Bible
The Bible's Proof
Mar/14/13 06:09
The following report is available in a free eBook in the three major formats, including Kindle, from www.wayoflife.org.
The individual must accept that the Bible is the Word of God by faith, for “without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Hebrews 11:6).
At the same time, Bible faith is not a blind leap into the dark. It is confidence in the Record that God has given, for “faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). The writers of the Bible explain to us that they were not delivering cunningly devised fables but a divinely-inspired record based on “many infallible proofs” (Acts 1:3; 2 Peter 1:16).
Following are some of the objective, time-proven reasons why we can have complete confidence in the Bible:
1. The testimony of Jesus Christ proves that the Bible is the Word of God.
Jesus claimed to be the Son of God, and His resurrection alone gives infallible witness to this claim. The evidence for Christ’s resurrection is irrefutable, as we have shown in this book. Consider just four of these evidences: First, there is the amazing candor of the Gospel accounts. When someone invents a religion, he glorifies its leaders, but the four Gospels paint the founders of Christianity as very weak (e.g., Peter denying Christ thrice; the disciples fleeing and hiding; Thomas and others doubting Christ even after He appears to them). Further, if men had made up the accounts of Christ’s resurrection in the Gospels, they would not have said that the women were the first to believe. In that day women had no authority in the eyes of society. The account of the women believing first is not something that would have been written unless it actually happened and unless the writers were committed wholeheartedly to recording the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. This striking candor is powerful evidence that the Gospels are true, unvarnished accounts. Second, the resurrected Christ was seen by hundreds of eye witnesses, most of whom were still alive with Paul interviewed them a couple of decades later and wrote about it in the first epistle to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 15:1-8). Third, the resurrection dramatically changed His disciples. Before Christ’s resurrection they were fearful and in hiding, whereas after they saw and touched Him they became bold and were willing to suffer and die for their faith. Fourth, the enemies of Christ have never produced His body; the tomb remains empty to this day. As George Hanson rightly says, “The simple faith of the Christian who believes in the resurrection is nothing compared to the credulity of the skeptic who will accept the wildest and most improbable romances rather than admit the plain witness of historical certainties. The difficulties of belief may be great; the absurdities of unbelief are greater” (The Resurrection and the Life).
Continue reading this article……
At the same time, Bible faith is not a blind leap into the dark. It is confidence in the Record that God has given, for “faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). The writers of the Bible explain to us that they were not delivering cunningly devised fables but a divinely-inspired record based on “many infallible proofs” (Acts 1:3; 2 Peter 1:16).
Following are some of the objective, time-proven reasons why we can have complete confidence in the Bible:
1. The testimony of Jesus Christ proves that the Bible is the Word of God.
Jesus claimed to be the Son of God, and His resurrection alone gives infallible witness to this claim. The evidence for Christ’s resurrection is irrefutable, as we have shown in this book. Consider just four of these evidences: First, there is the amazing candor of the Gospel accounts. When someone invents a religion, he glorifies its leaders, but the four Gospels paint the founders of Christianity as very weak (e.g., Peter denying Christ thrice; the disciples fleeing and hiding; Thomas and others doubting Christ even after He appears to them). Further, if men had made up the accounts of Christ’s resurrection in the Gospels, they would not have said that the women were the first to believe. In that day women had no authority in the eyes of society. The account of the women believing first is not something that would have been written unless it actually happened and unless the writers were committed wholeheartedly to recording the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. This striking candor is powerful evidence that the Gospels are true, unvarnished accounts. Second, the resurrected Christ was seen by hundreds of eye witnesses, most of whom were still alive with Paul interviewed them a couple of decades later and wrote about it in the first epistle to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 15:1-8). Third, the resurrection dramatically changed His disciples. Before Christ’s resurrection they were fearful and in hiding, whereas after they saw and touched Him they became bold and were willing to suffer and die for their faith. Fourth, the enemies of Christ have never produced His body; the tomb remains empty to this day. As George Hanson rightly says, “The simple faith of the Christian who believes in the resurrection is nothing compared to the credulity of the skeptic who will accept the wildest and most improbable romances rather than admit the plain witness of historical certainties. The difficulties of belief may be great; the absurdities of unbelief are greater” (The Resurrection and the Life).
Continue reading this article……
David’s Census as a Paradigm for Applying Scripture
Jan/23/13 19:26
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You know the passage that says taking a census is wrong. Remember? Right. Nothing in the Bible says taking a census is wrong. Yet David was wrong for taking a census in 1 Chronicles 21. God killed 70,000 in Israel with pestilence because of David's census taking. Other censuses were taken without such a punishment. Other passages even allow for a census, and yet David's census was wrong. How was he supposed to know? We know it was a sin (1 Chron. 21:1, 8, 17). But what passage did he violate? None. Again, how was he supposed to know?
David was supposed to apply Scripture. His census wasn't living by faith. Chapters 18-20 recount the military victories that God gave David, showing God's protection in fulfillment of the Davidic covenant (1 Chronicles 17). God defeated the foreign nations as a part of His promise. And then David numbers the people (chapter 21). We don't know the particulars of how David wasn't living by faith--it was either that he was taking undeserved credit, fearful for the future, or both. It is assumed that David was to have known this was wrong. We are responsible for applying Scripture. We are to know that certain actions are not acting in faith or are acting in faith, even though the Bible doesn't say one way or another.
Was punishing David for something that the Bible doesn't and didn't forbid "exceeding that which is written"? Was it adding to Scripture, thereby subtracting from the effectiveness of the Bible in David's life? Obviously not. The passage provides a paradigm for applying truth. God has revealed truth. He expects us to understand it and apply it. Would God have killed 70,000 Israelites if it wasn't something that He knew David could apply? Again, of course not.
One passage used by evangelicals to justify their lack of application is 1 Corinthians 4:6, where they will quote from the New American Standard Version, "learn not to exceed what is written," which the King James translates, "not to think of men above that which is written." The text there gives one particular point about our evaluation of men, making sure not to judge leaders outside of a scriptural evaluation. There we go. But that has become a proof text for only judging where the Bible has something specifically to say about it. What occurs, of course, is that passage is ironically applied only in areas that fit favorably with an evangelical's church growth methods.
You can't judge music, because there is no play button in the Bible to tell us what is right music, so if you judge music you are "exceeding what is written." If you judge art, you are exceeding what is written. If you judge dress, you are exceeding what is written. And so on. But what was written about NOT numbering the people? Nothing. And yet God killed 70,000 people. Obviously God wanted David to judge in an area about which nothing was written. He was required to apply Scripture, to apply "living by faith" and "trusting God" to not numbering the people.
God won't usually kill 70,000 for not applying Scripture, but He does expect us to apply it. We are responsible to do so, and we are not exceeding Scripture to do so. We will give an account for applying the truths and the principles of Scripture. We can know what they are. We do know what they are. We can play dumb. We can say that Scripture is silent. We can say that an application will exceed what is written. But we really can know and do know and are responsible for the application.
The previous article is taken from Kent Brandenburg’s blog, January 14, 2013
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Testimonies That Israel Will Return
Dec/19/12 05:30
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Those who interpret the Bible literally will not be disappointed!
“... a future restoration awaits this people, and will be to the world a glorious demonstration of the truth of prophecy. ... Three things are certain: the Jews themselves expect it; they are preserved by the providence of God as a distinct people for their country; and their country, which is in fact possessed by no one, is preserved for them” (Samuel Wakefield, Theology, 1869, p. 96).
“The Jews will then be settled in their own land. Having returned in unbelief, they will have formed themselves into a flourishing community. ... Reader, these things may soon take place. The mighty armies are to be mown down before the brightness of Christ’s glory, when like the lightning He shall descend from heaven. Let not the infidelity of our days lead you to question the possibility of such things” (Alfred H. Burton, The Future of Europe and Russia’s Destiny in the Light of Prophecy, 1896, pp. 72, 73
“Israel is yet to be revived, and Jesus says: ‘Learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh’ (Mat. 24:32). What is the meaning of the modern Zionist movement, and the widespread interest in the return of the Jews to Palestine? A distinguished Jewish Rabbi said recently: ‘There is no Jewish nation, and there never will be. The Zionists that make so much noise do not represent Jewish sentiment. There is no general movement to restore Israel to Palestine. We preach today not Jewish nationality but universal Judaism, humanitarianism, the unity of God and man. Washington is to us a second Moses. When he freed America from Tyranny he created a haven of refuge for all the oppressed, including the Jews. Why do we need Palestine? We have America. That is enough.’ The unbelieving surrender of the promises only shows how completely Israel has given up her God. But the God of Israel abides, and He will yet come forth and recover the glory due Him. Back the Israelites shall go, whether they know it or not, and God will vindicate His faithfulness and glory. The fig tree, though barren, still abides” (Ford C. Ottman, The Unfolding of the Ages in the Revelation of John, 1905, pp. 172).
“And their wonderful preservation, as a distinct people, through all the persecutions, vicissitudes and wanderings of the past eighteen centuries down to the present moment, is a standing miracle, attesting the truth of God’s word, and assuring us of His purposes in their future history. Said Frederick the Great to his chaplain: ‘Doctor, if your religion is a true one, it ought to be capable of very brief and simple proof. Will you give me an evidence of its truth in one word?’ The good man answered, ‘Israel.’ Other nations come and go, but Israel remains. She passes not away. God says of her, ‘For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee. In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, said the Lord, thy Redeemer.’ Isa. 54:7-8. But, perhaps, you say: ‘I don’t believe the Israelites are to be restored to Canaan, and Jerusalem rebuilt.’ Dear reader! have you read the declarations of God’s word about it? Surely nothing is more plainly stated in the Scriptures” (“W.E.B., Jesus Is Coming, 1908, Fleming H. Revell Company, pp. 161, 162).
“Israel is the subject of prophecy. In the drama of human history the Hebrew is the chief actor. In the domain of prophecy he is equally prominent. The past and future circle round the Jew. The Jew is the great factor in prophecy. ... The once mighty monarchies of Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome have risen, flourished, and fallen, leaving no permanent results behind. But the Jews, whose reliable history goes further back than any of those ancient kingdoms, are with us to-day. In physiognomy and national characteristics the Jew is unchanged. In a history of nigh four thousands years. ... The Jews as a people cannot be destroyed. God is their keeper and preserver, even while under His governmental judgment as they are to-day. The Jews, without a home, without a country, without a government, without a head, are yet a people as distinct from the Gentiles in national faith, feeling, and hope, as in the days of David and Solomon” (Walter Scott, At Hand, Or, Things Which Must Shortly Come to Pass, London: Pickering & Inglis, 4th edition, 1910, pp. 66, 68).
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Wycliffe Bible Translators and Rome
Nov/20/12 05:45
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Wycliffe Bible Translators was founded in 1942. It focused on the actual translation work while the Summer Institute of Linguistics focused on linguistics and training. Later JAARS was established to focus on the technical, logistical, and transportation side of the work.
In 1948, the Jungle Aviation and Radio Service (JAARS) was established to provide support to the translation work through aviation, telecommunications, computers, construction, and shipping.
Today there are 5,000 people involved with Wycliffe, SIL, and JAARS. By 2004 Wycliffe had produced 611 Bibles or portions thereof and more than 1,000 translation projects were ongoing.
WYCLIFFE’S RADICAL AND UNSCRIPTURAL ECUMENISM - Wycliffe’s doctrinal statement is very weak, composed of the following five simple statements: “The divine inspiration and consequent authority of the whole canonical Scripture; the doctrine of the trinity; the fall of man, his consequent moral depravity and his need for regeneration; the atonement through the substitutionary death of Christ; the doctrine of justification by faith; the resurrection of the body, both of the just and the unjust; the eternal life of the saved and the eternal punishment of the lost.” This type of doctrinal statement is designed to allow the broadest possible unity by not defining even the most cardinal doctrines with any specificity. Consider, for example, the statement on inspiration. Theological modernists and Roman Catholics would agree that the Bible is divinely inspired and authoritative, as they define “inspired” and “authoritative” in their own perverted way; and since the canon is not specified, there is plenty of room for Rome’s expanded one. Consider another example, “the doctrine of justification by faith.” Again, this is so vague that even a Roman Catholic could sign on. The Roman Catholic Church teaches that salvation is by faith and even by grace, but not by grace through faith ALONE.
Founder Cameron Townsend established Wycliffe on a doctrinally compromised, ecumenical foundation. In light of Wycliffe Bible Translators’ commendable goal and the sacrifice made by its missionaries to bring the Word of God to those who sit in darkness, it is sad to have to document the great doctrinal compromise of this organization. Yet we are commanded to “prove all things” (1 Thess. 5), to compare all teaching with the Scriptures (Acts 17:11), and to beware of every wind of false doctrine (Eph. 4:14), so we cannot ignore this matter. Unlike its namesake, John Wycliffe, who stood boldly against Roman Catholic heresies and was subsequently persecuted by Catholic authorities, Wycliffe Bible Translators has been ecumenical and pro-Roman Catholic from its inception. The Lord Jesus commanded that we beware of false prophets and the apostles warned us to mark and avoid those who preach false doctrine (Rom. 16:17) and those who hold false gospels, false christs, and false spirits (2 Cor. 11). Instead of obeying these solemn commands, Wycliffe Bible Translators has yoked together with heretics and apostates. Following are a few examples:
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The Gilgamesh Epic vs. The Bible's Flood Account
Dec/02/10 10:04
December 2, 2010 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article)
One of the 19th-century archaeological discoveries in the ancient Assyrian library at Nineveh was the Gilgamesh flood account. Henry Layard found this on some tablets in the 1850s and sent it to the British Museum, where it was translated in 1872 by George Smith. It was believed that the account originated in about 1600 B.C. in Babylon.
Actually the Gilgamesh Epic should be named the Utnapishtim Epic, because it purports to be the account that Utnapishtim told Gilgamesh of how that he survived the flood and gained immortality.
Skeptics immediately used the Gilgamesh Epic as evidence that the Bible’s flood account is just one among many ancient legends.
In fact, most works on archaeology give only three possibilities: First, the Bible’s account borrowed from the Babylonian. Second the Babylonian account borrowed from the Bible’s. This possibility has been almost universally rejected. Third, both accounts used a common source.
A Bible believer will reject all three of these, being convinced that the biblical account is what it claims to be: divine revelation. Only willful prejudice would fail even to consider this fourth “possibility,” and this willful unbelief is described in Peter’s amazing prophecy.Continue reading this article……
One of the 19th-century archaeological discoveries in the ancient Assyrian library at Nineveh was the Gilgamesh flood account. Henry Layard found this on some tablets in the 1850s and sent it to the British Museum, where it was translated in 1872 by George Smith. It was believed that the account originated in about 1600 B.C. in Babylon.
Actually the Gilgamesh Epic should be named the Utnapishtim Epic, because it purports to be the account that Utnapishtim told Gilgamesh of how that he survived the flood and gained immortality.
Skeptics immediately used the Gilgamesh Epic as evidence that the Bible’s flood account is just one among many ancient legends.
In fact, most works on archaeology give only three possibilities: First, the Bible’s account borrowed from the Babylonian. Second the Babylonian account borrowed from the Bible’s. This possibility has been almost universally rejected. Third, both accounts used a common source.
A Bible believer will reject all three of these, being convinced that the biblical account is what it claims to be: divine revelation. Only willful prejudice would fail even to consider this fourth “possibility,” and this willful unbelief is described in Peter’s amazing prophecy.Continue reading this article……
Changes To The KJV Since 1611
Aug/17/10 12:24
August 17, 2010 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -
The following is from “Answering the Myths on the Bible Version Debate,” which is available in print and e-book formats from Way of Life Literature.
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A question that comes up frequently in the Bible Version debate is this: “If you believe that the KJV is the preserved Word of God in English, which edition do you use, seeing that it has been revised many times and in thousands of places?”
ANSWER:
I will answer this question under the following five headings:
1. There were corrections of printing errors, typographical changes, and spelling updates.
These were done by the British publishers of the KJV and can be grouped into two time periods.
There were updates made between 1613 and 1639 for the purpose of correcting printing errors. The revisers included Samuel Ward and John Bois, two of the original translators. “Some errors of the press having crept into the first edition, and others into later reprints, King Charles the First, in 1638, had another edition printed at Cambridge, which was revised by Dr. Ward and Mr. Bois, two of the original Translators who still survived, assisted by Dr. Thomas Goad, Mr. Mede, and other learned men” (Alexander McClure, The Translators Revived, 1855).
Ten Tips for Daily Bible Reading
Dec/15/09 08:42
One of the most important habits to develop in the Christian life is that of daily Bible reading.
It is the Word of God that has the power to sanctify the believer and build him up in Christ. It imparts conviction, enlightenment, spiritual strength, faith, wisdom, repentance. Consider the following Scriptures:
“This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success” (Joshua 1:8).
“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper” (Psalms 1:1-3).
“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word” (Psalms 119:9).Continue reading this article……
It is the Word of God that has the power to sanctify the believer and build him up in Christ. It imparts conviction, enlightenment, spiritual strength, faith, wisdom, repentance. Consider the following Scriptures:
“This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success” (Joshua 1:8).
“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper” (Psalms 1:1-3).
“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word” (Psalms 119:9).Continue reading this article……
Bible Commentaries
May/12/09 22:11
Updated and enlarged May 13, 2009 (first published June 16, 2004) (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -
The following is excerpted from the Advanced Bible Studies Course “How to Study the Bible,” available in print, VHS, and DVD formats from Way of Life Literature:
On several occasions, I have heard preachers condemn commentaries. One year when I was a young Christian, in fact, I determined to read and study the Bible alone and to forgo consulting any commentaries or other extra-biblical sources. I did this religiously and prayerfully for a few weeks, and I can testify that the Lord made it plain to me that I need help from men and that He was not going to give me everything by direct enlightenment. It is not that the Bible is weak or insufficient; it is that I am only one weak man and can't possibly know and understand everything without help. When I rejected the use of commentaries, I was left with my own meager resources. And though I have recognized gifts in understanding and teaching the Bible, I am at best only a very puny man with very limited ideas. Any man who is honest before God will affirm that most of his knowledge and understanding was learned from other men. God has ordained this. That is why we start life as a child and are dependent upon parents and tutors, and even as we grow older, we remain very dependent upon the help of others. Continue reading this article……
The following is excerpted from the Advanced Bible Studies Course “How to Study the Bible,” available in print, VHS, and DVD formats from Way of Life Literature:
On several occasions, I have heard preachers condemn commentaries. One year when I was a young Christian, in fact, I determined to read and study the Bible alone and to forgo consulting any commentaries or other extra-biblical sources. I did this religiously and prayerfully for a few weeks, and I can testify that the Lord made it plain to me that I need help from men and that He was not going to give me everything by direct enlightenment. It is not that the Bible is weak or insufficient; it is that I am only one weak man and can't possibly know and understand everything without help. When I rejected the use of commentaries, I was left with my own meager resources. And though I have recognized gifts in understanding and teaching the Bible, I am at best only a very puny man with very limited ideas. Any man who is honest before God will affirm that most of his knowledge and understanding was learned from other men. God has ordained this. That is why we start life as a child and are dependent upon parents and tutors, and even as we grow older, we remain very dependent upon the help of others. Continue reading this article……
War on God's Wrod in the End Times
Apr/09/09 07:46
WAR ON GOD’S WORD IN THE END TIMES
April 9, 2009 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -
“Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure. Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion” (Psalms 2:1-6).
The war on God’s Word is as old as man. It began in the Garden of Eden, when the Devil said to Eve, “Yea, hath God said,” and, “Ye shall not surely die” (Genesis 3:1-4). The Bible prophesies that the age-old warfare between God and Satan will grow throughout the church age and will come to a head at the end of this age just preceding the return of Christ. Paul described the course of the church age in 2 Timothy 3:13, “But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.” And in His parables, Christ said the leaven of error will increase until “the whole was leavened” (Matthew 13:33).
The bud of rebellion will grow into full bloom, and we see this on every hand. Over the past two centuries rebellion to God’s Word has spread like ivy. It is said that ivy has three stages. It sleeps; it creeps; and it leaps. End-time rebellion slept in the eighteenth century, crept in the nineteenth, and leapt in the twentieth. Continue reading this article……
April 9, 2009 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -
“Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure. Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion” (Psalms 2:1-6).
The war on God’s Word is as old as man. It began in the Garden of Eden, when the Devil said to Eve, “Yea, hath God said,” and, “Ye shall not surely die” (Genesis 3:1-4). The Bible prophesies that the age-old warfare between God and Satan will grow throughout the church age and will come to a head at the end of this age just preceding the return of Christ. Paul described the course of the church age in 2 Timothy 3:13, “But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.” And in His parables, Christ said the leaven of error will increase until “the whole was leavened” (Matthew 13:33).
The bud of rebellion will grow into full bloom, and we see this on every hand. Over the past two centuries rebellion to God’s Word has spread like ivy. It is said that ivy has three stages. It sleeps; it creeps; and it leaps. End-time rebellion slept in the eighteenth century, crept in the nineteenth, and leapt in the twentieth. Continue reading this article……
Bearing Precious Seed and Similar Bible Publishing Ministries
Dec/08/08 13:41
Updated December 8, 2008 (first published October 24, 1996) (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -
The following is from the latest edition of FOR LOVE OF THE BIBLE: THE BATTLE FOR THE KING JAMES VERSION AND THE RECEIVED TEXT FROM 1800 TO PRESENT. This book traces the history of the defense of the KJV and the Received Text from 1800 to present. The book includes hundreds of testimonies and biographies; sketches of churches, schools, and organizations that have defended the KJV; a digest of reviews and condensations of major books and articles written in defense of the KJV in the past 200 years; excerpts from rare books on this subject which are no longer available; a comprehensive overview of the varied arguments in favor of the KJV. For Love of the Bible also gives a history of the modern English versions, beginning with the English Revised of 1881. Also included is a history of textual criticism, revealing that most of the textual scholars from the 19th-century on were rationalists who denied the infallible inspiration of Scripture. The 46-page annotated bibliography is the most extensive in print on the subject, to our knowledge. A detailed index is also included. The author spent several thousand dollars researching the book and has written several hundred letters in this connection, communicating with men from around the world who stand for the KJV today. Michael Maynard, author of A History of the Debate over 1 John 5:7,8, wrote: “For Love of the Bible is a masterpiece. It ought to be in every academic, public, and special library in the world.” 5th edition, October 2008, 522 pages, 5X8, soft cover. $19.95
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Bearing Precious Seed (BPS) is both an organization and a concept. Its goal is “to put Bible publication back into the local New Testament church.” It is “a ministry of local churches working together to publish God’s Word for worldwide free distribution to independent Baptist missionaries.” Don Fraser (1926-2003) of Bowie, Texas, was the man with the original vision for Bearing Precious Seed in 1962. He didn’t like to be called the founder because that sounds like local church publishing work is something new. He saw himself, rather, as the “modern day initiator” of a work that dates back through the centuries. He renewed the scriptural vision and began teaching those principles to men who were willing to base their work on the Bible rather than a traditional methodology. Fraser’s burden was to get the pure Scriptures into the hands of missionaries across the world, and he understood that it is the churches that have the responsibility for this, not the traditional Bible publishers. It is the church which is the pillar and ground of the truth (1 Timothy 3:15). BPS was described by missionary Ron Helzerman as follows: “The Bearing Precious Seed movement is truly Baptist history in the making! Baptist churches publishing Scriptures—scripturally!”
The formation of Bearing Precious Seed was described to me as follows in a letter from missionary Dennis Deneau:
Dr. Don Fraser of Bowie, Texas, was the man to whom God gave the vision to print the Word of God in the local church. He had gone to Mexico as a missionary and found they had no Scriptures. He began to buy them from Bible societies and to search for a church that would begin to print. Since that time, many churches have taken on the burden. Most are called Bearing Precious Seed ministry which is the name that the Lord gave to Bro. Fraser for this ministry, but some have other names. Some churches that play a very important role in this ministry have no name for their ministry—they just help us immensely with ours (Deneau, Letter, March 27, 1995).
James McWhorter, pastor of Wildwood Baptist Church of Mabank, Texas, in a letter dated April 8, 1995, explained the origin of the name “Bearing Precious Seed”—
In 1962 Brother D.M. Fraser went to Mexico to begin a mission work to reach the areas that had never heard the gospel of Jesus Christ. On that trip he witnessed with his own eyes the tremendous need for Bibles on the foreign mission fields. He came home with a great burden for the people of the world who did not have access, either because of poverty, or the unavailability of the Word of God. Because of this burden he began to go out to Independent Baptist churches to raise funds to furnish free Bibles to the people of Mexico, at first, then to other areas of the world. At first he called the work ‘Send the Word of God Abroad.’ He was given an office at his home church, Rolling Hills Baptist Church, from which to operate. One night as he was working in his office he began to pray. He was seeking the leadership of the Holy Spirit concerning the work he was doing. As he cried out to the Lord, he said, ‘Lord, what is this that is happening, what am I doing?’ Brother Fraser said that he did not hear an audible voice answer him, but in his mind came the words, ‘You are BEARING PRECIOUS SEED.’ Reaching for his concordance he looked up the passage in Psalm 126:6. ‘He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.’ From that moment forward the work became known as Bearing Precious Seed.
Later in that same year Brother Fraser obtained a picture of a man sowing seed. (I am not sure of the source.) He took the picture to Brother George Anderson who helped him design the logo for Bearing Precious Seed. They had the picture made into a slide (or perhaps used a projector that projects images off of pictures), and projected the image onto a large piece of paper on the wall. Brother George then added the Bibles falling from the man’s hand onto the earth.
Don Fraser was based in Texas. At first he purchased Scriptures from the American Bible Society and the World Home Bible League and shipped them to the foreign churches. It soon became obvious, though, that this was not a good plan. Again we quote from McWhorter:
Special plans were made with the American Bible Society of New York to provide New Testaments and Bibles for Bearing Precious Seed. Brother Fraser would collect the money from churches who supported the work. The funds were then sent in with the orders for Scriptures to the American Bible Society in New York. They had five major store houses in Latin America for the distribution of Bibles. When they received Brother Fraser’s order, they would break it up and send it out to these distribution centers where they were shipped to the missionaries. This distribution system, Brother Fraser called it a pipeline, was used to send the Word of God to twenty-two Spanish-speaking countries.
Later Brother Fraser developed a plan with the World Home Bible League for Scripture production and distribution. Volunteer workers would come in to help produce the books. The Home Bible League furnished the workers, building, and equipment and Brother Fraser supplied the paper, cover stock, etc. It was not long before Brother Fraser’s work with the Independent Baptist churches was accounting for about seventy-five percent of their total production. The World Home Bible League had a big warehouse in Mexico City that would hold about twenty tons of Scriptures. As the work developed and increased with the World Home Bible League Brother Fraser gradually ceased to work with the American Bible Society. On a trip to Mexico City with Brother Carlos Demarest, he and Brother Carlos discovered that the World Home Bible League was distributing the new popular language version of the Bible. They were the Spanish translation equivalent of the Good News for Modern Man. They were very upset about this discovery. He decided to sever relationships with the World Home Bible League even though he had no one else to go to for Bibles.
About two weeks after he ceased to work with the World Home Bible League he received a call from Brother Charles Keen, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Milford, Ohio. He told Brother Fraser that their church wanted to begin to print the Scriptures.
Before the First Baptist Church of Milford began to do printing, a church in Texas got involved in Scripture production. Brother Bobby Lemmon working in his home church, the Hemphill Baptist Temple of Ft. Worth, produced the first Scriptures printed by a church in connection with Bearing Precious Seed. The first books printed were the Gospel of John. [Bob Lemmon was the pastor of Hemphill and his son, Bobby, did the printing. Today they operate the Bible & Literature Missionary Foundation of Shelbyville, Tennessee, about which more will be said later.]
By 1973 the churches associated with Bearing Precious Seed had already purchased and distributed one million Scriptures in the eleven years they had been involved in this ministry. In a prayer letter from that year Fraser gave this testimony:
“Eleven years of service has been a joy, and we believe that if we have not passed the one-million Testament mark already then we will soon. Many churches took on sponsorship of the Bearing Precious Seed method—to handle the funds and distribute the sacred Scriptures. Ton after ton after ton has gone abroad as seed to be handled carefully by missionaries who wanted precious seed to sow. The harvest of souls saved on so many fields have been so abundant in souls that we raised our hands in joy at the sheaves. The present rate of shipments is approximately three tons per month, with our highest month having been over 10 tons. However, missionaries are now waiting for over 150 tons to be shipped to them. We believe that the printing, publishing and distribution of the Scriptures on a scriptural basis is a responsibility of the local Baptist church. Since then, thousands of tons of Scriptures have gone to foreign fields from the churches associated with Bearing Precious Seed.”
There are dozens of churches involved with producing Bibles in a manner similar to Bearing Precious Seed. Fraser, in a telephone conversation on April 1, 1995, told me that he estimated there were 15 to 20 churches that were printing in a consistent manner at that time. He counted seven churches that operated large roll-fed presses, with another one that was being set up in the Philippines.
The largest Bearing Precious Seed ministry is located at First Baptist Church of Milford, Ohio. This ministry was started in 1973 under the direction of Charles Keen, who was the pastor at First Baptist from 1964 to 1999. Since then Bill Duttry has been the senior pastor. Keen was influenced by Don Fraser’s aforementioned vision. First Baptist’s statement of faith says: “We believe God has preserved His Word in New Testament form in the manuscript text known as the Textus Receptus. We further believe God has preserved His Word in Old Testament form in the manuscript text known as the Masoretic Text. Finally, we believe we have His preserved Word in the English language in the Bible known as the King James Version or Authorized Version. The King James Version is our sole authority for all purposes of reading and studying in English.”
First Baptist’s printing ministry began with a small sheet-fed press located in the church’s basement. The first full year of production they printed and shipped 12,000 Scripture portions. Today they have a roll-fed press and produce more than four million Scriptures annually, including whole Bibles, New Testaments, and portions. Since 1973 they have printed and distributed more than 70 million Bibles and portions in 42 languages. There are 87 Seedline churches associated with Milford BPS.
As of 2008 there are 17 missionary families working out of this ministry. Five of them are based in El Paso, Texas, where a BPS printing operation focuses on Spanish Scriptures for distribution in Mexico and throughout Latin America. (It is important to emphasize again that the name Bearing Precious Seed is generic and that many men not directly connected with First Baptist of Milford use the name.) Among other things, First Baptist’s BPS missionaries travel to churches and speak on the importance of getting the Scriptures out to the ends of the earth, and they raise funds to keep the presses rolling and the supply lines full.
The Bearing Precious Seed vision is a cooperative effort among independent, fundamental Baptist churches. Some of them print the Scriptures, and others assist in the process through a ministry called “Seedline.” The seed is the precious Word of God, and it passes from the presses down the “line” to other churches which take over the binding process. First Baptist of Milford and other Bearing Precious Seed churches with printing ministries produce the signatures (folded sheets of paper with eight or sixteen pages in numerical order on one sheet) on their presses, and send them to the Seedline churches for assembly and shipping. Hundreds of volunteers are involved in this type of activity. This plan was described by James McWhorter:
A seed line is a group of churches that work together to collect funds for printing, help assemble, and distribute (ship to other seed lines, churches, mission fields, etc.) the Scriptures. The funds are collected and sent to a head water church. A head water church is a church where funds are collected or pooled from several seed line churches to buy large quantities of paper. They also coordinate the printing and shipment of the printed Scriptures. The head water church purchases paper and uses the paper to print or have printed the Scriptures. Often several head water churches pool their money in order to make larger paper buys possible thereby greatly reducing the cost of paper. Once the Scriptures are printed they are assembled at the church where they were printed, or they are sent to other seed line churches to be assembled there (McWhorter, Developing A Texas Seed Line, p. 1).
One of the goals of Bearing Precious Seed is to establish a local church Bible publishing work on every continent. In 1995, one was being established in Africa through the ministry of missionary Mike Shaver. Another, in Europe through missionaries Tom Miller and Colin Christensen. Another in Canada through Peter Hiebert, a Bearing Precious Seed missionary working out of the Open Door Baptist Church in Grand Centre, Alberta. Another was being established in the Philippines. A roll-fed press was being set up there for the printing of Scriptures for that part of the world.
We must emphasize once more that the name Bearing Precious Seed does not designate any one organization or church. It is the name of a vision for local church printing. In a message dated April 5, 1995, Tom Gaudet, director of Old Paths Scripture Press, gave a helpful overview of this:
There are basically three types of ministries such as these in independent Baptist churches. Some use the name ‘Bearing Precious Seed.’ Others operate in a similar fashion but do not use the name. Still others do not operate the same way but do use the name. I will here try to categorize the three basic types of ‘printing ministries’ whether they operate the same as others or use the same name or have nothing to do with any others:
1. The church with a printing ministry: You will see why I am making this distinction in a moment. These ministries have printing equipment which they use to print Bibles, Scripture portions, tracts, etc. Some have rather large operations with full-blown press and bindery operations which have cost many thousands of dollars. The larger operations generally have web presses, similar to the type newspaper and book publishers use.
The largest scripture printing ministry in an independent Baptist Church is First Baptist Church, Milford, Ohio. The largest tract printing ministry of any kind in the world is in an independent Baptist Church; Fellowship Baptist Church, Lebanon, Ohio. Still other churches have smaller equipment and use it faithfully to reproduce the Word of God. To name all of these churches would be quite a chore. Some of the higher production shops with web presses are Berean Baptist Church, Indianapolis, Indiana; Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church, Oliver Springs, Tennessee; Lifeline Baptist Church, Broomfield, Colorado; Parker Memorial Baptist Church, Lansing, Michigan; Broken Arrow Baptist Church, Pearce, Arizona; Victory Baptist Church, Milton, Florida; Lock Haven Baptist Church, Kissimmee, Florida.
By the way, as far as I know, the highest production and the oldest printing ministry in a Baptist church is in a Southern Baptist Church, Milldale Baptist Church, Zachary, Louisiana. Their ministry is not supported by the Southern Baptist Convention, but by their local church and others around the country, much like the ministries in Independent Baptist churches.
2. The church with a publishing ministry: These are churches which have some printing equipment, with some production capabilities, but have chosen to have someone else do the printing and primarily organize the fundraising and assembly work in various places. This is a very visible type of ministry because of the fundraising aspect. Offerings are collected into the church, and the printing is done by someone with larger equipment capable of printing truckloads of paper quickly. Some of these projects have even been done by commercial printers. The printed material is then distributed to other churches to be assembled. Some of this material has even been shipped overseas to be assembled by national churches. A quantity of material is assembled by the church with the publishing ministry. This type of ministry is more conducted in the other churches rather than in a large printing plant as in #1.
A sampling of churches with ministries such as these would include, First Baptist Church, Park Rapids, Minnesota; Liberty Baptist Church, Rapid City, South Dakota; First Bible Baptist Church, Rochester, New York; Grace Bible Baptist Church, Springfield, Missouri.
3. The church with an assembly ministry: These churches are doing a tremendous amount of ‘hands on’ work assembling material which others have printed. Typically, the church is assembling Gospels and has invested from a couple of hundred to several thousand dollars on bindery equipment such as staplers, folders, and cutters. Some have equipment which will hot-glue larger books such as New Testaments and Bibles. Some have limited printing equipment on which they print covers for these books. Some of the ‘Bearing Precious Seed’ ministries call these churches ‘seed line’ churches. There are literally dozens of these churches around the country.
In addition to the above three types of ministries, there are several other churches who have men out doing the work of distribution. Some of these are connected with printing ministries; some are not. Wings Bearing Precious Seed, Alpine, Tennessee; Bearing Precious Seed International, El Paso, Texas; River Oaks Baptist Church, Porter, Texas; Central Baptist Church, Bowie, Texas.
The following is a list of some of the churches involved in producing Scriptures. Some of these have been mentioned already. Not all of them use the name Bearing Precious Seed or have any connection with Bearing Precious Seed in Milford. Please understand that this is just a sampling. It is not within the compass of this book to list all of the churches involved with Bible publishing. We mention these to illustrate the broad-based nature of this movement. The churches and ministries are listed in alphabetical order.
Berean Baptist Church, Indianapolis, Indiana, operates a 27-inch web press for the publication of Scriptures. This ministry was founded by Pastor Bill Gindelsperger in May 1977, through the exhortation of BPS missionary Carlos Demarest. Vern Vaughn, who was in the church at that time, took the challenge that year to become the printer, and he has been with this ministry ever since. They use the name Bearing Precious Seed to describe their ministry, though they are independent of any other BPS ministry. The pastor of Berean since February 1995 is Bill Blakley. In 1994 Berean’s printing ministry produced 270,000 Scripture portions. They work in 14 languages, and are preparing to produce Scriptures in two others, a special Romanian for gypsies and the Susu language of Africa.
Bible & Literature Missionary Foundation of Shelbyville, Tennessee, was founded in 1968 by Bob Lemmon. He died in August 2007, and today the ministry is overseen by his son, Bobby. Bob’s grandson Shannon also works in the ministry. In English they only print the King James Version. The ministry statement says that they are “dedicated to the preservation of the King James version of the received text (Textus Receptus) of other languages.” In a letter dated March 21, 1995, Bob , said of the KJV: “We believe it is God’s gift to the English speaking world. We believe all these other translations that have been produced have behind their production the ultimate motive to leave out vast portions of the inspired word and to water down some of the cardinal truths.” The Bible & Literature Missionary Foundation also prints Received Text Scriptures in Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Romanian, Hungarian, Swati, and other languages, and has printed tracts in Chinese and Korean. The Foundation sends many of its printed signatures to associated Seedline churches that bind and ship them. As of 2008 Houston Buchannan and Joshua Phillips represent the ministry.
Bob Lemmon gave us the following overview of his involvement in local church Bible publishing:
My son and I introduced the Bible printing ministry to several churches and pastors. Some of them printed for awhile and then dropped by the wayside. However, some of them are still going strong. I suppose that the most successful of them is Dr. Charles Keen at First Baptist Church in Milford, Ohio. The first press they used was one we bought here in Nashville, and my son delivered it to them there in Ohio and trained someone in the church to operate it. Another church that is still printing is Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church in Oliver Springs, Tennessee. My son Robert, Jr., established that ministry in the church and worked and supervised it for seven years (letter from Bob Lemmon, March 21, 1995).
Broken Arrow Baptist Church, Pearce, Arizona, has a web press and produces Scriptures in English and Spanish. Pastor Clyde Thacker founded this ministry in 1984. He was murdered in a robbery in 1994, and his son, Tim, assumed the pastorate of the church and oversight of the printing ministry. The press operated by Broken Arrow is 56 feet long and has four printing units. Two were in operation in 1995, producing 25,000 impressions per hour. In one month they produced 5,000 New Testaments. They were preparing to print and bind whole Bibles.
Lighthouse Baptist Press is operated by Liberty Baptist Tabernacle of Rapid City, South Dakota. The pastor is H. Wayne Williams and the director of the printing ministry (since 2001) is Tom Furse (b. 1944). Eric McCarty and his family are missionaries out of Liberty Baptist and represent the printing ministry to churches in the Rocky Mountain region. This Scripture printing ministry was founded in 1987 by William Byers (1944-2001), who resigned his pastorate in Custer, South Dakota, to enter the field of Scripture printing. In a message to me dated April 5, 1995, Byers said, “I am thankful for each and every Bearing Precious Seed church and ministry. I do not personally know a single BPS work that is not Textus Receptus/King James by conviction and historic Baptist in its doctrine. All are doing a great work and if I am privileged to be in a church supporting another BPS work, I promote that missionary and ministry before the people.” In 1996 Liberty purchased a web press from Milldale International Ministries and by September 1998 they were able to dedicate their new print building debt free. In 2002 they added another building to house three semi-truck loads of paper. The night the church voted in 1996 to purchase the press by faith a new convert named Bret Foley raised his hand and said he was a professional printer and knew how to operate the press! Today he is on staff as the print shop manager. There are 10-15 churches that work with Liberty Baptist in helping to print and distribute Scriptures. As of September 2008 they are printing Scriptures in Arabic, English, French, Malagasy, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.
Caprock Baptist Church in Amarillo, Texas, under the leadership of Ken Black, become involved with Bearing Precious Seed in printing and binding in the mid-1990s. They were printing in the Czech language.
Another roll-fed press associated with Bearing Precious Seed is located in El Paso, Texas. Carlos Demarest is the BPS missionary there. Demarest works out of the First Baptist Church of Milford. James McWhorter gave us an overview of the El Paso work in 1995: “There is a great work going on in El Paso. A Bearing Precious Seed base is located there that has carried many tons of Scriptures into Mexico for the last several years. This base, while located in Texas, is not the work of Texas Baptists, but is owned and operated by the First Baptist Church of Milford, Ohio.”
First Baptist Church, Milford, Ohio, operates a large web press and produces great quantities of Scriptures with the assistance of dozens of other churches. We have already described this ministry.
First Baptist Church of Park Rapids, Minnesota. The pastor is Joseph Sturtz. Bearing Precious Seed missionary Dennis Deneau and Don Fraser set up the ministry in First Baptist in 1984 when Pastor Klenk was there. They have produced Scriptures in English, Spanish, Telugu, Croatian, Russian, Serbian, and other languages.
Lock Haven Scripture Press is a ministry of the Lock Haven Baptist Church in Orlando, Florida. Neal Beard is the pastor of the church, and the printing ministry is directed by Edward K. Brown, Jr. This printing work started as a BPS ministry in 1981 and later changed the name. Another man who works full-time with Lock Haven is Duane Chase, who has been with the ministry since 1983. They operate a 24-inch web press and a 36-inch web press, as well as smaller equipment. Between September 1983, to December 1994, the Lock Haven Scripture Press produced 577,679 New Testaments in 11 languages; 151,512 John & Romans in three languages; 20,490 Gospels in three languages; and almost 6 million gospel tracts in 11 languages. In the first quarter of 1995 they produced more than 15,000 New Testaments in Chinese, English, Russian, Vietnamese-English, and Creole. They are gearing up to print in the Khmer language of Cambodia.
Lifeline Baptist Church of Broomfield, Colorado, is the home of the Old Paths Scripture Press, which has been printing Bibles, New Testaments, Gospels, Scripture portions, and other material since 1985. Tom Gaudet was the founder of this ministry. Since 1994 he has held the position of International Representative, and serves in the capacity of promotion, fundraising, and working with missionaries on the field, as well as opening up new avenues of paper acquisition for the presses. C.T.L. Spear is the pastor of Lifeline Baptist. They operate a roll-fed press. Old Paths Scripture Press has no connection with Bearing Precious Seed but has a similar burden and methodology and has had close fellowship with the various Bearing Precious Seed ministries through the years. Gaudet has been involved with local church Bible publishing since 1977. Before establishing the Old Paths Scripture Press, he spent one year in a school operated by First Baptist Church of Milford, Ohio, one year with a church in Kentucky, then five years working with the printing ministry of the Berean Baptist Church in Indianapolis.
The philosophy and methodology of local church Bible publishing is seen in a report given to me by Tom Gaudet on April 5, 1995:
There are three aspects of this ministry which are very important to us, and which we are committed to maintaining. These are convictions and serve as the basis for this ministry:
1. This is a Local Church ministry. It is literally Lifeline Baptist Church printing the Word of God. This is not to say we can do it alone. We could not have the far reaching impact we do without other churches helping. But this ministry is not a para-church organization. We concur with the Scripture which says, ‘... the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth’ (1 Tim. 3:15).
2. We will only print Bible texts which have been proven to be based on the Textus Receptus. We make no apology for this position. Or course, in English we only print the King James Bible. A text must be proven by this"criteria and God’s blessing through its history for us to consider printing it. ‘The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times’ (Psalm 12:6).
3. The Scripture portions which we print are made available to missionaries and national churches at no cost. We never want to stand before the Lord and have to answer for warehousing the Word of God, looking for another customer. God intended His Word to be given to every creature. ‘The Lord gave the word: great was the company of those that published it’ (Psalm 68:11).
Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church of Oliver Springs, Tennessee, operates a Scripture printing ministry This church was founded in 1875. Garvan Walls has pastored the church since 1982. The printing director is H.B. Carey II. It began in 1975 when Don Fraser presented the burden for the need of Scriptures around the world and explained that the solution was “God’s people producing the Word of God through the local church.” The church set up a small A&M 1250 press in a corner of a basement Sunday School room, and volunteers began working long hours to produce the Word of God. Today Mt. Pisgah’s Scripture publishing ministry is housed in an 20,000-square-foot printing facility and is accomplished with the assistance of more than a million dollars worth of equipment. Hundreds of thousands of Bibles are produced annually in 16 languages: Arabic, German, Hungarian, English, Spanish, Olongo, Cambodian, Polish, Kituba, Swahili, Russian, and Italian. The print shop utilizes four different presses providing Scriptures in eight languages for worldwide distribution. The staff consists of three full-time workers, two part-time, and dozens of volunteers from surrounding churches. Through the years millions of Scriptures have been sent around the world for free distribution. As of 2008, three missionaries were representing the Scripture printing ministry.
Parker Memorial Baptist Church of Lansing, Michigan, operates a roll-fed press for the production of Scriptures. This ministry began in 1976. Don Green is the pastor. Ron Helzerman joined in 1981 as shop production manager. In 1995 he said: “The growth of our work has been slow but steady and the Lord has blessed us with a nice building, a web press, a good group of volunteers, and an increasing network of collating churches around us. We print Arabic, Spanish and English scriptures and have cooperated with other Bearing Precious Seed churches in collating and binding several other languages.” As of 2008 there were four Bearing Precious Seed missionaries working out of Parker Memorial: Dennis Deneau, John Green, Mark Chartier, and Rick Teremi. Brother Deneau studied under Don Fraser, founder of Bearing Precious Seed.
Parker Memorial is the home of Local Church Bible Publishers, which produces an excellent selection of high quality leather-bound Bibles, including study Bibles. The Bibles are sold at cost and are about one-third of the retail price. This ministry was a vision of Dennis Deneau.
Victory Baptist Church of Sherwood Park, Alberta, operates Scripture Printing Ministry Canada. This began as a ministry of Open Door Baptist Church in Cold Lake, Alberta, and moved to Victory in 2004. The pastor is Dave Harness and the director of the printing ministry is Reinhard Shumacher. Currently the church is working with English Scriptures and planning to expand into other languages.
Victory International Printers of Scriptures (VIPS), a ministry of Victory Baptist Church of Milton, Florida, operates a large web press for the production of Scriptures. This ministry was started in 1984 by Pastor Tom Woodward, who died on May 11, 1994. In 1995 the printing work was overseen by Al Berg. In a telephone conversation on April 12, 1995, he told me that in 1994 they printed 216,000 copies of the John and Romans Scripture booklets. These were in Spanish, English, and Russian. VIPS has no connection with Bearing Precious Seed.
Vision Baptist Church of Leduc, Alberta, has operated a Bearing Precious Seed Mobile ministry since 2000. The pastor is Jim Price and the director of the BPS ministry is Phil Smith. They call their ministry Mobile, because the printed signatures and binding equipment are transported to various churches in a dual axle trailer and the church members provide volunteer labor to produce the Scripture portions. On October 15, 2008, Brother Smith told me that in 2007 they were in eleven churches and assemblied 70,000 John-Romans. They assemble Scriptures in English and foreign languages for free distribution to church planters and missionaries.
Wyldewood Baptist Church of Oshkosh, Wisconsin has a Bear Precious Seed printing ministry. This church is pastored by Randall King, and the printer and Bearing Precious Seed missionary is James Hoffman. Tim Carpenter is a representative. The church’s Bearing Precious Seed ministry was established in 1979 and in 1996 moved into its own 3,700 square foot print shop. They distribute Scriptures in English and 20 foreign languages.
These and other churches are printing and binding Bibles, New Testaments, and Scripture portions by the hundreds of thousands each year. It is impossible to know how many Bibles, New Testaments, and Scripture portions have been published in this way. Only the Lord knows precisely, but it is many millions.
The point we need to make for the purpose of this study is that all of these Bibles and Scripture portions are King James in English or Received Text-based foreign language versions. This is not an accident; it is a conviction.
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FOR LOVE OF THE BIBLE: THE BATTLE FOR THE KING JAMES VERSION AND THE RECEIVED TEXT FROM 1800 TO PRESENT (D.W. Cloud) ISBN 1-58318-004-4. This book traces the history of the defense of the KJV and the Received Text from 1800 to present. The book includes hundreds of testimonies and biographies; sketches of churches, schools, and organizations that have defended the KJV; a digest of reviews and condensations of major books and articles written in defense of the KJV in the past 200 years; excerpts from rare books on this subject which are no longer available; a comprehensive overview of the varied arguments in favor of the KJV. For Love of the Bible also gives a history of the modern English versions, beginning with the English Revised of 1881. Also included is a history of textual criticism, revealing that most of the textual scholars from the 19th-century on were rationalists who denied the infallible inspiration of Scripture. The 46-page annotated bibliography is the most extensive in print on the subject, to our knowledge. A detailed index is also included. The author spent several thousand dollars researching the book and has written several hundred letters in this connection, communicating with men from around the world who stand for the KJV today. Michael Maynard, author of A History of the Debate over 1 John 5:7,8, wrote: “For Love of the Bible is a masterpiece. It ought to be in every academic, public, and special library in the world.” 5th edition, October 2008, 522 pages, 5X8, soft cover. $19.95
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Is the KJV in Error in Romans 8:16?
Aug/20/08 11:18
IS THE KJV IN ERROR IN ROMANS 8:16?
August 20, 2008 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -
“The Spirit ITSELF beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.”
Is it an error to refer to the Holy Spirit as “itself”? Were the translators of the King James Bible committing a blasphemy by doing so?
This is what Doug Kutilek charges.
He is a man who has tried to make a name for himself by “taking on” the defenders of the King James Bible, and toward this end he thinks he has found all sorts of glaring “errors” in the old English Bible.
Kutilek is an expert, but not in anything of consequence. He is an expert in straining at gnats and swallowing camels. He is incredibly adept at setting up strawmen and finding red herrings. He excels at refuting Ruckmanism, all the while implying that all defenders of the KJV are Ruckmanites.
In all of this he shines, but when it comes to spiritual discernment in regard to the Bible Version issue, he has none.
Kutilek says:
“Any honest evaluation of the King James Version leads to the conclusion that it has numerous defects as a translation, some major, most minor. But of these defects, among the most serious, quite probably the worst of the lot, is its occasional use of the English pronoun ‘it’ to refer to the Holy Spirit. ... I will plainly state my opinion on the matter: I think that here the KJV comes dangerously close to blasphemy, if it does not in fact actually wander into it.”
KUTILEK VS. THE KJV: WHO SHOULD BE FOLLOW?
I will answer this, first, by observing that Doug Kutilek is not a Bible translator of renown nor a recognized Greek or Hebrew scholar, whereas the men on the august committee that gave us the King James Bible were all of that and more. For Kutilek to condemn their work in such a glib manner is like a person who paints by numbers authoritatively criticizing Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel. (In The Glorious History of the King James Bible we give the credentials of the KJV translators.)
It amazes me how that a man with literally no serious credentials in anything rushes in with no compunction to criticize a translation that went through such an extensive purifying process.
The KJV is not just another English version. It was a thorough revision of the Tyndale translation, which was already excellent. William Tyndale had a rare gift of translating Greek and Hebrew into simple, lovely, and forceful English, and the KJV committee left most of his work intact (e.g., nine-tenths of the First Epistle of John and five-sixths of the Epistle of Ephesians is Tyndale’s).
The KJV committee consisted of roughly 50 scholars, many of whom were incredibly gifted and knowledgeable. They were divided into six companies, and the revision went through the hands of each company. The finished product was submitted to a 12-man final-review committee composed of the two chief men from each company. By this process each part of the translation was examined at least 14 times. Further, the committee received assistance and feedback from other scholars throughout England. I am not aware of any Bible translation in history that has gone through such an extensive sifting process.
The King James Bible is an absolute masterpiece. It is a solid translation of the Hebrew and Greek and its English is peerless. It has been called “The Miracle of English Prose,” whereas the modern versions have never been called a miracle of anything.
I have about 100 books in my library that extol the excellence of the King James Bible, and that is not counting those that were written by its current defenders over the past 30 years.
In 1824 William Orme said that as a whole it has “no superior” and “has seized the spirit and copied the manner of the divine originals.” In 1850 John Dowling, famous Baptist leader and author of The History of Romanism, called the KJV “wonderful” and said that “to introduce any material alterations would be like gilding refined gold.” (Doug Kutilek is capable of doing exactly this!) In 1857 Arthur Cleveland Coxe called it “the noblest heritage of the Anglo-Saxon race” and said that “to complain of its trifling blemishes, is to complain of the sun for its spots.” In 1861 influential Presbyterian leader Joseph Philpot said the KJV translators “gave us a translation unequalled for faithfulness to the original, and yet at the same time clothed in the purest and simplest English.” In 1911 William Muir called it “a rare jewel fitly set” and said, “It has the divine touch, even in its diction.” In 1987 Gerald Hammond said that the KJV translators “have taken care to reproduce the syntactic details of the originals.”
Those are only a few examples of the testimonies and information that we have carefully documented in our book The Glorious History of the King James Bible.
I say all of that to say this: For Doug Kutilek and his buddies to boast that they can find errors so easily in the KJV is actually humorous to behold.
As to the issue of the translation of “it” in Romans 8:16 referring to the Holy Spirit, this is actually a non-issue.
IT IS A NON-ISSUE, FIRST, BECAUSE THE KJV IS AN ACCURATE TRANSLATION OF THE GREEK.
How can an accurate translation of the Greek be labeled an error? Isn’t the accuracy of a translation dependent upon how exactly and properly it translates the original language?
The phrase “the Spirit itself” is translated from the Greek “auto to pneuma.” The pronoun “auto” is correctly translated “it.” It is a neuter or genderless pronoun referring to a neuter noun. If Kutilek has a problem with that, he needs to take it up with the Holy Spirit, because it is the Holy Spirit who gave Paul these exact words by divine inspiration. And I would say that the Holy Spirit knows how to refer to himself in a proper manner.
In an e-mail to me dated July 21, 2008, Dr. Thomas Strouse of Emmanuel Baptist Theological Seminary observed: “Actually, the KJV translators had the choice to translate the Greek idiom (neuter noun and neuter pronoun) or put the Greek idiom into an English idiom ‘Spirit Himself.’ In some places, they, as well as other translations, have chosen the English idiom over the Hebrew/Greek idiom.”
The early Wycliffe translated Romans 8:16 “that Spirit.” The later Wycliffe translated it “the like Spirit.” The Tyndale, Geneva, and Bishops translated it “the same Spirit.”
All of these translations -- that, like, same, itself -- are proper.
THIS IS A NON-ISSUE, SECOND, BECAUSE THE WORD “ITSELF” IN ENGLISH DOES NOT NECESSARILY REFER TO A “THING.” IT ALSO PROPERLY REFERS TO A PERSON.
When we understand the English language properly we see that in using “itself” the KJV translators were not referring to the Holy Spirit as a non-person and there was nothing blasphemous about it. Such a charge is as ridiculous as it is ignorant.
The following is from Will Kinney:
“The Random House Webster’s College Dictionary of 1999 lists under the second definition of ‘itself’ -- ‘used to represent a PERSON or animal understood, previously mentioned, about to be mentioned, or present in the immediate context.’ Examples given are: ‘Who is it? It is John.’ Did you see the baby? Yes, isn’t it cute.’ The Webster’s 1967 Collegiate Dictionary defines ‘it’ as ‘a PERSON or animal whose gender is unknown or disregarded.’
“The Father and the Son are clearly masculine, but the Spirit is sometimes referred to as masculine and sometimes as neuter, not because He is neuter, but rather because the gender is disregarded or not taken into account in that particular context. ...
“The NASB and NIV have two interesting and parallel verses in the NEW TESTAMENT. Both Matthew 12:45 and Luke 11:26 speak of a ‘spirit that takes along with it seven other spirits more wicked than ITSELF.’ Here is a case of a spiritual entity that can see, hear, speak and has a personality, yet the gender is disregarded in the NASB and NIV and is referred to as ‘itself.’ This spirit was not an inanimate object, but rather a spiritual being with a distinct personality” (Kinney, “The Spirit Itself”).
THIS IS A NON-ISSUE, THIRD, BECAUSE THE BIBLE REFERS TO THE LORD JESUS IN THE SAME WAY THAT ROMANS 8:17 REFERS TO THE HOLY SPIRIT.
Again we quote from Kinney:
“All Bible versions at times speak of Jesus Christ as being a thing or something neuter. In Matthew 1:20 the angel of the Lord says to Joseph, ‘fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for THAT WHICH is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.’ Notice the angel does not say ‘he,’ but ‘that which’: it is neuter both in Greek and in English. In Luke 1:35 the angel says to Mary, ‘The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also THAT HOLY THING which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.’ That holy thing is neuter, yet we all know that Jesus Christ is a person, in fact, God manifest in the flesh.
“The book of 1 John opens with a reference to Jesus Christ, yet it refers to Him as a thing. ‘That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life.’ Yet Christ is not a thing, but a person. In 1 John 5:4 we are told: ‘WHATSOEVER is born of God overcometh the world.’ This is a neuter. Are we to assume that everyone who is born of God is a thing?” (Kinney, “The Spirit Itself”).
THIS IS A NON-ISSUE, FOURTH, BECAUSE THE KJV IS NOT ALONE IN TRANSLATING “AUTO” IN ROMANS 8:16 AS “ITSELF” OR “IT.”
This translation is also found in Alford, Darby, the NRSV, and Green’s Interlinear.
The fact that this translation is repeated in these versions does not prove the KJV is accurate, but it does prove that the KJV is not alone here.
Friends in Christ, beware of pompous men who have been bitten by the debilitating bug that David Otis Fuller identified as “scholarolatry.”
[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, an e-mail listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. OUR GOAL IN THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF OUR MINISTRY IS NOT DEVOTIONAL BUT IS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. The Fundamental Baptist Information Service mailing list is automated. To SUBSCRIBE or to UNSUBSCRIBE or to CHANGE ADDRESSES or to RE-SUBSCRIBE UNDER A NEW ADDRESS, go to http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. If you have any trouble with this, please let us know. And please be patient with us. We do not ignore any unsubscribe request, but we cannot always get to your request immediately as each person involved with maintaining the Way of Life web site does this only on a very part time basis and is busy with many other major activities, such as pastoring and missionary work. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6) if they can. Some of the articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 25th year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org. We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but from those who are. OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html. PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org]
August 20, 2008 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -
“The Spirit ITSELF beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.”
Is it an error to refer to the Holy Spirit as “itself”? Were the translators of the King James Bible committing a blasphemy by doing so?
This is what Doug Kutilek charges.
He is a man who has tried to make a name for himself by “taking on” the defenders of the King James Bible, and toward this end he thinks he has found all sorts of glaring “errors” in the old English Bible.
Kutilek is an expert, but not in anything of consequence. He is an expert in straining at gnats and swallowing camels. He is incredibly adept at setting up strawmen and finding red herrings. He excels at refuting Ruckmanism, all the while implying that all defenders of the KJV are Ruckmanites.
In all of this he shines, but when it comes to spiritual discernment in regard to the Bible Version issue, he has none.
Kutilek says:
“Any honest evaluation of the King James Version leads to the conclusion that it has numerous defects as a translation, some major, most minor. But of these defects, among the most serious, quite probably the worst of the lot, is its occasional use of the English pronoun ‘it’ to refer to the Holy Spirit. ... I will plainly state my opinion on the matter: I think that here the KJV comes dangerously close to blasphemy, if it does not in fact actually wander into it.”
KUTILEK VS. THE KJV: WHO SHOULD BE FOLLOW?
I will answer this, first, by observing that Doug Kutilek is not a Bible translator of renown nor a recognized Greek or Hebrew scholar, whereas the men on the august committee that gave us the King James Bible were all of that and more. For Kutilek to condemn their work in such a glib manner is like a person who paints by numbers authoritatively criticizing Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel. (In The Glorious History of the King James Bible we give the credentials of the KJV translators.)
It amazes me how that a man with literally no serious credentials in anything rushes in with no compunction to criticize a translation that went through such an extensive purifying process.
The KJV is not just another English version. It was a thorough revision of the Tyndale translation, which was already excellent. William Tyndale had a rare gift of translating Greek and Hebrew into simple, lovely, and forceful English, and the KJV committee left most of his work intact (e.g., nine-tenths of the First Epistle of John and five-sixths of the Epistle of Ephesians is Tyndale’s).
The KJV committee consisted of roughly 50 scholars, many of whom were incredibly gifted and knowledgeable. They were divided into six companies, and the revision went through the hands of each company. The finished product was submitted to a 12-man final-review committee composed of the two chief men from each company. By this process each part of the translation was examined at least 14 times. Further, the committee received assistance and feedback from other scholars throughout England. I am not aware of any Bible translation in history that has gone through such an extensive sifting process.
The King James Bible is an absolute masterpiece. It is a solid translation of the Hebrew and Greek and its English is peerless. It has been called “The Miracle of English Prose,” whereas the modern versions have never been called a miracle of anything.
I have about 100 books in my library that extol the excellence of the King James Bible, and that is not counting those that were written by its current defenders over the past 30 years.
In 1824 William Orme said that as a whole it has “no superior” and “has seized the spirit and copied the manner of the divine originals.” In 1850 John Dowling, famous Baptist leader and author of The History of Romanism, called the KJV “wonderful” and said that “to introduce any material alterations would be like gilding refined gold.” (Doug Kutilek is capable of doing exactly this!) In 1857 Arthur Cleveland Coxe called it “the noblest heritage of the Anglo-Saxon race” and said that “to complain of its trifling blemishes, is to complain of the sun for its spots.” In 1861 influential Presbyterian leader Joseph Philpot said the KJV translators “gave us a translation unequalled for faithfulness to the original, and yet at the same time clothed in the purest and simplest English.” In 1911 William Muir called it “a rare jewel fitly set” and said, “It has the divine touch, even in its diction.” In 1987 Gerald Hammond said that the KJV translators “have taken care to reproduce the syntactic details of the originals.”
Those are only a few examples of the testimonies and information that we have carefully documented in our book The Glorious History of the King James Bible.
I say all of that to say this: For Doug Kutilek and his buddies to boast that they can find errors so easily in the KJV is actually humorous to behold.
As to the issue of the translation of “it” in Romans 8:16 referring to the Holy Spirit, this is actually a non-issue.
IT IS A NON-ISSUE, FIRST, BECAUSE THE KJV IS AN ACCURATE TRANSLATION OF THE GREEK.
How can an accurate translation of the Greek be labeled an error? Isn’t the accuracy of a translation dependent upon how exactly and properly it translates the original language?
The phrase “the Spirit itself” is translated from the Greek “auto to pneuma.” The pronoun “auto” is correctly translated “it.” It is a neuter or genderless pronoun referring to a neuter noun. If Kutilek has a problem with that, he needs to take it up with the Holy Spirit, because it is the Holy Spirit who gave Paul these exact words by divine inspiration. And I would say that the Holy Spirit knows how to refer to himself in a proper manner.
In an e-mail to me dated July 21, 2008, Dr. Thomas Strouse of Emmanuel Baptist Theological Seminary observed: “Actually, the KJV translators had the choice to translate the Greek idiom (neuter noun and neuter pronoun) or put the Greek idiom into an English idiom ‘Spirit Himself.’ In some places, they, as well as other translations, have chosen the English idiom over the Hebrew/Greek idiom.”
The early Wycliffe translated Romans 8:16 “that Spirit.” The later Wycliffe translated it “the like Spirit.” The Tyndale, Geneva, and Bishops translated it “the same Spirit.”
All of these translations -- that, like, same, itself -- are proper.
THIS IS A NON-ISSUE, SECOND, BECAUSE THE WORD “ITSELF” IN ENGLISH DOES NOT NECESSARILY REFER TO A “THING.” IT ALSO PROPERLY REFERS TO A PERSON.
When we understand the English language properly we see that in using “itself” the KJV translators were not referring to the Holy Spirit as a non-person and there was nothing blasphemous about it. Such a charge is as ridiculous as it is ignorant.
The following is from Will Kinney:
“The Random House Webster’s College Dictionary of 1999 lists under the second definition of ‘itself’ -- ‘used to represent a PERSON or animal understood, previously mentioned, about to be mentioned, or present in the immediate context.’ Examples given are: ‘Who is it? It is John.’ Did you see the baby? Yes, isn’t it cute.’ The Webster’s 1967 Collegiate Dictionary defines ‘it’ as ‘a PERSON or animal whose gender is unknown or disregarded.’
“The Father and the Son are clearly masculine, but the Spirit is sometimes referred to as masculine and sometimes as neuter, not because He is neuter, but rather because the gender is disregarded or not taken into account in that particular context. ...
“The NASB and NIV have two interesting and parallel verses in the NEW TESTAMENT. Both Matthew 12:45 and Luke 11:26 speak of a ‘spirit that takes along with it seven other spirits more wicked than ITSELF.’ Here is a case of a spiritual entity that can see, hear, speak and has a personality, yet the gender is disregarded in the NASB and NIV and is referred to as ‘itself.’ This spirit was not an inanimate object, but rather a spiritual being with a distinct personality” (Kinney, “The Spirit Itself”).
THIS IS A NON-ISSUE, THIRD, BECAUSE THE BIBLE REFERS TO THE LORD JESUS IN THE SAME WAY THAT ROMANS 8:17 REFERS TO THE HOLY SPIRIT.
Again we quote from Kinney:
“All Bible versions at times speak of Jesus Christ as being a thing or something neuter. In Matthew 1:20 the angel of the Lord says to Joseph, ‘fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for THAT WHICH is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.’ Notice the angel does not say ‘he,’ but ‘that which’: it is neuter both in Greek and in English. In Luke 1:35 the angel says to Mary, ‘The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also THAT HOLY THING which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.’ That holy thing is neuter, yet we all know that Jesus Christ is a person, in fact, God manifest in the flesh.
“The book of 1 John opens with a reference to Jesus Christ, yet it refers to Him as a thing. ‘That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life.’ Yet Christ is not a thing, but a person. In 1 John 5:4 we are told: ‘WHATSOEVER is born of God overcometh the world.’ This is a neuter. Are we to assume that everyone who is born of God is a thing?” (Kinney, “The Spirit Itself”).
THIS IS A NON-ISSUE, FOURTH, BECAUSE THE KJV IS NOT ALONE IN TRANSLATING “AUTO” IN ROMANS 8:16 AS “ITSELF” OR “IT.”
This translation is also found in Alford, Darby, the NRSV, and Green’s Interlinear.
The fact that this translation is repeated in these versions does not prove the KJV is accurate, but it does prove that the KJV is not alone here.
Friends in Christ, beware of pompous men who have been bitten by the debilitating bug that David Otis Fuller identified as “scholarolatry.”
[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, an e-mail listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. OUR GOAL IN THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF OUR MINISTRY IS NOT DEVOTIONAL BUT IS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. The Fundamental Baptist Information Service mailing list is automated. To SUBSCRIBE or to UNSUBSCRIBE or to CHANGE ADDRESSES or to RE-SUBSCRIBE UNDER A NEW ADDRESS, go to http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. If you have any trouble with this, please let us know. And please be patient with us. We do not ignore any unsubscribe request, but we cannot always get to your request immediately as each person involved with maintaining the Way of Life web site does this only on a very part time basis and is busy with many other major activities, such as pastoring and missionary work. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6) if they can. Some of the articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 25th year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org. We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but from those who are. OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html. PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org]
The Bible vs The Ecumenical Movement
Jul/03/08 13:28
THE BIBLE VS. THE ECUMENICAL MOVEMENT
July 3, 2008 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -
The ecumenical philosophy has spread widely within Christianity. It has been a theme song of the Roman Catholic Church since the Vatican II Council in the 1960s. It is a theme song of the World Council of Churches and of the various national councils and local clergy associations. It is a theme song of the Bible Societies.
The ecumenical philosophy has permeated evangelicalism, from parachurch groups like Campus Crusade and Youth for Christ to evangelists like Franklin Graham and Luis Palau to schools like Moody and Wheaton and publishers like Zondervan and publications like Christianity Today and missionary organizations like Wycliffe Bible Translators.
The ecumenical philosophy is a theme song of Contemporary Christian Music. In an interview with Christianity Today, Don Moen of Integrity Music said: “I’ve discovered that worship [music] is transdenominational, transcultural. IT BRIDGES ANY DENOMINATION. Twenty years ago there were many huge divisions between denominations. Today I think the walls are coming down. In any concert that I do, I will have 30-50 different churches represented.”
The ecumenical philosophy is also a theme song of the emerging church. Brian McLaren epitomizes this by calling himself “evangelical, post-protestant, liberal, conservative, mystical, poetic, biblical, charismatic, contemplative, fundamentalist, Calvinist, anabaptist, anglican, Methodist, catholic, green, incarnational, emergent” (A Generous Orthodoxy, subtitle to the book).
Yes, the ecumenical philosophy is widespread, but it also patently unscriptural.
The ecumenical philosophy is refuted by the Bible’s teaching on doctrine.
“As I besought thee to abide still at Ephesus, when I went into Macedonia, that thou mightest charge some that they teach NO OTHER DOCTRINE” (1 Tim. 1:3).
We have already seen what the Bible teaches about doctrine. There is only one true apostolic Christian faith and we have been given the Holy Spirit so that we can know that one true faith and we are required to teach that faith and only that faith to others. Thus, the ecumenical philosophy is unscriptural. It is impossible to reconcile a strict stand for Bible doctrine with any sort of ecumenism. It is impossible to stand for all of the doctrine of the Bible and be ecumenical in any sense.
The ecumenical philosophy is refuted by the Bible’s command to contend for the faith.
“Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3).
It is impossible to have the mindset of fighting for the one revealed faith and be ecumenical at the same time. These are contradictory programs. Fighting for the faith is a divisive thing that always ruins ecumenical harmony!
The ecumenical philosophy is refuted by the Bible’s warning of false teachers who preach heresies.
The New Testament is filled with warnings about false teachers. Jesus warned about them during His earthly ministry (Mat. 7:15-17) as well as in His messages to the seven churches following His resurrection and ascension (Rev. 2:2, 6, 14-16, 20-23). Paul warned about false teachers repeatedly (1 Cor. 15:12; 2 Cor. 11:1-4, 12-15; Gal. 1:6-9; 5:7-12; Phil. 3:17-21; Col. 2:4-8, 20-23; 1 Tim. 4:1-3; 2 Tim. 3:5-13; 4:3-4). Peter warned about them (2 Peter 2). John warned about them (1 John 2:18-27; 4:1-3). Jude warned about them (Jude 3-19). It is impossible to be on the outlook for false teachers as diligently as the Bible commands and be ecumenical at the same time. To be on the outlook for false teachers and to be diligently comparing every teaching with the Scripture to know whether it is true or false is contrary to the broadminded emerging church philosophy.
The ecumenical philosophy is refuted by the Bible’s command to separate from error.
“Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them” (Romans 16:17).
Not only are we to hold to sound doctrine and contend for it and be on the outlook for false teaching, but we are also to separate from those who teach false doctrine. And what is the standard for judging what is true and what is false? The Bible is, and according to the Bible we can know truth from error in a dogmatic sense, and we are responsible to God for doing so.
“If any man will do his will, HE SHALL KNOW OF THE DOCTRINE, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself” (John 7:17).
“Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and YE SHALL KNOW THE TRUTH, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31-32).
“But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as THE SAME ANOINTING TEACHETH YOU OF ALL THINGS, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him” (1 John 2:27).
The biblical practice of separation is diametrically opposed to the doctrine of ecumenism. It is impossible to practice both at the same time, and no amount of clever emerging church “orthoparadoxy” can change that fact.
The ecumenical philosophy is refuted by the Bible’s definition of true Christian unity.
Consider some major passages on Christian unity:
“That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me” (John 17:21).
The modern ecumenical movement has taken John 17:21 as one of its theme verses, claiming that the unity for which Christ prayed is an ecumenical unity of professing Christians that disregards biblical doctrine. The context of John 17 destroys this myth. In John 17 the Lord plainly states that the unity for which He was praying is a unity based on salvation and truth and separation from the world.
“I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and THEY HAVE KEPT THY WORD. ... For I HAVE GIVEN UNTO THEM THE WORDS WHICH THOU GAVEST ME; AND THEY HAVE RECEIVED THEM, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. ... I HAVE GIVEN THEM THY WORD; AND THE WORLD HATH HATED THEM, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. ... Sanctify them through THY TRUTH: thy word is TRUTH. ... And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified THROUGH THE TRUTH” (John 17:6, 8, 14, 17, 19)
This is not a unity of true Christians with false, nominal with genuine, sound doctrine with heresy. It is not a unity that ignores doctrinal differences for the sake of an enlarged fellowship.
In fact, there is nothing in Christ’s prayer to indicate that man is to do anything whatsoever to create the unity described herein. John 17 is not a commandment addressed to men; it is a High Priestly prayer addressed to God the Father, and the prayer was answered. It describes a spiritual reality that was created by God among genuine born again saints who are committed to the Scriptures, not a possibility that must be organized by man.
“Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment” (1 Corinthians 1:10).
We see in this verse that biblical unity is first of all a matter of having one mind. This is contrary to the ecumenical philosophy of “unity in diversity.” The type of “unity” that we find in the ecumenical movement is not true unity at all; it is confusion; it is “Babel.”
Observe, secondly, that the unity that God requires is in the assembly. This exhortation was addressed first of all to a church. It is possible to have the type of unity described here in the congregation, because doctrine can be agreed upon and enforced through a church covenant and statement of faith. In the church we can have the same doctrine of Christ, the Holy Spirit, salvation, spiritual gifts, sanctification, Christian living, prophecy, you name it, because we have a statement of faith and requirements for church membership and we have pastors and discipline; but this is impossible in a broad ecumenical context.
“I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Ephesians 4:1-6).
In this passage we see true biblical unity and it is far removed from the ecumenical philosophy.
First, true Christian unity is a unity of the Spirit (Eph. 4:3). This means that it is a unity involving those who are regenerated by and led by the Spirit of God. Contrast this with the ecumenical concept of bringing together anyone that names the name of Christ regardless of his or her actual spiritual condition. At a large ecumenical conference in St. Louis in 2000 (the North American Congress on the Holy Spirit & World Evangelization), I asked many of the people who were manning ministry booths, “When were you born again?” Not one gave a scriptural answer. Some said they were born again when they were baptized. Some, when they had a charismatic style experience. Others weren’t even familiar with the term. Yet all of these people are intimately involved in leadership within the ecumenical movement.
Second, true Christian unity is a unity of the one faith (Eph. 4:5). Biblical unity is impossible apart from the once-delivered faith taught by the apostles. God’s people are called upon to “earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3). There is no unity between those who believe and follow the Bible and those who do not. Note that “the faith” is not divided into cardinal and secondary issues. In Matthew 23:23 Jesus taught that while not everything in Scripture is of equal importance, everything has some importance. Nothing clearly taught in Scripture is to be despised and set aside for the purpose of unity. In 1 Timothy 6:14, Paul taught Timothy to keep the apostolic doctrine “without spot” until the return of Christ. Spots are small, seemingly insignificant things. Thus, Paul was teaching Timothy to value everything in Scripture. The theme of 1 Timothy is practical church truth (1 Tim. 3:15). In this epistle Paul dealt with things such as church government (1 Tim. 3) and the woman’s role in church work (1 Tim. 2). These are the very things that are typically downplayed in ecumenical ventures, because they are considered of “secondary” importance. Yet Paul taught Timothy to keep all of these things without spot until Jesus comes. Timothy was instructed to allow “no other doctrine” (1 Tim. 1:3). That is the strictest kind of standard for doctrine, and when one holds that standard of doctrine it is impossible to be ecumenical even in the mildest New Evangelical sense.
Third, true Christian unity is a unity that is found in the New Testament assembly. The command in Ephesians 4:3 is addressed to the church at Ephesus (Eph. 1:1). It was not addressed to “the worldwide body of Christians.” As we have seen, it is possible to practice biblical unity within the assembly because doctrine and righteousness can be enforced and preserved there. Outside of the assembly, though, there is no biblical discipline, leadership, or oversight. When Christians attempt to practice interdenominational and parachurch unity, there is always compromise because respect for every aspect of the New Testament faith results in division rather than unity. I am not responsible to maintain a unity with every professing Christian in the world but with the believers in my assembly, in my local body, and with others with whom I am truly likeminded. The Bible says we are to glorify God “with one mind and one mouth” (Romans 15:6). That is not a description of any type of ecumenism! This is only possible in the New Testament assembly, where believers can be united together in doctrine and spirit and purpose in a way that is impossible in a broader context.
“Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel” (Philippians 1:27).
The teaching of this passage is that, first, biblical unity is a function of the local church. This instruction was addressed to the church at Philippi. True Christian unity is not a parachurch or interdenominational issue.
Second, biblical unity means having one mind. It is not an ecumenical “unity in diversity.” Compare Romans 15:5-6; 1 Corinthians 1:10; 2 Corinthians 13:11.
Third, biblical unity requires total commitment to the one apostolic faith. The New Testament faith is not many separate doctrines but is one unified body of truth into which all doctrines fit. It is unscriptural to think that only a few “cardinal” Bible doctrines are necessary while other New Testament teachings and practices are tertiary and can be ignored for the sake of unity. As we have seen, the apostle Paul instructed Timothy to keep every aspect of biblical truth “without spot” until the return of Christ (1 Tim. 6:14). This refers to the details of the Word of God. And it is impossible to stand unequivocally for New Testament truth in all its aspects and to be ecumenical at the same time. As one wise pastor observed, we will either limit our message or we will limit our fellowship. If you determine to preach everything in Scripture, then you will automatically limit your sphere of fellowship. The choice is clear. If one is faithful to the New Testament faith, it is impossible to have a wide fellowship in this apostate hour, and if one is committed to a wide fellowship he must be willing to limit his message.
[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, an e-mail listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. OUR GOAL IN THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF OUR MINISTRY IS NOT DEVOTIONAL BUT IS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. The Fundamental Baptist Information Service mailing list is automated. To SUBSCRIBE or to UNSUBSCRIBE or to CHANGE ADDRESSES or to RE-SUBSCRIBE UNDER A NEW ADDRESS, go to http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. If you have any trouble with this, please let us know. And please be patient with us. We do not ignore any unsubscribe request, but we cannot always get to your request immediately as each person involved with maintaining the Way of Life web site does this only on a very part time basis and is busy with many other major activities, such as pastoring and missionary work. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6) if they can. Some of the articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 25th year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org. We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but from those who are. OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html. PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org]
The End Result of Immorality
May/27/08 13:28
THE END RESULT OF IMMORALITY
May 27, 2008 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -
The following is from the new Advanced Bible Studies Series course on the book of Proverbs.
Proverbs warns frequently of the danger of the “strange woman,” referring to all forms of immorality. It also teaches us that one important way of victory over the strange woman is to ponder her end. Hollywood, as Satan’s instrument, commonly fails to show the end of sin, tending to make it appear glamorous and exciting and rarely showing its awful consequences. God’s Word, on the other hand, shows the end of sin in the plainest manner as a warning to men. Proverbs 5:4-23 describes six results of immorality. Though the deeds of the strange woman appeal to the flesh and there are pleasures in her sin for a season, her end is what we must consider, and her end is fearful in the extreme.
(1) The strange woman leads to hell (Prov. 5:4-5). The Bible warns often about hell. Jesus preached about it many times and warned people not to go there (e.g., Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:22-31). In Proverbs 5:4-5 hell is likened to the bitterness of wormwood and the pain of a sharp sword. In fact, it is far worse because the pain of hell has no end.
(2) The strange woman leads to the loss of honor (Prov. 5:9). Consider David, the sweet Psalmist of Israel, and how that his honor is stained to this very day by his dalliance with immorality. I think of many preachers who have committed adultery during my lifetime and they are out of the ministry and their dishonor remains in spite of the good that they accomplished.
(3) The strange woman leads to the loss of wealth (Prov. 5:10). Samson lost everything to immorality. An article in the Baptist Press that described two ministers who became addicted to pornography concluded with these words: “Both of the guys I’m dealing with right now, here’s what they’ve lost: They’ve lost their marriage. They’ve lost their job. They lost a lot of friends in the sense it will never be the same. They’ve lost custody of their children and now they are both doing something that they don’t really want to do or feel called to do, and they’re just trying to get by” (“Flood of Pornography Breaching the Church,” Baptist Press, Jul. 6, 2007).
(4) The strange woman leads to the loss of health (Prov. 5:11). God has loosed special diseases into the realm of immorality. There are many venereal diseases that a person will never catch if he remains morally pure and faithful to his marital spouse. There is also often loss of health through the drunkenness and drug abuse that often accompanies immoral living. This has resulted in the early death of tens of thousands of rock & rollers. We think of Elvis Presley, who died at age 42 because of his debauched lifestyle. We also think of Hollywood movie stars such as Errol Flynn, who died at age 50 from his “kamikaze lifestyle” and lost much of his money to multiple divorces and careless sexual relationships.
(5) The strange woman leads to remorse (Prov. 5:12-14). Those who follow the strange woman are temporarily blinded by lust, but they wake up one day to find that they have lost much. They are filled with remorse that they did not listen to the voice of wisdom. They hated instruction and despised reproof and obeyed not the voice of their teachers, but it is too late to go back. What is done is done and cannot be undone. We must understand that remorse is not the same as repentance unto salvation. Paul contrasted these two things in 2 Corinthians 7:10. He mentioned the sorrow of the world as opposed to godly sorrow that worketh repentance to salvation. The sorrow of the world is to be sorry for the consequences of sin, but it is not to be sorry toward God in the sense of repenting of breaking His laws and being ready to change direction in life and submit to Him. The sorrow of the world is centered upon this world, whereas repentance is centered upon God. While working in a county jail ministry for a few years I met many men who had the sorrow of the world. They were sorry that their actions had gotten them into a lot of trouble and had brought dishonor upon them and had hurt their loved ones, but they were not repentant toward God and were not ready to be saved.
(6) The strange woman leads to slavery (Prov. 5:22-23). Solomon ends with this warning because it explains why the sinner cannot easily walk away from the strange woman after once entertaining her. There are strong cords associated with sin, and those cords grow tighter with time, and few cords are stronger than the cords of immorality. Those who are addicted to pornography can testify to this. Compare John 8:34 and 2 Timothy 2:26.
In light of these warnings we need to thank the Lord that He offers salvation to sinners, and that salvation brings cleansing from all sin. When Proverbs says the sinner “shall die without instruction” (Prov. 5:23), it is speaking from the standpoint of the Law of Moses rather than the grace of the gospel. The Bible’s Good News is that Jesus Christ died on the cross and shed His blood to make atonement for our sins, and by faith in Him we can be forgiven and converted. See 1 Corinthians 6:9-11.
[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, an e-mail listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. OUR GOAL IN THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF OUR MINISTRY IS NOT DEVOTIONAL BUT IS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. The Fundamental Baptist Information Service mailing list is automated. To SUBSCRIBE or to UNSUBSCRIBE or to CHANGE ADDRESSES or to RE-SUBSCRIBE UNDER A NEW ADDRESS, go to http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. If you have any trouble with this, please let us know. And please be patient with us. We do not ignore any unsubscribe request, but we cannot always get to your request immediately as each person involved with maintaining the Way of Life web site does this only on a very part time basis and is busy with many other major activities, such as pastoring and missionary work. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6) if they can. Some of the articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 25th year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org. We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but from those who are. OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html. PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org]
May 27, 2008 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -
The following is from the new Advanced Bible Studies Series course on the book of Proverbs.
Proverbs warns frequently of the danger of the “strange woman,” referring to all forms of immorality. It also teaches us that one important way of victory over the strange woman is to ponder her end. Hollywood, as Satan’s instrument, commonly fails to show the end of sin, tending to make it appear glamorous and exciting and rarely showing its awful consequences. God’s Word, on the other hand, shows the end of sin in the plainest manner as a warning to men. Proverbs 5:4-23 describes six results of immorality. Though the deeds of the strange woman appeal to the flesh and there are pleasures in her sin for a season, her end is what we must consider, and her end is fearful in the extreme.
(1) The strange woman leads to hell (Prov. 5:4-5). The Bible warns often about hell. Jesus preached about it many times and warned people not to go there (e.g., Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:22-31). In Proverbs 5:4-5 hell is likened to the bitterness of wormwood and the pain of a sharp sword. In fact, it is far worse because the pain of hell has no end.
(2) The strange woman leads to the loss of honor (Prov. 5:9). Consider David, the sweet Psalmist of Israel, and how that his honor is stained to this very day by his dalliance with immorality. I think of many preachers who have committed adultery during my lifetime and they are out of the ministry and their dishonor remains in spite of the good that they accomplished.
(3) The strange woman leads to the loss of wealth (Prov. 5:10). Samson lost everything to immorality. An article in the Baptist Press that described two ministers who became addicted to pornography concluded with these words: “Both of the guys I’m dealing with right now, here’s what they’ve lost: They’ve lost their marriage. They’ve lost their job. They lost a lot of friends in the sense it will never be the same. They’ve lost custody of their children and now they are both doing something that they don’t really want to do or feel called to do, and they’re just trying to get by” (“Flood of Pornography Breaching the Church,” Baptist Press, Jul. 6, 2007).
(4) The strange woman leads to the loss of health (Prov. 5:11). God has loosed special diseases into the realm of immorality. There are many venereal diseases that a person will never catch if he remains morally pure and faithful to his marital spouse. There is also often loss of health through the drunkenness and drug abuse that often accompanies immoral living. This has resulted in the early death of tens of thousands of rock & rollers. We think of Elvis Presley, who died at age 42 because of his debauched lifestyle. We also think of Hollywood movie stars such as Errol Flynn, who died at age 50 from his “kamikaze lifestyle” and lost much of his money to multiple divorces and careless sexual relationships.
(5) The strange woman leads to remorse (Prov. 5:12-14). Those who follow the strange woman are temporarily blinded by lust, but they wake up one day to find that they have lost much. They are filled with remorse that they did not listen to the voice of wisdom. They hated instruction and despised reproof and obeyed not the voice of their teachers, but it is too late to go back. What is done is done and cannot be undone. We must understand that remorse is not the same as repentance unto salvation. Paul contrasted these two things in 2 Corinthians 7:10. He mentioned the sorrow of the world as opposed to godly sorrow that worketh repentance to salvation. The sorrow of the world is to be sorry for the consequences of sin, but it is not to be sorry toward God in the sense of repenting of breaking His laws and being ready to change direction in life and submit to Him. The sorrow of the world is centered upon this world, whereas repentance is centered upon God. While working in a county jail ministry for a few years I met many men who had the sorrow of the world. They were sorry that their actions had gotten them into a lot of trouble and had brought dishonor upon them and had hurt their loved ones, but they were not repentant toward God and were not ready to be saved.
(6) The strange woman leads to slavery (Prov. 5:22-23). Solomon ends with this warning because it explains why the sinner cannot easily walk away from the strange woman after once entertaining her. There are strong cords associated with sin, and those cords grow tighter with time, and few cords are stronger than the cords of immorality. Those who are addicted to pornography can testify to this. Compare John 8:34 and 2 Timothy 2:26.
In light of these warnings we need to thank the Lord that He offers salvation to sinners, and that salvation brings cleansing from all sin. When Proverbs says the sinner “shall die without instruction” (Prov. 5:23), it is speaking from the standpoint of the Law of Moses rather than the grace of the gospel. The Bible’s Good News is that Jesus Christ died on the cross and shed His blood to make atonement for our sins, and by faith in Him we can be forgiven and converted. See 1 Corinthians 6:9-11.
[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, an e-mail listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. OUR GOAL IN THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT OF OUR MINISTRY IS NOT DEVOTIONAL BUT IS TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. The Fundamental Baptist Information Service mailing list is automated. To SUBSCRIBE or to UNSUBSCRIBE or to CHANGE ADDRESSES or to RE-SUBSCRIBE UNDER A NEW ADDRESS, go to http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. If you have any trouble with this, please let us know. And please be patient with us. We do not ignore any unsubscribe request, but we cannot always get to your request immediately as each person involved with maintaining the Way of Life web site does this only on a very part time basis and is busy with many other major activities, such as pastoring and missionary work. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6) if they can. Some of the articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 25th year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org. We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but from those who are. OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html. PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org]
Do We Need "Thee" and "Thou"?
Feb/21/08 20:56
DO WE NEED “THEE” AND “THOU”?
Updated and enlarged February 21, 2008 (first published March 21, 2002) (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) –
Many criticize the use of “thee, thou, thy, and thine” in the King James Bible. They say that these expressions are antiquated and difficult to understand and therefore should be dropped.
It is important to understand that the use of these expressions in common English had already dropped out by 1611 when the King James Bible was published. We can see this by reading the Translator’s Preface and other writings of the translators.
Why, then, were these retained in the English Bible in the 17th century?
They were retained for the following two reasons.
First, the King James Bible retained THEE, THOU, and THINE for linguistic purposes.
Continue reading this article……
Updated and enlarged February 21, 2008 (first published March 21, 2002) (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) –
Many criticize the use of “thee, thou, thy, and thine” in the King James Bible. They say that these expressions are antiquated and difficult to understand and therefore should be dropped.
It is important to understand that the use of these expressions in common English had already dropped out by 1611 when the King James Bible was published. We can see this by reading the Translator’s Preface and other writings of the translators.
Why, then, were these retained in the English Bible in the 17th century?
They were retained for the following two reasons.
First, the King James Bible retained THEE, THOU, and THINE for linguistic purposes.
Continue reading this article……
Is The Bible the Sole Authority for Faith and Practice?
Feb/20/08 20:56
IS THE BIBLE THE SOLE AUTHORITY FOR FAITH AND PRACTICE?
Updated February 20, 2008 (first published March 5, 1999) (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) –
Is the Bible the sole authority for faith and practice? The Roman Catholic Church says it is not. The Vatican II Council affirmed that “both Scripture and Tradition must be accepted and honoured with equal feelings of devotion and reverence” (Vatican II documents, “Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation,” Chap. 2, 9, p. 682).
Thus, Rome has boldly exalted its traditions to a status equal with Holy Scripture.
I frequently receive letters and e-mails from Catholics who challenge me about the authority of the Bible. They know that they cannot defend Catholic doctrine strictly from the Bible. If the Bible alone is the authority for faith and practice, it can easily be demonstrated from Scripture that the Catholic Church is false. The authority of the Bible is therefore at the heart of the difference between Roman Catholicism and churches that base their doctrine and practice strictly upon the Holy Scriptures.
Following is an example of the many challenges I have received:
Continue reading this article……
Updated February 20, 2008 (first published March 5, 1999) (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) –
Is the Bible the sole authority for faith and practice? The Roman Catholic Church says it is not. The Vatican II Council affirmed that “both Scripture and Tradition must be accepted and honoured with equal feelings of devotion and reverence” (Vatican II documents, “Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation,” Chap. 2, 9, p. 682).
Thus, Rome has boldly exalted its traditions to a status equal with Holy Scripture.
I frequently receive letters and e-mails from Catholics who challenge me about the authority of the Bible. They know that they cannot defend Catholic doctrine strictly from the Bible. If the Bible alone is the authority for faith and practice, it can easily be demonstrated from Scripture that the Catholic Church is false. The authority of the Bible is therefore at the heart of the difference between Roman Catholicism and churches that base their doctrine and practice strictly upon the Holy Scriptures.
Following is an example of the many challenges I have received:
Continue reading this article……
