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The Gospel Observer
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them
to observe all that I commanded you, and lo, I am with you always,
even to the end of the age" (Matt. 28:19,20).
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September 28, 2014
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Contents:
1) Your Faithfulness is Like a Morning Cloud (Kent Heaton)
2) The Purpose of the Local Church (Bill Hall)
3) News & Notes
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-1-
Your Faithfulness is Like a Morning Cloud
by Kent Heaton
"Come, and let us return to the Lord; for He has torn, but He will
heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up. After two days He
will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may
live in His sight. Let us know, let us pursue the knowledge of the
Lord. His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to
us like the rain, like the latter and former rain to the earth. O
Ephraim, what shall I do to you? O Judah, what shall I do to you?
For your faithfulness is like a morning cloud, and like the early
dew it goes away. Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets, I have
slain them by the words of My mouth; and your judgments are like
light that goes forth. For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the
knowledge of God more than burnt offerings" (Hosea 6:1-6).
Man is a fickle creature. Imbedded in all of us is the ability to be
devoted and consecrated people to a purpose or cause. Athletes excel
in their sport spending incredible hours training. Scholars exhaust
hours upon hours of study to gain a level of expertise in a desired
field. Heroes are found in the most unlikely places from a spirit of
courageous resolve. Stories of survival are inscribed upon the pages
of inspiration for the endurance of the human spirit. With all of
this deep rooted resolution of the nature of man he finds so often
the inability to keep faith in the Creator.
Hosea, a prophet of God, lived in perilous times. The kingdom was
experiencing the upheavals of kings who were evil, being warned of
God of impending doom lest they repent. There were times of plenty
and times of famine. Revival found its home for a short time but sin
triumphed over the people as they turned away from the Lord God. The
people are lying, cheating, stealing, killing, committing adultery,
and failing to hear Hosea's plea of change. The prophet goes to the
root of the problem for as a people of God their faith was likened
to a "morning cloud and like the early dew it goes away" (Hosea
6:4). Earlier the charge by Hosea was God's people were "destroyed
for lack of knowledge" and had "forgotten the law of your God"
(Hosea 4:6). Faith and knowledge are inexplicably intertwined with
one another as Paul writes in Romans 10:17 that "faith comes by
hearing and hearing by the word of God."
The downfall of God's people can be attributed to their failure to
instill in their hearts the strength of the words of God. Religion
began to be a ritual with actions and procedures rather than the
knowledge of God. Burnt offerings were given in rote ceremony of
duty without affection. Sacrifices presented in their worship had no
feeling or desire for affection toward the Lord. Worship had been
polluted by the faithless hearts drawn away by the deceptive
enticements of idol worship.
How could the chosen people of God reject Him and turn to the
debauchery of Baal? "I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I
saw your fathers as the firstfruits on the fig tree in its first
season. But they went to Baal Peor, and separated themselves to that
shame; they became an abomination like the thing they loved" (Hosea
9:10). The path to rebellion is strewn with the failed convictions
of men who do not have the resolute character to devote themselves
fully to the will of God. They ran well but they did not continue.
Because of the famine in the land for the word of the Lord the
people's faith became as passing as a morning mist. "Hear the word
of the Lord, you children of Israel, for the Lord brings a charge
against the inhabitants of the land: There is no truth or mercy or
knowledge of God in the land" (Hosea 4:1).
Mercy and knowledge is what were needed in the land. Faith was
vanquished upon the sacrifices and burnt offerings given to soothe a
gilded conscience serving the Lord through actions rather than the
heart. The lesson from Hosea is the same appeal for the nation of
saints today. Sacrifice and burnt offerings are given without mercy.
Within the body of Christ a famine exists in the hearts of
disciples. Lack of knowledge has always destroyed faith. Where is
the stand for truth as it was in the days of revival (Acts 3:19)?
How are the lives of the Christian changed by the mercy of God? What
has happened to a group of people that once were known as "people of
the book"?
The church of God in America suffers from the delusions of modern
Baal's that vie for time, hearts and mind. As the people of old the
holy nation of God in our century suffers from the faithlessness of
knowledge lost. How easy Satan entraps the mind to be filled with
everything but the knowledge of God. Worship becomes a common thing.
Devotion to the cause of Christ goes by the wayside. Stories of
conversion become fewer and fewer as less time is spent in saving
souls. We go to church on Sunday biding our time until we meet
again. Oh the drudgery of it all. When will the Lord take the gospel
away from the self-satisfied American culture and give it to those
less fortunate who truly need the pure milk of the word.
The clarion call of the New Testament is trumpeted in the ears of
those who will devote their lives to work of Christ. This is not a
passive call. We do not merely put on the armor of God -- we go into
battle. In the city of Thessalonica the early Christians were
charged with turning the world upside down (Acts 17:6). Let every
tongue proclaim in their community the saving message of a merciful
Father. Be the instrument that will bring someone to Christ. Fill
the gap as God's people to defeat the armies of apathy that invade
our land. Let not our faith be like the morning cloud or early dew
but rather a lasting shower of His knowledge in our lives. Tune the
heart to live for Christ each day in our speech, our manner of life,
our moral rule, our recreation -- our lives. "Let your light so
shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your
Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16).
-- Via the North Valdosta Bulletin, September 28, 2014
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-2-
The Purpose of the Local Church
by Bill Hall
What is the purpose of the Lord's church? Is it to eradicate
poverty, disease, social injustice, illiteracy from among men? Is it
to bring about a cessation of war and conflict? Is it to campaign
for a temptation-free society for Christians to live in?
If the church had as one of its great goals the eradication of
disease, the Lord could have easily equipped it to accomplish that
goal. Could not the same power that enabled one blind man to see
have enabled all blind men to see; that enabled one lame man to walk
have enabled all lame people to walk; that cured many people of
varied diseases have cured all people of all diseases? And could not
this same power have been given to the church in all generations?
If the church has as one of its great goals the eradication of
poverty, the Lord could have easily equipped it to accomplish this
purpose. After all, He fed the five thousand with five loaves and
two fishes. He similarly fed four thousand on another occasion.
Could not He who did these marvelous works have enabled His church
in all generations to feed, clothe, and shelter the impoverished
masses of the world through miraculous powers?
If the Lord had wanted His church to become a lobbyist group to
apply political pressure toward a temptation and persecution-free
society in which to live, He would have given instructions in that
direction. He did not even lead His church into a direct effort to
destroy slavery, but taught the Christian slave to be a better slave
and the Christian master to treat his slaves as he would have his
heavenly Master treat him (Col. 3:22-4:1).
The church's purpose is to save souls and prepare people for
eternity. It holds out to the impoverished the hope of someday
walking a street of gold; to the suffering a time when there will be
no pain; to the sorrowing a moment when "God shall wipe away all
tears from their eyes." It tells the tempted and persecuted that
there is value in these afflictions, that the testing of their faith
is "more precious than of gold," and to rejoice. It tells all to
live godly lives in whatever environment they find themselves. It
seeks to change people through the power of the gospel, not society
through the coercion of legislators. Its weapons "are not carnal,
but are mighty through God." Its motivating theme: "For what shall
it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own
soul?"
When local churches become involved in hospital and health clinic
work, or when they build schools for the education of their
children, or when they see as one of their great missions to provide
for the world's poverty, or when they feel obligated to create
social upheaval and campaign for human rights, or when they feel
called upon to express their views on the government's use of
nuclear armaments or whatever, they have a distorted view of the
purpose of the church.
-- via The Eastside church of Christ (Bowling Green, KY), May 24,
2014
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-3-
News & Notes
Marie Turner (Mark's wife) will be having major surgery due
to cancer October 10. Let those of us who are God's children
be keeping her and all her family in prayer.
Though she still has a ways to go in healing from her recent
operation, Myrna Jordan received a good report from her
doctor last week, which we were glad to hear.
Let us also be remembering Virginia Fontenot and her family
in prayer. She has recently been put on hospice care; but she
will be able to receive that in her home, where her daughter (Linda
Blevins) has been with her around the clock for about the last year
and a half. Linda, who had been an anesthesiologist for many
years, had actually taken an early retirement in order to be a
continual help for her mother through her struggles with cancer.
The recent heart surgery for Kevin Varney went well.
Let us also pray that he will continue to do fine throughout the
healing process.
We were joyfully surprised to see Danielle Howard with us at
church Sunday evening. Since May 24, she has either been in
the hospital or a rehabilitation facility in Jesup. The
removal of two parathyroids several weeks ago has led to some major
improvement for her; and though, for a while, she had been hoping to
be able to return home by Thanksgiving, that time kept getting
shorter as she continued to improve through her therapy. She
will now be going home this Friday (October 10)!
Let us also continue to remember in prayer the following for their
health: Jim Lively, Ronnie Davis, Rex and Frankie Hadley,
Jewel Wilson, Mary Vandevander, Deborah Medlock, Shirley Davis,
Sue Wooten, Dexter Roberts, and Colleen Henson.
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The Steps That Lead to Eternal Salvation
1) Hear the gospel, for that is how faith comes (Rom.
10:17; John 20:30,31).
2) Believe in the deity of Christ (John 8:24; John
3:18).
3) Repent of sins (Luke 13:5; Acts 17:30).
4) Confess faith in Christ (Rom. 10:9,10; Acts
8:36-38).
5) Be baptized in water for the remission of sins
(Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3,4; Gal. 3:26,27; 1 Pet.
3:21)
6) Continue in the faith; for, if not, salvation can
be lost (Heb. 10:36-39; Rev. 2:10; 2 Pet. 2:20-22).
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Tebeau Street
CHURCH OF CHRIST
1402 Tebeau Street, Waycross, GA 31501
Sunday services: 9:00 AM (Bible class); 10 AM & 5 PM (worship)
Wednesday: 7 PM (Bible class)
evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (912) 614-8593
Tom@ThomasTEdwards.com
http://ThomasTEdwards.com/go
(Gospel Observer website)
http://ThomasTEdwards.com/audioser.html
(audio sermons)