BB Mar 1998

Waldron Mission Fund

Under the oversight of the elders of the Crossville church of Christ, PO Box 211, Crossville, TN 38557

Vol 1 BULLETIN BRIEF No.3

MAR 1998

Text Box: AMERICA’S MORAL COMPASS Freddie Clayton The moral compass of our country has been pointing toward eternal punishment for a very long time. Who is willing to debate this undeniable fact? One of the things that continues to assist the slide of our great nation toward hell is the failure to address issues that have a clear Bible answer. Another thing assisting this slide is a refusal to acknowledge the Bible has the answer to such issues and/or a refusal to take a stand with the Bible and its author on them. For example, the degradation of America continues as many are too squeamish to label abortion as murder, which it is. When the conscience of this great nation surfaced long enough to send a bill to the President to ban partial-birth abortions in which 90% of the baby is delivered before being killed, it was vetoed. And yet, abortion has become a non-issue. Who allowed it to become such an unimportant matter? Before God, I will not allow it to be on my conscience or my record that I quit thinking, writing, and talking about this grievous evil. In a society that cries out, “Save the whales, but kill the babies,” where do you stand? “Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them....” Psalm 127:3-5a. (Dunlap, TN)

THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS

Robert L. Schales

If one has not accepted this message, how would he explain the empty tomb? Consider the facts: (1) The body was missing. If enemies stole it, they certainly would have produced it before Pentecost. On that occasion the apostles proclaimed a risen Lord. Enemies would surely have produced the body to discredit the message if they could have done so. They stopped short of nothing to prevent the spread of the gospel, even murdering those who preached. (2) If the disciples stole the body, they would have known they were proclaiming a falsehood. Men do not willingly die for a cause they know to be false.

FAITH OF THE DISCIPLES:

The faith of those who proclaimed the risen Lord is astounding! Disciples who ran away when Jesus was arrested, later proclaimed the resurrection with great boldness (Acts 2:24-32). They were convinced not only by the empty tomb, but by seeing Jesus alive after his burial; not once or twice, but many times over a period of forty days. They saw him in groups of two, seven, ten, eleven, and five hundred.

HALLUCINATION?

Could the resurrection appearances have been hallucinations? Different groups do not continue to see the same hallucination, nor would five hundred people have the same hallucination at once. Hallucinations are usually experienced by individuals who are anticipating some unusual occurrence. The disciples were not expecting the resurrection and tended not to believe the first appearances of the risen Lord.

THE RESULTS:

If Jesus had remained in the tomb: Peter, James, and John would have returned permanently to their fishing nets. There would have been no New Testament record and no church. The evidence for the resurrection is overwhelming. The empty tomb found by the women puzzled them. The only plausible explanation is that given by the angel, “He is not here; He has risen, just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay” (Matthew 28:6). 1-813-323-2280, Florida

Text Box: SOME SCRIPTURAL PRINCIPLES Robert G. Dockery Drunkenness Is A Sin (Galatians 5:21). Drunkenness is measured by the amount of alcohol in the blood — by most civil laws from .05% to .10%. But even at .04%, vision is impaired as much as if a person were trying to drive at night with sunglasses. One can of beer or one-half a cocktail will affect the brain to a scientifically measurable degree. What people call “social drinking” involves enough alcohol to produce the effects which the Bible warns against. Drinking Harms The Body (I Corinthians 6:19-20). The body must be honored as the temple of the Spirit of God. Research conducted by Dr. Melvin Knisely at the University of South Carolina Medical School revealed that even the use of “moderate” amounts of alcohol causes irreversible damage to body cells — especially brain cells. Dr. Knisely himself gave up social drinking as a result of his findings. Doctors are now warning expectant mothers that even small amounts of alcohol can damage their unborn babies. A poster used by a leading international insurance company in Europe proclaims: “Pure alcohol is pure poison, which is why they serve it to you in small doses.” (Baldwin Church of Christ - Baldwin, Arkansas 72701) FREE PACKET ON JUBILEE The elders of the East Hill church in Pulaski, TN continue to make available their expose packet on JUBILEE. Write them at P.O. Box 329, Pulaski, TN 38478 or phone at (931)363-2777. The E-mail address is psain.usit.net

Text Box: CHRISTIAN JUBILEE, INC. Jim E. Waldron The apostle Paul wrote, “Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that...there be no divisions among you” (I Cor. 1:10). Yet, the corporation named above in the last decade has done more to divide churches of Christ in the State of Tennessee than any other thing. Even the Nashville Banner and Tennesean have documented the division among the churches in the Middle Tennessee area due to the work of Jubilee preachers. This past July their keynote speaker was Max Lucado, a preacher from San Antonio, TX, who is well known for his work with and fellowship of Protestant and Roman Catholic clergy. Lucado has boldly proclaimed, in opposition to that which faithful gospel preachers have taught since Pentecost (cf. Acts 2:38), that baptism is not for salvation, i.e. not for remission of sins. Now the director, Phillip Morrison, of “Christian Jubilee” has announced yet another such event this coming July. This in spite of the animosity and heartache it has stirred among New Testament Christians in Tennessee. The Holy Spirit tells us in the Proverbs there are six, even seven things that the Lord hates and one of these is “one who sows discord among brethren” (Pro. 6:16-19). Again, it is written, “Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple” (Romans 16:17-18). THE MODEL PRAYER The model prayer of our Lord as recorded in Matthew 6:9-13 is most remarkable for its beauty, its content and its brevity. We would do well to emulate it in our petitions to the Father through Jesus. An outline: Address the Father. Honor the father’s name. Pray for the kingdom to spread., since it came on Pentecost. Pray for God’s will to be done. Pray “give us this day our daily bread.” Pray for forgiveness. Pray for deliverance from the evil one. Recognize God’s sovereignty and glory. Pray in Jesus name (John 16:23) Say “Amen.”

Text Box: “I WAS IN THE SPIRIT ON THE LORD’S DAY” Tim Johnson This statement is found in Revelation 1:10. John is explaining that he began seeing the revelation vision on the Lord’s day. What is “the Lord’s day?” The grammar of the original language is very peculiar. John saw his vision on the day that is peculiar to the Lord Christ. The only other place in the New Testament one can see this phrase used with the same grammar and meaning is in I Cor. 11:20, “the Lord’s Supper.” There was, therefore, a day peculiar to the Lord Christ and a special supper peculiar to Him as well. What day of the week did Christians view as “the Lord’s day?” Obviously the first day of the week, which was the day on which He rose from the dead (Matthew 28:1-6). Is there any wonder, then, that we see Christians in the Bible meeting together on that day and having the Lord’s supper? (I Cor. 16:1-2; Acts 20:7). Christians are obligated to be present when the church assembles because we see the example of early congregations in the New Testament meeting together on the first day of the week, and we want to do the same. These examples are not enough in themselves to direct us, but they give us a strong indication what the Lord’s will is for His church. However, in addition to examples we are commanded to be present and to participate. In Hebrews 10:23-25 we are not to “forsake our own assembling together,” that is the assemblies of the church wherever and whenever they meet. Some Christians neglected the assemblies and failed to “consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds” (a product of meeting together). In Hebrews 3:12-14, note the warning to avoid a hard heart and the risk of falling away. The solution? Regular times with other Christians to encourage each other. Christians, then, were obligatd to be present for the Lord’s Day assembly so that these purposes could be fulfilled (edification, strength, encouragement to love, etc.). But if the church decides to meet on other days of the week for additional edification, Christians need to follow their leaders in doing so. Hebrews 10:25; 13:17. Therefore, the New Testament teaches that it was a universal, apostle-directed practice for the church to assemble together on “the Lord’s Day,” which was the first day of the week (Sunday). All Christians everywhere are to be present for this time of encouragement, as well as other times. Fellowship is a tool that is designed to help us, not hurt us! (Riverview, New Brunswick, Canada )

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