The Bible tells us what the church is, and by knowing what it is, then we know what it is not. It seems that the religious world is very confused. It usually defines the church to be what it is not. The church is basically the called out, that is, those who Christ has called out of the world (John 17:14). When people hear Christ and obey His teaching, then, He saves them and adds them to His church. Hear the words of Christ when He said, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:16 NKJV). After the apostles preached Christ to a large group of people on the Day of Pentecost, the record says the hearers were cut to the heart and wanted to know what they should do. This means they believed what they heard; they were touched; they were convicted of their sins; and finally, they realized they needed forgiveness. The record goes on to say, “Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit’” (Acts 2:38). What happened next? We read, “Then those who gladly received his word were baptized: and that day about three thousand souls were added to them” (Acts 2:41). Acts 2:47 concludes the chapter by saying, “Praising God and having favor with all the

Most of those today who believe in Christ speak of “The Lord’s Prayer.” They say it in their worship, and they sing it. Those who do not use it in these ways are questioned and criticized. The prayer that is referred to as “The Lord’s Prayer” is found in Matthew 6. There, Jesus says to His disciples, “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen” (Matthew 6:9-13). In our discussion of this prayer, it is not our intention to be different simply for the sake of being different. It is not our desire to be negative and to disturb people. Yet, we must point out that this is not “the Lord’s prayer.” It was never intended to be His prayer, and the Scriptures do not designate it as “the Lord’s prayer.” So, what is the purpose of these verses, and how should they be used by Christians today? In this setting, Christ was teaching the disciples about worship. First, He was condemning the motivation of the hypocrites in their giving. Many of them were giving of their alms only to be seen of men. Some would even

Daniel prophesied that the Lord would set up a kingdom which would never be destroyed (Daniel 2:44). Many other prophecies were made to indicate where and when it would be established (Isaiah 2:2-3; Joel 2:28-29). John the Baptist came preaching that the kingdom of heaven was at hand (Matthew 3:1-2) and Christ said that the kingdom would come with power in the lifetime of some of those who were present as He was speaking (Mark 9:1). Christ also asked his disciples to pray for the coming of the kingdom (Matthew 6:10). After the apostles had confessed Christ to be the Son of God, the Lord responded by saying that He would build His church or kingdom on that rock, that truth (Matthew 16:18-19). Later, we have the writer of Hebrews saying that we have received that kingdom (Hebrews 12:28). Paul said to the Christians at Colossae – and he included himself – that the Father had delivered them from darkness and had translated them into the kingdom of His dear Son (Colossians 1:13-14). However, when was the kingdom or the church established? After the Lord’s death, burial and resurrection, Christ appeared to the apostles, “And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And ye are witnesses of these things. And, behold, I send the promise

The Scriptures clearly and repeatedly teach that one must be baptized to be saved. Christ Himself said that one must believe and be baptized to be saved (Mark 16:16). Peter said that it is necessary to repent and be baptized to have remission of sins (Acts 2:38). In 1 Peter 3:21, Peter wrote by inspiration that baptism saves, just as Noah and his family were saved by water. We are also told in God’s Word that baptism puts one into Christ (Galatians 3:26-27) and into the church (1 Corinthians 12:13). The new birth also involves baptism since one is born of water and of the Spirit (John 3:5). In the light of all of these Scriptures, how could anyone say that a person can be saved without baptism? Yet, there are many who do just that! Much of the denominational world teaches that the thief on the cross was saved without baptism. The record says: And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise. (Luke 23:39-43) Although nothing

You and I are examples. Each of us is setting examples for good or bad for those around us, whether we realize it or not, whether we like it or not, whether we accept that responsibility or not. What is an example? It is a pattern, like a set of blueprints of one’s life. Others can see our lives; they can hear our speech and watch our relationships. They can observe our attitudes and reactions to people and things. They will be impressed for good or bad by what they see and hear. Onlookers, then, often will be influenced to some degree to do as we are doing. When we think about it like that, we can see the great and eternal importance of the example we are setting. If we are to be a good pattern for others, we need a good example to follow ourselves. Again, the people closest to us are likely to influence us strongly. If our lives are to be worthwhile, we need to stay away from bad company, but to whom can we look to as a good pattern for our lives? To answer that question, if we are familiar with the Scriptures, is to point to Jesus as being the best and greatest example of all, for me, for you and for all people. The apostle Peter said, “For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps” (1 Peter 2:21).

Many of the preachers of our day have promoted what they call “The Sinner’s Prayer.” At the close of their sermons, they invite those who are not saved to come forward. Those who do so are then asked to repeat after them a prayer that goes something like this: “Father in heaven, I come before you as a sinner, believing that your Son, Jesus, died on the cross to save me from my sins. I ask you now to forgive me of my sins and accept me as your child. In the name of Christ, I ask this. Amen.” The preacher then announces that those who said the sinner’s prayer have been forgiven of their sins and are now children of God. There is just one thing wrong with the procedure I have described. The Scriptures nowhere talk about “the sinner’s prayer,” and the Lord has not promised to save anyone from his sins through the process of saying such a prayer. This is a prayer – and a doctrine – that has originated with man alone, and those who say such a prayer are deceived into thinking that they have been saved. They are not only not saved, but because they have been deceived into thinking they are saved, they themselves remain lost. Then, they influence others to follow their example, saying the same prayer and thereby remaining in their lost condition as well. Read through the Book of Acts and study carefully the 11 stories of conversion that

Sometimes, in business or any endeavor, it is advisable to assess matters to see how things are going. It may even be better to stop what one is doing and to go in another direction. The wise do this. The foolish never seem to learn. Spiritually, it is always thrilling when anyone in sin decides to obey the Gospel to be saved. We are equally thankful to God when an erring Christian makes up his mind that he is going to return to the Lord. In both cases, the individuals were headed in the wrong direction. They, therefore, were lost for all eternity. It was only when they changed directions to follow Christ that they were forgiven of their sins. The direction in which one is going makes all the difference. The Scriptures tell us that Christ is the one and only way. That way is clearly set forth in God’s Word. One does not make a mistake when he reads and studies the things that are revealed there. How do we know there is a Creator, that Christ is the Son of God and the Savior of the world? How do we know about the Gospel and what one must do to be saved? How do we know about the Lord’s church, Who established it, who is its Head, who is the Savior, that there is but one, that it wears the Lord’s name, and that when the Lord saves us, He adds us to that church? How do

Many are ashamed of the Gospel of Christ. They are ashamed to let others know that they believe in God and that they are followers of Christ. They are ashamed of the church and are ashamed to proclaim that it is the only church that was bought and cleansed by the blood of our Lord. They are reluctant to speak out against things that are wrong and to stand up for the truth. Why do people remain quiet? Because they love the world and want to be with the majority in the secular world as well as in the religious world. They want to be popular and accepted. They do not want to be considered narrow minded and associated with the minority. Rather than speak out for Christ, they quietly try to blend with their friends and neighbors, with their family members who are not Christians, so that no one will have hard feelings toward them. Their attitude is opposite that of early Christians who were willing to die rather than deny their Lord. They rejoiced “that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name” (Acts 5:41). The apostle Paul said, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:16-17).

Many become confused when they read the Bible because they may open it to any book, chapter and verse, and they think that the Lord is personally speaking to them. In doing this, they may conclude that God would want them to build an ark, offer animal sacrifices or go to Jerusalem once a year to worship. Others are convinced that they are to worship on the Sabbath Day, give tithes of their income and keep the “Ten Commandments.” Of course, their problem is that they are not rightly dividing the Word. The apostle Paul said, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15). If one is to know God’s will, it is a must to study His Word, but one may study the Bible and still be confused and not know what to do. As Paul said, the key is to rightly divide the Word. What does he mean?  We must realize that the Bible was written over a period of about fifteen hundred years! Surely, not all of it was written and directed to you and me — and it was not. So, let us look into this matter of ‘rightly dividing.’ To begin with, the word “Bible” means “the Book” or “the book of books.” The Bible actually consists of 66 separate books, grouped into two major divisions, the Old Testament and the New Testament. There are 39 books in the

The Scriptures speak of open doors several times. Paul often mentioned them in describing opportunities that were presented to him to preach the Gospel. On the first missionary journey, it is said that the door of faith was opened to the Gentiles (Acts 14:27). While in Ephesus Paul wrote, “For a great door and effectual is opened unto me, and there are many adversaries” (1 Corinthians 16:9). On another occasion, Paul wrote to the Corinthian brethren, “Furthermore, when I came to Troas to preach Christ’s gospel, and a door was opened unto me of the Lord, I had no rest in my spirit, because I found not Titus my brother, but taking my leave of them, I went from thence into Macedonia” (2 Corinthians 2:12-13). The great apostle was referring to the time that a man appeared to him in the night, asking, “Come over into Macedonia and help us.” Paul went and preached the Gospel to Lydia and her household as well as to the Jailer and his household, and with their obedience to the Lord, the church was established in that part of the world (Acts 16:6-34). Paul wrote to the Colossian brethren, “Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving; Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds: That I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak” (Colossians 4:2-4). Yet, while doors may

In the religious world, including both those who profess faith in Christ and those of other religions, most believe that there are many ways to heaven. They explain that even though different roads may be taken, all are headed for the same destination. That sounds good, but it is not what the Bible teaches. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father but by me” (John 14:6). Jesus was saying emphatically that there is but way to heaven, and that He is that way. Who said there are many ways to heaven? Jesus did not make such a statement, and neither do those who know what the Bible teaches on this subject. Those who say that there are many ways to heaven are those who believe in many doctrines not found in the Scriptures, and those who believe in “gods” of religions other than Christianity. On one occasion Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that enters not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber” (John 10:1). Now I did not say that, but Christ said it. He is the way to heaven, and He is the one who says that when a man tries to enter by another way he is a thief and robber. Why? Because that person is trying to follow a way that Christ has not authorized. It is true that, in

In our day, more and more women are becoming preachers. Many pulpits are now being filled by them, and they are often the speakers on religious TV programs. In a time in which the women’s lib movement is in full swing, the idea of “women preachers” fits right in with the idea of women taking the lead in many or all fields that were formerly reserved for men. The question here, however, is not a matter of men suppressing women and forbidding them to preach, or not allowing them to enter a field of work where men have previously played a dominant role. The question is, “Does the Lord, Himself, authorize women to take the lead in doing this kind of public work in the church?” When we look at the ministry of Jesus, we find Him choosing 12 individuals to serve as His apostles. Who were these apostles? They were all men! Later, when Judas betrayed Christ and another was selected to take his place, even though there were faithful women among His disciples, still it was a man that was chosen (Acts 1:26). Also, when one was appointed by God “out of due season” to become an apostle to the Gentiles, Paul – a man – was the selection. After the church had been established and had begun to grow and spread throughout the world, there was a need for leaders in each congregation. According to 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1, those Christians who were qualified were

Paul knew what the Gospel was because he had preached that Gospel. It was the good news of Christ’s death, burial and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-4), along with the commands that one must obey to be saved (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38). In believing in the Lord, repenting of one’s sins, confessing Christ to be the Son of God and being buried in the waters of baptism, one would not only be obeying the Gospel (2 Peter 4:17), but he would also be picturing the Lord’s death, burial and resurrection through his obedience (Romans 6:3-6). What a wonderful plan for bringing about the salvation of obedient believers! In writing to the Galatians, Paul said, “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed” (Galatians l:6-9). Now, did you hear and understand what Paul said? He said that even though the Christians at Galatia had heard the one and only Gospel of Christ, he was surprised that they had so quickly left the truth to accept another so-called gospel. That “gospel” would

A man by the name of John Calvin was born in Noyon, France in 1509, to parents who were Catholic. As he grew into manhood, Calvin was converted from Catholicism and developed his own ideas of salvation in reaction to the doctrines most prevalent in Europe at that time. Though Calvin, himself, did not start a separate religious group, people who accepted his doctrines came to be known as “Calvinists,” and various denominations today include those beliefs in their manuals of faith. The acronym for Calvin’s basic belief system is TULIP. What do these letters stand for, and how do these doctrines compare to God’s Word? T — Total Depravity: All humans are totally depraved from birth, inheriting the guilt of Adam’s sin, and it is impossible for anyone to choose God on his own; only God can choose the humans that will be saved. God’s Word: “The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself” (Ezekiel 18:20). “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me” (Matthew 18:3-5). “…each one is tempted when

The Scriptures clearly and repeatedly teach that one must be baptized to be saved. Christ himself said that one must believe and be baptized to be saved (Mark 16:16). Peter said that it is necessary to repent and be baptized to have remission of sins (Acts 2:38). In 1 Peter 3:21, Peter wrote by inspiration that baptism saves, just as Noah and his family were saved by water. We are also told in God’s Word that baptism puts one into Christ (Galatians 3:26-27) and into the church (1 Corinthians 12:13). The new birth also involves baptism since one is born of water and of the Spirit (John 3:5). In the light of all of these Scriptures, how could anyone say that a person can be saved without baptism? Yet, there are many who do just that! Much of the denominational world teaches that the thief on the cross was saved without baptism. The record says, “And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:39-43). Although nothing

In our day, more and more women are becoming preachers. Many pulpits are now being filled by them, and they are often the speakers on religious TV programs. In a time in which the women’s lib movement is in full swing, the idea of “women preachers” fits right in with the idea of women taking the lead in many or all fields that were formerly reserved for men. The question here, however, is not a matter of men suppressing women and forbidding them to preach, of not allowing them to enter a field of work where men have previously played a dominant role. The question is, “Does the Lord, Himself, authorize women to take the lead in doing this kind of public work in the church?” When we look at the ministry of Jesus, we find Him choosing 12 individuals to serve as His apostles. Who were these apostles? They were all men! Later when Judas betrayed Christ and another was selected to take his place, even though there were faithful women among His disciples, still it was a man that was chosen (Acts 1:26). In addition, when one was appointed by God “out of due season” to become an apostle to the Gentiles, Paul — a man — was the selection. After the church had been established and had begun to grow and spread throughout the world, there was a need for leaders in each congregation. According to 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1, those Christians who were qualified

The Lord’s church has been given a work to do. That work is to evangelize the world. Jesus commanded the apostles to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15-16). The Gospel is the good news that Jesus died on the cross for the sins of the world, that He was buried and that He was resurrected from the grave, so that man might be saved and have the hope of eternal life. Christ said that it was the facts of that Gospel—the facts of that good news—that were to be taken to all the world. He also said that the commands of the Gospel were to be preached and obeyed if man was to be saved. Individual Christians exist in a city or village, and throughout the world, wherever the Gospel has been preached and there are those who were willing to obey it. With the conversion of two or more, a local congregation is established and begins to function. In addition to meeting each first day of the week to worship, its main work is to evangelize, to preach the Gospel to those in that area, and as it grows in knowledge and numbers, it is to reach out to the whole area in an effort to establish other congregations. A Christian, or a group of Christians, that make up a local congregation, should never be satisfied to just meet on the first day of the week to worship. Worship is very important, as well as living the daily Christian life, but

J.C. Choate (deceased) While I was attending Freed-Hardeman College, a tornado struck a community nearby and two or three people were killed. Someone said that the reason the tornado swept through that area was because of the sinful living of those particular people. Someone else said that if God was punishing the people because of their sins; why didn’t He hit some place like New York City? The same could be said about cities, large and small, all over the world. Of course, the point is, God is not directly sending tornados, fires, floods, snow storms, earthquakes, tsunamis or other such things on the people of the world because of their wicked living. If He was using nature in such ways today, the world itself would have been destroyed a long time ago, because it is filled with sin and sinners.     However, when tragic events take place, such as a tsunami in the Indian Ocean, in which thousands and thousands of people are killed, survivors who have lost family members and loved ones usually ask, “Why? Why, God, did you send such a terrible thing upon us?” The same question was asked when four hurricanes hit Florida in the same year. That question was also asked repeatedly when earthquakes hit Turkey, Iran, India and other countries, causing the deaths of thousands when their small mud houses collapsed on them. Similar earthquakes have hit Japan and China, and people there wondered, “Why? Why me?” No doubt that same question was asked by those who have suffered mud slides in California and floods in many

By J.C. Choate (deceased) Christ came into this world to live among men and to die on the cross that man might be saved. The Lord himself said, “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). Paul said, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23).  The Lord knew that He would not be in this world very long, so He chose twelve men and trained them during His three years of earthly ministry to carry on His work after His departure. These were ordinary, uneducated men. Some were fishermen, one was a tax collector, and the professions of the others were not important enough even to be identified. However, the important thing was that they were willing to leave their jobs and families to follow Jesus. On hearing His teaching and seeing His miracles, they were strengthened in their faith. When He told them that He would soon be going away, He promised to send the Comforter or the Holy Spirit to help them. Even though He was teaching them and preparing them for the work, still they were humans, subject to mistakes, certain to forget many of the things He had taught them. They would need the Holy Spirit to guide them in all of the things they said and did so that only the truth would be taught. They would also be enabled

Editor, Voice of Truth International & foreign evangelist for 45 years      All people have enemies. Even though Jesus Christ lived a sinless life, He had enemies. Not only did He have enemies, but they were religious enemies—men who hated Him because He was righteous and because He taught that all must be righteous in order to be acceptable to God. The end result was that He was finally crucified on the cross. The Romans—the secular government—crucified Him, but His religious enemies were the ones actually responsible for His death.     We also have enemies. We who have obeyed the Gospel and are members of the Lord’s family are surrounded by people who oppose us. We are trying to live the Christian life so we can go to heaven, but still there are those who resent us, find fault with us and work against us. The world offers all of its temptations, trying to lead us away from the Lord. Unbelief, humanism and materialism are tools of evil being used to destroy us, while the misplaced zeal of false religious bodies and false religious leaders is set in opposition to Christ and to us because we follow Him. And, always, there is Satan, our archenemy, with his host of followers, working to see our souls condemned in hell. Peter warns, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” (l Peter 5:8).     So how do we deal with our enemies?