 |
|
| Vol. 13 No. 8 August 2011 | Page 6 |
|
|
| Vol. 13 No. 8 August 2011 | Page 6 |
Donald R. Fox
The talented character actor Walter Brennan (1894-1974) has to be everyone’s favorite actor – that is, of course, if you are old enough to remember him. There is a generation gap as far as younger folks enjoying ole time movies and TV. He starred in a television western, “The Guns of Will Sonnett,” 50 episodes from 1967 to 1969.
One of the catch phrases that ole Will Sonnett (Walter Brennan) used, if my memory is on track, was, “No brag – just fact.” With that said, Will Sonnett could lay it on thick, getting to the point and telling it like it is. To be a vain boaster, bragger is a negative character trait. The idea behind the character Will Sonnett was that he told the truth and should not be mistaken as a boasting braggart. He was stating a fact that he was not a bragger, but was telling the truth. I am afraid such a time of telling the truth and the whole truth may have slipped through the crack somewhere.
As I ponder this statement, “No brag – just fact,” I recall a friend of mine that had this trait of telling it like it is. He would listen to a bunch of men yapping away on subjects they knew little or nothing about. Finally, he would calmly state something like, “No, that’s not correct!” He would then quickly, with few words, logically lay down the facts, correcting the blab.
Our Lord Denounced Hypocrisy, Deceit,
Falsehood and the Boasting Attitude
“And he said unto them in his doctrine, Beware of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the market places. And the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost rooms at feasts: Which devour widow’s houses, and for a pretense make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation” (Mark 12:38-40).
Love of Truth Must Be Part of Our Character
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness” (Romans 1:18).
Our God Is Light and Truth
“This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin” (1 John 1:5-7).
Facts of the Gospel
“Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how the Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scripture” (1 Corinthians 15:1-4).
Truth Will Stand
“Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever (1 Peter 1:22-23) “and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32).
“Facts are facts and will not disappear on account of your likes” Jawaharlal Nehru (1889 – 1964).
Are Jesus and Lucifer Brothers?
D. Gene West
The 12th President of the large and wealthy cult wrote, “Long before you were born a program was developed by your creators. …The principal personalities in this great drama were a Father Elohim, perfect in wisdom, judgment, and person, and two sons, Lucifer and Jehovah.” A contemporary of this man wrote, “The appointment of Jesus to be the Savior of the world was contested by one of the other sons of God. He was called Lucifer …this spirit-brother of Jesus desperately tried to become the Savior of mankind.” Finally, one of the modern educators of this cult said, “On first hearing, the doctrine that Lucifer and our Lord, Jesus Christ, are brothers may seem surprising to some, especially to those acquainted with latter-day revelations. But both the scriptures and the prophets affirm that Jesus Christ and Lucifer are indeed offspring of our Heavenly Father and, therefore, spirit brothers. …Both Jesus and Lucifer were strong leaders with great knowledge and influence. But as the First-born of the Father, Jesus was Lucifer’s older brother.” Before going further, we want to ask, “Have you noticed how often these writers affirm the Scriptures teach something, but they never cite the passage?” In the above passage, the writer said both the Scriptures and the Prophets affirm that Jesus Christ and Lucifer are the offspring of God. We ask, “Where is this concept affirmed by either the Scriptures or the Prophets?” We fear these men, like the Sadducees who often challenged Jesus, err not knowing the Scriptures.
The name Lucifer, which means, “day star,” is found only one time in the Scriptures and the Prophets. The only time this word occurs in Holy Writ is Isaiah 14:12. In this passage, Isaiah speaks not of an imaginary son of God, nor does he speak of Satan as so many confused people in the religious world think. The Bible tells us, as clearly as it can be put in human language, that Lucifer is the King of Babylon! God said, to his great prophet Isaiah, “It shall come to pass in the day the LORD gives you rest from your sorrow, and from your fear and the hard bondage in which you were made to serve, that you will take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say: How the oppressor has ceased, The golden city ceased!” (Isaiah 14:3‑4 NKJV). There it is, friends, as plainly as can be announced in human language, God said “take up this proverb against the king of Babylon.” Could it possibly be said more plainly? After the language found above, there is a series of statements made concerning the fall of that mighty world-power that destroyed God’s holy city – Jerusalem.
Using the typical language spoken to oriental monarchs, God called the King of Babylon, day star or Lucifer. When the King of Babylon had fallen, men would ask, “Is this themanwho made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms, who made theworldas a wilderness and destroyed its cities, who did not open the house of his prisoners?” Notice, Lucifer was a man whose exploits were carried out in the world. There is not the slightest indication that the name Lucifer is anything other than a metaphor for the King of Babylon, just as the passage says. Someone asks, “Don’t you think Lucifer is Satan?” What I think is of no major importance, but it happens that I think what the Bible says, that Lucifer was the King of Babylon, a man who made the world tremble, and nothing more! What is there in this text that causes men to come up with all the fanciful speculations about Lucifer being a fallen angel, or in the case of the cult of which we speak, the spirit-brother of Jesus Christ?
Dear reader, we appeal to you in the name of all that is holy, in the name of common sense and reason to read your Bibles and accept what they say, and totally ignore the fantastic and outrageous claims of those who claim to be some sort of special spokesperson for God, for they are not!