Bible Class Comments

We always seek and encourage class participation in our Bible studies.  Only on very rare occasions is a lecture type class preferable to a situation where students contribute their input to the discussion.  Typically, we desire comments, questions, and observations from those in the class. 

However, there are some reasonable guidelines that we think all students should keep in mind:

1)  The teacher is in charge.  He has been assigned the authority to direct the class; to keep everything moving in the right direction; and to insure a positive outcome for the study period.  That being the case, students should respect his control and management of the class.  If you have comments to make or questions to ask, wait to be acknowledged by the teacher.  And, never begin a ‘give and take’ (maybe a better word would be ‘argument’) with another student in the class.  All input should be directed through the teacher so he can maintain order and progress.  Respect his judgment when he ends a particular line of discussion and indicates that it is time to move on.

2) Prepare in advance for the class.  Too often this does not happen and students are tempted to make ‘off the cuff’ remarks.  Such comments carry a high potential to be off target and are sometimes simply erroneous.  The teacher is then obligated to say, “no, that’s not correct”.  This is embarrassing for the student and teacher alike.  To avoid this, study the subject matter in advance.  Our class topics are carefully planned and typically there are study aids available to assist in your preparation.  Use them.

3)  With the advent of electronic devices and smart-phones, we’ve seen a noticeable increase in people doing ‘research’ during the actual class – ignoring the discussion that is on-going while they stare intently at their miniature screen.  When they find something their hand flies into the air to share their discovery with the class.  This usually means they have quickly searched the Internet and found some link to an author of unknown background who is mistakenly viewed as an expert simply because he posted something online.  As a general rule these references are not helpful to the class discussion.  Again, preparing for the class in advance is far more productive than ‘on the fly’ smart-phone exploration. 

4) Don’t ask for the class to ‘go back’.  We have in mind a situation like this:  the class has discussed a matter thoroughly and the teacher has led the class on to the next point.  Now, heavily into the development of that point, someone will raise his hand and say, “I want to go back to what we were talking about a few minutes ago”.  NO, please, NO!  There is no better way to side track the class than to do this.  If you didn’t get it said when the class was on that point, then your comment will simply have to be saved for a future time. 

5)  Tying Bible references and other scriptural accounts into the subject the class is currently discussing can be helpful, but it can also slow the class down and impede the positive progress.  Here you need to use good judgment.  Even though you might see some parallel to another event in the Bible or to another similar text, ask yourself if adding the comment will really help the discussion.  Lots of things are related to one another in the Bible, but they don’t all have to be included in every examination of a given subject.

6) Remember that there are usually visitors, new converts, weak Christians, etc., in any class.  With this in mind, be careful about interjecting topics that may be controversial or might negatively impact those who are not well grounded in the Bible.  You may think that a lively ‘debate’ of a vague concept is interesting, but the Bible class hour is not the best place for that.  And, we are not in need of someone to ‘play the Devil’s advocate’ in our Bible classes.

7) Be humble.  Never imagine that your level of scholarship exceeds that of the teacher or other students.  Unfortunately, comments are sometimes made that directly impugn the knowledge of others in the class – leaving the impression that the one making the comment has achieved a level of understanding that others have never attained.  Not likely!  Our classes are typically populated by very excellent Bible students.  Keep that in mind, and adjust your comments accordingly.  

We love our Bible classes!  And we cherish the good discussions, the serious questions, and the thoughtful input from all students.  But, use caution in making your comments in such a way that they are helpful and not hurtful.  Think!

- by Greg Gwin

 

Man's Duty to "Prove All Things"

Men are prone to go to extremes.  This has always been true. Paul seems to have been guarding against this tendency when he wrote, "Despise not prophesyings; prove all things; hold fast that which is good" (I Thessalonians 5:20-21).  In his day, there were those who claimed to "prophesy" by the Spirit, and did; and there were those who claimed to "prophesy" by the Spirit and did not.  The result was that, at least, some "despised" all "prophesyings" by reason of the false claims of the pretenders.  Such a wholesale rejection of all "prophesyings" was unreasonable and unsafe.  It was wrong.  It is not right either to reject the true because some is false or to accept the false because some is true.  Paul indicated the safe course: "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good."  If there had been no evil mixed with the good, the admonition to "prove all things" and to "hold fast that which is good" would not have been necessary.

What is the meaning of the word "prove?"  It signifies to try, to put to the test.  The word is employed elsewhere in the New Testament in this sense (Luke 14:19).  It means that we should examine everything we hear before we receive it or reject it, as the case may be. At this point, Adam Clarke said, "Whatever ye hear in these 'prophesyings' or preachings, examine by the words of Christ, and by the doctrines which, from time to time, we have delivered unto you in our preaching and writings.  Try the spirits — the different teachers — by the word of God."

In the words of the prophet, "To the law and to the testimony!  if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them" (Isaiah 8:20).  The conduct of the Bereans was in keeping with the spirit of the command under consideration, for we read, "Now these were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of the mind, examining the scriptures daily, whether these things were so" (Acts 17:11 ASV).  The people of Berea put what they heard to the test, using the scriptures as their standard of examination.  They acted rightly and wisely.

Why will people not do the same today?  It is common for the message of a modern preacher to be accepted without thought, testing or investigation by those who are his friends religiously, and just as common for the same message to be rejected, without consideration, by his prejudiced religious enemies.  These two unreasonable extremes are two of the most unmitigated curses of Christendom.

Let it be observed that this passage which allows the right also enjoins the duty of proving, testing, and investigating what is heard.  It does not permit one to be an indifferent and passive listener.  This some seem to prefer.  They attend the services, not to be taught, not to bring into use any faculty of discernment or testing, but to be impressed, and that without effort on their part.

"Beloved, believe not every spirit, but prove the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets are gone out into the world" (I John 4:1 ASV).  All professed Christians should endeavor to become "fullgrown men, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern good and evil" (Hebrews 5:14).

- by B. C. Goodpasture

 

If ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins

A Swarm of Gospel "Be's"

Have you observed how powerful little words in the Bible are? Take the word "if" for example. Jesus said, "If ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins" (John 8:24). If our mother Eve had been wise regarding what the little three-letter word "not" meant, the old devil would not have deceived her (Gen. 3:4).

The little word "be" is used frequently in the Bible, and the thoughts connected to it contribute to our salvation. Here is a swarm of gospel "be's."

Be Wise. "Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves" (Matt. 10:16). Thus the Lord warned the twelve as He sent them on their mission.

Be Faithful. "...be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life" (Rev. 2:10). The circumstances in which the beloved apostle John was at the time were not very favorable. He was exiled on the lonely isle of Patmos. The incentive held out was "be faithful -- the crown of life." That was all John needed to deepen his faith.

Be Ready. The Lord says, "Therefore be ye also ready; for in an hour that ye think not, the Son of man cometh" (Matt. 24:44). The Lord could come again at any time. We could pass away and all opportunities to get ready for judgment (John 5:28-29) would be gone.

Be Unmovable. In our present day this admonition is just as pertinent to every member of the body of Christ as when Paul wrote it by inspiration of the Holy Spirit. "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord" (1 Cor. 15:58).

Be Ye Doers. "But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves" (James 1:22). It is not enough to hear the word of God, but those who are blessed put it into practice every day.

Be Baptized. "And now why tarriest thou? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord" (Acts 22:16). To be baptized into Christ (Gal. 3:27) is to be obedient from the heart to that form of teaching (Rom. 6:3-4, 17-18). One is then delivered from the power of darkness into the kingdom of God's dear Son (Col. 1:13).

If you have not obeyed the Lord and Master in the primary principles of the gospel, I pray that you will attend to that immediately. If you have obeyed him, Be Faithful, Be Doers, Be Wise, Be Unmovable and you will Be Ready.

- by Austin Mobley

 

The Law of Exclusion

Gopher Wood or Gopher Forest?

In seeking to impress upon the minds of individuals the importance of respecting the authority of God’s word we use the example of God commanding Noah to build the ark of gopher wood. When God commanded Noah to build the ark of gopher wood we note (and correctly so) that Noah would be in rebellion to God if he used any other wood to build the ark. As simple as this illustration may be we still find many who ridicule this example.

Several years ago (November, 1976) F. L. Lemley wrote an article which appeared in "Integrity" magazine entitled "The Law of Exclusion," in which he rejects and ridicules the idea that when God authorizes a particular thing then anything other than that authorized would be displeasing to God.  In an effort to prove his point he uses the example of Noah.

He says, "the assumption that gopher wood was a specific variety of wood cannot be proved" and "Some translate ‘gopher wood’ as ‘resinous wood,’ which is not a specific variety, but would include cypress, redwood, or other varieties." He goes on to say that one person had suggested that "it could mean wood from a nearby forest known as Gopher."

What Mr. Lemley fails to note is if what he says about "gopher wood" is true the example remains the same. If "gopher wood" simply means "resinous wood" then for Noah to obey God he could only use "resinous wood." To use non-resinous wood would be disobedience to God.  Suppose "gopher wood" referred to wood from a forest by that name. Would that change the force of the argument?  Certainly not! It would simply mean that Noah was to build the ark of wood from “Gopher Forest.” Wood from any other source would not be acceptable.

Let "gopher wood" mean whatever you want it to mean, but the fact still remains that God told Noah to build the ark of "gopher wood" and had he built it of any other kind of wood he would have been in rebellion to God. We can’t justify rebellion to God by making foolish quibbles.

- by James Hahn

 

Facts about watermelons

Mysteries of Life

Once when I was going to Columbus, Ohio, I stopped to eat in a restaurant and ordered a slice of watermelon.  I took the seeds home with me to plant in my garden.

That night a thought came to my mind.  How many watermelon seeds would it take to make a pound?  The next day I weighed them and found that it would take about 5,000 dried seeds.

A few weeks later I planted just one of the little seeds.  Under the influence of sunshine and shower, that little seed had taken off its coat and gone to work.  It had gathered from somewhere two hundred thousand times its own weight and forced enormous weight through a tiny stem and built a watermelon.  On the outside it had a covering of green and within that a rind of white and within that a core of red; and then it had scattered through the red many little seeds, each one capable of doing the same work over again.

What architect drew the plan?  Where did the little watermelon seed get its strength?  Where did it find its flavoring extract, and its coloring matter?  How did it build a watermelon?

Until you can explain a watermelon, do not be too sure that you can set limits to the power of the Almighty.  The most learned men in the world cannot explain the watermelon, but the most ignorant man can eat a watermelon and enjoy it.  God has given us the knowledge necessary to use these things and the truth that He has revealed to us is infinitely more important for our welfare than it would be to understand the mysteries that He has seen fit to conceal from our faltering view.

- by William Jennings Bryan

 

Each day is fresh and brand new with no mistakes

Well here we are in the New Year once again, all sparkly and fresh like a new snow fall ready for us to make foot prints in. I'm glad it's here, but I'm really not much for New Year celebrations. This year I had a hard day at work and was fast asleep in bed by 9:30 p.m. So, the New Year came in the old one ended and I missed it, but it really didn't need my awareness to happen anyway. After all, men set the date of the year, but God created the world, makes the days and that never changes.

How are you looking at the New Year? Myself, I'm looking at it with hope! Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 4:13 about folks who have no hope and I afraid that includes far too many in or world. Hope of what? Hope of eternal life, hope of a better life now, not based upon what we do necessarily, but based upon our relationship to Christ.

I love the line from Anne of Green Gables where she says, "Each day is fresh and brand new with no mistakes". That of course is true, but it usually doesn't stay that way very long, simply because we are human and mess up far too often, (1 John 1:10).

I love what Peter writes in 1 Peter 1:3, that "God has begotten us again to a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead". Wow! "a lively hope"… in the Greek that means "Not lifeless, not dead, but vital and strong". (Strong's)

How is you hope and what are hoping in? I saw a sign the other day that said, "Life is full of choices, the problem is that sometimes we make stupid choices!" Some times I make stupid choices, but not when I choose to hope in Christ, to hope for eternal life, to hope of a better life here in this world because of my hope and trust in Christ Jesus.

There is an old hymn that declares, "My hope is built on nothing less that Jesus' blood and righteousness." I hope you can sing this song with all of your heart.

--Russ Lawson

Thrill-seeking worship

A Few Words about Our Thrill-Seeking Culture

In the recent years we have developed a thrill-seeking culture – a culture moved more by emotional stimuli than careful thought – that affects many facets of our lives.  I have not been to a movie in years, but I have seen trailers on TV and digital video, and heard people talk about them.  I have noticed many come away more enamored with the thrilling “special effects” while having only a sketchy memory of the plot or story behind the effects. At musical concerts, for the most part, the primary attention is given to special effects to create an emotional atmosphere than to thoughtful lyrics that convey real messages.

I fear this culture is affecting public worship. People are “going to church” - not to be challenged to think on spiritual things - but to be thrilled by the “special effects” generated by preachers and “worship leaders.” Rather than songs, clearly worded and sung to praise God and to teach each other - words primarily appealing to the head rather than to the arms and feet -  the order of the day is for “special effects” designed to give worshipers an emotional high. Sermons must be jazzed up with verbal and electronic special effects so that the audience can be thrilled rather than informed or convicted in their minds. I am not speaking of the use of visual aids, computer generated or otherwise. Visual aids are great tools when they truly “aid” the listener’s understanding, but when used for emotional, thrill and awe value, they are questionable to say the least. I saw a video a while back of a congregation partaking of the Lord’s Supper while an electronically produced large cross was “floating” around the auditorium. A little too much – me thinks.

As I read the New Testament I get the idea public worship is to be done from the heart in a solemn manner, glorifying God and seriously reflecting on the words uttered in the songs, prayers and discourses.

- by Edward O. Bragwell, Sr.