A couple of weeks ago, a TV viewer wanted to know what the Bible tells us about Satan. In the interest of letting the Bible speak for itself, I will keep the points brief:

1. Satan would be one of those spirit beings who did not keep his proper domain (Jude 6).

2. He is considered the god of this world (II Cor. 4:4).

3. He is called the tempter (Matt. 4:34).

4. He is limited in his abilities to tempt mankind (I Cor. 10:13).

5. His goal is to devour anyone and everyone (I Pet. 5:8). That is why he is called man’s adversary.

6. He transforms himself into an angel of light (II Cor. 11:14).

7. He is the only option for man to serve, other than God (I Tim. 5:15).

8. He can be resisted (Jas. 4:7).

9. He is indirectly connected with every sin that is committed (I Jn. 3:8).

10. He is known for his many wiles, to try and ensnare people (Eph. 6:11; II Tim. 2:26).

11. He will be cast into the lake of fire (Rev. 20:10).

12. His power of death was destroyed through Christ’s death and resurrection (Heb. 2:14).

Chuck

During the meeting in Mattoon last week, while visiting with some of the brethren I was asked a question. The sister said that in their ladies’ class a question came up concerning Ephesians 4:8. They wanted to know what Paul meant when he said, “There He says, When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men.” Let take a closer look.

In the first seven verses the apostle was teaching about the unity that achieved because of the seven “ones”: one body, Spirit, hope, Lord, faith, baptism and Father (vrs. 4-6). From such each is given a measure of Christ’s gift (vr. 7). This is where Paul quotes from Psalm 68:18 (Eph. 4:8). But why did he say this?

To answer to our question we need to focus on Christ’s ascension. When did Jesus ascend on high? This was after His resurrection (Acts 1:9-11). In verse 9 of Ephesians 4, we are told where Christ went prior to his ascension. He went first to the lower parts of the earth when He died. We know this place as Hades, and part of it is called Paradise (Lk. 23:43; Acts 2:27).  When Jesus conquered death, He ascended far above all heavens, that He might fill all things (Eph. 4:10).

We are now getting a pretty clear picture concerning the statement about leading captivity captive and giving gifts to men. Think about the condition or state of mankind prior to Christ resurrecting from the dead and ascending back to heaven. There was no way of getting to Heaven.  When the Lord said He was the way, truth and the life, no one was getting to the Father except through Him (Jn. 14:6). But, if Jesus doesn’t die and resurrect, there is no way to the Father.

The phrase, captivity captive, seems a little odd. However, when we stop and think of Satan and his supposed powers, Christ removed them by His resurrection. Also, with Jesus ascending to the right hand of God, He is ruling and reigning and it position to help mankind. I think a good parallel passage would be Colossians 2:15, where it reads, “Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.”

Let’s now talk about the words following captivity captive, in Ephesians 4:8. This should shed even more light on the wording. It says, “and gave gifts to men.” We need to ask, what gifts were given to men when Jesus went back to heaven?  Think about the following verses in Ephesians 4. The brethren were told that apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers were given to edify the body of Christ (vrs. 11-12). Remember the promise Christ gave to His apostles, that after He leaves He would send the Holy Spirit to guide them into all truth (Jn. 16:13). Also, they would be equipped to confirm the word spoken with signs and wonders (Mk. 16:19-20). This was all done when Jesus ascended. Whether we are talking about Satan’s powers being destroyed or that all the faithful, past and present and future, now have access to Heaven by the gifts given to men, the lesson is the same.

There is one more great lesson we can learn from studying this question. Let’s make sure when studying the word of God that we don’t make the scriptures teach things that contradict other Bible verses. Peter gave the warning concerning those who are unskilled in the word, how they twist the scriptures to their own destruction (II Pet. 3:16).  This is easily avoided if we consider the context. To take a verse and have it teaching something that has nothing to do with the text is to mishandle the word of God. Let’s not stop asking questions and seeking answers. But let’s not seek answers that are just not there!

Chuck

When we read the story of Job, perhaps what can get overlooked is the brief commentary of his life prior to the devil tempting him. In Job 1:5, it states, “So it was, when the days of feasting had run their course, that Job would send and sanctify them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, ‘It may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.’ Thus Job did regularly.”

Parents today want the best for their children. They want to make sure they are clothed and have food and shelter. Then there is the desire for them to be healthy and to enjoy their youth. Yet Job demonstrated to the Father in Heaven what was important to him. His children’s spiritual well-being was on his mind continually. Notice Job’s concerns centered around what he couldn’t know. Outwardly they could convey to Job they were okay spiritually, but what was truly in their heart?

Children, like all people, can put on a front and pretend to be something they are not. Please understand it wasn’t so much a lesson about a parent not trusting in their kids as it is a parent’s relationship to his Creator. Job didn’t want his children to have done anything against the Father in heaven. When a parent has this attitude, the children will soon learn what their parent really wants from them – to be godly.

It wasn’t that Job thought about this once in a while; we are told he did this regularly. Hopefully this made an impression upon his children and they didn’t curse God in their hearts. After all, we read in Job 1:18-19, all of his sons and daughters were killed when a great wind came up and caused the house to collapse. Life is uncertain and we all need to be prepared for when death comes. For those of us who have children, let’s make sure we instill the need for them to be faithful to the Lord. They will see this in the way you live for Him.

Chuck

When Paul left Crete, we are told he left Titus there to set in order the things that were lacking (Titus 1:4-5). The thing that stands out is the fact that the apostle felt he needed to have a preacher teach on the importance of leadership. We know that because he was told to appoint elders in every church.

As one reads through the qualification of elders (Titus 1:5-9; I Tim. 3:1-7), you can’t help but notice what is required in order to become qualified. No one is unqualified to teach one day and then is qualified to teach the next day. Nor is one unhospitable one day and then is considered hospitable the next day. We can say this about each and every one of the qualifications. This shows that leadership is developed and brethren need to be exhibiting these qualities long before being appointed.

The good news for a local church is that before such people are appointed as elders, the congregation has been blessed with those who have been demonstrating their abilities in the leadership role. They have been doing this by being blameless, not self-willed, not being quick tempered, not being violent, not greedy for money; being hospitable, loving what is good, holding fast to the word, able to teach, married with faithful children.

What’s great about all of this is the fact that leaders in the church act that way even if they are not elders, deacons or evangelists. This goes for our sisters in the Lord too. God’s children are part of a local church family and do what they can to help out (I Cor. 12:12-27).  Who doesn’t love to see Christians who jump in to take care of things that need to get done? Whether inviting people to their home, cleaning the building, preparing the Lord’s Supper, teaching a class, leading singing, helping with the radio, or working on the website, etc.

Until a local church appoints elders like Titus was told to do, those without them are being blessed having the members working together developing their leadership qualities to help things run smoothly. May we all be doing what we can to help, and not hinder, the work of the church.

Chuck                                       

As we often say about God’s word, it is timeless. By that we mean that it is just as applicable today as in the day it was first given. Can the Bible really provide guidance in situations that arise today? The answer is yes. A case in point would be this: how do you deal with a preacher/teacher that wants to “run” a church? What should the church do? Thankfully, the scriptures are not silent concerning this issue. Let’s take a closer look.

In the book of 3^rd John, we are told about a man that many students of the Bible are familiar with, his name is Diotrephes. Notice what John wrote about him. “I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the pre-eminence among them, does not receive us. Therefore, if I come, I will call to mind his deeds which he does, prating against us with malicious words. And not content with that, he himself does not receive the brethren, and forbids those who wish to, putting them out of the church.” (vr. 9-10).

Does this kind of behavior exist in the world today? Of course it does. There are a few principles that we can read to help us learn what a church should do in dealing with such a person. Now, we are not told whether this man was the local preacher. He may very well have been. Whether or not he was, he was a member of the church who wanted to run things. To desire the pre-eminence means he longed for the right to rule. Of course the only one who is to have the pre-eminence in the church is Jesus Christ (Col. 1:18).

Here are ways a local church can deal with a person like Diotrephes that are lawful:

1. Don’t ignore sinful behavior. Problems are not so bad within a local church. They become more serious when it is not taken care of. John said that when he comes he is going to bring up all his evil deeds (vr. 10)
    
2. Let everyone know what’s going on. Think for a moment what we are reading in 3^rd John. The apostle is telling everyone about this man. There is nothing sinful in pointing the finger at evildoers. This dispels the false notion that we are not to “judge”. When you read Matthew 7:1-5, we are told to identify sin. That’s not being judgmental, it’s being a faithful servant of Christ.
    
3. Confront the person face to face. It is true that the apostle was going to deal with him, but in our text, members of the church confronted this man (vr. 10). You can’t help but notice that John said certain ones went to Diotrephes, and not the whole church. It doesn’t matter if certain ones refuse to confront, that shouldn’t stop those who know they should.
    
4. Don’t worry about what might happen. Perhaps those members who didn’t want to confront Diotrephes thought about what might happen. We are told by John that when brethren did approach him that he turned around and put them out of the church (vr. 10). The fact that this evil doer didn’t repent and acted worse, it didn’t mean he shouldn’t have been dealt with. To ignore his actions would have been worse.
    
5. Understand what a fallen brother can’t do. In our last point we pointed out that Diotrephes put those brethren out of the church who opposed him. This doesn’t mean they were cast out of the body of Christ which the Lord added them to (Acts 2:47). To be cast out of a local assembly by those who refuse to do right is not a bad thing. This doesn’t mean those faithful brethren stop gathering to worship, they just do it somewhere else.

Chuck