when it comes to morality,
and now we are even faced with brethren among us who want to proclaim a
"neutral gospel"! They want to talk about Christ - not doctrine. They
want to be positive in their preaching - not negative. They want to use less
scripture in their preaching - more emotional tales and humorous stories. They
don’t want to point out error and false teaching - and, according to them, only
a dishonest person can be a false teacher anyway. They expect you to declare
that you absolutely believe exactly what the scriptures say - but you must also
be willing to fellowship all the brethren who could care less about what the
Lord has said. On and on and on they go, the motor is running, but they are
happy and content to just be in "neutral"!
Do you see the point that I am trying
to make? Do you truly realize the seriousness of this apathy and indifference
toward truth and error, and this absolute unconcern about whether things are
right or wrong? Do you understand the danger we face with this lack of respect
and lack of concern for the authority of the scriptures? We have people
"among us" whom we cannot even recognize as being "of us"?
Their conversation and teaching has become so sectarian and denominational that
they don’t even sound like Christians! They are among us, but they don’t have a
clue as to what the Word of God demands of us! They tolerate false doctrines,
they fellowship iniquity, they ridicule those who would oppose them, and they
are being more and more successful in leading the multitudes of brethren down the
destructive path of sin and digression.
Brethren, we had better get in
gear! We must preach the Word - reprove, rebuke, and exhort (2 Timothy 4:1-4).
We must have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness (Ephesians 5:
6-17). We must do everything that is possible to rescue brethren who are
overtaken with sin and error (Galatians 6: 1-2). And we must determine to not
receive or give encouragement to anyone who doesn’t bring the doctrine of
Christ (2 John 9-11). And having done all to stand, we must stand
therefore (Ephesians
We must have the determination
that we will not be a part of this so-called "neutral" generation
(Matthew
Conviction or Convenience -
Carrol
R. Sutton
True conviction involves a firm or
settled belief based upon evidence contained in the Word of God. Our actions
should be determined by and based on our convictions. When we act in religious
matters because of convenience instead of conviction, we are not pleasing to
God.
EXAMPLES
OF CONVENIENCE:
No doubt Cain's offering of the
fruit of the ground was an offer- ing of convenience rather than one of
conviction. It was not by faith. It did not please God (Gen. 4:1-7). The
strange fire offered before the Lord by Nadab and Abihu may have been
conveniently offered, but it displeased the Lord. They did not act out of true
conviction. "And there went out fire from the Lord, and they died before
the Lord" (Lev. 10;2). Jereboam's system of
worship was instituted as a matter of convenience for the children of
EXAMPLES
OF CONVICTION:
The actions of Noah in building
the ark were not prompted by convenience but rather by conviction. "By
faith Noah, being warn- ed of God of things not seen as yet moved with fear,
prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the wich he condemned the world,
and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith" (Heb. 11:7).
"Thus did Noah, according to all that God command- ed
him, so did he" (Gen. 6:22). Abraham "was called the Friend of
God" because he obeyed God in spite of the fact that it was not always
convenient to do so. he left his country and kinsmen
and went into a country where God sent him. He "offered Isaac" upon
the altar because of his firm and settled belief in the God of heaven. Because
of his conviction, Daniel "kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and
prayed, and gave thanks before his God" in spite of the fact that a decree
had been established and signed that if anyone asked a petition of any god or
man for thirty days, except of the King, that he would be cast into a den of
lions (Dan. 6). The life of the apostles and many other early Christians attest
to the conviction they had. Their faith was demonstrated by their work and
their labor of love. They rejoiced because they were counted worthy to suffer
shame for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
A
GROWING TENDENCY:
It seems that there is a growing
tendency to be "religious" only IF it is convenient. Some people may
obey a "form" in order to please a companion rather than to please
God. Others may "obey" for business reasons or because it is popular.
Some will attend periods of Bible study and worship only if the building is
nice and conveniently located. Giving may be done by some out of convenience
rather than out of conviction. Some will pray, sing, study, teach, visit and
assist the needy ONLY IF it is convenient for them. Some preachers will take a
"stand" and "contend for the faith" on certain issues ONLY
IF it is convenient to do so. Otherwise, they continue to "study the
question" and remain undecided. It may be that the "pulse" of the
brotherhood and "influential preachers" may make it convenient for
them to remain "undecided." Sometimes it is "convenient"
for a false teacher to misrepresent those with whom he disagrees. This is a
device of Satan of which we should not be ignorant. "Convenience"
prompts many people to act and react as they do.
A critical self-examination should
be made by all of us. What is our true motive for acting as we do? It is to
please self, to please men, or to please God? Is it to glorify self or glorify
God?
Every act that we do in service, work, or worship should be characterized by true conviction. All of us need conviction. CONVICTION WILL CRY OUT! True conviction points toward heaven. ______ Carrol R. Sutton in The Instructor, Vol. 6, No. 8, Aug. 1969. (Obtained via Bible Matters list from Jim Sasser)
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