Nothing can be more frustrating and confusing to a Christian than when bad things happen and they want to know why. They might wonder if God is trying to teach them something.

• Is our God responsible for everything in our lives?
• Is there a reason for everything?
• Has everything been predetermined?

Let’s see what answers God’s word contains about these ideas.

Consider what Jesus said in Luke 13:4. “Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?”  The Savior brought this up because some incorrectly argued that the tower fell on certain people as a punishment for their actions. That was not the case, and accidents can happen.

Let’s stop and think about the families of those eighteen that died. Imagine their hardships. What if they held to the same notions as those Jesus was talking to? They would be trying to find a deeper meaning to this event and might wonder why God did it to them.

However, our Father is not responsible for any temptations that we face. “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone,” (James 1:13). However, this does not mean that our Creator is not in control. Because God has total control, he can allow certain things to happen. Jesus’ earthly life is the best example of this.

Jesus told Pilate that he could do nothing unless it had been given to Him from above (John 19:11). So was the Father responsible for the death of His Son? Of course not. There is a big difference in what God allows and what He approves of or makes happen.

Our world includes elements of chance. For example, tornados sometimes occur due to weather patterns. If a family loses a loved one, it was not anyone’s fault. It certainly was not God’s fault either – sometimes things just happen. Consider also when people sin and face hardships because of it. If a man loses his job because of a drinking problem, he might also lose his home. His family might even fall apart. Whose fault is it? We could say it was the result of someone sinning.  If he is married and has children, they should not say, “Why is God doing this to us?” God did not do anything to them.

This leads us to a very important lesson: God can help us cope with any and every temptation that comes our way. As Paul told the Corinthians, “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it,” (I Cor. 10:13).

To be clear, this passage is not teaching that God will take away the pain and hardships. The “escape” that was mentioned is God providing a way to not to give in to the temptation. Therefore, it is not a sin to suffer or hurt (unless you are guilty of sinning). If someone uses drugs, is arrested and is put in jail, they are suffering due to their own sinful actions. If that person turns to the Lord while in prison, the Lord can help that person stay the course.

Still, hardship are not immovable. Our adversary (I Pet. 5:8) will continually try to get us to resist God, but those who draw near to God can resist the devil (James. 4:7-8). God’s people can pray for help (James 5:16). By trusting in the providence of God and allowing His will to be done (Matt. 26:39), we can know that the Lord will help us handle whatever comes our way (Phil. 4:13).

Chuck                                                                                      

I had a gentleman call last week after watching our TV program. He wanted to let me know that he agreed with what we taught about Bible baptism. He went on to tell me about what he did after reading in the Bible that he needed to be baptized into Christ (Rom. 6:3) to be converted to Him (Acts 3:19).

After reading the Bible and realizing what he needed to do, the man called a Baptist preacher and asked if he would baptize him. The minister said to him, “Do you plan on coming to the church here?” He said no. Then the Baptist preacher told him, “I will not baptize you because you are to be baptized into the church.” The man eventually found someone to baptize him into Christ.

The point of this article is not to slam the Baptists. Like so many other religious sects, the Baptists teach a form of baptism that is not God-approved. Is that even possible? Yes, because it happened in New Testament times too. When you read Acts 19:1-6, you find that a group of people realized they were taught wrong about baptism. They were told that their previous baptism did not profit anything.

Does it really matter whether someone is baptized into the church? If the church is the body of Christ and a person is baptized into the church, are they not also inherently being baptized into Christ? The scriptures show that this is incorrect. We must understand why or else we might go through life thinking we are saved when we are actually still in our sins!

People are not baptized into a church because no person has the spiritual authority to do this. Closely read Acts 2:47. After the people were baptized into Christ for the remission of their sins, then the Lord added the newly-saved to His body, the church. The scriptures are also clearly showing that the Lord added them to His spiritual body, not a denominational church or a local congregation.

When you study these verses with most people, it becomes clear that they are confused about the idea of being baptized into a church but also about whether salvation comes before baptism. It is vital that we think this through. Again, Acts 2:47 depicted people being baptized into Christ for salvation, and then Christ added those saved to His church. The Baptist preacher believed that the man on the phone was already saved but wanted to baptize him into the church.

You might be scratching your head right now. If a Baptist was going to compare what they do with what Christ does, they would realize that trying to baptize “the saved” is essentially trying to save the already-saved. Remember, the Lord added the saved to His church. The Baptists are also trying to add the saved to their church. Since baptism now saves us (I Pet. 3:21), the Baptist teachings regarding baptism, salvation and church membership become a circular argument.

As the phone conversation came to a close, I commended the gentleman for seeking out proper baptism. However, I did not want him to think that becoming a Christian meant he did not need to belong to a local church. Again, he was not baptized into the church – rather, the Lord added him to His church (Matt. 16:18). Having become a Christian, the man now has an obligation to assemble with other Christians so they could come together as a church (Christ’s) and worship (I Cor. 11:17-18; Heb. 10:25).

A person who was baptized properly cannot say, “I am a Christian but not a member of the church.” Being part of the church of Christ is not to be overlooked (Rom. 16:16).

                                                                                              Chuck

The same caller that I referred to in the first article actually called to ask me a question. Even though he understood what the Bible taught about baptism, he did not know how to deal with the fact that the thief on the cross was not baptized into Christ. How was it that Jesus said he would be with Him in paradise (Luke 23:42-43)?  

I answered by taking him to Jude 3. This passage stated that there is a “common” salvation, meaning that everyone gets saved the exact same way. Was there ever a time when there was uncommon salvation? Yes. Prior to the death of Jesus, our Lord had the power to forgive sins and make certain demands on people. For example, Christ told a rich man to sell all he had and give it to the poor in order to have treasure in heaven. The man was then supposed to follow Jesus (Luke 18:22). While on the cross, Jesus knew the heart of the thief and granted him salvation.

Because our Savior has died, resurrected and gone back to heaven, there is a common message that needs to be taught for man to be saved (Mark 16:16). To think that we today do not need to be baptized for the remission of our sins because the thief on the cross was not baptized for this reason is incorrect. The gospel message is the same for everyone (Gal. 1:6-9; II Thess. 1:8; Rom. 1:16). To create different plans of salvation today is to remove the common salvation we are to have.

Finally, I mentioned that even if you could have taken the thief down and baptized him, Jesus had not died yet. How can you be baptized into Christ’s death and rise up like Him in His resurrection before He died (Rom. 6:3-7)? We need to see that both the thief and Jesus lived and died under the Old Law. The gospel came into effect after Jesus died (Heb. 8-9; Col. 2:14). The thief could not be expected to access something not yet available.

This week’s bulletin (both articles) illustrate the need to rightly divide the word of God. There are many that want to pervert God’s word, and we all need to be on guard.

                                                                                            Chuck 

Everything has been confirmed! We will have a Bible booth in the Newburgh farmers market July 1^st from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. and in the county fair July 17-22. We will have cards for people to sign up for our Bible course, leave a Bible question for our TV and radio program and to set up a face to face Bible study. We will have other free Bible study materials and Bibles for those who need one.

Here is a sample of four questions that will be on one of our quiz boards (we have two boards). When they push the right button the green light will come on.

#1. James 2:24, reveals that man is saved…

1. By faith only
2. Not by faith only
3. Not by faith

#2. We read in I Peter 3:21…

1. Accept Jesus into your heart
2. Pray the sinners prayer and thou shalt be saved
3. Baptism does also now save us

#3. We read in I John 3:4 that sin…

1. Is inherited
2. Is transgression of law
3. Does not bring forth death

#4.  In Matthew 16:16, Jesus said He was going to build…

1. A denominational church
2. Many different religious sects
3. His church

The purpose of these efforts is to promote Bible discussions. We are simply wanting to encourage personal Bible study. We will have cards that lists the times of our TV and radio program and our website for them to check out. We pray that doors in the local community will open as we spread the word.

                                                                                            Chuck 

You may or may not be aware that the Jehovah’s Witnesses organization is holding their annual convention at the Ford Center. Should the church of Christ rent out the Ford Center and do the same? Let’s examine this idea in light of the word of God.

The major problem with this idea directly relates to what we read in Ephesians 1:22-23. This text informs us that Christ is head of the church. Since it His body, it is to be scripturally organized (Phil. 1:1). This means that every individual congregation should function independently on a local level (I Pet. 5:2). Notice how Peter was specific that elders were to shepherd their own flock and no another.

Knowing this, who would organize a convention if churches of Christ opted to hold one (Rom. 16:16? Will a certain local church be in charge? How can that one church coordinate such an event while still respecting church autonomy? This is unworkable. Today’s religious sects hold conventions because they have a central headquarters. Someone or some body holds the authority to make decisions. This conflicts with the design found in the Bible though – only local, independent churches of Christ are God-approved. We cannot add to or change the Christ’s universal church (Matt. 16:18; Eph. 4:4).

What about the gospel meetings that some churches hold – is this just a scaled down version of a convention? Truth be known, the two are simply not alike. When a local church decides to have a gospel meeting, they are fulfilling their duty in spreading the gospel and building up their members (Eph. 4:15-16; I Thess. 1:8).              

Organizing a convention is nothing that our Lord commands, expects or even authorizes. The Bible describes no yearly pilgrimage or special gathering that is required beyond the realm of a local church. To attempt to do so creates a hierarchy system. If you have hundreds of local churches being represented, who does the speaking and on what topic? In the first century, would a speaker from the church at Corinth or Laodicea speak first? Nobody from a local church would be in a position to decide this as it goes beyond what they are called to do.

But what about the day of Pentecost – were there not three thousand people gathered there (Acts 2:41-47)? Yes. The size of the crowd says little about the event though. On Pentecost, over three thousand people became Christians that day – this is not the purpose of most denominational conventions. As you read through the New Testament, it becomes clear that there was no earthly head church nor an effort to create a special gathering for all the saints.

There is a special day designated by the Lord, but this is not an annual event, nor is it intended to physically draw all Christians together. The first day of the week is for saints to gather to worship God. This gathering is not to be forsaken (Acts 20:7; Heb. 10:25; I Cor. 11:17-18). The last thing a local church would do is encourage brethren to attend some convention rather than assembling as commanded.

The apostle Paul travelled from one city to the next to strengthen churches that were established (Acts 15:36). He did not direct them to gather in a centralized city. The idea of assembling with all the faithful is just what we will enjoy when Jesus comes back. All children of God are added to the one true church (Acts 2:47), but I do not have to literally assemble with all the faithful on earth to value that blessing. Being with the local church family is sufficient, and that is what the Lord intended.

If there is one thing we learn from our Lord’s walk on this earth, we must see that that His faith did not hinge on large crowds of followers. Remember, those on the narrow road are few (Matt. 7:13-14).

                                                                                              Chuck