I was asked the other day: How do you convince someone, who doesn’t believe in Jesus, but believes in God? I guess the quickest way would be to say, “They do believe in Jesus, because He is God” (Jn. 1:1). However, it will be a little more complicated than that. So where does one begin in a situation like that?

It seems the most logical place to start would be to find out why the individual believes in God in the first place. Then to inquire all that he/she knows about our Creator. You may have already picked up on the fact that I would be trying to get them to turn to their Bible. Once you get someone to use the scriptures to support just one thing that they believe, then possible success is on the horizon. The reason is that the inspired words were given so people would believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and that believing, they may have life in His name (Jn. 20:31).

To help anyone see the truth is to help them realize the source of divine truth: the scriptures (II Tim. 3:16). So often people ask me a religious question even when they don’t believe the Bible is from God. Thus, it is futile to answer without first taking them through some studies proving the Bible is God’s word. Once that is accomplished, I will show you how easy it is to convince someone that Jesus is who He says He is, by looking at some straightforward verses in the Bible.

“I the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (Jn. 1:1).

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (Jn. 3:16).

“And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form. But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe. You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.” (Jn. 5:37-39)

“Then they said to Him, ‘Where is Your Father?’ Jesus answered, ‘You know neither Me nor My Father. If you had known me, you would have known My Father also.” (Jn. 8:19).

“Jesus said to them, ‘If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me.” (Jn. 8:42).

“I and My Father are one” (Jn. 10:30).

“Philip said to Him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father?” (Jn. 14:8-9)

“But to the Son He says: ‘Your throne, O God, is forever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your Kingdom.” (Heb. 1:8).

The fact is, the Bible is full of passages that not only assert that Jesus  is Christ the Son of God, but also God. When Christ walked on the earth, He spent His time proving who He was with signs and wonders. The only person that would reject who Jesus is would be a person that rejects the Bible as being inspired. The Bible is either 100% correct, or it is a fake. The evidence easily proves it is genuine.

Chuck

A couple of weeks ago, a TV viewer wanted to know what the Bible tells us about Satan. In the interest of letting the Bible speak for itself, I will keep the points brief:

1. Satan would be one of those spirit beings who did not keep his proper domain (Jude 6).

2. He is considered the god of this world (II Cor. 4:4).

3. He is called the tempter (Matt. 4:34).

4. He is limited in his abilities to tempt mankind (I Cor. 10:13).

5. His goal is to devour anyone and everyone (I Pet. 5:8). That is why he is called man’s adversary.

6. He transforms himself into an angel of light (II Cor. 11:14).

7. He is the only option for man to serve, other than God (I Tim. 5:15).

8. He can be resisted (Jas. 4:7).

9. He is indirectly connected with every sin that is committed (I Jn. 3:8).

10. He is known for his many wiles, to try and ensnare people (Eph. 6:11; II Tim. 2:26).

11. He will be cast into the lake of fire (Rev. 20:10).

12. His power of death was destroyed through Christ’s death and resurrection (Heb. 2:14).

Chuck

When we read the story of Job, perhaps what can get overlooked is the brief commentary of his life prior to the devil tempting him. In Job 1:5, it states, “So it was, when the days of feasting had run their course, that Job would send and sanctify them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, ‘It may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.’ Thus Job did regularly.”

Parents today want the best for their children. They want to make sure they are clothed and have food and shelter. Then there is the desire for them to be healthy and to enjoy their youth. Yet Job demonstrated to the Father in Heaven what was important to him. His children’s spiritual well-being was on his mind continually. Notice Job’s concerns centered around what he couldn’t know. Outwardly they could convey to Job they were okay spiritually, but what was truly in their heart?

Children, like all people, can put on a front and pretend to be something they are not. Please understand it wasn’t so much a lesson about a parent not trusting in their kids as it is a parent’s relationship to his Creator. Job didn’t want his children to have done anything against the Father in heaven. When a parent has this attitude, the children will soon learn what their parent really wants from them – to be godly.

It wasn’t that Job thought about this once in a while; we are told he did this regularly. Hopefully this made an impression upon his children and they didn’t curse God in their hearts. After all, we read in Job 1:18-19, all of his sons and daughters were killed when a great wind came up and caused the house to collapse. Life is uncertain and we all need to be prepared for when death comes. For those of us who have children, let’s make sure we instill the need for them to be faithful to the Lord. They will see this in the way you live for Him.

Chuck

When Paul left Crete, we are told he left Titus there to set in order the things that were lacking (Titus 1:4-5). The thing that stands out is the fact that the apostle felt he needed to have a preacher teach on the importance of leadership. We know that because he was told to appoint elders in every church.

As one reads through the qualification of elders (Titus 1:5-9; I Tim. 3:1-7), you can’t help but notice what is required in order to become qualified. No one is unqualified to teach one day and then is qualified to teach the next day. Nor is one unhospitable one day and then is considered hospitable the next day. We can say this about each and every one of the qualifications. This shows that leadership is developed and brethren need to be exhibiting these qualities long before being appointed.

The good news for a local church is that before such people are appointed as elders, the congregation has been blessed with those who have been demonstrating their abilities in the leadership role. They have been doing this by being blameless, not self-willed, not being quick tempered, not being violent, not greedy for money; being hospitable, loving what is good, holding fast to the word, able to teach, married with faithful children.

What’s great about all of this is the fact that leaders in the church act that way even if they are not elders, deacons or evangelists. This goes for our sisters in the Lord too. God’s children are part of a local church family and do what they can to help out (I Cor. 12:12-27).  Who doesn’t love to see Christians who jump in to take care of things that need to get done? Whether inviting people to their home, cleaning the building, preparing the Lord’s Supper, teaching a class, leading singing, helping with the radio, or working on the website, etc.

Until a local church appoints elders like Titus was told to do, those without them are being blessed having the members working together developing their leadership qualities to help things run smoothly. May we all be doing what we can to help, and not hinder, the work of the church.

Chuck                                       

As we often say about God’s word, it is timeless. By that we mean that it is just as applicable today as in the day it was first given. Can the Bible really provide guidance in situations that arise today? The answer is yes. A case in point would be this: how do you deal with a preacher/teacher that wants to “run” a church? What should the church do? Thankfully, the scriptures are not silent concerning this issue. Let’s take a closer look.

In the book of 3^rd John, we are told about a man that many students of the Bible are familiar with, his name is Diotrephes. Notice what John wrote about him. “I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the pre-eminence among them, does not receive us. Therefore, if I come, I will call to mind his deeds which he does, prating against us with malicious words. And not content with that, he himself does not receive the brethren, and forbids those who wish to, putting them out of the church.” (vr. 9-10).

Does this kind of behavior exist in the world today? Of course it does. There are a few principles that we can read to help us learn what a church should do in dealing with such a person. Now, we are not told whether this man was the local preacher. He may very well have been. Whether or not he was, he was a member of the church who wanted to run things. To desire the pre-eminence means he longed for the right to rule. Of course the only one who is to have the pre-eminence in the church is Jesus Christ (Col. 1:18).

Here are ways a local church can deal with a person like Diotrephes that are lawful:

1. Don’t ignore sinful behavior. Problems are not so bad within a local church. They become more serious when it is not taken care of. John said that when he comes he is going to bring up all his evil deeds (vr. 10)
    
2. Let everyone know what’s going on. Think for a moment what we are reading in 3^rd John. The apostle is telling everyone about this man. There is nothing sinful in pointing the finger at evildoers. This dispels the false notion that we are not to “judge”. When you read Matthew 7:1-5, we are told to identify sin. That’s not being judgmental, it’s being a faithful servant of Christ.
    
3. Confront the person face to face. It is true that the apostle was going to deal with him, but in our text, members of the church confronted this man (vr. 10). You can’t help but notice that John said certain ones went to Diotrephes, and not the whole church. It doesn’t matter if certain ones refuse to confront, that shouldn’t stop those who know they should.
    
4. Don’t worry about what might happen. Perhaps those members who didn’t want to confront Diotrephes thought about what might happen. We are told by John that when brethren did approach him that he turned around and put them out of the church (vr. 10). The fact that this evil doer didn’t repent and acted worse, it didn’t mean he shouldn’t have been dealt with. To ignore his actions would have been worse.
    
5. Understand what a fallen brother can’t do. In our last point we pointed out that Diotrephes put those brethren out of the church who opposed him. This doesn’t mean they were cast out of the body of Christ which the Lord added them to (Acts 2:47). To be cast out of a local assembly by those who refuse to do right is not a bad thing. This doesn’t mean those faithful brethren stop gathering to worship, they just do it somewhere else.

Chuck