DISCIPLE

"For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another."  (Galatians 5:13)     The liberty of the child of God is one of his priceless possessions. Made free by the Son, he is free indeed. But he is called to responsible freedom, not to license.     Children want to be free from the restraints of home. Young people want to be free from the discipline of study. Adults want to be free from their marriage vows. Still others rebel against being boxed in by regular employment. But these are not the freedoms to which we are called.     The stars are not free to leave their orbits and wander throughout space. A train is not free to leave the tracks and meander over the countryside. A plane is not free to leave its assigned course; its safety depends on the pilot's obeying the regulations.     Jowett comments, "There is no realm where the lawless are f...

The Neo-Brethren By Jean Gibson & William MacDonald The theological world is familiar with the terms Neo-Orthodox and Neo-Evangelical. Now we can add a third: Neo-Brethren. In all three cases, trusted words are used but new interpretations have resulted in an entirely different meaning. In the case of the Neo-Brethren, new ideas, practices, and changes are advocated which are significantly different from the mainstream. If the early brethren could visit some of these churches, it is doubtful that they would find much resemblance to what they considered to be the New Testament pattern. We freely admit that we don't have to be frozen into practices unrelated to New Testament teaching, practices that are matters of culture or tradition. However, it has become common for some Neo-Brethren to take matters on which the Scriptures teach clearly and Label them "traditional." These men reinterpret the Bible to fit the culture of the day or their own whims. They want t...

Bible The Wonder of the Book by Dyson Hague; edited by Stephen Ross "Thy testimonies are wonderful" is the enthusiastic proclamation of the 129th verse of the 119th Psalm which has been echoed by multitudes through the centuries. For the more deeply we search it, the more we feel that the Bible is not merely a book, but The Book. Sir Walter Scott in his dying hour was right when he asked his son-in-law to read to him out of the Book, and in answer to the question, "What Book?" replied "There is only one Book, the Bible. In the whole world it is called 'The Book.'" Yes. It alone is the universal Book, the eternal Book, the Book for all time. The Bible is "the Book" of all books. It is the Book that stands alone; unapproachable in grandeur; solitary in splendor; mysterious in ascendancy; as high above all other books as heaven above earth, as the Son of God above the sons of men. The Wonder of its Formation One of the first things...

     Pagan America has replaced "Thanksgiving" with the term "Feast Day," or "Turkey Day." This is yet another rejection of anything related to God and especially Christianity. The original day of "Thanks-giving" was to remember and express gratitude for God's providential care. Early settlers, though not all Christians, were God-fearing enough to recognize His hand in their affairs and give thanks. Not today. Today the emphasis is not giving thanks to God nor recognizing His providential care, but on food and eating. Personal pleasure has replaced humble gratitude. For American hedonists, "Feast Day" means pigging out, stuffing oneself. It is a day of vacation from work to watch sports, lounge around and eat too much. Gluttony is featured as various ones make fools of themselves eating ridiculous amounts of food and videoing it for You Tube, etc.      Those who don't believe and are not thankful to God, who do not wish...

    Truly our hearts go out to the people suffering in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan. We feel for them, and pray for them, that they will find relief and comfort.     The woman whose brief interview appeared on CNN pled, even demanded international aid "now, not tomorrow, now!" and went on to say, "It's worse than hell, worse than hell!"     Now when people suffer they sometimes exaggerate and say things without thinking. This may have been the case with this woman, because one thing is for sure: no matter how bad the suffering on earth, there is nothing worse than hell! I repeat, There is nothing worse than hell!     Those who are in hell don't endure it for a few hours or days and then rebuild, like survivors of natural disasters. They are there forever. Those who are in hell cannot be interviewed. There is no one to talk to; they are alone, cut off from everyone. No aid can come to them. There is no Red Cross for people in hell. There i...

"These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them..." Hebrews 11:13 There is not one word published on the North American continent today that I would want to die by!    If I knew that tomorrow evening was to be my last, and that I would never see another sunrise, there isn't a newspaper published anywhere in the world that I would want to see.    There hasn't been a book published this year that I would want to read. There hasn't been a word uttered in the United Nations what I would want to hear. There is no authority anywhere.    Everybody is writing and talking, but for dying men there is not one word of authority anywhere, except as you hear the sure, true, terrifying words of Jesus Christ! The only authoritative word ever published is that which comes from the Holy Scriptures.    "Holy" books that have been compounded out of all the high, fine, lofty thoughts ...

"For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."  Matthew 6:21    Water cannot rise above its own level, and neither can a Christian by any sudden, spasmodic effort rise above the level of his own spiritual life!    I have seen in my own experience how a man of God will let his tongue go all day in light, frivolous conversation; let his interest roam abroad among the idle pleasures of this world; and then under the necessity of preaching at night, seek a last minute reprieve just before the service by cramming desperately in prayer to put himself in a position where the spirit of the prophet will descend upon him as he enters the pulpit.    Men do not gather grapes of thorns, nor figs of thistles. The fruit of a tree is determined by the tree, and the fruit of life by the kind of life it is. What a man is interested in to the point of absorption both decides and reveals what kind of man he is; and the kind of man he is by a secret...