Two Minutes With The Bible

[Brother Love]

THE FATHER OF OUR COUNTRY AND THE APOSTLE TO THE NATIONS

By Cornelius R. Stam

Millions highly honor George Washington as "the father
of our country," but how few know about Paul, Gods
apostle to the nations!

Not Matthew, or Mark or Luke; not Peter or James or
John, but Paul alone wrote, by divine inspiration:

"FOR I SPEAK TO YOU GENTILES (or, YOU OF THE NATIONS] INASMUCH AS I AM THE APOSTLE OF THE GENTILES [NATIONS]: IMAGNIFY MINE OFFICE" (Rom. 11:13).

Note well that Paul did not magnify himself, but his
office, to which he had been appointed by the glorified Lord.
In defending his apostleship before the Galatians, he wrote:

"But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.

"For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ" (Gal. 1:11,12).

In many other passages the Apostle claims to speak as a
direct representative of Christ (See I Cor. 11:23; 15:3; Eph.
3:2,3; I Thes. 4:15; etc.). To Timothy Paul wrote in I Tim.
6:3-5 concerning his own writings:

"If any man teach OTHERWISE, and consent not to wholesome
words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness, he is proud, knowing nothing..."

This could not demonstrate more emphatically Pauls
claim that his words were "the words of our Lord Jesus
Christ," received from Him by direct revelation.

To the Corinthians, who questioned this, the Apostle
wrote:

"...IF I COME AGAIN I WILL NOT SPARE, SINCE YE SEEK A
PROOF OF CHRIST SPEAKING IN ME" (II Cor. 13:2,3).

The proof of this claim? This was overwhelming indeed,
for Paul was used more than any other apostle to found
churches and lead men into the knowledge and joy of sal-
vation. To the Corinthian believers he wrote what he could
have written to many thousands of others: "The seal of
mine apostleship are ye in the Lord" (I Cor. 9:2).
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Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

Mailing Address:
Berean Bible Society
N112 W17761 Mequon Road
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Germantown, WI 53022

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[Brother Love]

RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE WORD

By Cornelius R. Stam

It is not enough to use the Bible as a grand book of won-
derful sayings from which we may choose what we wish for
our inspiration, nor will one who truly realizes that "God
hath spoken" ever hold so shallow an opinion of the sacred
Scriptures.

"The Word of truth" must be "rightly divided"; for while
it is all given for our spiritual profit, it was not all ad-
dressed to us, or written about us. Thus one who truly
desires to understand and obey Gods Word will seek first to
determine what Scriptures are particularly related to him
and will study all the rest in the light of these.

Sad to say, however, there are many who fail to give the
Book of God the respect and reverence it deserves. They
flip it open at random, let a finger light upon the open page
and then read the verse indicated to see if perchance they
may find leading from the Lord in that way. And if it
doesnt "work" the first time they try it again and again
until it does "work." They use "promise boxes" in the same
way, on the basis that "every promise in the Book is mine."
They take passages out of their contexts, "spiritualize"
them, and give them "private interpretations." Finding
"precious passages" anywhere at all, no matter to whom
addressed or when or why, they place their own construc-
tions upon them and claim them as promises of God to
them! To take isolated statements from the writings of men
and use them in such a manner would be considered dis-
honest, but even Bible teachers do it with the Word of God!

The Word, rightly divided, is of supreme importance to
the Church at large as well as to the individual believer,
and it is because this fact has not yet been sufficiently
recognized that we have not experienced the true, heaven-
sent revival that the Church so sorely needs.++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

Mailing Address:
Berean Bible Society
N112 W17761 Mequon Road
P.O. Box 756
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[Brother Love]

GODS TWO POEMS
By Cornelius R. Stam

In Romans 1:18-20 the Apostle Paul declares that un-
godly men are "without excuse" because they are sur-
rounded by the evidences of the Creators "eternal power
and Godhead."

Our Authorized Version calls the creation, in this pas-
sage, "the things that are made," but in the Greek it is
called literally "the poyeema," from which we get our word
poem. The Apostle refers, of course, to the harmony of Gods
creation, and is it not indeed amazing how billions of
heavenly bodies can continually revolve in the vastness of
space and never collide! And are not the flowers, the
seasons, the sunsets all part of a harmonious creation,
which God alone could have conceived and set to music?

But very interestingly, this word poyeema is used just
once more in Scripture. We find it in Eph. 2:10, where it is
translated "workmanship." Let us consider this passage in
its context:

"For by grace are ye saved, through faith, and that not of your-selves; it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.
For we are His workmanship [Gr., poyeema], created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" (Eph. 2:8-10).

Romans speaks of the poem of creation, Ephesians of the
poem of redemption, and the latter is the more wonderful.
An old hymn says: "Twas great to speak a world from
naught; tis greater to redeem."

In this poem of redemption which God has composed, we
believers too often want to change some word or phrase. We
would like this or that in our circumstances to be different.
Ah, but this would destroy the meter and meaning of Gods
new creation.

Thank God, when we believers go to be with Christ, we
will see the beauty and glory of the poem of redemption.
Then we will rejoice that He did indeed "work all things
together for good" for us.

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Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

Mailing Address:
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[Brother Love]

BUYING UP THE TIME

By Cornelius R. Stam

Nineteen hundred years ago Paul wrote to his fellow-
believers in the vicinity of Ephesus: "See then that ye walk
circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming [Lit., buy-
ing up] the time, because the days are evil" (Eph. 5:15,16).

Those were indeed evil days, when a wicked tyrant ruled
the Roman Empire, when Messiah had been rejected, not
only in incarnation, but in resurrection, and Christianity
was fighting a life-and-death battle to penetrate the pre-
vailing pagan darkness with the light of Gods grace.

Surely Paul never dreamed that the dispensation of grace
would continue for more than nineteen hundred years. He
expected the Lord to come at any time to recall His am-
bassadors and bring the day of grace to a close. Hence the
urgency of his appeal to be "buying up the time, because the
days are evil."

But if Paul had reason to suspect that the day of grace
would soon be brought to a close, we today have greater
reason to think so. Now that the light of the gospel has
been brought to Europe, America and many other parts of
the world, men are turning their backs on it. Only a small
minority of even Christendom truly believe the Bible and
know the Christ it presents -- and how very few know the
riches of His grace!

Meanwhile our governments, our educational institutions
and our social systems are becoming ever more godless. The
result? The newspapers, radio and TV -- even a trip down-
town to any fair-sized city, will tell us all we need to know.

Once again "the days are evil" and the Lords coming for
His own seems imminent. There is still much talk about
lasting peace and prosperity, but no thoughtful person be-
lieves that we are headed in that direction. Rather the
world appears to be heading straight toward the prophesied
"day of wrath."

What a comfort it is to the believer, then, to know that
"God hath not appointed us unto wrath, but to obtain sal-
vation by our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us..."
(I Thes. 5:9,10). "For the Scripture saith, Whosoever be-
lieveth on Him shall not be ashamed" and "whosoever shall
call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Rom.
10:11,13).
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Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

Mailing Address:
Berean Bible Society
N112 W17761 Mequon Road
P.O. Box 756
Germantown, WI 53022

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[Brother Love]

BAPTISM AND THE REMISSION OF SINS

By Cornelius R. Stam

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved (Mark 16:16).

The twelve apostles preached and practiced exactly this.
When Peters hearers at Pentecost were convicted of their
sins and asked: Men and brethren, what shall we do Peter
did not tell them that Christ had died for their sins and that
they could receive salvation as the gift of Gods grace, apart
from religion or works. Rather he said:

Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost (Acts 2:38).

Years ago, in a series of debates on dispensationalism,
the author asked his opponent: Suppose, after a Sunday
evening service, some of your hearers were convicted of
their sins and asked you and your co-workers: 'Men and
brethren, what shall we do?' Would you tell them what
Peter told his convicted sinners at Pentecost? Why, of
course! he exclaimed. In those words? I persisted. He
thought for a moment and then replied: Well, I guess not
exactly in those words. The fact is that this pastor would
not at all have said to his hearers what Peter said to his.
Even though a Baptist, he would not have said: Repent
and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus
Christ, for the remission of sins, for he believed that sub-
jection to water baptism should be left to each persons
conscience, and he did not believe that it had anything to do
with salvation. He would doubtless have said to any in-
quirers what Paul said when the convicted Gentile jailor
asked: What must I do to be saved? Like Paul, he would
have replied: Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou
shalt be saved.. . (Acts 16:31). Peter at Pentecost preached what he was commanded to preach under his commission: He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved (Mark 16:16), but when God raised up Paul, that other apostle, He sent him to proclaim the gospel of the grace of God and the finished work of Christ.
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P.O. Box 756
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[Brother Love]

THE FATHER OF BELIEVERS

By Cornelius R. Stam

"Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteous-ness" (Rom. 4:3).

Has it ever occurred to you that the most loved, the most
honored, the most respected person of all history is -- not
Christ, but Abraham. Christ ought to be most loved, hon-
ored and respected, but Abraham is. Besides the millions of
professing Christians there are untold millions of Jews and
Mohammedans who speak with reverance of "our father
Abraham."

Clearly this is why God used this man to show how to be
saved and justified before a holy God. As Paul is Gods
great example of grace, so Abraham is Gods great example
of faith -- saving faith.

"If Abraham were justified by works," says Rom. 4:2, he
has something to boast about -- but not before God, who sees and knows all. But Abraham was justified. How? "What
saith the Scripture? Abraham believed God and it was
counted to him for righteousness" (Ver. 3).

God, of course, had planned salvation through the re-
demptive work of Christ and has always saved anyone who
simply trusts Him and takes Him at His Word.

Since Abraham, of course, more of Gods Word has been
revealed and we know the details of Christs death for sin-
ners. If we now take God at His Word and simply trust
Christ as Savior we are completely justified, for salvation is
not; cannot be, by works:

"But to him that worketh not but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness" (Rom. 4:5).

"...through this Man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins, and by Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses" (Acts 13:38,39).
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

Mailing Address:
Berean Bible Society
N112 W17761 Mequon Road
P.O. Box 756
Germantown, WI 53022

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[Brother Love]

THE LIVING GOD

By Cornelius R. Stam

"My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God" (Psa. 42:2).

The recent "God is dead" theory had little true comfort or
satisfaction for men in trouble or sorrow.

For years we supposed that the term "the living God," in
the above passage, had reference to Gods power to help, in contrast to the impotence of dead heathen idols. A careful
examination of the context, however, leads us to believe
that it has rather to do with His ability to respond. The
gods of the heathen, by contrast, were like childrens dolls;
they could not even change their countenance or respond in
any way.

"The idols of the heathen are silver and gold, the work of mens hands.

"They have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not;

"They have ears, but they hear not, neither is there any breath in their mouths" (Psa. 135:15-17).

But the true God is a living God. He does see, hear and
respond. The Psalmist, in Psalm 42, compares himself to a
stag, panting with thirst. It is sometimes supposed that the
scene is one of a stag pursued in the chase, but the passage
says nothing of this. Palestine is a dry land and entirely
apart from being hunted down, a deer might well pant for
streams of running water.

Be this as it may, the stag, in this passage, is not seeking
for help; he is thirsting for refreshment, and so did the
Psalmist long for the refreshment of fellowship with God,
the living God.

How wonderful it is that we may know the living God
through faith in Christ! This is why the Apostle Paul de-
clares in Heb. 10:19:

"Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus... a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say, His flesh. "

By His death at Calvary our Lord tore away the veil that
kept us from entering into Gods presence, and now in re-
sponse to our need He says:

"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need" (Heb. 4:16).

Yes, God is a living God!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

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[Brother Love]

WHAT ABOUT ME?

By Cornelius R. Stam

Is it not amazing that men who can produce intricate
electronic mechanisms, build giant skyscrapers, fly men to
the moon and back -- is it not amazing that such men often
do not even know what will finally become of themselves!
And what is more amazing still is that most of them do not
even try seriously to find out.

They are intelligent enough to plan carefully for the
future where temporal affairs are concerned, but foolish
enough to neglect their eternal welfare. They make plans
for themselves in case they become ill and need additional
funds for surgery, medicine and hospital care. They even
make plans for their loved ones in case of death and be-
reavement, but they fail to ask themselves: "What will
become of me after death?"

Daily "the wise of this world" witness the truth of Heb.
9:27, that "it is appointed unto men once to die," and most
of them know that the Bible adds: "after this the judgment."
They may hope that this is but a false alarm, but they do
not know. They can only wonder and worry. Heb. 2:15 de-
clares that "through fear of death" they are "all their life-
time subject to bondage." Like Adam, they run and hide
from God instead of running to Him and asking: "What
must I do to be saved?" Too cowardly to face up to their own
lost condition, they wander on with no light beyond the
grave, no hope beyond the tomb -- too afraid, generally, to
even discuss death.

The believer in the Word of God is not left thus in the
dark. He glories in the truth of the passages from which we
have quoted in part above. We quote them now in full:

Heb. 2:14,15: "Forasmuch then as the children [of Adam] are par-takers of flesh and blood, He [Christ] also Himself likewise took part of the same; that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

"And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage."

Heb. 9:27,28: "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.

"So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time without [Lit, "apart from"] sin unto salvation."

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Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

Mailing Address:
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P.O. Box 756
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[Brother Love]

THE LAW MISUNDERSTOOD

By Cornelius R. Stam

There are three misconceptions that most people enter-
tain about the law of God and its Ten Commandments:

1.  Most people have a vague notion that the Law always
was; that it must have been given to Adam or soon after.
Actually, it was given by Moses about 1500 B.C., after
about 2,500 years of human history had elapsed (John 1:
17). So mankind lived on earth for about 2,500 years with-
out the Law, or the Ten Commandments.

2.  Most people suppose that the Law was given to man-
kind in general, while in fact it was given to Israel alone
(Deut. 5:2,3).

3.  Most people suppose that the Law was given to help
us to do right. Even some clergymen teach this, although
the Bible clearly teaches that the Law was given to show
us that we are guilty sinners.

It is true that the Law, while given to Israel, also shows
the Gentile that he is a sinner. This is why Rom. 3:19 says:

"Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them that are under the law; that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may be brought in guilty before God."

But most important of all: few people realize that the
Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins to deliver us from the
just condemnation of the Law. This is taught in the follow-
ing Scriptures:

"Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us..." (Gal. 3:13).

"For God hath made Him to be sin for us, [Himl who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him" (II Cor. 5:21).

"For sin shall not have dominion over you, for ye are not under the law, but under grace" (Rom. 6:14).
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Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

Mailing Address:
Berean Bible Society
N112 W17761 Mequon Road
P.O. Box 756
Germantown, WI 53022

Web Site:
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[Brother Love]

MERCY UPON ALL

By Cornelius R. Stam

Have you ever wondered how the pagan world got that
way: idol-worshipping, wicked, gripped by superstition and
fear?

The Bible supplies the answer in Paul’s Epistle to the
Romans. Three times in Chapter 1 we read of the Gentile
world: "He gave them up... He gave them up... He gave
them over...."  Why? Because they had given Him up:

"And even as they did not wish to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient [becoming]" (Rom. 1:28).

It would have been difficult to believe 30 or 40 years ago,
that our young people would be dancing to the wild, exotic
music of pagan lands (if this can be called music), or that
our studios would be selling the twisted, hideous paintings
of pagan art (if this can be called art).

When you wonder why the lovely melodies and harmo-
nies of yesteryear have given place to the noise and din of
today’s "music"; when you wonder why the beautiful paint-
ings of those days have been largely replaced by the mas-
terpieces of chaos that surround us now -- why in so many
ways we seem to be reverting to paganism -- read Romans 1.

All this is the natural result of a departure from God and
His Word. Yet there is hope and assurance and joy in store
for any individual who will yet heed the message of God --
particularly in the Book of Romans.

Here we read how Jew joined Gentile in rejecting Christ,
and God had to give them all up. But listen to this passage
from Rom. 11:32: "For God hath concluded them all in un-
belief THAT HE MIGHT HAVE MERCY UPON ALL."
That is, He gave up the Jewish and Gentile nations so that
He might show His grace to any individuals who might
turn to Him by faith in Christ, thus reconciling both (Jew-
ish and Gentile believers) unto Himself in one body, by the
cross (Eph. 2:16).
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Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

Mailing Address:
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P.O. Box 756
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[Brother Love]

THE DIVINE MIRROR

By Cornelius R. Stam

In the divine Mirror, the Bible, we may behold ourselves
or we may behold Christ.

It is well to use it first to behold ourselves and see the
ruin sin has brought. But let us not stop here.

Let a man look into a mirror and find the sun in it and
the glory will be reflected in his face. And so it is with the
Word. When we see ourselves in it we must necessarily be
disappointed, but when we look for Him in the Word and
find Him there, His glory casts its reflection upon us!

What need have we then to hide our faces? If David could
say, "They looked unto Him, and were lightened: and their
faces were not ashamed" (Psa. 34:5), how much more should
this be said of us! We know, or should know, more of Him
than those of Davids day, and those Scriptures specially
addressed to us send us forth, not to proclaim Gods right-
eous demands, but to proclaim Christ, the righteous One,
who met these demands at Calvary and offers justification
and life to all.

And as, in our study of the Scriptures, we turn from the
shame of man to the glory of Christ; as we behold Him and
see all we have and are in Him, we become constantly more
like Him, "changed into the same image from glory to glory"
(II Cor. 3:18).
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[Brother Love]

DELAY IN JUDGMENT

By Cornelius R. Stam

The Scriptures leave no doubt that the Lord Jesus Christ
will come to this earth again, "in flaming fire, taking
vengeance on them that know not God" and who "receive not
the love of the truth, that they might be saved" (II Thes.
1:8; 2:10). Nor will He forget His promise to give the twelve
apostles thrones in His kingdom (Matt. 19:28).

There can be no successors to Peter and the eleven, for
they themselves are to reign with Christ in glory. What is
happening now is a parenthesis in Gods prophesied pro-
gram.

Delaying Christs return to judge and reign. God chose
another apostle, separate from the twelve, to bring a
message of grace to this Christ-rejecting world. How great
is His mercy and love!

And how are men saved today? How are their sins
remitted? Must they come to some recognized authority and
be "baptized for the remission of sins"? Some, still following
Peter rather than Paul, say, "Yes." But let us see what St.
Paul, by divine inspiration, has to say about this.

"FOR BY GRACE ARE YE SAVED, THROUGH FAITH, AND THAT
NOT OF YOURSELVES: IT IS THE GIFT OF GOD: NOT OF WORKS, LEST ANY MAN SHOULD BOAST" (Eph. 2:8,9).

"NOT BY WORKS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, WHICH WE HAVE
DONE, BUT ACCORDING TO HIS MERCY HE SAVED US, BY THE
WASHING OF REGENERATION, AND THE RENEWING OF THE
HOLY GHOST" (Tit. 3:5).

This stands in striking contrast to Peters "Repent and be
baptized... for the remission of sins" (Acts 2:38). It stands
in contrast, also, to the words of the so-called "Great
Commission": "He that believeth and is baptized shall be
saved" (Mark 16:16). Does not this indicate that a change
in dispensation took place with the raising up of Paul, that
other apostle?

But what about the kingdom? Does some man on earth
hold the keys? No, for both the King and His kingdom are
in exile. When a sinner obeys God and receives Christ as
His Savior he is "translated into the kingdom of His dear
Son" (Col. 1:13), and "made accepted in the Beloved"
(Eph. 1:6).

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

Mailing Address:
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[Brother Love]

PAULS CLAIMS

By Cornelius R. Stam

Pauls Spirit-inspired claims for the distinctive character
of his apostleship leave no room for doubt. Consider a sam-
pling of these.

Rom. 11:13: "For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I AM THE APOSTLE OF THE GENTILES: I MAGNIFY MINE OFFICE."

Gal. 1:11,12: "But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is NOT AFTER MAN.

"FOR I NEITHER RECEIVED IT OF MAN, NEITHER WAS I TAUGHT IT, BUT BY THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST."

Eph. 3:1-3: "For this cause, I PAUL, THE PRISONER OF JESUS CHRIST FOR YOU GENTILES,

"If ye have heard of THE DISPENSATION OF THE GRACE OF GOD, WHICH IS GIVEN ME TO YOU-WARD:

"How that BY REVELATION HE MADE KNOWN UNTO ME THE
MYSTERY..."

Col. 1:25: "...I am made a minister, according to THE DISPENSA-TION OF GOD WHICH IS GIVEN TO ME FOR YOU, to fulfill [fill full, or complete] the Word of God."

I Tim. 2:5-7: "For there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus;

"Who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

"WHEREUNTO I AM ORDAINED A PREACHER, AND AN APOSTLE (I SPEAK THE TRUTH IN CHRIST, AND LIE NOT); A TEACHER OF THE GENTILES IN FAITH AND VERITY."

Tit. 1:2,3: "In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie; prom-ised before the world began;

"But hath in due times manifested His Word THROUGH PREACHING WHICH IS COMMITTED UNTO ME, according to the commandment of God our Savior."
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++Subscribe at:http://www.bereanbiblesociety.org/twominut.html
Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

Mailing Address:
Berean Bible Society
N112 W17761 Mequon Road
P.O. Box 756
Germantown, WI 53022

Web Site:
http://www.bereanbiblesociety.org/
Gospel Books, Materials, & Free Mailings

Email: berean@execpc.com

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[Brother Love]

WONDERFUL NEWS

By Cornelius R. Stam

The newspapers are filled with sensational news these
days, but the divine extension of this present age of grace is
the most sensational news of all, yet most newspapers
rarely, if ever, mention it.

We are prone to take the blessings of our times too much
for granted. We forget too easily that for more than 1900
years the world has been ripe for Gods judgment -- ever
since His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, was crucified and sent
from this world a royal Exile.
       
All through the Old Testament Psalms and prophets it is
clear that the worlds rejection of Christ was to be visited
with awful judgment. The Second Psalm, describing the
worlds rejection of "the Lord and His Anointed," goes on
to say: "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." In
Psalm 110:1, too, we have the Father saying to His rejected
Son: "Sit Thou at My right hand, until I make Thine en-
emies Thy footstool."

Yet, when all seemed ready for the divine judgment to
fall, God interrupted the prophetic program and saved Saul
of Tarsus, the "chief of sinners," the leader of the worlds
rebellion against Christ. More: He appointed this Saul, as
the Apostle Paul, to proclaim "the gospel of the grace of God"
(Acts 20:24), the wonderful news that because Christ suf-
fered, the Just for the unjust, at Calvary, any sinner may
be saved by grace through faith, apart from religious or
other works.
       
"The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal
life, through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Rom. 6:23). And there-
fore: "To him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that
justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness"
(Rom. 4:5). Judgment will come, but thank God, He has in
grace delayed it until now. "Behold, now is the accepted
time; behold, now is the day of salvation" (II Cor. 6:2).
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subscribe at:http://www.bereanbiblesociety.org/twominut.html
Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

Mailing Address:
Berean Bible Society
N112 W17761 Mequon Road
P.O. Box 756
Germantown, WI 53022

Web Site:
http://www.bereanbiblesociety.org/
Gospel Books, Materials, & Free Mailings

Email: berean@execpc.com

<))><

[Brother Love]

MILES AND MILES OF SCRIPTURE

By Cornelius R. Stam

How much, I wonder, do the Christian parents among our
readers show their children their love for the Word, and for
Christ, and for the souls for whom He died?

For many years I worked with my father, first full-time,
then part-time, as a city missionary in Paterson, N.J. All
during these first years dad and I walked to work together
each morning -- a little over a mile.

Do you know how we invariably occupied ourselves on
the way? By quoting Scripture passages on some particular
subject. One morning we would quote as many passages as
we could on the deity of Christ, another on His death or
resurrection; others on His love, power, grace, or other
attributes and characteristics. Sometimes, for days or
weeks on end dad would use these morning walks to ply me
with questions such as: "What Scriptures would you use to
deal with a blaspheming unbeliever?" or "a self-righteous
person" or "one who rejects Christ on intellectual grounds?"

In this way we covered "miles and miles" of Scripture, as
it were, and this in addition to Scripture reading before
every meal at home, and again before we retired for the
night. And all this again in addition to the oral and written
Bible teaching of many of the great Bible expositors of that
day, whose teachings we studied with deepest interest.

What a precious heritage! We wish that more of our
Christian young people today were as well off. Parents: its
strictly up to you. What are your priorities? What are you
willing to pay -- in terms of pleasure, ease or financial "suc-
cess"? Do you set an example to your children -- and others
-- by really putting God first?

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Subscribe at:http://www.bereanbiblesociety.org/twominut.html
Two Minutes With The Bible By Pastor Stam

Mailing Address:
Berean Bible Society
N112 W17761 Mequon Road
P.O. Box 756
Germantown, WI 53022

Web Site:
http://www.bereanbiblesociety.org/
Gospel Books, Materials, & Free Mailings

Email: berean@execpc.com

<))><