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Articles, Tracts from the Past

Tracts from the Past – Can a Person be Saved Outside of the church of Christ?

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In going through my office (which needs a thorough cleaning anyway), I ran across a hand-full of old, short tracts written by a preacher named Paul Simon.  I honestly don’t know anything about him outside of the fact that he wrote these tracts.

Previous “Tracts from the Past” posts have been very well-received, so we decided to post these here as well.  If you happen to know some background on Mr. Simon, please add it in the comments section or send us a message via our contact page.

Can A Person Be Saved Outside Of The Church Of Christ?

By PAUL SIMON, Minister.

Let us forget about denominationalism, and ask, “Can one be saved outside of the church?”

Some cannot see beyond “de­nominational Christiani­ty.” Some cannot conceive of the non-denominational New Testament Church. A defini­tion of the church will help us to arrive at the correct answer to our question. The church is a spiritual institution, com­posed of every Christian in the world. To say that one can be saved outside of the church is to say, “One can be saved with­out becoming a Christian.”

Christ is the Savior of the church. “Wives, submit your­selves unto your husbands as unto the Lord: For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is head of the church, and he is the savior of the body” (Eph. 5:22). To say that one can be saved outside of the church is to say, “One can be saved without being saved.” “And the Lord added unto the church, daily, such as should be saved” (Acts 2:47).

Christ gave Himself for the church. “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it” (Eph. 5:25; see also Acts 20:28; 2 Pet. 1:18). To say that one can be saved outside of the church is to say, “One can be saved without being purchased by the blood of Christ. Christ is no thief. He will receive unto Himself only that which He has purchased with His blood — the church.

The church is the bride of Christ. “Wherefore, my breth­ren, ye, also, are become dead to the law by the body of Christ: that ye should be mar­ried to another: even unto him that is raised from the dead, that ye should bring forth fruit unto God.” — (Rom. 7:4; see also 2 Cor. 11:2; Rev. 21:9-11).

The church is the kingdom of Christ. “Upon this rock will I build my church; and I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom” (Matt. 16:18; see also Col. 1:13-14). To say that one can be saved outside of the church is to say, “One can be saved outside of the kingdom of Christ— without permitting Christ to reign over him.”

The church is the house, or household of God. “The house of God, which is the church of the living God” (1 Tim. 3:15; see also Heb. 3:6; Isa. 2:2-3). To say that one can be saved outside of the church is to say, “One can be saved outside of the household of God.”

One cannot be saved without being born again (John 3:3, 5). One cannot be born again with­out being born into the family of God. To say that one can be saved outside of the church is to say, “One can be saved with­out being born again.”

One cannot be saved outside of Christ. “But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made night by the blood of Christ” (Eph. 2:13). To be in Christ is to be in His spiritual body. His spiritual body is the church – “the church, which is his body” (Eph. 1:22-23; see also Col. 1:18, 24). To say that one can be saved outside of the church is to say, “One can be saved outside of the spiritual body of Christ” (see Eph. 1.3, 7; 11 Tim. 2:10; 11 Cor. 5:17; Acts 4:12; John 15:1-8), and apart from His blood.

A responsible person cannot be saved without obeying from the heart the form of doctrine. “But God be thanked, that ye were the ser­vants of sin, but ye have obey­ed from the heart that form of doctrine which was deliv­ered unto you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness” (Romans 6:17-18). “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved” (Mark 16:16). To say that a responsible per­son can be saved outside of the church is to say, ‘‘A respon­sible person can be saved with­out becoming a servant of God.”

A responsible person cannot be saved without eating the flesh and drinking the blood of Christ. “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you” (John 6:53). The supper of His flesh and blood is in His kingdom for His chil­dren. “That ye may eat and drink at my table in my king­dom” (Luke 22:30).

You cannot be saved outside of the family of God. “Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named” (Eph. 3: 15). To say that one can be saved outside of the church is to say that one can be saved out of the family of God, com­posed of His children.

The word, church, comes from a Greek word, ekklesia, which means the called out. “God hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son” (Col. 1:13). To say that a respon­sible person can be saved outside of the church is to say that a responsible person can be saved in the kingdom of dark­ness.

Can A Person be Saved Outside the Church?

In the light of God’s word, can one be saved outside of the church? Saved out of which church? Whose church? About whose body, bride, kingdom, family, household, ekklesia, and church have we been Studying? Can a responsible person be saved outside of the church of Christ? This ques­tion you must answer before God.

Articles, Sermons

There’s a Great Day Coming

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It’s real. It’s big. It’s coming. And there’s nothing you can do to stop it!  Some will welcome it with open arms, screaming salvation! Others will try in vain to escape it, crying for mercy. But it is still going to come.

What is it, you might ask?

It’s the judgment.

It is appointed unto men once to die, and after this, judgment (Hebrews 9:27).

Regardless of whether someone died two thousand years ago, or if it’s someone who won’t die until two thousand years from now, every person will have to stand and be judged after their death.  For some people, it will be a wonderful day. For others, it will be a day of horrible sadness.

We’re all familiar with the song, “There’s a Great Day Coming” and it conveys these ideas well.  So, let’s take a few moments to look at how people will view this judgment when it comes.

Verse 1 – It will be a great day.

The word “great” has suffered a lot of misuse, to the point where its meaning has almost been forgotten.  Most people in the United States use the word “great” as though it means “better than good.” But that’s not the meaning of the word. It actually means something large, noteworthy, or powerful.

In the first Harry Potter movie, the wand-seller Olivander speaks of the evil wizard Voldemort, and says “he did great things, yes. Terrible. But great.”

Acts 2:20 speaks of the destruction of Jerusalem as “that great and notable [or terrible] day of the Lord.”  The people in Jerusalem sure didn’t think that this meant it was a “better than good” day.

There’s a great day coming, a great day coming, there’s a great day coming by and by.

This is a large, important, noteworthy, powerful day here. It’s the day that everyone will see. It’s the day that each one will meet Jesus—the righteous Judge (II Timothy 4:8). It’s the day that each person will hear the words “guilty” or “not guilty.”

It’s also a day of separation. Up to this point, the righteous and the wicked have lived side-by-side, but on that day, there will be a separation. The righteous will go into life eternal, and the wicked shall be sent into the fires of hell for eternity (Matthew 25:31-46).

Truly, this is a great day.

There’s a great day coming, a great day coming. There’s a great day coming by and by; when the saints and the sinners shall be parted right and left.

Verse 2 – For some it will be a bright happy day.

In my office is a very large dictionary published in 1964. My grandfather would go to the grocery store each week and buy this dictionary in sections. After purchasing all sixteen sections, he was given the cover that goes with it. It was part of my inheritance when he died. In it, under the word “bright” is this definition: “Characterized by cheerfulness and gaiety, pleasant, lively.” Another definition is “giving promise of prosperity or happiness, favorable.” And of course, there’s also this one: “Illustrious, glorious.”

These are the ideas, the meanings of the word “bright” that we need to keep in mind.

There’s a bright day coming, a bright day coming, there’s a bright day coming by and by.

This judgment day is a day of happiness and cheerfulness. It is a day that promises eternal prosperity and happiness. It is a glorious day to be sure!

The apostle Paul looked forward to this judgment day. “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day; and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing” (II Timothy 4:7-8).

It is a day where we will be with the Lord, which is far better (Philippians 1:23).

It is a day where we will be reunited forever with loved ones who died in the Lord (I Thessalonians 4:17-18).

But that promise is only to those who are faithful (Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life—Revelation 2:10).

God doesn’t hold a spiritual lottery. He doesn’t reward people who don’t show true love for Him with obedience. You won’t accidentally make it into heaven when you’re judged.

There’s a bright day coming, a bright day coming, there’s a bright day coming by and by. But its brightness shall only come to them that love the Lord.

Verse 3 – for others, it will be a horrible day.

For the people who have not given themselves to God; for the ones who haven’t submitted to the commands of Jesus Christ; for the ones who have intentionally sinned; for the ones who have not remained faithful to the Lord, this judgment day will be one of sadness and misery.

There will be sadness for wasted opportunities to obey the gospel.

There will be sadness for time spent in sin.

There will be sadness for rejected pleas to come back to God.

There will be sadness because they know what the judgment is going to be.

There’s a sad day coming, a sad day coming, there’s a sad day coming by and by.

“Cast the unprofitable servant into outer darkness. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt 25:30).

“You serpents, you generation of vipers, how can you escape the damnation of hell?” (Matt 23:33).

“Whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire” (Rev 20:15).

“Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his messengers” (Matthew 25:41).

“Many will say unto me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? And in thy name done many marvelous works?’ And then will I profess unto them, ‘I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity’” (Matthew 7:22-23).

There’s a sad day coming, a sad day coming, there’s a sad day coming by and by, when the sinner shall hear his doom, “Depart, I know ye not.”

Are You Ready?

The day is coming. Make no mistake about it. “It is appointed unto men once to die, and after this, judgment” (Hebrews 9:27).

The question for you is this: what kind of day will it be for you? Are you prepared?

Are you ready? Are you ready? Are you ready for the judgment day? Are you ready? Are you ready for the judgment day?

Please, make yourself ready starting right now.

-Bradley Cobb

Articles, Sermons

Sermon Wednesday – Seeking The Lost

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Seeking the Lost

A child is lost, alone, and starving on the side of a mountain. He doesn’t know how to get home. He doesn’t have anything. He needs help.  Would you try to help him? Would you make the effort and spend even just a day looking for him?

Now, imagine you’ve found him. What kind of effort would you put in bringing him home? Would you try to lead him by the hand? Would you carry him? Would you encourage him to come with you to safety? If he was unsure, would you lovingly, continually assure him that you are there to help him and that you know how he can get to safety?

Would you do the same thing for someone who is lost in sin, without Christ, and astray on the mountain of sin?

Today, we will be looking at the Biblical principles behind the song, “Seeking the Lost.”  Hopefully, this will help us to better sing with the understanding, but also encourage us to actually be out seeking the lost!

Verse 1

Most people aren’t just going to come knock on our door and say, “I want to know the gospel!”  No, we have to go find them.

Jesus Christ came to “seek and save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10).  We must follow His example, (trying to walk in the steps of the Savior, striving to follow our Savior and King
), and that includes seeking the lost.  We aren’t going to find them if we don’t go looking for them. (“seek and ye shall find” – Matthew 7:7).

It’s time to start Seeking the lost.

So many people have the idea that we need to beat people over the head with the Bible until they finally open their eyes to see the gospel truth.  But what we need to remember is that the word “gospel” means GOOD NEWS! We’re supposed to be out sharing good news!

If you find a little boy lost on the side of a mountain, you don’t grab your map or GPS and berate him for not following what the map said. Instead, you try to help him.  You can use the map or GPS to guide him back, but being harsh with him isn’t going to help, and isn’t going to make him want to follow you at all.

Love is kind (I Corinthians 13:4). And we are to speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15).

Seeking the lost, yes kindly entreating wanderers on the mountain astray.

But when we find lost people, what are we supposed to say?  While our words are important, Jesus’ words are what matters.  Jesus is the one who invites all lost souls to come to Him. He says, “come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden [bearing a heavy burden] and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

We need to tell these lost souls that Jesus has an open invitation to them. He invites them to come to Him.  We need to let them know that there is safety awaiting them in Jesus.

“Come unto me,” His message repeating, words of the Master speaking today.

Verse 2

Far too often, Christians try to make evangelism about themselves instead of about Jesus.  I don’t know what to say. I can’t evangelize. I might mess things up. I’m scared.  Or maybe we start giving our opinions about things in the Bible when what we should be doing is pointing to Jesus!

The good news isn’t that the church of Christ doesn’t use instruments; the good news is that Jesus died for our sins—for their sins!  The good news is that even though these people are lost, they can be led to safety and brought home!

There’s plenty of time to deal with doctrinal issues and how to worship God acceptably, but first we have to get them to Jesus!

Seeking the lost and pointing to Jesus

A lot of people have gone through some horrible times in their lives.  They’ve been betrayed, they’ve been hurt, they’ve struggled—and still do.  Many of them think that there’s no hope for them.  Many of them think that no one cares.  But it’s our responsibility to show them that we care because Christ cares!

souls that are weak and hearts that are sore.

When a person is lost, they want to know how to get somewhere.

A man comes across the lost boy on the mountain. The boy desperately wants to go home to his father. So, the man says, “keep heading up the mountain.” The problem is, the boy’s father doesn’t live up the mountain. He lives down in the valley.  That boy is going to boy overjoyed because he thinks he knows the way now. But eventually, he’ll find out that the man wasn’t telling the truth.

Oh, that man may have thought he was telling the truth, thought he knew what he was talking about, but the fact still remains that the little boy will never find his father that way.

How incredibly sad! And it makes it that much harder for someone else to find that little boy, because he’s headed in the wrong direction. And it makes it that much harder to convince the boy that he’s going the wrong way. And even if you beg and plead with him, the boy may decide not to trust anyone’s directions anymore because he was led astray.

My brethren, there are thousands of people who are out looking for lost people and then giving them wrong directions that take them even further from God.  They say, “Oh, the direction to Christ is the path called the Sinner’s Prayer.”

They say, “To get to God? Well, you can’t. You’ll just have to wait for Him to find you, and if He picked you, He’ll find you. If He didn’t pick you, you’re lost forever anyway.”

And that makes our job even more difficult. It’s not impossible to bring these misled people to Christ, but it’s difficult.  That’s why we need to be out there, actively looking for people. Showing them the right way—the Bible way—before someone else gets a hold of them and sends them the wrong direction!

The more work we do now, the easier it will be!

Leading them forth in ways of salvation, showing the path to life evermore.

Verse 3

Because we have good news, because we have been given a mission by Jesus Christ, because we know the Bible way of salvation, we must spread it!

We must take pity on people who are lost and help them.  We must show mercy to them, kindly showing them the error of their ways.  After all, this is what Jesus did. Those people who had been neglected and rejected by society were the ones that Jesus seemed to spend the most time teaching.

And we need to be the same way. We need to go to these people who know they need help, who know they need Jesus.

Thus I would go on missions of mercy, following Christ from day unto day.

We need to give people hope by showing them that Jesus died for them.  We need to show them that the gospel really is good news—it’s GREAT news.  And when we see Christians who have stumbled, we need to help them back up and help them on that glorious path to heaven above!

Cheering the faint and raising the fallen, pointing the lost to Jesus the way.

Chorus

Jesus gave a parable about a man who had 100 sheep, and one of them got lost.  That man left the other 99 sheep to go search for that one lost lamb.  We might say, “he’s still got 99% of his sheep, why worry about that one?” It’s because that one sheep is important. That one sheep is valuable.

We must realize that all people are important and are valuable. Until we take this seriously, we’ll never grow.

We have to be willing to go out of our way to seek the lost. We have to be willing to give up our comforts (and our comfort zone) to seek the lost.

If there really was a boy who was lost on a mountain, or in the woods, would you stop what you’re doing to help?  Then you should be willing to stop what you’re doing and try to help find the lost souls out there who are searching for home.  We need to find them, and guide them to Christ.

Going afar upon the mountain, bringing the wand’rer back again into the fold of my Redeemer: Jesus the Lamb for sinners slain.

Conclusion:

If you’re not a part of the body of Christ, having put Him on in baptism, then you are one of the lost.  Jesus died for your sins, and He wants you to come home to Him. He says “come to me, you weary ones. I’ll give you rest.”

The path to Jesus is easy, just believe in Him, leave your sins behind and confess Him as the Christ, being buried with Him in baptism, and being raised up from the waters as a new creature—saved!

Perhaps you’ve already followed that path, but somewhere along the way you’ve lost your footing and fallen off the trial to heaven. We beg you to come back now—we’ll help you!

-Bradley S. Cobb

Articles, Sermons

Sermon Wednesday – Ten Thousand Angels

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They bound the hands of Jesus in the garden where he prayed.
They led him through the streets in shame.
That spat upon the Savior, so pure and free from sin.
They said “Crucify him. He’s to blame.”

We all know those words of that song. And we know what comes next in it.  The song contains some great thoughts, and helps us focus our minds on what is really important. But before we get into the song, let me tell you about how it was written.

Ray Overholt was a musician with his own TV show, “Ray’s Roundup,” for a time. But in 1958, something changed. He had left the TV show and started playing in nightclubs.  He was drinking heavily.  He said, “I began thinking there must be a better life than the nightclub, show-business whirlwind. I was so intent on changing my lifestyle that I went home and told my wife that I was quitting all of the smoking, drinking and cursing. I wanted to cleanup my own life.”

“One day I thought to myself: I’ve written secular songs, I’d like to write a song about Christ. I opened the Bible, which I knew very little about, and began to read the portion of Scripture that describes Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane telling Peter to put away his sword. I read where Jesus told Peter that He could ask His Father and He would send twelve legions of angels. I didn’t know at the time that would have been more than 72,000 angels.”

“I thought a good title for a song would be He Could Have Called Ten Thousand Angels. I didn’t know what happened during the life of Christ, so I began doing a little research. The more I read about Jesus, the more I admired him for what He had done. I then remembered that He did this all for me.“

“I was playing in a nightclub in Battle Creek, Michigan, when [I started] to write the song. I wrote the first verse and put it in my guitar case. I then gave the club my notice that I was quitting. As I opened my guitar case to put my instrument away, one of the other musicians saw the music written out and he asked, ‘What are you doing there?’ I told him I was writing a song about Jesus. He asked the title and I told him. He said, ‘It will never go.’ I asked why? He said, ‘I don’t even like the title.’ But I finished the song and sent it to a publishing house, which reluctantly agreed to publish it.”

And the rest is history. The song has become one of the favorites of Christians all over the world.

Let’s think back to the time described in the words of this song.

The Arrest of Jesus

It’s late at night, and after spending several hours with His disciples, Jesus goes off alone to pray. He looks at Peter, James, and John, and says, “you guys stay awake and keep a lookout while I go pray.”  Then Jesus goes further into the garden, falls on his knees, and agonizes in prayer. He is incredibly stressed to the point where he is sweating as it were great drops of blood (Luke 22:44).  He gets back up and finds that His disciples sleeping. He wakes them up, and it’s not much later that a large group of soldiers, led by Judas, comes and arrests Jesus. “Then the band and the captain and officers of the Jews took Jesus and bound Him” (John 18:12).

Jesus, the innocent man was arrested and chained as a common criminal, and led away for trial.  The soldiers shove Jesus through the city on the way to the high priest’s home. People hear the noise and begin to look out their window and see Jesus in chains.  The man who had—just days earlier—been greeted with cries of “Hosannah” as He rode down the street in Jerusalem as a King, was now being led down the street in the early morning hours as a prisoner.

“Again, the high priest asked Him, and said unto Him, “Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” And Jesus said, “I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.” Then the high priest rent His clothes, and saith, “What need we any further witnesses? Ye have heard the blasphemy: what think ye?” And they all condemned Him to be guilty of death. And some began to spit on him.” (Mark 14:61-65).  The sinless Savior stood there while the crowd condemned Him to death and spat on Him.

“And Pilate said again to them, What do you desire then that I shall do unto him whom ye call the King of the Jews? And they cried out again, Crucify him! Then Pilate said unto them, Why? What evil hath he done? And they cried out the more exceedingly, Crucify him!” (Mark 15:12-14)

They bound the hands of Jesus in the garden where He prayed.
They led Him through the streets in shame.
They spat upon the Savior, so pure and free from sin.
They said, “Crucify him! He’s to blame!”

The Mockery of Jesus

Jesus has been dragged from one mock trial to another. The Sanherdrin condemned Him to death, and spat on Him. Herod rejects Him because Jesus wouldn’t speak against the accusers. Pilate showed himself as spineless and washed his hands of the whole situation. Then Jesus is scourged—whipped across the back until the muscles and bones in his back are clearly visible. Then he’s turned over to the soldiers for them to do whatever they want before they kill Him.

“Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the common hall, and the whole band of soldiers gathered around Him. And they stripped Him, and put on him a scarlet robe. And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they spit upon him, and too the reed and smote him on the head. And after they had mocked him, they took the robe off of him, and put his own rainment on him, and led him away to crucify him” (Matthew 27:26-31).

They put a robe on his bleeding back. They twisted up thorn vines and put them on his head. They mocked him in fake worship. They took the reed and started hitting him on the head, driving the thorns deeper and deeper into his head.   And during this whole time, there was no one there defending Him. He was by Himself.

Upon His precious head, they placed a crown of thorns.
They laughed, and said “Behold, the king!”
They struck Him and they cursed Him and mocked His holy name.
All alone, He suffered everything.

The Crucifixion of Jesus.

Jesus is beaten and bloody. His face is unrecognizable. And they nail his hands and feet to the cross. Jesus is hurt, exhausted, dehydrated, sleep-deprived, mentally spent, but still determined. He is still thinking clearly. But as He’s raised up on the cross to begin His final torture before dying, He looks at the crowd that’s gathered. Through the blood that’s run into His eyes, He sees Mary, His mother. As He’s on the cross, struggling for every breath, He makes sure His mother is taken care of.

“Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary of Clophas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith to His mother, “Woman, behold thy son!” Then saith He to the disciple, “Behold, thy mother.” And from that hour, that disciple took her into his own home.” (John 19:25-27).

Everything had been taken care of. It was all about over. The last request of Jesus on this earth was a drink.  “After this, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, saith, “I thirst.” Now there was a set vessel full of vinegar: and they filled a sponge with vinegar, and put it upon the hyssop, and put it to His mouth. When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, “It is finished.” And he bowed His head and gave up the ghost.” (John 19:28-30).

The wicked work of the Jews in killing Jesus had finally accomplished their goal.

When they nailed him to the cross, his mother stood nearby.
He said, “woman, behold thy Son.”
He cried, “I thirst for water,” but they gave Him none to drink.
Then the sinful work of man was done.

The Other Side of the Story

The sinful work of man was done, but this was also in the plan of God—it was God’s grand plan to bring about redemption.  Jesus didn’t fight the mob. Jesus didn’t resist the authorities that falsely arrested, accused, and condemned Him. He refused the drink that would have helped to deaden the pain. He took the full force of His death. He was taking on the full punishment for sins, and nothing was held back. The entire world’s sins were on His shoulders while He was on the cross, and He had no helper. No one to help shoulder the burden. It was all on Him. And then He died, and His death made salvation possible for all men.

“And Jesus cried with a loud voice” (Mark 15:37) “He said, It is finished: and he bowed his head and gave up the ghost.” (John 19:30).

“Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who, for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2).

“For the preaching of the cross is, to them that perish, foolishness. But unto us which are saved, it is the power of God” (I Corinthians 1:18).

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to all those who believe, to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16).

To the howling mob He yielded. He did not for mercy cry.
The cross of shame He took alone.
And when He cried “It’s finished,” He gave Himself to die.
Salvation’s wondrous plan was done.

The Self-Control of Jesus.

Peter, the impetuous sword-wielding disciple of Jesus Christ, tried to stop these events from taking place. In the garden, when the soldiers came to take Jesus, Peter stood up for His master and attacked.

“And behold, one of them which were with Jesus stretched out his hand, and drew his sword, and struck a servant of the high priest’s, and smote off his ear. Then said Jesus unto him, “Put up again thy sword into his place. For all they that take up the sword shall perish with the sword. Thinkest thou not that I cannot now pray to my Father, and He shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then shall the Scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?” (Matthew 26:51-54).

He could have called ten thousand angels
to destroy the world and set Him free.
He could have called ten thousand angels,
BUT
He died alone, for you and me.

Conclusion:

He could have avoided it all, but He died alone for you and for me.

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

“Repent and be baptized, every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38)

“Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life” (Revelation 2:10).

“Behold now is the accepted time, behold NOW is the day of salvation.”

-Bradley Cobb

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Bible Q&A – Non-Created Things?

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Question: The Bible says that Jesus made everything that was created. Does that mean that there are things that exist which weren’t created? – J.C., Oklahoma.

First, I want to thank you for taking the time to write to us. It means a lot and we appreciate it.

The Bible does indeed teach that Jesus created everything that was created. John 1:1-3 says:

In the beginning was the Word [Jesus, see verse 14], and the Word was with God, and the word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him, and without Him [there] was not anything made that was made.

This passage is very explicit. If something/someone was created, Jesus is the one who created it. ZERO exceptions.

The Bible also teaches that there are things which exist that were not created. That means there are things which exist that are eternal. They have no beginning.

The first one that probably pops in your mind is God. God is eternal, with no beginning. He was not created. His very name Jehovah means “the ever existing one.” The Scriptures teach us that God is the one who created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1, Job 38:4). He is the Creator, not the creation.

Because of what John says about Jesus (see the verses above), we can know with 100% certainty that Jesus was not created, for He created everything that was created. If, as some people claim, Jesus was created, then the Scriptures make no sense by claiming that Jesus created Himself. That is an absolute absurdity. Jesus is eternal.

Because the Holy Spirit is also “God,” or a part of the Godhead, we can know that He is also eternal. He was present before God said “let there be light” (see Genesis 1:2-3), and therefore existed before creation took place.

Are there other things/beings that might fall under the “not-created” category? There are no clear, unambiguous statements in Scripture that would allow us to say that with absolute certainty. However, there are some who believe that angels are eternal (since they appear to be present when God began the creation—Job 38:4-7). It is also not uncommon to find those who believe that Satan is also eternal, since there is no mention of his being created, and Jesus said that he existed “from the beginning” (John 8:44, I John 3:8).

So, to answer your question: Yes, there are some things/beings which were not created. They are eternal. Among them (for certain) is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Whether any other things/beings also fit under this heading is a matter of supposition which—though it may be true—lacks a clear statement of Scripture to prove it.

-Bradley S. Cobb

Articles, Sermons

Sermon Wednesday – In Vain in High and Holy Lays

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Welcome back to another Sermon Wednesday!  This week, we continue our series on “Singing with the Understanding.”  Enjoy and use it to God’s glory!

Introduction:

A realization struck me this week, that there was a song I knew, I sang, and I have even led—and I didn’t have a clue what the first line was even talking about: In Vain in High and Holy Lays.

What does that even mean?  Perhaps you have wondered the same thing.

The rest of the song is easier to understand, and we’ll be looking at it today.  It breaks down like this:

Verse 1 – The inexpressible love of Jesus
Verse 2 – The comforting love of Jesus
Verse 3 – The forgiving love of Jesus

Let’s join together and look at the Biblical truths expressed in this song so that we can truly follow the command to “sing with the understanding” (I Corinthians 14:15)

Verse 1 – The Inexpressible Love of Jesus

In vain

This phrase simply means that it is worthless, such as “In vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Matthew 15:9).

In high and holy lays.

The word “lays” is an old English word that means songs.  So, these are high and holy songs, the grandest, most serene songs of praise—the ones that can give you chills when you hear it.

My soul, her grateful voice would raise.

The grateful heart sings the most meaningful, heart-felt songs possible.  The first line here describes our singing with our hearts, with truly grateful emotion, the most awe-inspiring melody and most honest and true words


And it still wouldn’t come close to accurately describing the wonderful love of Jesus.  It can’t come close to doing justice to the praise Christ deserves.

For who can sing the worthy praise of the wonderful love of Jesus?

Though we can understand part of it, there is no way for our human minds to fully express the love of Jesus Christ for us.  Though we can try with all our might, there is no way we can adequately express our gratitude for the love of Jesus.

This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t try, but just know that the love of Jesus is so great, so wonderful, so overwhelming that we cannot ever adequately express it.

Jesus loved us in that while we were yet sinners, He died for the ungodly (Romans 5:6)  And we show that love for him through praise, worship, and obedience (Hebrews 5:9, John 14:15).

The full extent of the love Christ has for us is truly inexpressible.

Verse 2 – The comforting love of Jesus.

A joy by day

When you look at the Scriptures, you can see that people who truly came to Jesus had great joy.  The Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8:29) went on his way rejoicing after being saved by Jesus’ blood when he was baptized.  The people on Pentecost were glad to receive the instructions on how to come to Jesus (Acts 2:41).  John wrote Christians to remind them of the “full joy” they had in Christ Jesus (I John 1:4).

As we go throughout our daily routines, we should constantly remember the benefit of Christ’s death on the cross on our behalf and be joyful.  Even though troubles come in this life—sometimes extremely difficult ones—if we keep our eyes on Christ and continue to remember what He has done for us, we can truly be joyful.

Just remember Paul and Silas when they were falsely imprisoned after being beaten bloody—they sat there and sang (Acts 16:22-25).

What kind of joy do you show because of Jesus?

A Peace by night

When night comes, many people have anxiety—but that doesn’t need to describe Christians.  Every night when you lay down to sleep, you can have peace in knowing that you have come to the saving blood of Christ.  Every night, you can know that if you were to die in your sleep, you’ve got heaven awaiting you when you awake.

You have peace knowing that regardless of what happens, you’re depending on the One who matters most—Jesus Christ our Lord.  And when you get that, you have peace that surpasses understanding (Philippians 4:7).

In storms a calm

A massive storm was happening on the Sea of Galilee, and a group of lifetime fishermen were afraid they were going to die (Mark 4:37-39).  They stumbled down the steps in the boat as the waves covered the ship.  They found Jesus sleeping—SLEEPING!  How could someone sleep in the middle of that?

They woke Him up and said, “don’t you care that we’re about to die?”  Jesus spoke up and said to the storm, “peace. Be still,” and immediately the waves stopped, the wind ceased, and there was a pure calm.

In the midst of the storms of life, we can have the same kind of calm—as though we are under a protective shelter which keeps the storm from touching us.  We can have a calm, knowing that all things work together for good to them that love God (Romans 8:28).  We can have a calm, knowing that so long as we focus on God’s kingdom and righteousness, He will make sure we have everything we need (Matthew 6:33).

It is because of Jesus Christ’s love for us that He died, and gave us access to the Father in prayer—which can sooth our anxieties in the storms of life (Hebrews 4:16).

In darkness light

Jesus is described as “the light” (John 1:6-10).  In a world of darkness, Jesus is the light.  When all around us seems frightening, like there is no hope, Jesus Christ shines as a bright beacon lighting our way to heaven.  Jesus gives us hope and helps brighten our days.

We don’t have to grope around blindly—Jesus has provided the light for us to walk safely.

In pain, a balm

When we suffer hardships, emotional pain, we can look to the Great Physician (Luke 5:31) and He has provided the spiritual ointment needed to help heal our hurts.  We look to Him, and remember what really matters.

We look to Him, and realize that we’ve not got it as bad as we might think—after all, how many of us have been stripped naked, beaten bloody, publicly mocked and ridiculed, and then been nailed to a cross and left there to die?

Jesus brings healing to our souls, and cares about our lives.

In weakness, might

Leaning on Jesus, Leaning on Jesus, safe and secure from all alarms, leaning on Jesus, leaning on Jesus, leaning on the everlasting arms.

When we are weak, we lean on Jesus Christ who gives us strength; He lifts us up as we walk beside Him.  Paul said it this way, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

He also said, “I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecution, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then I am strong” (II Corinthians 12:10).

Is the wonderful love of Jesus.

All of these blessings comes because Christ loved us enough to die for us.

Verse 3 – The Forgiving Love of Jesus.

My hope for pardon when I call.

For non-Christians, pardon from sins comes when they call on the name of the Lord—turning to Him and His authority in obedience.  Calling on the name of the Lord (done by obedience in baptism) brings about pardon from our sins (Acts 22:16).  Calling on the name of the Lord (which was described as “repent and be baptized“) saves us (Acts 2:21, 38, 41, 47).

For Christians, pardon from sins come when they go to God in prayerful repentance.  Simon the sorcerer (a Christian) was told to repent and pray to God for forgiveness (Acts 8:22).  John told Christians to confess their sins to God, and they would be forgiven (I John 1:9).

We can have boldness to go to the Father in prayer BECAUSE of the wonderful love of Jesus (Hebrews 4:14-16).  But without Christ, there is no pardon for our sins.

My trust for lifting when I fall.

When we stumble along the way, we have the help of Jesus to get back up again and keep walking with Him.  If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin (I John 1:7).

The sins mentioned in that verse are those times when we stumble. But so long as we keep trying, Jesus lifts us up to help us on our way.

Love lifted me, love lifted me, when nothing else could help, love lifted me.

We can trust in Jesus to lift us back up when we have asked for forgiveness.

In life, in death, my all in all.

We live our lives for Christ—and He helps us through it all by His word and the work that He has already done on our behalf.  And when we do that, we know that when death comes, we can embrace it, knowing that we will go on to be with the Lord, which is far better (Philippians 1:23).

Our entire existence, whether we live or die, should all center on Christ Jesus.

Conclusion:

Wonderful love, wonderful love, wonderful love of Jesus!

It is through the love of Christ that we are saved, that we have hope, that we have comfort, and that we have forgiveness.

Remember that the next time troubles come along and you don’t know where to turn.  Remember that the next time you sing this song—The love of Jesus is what our entire existence depends on.

He loved you so much that He came here and willingly took your place—your death sentence because of your sins (Romans 3:23).  His love also revealed the way by which you can be saved—believe and obey the gospel.

-Bradley Cobb

Articles, Sermons

Sermon Wednesday – A Wonderful Savior

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This week (since we’re back home now), we will be continuing our series of sermons dealing with songs that we sing.  This series is called “Singing with the Understanding.”  Enjoy and use to God’s glory!

Introduction:

If you look through your songbook at the names of the songwriters, you’ll notice that some people appear semi-frequently.  L.O. Sanderson and Tillet S. Teddlie are two that come immediately to my mind.  Another one that you are probably more familiar with is Fanny J. Crosby.

Mrs. Crosby wrote hundreds of hymn lyrics, and others put them to music.  One thing that you might not know about her is that she was blind.  One of the things that stands out in her songs is that in most of them, she mentions seeing.  For example, in the song “To God be the Glory,” the last verse says “our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see.”

Today, we will be taking a look at another song she wrote, and the Biblical truths expressed in it.  The song is “A Wonderful Savior.”

Verse 1 – In Jesus we have safety.

A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord.

Jesus died to rescue people from sin.  His is the only sacrifice with any true power—power enough to cover the sins of all those before Him and all those after Him (Hebrews 9:15).  He died for the sins of the whole world! (I John 2:2)

Truly, there is no other Savior like Jesus.  And there is no other Savior BUT Jesus (Acts 4:12).

A wonderful Savior to me.

He is not just the general savior of the whole world; He is our personal Savior as well.  He didn’t get a huge net and gather up everyone at once to safety—He saves people individually.

He’s my Savior. He saved me.  He can save you too. He’s waiting at the water to save you.  There ain’t nothin’ like being saved—freed from the sins that were holding you down and trying to kill you.

Jesus is my wonderful Savior. Is He yours?

He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock

This is safety. This is protection.  It’s as though you are in the midst of a storm of sin, and there is a crevice cut into the side of a mountain—a place of refuge—a place of safety from the storms of life.

God is our refuge—Jesus is the one who brings us to that place of safety.

Where rivers of pleasure I see

Joys indescribable can be ours if we are in Jesus.  Only in Jesus can we have salvation.  Only in Jesus can we get to heaven, for He has blazed the trail for His people (Hebrews 6:20). Only those in Christ can answer “yes” to the question “shall we gather at the river that flows from the throne of God?”

In Christ, we can see the glories of heaven and the joys that can be ours here and in the world to come!

Verse 2 – In Jesus we have strength.

A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord, He taketh my burden away.

You’re walking around, carrying a burden of sin.  It’s overwhelming, and it drags you down to the point where you can’t even move—you’re trapped.  Then Jesus comes and removes the weight—suddenly you’re free! You’ve been liberated!

My friends, that’s what Jesus does for you when you are baptized into Him.  He washes away all of your sins (Acts 22:16).  The burden is gone!

He holdeth me up

It’s as though we are walking side by side with Jesus; and He’s supporting us, holding us up.  We don’t have strength on our own to walk right—we can’t get to heaven on our own strength.  Jesus is there helping us along—when we stumble, He’s there to keep us from falling (Jude 24).

What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!

The problem comes when someone lets go of Jesus, quits leaning on His everlasting arms, or even pushes Him away.  But so long as you are holding on to Christ, trying to walk in the steps of the Savior, He will keep you from falling.

And I shall not be moved.

When we are walking with Jesus, nothing has the power to knock us over.  More powerful is He that is in you than he that is in the world (I John 4:4).  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:35-39).

If we are in Christ and walking in the Light, then “like a tree planted by the waters,” we can say “I shall not be moved!”

He giveth me strength as my day.

We lean on Jesus for our strength, for we have none on our own.  He is the one who gives us strength.

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13)!

Verse 3 – In Jesus we have reason to sing.

With numberless blessings, each moment He crowns.

Count your many blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord has done!

We are given constant blessings from God—from Jesus Christ our Savior.  We have access to God in prayer, we have the confidence of our salvation, we have the fantastic family of God—the church—to help us through each and every day.  Numberless blessings given to us every day!

And they only come through Christ (Ephesians 1:3).

And filled with His fullness divine.

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly (Colossians 3:16).  When we fill ourselves with the word of God, then the power of Christ is in us.  And when Christ shall come again, we shall be changed as He was and ascend to our heavenly home!

I sing in my rapture, o Glory to God

When we examine the great blessings that God has given us, and the even better things that await us, it causes us to be overjoyed.  We sing “Hallelujah, praise Jehovah!”

We sing “Thank you Lord for loving me and thank you Lord for blessing me, thank you Lord for making me whole and saving my soul!”

Even when things aren’t going well for us here on earth, we can still sing, joyfully remembering what awaits us up there (remember Paul and Silas in Acts 16:22-25—singing in prison).

For such a redeemer as mine.

We sing glory to God because “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

Glory to God for sending the One who paid the price to save our souls from eternal damnation!

Verse 4 – In Jesus we have eternal salvation.

When clothed in His brightness,

Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory (I Corinthians 15:51-54).

We will be clothed in glory, clothed in brightness!

Transported, I rise to meet Him in clouds of the sky.

For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words (I Thessalonians 4:16-18).

When Christ comes back, all of His people will meet Him in the air, and be escorted to heaven!

His perfect salvation

When Christ comes again, salvation is completed!  When Christ comes again, our battles will all be over, and heaven will be our eternal home!

His wonderful love

He loved us enough to die for us, and “greater love hath no man that to lay down his life for a friend” (John 15:13).

I’ll shout with the millions on high!

There will be an innumerable amount of people surrounding the throne of God in heaven, singing praises to God the Father, and Jesus the Christ throughout eternity.

When we all get to heaven, what a day of rejoicing that will be, when we all get to heaven, we’ll sing and shout the victory!

Conclusion:

Do you want to be one of those joyful millions who can’t help but singing in heaven?  Jesus invites you to join Him, to become one of His people.

He said, “come unto me, all ye who labor and are heavy-laden (carrying a heavy burden) and I will give you rest
for your souls” (Matthew 11:28-30).  And when you do that, it’s as though—even though you are in a dry desert—Jesus has given you shade and protection, and provides all the water you could ever need.

He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock that shadows a dry, thirsty land. He hideth my life in the depths of His love, and covers me there with His hand, and covers me there with His hand.

The words here seems to be taken from when God allowed Moses to see Him from behind as He walked by (Exodus 33:20-23), where God showed His love and respect for Moses by letting him see His glory as He passed by.  But the idea in the chorus is that Jesus holds us close and protects us.

For the great invitation to have any power, you have to first hear it, and believe that it is real.  Then make that decision to take Jesus up on His offer, leaving your past sins in the past.  Confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and be baptized, washing away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

Jesus invites you, and so do we.

-Bradley S. Cobb

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Bible Q&A – Why Did God Create Us If He Knew We Were Going To Sin?

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Question: If God knew we were going to sin before He ever created us, why did He even bother? He could have spared Jesus’ life by just not creating us in the first place. –M.P.

I read something recently that a preacher wrote on this topic, and it—well, frankly it irritated me. He basically said “It doesn’t matter why He did it. He just did it, so accept it and move on.” Like many other people in the world, I don’t just want to know what is or isn’t true, I want to know why it is true.

Obviously, there are some things that we will never know or understand this side of eternity. And it is also true that there are some things that God did not see fit to reveal to us (Deuteronomy 29:29).

But does God really leave the question of why we were created unanswered? This is one of the biggest, most important questions that can be asked. Why am I here? What is the meaning of life? These are just different ways of asking the same question: why did God create us?

And God did not leave this all-encompassing question unanswered.

But before we attempt to answer this question, let’s establish a couple points.

God knew mankind would sin before He created Adam.

Jehovah once staked His entire claim to being God on His ability to accurately know and foretell things which were in the future (Isaiah 41:22-24). If He did not know in advance that mankind would sin, then Jehovah is not God.

The necessity of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ was known by God before He created the universe (I Peter 1:21). God had already decided on His plan of salvation and who would be saved before He created the universe (Ephesians 1:4).

So, without a doubt, before creation, God knew that mankind would sin.

But He created man anyway.

Everything God does has a purpose.

Every animal of the field, every plant, every star, every cloud, even the very molecules that we are made with all have a purpose. Every command of God has a purpose—none of them are arbitrary. Every verse of the Bible has a purpose—none of them are there just for the fun of it.

When God blesses His people, it has a purpose. When God punishes His people, it has a purpose.

And when God created mankind, He had a purpose in mind for it.

Why did God create us, since He knew we would sin?

The Bible gives us some very important pieces of information, as well as a very clear-cut statement that answers this question for us.

There is a war going on between God and Satan. You see it from Genesis all the way through Revelation. And it’s played out on the battlefield of humanity. With each moment, with each choice, individuals choose the winner in their own lives. When we choose to do righteousness, God is victorious. When we choose to do evil, we have given Satan the victory in that battle.

Nowhere perhaps is this shown more clearly than in the first two chapters of the book of Job. God and Satan are at odds with each other, with Satan claiming victory—he has influence even on God’s people, and basically claims he goes anywhere he wants whenever he wants to (1:6-7). God stops Satan and says, “have you considered my servant Job? There is none like him in the earth: a perfect and an upright man, one that fears God and eschews [avoids] evil” (Job 1:8).

And from there, the battle gets fiercer as Satan destroys Job’s riches, his servants, and his family in an effort to get him to turn against God. Everything that happened to Job was a result of the battle between God and Satan. In this battle, Job chose to serve God—and Satan lost.

All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). Outside of those who are mentally incapable of making a decision between good and evil, every person on earth has chosen to give Satan the victory in at least one battle. Even if that person repents and lives a life of faithfulness, the fact remains that it was still not a complete victory for God, since that person chose to sin at various points in his life.

All have sinned—except for one: Jesus the Christ. The Scriptures repeatedly state that Jesus “knew no sin” (II Corinthians 5:21), or “did no sin” (I Peter 2:22). He lived a perfect life—one that gave God a complete victory over Satan. When Jesus died on the cross, it sealed the greatest victory possible (Hebrews 2:14-15). Satan’s claim to power had been proven wrong because Jesus Christ did not sin.

Jesus was made to die the most horrible, agonizing death known to mankind after undergoing a severe beating—yet through all of this, he still did not sin. Satan pulled out all the stops to try to get Jesus to relent, to sin just once, but it didn’t work.

Let’s hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments; for this is the whole of man (Ecclesiastes 12:13). The Bible tells us that the meaning of life—the meaning of our very existence—is to fear God and keep His commandments. That is what life is all about. This is what we were created for!

As each of us makes the choice to follow God in our lives, we give Him another victory. As we choose to sin, we give Satan the upper hand in this battle. We determine the outcome in the individual battle between God and Satan in our lives.

Since we were created for the purpose of serving God and obeying Him, what do we deserve when disobey? If you had a tool, designed to do a specific job, and that tool wouldn’t do what it was designed for, what would you do? After a while, you’d probably throw it away. Now imagine that tool has a mind of its own and though it can do the job it’s designed for, it refuses to do it. So, you try to encourage it and coax it. It works for a little while, but then refuses again. So you coax it some more, but it still won’t listen. So you give it a warning, still little changes. You punish it to try to get it to work, but that only works for a little while (if at all). This tool is stubborn and refuses to work. Finally, your patience is at an end and you burn it.

We are that tool. We were designed for a specific job: fear God and keep His commandments. As we do what we’re designed for, God gets the glory. But what’s so amazing about God is this: when we do what we’re designed to do—serving Him—we will get to share in His glory. We will be partakers of the divine nature (II Peter 1:4). We will be able to spend eternity in the presence of God Himself. We will be victorious soldiers shouting victory forever with our King, Jesus the Christ!

So, why did God create us, knowing ahead of time that we would sin?

Because it is through mankind that God wins the victory over Satan. Without a human living a perfect life, there was no true victory. In our lives, it’s like a boxing match that goes twelve rounds with each side winning some rounds and losing others. One side won at the end, but it wasn’t the complete victory. In Jesus’ life, it was a first-round knock-out.

But in order to have that complete victory which destroyed Satan’s power, it had to be a human who lived sinless. Mankind was created because it was through mankind (specifically Jesus Christ) that God won the ultimate victory over Satan.

-Bradley Cobb

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Bible Q&A – What About the Thousand-Year Reign?

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Question: A man was talking to me today about the thousand-year reign of Christ on earth, and he said that some people don’t believe it will happen. Why would people ignore such a clear Bible doctrine?—Jack T., Oklahoma.

The main reason some people (like myself) deny the doctrine of a thousand-year reign of Jesus on earth is because it’s not in the Bible.

I’ll wait a second for you to calm back down before I continue. 🙂

There are several problems with the idea of a “1,000-year reign,” and we’ll only be able to deal with them briefly. The primary issue with each of them is that people have started assuming things that aren’t actually in the text, and then they’ve made them into doctrine.

The only place that mentions a thousand-year reign is in Revelation 20, and so it is to there we must go for our answers.

1. Jesus isn’t the one reigning for 1,000 years.

Let’s look at the text:

And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years (Revelation 20:4).

The subject of this verse is not Jesus. The subjects of this verse are those who had been martyred for the cause of Christ. It is they, not Jesus, who are said to reign a thousand years.

I’m sure that right now, you think I’m grasping at straws here, but let’s prove this assertion by way of an illustration.

Imagine you have lost your job and you need a place to live. So, I invite you to come live in my house. Now, let’s say you live there for almost three years (let’s say 1,000 days). I would say that you lived with me in my house for 1,000 days. Does this information tell you how long I lived in my house? No, it doesn’t. It only tells you how long you lived in my house with me.

Revelation 20:4 says nothing about how long Christ reigns. It only tells how long the martyred saints reigned with Him. The fact is, The Bible states that Jesus began reigning in the first century (Acts 2:32-33; Revelation 1:9; Colossians 1:13).

2. This verse is not literal.

How can you say that? Of course it’s literal! There’s nothing in the verse to make us think otherwise!!!

If this verse is to be taken literally (as is claimed by many well-meaning believers), then you have a really sticky problem:

Jesus has to die again.

Most people focus on the reigning part of this verse, and tend to ignore the living part. If the thousand years is literal, then that means Christ ceases to reign at the end of the thousand years—but more than that, Christ must also cease living.

Let’s also look at another problem this verse presents, if we are to take it literally. The only ones who are allowed to live and reign with Christ are the ones who have no head, and who were killed for the faith. That means that if you died a natural death, you can’t live or reign with Christ. This also means that if you were killed for the faith, but by some way other than beheading, you cannot live or reign with Christ.

And one more problem presented by taking this verse literally: the only ones allowed to live and reign with Christ are the ones who had already been beheaded for the faith when John wrote this down. This is written in past tense, speaking of something that had already happened.

So, if we take this verse literally, no one today (or for the past 1900 years) has any hope of living and reigning with Christ—and Christ has to die again. These conclusions are demanded if we take this verse literally. And these conclusions contradict other passages of the New Testament.

Therefore this verse is not meant to be taken literally.

3. This reigning is not on earth.

Go ahead and read all of chapter twenty. Nowhere in that chapter does it place Jesus Christ on earth, let alone Jerusalem. With so many doctrines existing about Jesus reigning on a literal throne in literal Jerusalem on the literal earth, you’d think those items would be mentioned here—but they’re not.

The kingdom of Jesus Christ existed during the first century. The apostle John said he was a part of it while he was alive in the first century (Revelation 1:9). The apostle Paul said that Christians had been (past tense) translated into the kingdom of Christ (Colossians 1:13). There can be no kingdom without a king. Since Jesus’ kingdom existed in the first century, Jesus was already a king in the first century.

Since Jesus was already a king 2,000 years ago, that means He’s been reigning over His kingdom for close to 2,000 years already. And He’s been doing it from the throne in heaven (Acts 2:32-33).

4. Revelation isn’t about things which haven’t happened.

The most common assertion about Revelation is that it is describing something that hasn’t happened yet. But that view contradicts what the Bible says about the book of Revelation.

God makes it extremely obvious that the things which are in Revelation are things that were “at hand” and “shortly come to pass” when John wrote it—in the first century! The book opens with those statements (1:1, 3). The book closes with those statements (22:6, 10). It is the bold man indeed who calls God a liar by saying the things in Revelation are about things that were 2,000+ years away from the lifetime of the original readers.

Conclusion:

Jack, I do hope this helps you understand the topic better. The reason why some people (including myself) deny that there will be a literal reign of Jesus Christ on earth for a literal thousand years is that the Bible doesn’t teach it. Christ has been reigning from His throne in heaven for almost 2,000 years already. And the verses that people go to in order to “prove” the thousand-year reign don’t actually say what they claim.

-Bradley S. Cobb

Articles, Sermons

Sermon Wednesday – What is Hell Like?

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Today, we continue our series on “Fundamentals of the Faith,” and today’s topic is one that a lot of people really don’t like to think about–Hell.

Introduction:

Wouldn’t it be nice if we could take all the uncomfortable parts out of the Bible?  You know, things like be thou faithful unto death?  Things like, all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution?  Or what about hell?

What about hell?

Does hell really exist?  If so, does it last forever or is it only temporary?  Would a loving God punish someone eternally for a comparatively short life of sin?  How is hell described in the Bible?

These are questions that people have about hell, and it’s up to us to be ready to show them what the Bible has to say on the matter.

Does Hell Really Exist?

Sadly, the reality of hell–which was once almost universally believed–is being rejected by many people in many religious groups.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses all deny hell exists.  Their doctrine is that all evil people simply cease to exist when they die.  Thus, you can live your life as evil as you want, and when you die there is no punishment at all.

There are even those within the church who deny the existence of hell.  This isn’t limited to liberal or conservative either, as there are those on both sides who hold this view.  We’ll consider some of the arguments they use a bit later in the lesson.

The most important thing we need to remember when discussing any Bible topic is this: it doesn’t matter who believes it or how widespread that belief is; what matters is what the Bible says about it.

Acts 17:11-12a – These were more noble than they of Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so. Therefore many of them believed


It is also extremely important that if we believe something, we know why we believe it.

“Because that’s what my preacher said” isn’t good enough.

“Because that’s what mom and dad believed” isn’t good enough.

We need to be able to show from the Bible why we believe what we believe.

So, you may believe there is a hell—but can you prove it from the Bible?

Hell is not always called hell in the Bible.

In fact, if you (like me) use the King James Version, you could get confused pretty quickly, because the word hell in the KJV doesn’t always mean hell.

  • Acts 2:27 (KJV) says that Jesus’ soul went to hell.
  • Revelation 20:14 (KJV) tells us that hell was cast into the lake of fire
which generally speaking is believed to be hell.

So, hell was destroyed in hell?  That makes no sense.

So, we need to make some observations before we get too far into this discussion.

In the Old Testament, the word “hell” is always the Hebrew word Sheol.  Some translations actually just render it Sheol.  It means “the abode of the dead” (Thayer).  Sometimes it refers to a place of torment, other times not.  Without considering the context of each section, we cannot gain much insight on the topic of “hell” from these passages.

In the New Testament, there are two words translated hell.  One is Gehenna (see Matthew 5:22, 29-30).  This word is a reference to a place of fire and torment, as is obvious from the passages mentioned.

The other is Hades (see Matthew 11:23, 16:18).  This is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word Sheol.  This word simply means the unseen realm, or the abode of the dead, and is used ten times in the New Testament.  Though it can include the idea of a place of torment (Luke 16:23), it also describes where Jesus’ soul went after His crucifixion (Acts 2:27, 31).  It is a general word that includes all the unseen realm—including a place of paradise and a place of torment.

Hell is a place of torment reserved for the wicked after their time on earth.

Though the word hell isn’t always used, the concept of a place of punishment after death is clearly taught in the New Testament.

Luke 16:19-31 tells the story of the rich man and Lazarus.  They both died, and the rich man awoke in torment—conscious torment (16:23).  While in torment, he was conscious, proven by the fact that he was able to hold a conversation.  It was a place of flame (16:24).

“You can’t use that passage, preacher! It’s a parable, not a real story.”

It doesn’t say it’s a parable, and even if it was, Jesus never gave a parable that described things that didn’t actually happen.

“Well, you can’t use that passage because it’s speaking of Hades, not hell.”

I say that the man has obviously been judged because he is now in torment.  But if you want to discard that passage, we’ll just have to go somewhere else.

Matthew 25:41-46 describes the judgment scene.  Jesus calls the ones on his left “cursed” and sends them into “everlasting fire” (24:41).  He doesn’t use the term “hell,” but this is a description of the same place.

Mark 9:43-48 describes hell as a place of punishment for those who sin.  Jesus uses the word “hell” (Gehenna, the place of fiery torment) in verses 43, 45, and 47.  He describes it as a place “where the worm dies not and the fire is not quenched” (verses 44, 46, 48).

Revelation 14:11 speaks of some who were condemned, and says of them “the smoke of their torment ascends up for ever and ever, and they have no rest day nor night
”  This, again, is a description of hell.

Jude 7 describes the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrha as “suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.”  Literally, it means they have suffered and continue to suffer the vengeance of eternal fire.

So, the question now is this: does the Bible describe a place of torment for the wicked after their death?

Without a doubt, such a place is described in the Bible.

How long does hell last?

Some people, when faced with the reality of hell, try to soften the impact of it by declaring that it is only temporary.  Some people say that it’s a place of torment until judgment day, and then all those who were in hell will simply be destroyed and cease to exist.

Others say that hell is a place of torment after judgment day, but that each person will be punished for a specific period of time based on their sins, and then they will be put in heaven after they’ve learned their lesson.

The problem with both of these theories is that neither one of them is found in the Bible.

As we’ve already seen from several passages, hell is a place of “everlasting” torment.  It’s a place where torment lasts “for ever and ever.”  It’s a place where the fire is never quenched (Mark 9:43-48).

If hell ceases to exist at any point, then the Bible has just lied!  You hear me? If hell ceases to exist—ever—then the fires were quenched, and the Bible has lied.

Think about that carefully, and understand what that means.

If you say that hell is a temporary place, then you are calling God a liar.

It is a place that is every bit as eternal and everlasting as heaven itself.

Matthew 25:46 says “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.”  The words “everlasting” and “eternal” in that verse are the EXACT SAME WORD in Greek.

So, however long “life eternal” is, that’s the same length of time “everlasting punishment” is.  So, if hell is temporary, then so is heaven.  If hell will have an end, so will heaven.  If heaven is eternal, so is hell.

Hell is a place of unending torment reserved for the wicked.

But a loving God would not punish someone eternally for a short time of sinning!–Right?

That’s the argument, and it’s a very emotional one.

A 20-year old lives a life of fun and pleasure, never giving any thought to religion, and he’s hit and killed by a drunk driver.  Is a loving God really going to torment him eternally for what amounts to only about 10-12 years of sin? (because when he’s a small child, he has no clue what sin is).

A preacher that I know, called me one evening, struggling with this question.  He said, “Brad, I know what we’ve always taught, and what the church believes, but someone hit me with this question, and I’m at a loss.”  He expressed that he was having a very difficult time rectifying the idea of a loving God and eternal punishment.

And I’ll tell you the same thing I told him.

If a loving God will not punish someone eternally for a short life of sin, then a just God will not reward someone eternally for a short life of obedience.

Did you get that?

The logic works both ways.  A just God will not reward someone eternally when they’ve only spent a few years in His service, right?

Do we call the justice system unfair because it punishes someone for the rest of their life for a one-time action?  Someone intentionally shoots an innocent person—something that takes less than a second—yet we punish them for perhaps 60 years!  The punishment is absolutely deserved.

If you go to hell, it’s because you deserve to go there!

Whoa! Isn’t that a bit harsh?  No, it’s not. It’s the Bible.

All of us deserve to go to hell because of our sins.  However, those who take advantage of the blood of Christ can avoid hell and all its terrible torment.

If you don’t take advantage of it, whose fault is it?

But let’s dig a bit deeper into this idea of deserving to go to hell.  Ecclesiastes 12:13 says, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.”  The whole duty of man. The whole purpose of man. This is the meaning of life.  This is the entire reason man was put on this planet was to fear God and keep His commandments.

When you look at Job 1-2, you see God and Satan at war.  The individual battles are waged in the lives of humans.  In these chapters, Job is the battlefield.

You are the battlefield between God and Satan.  You determine who wins and who loses in your life.  We were designed and put here as the instruments by which God defeats Satan.

Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.

If you have a tool, designed for a specific purpose, and it won’t do what it’s supposed to do, you get rid of it.  Now, imagine that your tool can talk, and that it says to you, “I know what you want me to do, what I’m designed to do, but I don’t want to, and I’m not going to do it.”

You beg and plead with it, and still it indignantly refuses, and tries to keep other tools from working for you.  Eventually, you’re going to destroy that tool; and it will deserve it.

As humans, whose entire purpose is serving God and keeping His commandments, what do we deserve if we refuse to obey Him?

Yes, we deserve hell.

How is hell described in the Bible?

If we could just for 5 seconds peel back the lid on hell and experience it for just that short amount of time, I am convinced that we would serve God and never look back.

Hell is a place that God has created to torment Satan and his messengers forever (Matthew 25:41).

You know what Satan deserves because of his opposition to God.  Satan deserves the worst possible torment imaginable.

And if you aren’t a faithful Christian, you will be joining him forever.

Hell is a place of fire.

Mark 9:43-48 describes it as the place where the fire is never quenched.  Revelation 20:14-15 calls hell “the lake of fire.”

Ten years ago, a man was clearing out trash that was on the edge of his back yard.  He starts a small burn pile to get rid of the trash and leaves.  And being the guy that he is, he adds more and more, trying to get it done quicker (that, and he likes seeing the fire).

Then came an extremely loud pop!  Something in the fire shoots out and lands on the man’s hand, and he looks on in horror as he sees his skin literally start to melt.  The searing pain rushes through his whole body, and he screams.

He grabs something and as quick as he possibly can, he scrapes the burning material off his hand (causing even more pain in the process).  He grabs his hand, trying to stop the pain, but nothing works—in fact, if anything, it gets worse.

Slowly, he removes his grip and looks at his hand, and at the place that was tormenting his entire body.  The spot of pain was less than half the size of an M&M, but the burning tormented his entire body.

That was me.

But the fires of hell are not confined to one small part of you.  It’s not just a spot on your hand.  It’s not just a finger or a toe.

If you go to hell, you are in the lake of fire.  Imagine yourself in the middle of a lake of water, and you’re drowning, thrashing around trying to stay afloat.

Now, as you have that image in your head, watch as the water turns to flames, and you are completely immersed in fire, thrashing about, trying in vain to escape the pain.  Is it any wonder that john the Baptist promised that Jesus would baptize some people in unquenchable fire? (Matthew 3:10-12)

You know the pain of fire when you get burned on one part of your body.  Now imagine it continually burning every part of you.

Hell is a place of darkness.

To the person trapped in an underground cave with no light, even a small speck of light is a sign of hope.  But with no light, living in complete darkness, there is no way to see what might be around you—what could be trying to attack you.

Paranoia can easily creep in when someone is in complete blackness.  Mentally, being in complete darkness for an extended period of time can actually drive someone insane.

You are thrown into a coffin, the lid shut, and then you are put in the ground and covered in earth
and you’re still alive.  It’s completely black and you’re freaking out, hyperventilating, sweating, and the heat inside the coffin is quickly rising.

Then you find a flashlight and turn it on.  Instantly, things have improved because there is some light—even though your condition hasn’t improved, the light has a somewhat calming effect.

In hell, there is no light.

Hell is called the place of “outer darkness.”

  • Matthew 8:12 – the children of the kingdom shall be cast into outer darkness, where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
  • Matthew 22:13, 25:30 both describe hell in the same way.
  • I Peter 2:9 may have this idea in mind as well, God “hath called you out of darkness” [perhaps, freed you from the punishment of hell].
  • Jude 13 describes the fate of false teachers as “the blackness of darkness forever.”

Hell is not just a place of pain, but of mental anguish as well.

There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 8:12, 22:13, 25:30).  There will be anguish because each person in hell will understand that they brought it on themselves.

There will be anguish over lost opportunities to obey the gospel.

There will be anguish over each and every sin committed.

Hell is described as a place with a foul stench.

Worms (literally, we’re talking about maggots) thrive there (“where the worm dieth not”).  Maggots are found around rotted meat–and you probably know that smell well.

It is a place of fire and brimstone.  If you’ve smelled sulphur, you know how nauseating the stench is.

Some experts believe Gehenna (the Greek word for hell) was also the name of a continually burning garbage dump outside Jerusalem.  It would have had dead animals, rancid meat, human waste, and many other foul odors constantly going through the air.

The smells of hell will attack your senses to the point where you can hardly breathe, causing you to hyperventilate, taking quick, shallow breaths in an attempt to keep from being as affected.

And as the smells get through, your stomach is turned and you’re not just fighting the smell, you’re fighting not to throw up.  All of this horrid stench is attacking you, and you can’t see where its coming from because it is completely black.

And there’s no way to get away from it.

And the black flames burn over your entire body, and no matter how you move, you can’t stop the pain even for a moment.

And there’s no getting out of it.

Conclusion:

Today is the day, and now is your chance.  You can avoid the fires of hell by becoming a Christian.  Do it now, before it’s too late!