As a teacher of the word of God, I love a good illustration. Still, I have to remind myself that there is an order to be respected.  For example, I could tell you that I shed blood when I cut myself while rushing through a shave. I could explain that this blood was shed without purpose. It was not planned, and if I was told ahead of time, I would have done all I could to avoid having my blood shed.

I could have then contrasted this illustration with the blood that Jesus shed, how it was done with purpose, etc. Everything in this hypothetical scenario is true, but the order is backwards. Rather than telling a story and bringing Biblical applications to it, I should use God’s word as my starting point.

Notice how this example keeps the emphasis on God’s word. “Let’s open our Bibles and read the following text: John 19:13-30.” From there I could speak about what happened prior to Christ going to Calvary and the people crying out “Crucify Him!.” Then I would speak about the blood that was poured out from His wounds (Head, hands, feet and side). I could focus on the power and purpose of His blood. I might then contrast that with the uselessness of my own blood via the shaving illustration mentioned above (lack of power, lack of purpose, lack of planning).

As a teacher, I need to remind myself that a Bible lesson must focus on what was revealed in the scriptures, not focused on me trying to be creative. Years ago, it was instilled in me that the best way to interpret scripture is with scripture. We know that in Acts 17:11 those who went home after hearing Paul speak did not go and ponder the illustrations he spoke that made an impact on them. No, they searched the scriptures for answers. We want people to remember the word of God – that needs to be our focus.

There is nothing wrong with a good illustration, but it is to come from a great Bible text! Remember, the word of God is what produces genuine faith (Rom. 10:17). May we all seek to build this lasting faith as we teach those around us.

                                                                                            Chuck 

I enjoy talking with the people who contact us after watching our TV program or listening to our radio broadcast. However, there are times when they say things that are hard to believe. One such statement came last week. During our conversation, I was told that we cannot stay just with the Bible to know if we are saved. Really? Let’s think this through.

We recently finished a gospel meeting that focused on the importance of the word of God.  Establishing its inspiration was vital (II Tim. 3:16-17; II Pet. 1:20-21; Gal. 1:12). Because we know that God communicated with mankind and preserved these messages for our learning, the impetus is on us to read and respect what He said (Rom. 15:4; John 20:31; John 16:13). What would be the ramifications of relying on any other source to establish one’s salvation?

First, by going beyond the written word of God, you have destroyed the standard. Some may not immediately recognize this as an issue, but we can use an example to help explain this. I received a call from a man who was convinced that having a religious experience is what would determine if we are saved, not just having the word of God. Is there a problem with this? There are several!

How can a person prove that what they experienced was from God? This is important because we have an adversary, and he uses many wiles to deceive (I Pet. 5:9; Eph. 6:11; II Tim. 3:13). Therefore, if a person had a religious experience that convinced them they were saved, there would be no way to prove or disprove it – even if it contradicted God’s written word! Without a standard of authority, no one will have the ability to determine what is objectively right or wrong since all experiences are personal.

When a person rejects the Bible as our sole source of authority, it is common to hear religious people talk about what they “feel” to be right. They may question whether God really meant what He said in the scriptures or whether certain verses are still relevant today. They are also convinced that they are right the Lord and do not have to prove anything to anyone. This is absurd because Christians are told to give an answer for the hope that is within them (I Pet. 3:15). We have come full circle because, without a standard, we cannot give an answer if someone believes there is not right or wrong answer.

This also creates problems regarding evangelism. Even though Christ gave the commission to teach the gospel (Mark 16:15), using more than the scriptures to accomplish this work will create followers of men, not followers of Christ. If someone tries to convince others by using feelings or offering testimony of a personal experience, they are implicitly wanting their listeners to put their trust in them. If you tell someone that you feel your religious experience was by the hand of God and they ask you to prove it, what would you say? The only thing you can say is, “I just know it!” There is no way to independently verify this, thus the person is putting their trust in you rather than in the Lord.

By staying just with the inspired word of God, we are encouraging people to trust in the Lord and not in man (Eph. 6:10). A religion that is based upon anything more than the Bible is a religion build upon man. True children of God build their foundations upon the apostles and prophets, with Jesus being the chief cornerstone (Eph. 2:20). If you want to speak to someone about salvation or any other spiritual subject, listen to the words of Peter: “If any man speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God.” (I Pet. 4:11).

                                                                                               Chuck

Just look at the words that Paul spoke concerning this brother in the Lord. “The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain; but when he arrived in Rome, he sought me out very diligently and found me. The Lord grant to him that he may find mercy from the Lord in that Day-and you know very well how many ways he ministered to me at Ephesus,” (II Tim. 1:16-18).

When you read these words, it is easy to see how much Paul appreciated all that this brother did for him. Why was Paul telling this to young Timothy though? Was this really going to help Timothy? Is it also beneficial for us today? The answer is yes for many reasons.

In the verse prior to the above text (verse 15), the apostle discussed those who turned away from him in Asia. He even mentioned a couple of them by name. By then bringing up Onesiphorus, Paul was showing Timothy that he should expect ups and downs in preaching (and the Christian life in general). Some people will not support evangelistic work, and others will care deeply. As an evangelist, Timothy needed to be ready to encounter the same things.

Paul also revealed that while there were times when he was disappointed, he was also careful to not take kindness for granted. He did not demonstrate an attitude of entitlement – “I am devoting my life to teaching and everyone else should be more supportive of me!”  Instead, the apostle was extremely appreciative. Timothy and others need to exhibit the same attitude.

Seeing Paul’s appreciation for Onesiphorus is just as relevant for Christians today. It helps us to also understand the impact we can have on those who labor for the Lord. This impact can be good or bad depending on how we treat them. It also shows to the extent we should be willing to go to in order to help fellow Christians.  Knowing that there are few in the Lord’s family, we ought to do all we can to help one another out. May we all think on these things and try to grow our bonds as brethren.

                                                                                             Chuck 

The use of church funds

      We all know that religious groups today have used their collections to fund everything from pizza parties, senior trips to building gymnasiums and having day care centers. The question is, are there binding examples that will limit the use of church funds, and help use know what they are to be used for?                                                                                 

Let me just say that if there are no binding examples in scripture, then we must just as well discard the Bible, for the flood-gate would open up. This is no more true than when it comes to the church funds that are collected. And since many do not respect approved examples as a means to establishing authority, you have religious groups doing anything they want with their funds. This is the reason why people make light of this whole discussion.

We can quickly set some boundaries if we have a scripture that will come right out and limit the use of church funds. There is and it is found in I Timothy 5:16. Read this text carefully. You will notice that Christians were given a responsibility to take care of a financial need that the church was not responsible for thus making a distinction between the work of an individual and the work of the church. Failure to see this, we cause one to miss the binding examples surrounding church funds.

Local church take up a collection each Sunday (I Cor. 16:1-2), for the work of the church. What are those works? Evangelism (Eph. 3:10); Edification (Eph. 4:120 and helping needy saints (II Cor. 8:1-4).  Within these three areas we have examples of churches sending to brethren in need. We have examples of preachers being supported directly, to preach (II Cor. 11:8). Notice that we do not have examples of churches sending money to another church to support preachers. Is that significant? Yes. The pattern of sending directly to the one preaching hold the local church accountable to making sure they support faithful men. If church “A” sent funds to church “B”, and the support a false teacher, how does church “A” know it?  We need to see the wisdom of God in providing us with approved examples as a means of establishing Biblical authority.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Chuck