How to save America

Who Needs to Learn the Bible?

    The Warren Christian Apologetics Center was established a few years ago in honor of brother (Dr.) Thomas B. Warren. Brother Warren worked tirelessly to ground Christians in the rationality of Christianity and its three main tenets: the existence of God, the inspiration of the Bible, and the deity of Christ. He wrote extensively and it is through his writings that he had a tremendous influence on me (I never met him personally). I would encourage all Christians to read and devour his writings - especially his debates with atheists and his books Logic and the Bible, When Is An Example Binding?, and Have Atheists Proved There is No God?

    The Warren Christian Apologetics Center (warrenapologeticscenter.org), in honor of brother Warren, exists to defend the “Christian worldview as the only view that satisfactorily meets the demands of the law of rationality through the foundational proofs of the existence of God, the divine origin of the Bible, and the deity of Jesus Christ (cf. Acts 26:25)” (taken from the masthead of their newsletter).

    The most recent newsletter (Vol. 6 No. 4) has an article entitled “America Needs to Relearn the Bible,” written by the Center’s director, Charles C. Pugh III. I agree with the contents of the article. But here’s what struck me…

    Brother Pugh writes: “Today America needs to be awakened to the danger of the unlearning and undermining that continues to corrupt the foundation of our society.” I have made similar statements. In fact, I plan to give a series of a dozen lessons next year along the theme: “America Needs the Bible.” But here’s the kicker…

    Who is “America?” What do we mean by “America” when we say “America needs to relearn the Bible” or “America needs the Bible?” “America” cannot learn anything because America is not a sentient being. America cannot be taught anything.

    Only individuals learn. That’s my point as I reflected on Pugh’s article. We cannot teach America anything. Even if we had the megaphone of the “bully pulpit,” we cannot teach very many people. That’s not to undermine the power of mass media evangelism like the Gospel Broadcasting Network or various internet websites (our own worship is broadcast online and around the world: livestream.com/swartzcreek), and magazines.

    But truly, learning takes place on the individual level. This is especially important to keep in mind when it comes to the Gospel. “America” cannot have “faith.” Americans, however, can, if they are taught the Gospel, which creates faith (Romans 10:17).

    Learning, even through mass media, is an individual endeavor, an individual accomplishment. In the final analysis, learning happens when one person (the teacher) shares new information with one person (the student).

    Here’s my message. We cannot teach “America.” But we can teach one person. Who are you teaching? It’s easy to bash “America” for leaving her Christian heritage (I do it myself) but are we trying to teach one soul at a time the Gospel message? I am currently involved at various stages in three studies - find someone and teach him/her.

    If we want to save America, let’s focus on one person at a time (Romans 10:13-17).

--Paul Holland

The wiles of the devil

For the past few months we’ve had to endure the election coverage of all the aspiring presidential candidates.  Just for the record, I’m tired of it already and we’ve got over a year to go ‘til the election.  For one thing, I’m just tired of being reminded daily about the state of our nation.  That it’s bad and getting worse by the day.  Reminds me of something said by Thomas Paine in 1776:   “These are the times that try men’s souls.”

But, when you think about it, perhaps the candidates are not so wrong about the condition of our nation.  At least not in the “spiritual sense.”  Thinking about it in the realm of our national spiritual condition I’m reminded of a passage in Judges where it is speaking about the condition of ancient Israel and I see it just as applicable to us today.

In Judges 2, verses 10-15 I read where it says that, after a generation of faithful people had passed away, each succeeding generation moved farther away from God than the previous.  And, in doing so, it says that they adopted “other gods.”  They simply forgot Jehovah and all that He had blessed them with.  It goes on to say that they did evil in His sight.

I’m sure that in it’s natural progression they became more and more evil as the generations passed.  Look at it this way.  If we have moved so far from God and His influences in our lives, it stands to reason that much of society doesn’t know (or care) if their actions are in conflict with His ways or not.

Thus, they don’t realize, or care, whether they “provoke” God to anger by their ways, their behavior.  But, you know what?  We shouldn’t be surprised by this continual degeneration of society.  We’ve been warned many times in the Scriptures that this is the way man operates outside of God’s influence.

The apostle Paul even told Timothy, and us, that “in the last days perilous times shall come.” (2Tim. 3:1)   The phrase “perilous times” is rendered as “times of difficulty” in other Bible versions.  He then goes on in the following verses to identify some of the evil actions of an unbelieving society.  And a lot of these fit well with some of those running for public office.

Notice some of those he lists there: “lovers of self” - “lovers of money” - “proud” - “arrogant” - “ungrateful” - “unholy” - “heartless” (IE: harvesting unborn baby parts) - “slanderers” and so on.  I don’t know about you but, I have no trouble seeing those things going on today in our society.  Are we in “perilous times?”  In “times of difficulty?”  You bet we are.

Another Bible passage that comes to my mind that is befitting our nation’s spiritual situation is the one found in Isa. 5:20.  The prophet writes “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter.”

How many examples exist today that fit into one of those categories?  Just off the top of my head, how about the current phenomenon seen all over the country where rebels, criminals and rioters are proclaimed as “good” and the police are “evil.”  That the “evil” acts of the rebels are somehow a “good” cause.  As a retired police officer I can only say:   “Hogwash!  With apologies to the hog.”

Or, as previously mentioned, the harvesting of body parts of unborn babies for money?  All being done under the guise of providing women’s health.  Isn’t this a prime example of just how far our society has slipped?

You know, it’s not just the tolerance, but the embracing of the vile practices so prevalent in our society today.  Speaking “generationally-wise” I’m reminded of something a very observant person once said in this regards:   “What one generation tolerates, the next embraces.”  When you think of what happened in ancient Israel and we look at what’s going on today, no truer words were ever spoken.

When I speak of “vile practices” you know what type of sins I’m referring to, don’t you?  I’ll just call them what God calls them in Rom. 1:26-27:   “Dishonorable passions” and “shameless acts.”

Another example of our national spiritual declination is that we’ve pretty much reached the status of being a “shameless society.”  We just don’t seem to be ashamed of our behavior anymore.  Rather, we seem to glory in it.  This is not only a bad situation - it’s a sad situation.

And, we can know what God thinks about these behaviors.  In Rom 1:28 it says that “God gave them up to a debased mind.”  That tells me that God isn’t going to reach down from heaven and stop anyone from their “shameless acts.”  But, they will pay the supreme penalty for conducting their lives in such a “shameless” manner.  2Thess. 2:11-12 makes that abundantly clear.

One more thing I’d like to mention before we bring these thoughts to a close that is also noticeable in these “last perilous times” is those who are exalting themselves above God.  (Ref: 2Thess. 2:4)   When you consider it, that’s what anyone is doing who believes that their way, or doctrine, is equal to or superior to God’s. 

Here’s a fairly recent example of this, and I don’t know if you caught it in the news or not but, in May of 2013 the Pope in Rome decreed that “those who do not believe in God can ascend into heaven if they lead good and honorable lives.”  I’m not sure just where to start in rebuttal to that pronouncement, but probably Rev. 21:7-8 should be sufficient.

Brethren, we have to remain faithful to God especially in “perilous times.”  There is a phrase from Rom. 8:37 that I really find encouraging as we strive to live on the “island of faith” while surrounded by an “evil sea.”  That passage simply says that when we live faithful to God and are obedient to His Way when all around us is “perilous times” then we are “more than conquerors.”

And,  we’ll be victorious over the “wiles of the devil” because that victory is “ours through Christ who loved us.”

Respectfully submitted,

Ron Covey

A rose bud waiting to bloom in heaven

Her Precious Book

It was her constant companion.  She read it frequently.  She loved to hear people read it, expound upon it, and talk about it.  She was quick to counter if someone spoke against it.  There was hardly a page of her book that didn’t have some word or phrase highlighted or underlined.  She wrote many things in the margins to help her remember the words and ideas of her precious book.  She memorized as much of her book as she could, just in case it was ever taken from her.  She sought to live out the words that she read in her book, for those words she accepted as the guide for her life.

“How precious is the Book divine, By inspiration giv’n!

Bright as a lamp its precepts shine, To guide my soul to heav’n.”

Her family says that she began to read, study, and follow her book earnestly when she and her husband lost an infant child, Betty Jane.  She recorded the date of her baby’s birth and her death in the flyleaf of her book, and wrote these words beside those dates:  “I sure hope I see you again, my sweet darling baby.  Nothing can take her from Christ now.  A rose bud waiting to bloom in heaven.”

She continued to turn to her book when years later she lost an adult child, Patsy.  Her daughter had been a diabetic and experienced kidney failure.  When it was determined that only a kidney transplant would prolong her daughter’s life, she gave one of her own kidneys to her.  Patsy lived a few more years until she passed away at the age of 42.  Her mother found solace in her book.   

“It sweetly cheers my drooping heart, In this dark vale of tears; Light to my life it still imparts, And quells my rising fears.”

She loved to share her book with others.  Late in her life, she befriended a 94-year-old woman who could not see very well.  Since her friend couldn’t see well, she read aloud from her book to her.  She read aloud from her book to many others.

At the age of 80, she befriended another 80-year-old woman, Nora, who lived in same apartment complex.  She shared her book with her new friend.  They studied the book together.  Soon Nora accepted the book as the guide to her life.

“This lamp through all the tedious night Of life, shall guide my way, Till I behold the clearer light Of an eternal day.”

Her name was Thelma Clark.  The book that she held dear was, as L.O. Sanderson entitled a song about the same book, “The Precious Book Divine,” the Bible.

“Holy Book divine!  Precious treasure mine!

Lamp to my feet and a light to my way To guide me safely home.”

-- L.O. Sanderson

Thelma Clark loved the Book because it is God’s Word.  It tells of the great love of God that sent His Son into the world to die on the cross so that Thelma and the rest of us can be saved from our sins and receive the gift of eternal life (John 3:16).

Thelma loved to tell others about how to receive the gifts of salvation and eternal life by the instructions given in the Book: we must place our faith and trust in Jesus (Acts 16:30-31), turn from our sins in repentance (Acts 17:30-31), confess Jesus before men (Romans 10:9-10), and be baptized (immersed) into Christ for the forgiveness of our sins (Acts 2:38).  Then, the Book should continue to be our guide: “a lamp to our feet and a light to our path” (see Psalm 119:105).  In other words, the Book should be as precious to us as it was to Thelma Clark.

Won’t YOU turn to the Book and follow its precepts?                                                  

– David A. Sargent