LIVING THE TRUE CHRISTIAN LIFE

BY CHARLES WOODRUFF

“Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution” 2 Timothy 3:12). In my previous article I spoke about Paul when he proclaimed “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain"(Philippians1:21).Read all the biographical accounts in Acts, and even the letters of the Apostle Paul, and you will find that he knew how to live for Christ, and he knew how to die for Christ. He has told us that the true Christian life is no easy life. No bed of roses! There are at times heartache, suffering, and even death. In the West we haven’t seen as much of that as they have in places like the Communist countries, the Muslim countries, or even the Hindu countries. This is likely because of what went on in generations before. England, America and other western nations had the solid Christian influence of previous years. This is especially true of America, which the founders intended to be a Christian nation. If you don’t believe that, read the Mayflower Compact: http://www.nationalcenter.org/MayflowerCompact.html. The obvious witness of early American patriots like John Bradford, John Winthrop, John Witherspoon, Patrick Henry and many others. Now, whether this nation or any other was ever in reality a Christian nation is perhaps debatable, but the intent and influence was definitely there.

In our day we have indeed reached the time that the late Francis Schaeffer labeled the Post-Christian Era. There are still elements of the true Christian faith here, and many true Christians still are active here. But the public sentiment is expressed in everyday life through the media and the entertainment industry with its passion for extreme violence, and sick humor, thriving in a culture of nakedness, adultery and fornication. We can readily see that the USA is not generally a godly nation. Not any more! Almost all our politicians, and many others in the public eye give lip service to Christianity, but the “proof in the pudding” reveals a different character. This is not just the liberal Democrats I am referring to, but many “Conservative” Republicans as well. When we see what is going on in Washington these days, we have a tendency to look for a knight on a white horse to save us from all the corruption, yet look closer and we are disappointed. Mr. Scott Brown of Massachusetts, a fiscal conservative, may be in some ways much better than Ted Kennedy. Yet he is weak on the moral issues. Many years ago he posed nude in Cosmopolitan magazine. He is “Pro-choice (which really means pro death). Abortion on demand is not the most compelling issue of our time for most Christians. Perhaps it should be. Do you mean we have sat back and done little, or nothing while 50 million unborn babies have been murdered in America alone since 1973’s Roe vs. Wade decision ? And we want God to bless us? And if we are not speaking against these murders and doing what we can legally to stop it, can we call ourselves true Christians? May God help us, for only He can.

Paul, Peter and the early Christians knew persecution because they were on fire for Christ. Many paid for that with real fire--at the stake! I’d tell you to buy a Foxe’s Book of Christian Martyrs and read some of the accounts of Hus, Ridley, Latimer and others who were tortured and killed, but you likely will not find that book in your average Christian bookstore. You will likely have to order it online to obtain it. In more recent times, what about martyrs like Watchman Nee in China; Ivan Moiseyev,Aida Skripnikova,and GeorgiVins in the Soviet Union; Richard Wurmbrand, Nicolae Moldoveanu, Simion Motz and László Tokés in Romania; Haralan Popov and Stefan Bankov in Bulgaria. There are books about most of these available today. But persecution by communists is not all in the past. In China today, now, in 2010, Christian rights attorney Gao Zhisheng is still being tortured, whereabouts unknown. This imprisonment has lasted so far for 359 days. Read about him: http://www.freegao.com/ .There are many others. There is already much harassment, and even some religious persecution in the USA, not yet to the extreme of some other places, but if this “progressive” liberal, God hating crowd stays in power, believe me dear friends, there will be more persecution. Are you ready for it? I know some would rather I did not mention these things. That is “the ostrich mentality”. Sure, I’d rather just preach the gospel, but my freedom to do so, and yours, is in peril. I know God is sovereign, but we are accountable.

Expounding a bit more on 2 Timothy 3:12, we see that Paul said “all who will (or desire), to live godly shall suffer persecution.” Note: he did not say they might, he said they shall, which means they will. Maybe you say “I am a Christian and I have never suffered persecution.” Examine yourself dear ones. Are you really desiring to live godly? Are you separated and unspotted from this world? Remember in 1 John 2:15 “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” So many professing Christians in our day are no different from the world. They balk when you say that, but it is true. They go places where true Christians should not, they partake of things true Christians would not, and love things true Christians could not. Is this you? Do you watch the increasingly filthy, and disgusting modern movies, and TV shows filled with nudity, adultery and fornication? Do you attend a church where Christ is not preached, where the Bible is not believed; where everything under the sun is promoted rather than Jesus Christ? If so, GET OUT! If you are a true believer you must, and find a Christ centered church.. We are too late in history to play church.

Paul told the church at Philippi that suffering was to be their lot, as it was his: “ For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake; Having the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear to be in me” (Philippians 1:29-30). Following our main verse it says “But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived” 2 Timothy 3:13). Live godly, and persecution will come in some form. The good Bible commentators express this, but I think Matthew Poole (1624-1679), summed it up best: “Such is the disposal of Divine Providence, such the malice of the men in the world, that though not every individual person, yet it is the usual lot of them who will keep a pure faith and a good conscience, to suffer persecution in some kind or other, either in their persons, or reputation, or estates. Men may live profanely, or may be morally honest men, and be safe enough; but if they will profess faith in Christ, or love to him in keeping his commandments, they will be exposed to troubles: the world will not endure men to live in peace, that will not live as they live, and believe as they believe.”

Published by Charles Woodruff- email: oursong2000@yahoo.com

TO LIVE IS CHRIST, TO DIE IS GAIN

BY CHARLES WOODRUFF

Some of you may have read the shorter version of this subject which I placed on Cybermeditations. I have been studying Philippians for my series of verbal sermons on the book. Four of these messages are on Sermon Audio with more to follow (dv). I sent an expanded version of this article to my email list.I believe blogger readers will also benefit from it, so here it is (cw).

"For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain" (Philippians 1:21).

Are these Holy Spirit inspired words of the Apostle Paul, stating his personal relationship with Jesus Christ, my words also? Are they yours? Paul was not stating these words to brag, nor was he confining their effect to only himself. These words should be heartfelt and part of every believer's life. It should be our "life verse". I have always said that my life verse is "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3:30). Even that one is hard to live day by day. Being creatures of flesh, all of us are probably more prone to live as in the following phrase: "To me to live is to be successful, and to die is having to reluctantly leave it all behind.” That’s awful, I know, but that is the lifestyle of so many, even professing Christians.

Of course, to the lost world, living in Christ, walking in Christ, witnessing for Christ are all things that a madman does. Christ is dead, don't you know? He has been for nearly 2000 years, or so these blinded rebels say. What they are not seeing is that, yes, He died, but He is risen!

What made Paul different is that he met the resurrected Christ on the Damascus road, and thereafter he was never the same as before. He was a persecutor of the church, but now is a proclaimer of the gospel of the Christ that he once persecuted. Yes, even today he is still proclaiming the gospel through his inspired writings.

We are not even looking at this time at the second part of this verse. That talks about dying. No one wants to do that. Understandably so, for God so designed us with survival instincts, yet Paul says for him, to die is gain. We will examine that later. For now, focus on the living part. Is Christ so in us and our lives that we can say with Paul "To me to live is Christ"? That is a tall order. We cannot do it. In ourselves, at least, we cannot do it. The Holy Spirit (who is the Spirit of Christ), must be so in control of us that we do not live our own lives, as such, but "Christ liveth in me". (See Galatians 2:20). In reality, we must also meet the resurrected Christ as Paul did on that Damascus road long ago.

Our verse is perhaps the key verse of Philippians, and one of the most important in the Bible. Am I, are you, living it in application? I confess that I am not fully doing it, but I sincerely want to do so. I am striving against sin daily. I am looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of my faith. Yet, I still fall short of the glory of God. I am not giving up, and with God as my helper, I am going to reach that place where I can say with Paul "For to me to live is Christ". How about you?

We may say we are living our lives in Christ, and sincerely mean it. But, do those who are nearest to us in everyday life on our jobs; in our homes; in the marketplace; see this in us, that we are living out Christ in our lives? May God help us! Here we all fall short. Yet, I believe Paul was indeed living a life controlled by Christ. A life guided by the living Christ. A life exemplifying Christ. Every desire of his life was to be Christ like. To be used by Christ. To be tortured, if necessary, for Christ; and to even die for Him.

That brings us to the latter part of the verse “to die is gain.” Unregenerate men can’t say this. Ordinary men don‘t say this! Paul was not ordinary in this sense: As Paul said in the latter part of 1 Corinthians 15:31 “I die daily”. The Amplified Bible gives this expanded reading “ [I face death every day and die to self]”. Certainly this man did that--fearlessly! When He said “to die is gain”, he was saying “Whatever happens, you cannot destroy me, for I will be with the Lord”. I am reminded of what the late Haralan Popov said so often, “If a man is not afraid to die, you cannot hurt him, do what you will”. He said that when the communists were brutally torturing him in his native Bulgaria. I heard him express this many times when I traveled with him.

In the following verses Paul makes it clear that although he would prefer to go ahead and be with Christ, he knew the necessity of abiding here in this life for now. He knew that he had a mission to perform for Christ before God would take him home. As he said “For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better: Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you”(Philippians 1:23,24). When Paul wrote this letter, he was under Roman imprisonment, not certain that he would live to see the Philippian church again.

He knew that “to die is gain”, as it is for all Christians, for after death for us we will awaken in Christ’s presence. “Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 5:6-8).

Paul had said in the latter part of verse 20 “With all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death” (Philippians 1:20b). The apostle’s ultimate goal was to magnify Christ (Greek megaluno= to declare, or show great; to extol Him), whether by living for Him, or dying for Him. So Paul lived what he preached and wrote. Regarding himself, he was truthful when he said “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” (1 Corinthians 6:20).

So if the Father wrought our salvation; the Son bought our salvation; and the Holy Ghost sought us for salvation, we ought to be more able each day we live so say with Paul “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” O great God, help us to live like that, with our eyes always on our strength and our redeemer, Jesus Christ the only begotten Son of God. Amen.

MILLIONS DRUGGED ON RELIGION!

BY CHARLES WOODRUFF
2009 was a year of re-runs, in a way. I republished earlier works a little more than I did in 2008. Here is another, from all the way back in the print issue of Word of Truth from March/April 1984; 25 years ago, when I was with Russian Bible Society. I have revised it with some necessary changes, but I think it is still relevant for 2010.

Speaking of vintage material, I have obtained some old tapes of W.F. Bell from days of old. I have placed a good one called Breaking Our Nehushtans on our Sermon Audio site. It is getting quite a bit of interest. To hear it, just scroll down in the left column of this page where sermons are featured; or click on the link for Sermon Audio in the My Other Blogs column.

"And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus'' (Philippians 4:7).

"Die Religion ... ist das opium des Volkes!" This statement in German is by Karl Marx. Translated into English it reads as follows: "Religion is the opium of the People!" This is one of the most quoted statements ever made. Marx wrote The Communist Manifesto, one of the "ten books that shook the world." Being myself an anti-communist, I would disagree with much that Marx wrote. I have seen what communism has done to our Christian brothers and sisters in the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, China, etc. They suffered greatly under the totalitarian system of communism. So I am against Marx and Marxism, but I agree with his statement, "Religion is the opium of the People!" Perhaps it startles you that I would agree with Marx on anything. Let me explain to you my reasons.

One of the greatest problems in the world is too much religion. There is the Buddhist religion — the Moslem, Shinto, Confucian, Hindu, Jewish, Christian, etc. In each of these there are sub-religions and cults. In Christendom alone there are the Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran, Methodist, Baptist, Episcopal, Pentecostal, etc... Then there are various state churches. Then there are cults such as Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormon, Unitarian, Christian Science, and many others — all corrupted forms of Christianity. Most of the world's people are religious.

In the USA if you ask the average man to give you the name of his religion, he will usually name the religious group his family is associated with, or church he has visited a few times, even if he does not attend regularly. Most people identify with some religion. Some might think that this is good. I don't! It is deplorable! It is really terrible that there are so many religious people in the world. Marx was right; they are drugged with their opium! Lulled into a state of sleep by their "religious cocaine," it's extremely difficult to penetrate them with the gospel. In fact, only the Holy Spirit can penetrate the barrier. Today people are not only drugged on religion; they are already "O.D." (Overdosed and dead)!

Although I can agree with Marx regarding religion, let me hasten to say, I do not agree for the same reasons. He wanted to abolish all beliefs, good and bad, from the face of the earth. Communists are atheists and believe there is no god. When I say I am in agreement, I mean that Marx's statement correctly expresses the problem. Millions of people are drugged on religion.

Lenin also wanted to abolish all religion. He said, "Religion is a kind of spiritual gin in which slaves of capitalism drown their human shape and their claims to any decent human life.” (1) In examining why Lenin and Marx hated religion so much, I found that much of the reason focused on the Russian Orthodox Church and its great wealth. Also, its corruption, identification with the czar and high visibility in largely backward, czarist Russia made it easy for Marx and Lenin to blame religion for many things, and they hated all religion.

I am not advocating we emulate their hatred, but compare their statements with reality. We have to admit there is some truth in their statements, regardless of their motives. Religion and religious people have helped to get the world into its present mess as much as greedy politicians.

Before someone thinks I've gone off the deep end, I'm speaking of religion, not Bible Christianity. There is a difference! In Acts 17:22, Paul, speaking to those in Athens, told them they were "in all things too superstitious" (Gr. Deisidaimon; religious (2)).They had more religion than anybody in the known world! They had numerous gods and goddesses and were "wholly given to idolatry" (Acts 17:16). To make sure they didn't miss the supreme being they had an inscription "to the unknown god" (Acts 17:23). Paul proceeded to tell them about the true God revealed in Jesus Christ. Readers, this is my point. God has a quarrel with religion! Religion worships an unknown god. The true Christian has the true God, the Creator, revealed to him, "In him we live, and move, and have our being" (Acts 17:28). Athens had only religion.

Before we self-righteously divorce our modern city situation from first century Athens, we should consider this quote regarding Acts 17 from William Arnot: "I suspect there is more to make an apostle shudder in Edinburgh and London than there was in Athens and Rome. Oh, it is pitiful that near a whole city of comfortable Christianized inhabitants, so many wretches in human form should be permitted to torment and destroy themselves and one another by open, organized, wholesale vice, and crime"(3) (emphasis mine).

Since he wrote these words in 1873, you can substitute your modern city and my own (Atlanta) for Edinburgh and London, and the picture Dr. Arnot painted will be effected only by a worse degree of corruption today. And what would Brother Arnot say about our modern toleration of abortion, homosexuality, drug abuse, debased music, and the general condition of his England and our America? The gods of pleasure are quite evident, and the religious everywhere are devoted to them. It was religious people who put Jesus Christ on the cross. It was religious people who stoned Stephen. It was religious people who banished John the Apostle to the Isle of Patmos. Over the centuries religious people have slain millions of true believers! Foxe's Book of Martyrs is one verification of this solemn fact.

Religion is a drug. What we need is not "a religion." We need Jesus Christ, the living person. Not abstract words about Him, but Him. He lives and without Him we cannot live. "I give unto them eternal life" (John 10:28). As A. W. Tozer has well said, "A religion, even popular Christianity, could enjoy a boom altogether divorced from the transforming power of the Holy Spirit and so leave the church of the next generation worse off than it would have been if the boom had never occurred. I believe the imperative need of the day is not simply revival, but a radical reformation that will go to the root of our moral and spiritual maladies and deal with causes rather than with consequences, with the disease rather than with symptoms"(4) (emphasis mine).

Yes, I know Marx meant to abolish the true with the false, the good with the bad. But true Christians in the Soviet Union during that time knew the difference between religion and Christianity. About 40 years ago the famous "martyr of Leningrad," Aida Skripnikova, wrote a letter to atheist V.I. Kuzin who had attempted to discredit Christianity. She wrote these words, "You say, 'innumerable are the crimes of all religions, including the Baptist faith, before humanity and particularly before science.' 'All religions,' you say."

"We are not concerned with religions," says Aida. "There are many religions, some with difficult and complex rituals, some thought up by men. The Christian religion without the living Christ is powerless: such a religion does not save. It is dead and cannot enable a man to be born again. We are not religious people. We are Christians!"(5) (emphasis mine).

By contrast, Marx said, "But communism abolishes eternal truths, it abolishes all religions and all morality. Instead of constituting them on a new basis, it (communism) therefore acts in contradiction to all past, historical experience"(6) (emphasis mine).But, ironically, the system that claims to have abolished religion has one all its own. It is not only "slaves of capitalism" who are "drowning in spiritual gin." In the Soviet Union the state had become the all-powerful god. Lenin and Marx were its prophets. Yes, communism itself is a religion! It is not just a political system. Some worshipers even bowed at Lenin's tomb in Moscow to revere their communist "saint." It is the same as the religion of humanism and socialism that is being now forced on the people of America as our freedoms are being threatened. Communism, like humanism, is a religion. But it is not thought of as a religion by most people.

David V. Benson has well said, "Communism is a religion, if by religion we mean a collective cult excites the adoration and motivates the actions of a people. If we disregard its atheism for a moment, communism has all the trappings of an organized religion: (1) its messiahs and saints — Marx, Engels and Lenin, with hosts of other figures who wax or wane in popularity as the ruling priests decide; (2) its sacred scriptures — the writings of these men; (3) a band of apostles and prophets — the communist party; (4) an elect nation — the Russian (or Chinese) people; (5) a sense of predestined authority — the immutable course of the dialectic working in history; (6) a millennial period of transition — socialism; (7) which leads to an endless state of bliss — pure communism; (8) redemption — through the sacrifice communists must make to free the working masses; (9) bondage — living under capitalism; (10) sin — rejecting communism; (11) conversion — becoming a communist; (12) and above all, faith — that complete trust one must have in the truth of communism's holy dogmas (numbering emphasis mine).

Benson continues "Only thus can the heartbeat of communism be understood. It is a religion, and as such its transgressions of logic and consistency, its narrow-minded prejudices, its violence and fanaticism are all essential parts of its makeup. For no man-made religion in all of history has ever been impregnated with a sense of a holy war of deliverance more than has communism."(7)

Jesus Christ? The communists call Him a mythical character, yet today in 2010; He is still worshipped by over sixty million evangelicals in Communist China! These worshippers are not the drugged ones. The drugged ones are those who worship the false ritualism of the state in any country. Even though there is no Soviet Union any more, there are millions of Christians in the former Soviet block today as well. This same Jesus, which the state calls a myth, will be the Judge of all men. If Leonid Brezhnev or Mao Tsetung could return from the dead for a few minutes, they could no doubt tell us that a few ideas they once had have drastically changed! The communists have made a great error in classifying all religions as the same. Pontius Pilate, when speaking of our Lord said, "I find no fault in this man" (John 19:4). Pilate struck at the truth though he failed to grasp the truth. Karl Marx did the same thing. He recognized the dangers of religion, but he never understood the truth. There is good evidence that Marx himself was a Satan-worshipper. Man will worship something, either the true God or man-made religion. Ever since the Garden of Eden man has tried to cover himself with fig leaves (religion), but as our Lord Jesus illustrates vividly in Luke 13:9-11, the barren fig tree (empty religion without the fruit of the Spirit) is cursed by the Lord. It withers and dies.

Perhaps you, dear reader, only have a religion. You may be very devout. A. W. Tozer said, "Religious work can be done by natural men without the gifts of the Spirit, and it can be done well and skillfully. But work designed for eternity can only be done by the eternal Spirit. No work has eternity in it unless it is done by the Spirit through gifts He Himself implanted in the souls of redeemed men."(8)

If you are drugged on this opium of the people, if you are drunk on spiritual gin, I ask you to sober up. If you are a devotee of some religion or even if you consider yourself an atheist, I beg you to consider the words of Jesus Christ. He said, "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (John 3:3). You need to be born from above. Jesus Christ lives! He is the only religious leader that has conquered death. His tomb is empty! If we must call our faith a "religion," let it be the religion of the empty tomb. Let it be the pure religion, undefiled before God (James 1:27). The only true religion is a revealed religion! It is a revelation of the sovereign God to a sin-sick soul. Is He speaking to you, right now? He who truly believes will no longer be a religious dope addict being lulled into hell, but will be a child of the true God, one day to reign with Him, the King of kings and Lord of lords. This is the only real cure for addiction to the opium of the people.

Notes

(1) Lenin's Selected Works, XI (New York: International Publishers, 1943).

(2) Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words gives us two Greek words that are translated "religion." In the King James Bible the word "religion" is only used five times. Deisidaimonia primarily denotes fear of the gods. Threskeia signifies religion in its external aspect; religious worship, especially the ceremonial service of religion.

(3) William Arnot, Commentary on Acts (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1978), p. 327.

(4) A. W. Tozer, Keys to the Deeper Life (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1957), p. 12.

(5) Michael Bourdeaux, The Evidence that Convicted Aida Skripnikova, (Elgin, Illinois: David C. Cook, 1972), p. 60. A Letter from Aida, a booklet, may be ordered for $1.00 postpaid from Russian Bible Society, P.O. Box 6068, Asheville, NC 28816.

(6) Karl Marx quoted by Cleon Skousen in The Naked Communist (Salt Lake City: Ensign Publishers, 1961), p. 92.

(7) David V. Benson, Christianity, Communism and Survival (Glendale, California: Regal Books, division of Gospel Light Publishers, 1967), p. 3.

(8) A. W. Tozer, op. cit., p. 40.

OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW

BY CHARLES WOODRUFF

As a follow-up to my recent article, Redeeming the Time, once again we are very time conscious as 2009 rolls out and 2010 rolls in. It is that way every year at this season. People are seemingly anxious for a new start, wiping the old slate clean in their minds, and making resolutions they don’t usually keep. One of the most memorable in recent years was the changeover from 1999 to 2000, when everyone around the world was viewing a highly televised celebration in major cities. I know it was highly televised, because my dear wife and I had the flu, and couldn’t sleep, so we saw most all the fireworks in cities like London, Sydney, Jerusalem, New York, Moscow, etc... But, we were not celebrating, we were miserable, yet we have to say it was memorable!

A new start is usually a good thing, yet the average person will get about 70 of these “new starts” in a lifetime. As we all should know, some will get more, and some a lot less. Yet nothing really changes with most just because there is a new year. Real change must come from elsewhere. To be changed from sinner to saint must occur within. The heart of a man or woman must be changed by the all-powerful Creator, the triune God that inhabits eternity. He is the only Being that is not affected by time. He has always been, and always will be. He is eternal. He is the Christ "the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending”. Jesus is He “That was, and is, and is to come” (see Revelation 1:8 for the full context). He is the One that will instruct the angel one day in the future to declare “There should be time no longer”(see Revelation 10:6). Are you ready for that day, dear friend?

“Sin may open bright as the morning, but it will end dark as the night.” T.DeWitt Talmadge as quoted by R.G. Lee in “Bread from Bellevue Oven.”

“A man by his sin may waste himself, which is to waste that which on earth is most like God.” A.W. Tozer in “Gems From Tozer.”

“Prayer and sinning will never live together in the same heart. Prayer will consume sin, or sin will choke prayer. I cannot forget this. I look at men’s lives. I believe that few pray.” J.C. Ryle in “A Call to Prayer.”

“When a man is savingly changed, he is deeply convinced not only of the danger, but of the defilement of sin; and O, how earnest is he with God to be purified. He loathes himself for his sins. He runs to Christ, and casts himself into the fountain set open for him and for uncleanness. If he fall, what a stir is there to get all clean again! He has no rest until he flees to the Word, and washes, and rubs and rinses in the infinite fountain, labouring to cleanse himself from all filthiness both of flesh and spirit.” Joseph Alleine in “Alarm to the Unconverted.”

NOT BY CHANCE

"All things work together for good to them that love God..." (Romans 8:28)

When a shepherd leads his flock over a narrow ledge, with a cliff on one side and a chasm on the other, the sheep have no choice but to follow him along the only path. In the same way, the Lord sometimes surrounds us with so many obstacles that we can't turn to the right, to the left, or even around. The Israelites, after leaving Egypt, would not have ventured to cross the Red Sea if the Egyptians had not been pursuing them. The Apostle Paul and his co-workers would never have gone to Europe to preach the Gospel if the Holy Spirit had not restricted their entrance to other areas. We would not have all the valuable letters Paul wrote if he had not been imprisoned. In our personal life it is easy to recall many incidents when circumstances forced us to do something that did not appear to be the best. We must not forget, however, that these circumstances don't happen by chance, but according to the will of the all-powerful and very loving God

Copied from Herald of Truth, 1978 ( underground magazine of the ECB of the USSR, before communism was brought down in Russia)

THE PURITAN SERIES #4

WORTHY QUOTES FROM THREE PURITANS NAMED THOMAS

If you have read any of my recent articles, you know I have great respect for the Puritans. It is hard to say which are my very favorites, but the following three are certainly near the top. For pithiness, readability, spiritual insight, Thomas Manton, Thomas Brooks, and Thomas Watson are very worthy. Most of these men’s writings are still in print. You may ask “Which one should I start with?” If you are new to Puritan writing, and desire a blessing, I would say purchase Thomas Watson’s All Things for Good, which was formerly titled A Divine Cordial. It is published in paperback by Banner of Truth and you can obtain it for about $8 from Amazon.com, or just read it online by clicking here: http://fivesolas.com/watson/cordal_i.htm . Five Solas also has a lot of other Puritan writings you may wish to read. So much of their work is in print now, and online, and ought to be read for our spiritual edification. Since they have long left this world, their work is not copyrighted. They would smile on your drawing from their wells. (cw)

GOD’S MIND, OUR PRAYERS, PEACE WITH GOD- Thomas Manton, 1620-1677

"God’s mind is revealed in scripture, but we can see nothing without the spectacles of the Holy Spirit.”
“When we make self the end of prayer, it is not worship, but self-seeking.”
”We have peace with God by the righteousness of Christ, and peace of conscience by the fruits of righteousness in ourselves.”
“Continued meditation brings great profit to the soul. Passant and transient thoughts are more pleasant, but not so profitable. Deliberate meditation is of most use because it secures the return of the thoughts.”
“What is the reason there is so much preaching and so little practice? For want of meditation.... Constant thoughts are operative, and musing makes the fire burn. Green wood is not kindled by a flash or spark, but by constant blowing.”
“If you yield to Satan in the least, he will carry you further and further, till he has left you under a stupefied or terrified conscience: stupefied, till thou hast lost all thy tenderness. A stone at the top of a hill, when it begins to roll down, ceases not till it comes to the bottom. Thou thinkest it is but yielding a little, and so by degrees are carried on, till thou hast sinned away all thy profession, and all principles of conscience, by the secret witchery of his temptations.”

OUR ACTIONS- Thomas Brooks, 1608-1680
“A man's most glorious actions will at last be found to be but glorious sins, if he hath made himself, and not the glory of God, the end of those actions.”
“Truth is mighty and will prevail.”
“ The best way to do ourselves good is to be doing good to others; the best way to gather is to scatter.”
"There are three things that earthly riches can never do; they can never satisfy divine justice, they can never pacify divine wrath, nor can they ever quiet a guilty conscience. And till these things are done man is undone.”
"Reader, remember this: if thy knowledge do not now affect thy heart, it will at last, with a witness, afflict thy heart; if it do not now endear Christ to thee, it will at last provoke Christ the more against thee; if it do not make all the things of Christ to be very precious in thy eyes, it will at last make thee the more vile in Christ's eyes."
"There is no such way to attain to better measures of grace, as for a man to live up to that little grace he has."
"Bring your graces to the touchstone, to try their truth, rather than to the balance to weigh their measure."

FOR HIS CHILDREN- Thomas Watson, 1620-1686
“A regenerate person abhors sin not only for the curse but for the contagion. He hates this serpent not only for its sting but for its poison. He hates sin not only for hell but as hell.”
“Tomorrow may be our dying day; let this be our repenting day.”
“We are never more precious in God's eyes when we are lepers in our own.”
"The Scripture is to be its own interpreter, or rather the Spirit speaking in it; nothing can cut the diamond but the diamond; nothing can interpret Scripture but Scripture."
"The Scripture is both the breeder and feeder of grace. How is the convert born, but by the word of truth?" (James 1:18). How doth he grow, but by `the sincere milk of the Word?"
(1 Peter 2:2)
“Why does God woo and beseech you by his ambassadors, if he is not willing to be in covenant?”
“The torments of hell abide for ever.... If all the earth and sea were sand, and every thousandth year a bird should come, and take away one grain of this sand, it would be a long time ere that vast heap of sand were emptied; yet, if after all that time the damned may come out of hell, there were some hope; but this word EVER breaks the heart.”

MORE THOUGHTS FROM THE PURITAN, THOMAS WATSON

“Tomorrow may be our dying day; let this be our repenting day.”

“Civility does but wash a man, grace changes him…Civility is but strewing flowers on a dead corpse. A man may be wonderfully moralized, yet but a tame devil.”

(Thomas Watson in The Beatitudes)

“A regenerate person abhors sin not only for the curse but for the contagion. He hates this serpent not only for its sting but for its poison. He hates sin not only for hell but as hell.”

(These were all random quotes by these good men. You can find more by many more Puritans in A Puritan Golden Treasury by I.D.E Thomas published by Banner of Truth and it is in print).

THE PURITAN SERIES #3

PURITAN SINGING

CHARLES WOODRUFF

The musical part of New England worship consisted of Psalm singing, in which the Psalm was lined out by the ruling elder, or by one designated by the minister. The people knew few tunes and as late as the beginning of the eighteenth century New England congregations were rarely able to sing more than three or four. Even the few melodies commonly known became so corrupted that no two individuals sang them alike, so that a congregation singing sounded "like five hundred different tunes roared out at the same time" often one or two words apart.An eighteenth century New England minister states: "I myself have twice in one note paused to take breath."

The story is told of a New England deacon who, because of failing eyesight, found difficulty in reading the first line of the Psalm and he apologized by observing: "My eyes, indeed, are very blind."

The choir thinking this the first line of a common-meter hymn immediately sang it;

whereupon the deacon exclaimed:

"I cannot see at all."

This the choir also sang. Astonished, the deacon cried out:

"I really believe you are bewitched"

and the choir responded, "I really believe you are bewitched,"

whereupon the deacon added,

"The mischief's in you all,"

and after the choir had sung that, the deacon sat down in disgust.

(From The Story of Religion in America, William W. Sweet; Harper and Brothers, 1950 edition, page 57). (Editor’s note: How would you like to sing that song? And they say the Puritans had no sense of humor ).

POET AND HYMNWRITER

The tradition of singing only Psalms was carried from Calvin, Zwingli and some of the other reformers after the Protestant Reformation, though Lutherans sang some hymns about 100 years earlier. Some churches today in Scotland and elsewhere still sing only Psalms.The Scottish Psalter is still published today. Some of the inherent problems in organizing the Psalms for singing were in the structure. Some were put together in metric, but the wording was often crude.

Then there was the Bay Psalm Book (1640), known as the first book ever published in America. http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/images/tlc0005.jpg It was written by Richard Mather and other Puritans at Cambridge, Massachusetts.The lyrics didn’t rhyme well, but I guess few worried about such things until, in England, a minister of Puritan stock named Isaac Watts came along. He was not satisfied with the arrangements of the psalters because they so poorly rhymed. Being an excellent poet, he composed his own Psalter. Then he began to set other poems he had written to music.First he wrote Behold the Glories of the Lamb, then others

including At the Cross,When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, Marching to Zion, Joy to the World, Oh God Our Help in Ages Past and at least 745 more! They became popular, and the era of the hymn in the evangelical churches was born, and I might add, we are much richer for it today. What a blessing to Christ’s church his hymns, those later of Charles Wesley, John Newton, William Cowper, and many others have been over the years, and always will be to worshiping Christians..

ISAAC WATTS’ GREATEST HYMN?

(At least I think so. My children learned it when very young, and we often sang it together).

When I survey the wondrous cross, On which the Prince of glory died,

My richest gain I count but loss, And pour contempt on all my pride.

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, Save in the death of Christ my God!

All the vain things that charm me most, I sacrifice them to His blood.

See from His head, His hands, His feet, Sorrow and love flow mingled down!

Did e’er such love and sorrow meet, Or thorns compose so rich a crown?

His dying crimson, like a robe, Spreads o’er His body on the tree;

Then I am dead to all the globe, And all the globe is dead to me.

Were the whole realm of nature mine, That were a present far too small;

Love so amazing, so divine, Demands my soul, my life, my all.

http://songsandhymns.org/hymns/detail/when-i-survey-the-wondrous-cross

BIBLICAL STANDARDS FOR SONGS IN WORSHIP

Certainly there was nothing forbidden in using Psalms in worship as the Puritans did. To do so exclusively is not commanded however. As a matter of fact the Bible does tell us exactly what should be done in private and corporate worship. It does so without specifying in minute detail. For instance in Psalm 150 we are told various instruments, besides the human voice, may be used in praising the Lord. The key verse is “Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD” (Psalm 150:6). Some want to restrict this to the Old Testament, but I see no warrant in them doing so. If you do that, you had better do away with “a pulpit of wood” for it is only found in Nehemiah 8:4; or “storehouse tithing” which is found only in Malachi 3:10.

First, we are to sing unto the Lord: “Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence

with singing” (Psalm 100:2). We are to sing psalms -- unto Him: “Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him: talk ye of all his wondrous works” (Psalm 105:2). Sing with understanding. This means doctrine, or teaching should be in the praises and songs: “For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding” Psalm 47:7). This is in the New Testament as well as old: “Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms” (James 5:13).

Secondly, hymns are to be sang as well as Psalms. “Greek= humnos; which denotes a song of praise addressed to God” W.E. Vine’s Expository Dictionary of NT Words.

“ Songs -- joyous lyric pieces on sacred subjects; contrast the reveling, licentious songs of pagan feasts (Amos 8:10).” Fausset’s Bible Dictionary on “hymn”.

“And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives” (Matthew 26:30).

“And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard

them” (Acts 16:25)

“Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody

in your heart to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:19).

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one

another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the

Lord” (Colossians 3:16).

These verses should be most instructive to us on what kind of singing in Christian assemblies is acceptable to God. I found Fausset’s words “contrast the reveling, licentious songs of pagan feasts” very alarming. He was speaking of pagans back before 1877 when his dictionary was originally published. What would he have to say about the modern pagans in England and America today and their so-called church music? Thirdly, the verses above are saying “spiritual songs” as opposed to worldly or pagan songs.

How do you define the difference? “All music is be to offered to God. Johann Sebastian Bach, perhaps the greatest musician of all time, said that the aim of all music is the glory of God. In his own life and work the great composer and organist sought to live out that aim, frequently initialing his works S.D.G.: Sola Deo Gloria--to the glory of God alone. Whenever believers sing, they must constantly remind themselves that their song should be a gift of praise to the Lord. Every word of every song should be biblical, rightly reflecting God's own thoughts and attitudes. It is tragic that much of the music today classified as Christian is nothing more than theological mishmash.”John MacArthur on Ephesians 5:19; from Monergism.com..

Some of you may say “Oh, it is just a matter of choice. A ‘Christian rock’ or ‘Christian rap’ song can praise the Lord as much as a hymn.” Be careful now, Christian friend! First of all, as we have said, the lyrics should be biblical. Also, the song should be offered to God. I can’t get too detailed in this issue, but hope to expand later. Suffice it to say, there is a certain amount of latitude in types of songs. Rhythm in itself is not wrong. The Hebrew songs certainly had rhythm.But, to take the rhythm that serves the devil so well, put a few Christian sounding phrases with it,and call it “Christian rock.”or“Christian rap”or “contemporary” is a misnomer. I used to listen to Elvis, Chuck Berry, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Lynryd Skynyrd and many other rock singers, and you can’t take the same tunes and styles they sang, give them religious lyrics and call them Christian. They may be religious, but not Christian -- certainly not spiritual songs! So many young people (and some older ones as well), are being fooled today by contemporary Christian music, most of which will not, and cannot help you worship the true Sovereign God aright. “Be ye not unequally yoked together

with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what

communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part

hath he that believeth with an infidel?” (2 Corinthians 6:14-15)

WHAT ABOUT NEW SONGS?

Likely some will get angry and puffed up with me, but think about this; I am not saying every song must be an old hymn written before 1900. I am saying our worship songs in our churches should meet our chief end -- which is to glorify God! I am not saying every good song must have been written by a Calvinist. Charles Wesley, although an Arminian, wrote some great hymns. Some modern songs are good. It is just the trend to throw out the old songs, along with the old paths -- the old biblical theology of Sovereign Grace. Our songs, whether old or new,should be scriptural.

“O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth. Sing unto the LORD,

bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day” (Psalm 96:1-2).

I am sure someone will point out the preceding verse to defend all contemporary songs, but as you see the new song here was also to be a song of praise to Jehovah. If we in the New Testament are “showing forth His salvation from day to day.” our songs must present Jesus Christ, whose very name means salvation. He is our salvation (see Isaiah 12:2).

“Let all things be done decently and in order” (1 Corinthians 14:40).

Here is an example of a good modern song IMHO.

WE SHALL BEHOLD HIM (Words and music by Dottie Rambo)

The sky shall unfold, preparing His entrance;

The stars shall applaud Him with thunders of praise.

The sweet light in His eyes shall enhance those a waiting,

And we shall behold Him then face to face.

Chorus

And we shall behold Him, we shall behold Him

Face to face in all of His glory;

And we shall behold Him, Yes, we shall behold Him

Face to face, our Saviour and Lord.

The angels shall sound the shout of His coming,

The sleeping shall rise from their slumbering place.

And those who remain shall be changed in a moment,

And we shall behold Him then face to face.

Chorus

And we shall behold Him, we shall behold Him

Face to face in all of His glory;

And we shall behold Him, Yes, we shall behold Him

Face to face, our Saviour and Lord.

We shall behold Him, our Saviour and Lord.