THE LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT OF JESUS CHRIST

(Today's “News & Views” is the expansion of “A Thursday Morning Observation” I posted on Facebook back on August 6, 2026).

There are those who say that we should not read the New Testament as if it were a constitution, a blueprint, or a pattern to be adhered to in all respects. They think it should be read with the leeway to change, adjust, and adapt it to contemporary culture and the constant changes that occur in society.

Well, how about this: Since it is a testament, a will, why not read it as such? No one has the right to change another person's will. The New Testament is the last will and testament of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Once He had died and sealed it with His blood (Matthew 26:28), He has not modified it in the least iota or attached any codicils to it, and no one else has the authority to do so.

During His personal ministry, Christ was modeling and teaching the principles of His will (Acts 1:1). As noted above, at His death His unchangeable will was sealed by His blood (Matthew 26:28). “And for this reason He is the mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant (the Old Testament, hf), that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance. For where there is a testament, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. For a testament is in force after men are dead, since it has no power at all while the testator lives” (Hebrews 9:15-17).

After His death and resurrection, Christ gave a synopsis of His will to His apostles. He said, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things whatever I have commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20). The apostles were appointed by Christ to be the executors of His will under the direction of the Holy Spirit. Shortly before His ascension back to heaven Christ appeared to His apostles for the last time and said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And you are witnesses of these things. And behold I send the promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high” (Luke 24:46-49). Notice that it was necessary for Christ to suffer (die) and to rise from the dead before repentance and remission of sins under His last will and testament could be preached in His name (by His authority) to all nations, and it was to all begin at Jerusalem!

Christ's will was first “read” in Jerusalem on the first day of Pentecost following His death, burial, and resurrection as we see in Acts 2. Throughout the remainder of the book of Acts we observe that will continuing to be declared. What the New Testament said when it was put in place 2000 years ago it still says. Christ's will sets forth conditions, blessings, and benefits, consequences of failure to comply with it, as well as for tampering with it (modifying it). What it originally said about how to be saved from sin and become a child of God it still says. What it originally said about how to receive the eternal inheritance of heaven it still says. Christ has not changed His will in the least, and no man or woman has the right to do so.

How people were saved before the inauguration of the New Testament, including those whom Christ saved during His personal ministry (e.g., the thief on the cross and various others), has no bearing on how people are saved after the last will and testament of Christ came into effect. While on earth Christ had power to forgive sins on whatever conditions He chose (Matthew 9:1-6). But after the New Testament came into effect all sins are remitted on the conditions stipulated in His last will. “He takes away the first (the Old Testament) that He may establish the second (the New Testament). By that will (the second, the New) we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:9-10). Since the death, burial, resurrection and ascension of Christ, people are saved on the basis of the New Testament, not on the basis of the Old Testament.

Let us not look to the Old Testament (under which Christ Himself lived and died) for the the last will and testament of Christ. It will not be found there. We are saved today by complying with the stipulations of Christ's last will and adhering to its conditions in order to receive our eternal inheritance. The book of Acts is a divinely inspired record of how the will of Christ was presented to mankind and how people complied with the conditions of that will in order to become “heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:17). At least nine cases of how people are saved under the last will and testament of Christ are found in Acts: the people on Pentecost (Acts 2), the Samaritans (Acts 8:1-13), the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8:26-40), Saul of Tarsus (who became the apostle Paul) (Acts 9, 22, 26), Cornelius and his household (Acts 10), Lydia and her household (Acts 16:11-15), the Philippian jailer and his household (Acts 16:25-34), the Corinthians (Acts 18:1-8), and about twelve men in Ephesus (Acts 19:1-12). It is highly presumptuous for anyone to think that Christ will save people on any other basis! To plead God's mercy and grace for salvation on any conditions other than those clearly stated in His last will is to fly in the face of the Lord's will as set forth in “the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24).

If we want to be saved from our sins today and obtain the hope and promise of eternal life in heaven, we must do what people did in the book of Acts to be saved. Certainly we need to read, study, absorb, preach, and teach what Christ did and taught in the four gospel records. In them He was setting forth the soul-saving principles of His last will and testament. But, it is in Acts that we find His last will and testament being proclaimed. It is then “fleshed out” in the rest of the New Testament. The part of the New Testament that comes after the four gospels needs a lot of reading, study, teaching, and preaching today. Sadly, the denominational world, to say nothing of the secular world around us, seems to know little about the last twenty-three books of the New Testament, the last will and testament of Jesus Christ.

Hugh Fulford

 

BAPTISTS AND BAPTISM

In the last edition of “Hugh's News & Views” we set forth the Lord's way of salvation as revealed in the Holy Scriptures. We said much about baptism because the Bible says much about baptism and the part it plays in salvation from sin. In spite of the clarity with which the Lord and His apostles spoke with regard to baptism it is still often claimed that baptism has nothing to do with one's salvation from sin.

In 1890, Edward T. Hiscox, a Baptist theologian, produced a Standard Manual for Baptist Churches. In it he said: "It is most likely that in the apostolic age when there was but 'one Lord, one faith, and one baptism,' and no different denominations existed, the baptism of a convert by that very act, constituted him a member of the church, and at once endowed him with all the rights and privileges of full membership. In that sense, 'baptism was the door into the church.' Now it is different (emphasis mine, hf); and while the churches are desirous of receiving members, they are wary and cautious that they do not receive unworthy persons" (Page 22).

I bought that book and read that statement over seventy years ago when I was a junior in high school. I wondered then and I still wonder why, by the author's own admission, things were one way in the age of the apostles, including the purpose of baptism, but now they are different! Why are they different? Who made them different? Who had the authority to make them different?

I am aware that there are many kinds of Baptists and that they all do not believe and teach the same thing. However, most Baptists of my acquaintance do not view baptism as being essential to salvation from one's alien sins (sins committed before becoming a child of God). They see it as a testimony and witness of their commitment to follow Christ (sometimes expressed as an outward sign of an inward grace, or some variation thereof), but they believe that one is saved by faith alone, before and without baptism. If this is a misrepresentation of their teaching and belief, I will be pleased to be corrected. (Note: Nothing said here is intended as a personal attack on Baptists. We are simply looking at a contrast between Baptist doctrine and practice and what the New Testament teaches concerning salvation from sin).

It is sometimes said, “We are saved by grace through faith, not of works. Baptism is a work, therefore it has nothing to do with our salvation.” It is certainly true that we are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9). It is also true that we are not saved by human works of meritorious righteousness (Ephesians 2:10). But faith without works is dead (James 2:20, 24, 26). Someone says, “But James was talking about works that a saved person, one who is already a Christian, does.” So, let me ask, “Will faith only save an alien sinner but it will not save a Christian?”

The truth of scripture is that the alien sinner must render obedience to the gospel to be saved and such obedience involves certain works of righteousness (works which God Himself ordained). At the household of Cornelius, Peter affirmed: “But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him” (Acts 10:35). Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21) (Emphasis mine in both quotations, hf). According to Christ, salvation involves doing something. What is that “something”? Christ is the “author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him” (Hebrews 5:9).

Salvation is “by grace through faith,” but significantly faith itself is said to be a work. Jesus said, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent” (John 6:29). Repentance is also a work that accountable men and women must do in order to be saved (Luke 13:3, 5; Acts 17:30). Salvation by grace through faith does not remove the obligation to repent of one's sins, neither does it remove the need to believe, nor the necessity of a person being baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit for the remission of sins! (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 2:38). The Lord told Saul of Tarsus that in the city of Damascus he would be told what he must do (emphasis mine, hf). What was Saul told to do? Read it for yourself: “And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:16). Salvation by grace through faith does not remove the necessity of baptism from God's way of salvation, any more than it removes the necessity of faith and repentance!

Baptism is a divine act in which God performs spiritual surgery (circumcision) on the heart “by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh” (Colossians 2:11). This “surgery” takes place when one is “buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working (operation, KJV) of God, who has raised Him from the dead” (Colossians 2:12). I remember quite vividly as a boy hearing Willard Willis, an outstanding gospel preacher, say, “When we are baptized, God performs an 'operation' on us in which the sins of the flesh are cut away and removed.” The Great Physician tells us that we must have this “surgery” (Mark 16:16). The “operation” is absolutely necessary, otherwise the “cancer” of sin will not be removed from our lives! Have you submitted to this surgery by the Great Physician?

Having set forth the above, it is refreshing to know that some in the denominational world are coming to have a more biblical view and understanding of the place of baptism in the Lord's way of salvation. Several years ago, I wrote a “News & Views” in which I referenced Titus 3:5: “...not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit.” I received a note from my good friend and fellow preacher Sellers Crain in which he said:

“On the Titus 3:5 passage, when I was going to Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Chicago, Dr. Douglas Moo was one of my professors. He is considered to be one of the premier NT scholars in the country. He wrote a Commentary on Romans that is about 1200 pages and a NIV Application Commentary on Romans about 500 pages. He was my teacher on the Pastoral Epistles, and he said on Titus 3:5, 'Fellows, I think that applies to baptism, and I think there is more to baptism than we are willing to admit.' I said, 'I am willing to admit it,' and he allowed me all the time I wanted to explain what I believe the Bible teaches, after which he said, 'Fellows, that is biblical.' When I read his NIV commentary in the excursus on Romans 6, he said he was baptized for the remission of sins. He said, 'Baptism is the point at which we come into Christ and the point at which our sins are forgiven.'”

Let us continue to preach and practice the truth on baptism! Let us continue to press the offensive on going back to the New Testament and just being the church we read of there—in doctrine, practice, and life! No one has the right to make things any different from what they were in the apostolic age (Galatians 1:6-9; Revelation 22:18-19).

Hugh Fulford

 

 

What must I do to be saved?

THE LORD'S WAY OF SALVATION

In the past I have striven in my “News & Views” to regularly set forth the Lord's way of salvation from sin. In looking back over the past year, I see that it has been several months since I have addressed this important subject. This “News & Views” is intended to remedy that unintentional oversight. Just think! What a tragedy—an eternal tragedy—it would be to stand before the Lord on the day of judgment only to hear Him say, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness” (you who ignored My law and did otherwise) (Matthew 7:21-23).

The only way any of us will be saved is by the Lord's way. Jesus affirmed, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). “I must needs go home by the way of the cross: There's no other way but this.” As the apostle Peter once asked rhetorically, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life?” (John 6:68). We will not be saved by what we have always thought, believed, or felt about how to be saved. We will not be saved by what our parents or grandparents may have believed about how to be saved. We will not be saved by what the culture around us says. We will not be saved by what many theologians, preachers, and televangelists tell us.

A popular preacher, the son of an even more popular preacher, often appears on TV and tells people to say a certain prayer and they will be saved. Where do you read of such in your Bible? Read the New Testament—the last will and testament of Jesus Christ (Hebrews 9:15-16)—from Matthew to Revelation and tell me where Jesus or any of His apostles ever told any inquirer to say a certain prayer in order to be saved. I read where a man who had been praying and fasting for three days was told, “Arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 9:1-19; Acts 22:1-16). That man was Saul of Tarsus who became the great apostle Paul. Has God provided a way of salvation for us today that was not available to Saul? Will it not be tragic to stand before God on the day of judgment condemned to eternal torment because you did not read God's word for yourself to see what it says about how to be saved? In this issue of “Hugh's News & Views” I will give book, chapter, and verse from the Bible about how to be saved. Turn to the passages and read them for yourself. Do not take my word for them (Acts 17:11).

The gospel is God's power to save (Romans 1:16). At the heart of the gospel is the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ (1 Corinthians 15:1-5). In this text Paul says that we are saved by the gospel (V. 2). He referred to it as “the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24). For this reason just prior to His ascension back to heaven, Christ commissioned His apostles to “go teach all nations”; to “preach the gospel to every creature” (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16). He did this because “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17), and “without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6). Are we diligently seeking God? Then let us listen to Him as He speaks to us through His inspired word (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Faith in God, faith in Christ, faith in the Bible as God's word enables one to search and see what God, Christ, and the word say about how to be saved.

To be saved one must believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the only way to God (John 8:24; John 14:6). It is to Christ that we must look for salvation. “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up (on the cross, hf), that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:14-15). (For the background to the reference to Moses and the serpent, see Number 21:4-9).

In looking to Christ for salvation we learn that He and His apostles commanded all men everywhere to repent of (turn from) their sins. Jesus said, “I tell you...but unless you repent you will all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3, 5). In his sermon in Athens, Paul preached that God commands all men everywhere to repent (Acts 17:30). To repent means to change one’s mind, leading to a change of actions and a change of spiritual direction in one’s life. God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). If you are lost it will not be God's fault, only your own fault.

When one truly believes that Christ is the Son of God and one's only savior that person will freely confess his faith in Christ. Christ declared, “Therefore, whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32). Just as the Ethiopian eunuch confessed, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God” (Acts 8:37, KJV), so one today must confess that same truth and then continue to confess that truth by their manner of life (Romans 10:9-10; Romans 12:1-2; Philippians 1:27).

To be saved one must also be baptized (immersed in water). Jesus said, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16). One (belief) without the other (baptism) falls short of the Lord's way of salvation. On the day of Pentecost, Peter told inquiring sinners, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). I see that son of a popular preacher on television and wonder why he will not tell people what Jesus said one must do to be saved (Mark 16:15-16), why he will not tell them what Peter told inquiring sinners to do (Acts 2:38), why he will not tell them what Ananias told Saul to do (Acts 22:16). He would not need to come up with a contrived message; he could simply quote or read from his New Testament these passages of scripture. He would then be setting forth the Lord's way of salvation! “Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar” (Romans 3:4).

In baptism sins are washed away (Acts 22:16). In being buried with Christ in baptism one enters into the death of Christ where His blood was shed (Romans 6:3-5; John 19:32-34). Christ shed His blood “for the remission of sins” (Matthew 26:28); we are baptized “for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38). It is when we are baptized that we are saved from our sins (1 Peter 3:21).

But baptism is not the end, it is just the beginning of a new life (Romans 6:3-5). One is baptized into Christ (Galatians 3:27), and in Christ one becomes a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). Once in Christ we are to develop the Christian graces (2 Peter 1:5-11). We must “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). We must avoid the works of the flesh and manifest the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-26). We must be steadfast and unmovable (1 Corinthians 15:58). We must be faithful even to the point of death (Revelation 2:10).

Some of my readers have never obeyed the gospel and are therefore in a lost state (2 Thessalonians 1:6-10). I have a deep and sincere love for them and their souls and a compelling desire to share the Lord's way of salvation with them. I want all of them to hear and understand the pure gospel of Christ, as opposed to a perverted gospel (Galatians 1:6-9). Therefore, I urge all to read the passages cited in this essay. In this way you will be hearing what the Lord, not man, says about how to be saved. When you know what to do, then do it! Only when you do what people did in New Testament times can you become what people became in New Testament times and receive what people received in New Testament times—forgiveness of your sins, adoption as a child of God, membership in the body of Christ, and the promise of a home in heaven. If I can assist you in any way, please reach out to me.

Hugh Fulford

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

QUESTIONS ABOUT HEAVEN AND HELL

 

QUESTIONS ABOUT HEAVEN AND HELL

People have all kinds of ideas about heaven and hell. Some believe that the bliss and joy in heaven is everlasting but that the pain and anguish in torment in hell is not everlasting. Some believe that heaven will be here on earth after it has undergone a renovation by fire. Some of these same people believe that the person who goes to hell will be vaporized with a “poof” and completely annihilated. (“Poof” was actually used to describe the end of those who are lost: Christian Chronicle Podcast featuring Rubel Shelly, hosted by B.T. Irwin, March 2026). All that anyone really knows about heaven and hell is that which is revealed in the Bible. Everything else is just idle speculation and wishful thinking.

To help us focus on these matters, I raise the following questions. The first three are foundational to the ones that follow.

If the English reader of the New Testament knows nothing about the Greek in which it was originally written, can the average man on the street take his English New Testament and learn therefrom what it teaches about both heaven and hell?

Could he/she lay several English translations side by side and by comparing them arrive at what God has taught us about heaven and hell?

If the reader of the English New Testament cannot learn from it what it says about heaven and hell, can he/she learn anything else the New Testament was intended to teach mankind (the virgin birth of Christ, the purpose of Christ coming to earth, what He did and taught, His death, burial, and resurrection, how to be saved from sin, how to acceptably worship God, how to live a life that is pleasing to God)?

When Jesus said to the penitent thief “today you will be with Me in Paradise,” was He talking about a place somewhere here on earth or a place somewhere else? (Luke 23:43).

When Christ died His body was buried in Joseph's tomb and His soul went into Hades but it did not remain there (Acts 2:25-31). (Note: Hades is not synonymous with hell, but refers to the unseen realm of the dead). Is Hades some place here on earth or is it somewhere else?

When Jesus had completed His mission here on earth He ascended back to heaven (Luke 24:50-51; Acts 1:9-11)? Is the heaven to which He ascended somewhere on earth?

When Jesus ascended back to heaven He said to His apostles (and, by extension, all His faithful followers), “I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:1-3). Did He go to some place here on earth to prepare that place? Or is He not now doing what He said “I go” to do, and will do it later at His second coming?

When He comes again to receive us to Himself, will that be some place here on earth or a place that He left this earth to go and prepare for us somewhere else?

When Paul was “caught up to the third heaven” (II Corinthians 12:1-7) to where was he caught up? To some place here on earth, or to some realm above the earth?

Did Jesus say that everlasting punishment would be co-extensive with eternal life, i.e., each at long as the other? (Matthew 25:46).

What is the significance of Christ's quotation of Isaiah in Mark 9 when He spoke three times of a place “where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched”? (Vv. 44, 46, 48).

In speaking of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31), Jesus said that Lazarus was in Abraham's bosom (likely another reference to Paradise), while the rich man was “in torments in Hades” (Vv. 22-23). Were both the rich man and Lazarus somewhere here on earth when one was in Abraham's bosom and the other in torments? Or, were they in realms beyond the earth?

When the rich man asked Father Abraham to send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool his tongue, did Abraham say to him, “Hold on a little while longer, son; in a few minutes your torment will be over and you will be 'poofed' out of existence?”

How did Paul view heaven and hell when he wrote in Romans 2:6-10 and said that at His second coming Jesus “will render to each according to his deeds: to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality—eternal life; but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness—indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, to the Jew first and also to the Greek”?

Did not Christ say that the everlasting fire was prepared for the devil and his angels? (Matthew 25:41). Will the devil and his angels be vaporized with a “poof”?

What is the significance of the apostle John's statement that the devil was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone “where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever”? (Revelation 20:10)? (From the earlier chapters of Revelation we learn who the beast and the false prophet were—people).

What did John have in mind when a few verses later he said, “And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire”? (Revelation 20:15). When cast into the lake of fire would they be vaporized with a “poof,” or like the devil, the beast, and the false prophet, would they also be “tormented day and night forever and ever” (V. 10)?

One final question: Can a gospel preacher, using his English New Testament, preach and teach about heaven and hell in the very words used in the New Testament to describe these two places and by so doing teach God's truth about these two places?

We all have many questions about both heaven and hell. The ones mentioned above should stimulate us to serious thought and study. More importantly, they should move us to live as God intended for us to live so that we might gain heaven and avoid hell. Let us rely on the knowledge and wisdom of God rather than the wisdom of men in regard to these vital questions. (See I Corinthians 1:18-25).

“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (II Timothy 4:4, ESV). Is this what some have done when it comes to the Bible doctrine of heaven and hell?

Are you a Christian? Are you living a faithful Christian life? If you are not living a faithful Christian life and died today, do you know where you would spend eternity? Is that where you really want to be throughout eternity? (Note: “spend eternity” is an accommodative expression. Eternity cannot actually be “spent”; it goes on and on and on, without any end).

Hugh Fulford

 

What does Bible say about Marriage, Divorce and remarriage?

MARRIAGE, DIVORCE, AND REMARRIAGE (AGAIN)

“Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever puts away his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.' But I (Jesus) say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except for sexual immorality/fornication, causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery' ” (Matthew 5:31-32).

“He (Jesus) said to them, 'Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality/fornication, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery' ” (Matthew 19:8-9).

“And He (Jesus) said to them, 'Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her. And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery' ” (Mark 10:11-12).

Jesus speaking: “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced from her husband commits adultery” (Luke 16:18).

The apostle Paul speaking: “For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man” (Romans 7:2-3).

The apostle Paul speaking: “Now to the married I command, yet not I but the Lord: A wife is not to depart from her husband. But even if she does depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband is not to divorce his wife” (I Corinthians 7:10-11).

“A wife is bound by law as long as her husband lives; but if her husband dies, she is at liberty to be married to whom she will, only in the Lord” (I Corinthians 7:39).

“Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge” (Hebrews 13:4).

The language in the above texts is clear and straightforward. All quotations are from the New King James Version. You are encouraged to read all of these passages in several versions of the New Testament: King James Version, American Standard Version, New American Standard Bible, English Standard Version, et. al. The Greek scholars have done an excellent job of translating the original language into the English language. We do not have to be Greek scholars in order to know what Christ, Paul, and the writer of Hebrews said in the above passages. All of the various versions are in complete agreement on what they say.

In the light of the preceding passages, it requires a lot of “jumping through hoops and loops” to say that one under the law of Christ can divorce and remarry for any reason whatsoever and still NOT be guilty of adultery! In that case, the law of Christ would be no different from what the law of Moses permitted. If such were the case, then neither the words of Christ nor those of the inspired apostle Paul have any real meaning. If one can divorce and remarry for many reasons and not be guilty of committing adultery, then, pray tell me, when would a divorce and remarriage constitute adultery? Christ and His apostles did not not engage in such word games and “double-speak.” Their words are plain and easy to understand and the point they make is clear and direct.

Paul dealt with various marital problems in the church at Corinth, some of which had been addressed by the Lord while He was on earth and some of which He had not addressed while on earth, but which Paul addressed under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit (I Corinthians 7; cf. I Corinthians 14:37). Nothing that Paul wrote in I Corinthians 7 regarding various marital situations contradicted or countermanded what he and the Lord had said in the texts cited above. Many people, wanting to divorce their present spouse and marry another but with no scriptural ground for doing so, often go looking for “loop-holes” as to how they may divorce and remarry with the Lord's approval. Most of the time, this is done when a forbidden marriage has already been entered into.

It is regrettable that many people have gotten their marital lives so badly tangled with multiple marriages, divorces, and remarriages, or by simply living together without a civil marriage ceremony. I grieve for those who have done so, and my heart goes out to the children who have been the innocent victims of these unscriptural marriages or “living-together-but-not-married” arrangements. God has not commissioned me to untangle these marriages and unholy relationships. Only the parties involved in them and who know why they divorced and remarried can untangle them. But I (and all other gospel preachers and teachers, including elders) have been charged with the responsibility to teach what the Lord and His apostles taught on this important subject as set forth in the above passages.

Do not be taken in by the trickery of men who, for whatever reason, want to get around what the word of God plainly teaches about marriage, divorce, and remarriage. Don't go looking for “loop-holes” in what the Bible says. Over the years, I have observed that when an effort is made to get around a plain, positive statement of scripture, behind that effort is an agenda to defend someone who has violated that scripture and who is living (or practicing things) contrary to the Scriptures.

I pray that all marriages that have been entered into in harmony with God's word will be strong and lasting just as God Himself from the beginning ordained (Genesis 2:24-25).

Hugh Fulford

 

 

 

 

 

 

What does the church of Christ believe?

HAVE WE FORGOTTEN THAT THE CHURCH OF CHRIST IS UNIQUE?

(Note: The following article was written by John Jones, minister of the church in McEwen, TN and appeared in that church's bulletin of August 4, 2025. I have never met brother Jones, but for a period of over thirty years, beginning in 1980, I conducted at least six meetings with the church in McEwen and spoke there at various other times on special occasions. I know most of the present elders and what they stand for. I commend brother Jones' excellent article to all readers of Hugh's News & Views. It is a fitting sequel to the article two weeks ago on "How Do You View The Church of Christ?" If some think my emphasis on the distinctiveness of the church of our Lord is a case of "overkill," I would simply note that it is "the squeaking wheel that gets the grease." Far too many Christians, including many preachers and elders, have either forgotten, never knew, or have abandoned, what the New Testament says about the one church Christ established. The denominational world has absolutely no concept of Christianity except from a denominational perspective. Brother Jones' article follows).

One truth that we cannot overemphasize is that the church of Christ is unique in the religious world today. We claim to be the church you can read about in the Bible because we follow what we see as a pattern in the New Testament for the establishment of the Christian church (not used as a "name" for the church, but as a descriptor of the New Testament church, as distinct from "the church in the wilderness" composed of fleshly Israelites, Acts 7:38, hf). We meet together on the first day of the week to partake of the Lord's Supper (Acts 20:7), sing songs of praise to God without instrumental musical accompaniment (Ephesians 5:19), give of our means to support the work of the church (1 Corinthians 16:1–2), offer prayers to God (1 Timothy 2:1), and hear a message from God's word (Acts 2:42). We do these things because this is what the early church did in their worship. We recognize the apostle's doctrine of male spiritual leadership (1 Corinthians 14:33–34) but also appreciate the roles of service our hard-working women provide the church (Titus 2:3–5). We follow the pattern of each congregation having elders who lead the local church to follow Jesus (1 Timothy 3:1–6). We emphasize, scripturally, that baptism is for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38). These biblical principles make us unique in the religious world today!

The ability to provide a scripture reference behind each of the spiritual activities we do is very important to us. We believe in biblical authority that comes from recognizing the Lord's authority in the running of His church. He purchased it with his own blood (Acts 20:28), He built it (Matthew 16:18), and He is its head (Ephesians 5:23), therefore He commands and we obey. But those commands are given in a spirit of love because He knows what is best for us. When we obey Him, we recognize His love for us and respond submissively to Jesus because we love Him (John 14:15).

Unfortunately, I've recently seen some of our members act like the church of Christ is just one among many denominational options or, sadly, that their membership is only tied to where their parents raised them. I'm worried that we may be turning into the Israelites of Judges 2:10 - "And there arose another generation after them who did not know the LORD or the work that he had done for Israel." I've heard some recently explain that former members here are now attending with the Baptists or Methodists and, instead of expressing deep sadness over this, act as if its better to be worshiping in falsehood than not at all.

Don't get me wrong, we love everyone. But our love for them ought to be shown in a deep concern for their souls. If we believe all churches are essentially the same, other than some minor differences, we have completely missed the point. Jesus built one church and disunity among Christians is condemned (1 Corinthians 1:10). Jesus calls all Christians to a unity that is founded upon the truth of His word (John 17:17, 20–23). If we give up on that, can we really claim to be Christ's followers?

Do we know who we are and what we stand for? Do we understand the "restoration plea"? Are we still interested in Christian unity from a "back to the Bible" perspective? Let's encourage our brethren about what makes us unique and invite everyone we know to join us in the ongoing work of restoration: restoring individuals to God and restoring the church to the pattern the apostles show us clearly in the pages of the New Testament.

Hugh Fulford

Bible Truths...Baptism

BIBLE TRUTHS ABOUT BAPTISM

 

* John the Baptist preached "baptism for the remission of sins" (Mark 1:4).

 

* Those who refused John's baptism rejected the counsel of God (Luke 7:30).

 

* Jesus Himself was baptized by John and God was well pleased with Him (Matthew 3:13-17).

 

* Jesus had no sins (I Peter 2:21-22), but in being baptized Jesus "fulfilled all righteousness" (Matthew 3:13-16), i.e., He obeyed a commandment that God had given through John the Baptist and all of God's commandments are righteousness (Psalm 119:172).

 

* Jesus also was baptized to avoid the conflicting position of being "a teacher come from God" (John 3:2) while not submitting to the preaching of another teacher from God, John the Baptist (John 1:6-7).

 

* Jesus and His disciples baptized (John 3:26; John 4:1-2).

 

* Jesus said that a man who had experienced the natural birth from his mother's womb must nevertheless be "born again...of water and the Spirit" (John 3:3-5).

 

* Jesus commanded the apostles to teach all nations, baptizing people in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:18-20).

 

* Jesus said, "He who believes and is baptized shall be saved" (Mark 16:16).

 

* The apostle Peter told sinners to "repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins" (Acts 2:38).

 

* As a result of having Christ preached to him, the Ethiopian eunuch asked to be baptized, and upon confessing his faith in Christ, he immediately was baptized (Acts 8:35-39).

 

* Baptism is a complete immersion in water (Matthew 3:16; Acts 8:38-39; Romans 6:4-5; Colossians 2:12).

 

* The Philippian jailer and his household were baptized the same hour of the night in which they learned what to do to be saved (Acts 16:25-34).

 

* "And many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed, and were baptized" (Acts 18:8b).

* There is but one baptism: baptism in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit for the remission of sins (Ephesians 4:5; Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 2:38).

 

* Baptism is so important that Paul re-baptized about twelve men who had received the outdated baptism of John the Baptist (no longer valid if administered after Acts 2), i.e., the men had to make a second trip to the water in order to be right with God (Acts 19:1-7).

 

* Baptism washes away sins (Acts 22:16).

 

* Baptism is into Christ (Romans 6:3; Galatians 3:27).

 

* Baptism is into the death of Christ where He shed His blood (Romans 6:3-4; John 19:33-34).

 

* It is in baptism that one contacts the blood of Christ (note the preceding) and has his sins washed away (Acts 22:16).

 

* Baptism is not a work of human merit, but a work of God (Colossians 2:11-12).

 

* God saves people according to His mercy "by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit" (Titus 3:4-7).

 

* Baptism is into the one body, the church (I Corinthians 12:13; (Ephesians 1:22-23).

 

* The church of the Lord (the composite of all those who have been saved—Acts 2:47) is sanctified and cleansed "with the washing of water by the word" (Ephesians 5:25-26).

 

* Baptism saves (I Peter 3:21).

 

Hugh Fulford

 

He Lives

He Is Alive

 

If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. But now is Christ risen from the dead . . . . . . . .(1 Corinthians 15:19-20)

 

 Jesus has been crucified, his body taken from the cross and laid in a sepulchre that is tightly sealed with a stone (Mk. 15:46-47). With high hopes and dreams, the disciples of Jesus had given their hearts, souls and minds to him. Up to a few days ago everything was going well but now they have watched as Jesus was crucified and his body placed in that sepulchre. Now his disciples are miserable and gather together mourning and weeping (Mk. 16:10). Suddenly, Mary Magdalene appears telling them that Jesus is alive, she has seen him. The mourning and weeping will now be replaced with joy.

 

As I sit here today, these words from a beautiful song echo within my heart: "Because he lives I can face tomorrow, Because he lives all fear is gone, Because I know he holds the future, And life is worth the living just because he lives." We don't have any inkling of an idea what lies just around the corner in front of us. It may be good but it also may not be good. Thanks be to God, we don't have to be fearful of the next moment (Isa. 12:2-3); Heb. 4:14-16; John 14:1-3, 27; Phil. 4:6-7; Heb. 13:5; Rom. 8:35-39).

 

So long as we obey him and him only, so long as we love him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, ever trusting and confiding in him, his faithful love will surround us with tender care and, not in a literal sense, by faith he will whisper to us, "You are not alone" (Mark 12:30; Psalm 62:8; Heb. 13:5-6). We are greatly blessed with the privilege of walking each day of our life with him as our friend, our companion and protector always instructing and safely guiding us whatever betides us (John 15:14; Psalm 145:18-20; Psalm 46:1; Psalm 119:105; 2 Tim. 3:16-17).We know that he holds the future in his hands and with confidence we can face each day knowing we have the touch of the Master's hand on our heart.

 

I can think of no better way to end this thought than by the words written by A.H. Ackley in the song, He Lives: "He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today! He walks with me and talks with me along life's narrow way. He lives, He lives, salvation to impart! You ask me how I know He lives? He lives within my heart."

 

Charles Hicks

 

No Place Like Home

No Place Like Home

 

We are confident, I say, and willing to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him (2 Cor. 5:8-9).

 

As I think about this passage from 2 Corinthians 5, some beautiful words from the song, Anywhere Is Home, begin fill my heart: "Oft I'm tossed about and driven by the foe, Sad within without wherever I may go, But  I press along still looking up in prayer, For its home sweet home if Christ my Lord is there." Long ago I came to the conclusion that wherever you go, whatever you do, there just is no place like the comfort and peace of a home filled with the faithful love of Christ. As much as this is true in the temporal realm, I, for one, believe to be absent from this body and be present with the Lord is far greater.

 

I love this life and want to stay here for as long as possible. Yet I know that this world is not my permanent dwelling place and neither is it yours (Phil. 3:20; 1 Pet. 2:11). With all our being we should be reaching forth to that which lies in front of us knowing that with the passing of each day, yea even the passing of each minute of each day, we are brought  one step closer to shedding these earthly bonds (Phil. 3:13-14). Yes, I do love this life and want to stay here a little longer, yet there is within my heart a longing for that day when I will shed these earthly bonds and be present with the Lord. What do you say about yourself?

 

Life as we know it is so uncertain. Job tells us it is of few days as well as like a swift ship (Job 14:1, 9:26); Isaiah compares life to a thread soon to be cut Isa.:38:12); 2 Sam. 14:14 tells us life is like water spilled on the ground which cannot be gathered up again and James tells us that our life is like a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away (James 4:14-15). Psalms 90:9-10 is a great summation of life: "For all our days are passed away in thy wrath: we spend our days as a tale that is told. The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off and we fly away."

 

As we journey through this earthly life, I pray that for each of us it will be one in which happiness, contentment, prosperity, reasonably good health, comfort and peace of mind will far outweigh the adverse conditions that will surely strike our human frame from time to time. But most of all I pray that when we take that journey from which we will not return, it will be well with our eternal soul on that great appointed judgement day. O, how I want one day to stand in the presence of the Lord and proclaim, Home, Home at last! How about you?

 

Charles Hicks

 

BABY JESUS AND BIG JESUS

 

BABY JESUS AND BIG JESUS

 

We are at that time of the year when people's attention is drawn to the birth of Christ. The Bible does not tell us the date of His birth. We only know that "when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son…" (Galatians 4:4-5). We rejoice over that birth—as well as the earthly life, teaching, death, burial, resurrection, ascension, coronation, intercession, and promised return of Christ. How wonderful it would be if the world could be as excited about Christ the whole year 'round as it is at Christmas—though I am deeply thankful that at least once in a while people will give Him some thought!

 

How great it would be, too, if the world would be as attracted to the "Big" Jesus as it is to the "Baby" Jesus. Perhaps it is just part of human nature to be smitten by a baby. (I have never seen an ugly baby—at least one that I would say was ugly!)

 

As we approach what the world knows as Christmas, let us look again at the "Baby" Jesus, and then do some serious thinking about the "Big" Jesus.

 

Baby Jesus was conceived in the womb of the virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit and born in Bethlehem of Judea. All of this was in fulfillment of divine prophecy made centuries before the birth of Christ (Matthew 1:18 – 2:12; Luke 1:26-38; Luke 2:1-20; Isaiah 7:14; Micah 5:2). (Let me encourage you to turn in your Bible and read this beautiful story of how our Savior came to earth. It will build your faith in the word of God and it will touch the hardest of hearts to read for yourself this wonderful story of God's love for all mankind). It is hard to see how anyone would not believe these passages of Holy Writ and rejoice greatly that our Savior was born and that the Word (Christ in his pre-fleshly existence with God the Father from all eternity) became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:1-14).

 

But Jesus did not stay a baby. He grew to become a boy and then a man. As a boy, He was subject to Mary and Joseph (who married Mary after the birth of Christ, Luke 2:1-7, especially v. 5) (Luke 2:51). As a boy, Jesus advanced "in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men" (Luke 2:52). He grew mentally, physically, spiritually, and socially. (Note: Parents today might well ask themselves, "How are my children growing and developing? What am I doing to train my children in these four areas of a well-balanced life?").

At about the age of thirty, Jesus was baptized, being immersed by John the Baptist (Baptizer) and began His ministry of teaching (Luke 3:21-23). However, His teaching did not sit well with many who heard Him, and it does not sit well with many people today—even with some who profess to follow Him. The adoration that people have for Baby Jesus does not always translate into adoration and agreement with Big Jesus.

 

Consider the following:

Jesus came to bring "peace on earth and good will among men" (Luke 2:14). But in another sense He did not come to bring peace but a sword and to cause division even among families when some family members choose to follow Christ and other family members reject Christ (Matthew 10:34-39). (Note: Christ bringing both peace on earth but also a sword is one of the great antinomies of scripture, a situation in which two seemingly contradictory statements are made, but which, in reality, are two contrasting yet reasonable and valid truths, two sides of the same coin).

Christ makes demands of people that they don't want to meet (Matthew 16:24-26). Christ taught things that people do not want to hear. He condemned anger and hatred toward others (Matthew 5:21-22. He said that lust was equal to adultery (Matthew 5:27-28). He permitted divorce and remarriage for only one reason (Matthew 5:31-32; Matthew 19:1-9; Romans 7:4). He taught that the two greatest commandments was to love God with all one's heart, soul, and mind, and to love one's neighbor as he loves himself (Matthew 22:36-38) and to do to others as we would have them do to us (Matthew 7:12). He said, "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments" (John 14:15).

Jesus taught that He is the only way to God (John 14:6; Acts 4:11-12). He said that if people do not believe in Him they will die in their sins (John 8:24), and that if one does not repent he will perish. (Luke 13:3). He said if we do not confess Him before men, He will not confess us before the Father (Matthew 10:32-33). Jesus taught the necessity of being baptized (immersed in water) in order to be saved (Mark 16:16; John 3:3-5). Many do not accept the "Big" Jesus on these matters.

Christ emphasized the necessity of obedience to God—instead of the substitution of pious deeds that one might do in His name. In other words, no one can buy or earn his or her way into heaven by just being a good person, with a good heart, and who does some good things along the way of their life (Matthew 7:21-23). Jesus said things that caused people to to turn away from Him (John 6:66-68).

Yet in none of these things was Jesus trying to discourage people from becoming His disciples. In fact, He sought to do the very opposite. Big Jesus said (and still says), "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and you will fine rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light" (Matthew 11:28-30). But such involves counting the cost and being willing to pay the price. (Luke 14:26-28).

So, at this season of the year, as we adore the Baby Jesus let us remember that the baby became a man who made demands. In many ways, He was the demanding Christ.

Are we big enough to commit ourselves to the Big Jesus?

Hugh Fulford

A New Chapter Begins

A New Chapter Begins

 

 The Lord willing, we are about to begin writing a new chapter in the story of our lives. As we come to the end of 2025 and enter 2026, most of us will find ourselves looking back over the months gone by thinking about the good times as well as those not so good. We will think about things we said and did that we wish we had not said or done and, yes, we will think about the things we should have said and done but did not say or do.

 

Days gone by have brought to us moments of happiness, joy, peace and contentment. There have also been those moments when pain, heartache, sorrow and disappointment have filled our soul. I believe it is safe to say that all of us have laughed together and cried together with our families, friends and the brethren. All in all, this has been a wonderful journey thus far.

 

As we move forward into the year 2026, I pray that all of us will resolve to give God the best we have to give. He wants a service from us that comes from the heart (Prov. 23:26). He calls for the best of our love (Mark 12:30-31), and the best of our loyalty (Luke 9:23-26).  Our thoughts, desires, intents and purposes must center on the things of God (Phil. 4:8; Col. 3:1-2; Matt. 6:33; 2 Pet. 1:4-11; Rom. 12:1-2; Eph. 4:25-32; John 14:15).

 

May we never forget that there are no guarantees that we will ever see any of those days of 2026 and if we do, they may be few in number. One day the final line will be written on our lives, the last chapter will be finished and the book will be closed on our earthly journey. Each passing day just brings us a step closer to the moment when we will face God in the great judgment ( Acts 17:30-31; 2 Corinthians 5:6-10).

 

  As I think about entering the new year 2026 with all of its uncertainties, I think about the chorus of the beautiful song that proclaims, "Living by faith in Jesus above, Trusting, confiding in His great love; free from all harm safe in His sheltering arm, I'm living by faith and feel no alarm." For whatever time I may have left on planet earth, this is the way I intend to live my life. How about you?

 

"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me: and the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me"—Galatians 2:20

 

Charles Hicks

swabbie5256@gmail.com

 

 

 

The Greatest of These

 

The Greatest of These

 

And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity (1 Corinthians 13:13).

 

As we sail the sea of life, our faith, hope and love are like protective barriers that surround us and enable us to navigate through the fiercest of storms that so often arise on our voyage through this life. Faith is not just believing in God although believing is necessary (Heb. 11:6). True faith is one evidenced by a life of obedience to the word of the Lord Romans 6:17; Heb. 5:9; 1 Thess. 1:7-9). Hear the words of the Lord from Jeremiah 7:23: "But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you".

 

Hope is founded on that which we cannot behold with our human eyes. It is grounded in that which we have not yet attained (Rom. 8:24; Phil. 3:12-14). Thus, hope is the anchor of our souls as we sail this sea of life with all of its trouble and strife. Although I cannot now see it, I know there is a place prepared for me that is more wondrous than any words can adequately describe (John 14:1-3; 1 Cor. 2:9; Rev. 21:1-4; Rev. 22:1-5). Without this hope dwelling steadfastly in my heart, my life would, indeed, be a miserable existence (1 John 3:1-3).

 

Love is the foundation upon which our faith and hope is built. It is the love of God for us (John 3:16; Rom. 5:8-9) along with our love for him (Mark 12:29-30) that will impart to us the strength and courage we need to see us through each day. Our love for the church becomes an integral part of our faith and hope (Matt. 6:33). And we must not forget the importance of loving each other (John 13:34-35; 1 Peter 1:22; 1 John 4:10-12, 19-21).  There is no doubting that love is the greatest of these because without a great love there would be no faith, no hope for a better country

 

Suppose for a moment that you are standing before the judgment seat of our Lord and he says to you, "According to your love for me, the church and your brethren, so be it unto you". Where will you spend your eternity? Sobering thought, isn't it?

 

Charles Hicks

 

 

Comfort When Affliction Fills Our Heart

Comfort When Affliction Fills Our Heart 

I will lift up my hands also unto thy commandments, which I have loved; And I will meditate on thy statutes. Remember the word unto thy servant, Because thou hast made me to hope. This is my comfort in my affliction; for thy word hath quickened me. (Psalms 119:48-50)

 On this earthly sojourn "things" happen to us that sometimes seem to be unbearably harsh. Who among us has not at some point felt like punching a hole in the wall. Hearts have been broken, lives disrupted, days have been long and difficult, and some nights it seems as if sleep will never come. All this because "things" happen to us and often we do not understand why they happen. Friends, we are all frail, weak, flawed human beings and "things" are going to happen to us that will try our faith (James 1:2-4, 12). Sometimes faith will bring about a change in a particular circumstance that envelopes us. Sometimes faith will not bring about a change. We must never let the circumstances surrounding us determine what kind of faith we have in God. Our faith may be little (Luke 12:28), weak (Romans 4:19), great (Luke 7:9) or strong (Romans 4:20). We need that great, strong faith that will allow us to trust God at all times (Psalms 62:8; Romans 8:28, 31; Isaiah 12:2; Isaiah 40:28-31).

There is no doubting that in those times of affliction, one source of comfort springs from the love and fellowship we have with one another (1 Peter 1:22; 1 John 1:6; Romans 12:15).  However, there is no better source of comfort to be found for our troubled hearts than that which comes from God through his word. This is a comfort that reaches deep into our hearts and if allowed to dwell there will impart to us a measure of strength and courage that will soothe our troubled souls.

 I dearly love the words of Isaiah 40:31: "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint". My knowledge of eagles is very limited. I once read that eagles have the ability to sense when a storm is approaching and will take flight, soaring high into the heavens where they are safely above the storm. The thought occurs to this writer that trusting our Lord with complete confidence, trusting him with a faith that is strong and steadfast will enable you and I to soar above the storms that threaten us and thus find comfort in all of our afflictions whatever they may be.

 Our God is able and willing at all times to comfort our troubled souls (1 Peter 5:6-7; Hebrews 4:16). We only have to reach out with an earnest desire and embrace those exceedingly great and precious promises found in God's word.

 Charles Hicks

 

Hugh's News & Views (Church Arithmetic)

 

SOME CHURCH ARITHMETIC

 

Church Arithmetic Problem # 1: Can one person anywhere in the world today hear, believe, and obey the gospel, and become just a Christian without joining any denomination? If one person can do that, can two people do that? Can ten? Can 100? Can 100 people in a given geographical area who have become Christians only without joining any denomination organize themselves into a congregation and begin reading and studying the Scriptures on their own, committing themselves to following the Scriptures in all things to the best of their ability, worshiping as the Scriptures instruct, governing themselves as the New Testament instructs, committing themselves to living and serving others as the Bible instructs, and disciplining themselves and correcting themselves wherein they fall short in anyway either personally or as a congregation?

 

If there could be one such congregation, could there be two? Could there be ten such congregations? 100? Could there be an indefinite number of such congregations, made up entirely of people who had only heard, believed, and obeyed the gospel, becoming Christians only without ever joining any denomination? What is your answer to this "church arithmetic problem"?

 

Church Arithmetic Problem # 2: According to sources such as the Center for the Study of Global Christianity, the World Christian Database, and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, there are an estimated 45,000 professing Christian denominations around the globe. The Protestant Reformation in the 16thcentury led to the establishment of many different denominations who challenged the authority of the Catholic Church. Professing Christian denominations in different parts of the world have adapted their beliefs and practices to the social and cultural context in which they exist, leading to further divisions. For example, there are twenty-four denominations within the Catholic Church.

 

The Lutheran Church was the first protestant denomination and was founded by the followers of Martin Luther in c. 1530. Think about that for a moment. Christianity had been in the world for 1500 years before the first protestant denomination was ever established! How did the world get along for so long without a single one of the protestant denominations that we have today? Today, there are over forty different Lutheran denominations in the United States alone.

 

The World Methodist Council represents eighty Methodist-related denominations, but there are additional Methodist denominations that are not a part of this Council. There are dozens of different kinds of Presbyterian Churches, especially in the United States. There are more than fifty different kinds of Baptist denominations. There are hundreds of Pentecostal denominations. Many of them are part of the World Pentecostal Fellowship. On and on we could go, talking about the many denominations that exist in the world today. (The above information is available online from the sources named in the first paragraph of this section).

 

Now, here is my question: What if we started with the last denomination that was established and removed it from the thousands of denominations in existence? Would we destroy Christianity by taking away that denomination? Remember, we had Christianity before that last denomination was ever established. Now, let us proceed back to the next one, then the next, then the next—all the way back to the first one. Would we destroy Christianity by doing away with all the protestant denominations? Again, remember that we had Christianity hundreds of years before we ever had even the first protestant church.

 

What if we then went about dismantling the Catholic Church with all its elaborate hierarchy, topped off by the pope? What if we removed every rite, ritual, doctrine, and practice in the Catholic Church that could not be substantiated by inspired scripture? What if we moved all the way back to the days of the New Testament and the church that existed then under the direction of the inspired apostles of Christ? What if we did only what people did in New Testament times to be Christians? What if we believed and taught only that for which we could find Bible authority?

 

What if the people who had been members of all the various protestant denominations and the two billion plus Catholics decided they would just be Christians only without denominational affiliation? Would we not then have "one body (not multiplied thousands), one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith (not hundreds of thousands), one baptism (not many), one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all"? (Ephesians 4:4-6). Does not this passage affirm that there is but one body (which is the church, Ephesians 1:22-23), one faith, and one baptism, just as it affirms that there is one but Lord, one Spirit, one hope, and one God? Based on this passage, would it not make just as much sense to ask which God do you believe in, which Lord do you serve, which Holy Spirit dwells in you, which hope do you have as to ask which church are you a member of, of what faith are you, or of which "mode" were you baptized? Biblically, is there not just one of each of these? Why can we not all be one in Christ just as He prayed in John 17:20-21? Why can we not just be the church of which we read in the New Testament? What is your answer to this "church arithmetic problem"?

 

Note: I am not so naive as to think that all denominational churches [Catholic or Protestant] will ever go out of existence. What is possible, however, is for those who are members of such man-originated churches to leave them and determine to be Christians only without denominational affiliation and without the doctrines, traditions, beliefs, and ceremonies not sanctioned by the Bible.

 

Church Arithmetic Problem # 3: Suppose an evangelist comes to a town somewhere in America and preaches only the gospel of Christ and what it requires of one to be saved from sin and become a Christian. Suppose that 400 people respond to the gospel, doing exactly what people did in the Book of Acts to be saved and made Christians. At the end of the meeting/revival, 100 join denomination A, 100 join denomination B, and 100 hundred join denomination C. However, the remaining 100 join no denomination, but resolve to meet together on the Lord's Day (Sunday) to study the Scriptures and to follow them in all things pertaining to Christian living, the worship of God, and the structure to which they should adhere as a congregation devoted to Christ and His will. Can that be done in today's world? What is your answer to this "church arithmetic problem"? Note: The last group, the ones who joined no denomination but chose to remain an autonomous congregation of Christians only, is a microcosm of what all faithful churches of Christ are today. We have no denominational hierarchy or headquarters. We have no human creed or catechism. We wear no denominational name. Our worship is in accordance with the way Christians worshiped in New Testament times. We seek to live as Christ has taught us to live. To the casual and uninformed observer, conditioned by a denominational mindset, this last group, on the surface, may look very much like those in Denominations A, B, and C. But to those acquainted with the Scriptures, it would be known that these people were not a denomination but just simply Christians, members of the one spiritual body of Christ, the church of which we read in the New Testament.

 

Hugh Fulford