| JOHN WADDEY, EDITOR
Published by the Church of Christ, 12213 West Bell Road, Surprise, AZ 85374 Volume 2, Number 2
October 1, 2002 |
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Table of Contents: 1. CRUMBLING ETHICAL VALUES
Today's news is about the greedy, unethical conduct of corporate executives who by their dishonesty have cost shareholders and employees of their companies their wealth and retirements. Yesterday is was greedy, unethical doctors and medical professionals. The day before it was greedy unethical lawyers. Before that it was unethical stock brokers. Prior to that it was unethical politicians and an unethical president. At the bottom of the pond are unethical thieves, burglars and robbers who take the property of others for their own use. All of these categories of people have a common ailment.
They suffer from an absence of moral/ethical values and a lack of shame that allows them to pursue their greed-driven course without any sense of wrongdoing. Their rule of conduct is, "If I can do it and get by with it, its OK." Their success assures them they are smarter than the poor jerks from whom they steal and that the purse goes to the strong and the daring.
The clamor in Washington is for new laws to deal with corporate fraud. But those who themselves are afflicted with the moral virus are ill-suited to find a solution.
America's ethical disaster follows, as night follows day, the decision by the nation's thought leaders to reject and abandon the Christian ethical code which in days past was foundational in the moral training of our citizens.
These intellectuals, refuse to consider the Bible as of any value for modern life, and they are determined to keep young people from being exposed to its moral influence. In days past not everyone was a Christian, not everyone went to church, but everyone was exposed to a common set of moral, social, business values that all were expected to subscribe to and live by. Those that did not were exposed and shunned or even convicted and punished by law. Today, thanks to the influence of several powerful groups at work in our society, those old values have been rejected and driven from the marketplace of ideas. Since 1950, two generations of Americans have grown up, most of whom did not receive that indoctrination in moral responsibility. Today we see the fruits of it in our daily ethical scandals.
To pass laws to force corporate executives to be honest is but to treat the symptom. We must look to those academics, jurists, politicians, media spokespersons, secular humanists and their kindred who for years have been making war against Christianity. We must reject their amoral value system and their cultural leadership. We must restore the spiritual values that made America great; not only militarily and economically but morally as well.
Robert McCracken wisely observed, that "We on this continent should never forget that men first crossed the Atlantic not to find soil for their ploughs but to secure liberty for their souls." "Our nation was founded as an experiment in human liberty. Its institutions reflect the belief of our founders that men had their origin and destiny in God; that they were endowed by Him with inalienable rights and had duties prescribed by moral law, and that human institutions ought primarily to help men develop their God given possibilities" (John Foster Dulles). These observations are old-fashion but they are absolutely right. Without God and his ethical standards our plight will only get worse. JHW
"Righteousness exalteth a nation; but sin is a reproach to any people"
(Prov. 14:34). "Would you be exempt from uneasiness; do nothing you know or even suspect is wrong.
Would you enjoy the purestpleasure; do everything in your power which you believe is right"
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2. THE CRUCIAL BATTLE FOR THE SOUL OF THE CHURCH
A spiritual war is raging in the ranks of our brotherhood. False teachings and practices that were defeated a century ago have again raised their ugly heads in our midst. False teachers who forty years ago would have had no opportunity to preach in our churches or teach in our Christian schools now brazenly spread their venous teachings among our people without shame or fear of reprisal.
Members of the Churches of Christ in America are like a nation of people caught up in a fierce internal struggle as competing groups battle for control of their hearts and minds. We have among us a number of influential men, led primarily by "theological professors" in some of our Christian
Universities who are churning out a steady stream of books that can only cause harm to the Cause of Christ. Preachers, youth workers and elders who are being influenced by their subversive writings are taking the poison into the pulpits and classrooms of their congregations. From reading their materials, such as The Crux of the Matter and the Second Reincarnation, one can easily conclude that these men are working to capture the soul of the church.
As awareness of this attack on the integrity of the Lord's church spreads, those who reject their message are coming forth to engage the proponents of error. We are faced with a major problem in that the opposition itself is not united. On one hand there are those men who stand in total opposition to the compromising message of the liberals but are moderate in their methods of dealing with the problem. They put a high premium on the unity of the church and are willing to go to great lengths to preserve that unity (Eph. 4:3).
They love the brotherhood (I Pet. 2:17) and are slow to cast aside a brother who has been infected with error; preferring, if possible, to rescue him.
They would rather salvage than destroy Christian schools or other projects by fellow Christians. Thus their approach is one of teaching, pleading, reasoning with those in the snares of liberalism. Their choice of words in writing or speaking of fellow-Christians who might be listing to the left, are those of brothers pleading with their kindred to flee the danger before them. They have spent years building up the kingdom of Christ and are not anxious to tear it down. They spend their time teaching brethren the great fundamentals of the faith and indoctrinating them as to what we believe and why we believe it, as well as opposing error.
On the other hand there is another group of men who also are eager to make war on the proponents of error. But they have a different agenda. They too want to win the hearts of the citizens of the kingdom to their way. Their's is the way of legalism. These brethren prefer a "scorched earth" approach.
They would drive out and destroy not only the liberals but all who do not subscribe to their radical view of how to wage the war. A good half of their powder and shot is expended on fellow Christians who are busily engaging the enemy...but not in the style of the legalists. Rather than being conservative, these soldiers are "ultraconservative." Beyond trying to defeat those liberals who would change our worship and corrupt our faith, they would impose their opinions and their views about matters of expediency;
how congregations might spend their funds and who they can invite to speak for them. They have an extensive list of conditions to be met by those they consider worthy of their fellowship. Should these brethren succeed and win the hearts and minds of the church, rather than a victory, the church will be destined to endure more years of internal conflict as this disruptive leaven does its work. The Cause we love will be reduced to another "anti" movement such as we have seen in days past. When the Bolsheviks won the victory over the Czarists in Russia, the consequences to that nation and people were
disastrous. So it would be to the church if this element wins the hearts of the people.
The only victory worthy of the name will be if a corps of faithful brethren stand up and provide the leadership needed to resist both extremes in this day of battle. Truth always exists between the two extremes of liberalism and legalism (Prov. 4:25-27). We must make our stand on the middle ground of truth. May God help us to win and hold the hearts of our people to this safe and sure ground. The struggle is for the soul of the church. This may well be the most decisive battle in the history of our movement. Paul wrote, "Let your moderation be known unto all men (Phil. 4:5 KJV). Christ's way is neither that of liberalism nor legalism, it is the way of moderation which He and his apostles have demonstrated for us. JHW  |
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3. WHAT THE BIBLE DOES NOT SAY
Those who have dedicated themselves to imposing "changes" on our churches reject the Bible teaching that we call "the law of silence." This principle is set clearly forth in passages such as Acts 15:24 and Heb. 7:12-14. In brief it says, we can only do that whichGod has authorized us to do. We can never justify a
practice with the excuse, "the Bible does not say we cannot do it." When the Christian Churches departed from us a century ago they argued the Bible did not forbid their instrumental music and missionary societies. Today's agents of change are singing the same song. Bro. Alvin Jennings of Ft. Worth, TX has written an excellent booklet, entitled, "A Commentary on What the Bible Does Not Say." It is a serious study of the "law of silence" and how it forbids the changes our liberal brethren are proposing.
We are pleased to enclose a complimentary copy for your perusal. To help fortify your congregation against the ravages of apostasy, every member needs to have a copy of this booklet to read. The tract sells for $1.00 each or $75 per hundred, and may be ordered from Star Bible Publications, Box 821220, Ft. Worth, TX 76182. JHW |
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4. KNOWING AND DOING GOD'S WILL IN OUR MODERN AGE
Christ expects those who preach his word and lead his people to teach converts to "observe all things whatsoever ...(he) commanded" (Matt. 28:20). His holy Word will judge us and all of humanity in the last day (John 12:48).
He describes his Word as a "pattern" to which we are to conform (II Tim. 1:13). He expect us, as he did Moses, to build his church according to the pattern shown us (Heb. 8:5). Preachers are intrusted with the responsibility to preach "the word" (II Tim. 4:1-2); not just any word, but that sacred word delivered to us by the Spirit of God (John 16:13). To respect God's Word is to respect Him who spoke it. To disregard His Word is to disregard Him.
Having given us a written revelation of His will, God expects us to honor it as our only standard for our faith and practice as Christians. God's Word takes precedence over culture, tradition, popularity, public opinion, majority opinion or the pronouncements of scholars. It does not allow for adjustments to new generational interests such as Baby Boomers, Generation Xers etc.
Lip service to the authority of the Bible is inadequate (Matt. 7:21). So is partial respect that honors only those precepts and principles that please us or are convenient. God demands that His Word be preached and honored "in season and out of season" (II Tim. 4:2).
The message of the Bible is the same for our post-Christian age as it was for those in apostolic times. His Word will never pass away (Matt. 24:34). God's Word is as changeless as is He (Mal. 3:6 ). This basic, primary lesson needs to be instilled in the heart and mind of every young preacher (and older ones as well) and proclaimed in every congregation of the Church of Christ in America, not just once, but repeatedly until every member knows that our faith is governed by, restricted by and regulated by the Word of God and that alone. We must be reminded that we may not add to nor take away from the Word either by tampering with the written message or in our response to it. We must obey its precepts, we must respect its silence. To do more or less is to fail to respect the authority of His Word. JHW |
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5. LESSONS FROM OUR SOUTHERN BAPTIST NEIGHBORS
Over a period of years liberals gradually insinuated themselves into the leadership of the Southern Baptist denomination. They infiltrated their universities and seminaries and spread their pernicious doctrines through them. Thousands of youngsters were indoctrinated and took their liberal agenda back to the churches where they worshiped. They also captured control of their publishing houses and most other denominational agencies. Even though the majority of their churches and preachers were conservative in their faith, the denomination was being herded into the camp of liberal Protestantism.
When conservative leaders finally awoke to the seriousness of their problem, they organized and coordinated their efforts and quickly took control of the situation. The liberal element did not voluntary abdicate their seats of power when they saw that the majority of the members stood against them; nor did they surrender without a hard fought battle. The liberals protested that they were not really liberals, even though their handling and interpretation of Scripture and their views on moral and social issues were those of theological liberals. They protested that they were really moderates and those who opposed them were radical reactionaries who would destroy their church if successful. They found enthusiastic support and comfort from the secular media which consistently painted the liberals as poor, mistreated and abused moderates and the conservatives as radicals
The conservatives were careful to pick their battles. It was waged on the inspiration, inerrancy and authority of God's Word. Only by dogged determination did the conservatives prevail. When the liberals finally realized their cause was lost, they began to separate themselves and find consolation with others whose liberal faith they shared.
There are valuable lessons for us to learn in this bit of contemporary religious history. Can we, will we observe, learn and profit therefrom or will we sit idly by while a band of liberal preachers and university professors capture the minds and hearts of our people? It is safe to say that it is not the average member in the pew who wants to introduce "changes" into his congregation. The push is coming from a handful of theologians and preachers at the top. May God help us be "good soldiers of Christ Jesus" (II Tim. 2:3) and withstand this harmful trend with steadfast faith (I Pet. 5:8-9). JHW |
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6. A MOST UNUSUAL CHURCH
The church Jesus built is most unusual. In fact, when compared to most modern churches it is remarkably different.
Christ's church has no earthly head. Jesus was appointed by God to be head over all things to his church (Eph.1:22). He has never surrendered that position to any man.
His church has no earthly governing body or headquarters. Christ designed his church so that each local congregation is independent and self-governed under his rule. Members of each congregation select their own leaders (Acts 6:3) who oversee only the flock among them (I Pet. 5:2). Thus no national or international governing body exists to control his people.
The Lord's church has no creedal statement drafted by men. He gave his church his New Testament which contains "all things pertaining to life and godliness" (II Pet. 1:3). He strictly warns against adding to or taking from his Testament (Rev. 22:18-19). No man or committee is capable of improving on Christ's word.
Jesus' church has no separate clergy. Jesus forbade his disciples calling their teachers "father" or any other exalted title that separates them from other disciples. "All ye are brethren," said he (Matt. 23:8-9). Even Christ and his apostles were not addressed as "reverends."
His church has no political agenda. Christ declared, "my kingdom is not of this world" (John 18:36). Our mission is to win people's hearts to Chris (Matt. 28:18-20) and to do good in the name of Jesus (Gal. 6:10). Social, political activism are not the church's business.
"What a strange church," folks may say. "How can it exist," they may wonder? Invite them to come and see. Nothing is this world is more wonderful than seeing God's people serving him in his appointed way. JHW |
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7. A MISTAKEN BELIEF
Paul warns us about a kind of false disciple "who supposes that godliness is a way of gain" (I Tim. 6:5). Experience reveals several types of people who labor under this mistaken belief. There are those who think that becoming a preacher will provide them a good income with a minium of work. Some, preferring not to work, join them selves to a church thinking they will be able to get a free financial ride from gullible Christians. Others attach themselves to a congregation in order to promote their business interests.
In the membership directory they find a ready list of prospects that they can impose upon the buy their products or services.
Another type looks upon the church as a place to hunt, capture and fleece prosperous lonely-hearted or elderly souls. These undesirable disciples are occasionally found in all kinds of religious bodies, including the Lord's church. Many of them are transparent and easily spotted, while others have refined their game to an art-form. They are religious con-artists. The poet Dante envisioned special places of torment in hell, reserved for those who were especially evil. Do you suppose there will be a special place for those who think that godliness is a way of gain? Remember that "godliness with contentment is great gain...(but) the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil..." (I Tim. 6:6-10). We must ever beware of those who think godliness is a way of gain. JHW |
