Newsletter Vol.2, #36—September 24, 2006

Matthew 9 ¹⁸While he was saying these things to them, behold, a ruler came in and knelt before him, saying, "My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live." ¹⁹And Jesus rose and followed him, with his disciples.

Some Interesting …

Aspire to inspire before you expire.

My wife and I had words, but I didn’t get to use mine.

As my five year old son and I were headed to McDonald’s one day, we passed a car accident. Usually when we see something terrible like that, we say a prayer for those who might be hurt, so I pointed and said to my son, “We should pray.” From the back seat I heard his earnest request: “Please, God, don’t let those cars block the entrance to McDonald’s.”

Frustration is trying to find your glasses without your glasses.

Blessed are those who can give without remembering and take without forgetting.

The irony of life is that, by the time you’re old enough to know your way around, you’re not going anywhere.

God made man before woman so as to give him time to think of an answer for her first question.

I was always taught to respect my elders, but it keeps getting harder to find one.

Moses and the Red Sea

Nine-year-old Joey was asked by his mother what he had learned in Sunday school.

“Well, Mom, our teacher told us how God sent Moses behind enemy lines on a rescue mission to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. When he got to the Red Sea, he had his army build a pontoon bridge and all the people walked across safely. Then, he radioed headquarters for reinforcements. They sent bombers to blow up the bridge and all the Israelites were saved.”

“Now, Joey, is that really what your teacher taught you?” his mother asked.

“Well, no, Mom. But, if I told it the way the teacher did, you’d never believe it!”

Time to Pray

A preacher asked a little boy if he said his prayers every night. “Yes sir,” the boy replied. “And, do you always say them in the morning, too?” the preacher asked. “No sir,” the boy replied, “I ain’t scared in the daytime.”

THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD

The Bible class teacher decided to have her young class memorize one of the most quoted passages in the Bible: Psalm 23. She gave the youngsters a month to learn the passage.

Little Rick was excited about the task – but, he just couldn’t remember the Psalm. After much practice, he could barely get past the first line. On the day that the kids were scheduled to recite Psalm 23 in front of the congregation, Rickey was so nervous. When it was his turn, he stepped up to the microphone and said proudly, “The Lord is my Shepherd, and that’s all I need to know.”

UNANSWERED PRAYER?

The preacher’s 5 year-old daughter noticed that her father always paused and bowed his head for a moment before starting his sermon. One day, she asked him why!

“Well, Honey,” he began, proud that his daughter was so observant of his messages, “I’m asking the Lord to help me preach a good sermon.”

“How come He doesn’t do it?” she asked.

“Law and Legalism”

By H. E. Phillips (Deceased)

Continued from last week à “Legalism sees sin as a violation of the written code. The code may or may not have relevance to man’s need; it may be simply arbitrary requirements revealed by God. Man’s disobedience to these rules becomes an affront to God.”

Arrogance is at its best when man claims to decide which of the commands of God he will obey and which he will not obey; which are relevant and which are not. All scriptures of God are relevant to man’s needs to make him perfect to all good works (2 Tim. 3:16-17). If the “rules” are from heaven, and they are, disobedience to them is an affront to God. Who will decide which rules of God man can ignore and still please God?

For example, “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Heb.11:6). Is this relevant to man now? What if the dissatisfaction of bright young minds to the aridity of the rigid rules of God does not commend them to faith in God, may they freely dispense with this rule and seek “unity in diversity”? Shades of infidelity!

 ”Some, for example, put great emphasis on baptism as “essential to salvation.” They do not usually put the same emphasis on forgiving enemies as “essential to salvation”— though Jesus said more about this than about baptism.”

This implies that legalism makes baptism “essential to salvation” whereas Jesus gave more emphasis to forgiving one’s enemies than to baptism. Baptism is essential to salvation regardless of how much is said about other matters. Of course, the necessary conclusion is that the rigid rule of baptism for the remission of sins must go in order that the bright young minds that seek the freedom of personal choice for their salvation may not be bound by this unnecessary rule. Baptism is a command in the name of Christ (Mark 16: 15-16; Acts 10:48). One cannot be saved without obeying in baptism from the heart (Rom.6:17-18).

“Since legalism holds sin to be a legal violation, it holds salvation to be a legal payment. Man as a sinner must do certain things required of him for forgiveness. . .” This seems to be sarcasm. It is not “legalism” that holds sin to be legal violation, it is God (1 John 3:4). Sin is the transgression of the law. Salvation is not a legal payment. I know of no one who believes or teaches that doctrine. Salvation is by grace through faith. (Eph.2:8). Faith that saves is faith that works in obedience to the commands of God (James 2:20-26). A sinner must do certain things “required of him for forgiveness” or God’s word has no power to save. But it does have such power (Rom.1:16-17; 1 Cor.15:1-4).

These statements bespeak one thing: Obedience to law is unnecessary to obtain the grace of God for remission of sins. It is evil and the cause of division in the body of Christ, and a barrier against the grace of God. On the other hand, they claim, love will answer the prayer of Christ for unity and make us acceptable to God without obedience to law. You read the words of the apostles of this rebellion and see if this is not true. That is the crux of what I have read from advocates of liberalism.

Let us understand the meaning of the words “legal” and “legalist” and “legalism.” “Legal” means that which is authorized or permitted by law. “Legalism” is that system which holds strict, literal adherence to law. “Legalist” is one who accepts the strict and literal obedience to law. If “legalism” is wrong and evil, all law ought to be rejected, and iniquity is a virtue. Whoever requires obedience to the law of Christ promotes division and fosters callous hearts. That is the consequences of this plea for abandonment of the New Testament law as the revelation from God to save the obedient believer in Jesus Christ.

This article was originally published in: (Guardian of Truth Volume XXXVIII, No. 1 January 6, 1994) I bolded and added a word or two to H. E. Phillips’ manuscript as well as a few passages of Scripture 1/23/97 Kenneth E. Thomas