http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0567.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  HOUSE TO HOUSE HEART TO HEART
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Adapted from W.W. Clay
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Christian Living
=========================================
LAYING LIFE ON THE LINE
Adapted from W.W. Clay

As a New York skyscraper went up, hundreds paused daily to glance up
at it.  One day they watched a ponderous metal beam go up to take its
place in the steel skeleton.  As the girder came near, a workman
leaned out from the sixteenth floor to seize it.  The spectators
gasped as he lost his balance and fell.  Desperately, he clutched the
girder's end with arms and legs.  The ground crew stopped the
hoisting engine, but the man's weight at one end began to tilt the
beam to a vertical position, which would eventually cause him to lose
his grasp and fall to his death.  With swift decision, another worker
on the same floor, seeing his friend's predicament, leaped through
space and landed on the other end, where his weight leveled the
beam.  Amid the applause of the crowd, both men were safely lowered
to the street.

Every day people around us lose their balance on moral questions--
they consider having an affair with a co-worker, taking company
funds, lying to close a deal, toying with drugs and alcohol.  Wrong
decisions may hurt them and their families for years and cost their
souls in eternity.  They need friends interested in helping them keep
their balance, by exemplary lives, by sacrificial living, by speaking
a word for Christ.  Here no one applauds, but it will be worth it all
when we receive the approval of the Master (1 Cor 4:5).


=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  OR... send a message to:
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other brethren.  If
you would like to search through the archived articles, please go
to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
OR, all of the past articles are archived in PDF files (25 at a
time), all 550 of them on the LemmonsAid, YahooGroups Site at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/files
HTML copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0567.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study helps and other
helpful links, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of LemmonsAid on
YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

Hello,

This email message is a notification to let you know that
a file has been uploaded to the Files area of the LemmonsAid
group.

   File        : /la0550.pdf
   Uploaded by : dlemmons@...
   Description : LemmonsAid posts #526 through 550.  With this upload, all of the
previous LemmonsAid posts are now archived at Yahoo.  You can view these earlier
files at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/files/

You can access this file at the URL

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/files/la0550.pdf

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Regards,

dlemmons@...

Hello,

This email message is a notification to let you know that
a file has been uploaded to the Files area of the LemmonsAid
group.

   File        : /mdr0109.pdf
   Uploaded by : dlemmons@...
   Description : Brethren, please read brother Ian McPherson's latest newsletter
from Devonport, Tasmania.  Brother McPherson is an outstanding Christian brother
and doing a great work in Australia.  Please read what he has to say.

You can access this file at the URL

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/files/mdr0109.pdf

To learn more about file sharing for your group, please visit

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Regards,

dlemmons@...

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0566.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  THE GLOUCESTER REMINDER
<||>  Volume 1, #39, April 30, 2000
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Dub McClish
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Attendance
=========================================
CHURCH ATTENDANCE
by Dub McClish

There is surely more to being faithful to the Lord of heaven and
earth than "church attendance," but can one be faithful to Him
without it?  Is it necessary (to please God, to grow spiritually, to
be saved) for one to assemble faithfully with the saints?  If the New
Testament teaches anything, it answers "yes"!  We are obviously not
speaking of the sick and shutins and others who are hindered beyond
their control, but those who are able to come.  We aren't merely
asking if the preacher or elders care, but does God care?  Consider
the following:

Lord's Day assembly.  Saints are commanded to partake of the Lord's
supper to remember Christ (1 Cor.  11:24).  The apostolic example
(Acts 20:7) and uninspired early church history confirm that the
church ate the Lord's Supper on the first day of the week.  To
provide the money needed to do the work of the church, the saints
were commanded to give of their money every first day of the week (1
Cor.  16:1-2).  These things were to be done "everywhere in every
church" (1 Cor.  4:17).  To willfully miss the Lord's Day assembly is
to disregard these commands.

Other assemblies.  What about Sunday evening, Sunday morning Bible
school or Wednesday night?  Are such meetings scriptural or
unscriptural?  Various meetings besides Sunday were held in the early
church with apostolic approval (Acts 2:46; 4:23; 12:12, etc.).  It is
certain that such additional meetings for study, worship and
fellowship (gospel meeting series, vacation Bible schools, workshops,
etc.) greatly strengthen those who attend them and do untold good.
In spite of scriptural precedent and practical need for these
meetings, some still weakly cling to the "Lord's Supper only"
approach to church attendance.

A direct command.  As clearly as the New Testament teaches not to
commit adultery, not to steal, or not to murder, it teaches "not
forsaking the assembling of ourselves together" (Heb.  10:25).  To
forsake is not the same as merely being absent.  The sick man will be
absent without forsaking the assembly if he would have been there
except for sickness.  To forsake is to abandon for something deemed
more important.  It is mere speculation to limit this command only to
the Lord's Day assembly.  Whenever there is a meeting of the saints
at which we could be exhorted to pure living, we ought to be there.
Moreover, we ought to want to be there!

Miscellaneous principles.  Lovers of God have always cherished
worship and study opportunities (Ps.  42:1-4; 84:1-2, 10; Mt.  5:6).
Can one "seek first the kingdom" while forsaking its assemblies?
(Mt.  6:33).  Does God care where we are when the saints meet?





=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0566.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

Hello,

This email message is a notification to let you know that
a file has been uploaded to the Files area of the LemmonsAid
group.

   File        : /wimr0108.PDF
   Uploaded by : dlemmons@...
   Description : Please take the time to read this newsletter from Steve & Susan
Waller, reporting on their work in Indonesia for the month of August, 2001.  You
must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader software to open the file.

You can access this file at the URL

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Hello,

This email message is a notification to let you know that
a file has been uploaded to the Files area of the LemmonsAid
group.

   File        : /la0025.PDF
   Uploaded by : dlemmons@...
   Description : Back to September of1998, the first 25 posts to LemmonsAid.

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http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0565.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  VIRGINIA CHRISTIAN, Vol. 5, #9, 9/01
<||>  Hopkins Road church of Christ
<||>  8325 Hopkins Road
<||>  Ricmond, VA  23237
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Sellers Crain, Jr.
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Preaching
=========================================
PREACHER WANTED
by Sellers Crain, Jr.

Have you ever noticed the adds seeking a preacher in some of our
brotherhood papers?  Many of them read, "Preacher wanted--must be
between the ages of 35 and 50."  In any other business, this type of
add would not be allowed because it violates the Fair Employment
Securities Act.  Because of our "Church/State" doctrine, the church
is one of the last places where this type of age discrimination is
allowed or simply overlooked.

I have often remarked that I was born at the wrong time.  When I
began preaching at age 19, no established congregation of any size
wanted a young preacher.  They wanted a man with age and experience,
and in most cases one married with a family.  Most of the preachers
my age had to begin in small congregations, often in difficult
mission areas just to get started.  A preacher had to work his way up
as his family grew just to keep up with the cost of living.  Now that
I am in my early 50's and have been preaching for 35 years, the
situation has completely reversed.

Today, for some strange reason, a preacher over 50 is considered over-
the-hill.  Several preacher friends of mine who were forced to seek
other work after being with a congregation 14 or 15 years, and who
were doing a good job, had to search for over a year to locate a
work.  The problem in most cases was not because they were not good
preachers or did not have good records, they were not even given a
chance to speak because they were over the age limit.  Have we
reached a point in the Church where age, knowledge, wisdom, and
experience do not count?  Many problems in the Church today have come
because these qualities were missing in the man who filled the pulpit.

This comment is not said to criticize young preachers.  My age and
experience have allowed me to see this situation from both sides.
Many of the younger preachers I know are good, sincere men who love
the Lord, His church, and His people.  Most young preachers today are
much better educated than I was when I began preaching.  Although I
now have an undergraduate degree and three graduate degrees, I spent
twenty years earning them while preaching and raising a family.  Many
of our younger preachers are knowledgeable, good communicators, hard
working, and dedicated.  My fear is that we do as much harm to them
by our preacher hiring practices as we do our older preachers.

Let me tell you why I feel this way.  How many young men will desire
to devote their life to the ministry if they know that when they
reach 50 few congregations want them any more?  How many young men
will stay in the ministry when they discover that within a few years,
15 or so, they will have reached and gone beyond what is considered
their prime?  How many men will want to go into the ministry knowing
that, in all likelihood, when they reach 50, their income will
diminish instead of increase?

Why is our current rate of ministry "burnout" greater than in
previous years?  Could it have something to do with the fact that
young men are starting out in congregations where they are expected
to have the knowledge and to perform at a level they can only reach
through years of experience?  Too, many of these talented young men
leave the ministry after only a few years frustrated and
discouraged.  Many of the ones I know do not leave the church, or
lose their faith in God, they just quit preaching.  As more than some
have told me, "I feel I can do more as an average member than I can
as a preacher."

Consider how this practice affects our older preachers.  At the age
many of them are, they have devoted their lives to the ministry.
Most never planned to do anything other than preach.  Far too many
make no real plans for retirement because "preachers did not
retire."  They died preaching.  Men like Gus Nichols, Marshal Keeble,
Sam Pitman, and others of their great generation were preaching well
into their eighties.  My generation grew up under these men.  They
were role models.

Imagine reaching 50 and finding out that few congregations want men
that age any more.  What do you do then?  You're too young for
retirement, but too old to begin a new career, and most men I know do
not want to.  One could go to a small mission point and work.
However, this generally means a severe salary reduction at a time
when many men still have children at home or in college.  They are
also trying to make plans for their own future financial security.

Years ago, I had a conversation with Ira North in which he expressed
to me his concern that we were putting our older preacher "out to
pasture" at a time when they could be most useful to the Church.
That is why he encouraged the Madison church to employ as many older
preachers as they could support and give them a job to do which
allows them to maintain their dignity and self-respect.  This was and
is a noble undertaking.  More larger congregations need to consider
making this a part of their ministry.  We need to make room for the
younger preacher to grow and mature, and to encourage them to spend
their live preaching God's word.  At the same time, we must not
despise the "hoary head" (Lev 19:32; Prov 20:29), for with it comes
wisdom, stability, and strength.


=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

DRL NOTE:  Brethren, this article communicated to me in a B-I-G way.
In November I will attain that age mentioned in this piece.  I really
do not believe that my usefulness in the kindgom has reached its
zenith as I reach the half-century mark!  It is shameful how
preachers are sometimes treated by brethren!  Can YOU do something
among the brethren in YOUR congregation to change this foolish way of
thinking???  If not, the church will not be nearly as productive as
it is capable of being is my confident assurance to you.

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0565.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0564.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  Sqeezed from a Lemmons
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  David Lemmons
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Appeal
=========================================
Trip to Indonesia #3, Mid-October 2001
by David Lemmons dlemmons@...

APPEALS!  APPEALS!  APPEALS!  I know that church leaders and faithful
Christians see so many of them.  Here is one more that I hope will
a-p-p-e-a-l to YOU!

Brethren, this is the first time I have made an appeal for financial
assistance for myself on LemmonsAid.  It is not something I
particularly enjoy doing, yet, at the same time, I am thankful for
the opportunity which has presented itself to me.  It thrills my soul
that I serve under good elders who are concerned about world
evangelism!!!  Also, I am delighted that I might be able to help you
to have fruit "abound to your account" (Phil 4:17), as Paul was also
delighted with that same opportunity with the saints at Philippi.  I
am presently preparing to travel to Indonesia for the second time in
2001.  Steve Waller (who lives in Jakarta) and I will be visiting in
southern Sulawesi, which is one of the larger islands of Indonesia.
Our purpose will be to attempt to encourage and strengthen some of
our brethren in that primitive area.  I have been asked to teach a
series of lessons concerning how to study and understand the Bible.
My elders are in agreement that I should go.  The trip will be for a
period of about 5 weeks.

My first two trips to Indonesia were fully funded by the North
Marshall church, where I preach.  The North Marshall church sponsors
the work of Steve and Susan Waller in Indonesia.  This congregation,
her elders, and preacher are very deeply interested in and concerned
about this work.  However, we are a small congregation and our
resources are not unlimited.  The elders have agreed that North
Marshall will purchase the round trip ticket for this, my third trip
to Indonesia (which is greatly appreciated), but have asked that I
try to find other interested brethren who might be willing to help
take care of the expenses that will be involved in the travel and
accommodations within Indonesia.  Indonesia is so spread out that air
travel within is the most cost effective means of travel and this
would be the case for this particular trip from Jakarta to Sulawesi.

I will be delighted to provide you with further details if you have
questions.  Write me at: dlemmons@...   To those who contribute,
I will provide an accounting of the income and outgo.

I have previously traveled two times to India; once to Ukraine; and
two times to Indonesia.

My elders, at North Marshall, are willing to begin receiving your
checks.  They can be made out to NORTH MARSHALL CHURCH OF CHRIST.
Please identify them in the Memo space as: DRL to Indonesia.  A fund
will be established for my travel expenses.  This will likely be an
ongoing fund, as it is quite probable that there will be more trips
to follow this third trip.  If more is raised than is needed for this
trip, the excess will be used for any subsequent trips.  Our mailing
address at North Marshall is...
      North Marshall church of Christ
      3290 Palma Road
      Calvert City, KY  42029

If you think there is a possibility that you might be able to help,
or know someone else who might, it will help to ease my mind if you
would let me know about your plans by Email:  dlemmons@...

Thank you for any consideration you might give to this time-sensitive
and urgent appeal.  Any amount, large or small, will be deeply
appreciated!  May the Lord help us to spread the saving message to a
lost and dying world.




=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0564.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0563.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  THE REMINDER, 2 September 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Mark Bass
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Adultery
=========================================
WOULD YOU BAPTIZE A COUPLE THAT IS IN AN UNSCRIPTURAL MARRIAGE?
Mark Bass

Last week a preacher friend asked me whether I would baptize a couple
who were in an unscriptural marriage.  With no hesitation, I told him
that I could not do it in good conscience (he was in full
agreement).  When he asked me why, I gave the following reasons.

First of all, the Bible makes it clear that baptism must be preceded
by repentance (without repentance we cannot be saved, Luke 13:3; Acts
17:30,31).  Repentance is a change of mind (godly sorrow) that leads
to a change of mind and life.  Biblical repentance demands that one
give up any and all sinful practices and/or relationships.

One who will not repent is not ready to be baptized - he needs more
teaching.  I have listed several reasons below for this conviction.
To date, no one has refuted the logic or the scripturalness of this
position.

1.  I would not baptize a couple in an adulterous marriage for the
same reason I would not baptize a homosexual couple who refused to
give up their sinful lifestyle.  If they are not willing to change
their lives, they have not repented and are not scriptural candidates
for baptism.

2.  I would not baptize a couple in an adulterous marriage for the
same reason I would not baptize a man who was living with two wives.
As long as he remains in that polygamous relationship, he is living
in sin and baptism will do him no good.  Clearly, he is not a
scriptural candidate for baptism.

3.  I would not baptize a couple in an adulterous marriage for the
same reason I would not baptize a woman who worked as a prostitute
and was unwilling to change her occupation.  Obviously, she was not
penitent and not a scriptural candidate for baptism.

4.  I would not baptize a couple in an adulterous marriage for the
same reason I would not baptize a man who ran a bar or tavern.  In
view of plain Bible teachings, one cannot sell liquor and be pleasing
to God.  One who is truly penitent would give up such a business.
One who refuses is not a scriptural candidate for baptism.

Some have said that I am making adultery the unpardonable sin; but I
would beg to disagree.  One who is scripturally immersed is forgiven
of all sins, including adultery (Acts 2:38; 22:16).  But when they
continue their sinful activities (whether it be lying, stealing,
cheating, drinking or adultery), they are separated from God and need
to repent (Acts 8:22; I John 1:9) lest they be lost.  So the man or
woman in an unscriptural marriage can be forgiven, but they cannot
remain in that unscriptural union and be pleasing to God.

There are two great problems with the idea that some have of "Let's
baptize them and maybe they will learn the truth and repent later."

First, it gives them the idea that they are right in the sight of God
and saved.

Second, what kind of message are we sending to other members of the
congregation (especially our young people and new converts) when they
see someone taken in as a faithful member and used in a public way
who is known to be living in adultery?  If that is not bidding "God
speed to error" (2 John 10,11), I don't know what it would take to do
so!

Occasionally, someone will argue that "brother so-and-so" (well-known
and respected preacher) said he would baptize them regardless of
their marital situation.  That might be the case, but what does it
prove?  Since when do we prove what is right or wrong by appealing to
a man or group of men?  Even if a majority of preachers agreed with
this unscriptural position, that still would not make it right.
God's Word (i.e., New Testament) is our only source of authority for
determining right from wrong (Colossians 3:17).

Yes, baptism is important and essential, but let's not be guilty of
baptizing those who are not ready, just for the sake of baptizing or
increasing our numbers.  [Banner of Truth, 6-3-01]






=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0563.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0562.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  THE REMINDER, 2 September 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Roger D. Campbell
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Christian Living; Movies
=========================================
I HEAR IT'S A GOOD MOVIE
by Roger D. Campbell

How many times have we said that or heard someone else say it?  There
have been some great movies through the years.  Others have been
anything but great.  One thing is for sure - we need to be extremely
cautious in recommending movies and in receiving the recommendations
that others might give to us about a particular movie.

Suppose a movie is voted "Movie of the Year" and/or receives several
special awards in Hollywood.  What does such recognition indicate?
It simply means that those who do the voting personally consider the
movie to be the best in some aspect.  Awards are given for best actor
and actress, best supporting actor and actress, best special effects,
best music, etc.  I don't know about you, but when I think about
labeling a movie as "good" or "not good," I personally do not give
one ounce of consideration to what a group of liberal, humanistic-
minded people in Hollywood or elsewhere have to say about it.

You see, to many of those folks, all that counts is putting on a show
and making money.  That is the bottom line.  And, if it takes showing
two unmarried people jumping into bed with one another as being no
big deal, portraying homosexuality as acceptable, making a mockery of
Bible-based morals, or blaspheming the name of the Lord God, they are
more than willing to do it.  Yes, anything for a "good movie."

In our day there are some wonderfully talented actors and actresses
that can impressively play a role in a movie in such a way that they
can captivate audiences.  There are producers that have a tremendous
ability to make moviegoers sit spellbound for two solid hours.  But,
we ask: are good acting and good producing the only criteria that
Christians should consider when thinking about the quality of a
movie?  We think not.  Should God's people watch or recommend movies
that, though they contain good acting and evidence good producing,
are loaded with matters that are blatantly against the principles of
the Bible?  How could we?

There is available on the Internet a website
< http://www.screenit.com > that can be a very helpful tool for
Christians and their families.  It gives an in-depth description of
the contents of movies and videos, telling about such things as
nudity, profanity, suggestive language, and violence that one can
expect in a particular movie.  I highly suggest that every child of
God consider checking out this site before going to see a movie or
sending someone else to see it.  If you don't have access to the
Internet, ask someone who does to help you in getting the facts about
a movie before you get into an unpleasant situation where you waste
your money on filth.

Here's an example.  I checked out what the site reveals about the new
movie "America's Sweethearts" (Rated PG-13) (2001), starring Julia
Roberts and Billy Crystal.  Here are some facts: the movie contains
some sixty (60) cases of swearing or suggestive language; it also
contains numerous cases of immoral sexual references and immoral
sexual actions.  The "stars" of such a movie might be attractive and
highly skilled in their profession.  One of them may even be your
personal favorite, but come on now, how could any child of the holy
God Who wants us to be holy (1 Peter 1:15,16) even consider watching
such trash?!

When I hear something like, "Yeah, they tell me it's a good movie,"
my first thought is, "Who is the 'they' that are doing the endorsing
or recommending?" If it is the folks of Hollywood or other people
with loose morals, sorry, but I am not impressed.

Our Lord wants us to live soberly, righteously, and godly (Titus
2:11).  We live and talk like we think (Mark 7:20-23; Matthew 12:34-
36).  And, that which goes into our minds via our eyes and ears
definitely affects how we think.  Deny that statement if you want to,
but the Bible and human experience indicate that it is the truth.
Thus, we need to be ever so careful about the movies that we
ourselves watch, allow our kids to see, or encourage others to view.
Do I hear any "amens?"

Brethren, there is something wrong when members of the church and
people of the world have the same evaluation or rating systems for
movies!  When our evaluation of movies goes right along with what
Hollywood, professional movie critics, and immoral people say about
'em, then we better step back and do some serious thinking.

There is nothing wrong per se with either producing or watching
movies.
We do, however, plead for sober reflection on the potential danger
that movies present.  Please,

"...  think on these things" (Philippians 4:8).  rdc


=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

DRL NOTE:  Brother Campbell has done an excellent job with the
article above to challenge our thoughts.  Are we simply going along
with the prevailing winds in America with regard to our own moral
stance (Rom 12:1-2)???  In case you forget the website to which Roger
refers above, I have listed it in my "Bookmarks" section at Yahoo
Groups.  I hope many of you will be visiting these bookmarks--a link
to the Bookmarks section is printed at the bottom of each LemmonsAid
post.  Presently there are some 41 links included.

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0562.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0561.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  From the ESB Website
<||>  http://www.englishstudybible.com/mycustompage0015.htm
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  The Late Harold Littrell
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Poems; Christian Living
=========================================
                  MY LIFE IN CHRIST
                  by Harold Littrell

----- My life in Christ is filled with happiness and love
----- My life in Christ is full of heaven from above.
----- Peace that passes understanding attends my way,
----- As I live and serve my Jesus day by day.

----- So I'll say, "Thank you, Father, in the name of Jesus
----- For the happiness that fills my very soul.
----- So I'll say, "Thank you Father, in the name of Jesus,
----- For the happiness that overflows my soul."

----- My life in Christ is guided by the book divine,
----- All the joys and hopes of heaven, they are mine.
----- Heaven's gates are open wide, eternal life awaits inside,
----- As I walk in the light of his word, as I walk in the light
       of his word.

----- So I'll say, "Thank you Father, in the name of Jesus,
----- For the happiness that fills my very soul."
----- So I'll say, "Thank you, Father, in the name of Jesus,
----- For the happiness that overflows my soul."

----- My life in Christ began when I first heard his word,
----- My life in Christ began when I believed with all my heart;
----- Was buried with my Lord, washed in his precious blood;
----- My life in Christ began when I obeyed my Lord.

----- So I'll say, "Thank you Father, in the name of Jesus,
----- For the happiness that fills my very soul."
----- So I'll say, "Thank you Father, in the name of Jesus,
----- For the happiness that overflows my soul."
       ----- By Harold Littrell




=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

DRL NOTE:  Brethren, the Lord's church has lost another valiant
soldier in the battle against Satan for the minds and hearts of men.
On this day, 24 August 2001,  brother G.W. Allison preached the
funeral for brother Harold Littrell in Pocahontas, AR.  Brother
Littrell was not that widely known among us, but he was a faithful
preacher of the gospel and he will be missed by all who are friends
of the truth.  He once told me that he only hoped that he would be
allowed to live long enough to finish his set of commentaries on the
New Testament.  That gigantic task WAS accomplished and he even
completed the writing of a commentary on the first five books of the
Old Testament.  If you are unfamiliar with the work of this dedicated
servant, you might like to visit the following website:
http://www.englishstudybible.com/default.htm

I understand that the song above, which he wrote, was to be sung
today at the funeral.  I was privileged to drive to my hometown of
Pocahontas (about 4 hours one way), on yesterday and express my
gratitude to his beloved widow for the work he has done for the the
greatest Cause on earth.  May there be many more like him raised up
to spread the saving message to a lost and dying world!!!

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0561.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0560
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  Email from Gospel Preachers List
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Jon Gary Williams
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Para-Church Organizations
=========================================
CHURCHES OF CHRIST DISASTER RELIEF
by Jon Gary Williams

[[[ <<<NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:  The following material was posted on
another e-group in response to some comments and questions regarding
the DISASTER RELIEF program.  Several have contacted me suggesting
that it be posted here as well.  Since I live in the Nashville area I
am well acquainted with people directly involved with CCDR and,
hence, have access to firsthand information.  These are observations
which may be of interest to those on this list.>>>  DRL NOTE:
Considering the nature of this type of organization and its seeming
widespread popularity, I also think it worthwhile to present it to
you via LemmonsAid.]]]

REGARDING THE BOARD OF CCDR
At the beginning this program was simply identified with the name
"Disaster Relief." It was started at the Tusculum congregation by the
preacher, John Miller.  Its first "board" was the eldership at
Tusculum.  However, the Tusculum congregation eventually dropped the
program at which time it was placed under a generic board made up of
various men in the Nashville area.  John Miller became its first and
only "president." I asked one of the present board members (a former
elder at Tusculum, but who left that congregation because of liberal
goings on) why the elders dropped "sponsorship" of the program.  He
explained it was because Tusculum had supported the infamous
"Jubilee." Complaints coming to the elders made it necessary (if the
program was to continue receiving support from other brethren) to
remove it from the Tusculum congregation.  (However, this elder told
me he felt it should be under an eldership and not a general board.)

THE TITLE: "CHURCHES OF CHRIST DISASTER RELIEF."

When word got out that the title "CHURCH OF CHRIST DISASTER RELIEF"
was in the working, it was soon pointed out that this was an improper
use of the expression "church of Christ." My understanding is that
some suggested using the title "DISASTER RELIEF" with the subtitle
"Supported by Churches of Christ." I, along with others, was under
the impression the title "CHURCHES OF CHRIST DISASTER RELIEF" would
not be used.  However, the next thing I knew it was being used, with
the modification of "CHURCHES" plural.  I suppose they felt the
plural sounded less objectionable.  (Actually, the official title now
is: "CHURCHES OF CHRIST DISASTER RELIEF EFFORT, INC.")

IS CCDRE JUSTIFIABLE?  When discussing this with others I have made
it a point to bring out the following questions:
      1) Is it the responsibility of the Lord's church to
          provide relief to the world at large?  Is not this
          the premise on which CCDRE was founded?  Is not this
          what CCDRE has become - a generic relief society?  Why
          did not the early church organize such programs?

      2) Is not CCDRE the creation of another "para-church
          organization"?  Is it not true that well-meaning brethren
          become involved in this project without first ascertaining
          its right to exist?

      3) Is the use of "CHURCHES OF CHRIST DISASTER
          RELIEF EFFORT, INC." a scriptural concept?  Is there
          such an animal?  What is the difference between this and a
          "Churches of Christ Hospital," "Churches of Christ Home
          for the Elderly" or "Churches of Christ Half-Way House"?
          (In the Nashville area we have many hospitals.  Many people
          come here for organ transplants and treatments.  These
          transplants and treatments can become very, very expensive,
          often wiping out a family's financial base.  I ask -
          could not congregations organize a "CHURCHES OF CHRIST
          MEDICAL DISASTER RELIEF" and provide housing and
          funds to help needy families?  I proposed this to
          a supporter of CCDRE.  He rejected it as unscriptural.
          I asked him to explain the difference between this
          and CCDRE.  No response as yet.)

      4) Has CCDRE not become a community-wide project?  Has
          it not become a co-operative effort with people of various
          religions seeking to offer assistance?

      5) Does not CCDRE solicit goods, services and funds from
          merchants?  Is this the way New Testament Christians carry
          out benevolence?

      6) Will CCDRE accept financial aid from anyone who will
          contribute?  (I am well acquainted with a brother who
          witnessed a check from Anheuser-Busch being counted in
          CCDRE revenues.)

      7) Is it scriptural for CCDRE to pay a preacher to do
          "follow-up" work?  What is the difference between this
          and the Missionary Society?  (One of the board
          members confirmed to me that this is a part of
          CCDRE's program.  He said he objected to it but
          was overruled.)

These are my thoughts.  I believe I have taken a sensible approach to
the matter.


=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

DRL NOTE:  Brethren, that these para-church organizations are greatly
multiplying among us is obvious to anyone the least bit informed of
brotherhood happenings.  We need to be asking some of these questions
suggested by our brother in the article above!  May we seek the
authority of Christ for all that we do in word or deed (Col 3:17)!!!

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0560

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0559.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  POWER, June 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Mike McDaniel
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Q&A; Communication
=========================================
ARE REGULAR FINANCIAL REPORTS EXPEDIENT?
by Mike McDaniel

"Is it right for a congregation never to see a financial statement of
what is spent?  It seems to me that since they are doing the giving,
they have a right to know where the money is spent.  Please comment
on this."

When I received the above question from a viewer of SEARCHING THE
SCRIPTURES
( http://www.oabs.org/Archives/TV/search.htm ), it was intriguing
because I had not addressed it before on television, in a Bible
class, or in a sermon.  It is in no way this writer's desire to make
a law where God has made none.  This matter obviously falls in the
realm of expediency.  Are regular financial reports distributed to a
congregation expedient?

It is in the best interest of a congregation and of an eldership for
there to be printed regular, financial reports.  While most churches
now make regular financial reports, there are still some who do not.
It is expedient in my judgment that such reports be made for the
following reasons.

(1)  IT FULFILLS THE ADMONITION GIVEN IN ROMANS 12:17 to "provide
things honest in the sight of all men."  Children of God seek to do
what is honorable in the sight of all men.  Making a practice of
providing things honest in the sight of men will help prevent others
from falsely accusing us (1 Pet 3:16).  Financial reports fulfill
this admonition.

(2)  IT FULFILLS THE EXAMPLE GIVEN IN 2 CORINTHIANS 8:21.  2
Corinthians 8:16-21 is a passage that deals with the contribution
that Paul was collecting among the churches for the poor saints in
Judea.  Paul had someone who was trusted by all the churches to
accompany him and the contribution to Jerusalem (2 Cor 8:18-19).  Why
did he do this?  He mentions two reasons.  First, he says in 2
Corinthians 8:20, "Avoiding this, that no man should blame us in this
abundance which is administered by us."  Thus, he did it to avoid
anyone charging him with mishandling the contribution for the
saints.  Then he says in verse twenty-one, "providing for honest
things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of
all men."  Friends, if the apostle Paul would go to such measures to
ensure that his brethren would be assured concerning the honest and
proper handling of these contributions, should not elders also be
willing to take measures like regular financial reports so that
brethren are reassured?

While most elders and church treasurers are honest, a regular
financial report not only removes all temptations to misuse funds, it
also keeps the congregation from ever entertaining any doubt
regarding the integrity of the elders, or the treasurer.  The funds
of the church are to be used for the work of the church that God has
authorized: evangelism, edificatoin, and benevolence.  Financial
reports help to prevent the misuse of church funds.

This is surely one reason why God listed among the qualifications of
elders, not covetous, and not greedy of filthy lucre.  It is tragic
but true that some succumb to the temptation involved.  Do you
remember Judas?  It is said of him, "...he was a thief, and had the
bag, and bare what was put therein" (John 12:6).  It is not expedient
for elders and treasurers to be put into such a position where they
might be accused of such a thing as this.  Precautions should be
taken as Paul sought to do.

(3)  ANOTHER REASON WHY FINANCIAL REPORTS SHOULD BE GIVEN IS THAT
THEY CAN ENCOURAGE GREATER GIVING.  By seeing the good that has been
done the previous month, brethren may rejoice as they see the work of
the Lord going forward both locally and abroad.

(4)  A FOURTH REASON WHY IT IS EXPEDIENT FOR FINANCIAL REPORTS TO BE
GIVEN IS THAT THEY FACILITATE COMMUNICATION.  Good effective
leadership calls for communication.  Elders make problems for
themselves when they fail to communicate with the church.  Where
there is a failure in communication, the congregation cannot know
where they are going, and what they are trying to do.  Many of the
decision elders make involve financial responsibilities that the
congregation must bear.  Sometimes it is quite a heavy
responsibility.  In fairness to the church, elders need to let the
church know facts about certain works and what led to the decision to
support them.  The church is composed of people working and living
together.  Regular financial reports can help facilitate better
communication between the church's leadership and its membership.


=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0559.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0558.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  Email from Jim Sasser
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Roy H. Lanier, Jr.
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Gimmicks
=========================================
No Gimmicks, Please!
by Roy H. Lanier, Jr.

NO GIMMICKS, PLEASE!

The denominational world has degenerated into a glorified social
swirl.  They pretend to stimulate spiritually while making their
basic appeals to the humorous and fun-loving natures of their
members.  There is little compelling about their preachers.  Many are
constantly searching for new gimmicks and gadgets to hold the
interest of the people.  All the recreational ideas, promotional
persuasions, and social schemes are aimed at just one thing: to keep
their folks happy.

The shame of it all is that the Lord's church is beginning to copy
after them!  A perusal of the many bulletins that cross my desk each
week show a continued growth in the idea of keeping the people
happy.  Attendance, contribution and general interest seem to be the
main problems.  There is less and less Scripture being preached and
more and more picturesque speech.  Some would think the church is a
medium of social functions, rather than a "soul-saving society." A
Bible-filled Scripture-quoting, gospel sermon might be a rarity in
some of our pulpits.  Not only would it be unique, but elders of some
churches have made no effort to hide their criticisms of gospel
preachers who "quote too much Scripture."

"We've got to hold our young people" is the password of this
movement.  As if such a desire opened the doors to anything, just so
long as the young people's interest is held!

What an insult to young people!  To think they have to be coddled and
pampered and appealed to as if they were ignorant and unlearned in
the truth!  All too often, these same young people are embarrased by
such shenanigans of the oldsters, and in reality, are far stronger in
the faith than the older ones!

When shall we realize that the gospel needs no gimmicks?  It is God's
power to save and would we imagine that God needed any changes that
man might invent?  We have long preached that the denominations are
mistaken when they substituted the ideas of men for the plans of
God.  How consistent are we when we change the basic appeal of the
good news of Christ to some social or recreational tug at the fun-
seeking nature of man.

Let's have no gimmicks and no gadgets.  Let's offer no apologies for
the frank appeal for men to save themselves from this crooked
generation.  Let's offer a frank, true-to-the-Book stand.

Let's quit this silly appeal that the "church needs" the erring and
negligent and tell them the truth: THEY NEED THE CHURCH AND THE
SALVATION OF CHRIST!  Why beg them to do what they in reality do not
want to do!

Let's stand for the truth; teach it lovingly; and expect men to
either get in or get out!

---------Roy H.  Lanier, Jr.

=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0558.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0557.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  WORDS OF LIFE, Vol 7, #32, 8/19/01
<||>  P.O. Box 33
<||>  Waynesboro, TN  38485
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Not Known
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Teaching
=========================================
DISCIPLINE IN BIBLE CLASS

The little girl had been so bad that her mother told her to go fetch
a switch off the peach tree in the backyard.  After a long delay, the
little tot came back in the house, all a quiver, her hands meekly
folded behind her back.  The mother said, "Well, where's the
switch?"  The girl, sniffing back tears of remorse, said, "I couldn't
weach the peach tree," then holding out her hand, said, "but here's a
wock you can frow at me."  The mother's heart melted.

Children can at once be exasperating and endearing.  As a Bible class
teacher you may remember a day when you had so much trouble in class
that you wished for a switch or a rock!  Corporeal punishment,
however, is not an option available to the Bible class teacher.  Most
students know this and some will take advantage of the fact.  Any
number of children come to Bible class from homes where discipline is
unknown.  All it takes is one disruptive pupil to ruin the whole
class by forcing the teacher to direct all of his or her energy
towards maintaining quiet.  What is to be done when a 4-year-old
Attila the Hun visits Bible class?

Order begins when the teacher commands the respect of the class by
being self-possessed.  The class will be unsettled so long as the
teacher is unsettled within.  If you are not in control of your own
feelings and behavior, how can you control the class?  No class will
respect the teacher who is fretful or short-tempered.  The response
to disruptive behavior must therefore be firm, yet controlled.
Little Attila will tend to behave better when he sees that you always
react to him with loving sympathy.  Be firm in correcting, but not
cross.

When the class is disrupted, get a grip on the problem immediately.
Do not allow a disruptive student to keep the class in constant
chaos.  A child can be so disruptive as to require the presence of
another adult to "ride shotgun" on the young hoodlum.  On occasion, a
teacher's assistant may have to escort the disruptive child to the
parents with the explanation, "Atilla decided he'd rather sit in your
class with you today."  Most situations will not require such a
drastic measure, but if it comes to that, so be it.  These methods
can make more positive and lasting impression upon a student than any
rock you might throw!

=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0557.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0556.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  THE COLDWATER COURIER, 8/19/2001
<||>  Coldwater church of Christ
<||>  8467 State Route 121 N.
<||>  Murray, KY  42071-8309
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Johnny Ramsey
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Teaching
=========================================
VALUABLE TRAITS for BIBLE TEACHERS
by Johnny Ramsey

Nothing is more vitally important than communicating properly the
Holy Scriptures.  The most valuable moments of life are spent
studying and teaching and living the sacred text of the Bible.  God's
word furnishes us completely unto every good work and will ultimately
judge us in that last great day (Jn 12:48).  Those who teach the Good
Book must evince deep respect for its contents, strive to live by its
precepts, and manifest a keen desire constantly to improve in
knowledge, ability, and presentation of the revelation of God to
man.  Let us now carefully consider SEVEN SPECIAL ATTRIBUTES OF
TEACHERS who desire to excel in Heaven's sight, as they share the
message of eternity with their students.

[{< ONE >}]... COURAGE
Teachers who agree with every thought expressed, regardless of how
bizare the comment, are not good teachers.  They are cowards.  Issues
need to be met head-on, and that will take valor on the part of
teachers as well as a willingness to take unpopular stands for the
sake of truth.  If every member of the church were as uncertain as
some Bible class teachers, we would be in for "a heap of trouble."
Teacher, manifest the courage it takes to defend the truth at all
times!

[{< TWO >}]... CHRIST-LIKENESS
In Ephesians 2:17-21 we are challenged to deepen into the image of
our blessed Savior...
      Eph 3:17  That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith;
      that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, 18  May be able to
      comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length,
      and depth, and height; 19  And to know the love of Christ,
      which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the
      fulness of God.  20  Now unto him that is able to do exceeding
      abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the
      power that worketh in us, 21  Unto him be glory in the church
      by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.
Elsewhere the New Testament demands that we have the mind and spirit
of Christ.  When those who teach the Bible fail to be like the
Master, our words will die in the air.  Hot tempers, sharp words, and
vindictive attitudes will nullify the value of the classroom.

[{< THREE >}]... CONTRITENESS
Humility was one of David's greatest virtues.  A reading of Psalm 51
proves that.  An ability sincerely to confess faults is a mark of
spiritual power and not a sign of weakness (Js 5:16).  Teachers that
portray a "know-it-all" attitude will not be well-received by
students.  In 1 Corinthians 15:10, Paul admitted that it was by the
grace of God that he was able to do anything worthwhile.

[{< FOUR >}]... THE COMMON TOUCH
A teacher that comes across to the class as arrogant and out-of-touch
with the average student will not be listened to very well.  In Mark
12 we learn that the common people heard Jesus gladly.  Jude wrote
concerning the COMMON SALVATION (Jude 3).  Our Lord was the ideal
Teacher because "he knew what was in man" (Jn 2:25).  Great teachers
use understandable words that compromise a vocabulary that truly
communicates.

[{< FIVE >}]... COMPASSIONATE
Empathy is a tremendous quality, but hard to find in many people.
Unless a Bible teacher reaches out in loving concern, a lot of
students will never be blessed.  In 2 Corinthians 10:1 we read of
"the meekness and gentleness" of Jesus.  Even toward those who were
determined to be His enemies.  Jesus prayed for their conversion (Lk
23:34).  In Matthew 9, our Redeemer looked upon the lost with
compassion because they had no Shepherd.  He also manifested love for
little children.  I have never known an EFFECTIVE Bible teacher who
had a disdain for children.

[{< SIX >}]... CONVERSANT WITH GOD
No man or woman could ever be a successful Bible teacher who failed
to study and know the Holy Scriptures.  We cannot teach what we do
not know.  We cannot serve the One we do not know.  2 Timothy 1:12--"
For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not
ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is
able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day."

Teachers are also failures unless they converse with the Father via
the powerful avenue of prayer.  When we talk to God in prayer and
allow Him to talk to us through the sacred text, we become more
valuable assets as teachers.

[{< SEVEN >}]... A CHEERFUL GIVER
No one will ever speak ardently of a cause in which he is unwilling
to invest generously.  The essence of Christianity is giving.  God so
loved that Heaven gave the Best it had.  Christ so loved that He gave
Himself at Calvary (2 Cor 8:9; 9:15).  A great Bible teacher is one
that gives cheerfully time, effort, talent, and money to the cause of
the Lord.  When such people teach the message of the Cross, students
listen with open hearts, ears, and minds.  Unless we love to teach,
our pupils will hate to learn.  A stingy person will not be able
fully and freely to communicate the glad tidings of redemption.
      Give of your best to the Master,
      Give of the strength of your youth;
      Clad in salvation's full armor,
      Join in the battle for truth.

Conclusion:
We read in Psalm 119:97--"O how I love thy law!  It is my meditation
all the day."   When we truly love the Scriptures, the classroom will
be more vibrant as "our hearts burn within us" (Lk 24:32), as we
purpose fervently to "cleave unto the Lord" (Acts 11:23).  A poem
states...
      I sought to hear the voice of God
      I climbed the topmost steeple;
      But God declared, "Go down again,
      I dwell among the people."

The joy of teaching the Bible ought to be the magnificent obsession
of every Christian!


=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0556.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0555.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  Email Post to BibleList by Bryan Dockens
<||>  16 August 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Unknown
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Elders' Wives
=========================================
AN ELDER'S WIFE

Vital to the smooth operation of any local establishment of the
Lord's church is a devoted person who has no title, holds no office,
and has no authority save that of an ordinary Christian.  Yet this
person holds the power to disrupt or to expedite the most carefully
laid plans and the most important works of the church.  This quiet
but influential person is an elder's wife.

Elders' wives come in a variety of shapes, sizes, colors and
textures.  She can usually be found long after services are over,
sitting in a parked car by herself – waiting – or in an empty,
unheated auditorium after the crowd has gone – waiting.  She gets a
lot of Bible reading done this way, and she knows where all the songs
are in the hymnbook.

She knows the loneliness of long evenings at home while her husband
is out trying to correct other people's troubles.  She is alone
because her children are usually old enough to be occupied with their
own pursuits, if they have not left home altogether.  So she occupies
her time with busy work – and waits.

An elder's wife must be as staunch as a rock, as busy as a beaver, as
quiet as a mouse, as biblically informed as a preacher, as flexible
as a rubber band, and as patient as a mother of triplets.

She must know how to change her plans without notice, how to keep a
meal hot and tasty for two hours after it was ready to serve, how to
hold her temper – and her tongue – when people criticize her husband,
and, most of all, how to use time profitably while she waits for her
husband to get out of a prolonged conference.

Hers is the frustration of knowing little and being able to tell even
less, when people expect her to know all and tell it.  She knows the
heartache of watching her man wrestling with a problem not of his own
making and which he cannot discuss – even with her.  Hers is the
responsibility of setting an example of faithful Christian
wifeliness, not because anyone wants or intends to follow it, but
simply because her husband is an elder.  She has the burden of
knowing that, of all the positions and offices in the Lord's church,
her husband occupies one of the two or three whose qualifications
depend on the character and caliber of his wife as well as of himself.

An elder's wife likes a peaceful church, worship services, Bible
classes, potlucks, children, younger women, going visiting with her
husband, opportunities to serve, company, a night when her husband
has nowhere to go, getting to go home when church is over, short
business meetings, people who don't cause any trouble.

An elder's wife worries about what people think of her husband, what
people think about her, what people think about her husband because
of her, whether her children are faithful as she taught them to be,
church members who aren't faithful, whether the roast in the oven at
home is going to burn before her husband gets out of that unscheduled
business meeting which was called for "not more than five minutes" a
half hour ago.

Her life is hard, but she wouldn't have it any other way.  She loves
the Lord with all her heart and feels the warm flow of satisfaction
that comes of knowing that she dedicated not only herself, but even
her home, her husband and her family to the service of God and the
betterment of His kingdom.  She knows that she has a reward in
heaven, and she is willing to do more of that which she has already
learned to do so well – wait.

And even if there were no heavenly crown to look forward to, all the
trials of body and spirit become trivial by comparison when a man of
God, exhausted from long hours of tending the Master's flock, comes
home late at night, takes her in his arms, and says, "I just couldn't
make it without you!"

- Author Unknown -


=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

DRL NOTE:  This article is a PRECIOUS GEM and needs to be spread
throughout our great brotherhood.  Wherever great good is being
accomplished by godly elders, this note of praise and appreciation
needs to be distributed and appreciated by a grateful flock!!!

It is my VERY SPECIAL privilege to work with two of the finest
elders' wives in the entire world!  Dianna Hobgood and Carolyn Lofton
are highly deserving of the praise and adoration of all of the flock
at North Marshall.  I have come to love and appreciate them very
dearly for their work's sake during these six years I have known
them.  I KNOW of a certainty that things would not be nearly so
smoothly operating where I preach were it not for these dedicated
Christian women.  There is no way that the average member could
realize what an elder's wife has to bear without actually being an
elder's wife.  May God help us to love and appreciate the wonderful
elders' wives out there who are humbly sacrificing and serving our
Lord in His kingdom!!!  Would it be asking too much to express our
appreciation to them from time to time.  Have YOU done so lately???

ON ANOTHER NOTE:  Brother Ian McPherson is one of my friends and a
brother who is a faithful and sound preacher of the gospel.  He will
be visiting the USA seeking to replace some financial support for his
work in Tasmania, Australia.  He has recently begun a brand new work
(1/2000) in Devonport, in the Northwest part of the island of
Tasmania.  I have uploaded his newsletters for the year to my website
at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/MerseyBluff.htm

Here you can find maps and photos and read all of his newsletters for
the year of 2001.  He is desperately in need of appointments with
sound congregations who love the souls of men and might be willing to
join with him as "workers together with him [i.e., God]" (2 Cor 6:1),
in Tasmania.  If brother McPherson is not able to raise enough funds
during this trip to the US, there is the real likelihood that he will
have to cease his full time efforts for the Lord and seek secular
employment in order to provide for his family.  I believe Ian to be a
man sound in the faith and very worthy of the support of all of us.
I have kept up with his work for quite some time now and believe that
the work he is currently doing will surely bring forth fruit.  He has
a good plan and has rich experience in working in Australia.  Please
try to persuade whoever needs persuading to allow Ian to come talk to
your congregation.  He may be contacted at: ianmcp@... or
send a note to me and I'll try to get it to him.

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0555.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0554.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  THE GOSPEL REMINDER, Bay, AR
<||>  August 12, 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Barry M. Grider
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Pseudo-Unity
=========================================
DENOMINATIONALISM OR PLURALISM?
by Barry M. Grider

I once heard the late, great evangelist, Andrew M. Conally, say,
"Denominationalism is of the devil and all who remain in such until
death will be lost."  While this may offend many, including some
members of the Lord's church, it is a most accurate and compelling
Bible truth.  Simply stated, our Lord did not die for
denominationalism.  He built His church (Mt 16:18), shed His blood
for His church (Acts 20;28; Eph 5:23), is the Head of His church (Eph
5:25; Col 1:18), reigns over His church (Acts 2:30-32), and will save
His church (Eph 5:25).  Since there is only one body (Eph 4:4),
faithful preachers have always condemned divisive and devilish
denominationalism.

However, within the ranks of denominationalism itself, there has long
been much to debate as various religious groups sought to defend
their erroneous doctrines by means of Scripture.  At least these
proponents of error should be commended for trying to prove their
beliefs by the Bible and for being convicted enough to try to win
people to their way of thinking.

Today, however, there is a growing tendency away from
denominationalism to something perhaps even worse: PLURALISM!
Instead of religious bickering and infighting, all the religious
groups are being persuaded to put unity ahead of doctrine and come
together on "common ground."  While it would be a most marvelous
thing to see all the denominations give up their errors and unite
together on God's truth, this is not what is in mind.  Pluralism
calls for all religious groups, including those outside of
"Christendom," to see the value in each existing group and to
tolerate all opinions in our diverse culture, that one might see the
benefits offered by each group.  This is not to say there has never
been unity in diversity before.  For example, various denominational
groups have always stood united in their opposition toward the Lord's
church.  Yet, in recent times we see more toleration and acceptance
of error and more retaliation toward the truth.

Unfortunately, the church of Christ has not been spared from the evil
doctrine of pluralism.  Notorious statements that have been made by
heretical teachers, such as, "Anytime I hear someone call God
'Father,' I see a brother," demonstrate how far astray some have gone
in order to attain pseudo-unity.  More and more, we have brethren who
are involved in the ecumenical movement through sharing pulpits with
various denominational preachers, conduct youth devotionals with
other religious groups, etc.  These meetings, for sure, are not
intended to teach the lost the truth.  Such brethren must be reminded
of the words of the apostle Paul, "And have no fellowship with the
unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them" (Eph 5:11).

Often these promoters of union with every denominational stripe
appeal to Jesus' prayer for unity in John 17.  Yet, this so-called
unity movement stands in direct contrast to Jesus' prayer.  No, it
was not the intention of the Lord to have everyone just getting
along, respecting the whims and opinions of each other, and
forgetting allegiance to His divine truth.  Truth is exclusive, not
inclusive.  It is, by its very nature, narrow (Mt 7:13-14).

So what should be our attitude toward pluralism?  The same as it has
been toward denominationalism.  Remember these words, "Whosoever
transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not
God.  He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the
Father and the Son.  If there come any unto you, and bring not this
doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:
For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds" (2
John 9-11).  May our constant plea be unity, but unity that is
authorized by the God who says, "the wisdom that is from above is
first pure, then peaceable..." (James 3:17).




=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0554.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0553.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  THE HARVESTER, Trenton, TN
<||>  Volume 29, #30, 5 August 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Jerry Joseph
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Authority
=========================================
MY PREACHER SAID IT
by Jerry Joseph

Have you ever had a religious discussion with someone and they tried
to prove their point by saying, "that's what my preacher said."  Some
people will use their preacher as the final authority in religious
matters.

It is believed by some that if the preacher states it, it has to be
right and cannot be wrong.  Some think that their preacher or any
other preacher would never lie nor deceive them.  So, they go through
life blindly accepting and doing whatever the preacher says.

Does not the Bible teach that we are to put "to the test" those who
teach (1 John 4:1)?  Let us be like the Bereans who "searched the
scriptures daily, whether those things were so" (Acts 17:11).

Yes, some believe it is wrong to question the teachings of any
preacher.  But, we have the God-given right to examine what is being
taught, no matter who the proclaimer may be.  It doesn't matter the
popularity, prestige, power, or personality of the preacher, he must
be PUT TO THE TEST.  We must examine what he proclaims and practices
in light of what is taught in the Bible.

This examination must be done because...
      (1) God commands it (1 John 4:1).
      (2) Hearers can be led astray (1 Pet 2:1-3).
      (3) The preacher must "preach the word" (2 Tim 4:2) to
          please God.

It is certainly possible for a preacher to teach false doctrine (Mt
7:15).  If he does, then out of love, he must be corrected.  Apollos,
a preacher, had to be corrected for some of the things he was
teaching (Acts 18:26).  The belief by some that the preacher is
"hands-off" concerning his belief, teaching, and practice is foreign
to the Scripture.

When one preaches or practices something contrary to the truth, he is
not being faithful to God and His Word.  One is displeasing to God in
his message when he...

      (1) TEACHES FALSE DOCTRINE.
           God's Word is truth (Jn 17:17).  To teach that which is
           opposed to the truth is teaching false doctrine.
      (2) TEACHES ONLY PART OF THE TRUTH.
           Paul kept back nothing that was profitable (Acts 20:20),
           nor did he shun to declare all the counsel of God
           (Acts 20:27).
      (3) TEACHES A COMPROMISING GOSPEL.
           God is certainly displeased with a watered-down
           message (2 Tm 4:2; Gal 1:6-9).
      (4) TEACHES WHAT THE PEOPLE DESIRE TO
           HEAR AND NOT WHAT THEY NEED
           (2 Tm 4:2-4).
           We must be concerned about speaking right
           things and not smooth things (Isa 30:10).
      (5) TEACHES THAT IS UNKIND AND UNLOVING
           TO OPPOSE THINGS BEING TAUGHT AND
           PRACTICED WITHOUT NEW TESTAMENT
           AUTHORITY.
           In fact, such matters must be opposed and exposed
           no matter the individual or individuals involved
           (Eph 5:11; Rom 16:17).  It is the kind and loving
           thing to do.  To fail to do so is "uncalled for" and
           unloving.
      (6) TEACHES THAT ONE CAN BELIEVE, TEACH,
           AND PRACTICE SOMETHING WITHOUT NEW
           TESTAMENT AUTHORITY AND STILL BE
           ACCEPTABLE TO GOD.
           Paul makes it clear in Colossians 3:17 that there must
           be Bible authority for all that we do in religion.
      (7) TEACHES THAT IT IS WRONG TO MAKE A
           JUDGMENT ABOUT ANOTHER'S LIFE AND
           TEACHING.
           Some judging is forbidden (Mt 7:1-3), but there is a
           type of judging that is commanded (Jn 7:24;
           1 Cor 5; Rom 16:17; Eph 5:11).
      (8) TEACHES THAT EVERYONE IS GOING TO
           HEAVEN NO MATTER WHAT ONE MAY
           BELIEVE OR PRACTICE.
           The concept of "universalism," that is, everyone is
           going to be saved, is not taught in Scripture.  Anyone
           can be saved if they will obey the Lord's will
           (Mt 7:21-23; Heb 5:8-9; Jn 8:24; Luke 13:3;
           Mt 10:32-33; Mk 16:16).

Let us realize that it is God's Word (John 12:48) that is our
standard of authority and not the words of man.  We must make sure
that what we teach, believe, and practice is based only upon the Word
of God.


=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-Subscribe@YahooGroups.com

Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0553.htm

If you are interested in URL Links to Bible Study
helps, please visit the "Bookmarks" section of
LemmonsAid on YahooGroups at...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0552.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  SEIBLES ROAD BULLETIN
<||>  July 29, 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Not Known
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Bible
=========================================
DID YOU KNOW THAT...

>>> Psalm 118 is the middle chapter of the entire Bible?

>>> Psalm 117, psalm immediately preceding Psalm 118 is the shortest
         chapter in the Bible?

>>> Psalm 119, psalm immediately following Psalm 118 is the longest
         chapter in the Bible?

>>> The Bible has 594 chapters before Psalm 118 and 594 chapters
         after Psalm 118?

>>> If you add up all the chapters except Psalm 118, you get a total
         of 1188 chapters.

>>> Psalm 118 verse 8 is the middle verse of the entire Bible?

>>> Should the central verse not have an important message?  "It is
         better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in
         man." (Ps 118:8).




=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

DRL NOTE:  If you have not read the interview with Max Lucado in
which he reveals that he never really felt a part of churches of
Christ, you may read it at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/Lucado-Baptist.pdf

To hear a tremendous sermon on the biblical view of "Stem Cell
Research," please listen online to Wayne Jackson discuss the topic
at:
http://www.christiancourier.com/audio/08012001b.ram

Please check out the other links at the LemmonsAid, Yahoo Groups
site...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid/links

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-subscribe@yahoogroups.com   They will send you
a message to which you must REPLY to be added to the
list.  Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0552.htm
HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0551.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  THE GOSPEL REMINDER, Bay, AR
<||>  August 5, 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Marvin Rickett
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Ten Commandments
=========================================
ARE WE UNDER THE TEN COMMANDMENTS?
by Marvin Rickett

Are we obligated by our God to keep the 10 Commandments of the Old
Testament today? in the Christian Age?  NO!  The Old Testament was
abolished, all of it, including the 10 Commandments.  Jesus
"abolished in his flesh... the law of commandments contained in
ordinances" (Eph 2:15).  He blotted out "the handwriting of
ordinances."  "He took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross"
(Col 2:14).

Since we are no longer under the 10 Commandments, are we therefore
free to commit all kinds of wickedness and evil deeds?  OF COURSE
NOT!  We are under the New Covenant of Jesus Christ.  It forbids us
to do the evil deeds.

You see, there are eternal principles which have been in force in
every dispensation: the Patriarchal, Mosaical, and Christian.  This
is the case because God does not change.  The principles which were
righteousness in the Patriarchal and Mosaical Ages are still
righteousness in the Christian Age.  In the Patriarchal Age, God
revealed these principles in a different manner.  In the Mosaical
Age, God codified the principles into a law for the people of
Israel.  In the Christian Age, the same principles are given in a
different manner to all people.  They are given through the gospel of
Jesus Christ.  The Law of Moses was abolished.  We must no longer
attempt to observe these righteous and eternal principles through
Moses' law code.  But the principles themselves survive.  We now
observe them through the New Covenant of Jesus Christ.

We refuse to have any other gods before God, or make any graven
images; not because Moses said so, but because the New Covenant says
"to us there is one God," and says that idolaters will not inherit
the Kingdom of God (1 Cor 8:6; 6:9,10).

We refuse to take the name of the Lord in vain, not because Moses
said so, but because the New Covenant says, "Let no corrupt
communication proceed out of your mouth" and "Let your speech be
alway with grace, seasoned with salt" (Eph 4:29; Col 4:6).

We refuse to keep the Sabbath Day holy because the Old Testament
commandment regarding it has been abolished and no New Covenant
statement authorizes any observance of the Sabbath Day.  (See
Galatians 4:9-11 and Colossians 2:16).

We honor father and mother, not because Moses said to, but because
the New Covenant says "honor thy father and mother" (Eph 6:2).

We shun murder, not because Moses said "Thou shalt not kill," but
because Jesus said, "Thou shalt do no murder" and the New Covenant
says no murderer has eternal life abiding in him" (Mt 19:18; 1 Jn
3:15).

We refuse to commit adultery, not because Moses said so, but because
the New Covenant says, "Let not fornication be once named among you"
and "whoremongers and adulterers God will judge" (Eph 5:3; Heb 13:4).

We avoid any kind of stealing, not because Moses says so, but because
the New Covenant says "Let him that stole, steal no more" and
"Thieves... shall not inherit the Kingdom of God" (Eph 4:28; 1 Cor
6:10).

We refuse to bear false witness, not because Moses said not to, but
because the New Covenant says, "Let your manner of life be without
covetousness" and "Covetourness is idolatry" (Heb 13:5; Col 3:5).

Just because we are not under the Old Testament and its 10
Commandments does not mean we are free to do evil.  We are under the
New Covenant.  The New Covenant does not leave us without restraint.
It bases righteousness on a higher plane.  If anything, it is even
stricter than the Law of Moses.

=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

DRL NOTE:  Brethren, I believe that my friend and brother, Marvin
Rickett, is one of the finest writers among us today.  His article
above is short, but it teaches that which is so needed to be
understood by people today [e.g., how many times have you seen a
posting of the 10 Commandments in someone's yard recently?], in an
easy and understandable way.  I am thankful to receive his bulletin
and appreciate his insightful articles greatly.


8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-subscribe@yahoogroups.com   They will send you
a message to which you must REPLY to be added to the
list.  Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0551.htm
HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0550.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  Email from Lane Dix
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Steve Higginbotham
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Worship
=========================================
THE CIRCUS IS IN TOWN
by Steve Higginbotham

A man once stated that one of the greatest disappointments of his
childhood was when he saw a tent going up.  He thought it was a
circus, but upon investigation he discovered it was a revival
meeting.  He further stated that one of the greatest disappointments
of his adult life came when he saw several Christians putting up a
tent.  He thought it was a revival service, but upon further
investigation discovered it was little more than a circus.

Have you noticed how reverence has given way to merriment, fear has
given way to familiarity, congregational singing has given way to
special performances, Bible teaching has given way to drama, and
preaching the gospel has given way to after dinner speeches.  Nearly
anything that brings applause, draws a crowd, and increases the
contribution has been "baptized" and thus sanctioned by some churches
today.

However, is there not a sanctity and sacredness to worship that
cannot be sacrificed on the altar of entertainment?  I for one,
believe there is.  The circus has come to town!  But this is one
circus I don't plan to attend.

"...If then I am the Father, Where is My honor?  And if I am a
Master, Where is My reverence?  Says the LORD of hosts..." (Malachi
1:6).


=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

DRL NOTE:  Brethren, in a very succint way brother Higginbotham has
presented a much needed admonition to many of our brethren.  Can we
not see the folly of turning our worship into a CIRCUS???  Must we be
constantly reminded that it is GOD WHO IS THE AUDIENCE in our worship
assemblies?  "God is a Spirit and they that worship Him must worship
Him in spirit and in truth" (Jn 4:24).  To bring in unathorized drama
and skits and entertainment into the worship of God Almighty is to
follow in the footsteps of Nadab and Abihu (Lev 10:1-2).  Who will be
so bold?  And the final answer is... many of my own brethren!!!

For those interested in foreign evangelism (and surely that includes
every faithful Christian), you may read the latest newsletter from
Steve & Susan Waller from the link given at the end of this
paragraph.  This newsletter is mainly reporting on their recently
concluded reporting tour in the USA, during which tour they covered
more than 10,000 miles.  They are presently back in Indonesia
carrying on with learning the culture, language, and how best to deal
with, encourage, and develop strong and faithful brethren in that
culture and among those who use that language.  From my two visits to
Jakarta, I am convinced that they are doing great work and have made
wonderful progress.  Please keep them in your prayers.  The link for
the June/July report is: http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/wimr01-
0607.pdf   To visit the archives of previous reports, please go to:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/wimrs.htm (the picture in the
background is of the LARGEST mosque in Asia, which is located in
Jakarta).


8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-subscribe@yahoogroups.com   They will send you
a message to which you must REPLY to be added to the
list.  Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0550.htm
HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0549.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  BEACON, Vol. XXX, #30, 30 July 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Tom Wacaster
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Modesty
=========================================
APPAREL DOES SAY SOMETHING
by Tom Wacaster

There was a most interesting editorial in the DALLAS MORNING NEWS on
May 2, 2001.  It was entitled: "You're right to be wary of gangsta
chic," by Leonard Pitts.  I must admit that there were two words that
caught my attention, mainly because I was unfamiliar with the
meaning.  GANGSTA is slang for "gangster" (the "r" has migrated to
who knows where), and CHIC means "style or urban fashion in
clothing."  The gist of the article was avoidance of certain contact
with strangers who DRESS in a style that classifies them with a
specific element in society; in this case, youth gangs.  He writes,
"Kids always have outfitted themselves according to ever shifting
ideas of what constitutes cool.  But gangsta chic is about more than
cool.  The universal perception and frequent reality is that it also
is about sending an implicit threat."  And then he makes this most
astute observation...
      I often hear kids insist that dress is neutral and how dare you
      stereotype them based upon what they wear.  Fine.  It is the
      argument you would expect them to make.  But it is an
      abrogation of responsibility for adults to encourage them
      in that delusion.  Better to explain to them that what you
      show the world, how you allow yourself to be perceived,
      will have profound implications for the way people treat you.
The world judges us by the way we dress.  If a woman dresses like a
harlot she is going to be propositioned.  If a young person dresses
like a GANGSTA, he or she should not be surprised if otherwise
cautious folks avoid any contact or association with them.

Now, let us apply this rather obvious truth to some other areas
beside GANGSTA CHIC.  First, the principle is true with regard to
"modest apparel."  Scanty clothing says something to those who see
us.  It is a COME ON to the opposite sex.  Some of you may remember
the hijacking of TWA Flight 847 back in July of 1985.  The HOUSTON
CHRONICLE carried this interesting bit of news about the event.  One
lady passenger was being molested by one of the hi-jackers.
Fortunately, for her, he was restrained by his leader.  The leader,
after restraining his fellow hi-jacker explained to her that the
short pants she was wearing was inappropriate and had conveyed to the
terrorist that such advances might be welcomed by her.  A few minutes
later he brought her a blanket and told her to wrap it around her
waist.  In spite of the 100 degree temperature in the airplane, she
kept the blanket on the rest of the ordeal.  But I can hear someone
say, "Well, this is a free society, and I can dress the way I want."
Evidently some think that what is lawful in the eyes of society is
automatically acceptable to God.  Evidence suggests that some of our
sisters in Christ have bought into this lie.  The Bible still says
that we are to dress in "modest apparel."  Meanwhile, let a man gaze
after a scantily clad woman, and she will be the first to cry "foul"
should she become aware of his gazes (or worse).

But I must address another area that concerns me no little.  There is
an increasing trend toward sheer sloppiness in what we wear to
worship.  It used to be that we had our "Sunday-go-to-meeting"
clothes and the first day of the week was one of those rare occasions
when you could tell that a person was going to church by the way he
dressed.  Neatness tells us that we respect ourselves and others, but
sloppiness says we just do not care.  While there may be some who
cannot afford a nice dress shirt and tie, or a nice dress, this is
the exception rather than the rule in our affluent society.  I have
attended high school graduation exercises, and Baccalaureate services
where young people were dressed in decent, neat, and respectful
clothing, only to see them appear the following Sunday morning in
rags, blue jeans, and baggy, and sloppy dress as they come to worship
God.  We are witnessing young ladies wearing shorts, loose blouses,
and skin tight jeans as they gather to worship their God; and that
with the parents consent (or at least without any voice of opposition
from mom or dad).  Mr. Pitts was right on target when he pointed out
that it is "an abrogation of responsibility for adults to encourage
them in that delusion."  Unfortunately, parents are often derelict in
this area as well.  When we come before God in worship we are to have
a contrite spirit (Isa 66:2).  That spirit is reflected in the way we
dress and conduct ourselves in our worship, as well as our every day
behavior.  Brother Mack Lyon hit the nail right on the head...
      No!  God does not have a dress-code for worship and work!
      Of course He does not.  He assumes the humble, worshipping
      heart will dictate proper attire and behavior.  A true spirit of
      awe, reverence, and worship dictates dignity and propriety in
      dress and demeanor.  God does not command us to kneel or
      stand or bow our heads when we pray, but doing so manifests a
      humility of heart that honors and respects the sovereign God,
      whom we praise and petition.  So does proper dress.

Before you dismiss this as so much "preacher talk," why not stop and
think seriously and soberly about it?

--834 Hartman
    Baytown, TX  77521


=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-subscribe@yahoogroups.com   They will send you
a message to which you must REPLY to be added to the
list.  Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0549.htm
HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0548.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  THE HARVESTER, Vol 29, #29, 29 July 2001
<||>  Trenton church of Christ, 1714 South College, Trenton, TN
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Jerry Joseph
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Bible
=========================================
WHAT MUST I DO WITH THE SCRIPTURES?
by Jerry Joseph

      S... earch (Jn 5:39).
      C... herish (Ps 1:1-2).
      R... emember (Acts 20:35).
      I... nstill (Ps 119:11).
      P... ervert Not (Rev 22:18-19).
      T... each (Mt 28:18-20).
      U... nderstand (Eph 5:17).
      R... ightly Divide (2 Tim 2:15).
      E... xemplify (1 Tm 4:12).
      S... ubmit (James 1:19-22).

=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

DRL NOTE:  I will be teaching Bible at the Gateway Area Bible Camp,
near Rolla, MO this week, which means the LemmonsAid dispenser will
be empty for a while.  Please continue to tell others about
LemmonsAid and help me to increase the membership.  I thank you for
your encouragement!

There is a site, (a link to which I have marked on the "Bookmarks"
section of the Yahoo Groups LemmonsAid page), which has a pretty neat
PDF file which will allow you to print out some ten Pro-Life "Palm
Cards."  These little business-card-sized ads promote the Pro-Life
position.  You can download the file and print them out on your own
computer and distribute them at places where you think women who
might be contemplating an abortion might pick them up--this could be
almost anywhere in our society (eating establishments; doctors'
offices; the Post Office, etc.).  The file can be downloaded from the
following URL:
http://www.prolifeactivist.com/prolife/palm-cards.htm

I have learned about an attempt to establish a new congregation on
the west side of Cincinnati.  From what I have been able to discover
from checking the references, this will be a faithful group of
brethren who love the Bible and intend to be guided by it.  They have
put out a plea and I have uploaded that plea to my website.  Should
you wish to read about the circumstances which have developed and
their prospects for the future, please go to:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/Westside-cofC-Cinn.pdf


8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-subscribe@yahoogroups.com   They will send you
a message to which you must REPLY to be added to the
list.  Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0548.htm
HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0547.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  THE SOWER, Vol 15, #7, July 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Byron Longcrier
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Faithfulness
=========================================
FAITHFULNESS
by Byron Longcrier

What does it mean to be faithful?  Put simply, it means to be full of
faith.  Thus, faithfulness is a way of living that is completely
filled with and controlled by faith.  It is a lifestyle that is
motivated, guided, and ordered by faith in the Almighty God.
Christians are instructed to be faithful even in the face of
persecution and certain death (Rev 2:10).  In order for the child of
God to live a life that is full of faith, he or she must understand
what true faith really is.  The Bible clearly illustrates what it
means to have a faith that God desires.  Consider the following
examples.

                FAITHFULNESS--Living in Belief (John 20:24-29)
The apostle often called "Doubting" Thomas demanded evidence to back
up his belief in the risen Christ (20:25).  He was not content to
take the other disciples' word for it, even though they were
trustworthy individuals.  Remarkably, the Lord never rebuked Thomas
for his desire for proof; instead, He provided him all the evidence
he needed (20:27-28).  This is remarkable because it is vastly
different from the view of faith held by most of the religious
world.  Yet, Jesus wanted Thomas to "be not faithless, but believing"
(20:27).

To live a life of faithfulness, one must first have a proper belief
in God and His Son.  This belief must be based on evidential fact.
Too many build their faith on the words of others, on their feelings
or emotions, on dreams, or notions.  All of these foundations are as
shifting as sand.  True Bible faith is founded upon the firm
foundation which is the Word of God.

While there is evidence for the existence of God in the natural world
(Rom 1:20; Ps 19:1), it is only in His revelation that one may learn
of His nature and His commands.  His Word is inspired and was
confirmed as the very will of God by those who preached and penned
it.  When the apostles went into all the world and preached to every
creature, the Lord was "working with them, and confirming the word
with signs following" (Mark 16:15-20; cf., Heb 2:1-4).  When a person
living today reads of the miracles of God in Scripture, it is just as
if that person had seen them performed.  His faith is based upon the
same evidence as those who actually saw the miracles (John 20:29).
Thus, the Bible is God's Word, confirmed by miracle, and written that
man may possess a true belief in God and His Son (John 20:30-31).

                FAITHFULNESS--Living in Trust (Matthew 14:22-33)
Peter walked on the water!  What an example of trust in Christ he
is!  From Peter's example it should be learned that faith is more
than just believing in God, it is also trusting Him--taking Him at
His word.  What trust it must have taken to step out of a ship into a
stormy sea for the purpose of walking on the water!

However, Peter lost that trust when he began to doubt.  He doubted
himself.  He doubted the power of the Lord.  He began to think that
the storm was more powerful than Jesus.  He turned his heart and eyes
away from the Lord and began to sink (14:30).  Jesus' statement to
him is vital: "O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?"
(14:31).  Doubt destroys faith.

For the Christian to live a life of faithfulness, he or she must have
complete trust in God.  If He promises heaven for the faithful and
hell for the wicked, it is certain.  If He says that His people can
and must evangelize the whole world, it can and must be done (Mt
28:18-20).  If He says that man can overcome temptation, he can
(James 4:7-8; 1 Cor 10:13).  God's Word is true.  To be full of faith
is to trust God and His Word completely.

                FAITHFULNESS--Living in Obedience (Revelation 2:8-11)
It is difficult to imagine all that the church at Smyrna endured.
But it is inspiring to know that they remained faithful anyway.  In
spite of tribulation, proverty, enemies, false teachers, suffering,
imprisonment, trials, and even certain death they were commanded to
be faithful.

To live a live of faithfulness, the Christian must be obedient to God
no matter what!  Is one full of faith when she chooses to dress
immodestly to fit in with her friends?  Is one being faithful when he
chooses to talk like the world to avoid being called a "fanatic?"  Is
it faithfulness to forsake the assembly, a Gospel Meeting, or
Vacation Bible School in order to keep one's position on the ball
team?  Is one faithful who refuses to talk to his friends about the
Gospel for fear that he may lose them?  Faithfulness demands
complete, total, unquestioning obedience to all of God's instructions.

Faithfulness is a lifestyle that is completely filled with faith.
Bible faith joins belief and trust with obedience.  Hebrews 11:6
declares: "But without faith it is impossible to please him; for he
that cometh to God must believe that he is [BELIEF], and that he is a
rewarder [TRUST] of them that diligently seek him [OBEDIENCE]."  Do
you fully believe in God?  Do you completely trust in Him and His
Word?  Are you obeying His will entirely?  Only when we do this can
we hope to hear our Lord say, "Well done, good and faithful servant"
(Mt 25:23).

--135 Spring Run Road, #131L, Versailles, KY  40383




=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-subscribe@yahoogroups.com   They will send you
a message to which you must REPLY to be added to the
list.  Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0547.htm
HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0546.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  Bulletin, Nettleton church of Christ, 27 June 1993
<||>  Jonesboro, AR
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Bobby Dockery
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Christian Living
=========================================
THE LAST DAY OF YOUR LIFE
by Bobby Dockery

Knowing that the end was near, Joshua, the valiant soldier of God,
used his last day of life solemnly to address the people of Israel.
He began by saying, "Now behold, today I am going the way of all the
earth..." (Joshua 23:14).  He went on to remind the people of God's
goodness in the past and to warn them that unfaithfulness to God in
the future would bring ruin (Joshua 23:15-16).  He closed his
farewell address by urging: "Now fear the Lord and serve Him with all
faithfulness..." (Joshua 24:14).

How would you spend your time if you knew that this were your last
day on earth?  It is a sobering thought!  Consider the following...

1.  YOU DON'T KNOW WHEN YOUR LAST DAY WILL COME.  Few of us will be
as certain of the arrival of our last day as Joshua was.  We know
that the day will come but we do not know when.  The future, at best,
is uncertain.  We have no guarantee of tomorrow.  The Bible compares
this life to a vapor which appears briefly and then vanishes (Js
4:14).  That is why it is so important that we make immediate
preparation for the day when we will "go the way of all the earth..."
(2 Cor 6:2).

2.  YOUR LAST DAY WILL PROBABLY BE A DAY LIKE TODAY.  It is likely
that the last day you live will be much like this one.  The things
you are doing now are probably the things you will be doing then.
The great songwriter and preacher, Will W. Slater, spent the last day
of life preaching and leading singing in a small South Arkansas
town.  One of the songs he sang was entitled: "This is Someone's Last
Day".  He commented on the appropriateness and truthfulness of that
title.  Later that night he collapsed.  He died on the way to the
hospital in an ambulance.  It was a typical day of his life--a
fitting end to a life of faithful service to God.  If today were to
be your last day, would it be a day that you would willingly accept
as being typical of your life...?

3.  HOW HAVE YOU LIVED TODAY?  This is the real question!  Have I
used today for good or evil?  Have I tried to help or hurt others?
Have I sought to grow personally and spiritually, or have I been
content to drift?  Have I used the day to sow kindness or
unkindness?  Have I tried to live for God, or have I simply ignored
Him?  When I was in school, one of my Bible teachers taught me to
pray: "Lord help me to live every day as though it were my last
day."  That is the real secret to successful living!

If you could know that this was your last day, would you wish to make
changes in your life?  This day has been given to you for preparation
and self-improvement.  Use it wisely!




=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-subscribe@yahoogroups.com   They will send you
a message to which you must REPLY to be added to the
list.  Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0546.htm
HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0545.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  BEACON, Vol. XXX, #27, 9 July 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Danny Box
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Liberalism
=========================================
WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?
by Danny Box

In 1970, while a student at Freed-Hardeman College, it was my great
pleasure to attend the lectureship entitled: "The Church Faces
Liberalism."  I heard William Woodson answer the question, "What is
Liberalism?" and B.C. Goodpasture talk about "The Inspiration of the
Bible."  It was also my great pleasure to hear Gus Nichols talk about
"How to Establish Bible Authority," and defend the fact that "The
Bible is Complete and Final."  Brother Thomas Warren eloquently
presented "False Views of Truth" and Franklin Camp talked about
"Fellowship," "The Virgin Birth," "Miracles," and "God's Answer to
Modernism."  Brother Garland Elkins then presented a two-part lesson
on "How to Defend the Faith."  But, out of all the speakers that
year, I was most impressed by the man that lectured on "Some Basic
Errors of Liberalism."

This man stated that the first error of liberalism was one of
attitude.  He stated that we have developed an attitude of
denominationalism and want to be thought of as "one of the crowd."
We will not preach doctrinal sermons based on book, chapter, and
verse because we are afraid we will hurt someone's feelings.  He made
the statement that "there can be no preaching apart from the
doctrine."  He also asked the question: "Are you trying to save them
or convince them that you are a nice fellow and easy to get along
with?"

He stated that the second error of liberalism was their erroneous
concept of God.  He made the statement that man "must obey the one
and true God" and went on to say that "God is a Father only to those
who are members of the 'household of faith' by virtue of a new birth
of water and the spirit."

He stated also that the liberal had an erroneous concept of man.  He
stated that many feel that man needs a social Gospel and that they
are advancing "the universal brotherhood of man."  But, he stated
that what we need to do is to "preach the Gospel exactly as it is; it
meets the needs of man.  It needs no revision, addition or updating."

This man had many other good points in this lesson, but he closed
with this statement: "If we compromise with the liberal heresy, may
our mouths refuse to speak and may all men turn their backs on us
with contempt and disdain!"  My question today to this man is,
           "RUBEL SHELLY, WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?"

--10985 Country Haven
    Cottondale, AL  35453

=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-subscribe@yahoogroups.com   They will send you
a message to which you must REPLY to be added to the
list.  Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0545.htm
HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0544.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  Pro-Life Infonet, July 23, 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Dianne N. Irving
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Bioethics
=========================================
BEWARE OF ETHICS AND FALSE SCIENCE
by Dianne N. Irving

[Pro-Life Infonet Note: Dianne N.  Irving, a former research
biochemist, is a PhD philosopher who has taught medical ethics at
Georgetown and Catholic Universities.]

White House spokesman Ari Fleischer calmly assures us that President
George W.  Bush's decision on stem cell research will be based on a
thorough, nonpartisan consideration of the "ethics" and "science"
involved.

But, which "ethics" and which "science"?

Most of us equate "ethics" in this situation with "bioethics" - the
academic field whose specialists write articles, appear on
television, teach courses, and advise hospitals and presidents about
issues in medicine and biomedical research.  Bioethicists are buzzing
about the White House at this moment, and the president is said to be
taking their advice very seriously.

For 30 years, bioethics has been touted as the perfect, "neutral"
ethics for a multicultural, pluralistic, democratic society where no
one person's or group's opinions should be forced on the rest of us.
But all ethical theories, including bioethics, take a stand on what
is right or wrong.  They can never be neutral.  And this particular
ethics contains an agenda that is leading us down a very chaotic path.

Bioethics was born in 1978, in a report by the National Commission
for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral
Research, which had been mandated by Congress to identify basic
ethical principles to guide research involving human subjects.  The
commission established three principles: respect for persons (meaning
autonomy, respect for individual choice), justice (fair distribution
of risks and benefits of research) and beneficence (defined,
contradictorily, both as the "good" of an individual patient and as
the "greatest good for society").  An ethical decision would need to
satisfy all three principles at once.  In practice this is
impossible, but this fact didn't stop the government from using these
principles as the basis for federal regulations, beginning in 1981.

If no one of the three principles can outweigh another, it is
impossible to resolve the conflicts that inevitably arise in real
life.  For example, if a patient has the absolute autonomy to demand
all medical procedures, even in the most hopeless case, how can we
weigh that claim against the principle of justice, which requires a
fair allocation of scarce medical resources, or against the principle
of beneficence, which refers to achieving the greatest good?  We
can't.

The fact is, bioethics is only one ethical theory alongside dozens of
others, and different theories can lead to different ethical
conclusions.  We have choices of ethical theories we can make.

Compare bioethics with natural law ethics, for instance.  Bioethics
concludes that euthanasia, physician-assisted suicide and high-risk
experimental research using persons with mental illness are all
ethical.  Natural law ethics concludes the opposite.  Bioethics
defines the "common good" in mathematical terms: The government must
achieve the "greatest good for the greatest number." Natural law
ethics defines the "common good" in human terms: The government
exists to protect the goods, such as food, water, shelter and life,
that all humans share in common by virtue of their shared humanity.
That's a very different set of values, and not the one in use by the
U.S.  federal government.

How prophetic was the early comment by Hastings Center scholar Robert
Morison: "What one fears is that the commission may become the
mechanism whereby the speculations of the ethicists become the law of
the land.  It is already far too easy for abstract notions of right
and wrong to emerge as rules which begin their life as 'guidelines'
but culminate in the force of law." Is "bioethics" the ethics on
which President Bush wants to base his stem cell decision?  Or any of
us?

And what "science" is the president going to use - the precise
tradition of human embryology, or the fake science that has marred
bioethics' history from the start?  Note that the National Commission
(and the National Research Act of 1974 that created it) by its own
admission used scientific "definitions which, in some instances,
differ from medical, legal or common usage."

Take their definitions of "pregnancy" and "fetus" - both falsely
defined as "beginning at implantation." It has been accepted
scientific truth since the 1880s, with the publication of Wilhelm
His' "Human Embryology," that pregnancy begins at fertilization, with
the formation of the single-cell embryonic zygote in the woman's
fallopian tube.  And "fetus" is accurately defined as "the developing
human being from 9 weeks until birth."

Then there was the scientifically fake term "pre-embryo," used by
bioethics from the beginning to preclude the early human embryo from
protection against research abuses.  This decision was especially
lucrative at the time for the emerging techniques of in vitro
fertilization.  A "pre-embryo" supposedly had a reduced moral status,
as less than human, and therefore could be used and destroyed in
experimental research for the greater good.  These tiny cells,
defined in embryology as human beings - there is no pre-embryo at
fertilization but rather a real, live human embryo, an embryonic
person - were thus linguistically reduced to research objects rather
than humans with inherent rights.

The term "stem cell" is itself a fake term - the replacement in the
current debates for "pre-embryo." In scientific terminology, once
removed from the intact embryo, stem cells are no longer "stem
cells." They can undergo what is called "regulation" and become new,
whole embryos.  This is what happens naturally in monozygotic
twinning.  In embryology, these cells are defined as "totipotent" -
having the capacity to develop into bigger human beings, complete
with all tissues and organs.  The reason that these cells can develop
into the many different kinds of human tissue that medical
researchers feel can help treat certain diseases is because they are
living human beings to being with.

The current stem cell debate, then, is just the latest chapter in the
bioethics phenomenon.  An ethical and scientific fog now surrounds
the president.

Last Tuesday, Bush met with several bioethicists, indicating, The
Washington Post reported, "a new level of personal attention to the
matter." Polls show that Americans are confused about stem cell
research.  No wonder.

Bush's decision can move us forward by standing up to the flawed,
murky principles of bioethics and fake science, or it can leave us
where we are - facing irreversible chaos, conducting research on
human cells and human beings, with no clear idea of right and wrong,
human and nonhuman.  It will depend on which ethics and which science
he chooses to use.  Best of all, he might just use his common sense
and stop the confusion before it gets worse.



=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-subscribe@yahoogroups.com   They will send you
a message to which you must REPLY to be added to the
list.  Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0544.htm
HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0543.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  THE GOSPEL REMINDER, Bay AR
<||>  July 1, 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Jack Harriman
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Preaching
=========================================
WHAT PREACHERS USED TO SAY
by Jack Harriman

"If I say anything in this sermon that is not in harmony with New
Testament teaching, you will be my friend, if you will come to me
afterwards and bring this to my attention."

In former days, I heard preacher after preacher begin a sermon with a
statement similar to this.  Most of these were sincere in their
request.  They intended accurately to teach the word of God.  They
documented their message with many scriptural references.  They
avoided statements that could be taken two or more ways.  They
understood they would be challenged by some of their listeners if
they should teach inaccurately and invited such challenge.

This is not intended to be a blanket indictment of all preachers and
churches, but I don't hear similar statements much any more, and my
great concern is that attitudes toward the word of God have changed
in both the pulpit and the pew.  Three comments:

First, mature gospel preachers have a responsibility not only to
preach the word accurately, but also to challenge the inaccurate
preacher of it.  "I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord
Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing
and his kingdom; 2  Preach the word; be instant in season, out of
season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine"
(2 Tm 4:1-2).  The fact that this may make the challenger very
unpopular must not prevent the doing of it.  This is the charge we
have from our Lord.

Second, elders are to challenge inaccurate teaching, thus protecting
both the teacher and the church from unsound teaching.  He is to be,
"Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may
be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the
gainsayers" (Titus 1:9).  This requires knowledge, courage and tact,
and, given the mood of our day, may result in charges of Phariseeism,
etc.

Third, mature members must also do what they can to keep the teaching
and practice of the church pure.  A few days after a visiting
preacher spoke, an elderly, infirm woman pointed out to me that one
thing he had said was erroneous.  After consideration, I agreed.  She
was correct.  There are many such Bible students in the Lord's church
who recognize erroneous teaching when they hear it.

If it is not accurate, if it is not according to inspired teaching,
if it is not in the Book, every mature member of the Lord's church
should be able to recognize that fact and take proper corrective
action.

=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

DRL NOTE:  First, the article above is well written and expresses a
vitally important truth.

Secondly, the new provider of service for LemmonsAid, Yahoo Groups,
has some special features which some of you who have full internet
access may appreciate.  Provision has been made  for each group to
place other items in addition to archiving the regular posts to the
list.  One such service is a place for listing bookmarks.  If you
have a Yahoo identity (i.e., if you have gone to the site and
registered by choosing a user name and a password), you have access
to a set of bookmarks that I have posted.  Just go to
http://www.groups.yahoo.com and sign in, then click on the
LemmonsAid, which will be listed on the left side of your browser.
When you come to the LemmonsAid home page, click on BOOKMARKS.  Let
me know what you think of the bookmarks, and visit often as I will be
adding more from time to time.

8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8
LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
********************************************
To subscribe to this free list, go to...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LemmonsAid  If you are on Juno
and don't have web access, send a message to
LemmonsAid-subscribe@yahoogroups.com   They will send you
a message to which you must REPLY to be added to the
list.  Please, feel free to forward these mailings to other
brethren.  If you would like to search through the archived
articles, please go to...
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/laa01.htm
HTM copy of this particular post is at:
http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0543.htm
HELP us, please,  grow to 1,000 in 2,001.  ThAnKs!
8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8===8

http://www.hcis.net/users/dlemmons/la0542.htm
______________________________________________
<||>  My Source:  BEACON, Volume XXX, #27, 9 July 2001
<||>
<||>
<||>  Author:  Joe Galloway
<||>
<||>  File Under:  Baptism
=========================================
BAPTISM FOR "A SCRIPTURAL REASON"
by Joe Galloway

Presently some are teaching that one may have been acceptably
baptized, even if he was not baptized for the "remission of sins," as
long as he did it "for a scriptural reason."  Supposedly, therefore,
many more than we formerly acknowledged are accepted by God as His
children, for many in denominations who believed themselves to have
been already saved before baptism, have been baptized "to obey God."
It is claimed that "to obey God" is "a scriptural reason" for being
baptized, so is sufficient without further understanding of the point
when salvation occurs.  WHAT ABOUT SUCH REASONING?

Such reasoning is fallacious because there is only one real reason
for a sinner being baptized: to change from a lost to a saved
relationship with God.  True, this purpose may be stated in different
ways in the New Testament, but it always equals this same reason.
One is baptized "to be saved" (Mark 16:16; 1 Pet 3:21), which
suggests the purpose of changing from the lost to the saved
relationship.  It is "for [unto] the remission of sins" (Acts 2:38),
suggesting this identical idea.  It is to "wash away sins" (Acts
22:16), which means the same thing.  It puts one "into Christ" or
"into the one body" (Rom 6:3; Gal 3:27; 1 Cor 12:13).  Is this a
separate purpose from the above?  No!  To enter into Christ is the
same as to change from a lost to a saved relationship with God, for
"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ
Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit" (Rom 8:1),
all spiritual blessings are in Christ (Eph 1:3), and one of these
spiritual blessings in Christ is salvation (2 Tim 2:10).

Although the New Testament never says in so many words that one is
"to be baptized to obey God," we would agree that one, indeed, does
do such because God requires it.  However, when God requires
something of us for a stated reason, we must not only do it, but we
must do it for the reason that He said do it if our obedience is to
be accepted by Him.  When our understanding of a command is opposite
of the Lord's stated reason for it, how could such be considered
obedient at all?  For example: even if one ate the Lord's Supper
because he knew God said to do it, would anyone claim that such would
be acceptable if he ate it with the misunderstanding that it was for
the purpose of changing him from a lost state?  No, we know that his
wrong purpose would invalidate the eating!  Is it not the same with
one who is baptized, knowing God said to do it, but thinking he has
already been saved before baptism?

Someone may yet ask: "What about Christ's baptism?  Was it not simply
done to obey God, without being for remission of His sins?"  Christ
was baptized to "fulfill all righteousness" (Mt 3:15).  He was not
baptized to receive salvation, nor was He baptized because He was
already saved.  As to its purpose, Jesus' baptism of necessity was
different from ours because Jesus was sinless (1 Pet 2:22).  We all
sin (Rom 3:23), so we do not obey God in baptism with the same need
and for the same purpose as did He.

We encourage all people who are penitent believers to be baptized in
order to be saved--to be accepted of God.  Those who have been buried
in baptism, knowing that God requires baptism, but thinking
themselves to have already been in a saved condition before their
baptism need to be immersed again--this time for the right purpose.
The right action done for the wrong purposes does not constitute the
obedience from the heart that is essential to being made free from
sins and becoming God's servant (Rom 6:17-18).

--218 Pinecrest Drive; Greeneville, TN  37743

=======================================
______________ end of article _____________

DRL NOTE:  We are thankful to be able to continue dispensing the
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LEMMONS-AID is intended for members of churches of
Christ and designed to REFRESH the soul, in the spirit of
Romans 14:19; occasionally including a bit of SALT
( Jude 3) to help to preserve our PURITY (Eph 5:25-27).
The Greatest AID that David Lemmons or Anyone Else Can
Give Comes from the Bible.  "Happy is he that hath the God
of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God"
(Ps 146:5)

Produced by David Lemmons < dlemmons@... >
preacher for the North Marshall church of Christ, Calvert
City, KY.
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