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February 5, 2012

FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD
by Cornelius R. Stam

Man, by nature, is afraid of God. When Adam first sinned, he should have gone immediately to God to beg for mercy and forgiveness. Instead he did just what millions are doing today: he ran and hid from God so that God had to come and look for Him, as it were, calling: "Adam... where art thou?" (Gen. 3:9).

Many people who consider themselves as good, morally, as those about them, or even better, nevertheless feel utterly ill-at-ease in a place of worship, where believers pray and praise God together. This is because in their heart of hearts they know that they have "sinned and come short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23).

Such, however, may come to know, love and enjoy God through faith in Christ. He was Himself God manifested in the flesh, come to earth in love to pay for our sins on Calvary's cross, so that we might have "redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of His grace" (Eph. 1:7).

Concerning those who respond in grateful faith and trust in the crucified, risen, glorified Lord for salvation, the Apostle Paul says:

"Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ; by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God" (Rom. 5:2).

Peace with God, and the fellowship which naturally results from this is the most precious treasure the human heart can contain. Yet our fellowship with Him here on earth is but the beginning. Read carefully Ephesians 5:25-27 and see how He took upon Him human form, and died, that He might have us for Himself forever:

"...Christ... loved the Church, and gave Himself for it... that He might present it to Himself a glorious Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish."

[nChrist]

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February 6, 2012

THE TIME ELEMENT IN SCRIPTURE
by Cornelius R. Stam

How many Scriptural problems would be solved, how many seeming contradictions explained, if we were more careful to note the time element, emphasized so strongly in the Word of God.

In Romans 5:12 we learn that sin entered the human race by Adam. Then later "the law entered" (Ver. 20). But still later the Apostle Paul arose to say: "But now, the righteousness of God without the law is manifested" (Rom. 3:21).

Early in man's history blood sacrifices were required for acceptance with God (See Gen. 4:4; Heb. 11:4), later circumcision and the Law (Gen. 17:14; Ex. 19:5), and still later, repentance and water baptism (Mark 1:4; Acts 2:38 ). But not until Paul do we learn of salvation by grace through faith alone, on the basis of Christ's finished, all-sufficient work of redemption.

This is why the Apostle refers in Gal. 3:23 to "the faith which should afterward be revealed." This is why he declares that our Lord "gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time", and adds: "whereunto I am ordained a preacher and an apostle" (I Tim. 2:6,7).

It is only as we recognize the time element in Scripture that we see the difference between "the kingdom of heaven" and "the Body of Christ," between "the gospel of the kingdom" and "the gospel of the grace of God," between the "dispensation of law" and "the dispensation of the grace of God."

A comparison of Romans 3:21 and 26 shows how this time element is emphasized in Scripture. After discussing the function of the Law in Verses 19 and 20, the Apostle Paul declares: "But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested..." Then, in Ver. 26 he states that it is God's purpose: "To declare, I say, at this time His [Christ's] righteousness; that He [God] might be just and the Justifier of him that believeth in Jesus."

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February 7, 2012

A JEALOUS GOD
by Cornelius R. Stam

We heartily thank God for every politician, athlete, actor or even criminal who comes to know Christ as Savior. But conversion alone does not qualify one for a place of prominence in Christian service. This, especially in Paul's epistles, is reserved for mature believers, wholly separated to God and established in the truth (See especially II Tim. 2:21).

When hearts beat faster because of the presence of some glamorous personality on the Christian platform; when such personalities receive adulation which belongs rather to the Christ who died for them, God is dishonored and displeased.

True, the motive in procuring such "crowd-getters" may have been to reach greater numbers for Christ, just as some of our spiritual leaders become yoked together with apostate unbelievers in evangelistic endeavors in order to reach souls for Christ, but the end does not justify the means. It is never right to do wrong to accomplish some good end.

Have we forgotten that God's Word says: "I the Lord thy God am a jealous God" (Ex 20:5) and "I will not give My glory unto another" (Isa 48:11)? True we quote here from the Ten Commandments, but remember, Paul in his epistles quotes all the Ten Commandments except one (re the sabbath). The covenant of the Law has been done away but not the moral law itself, and God is the only Being who has legitimate and urgent reason to be jealous of His glory. Christian leaders are playing a dangerous game when they give glory due to God alone to prominent personalities so as to swell their audiences.

It is time for the Church to realize that salvation is the work of God and that true and lasting results will follow only when we conduct His work in His way.

[nChrist]

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February 8, 2012

A LITTLE LEAVEN AND LOST BLESSING
by Cornelius R. Stam

It is difficult, if not impossible, to determine from Paul's Epistle to the Galatians, just what the Galatian believers thought the rite of circumcision would accomplish for them spiritually. We doubt that they knew themselves, but the Judaizers had come in among them and had captured their attention so that these, who had been so gloriously saved by grace, now "desired to be under the law" (Gal. 4:21). They did not deny the efficacy of the finished work of Christ, but they were interested -- just interested -- in submitting to a religious ceremony which would in itself be a denial of the all-sufficiency of His redemptive work (3:1; 5:2-4). Result: the blessing was already vanishing (5:14) and the Apostle had to warn them: "A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump" (5:9). You can't admit a little leaven and expect it to stop there.

With the Corinthians it was rather a case of countenancing moral wrong. One of their members had been living in grievous sin. But then, their number was large, and he was just one, and the congregation as a whole abounded in spiritual gifts. Feeling quite satisfied with themselves, therefore, they simply overlooked this disgrace to the name of Christ. But listen to Paul's -- God's -- view of the matter:

"And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you" (I Cor. 5:2).

"Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a lithe leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
"Purge out therefore the old leaven..." (Vers. 6,7).

In these days when both spiritual error and moral wrong are made so palatable, when apostate unbelief and worldliness are presented so appetizingly, we do well to take heed to the Spirit's warning to quickly purge out the "little leaven" that threatens to permeate the whole loaf.

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February 9, 2012

ARE YOU SURE?
by Cornelius R. Stam

Would you like to have the knowledge, the assurance and the joy of sins forgiven? Would you like to be sure of heaven?

Well, the first step to heaven is to realize that you cannot get there by trying. You can't walk there. You can't climb there. You can't fly there. Only God can take you there. Many try to earn heaven. They try to climb there on a ladder of good works. They talk about "adding another rung." But look out for that good works ladder! It's not anchored at the top and the higher you climb the farther you will fall.

God's Word says that salvation is "the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast" (Eph. 2:8,9). He is not going to have boasters in heaven -- there are enough of them on earth and nobody likes them.

All of us should realize that even the best of us are not good enough for heaven, for "all have sinned and come short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23), but in this same statement the Apostle Paul declares that believers in Christ, who died for our sins, are "justified freely by His [God's] grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 3:24). "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. 5:1).

So, friend, it is not by trying, or crying, or praying, or paying, or doing anything that you will reach heaven: it is only by believing. God says He loves sinners, and that Christ died for our sins. Will you believe this and trust Christ as your Savior? The terms are stated very plainly in John 3:35,36:

"The Father loveth the Son and hath given all things into His hand. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life, and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him."

[nChrist]

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February 10, 2012

CHRIST THE SON OF GOD
by Cornelius R. Stam

St. Paul opens his Epistle to the Romans by stating that the Lord Jesus Christ was "declared to be the Son of God with power," or "powerfully declared to be the Son of God... by the resurrection from the dead" (1:4).

In Psa. 2:7, we have Christ, in prophecy, saying:

"I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto Me, Thou art My Son; this day have I begotten Thee."

Our Lord was, of course, eternally one with the Father, but the word "begotten" here comes from Israel's laws, referring to the time when the child was officially declared to be the father's full-grown son.

But what day was He referring to? On what day did the Father officially proclaim:

"This day have I begotten Thee"?

The answer is found in Acts 13:33, where the Apostle states that God "raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second Psalm: Thou art My Son, this day have I begotten Thee."

So our Lord was officially -- and powerfully -- declared to be the Son of God at His resurrection from the dead. But what did Paul mean in II Tim. 2:7,8, where he said:

"Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things. Remember that Jesus Christ, of the seed of David, was raised from the dead ACCORDING TO MY GOSPEL."

The answer is that the twelve had proclaimed Christ as the Son of David, to sit on David's throne. Theirs was "the gospel of the kingdom." But when the King and His kingdom were rejected, God raised up another apostle, Paul, to proclaim "the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:24).

Christ was, indeed, raised from the dead to sit on David's throne, and this will yet come to pass, but Paul has a message for us, here and now: that Christ was raised from the dead to certify our justification and to become the Head of "the Church which is His Body."

[nChrist]

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February 11, 2012

CONTINUE THOU
by Cornelius R. Stam

"Evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse...but continue thou" (II Tim. 3:13,14).

These were among the last words of the great Apostle Paul, written in view of his approaching martyrdom, to Timothy, his beloved son in the faith.

Circumstances, outwardly, were anything but encouraging. It seemed that the last days of the dispensation of grace were indeed at hand. The apostle had borne many "persecutions" and "afflictions" and now "suffered trouble, as an evil doer, even unto bonds". There were those who, like Jannes and Jambres, had "resisted the truth" (Verse 8 ). "Alexander the coppersmith" had done him "much evil" and had "greatly withstood his words" (4:14,15). "Evil men and seducers" had risen on every hand and were to "wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived" (II Tim. 3:13).

There was even defection among his own brethren in the faith, so that now, from his Roman prison, he had to report: "All they which are in Asia have turned away from me...Demas hath forsaken me...only Luke is with me" (II Tim. 1:15; 4:10,11).

And what, now, is his parting advice to young Timothy? Does he say: "Perhaps I have been too intense. My methods have made many enemies. I advise you to be more diplomatic and tolerant than I have been". Hardly, for the records show Paul to have been of all men most tactful and considerate. His sufferings were not the result of a contentious spirit, but of his faithfulness in proclaiming that message which so embarrasses and enrages "our adversary, the devil", that message which is God's gracious response to man's need and His answer to Satan's slander -- "the gospel of the grace of God".

Thus it is that the Apostle urges Timothy: "Continue thou...be not ashamed...be strong". He well knew that in this sin-cursed world the only hope for the individual is to be found in God's offer of salvation through faith in the redemption wrought by Christ at Calvary.

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February 12, 2012

A STONE OF STUMBLING
by Cornelius R. Stam

Some thirty years after the death and resurrection of Christ, St. Peter wrote to the believers of the Jewish dispersion:

"Unto you therefore which believe He is precious; but unto them which be disobedient, the Stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner,
"And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient..." (I Pet. 2:7,8 ).

It is true that Israel's builders, 1900 years ago, "disallowed" Christ as the cornerstone for their building, and that when He became the "Head of the corner," according to Psa. 118:22, it was for them an occasion for stumbling and embarrassment.

But Christ is a "stone of stumbling" to all who reject Him. In Rom. 9:33 St. Paul quotes from several Old Testament passages:

"As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence; and whosoever believeth on Him shall not be ashamed."

In Peter's day and in Paul's, those who looked upon Christ as their Cornerstone were never given cause to be ashamed. It was those who disallowed and refused Him who kept stumbling over Him and were constantly embarrassed by Him.

So today, those who put their trust in the crucified, risen Christ are eternally secure and will never be put to shame for having done so. But those who reject Christ keep forever stumbling over Him. They hear Him preached over the radio, they see Him offered as the One who died for their sins, they are constantly confronted with His claims and they are embarrassed. They keep forever stumbling over Him.

Moral: trust Him now as your personal Savior, for "who- soever believeth on Him shall not be ashamed."

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February 13, 2012

BANNERS TO DISPLAY
by Cornelius R. Stam

If there is one thing that God would have His people do amid the rising apostasy of our day it is to show their colors. As the enemy comes in like a flood, even Bible-believing Christians are apt to hide a banner which they should unfurl and boldly display. That banner is Christ. How many believers fear to speak up for Him because His name is increasingly despised!

But, as in any war of any size, many and varied flags are carried into battle, this is so in the Christian conflict too, for the Bible, godly living, faithful comrades, etc., are all banners by which we should take our stand, flags we should display.

One such banner is fundamentalism, a slogan, a battle cry, which many believers are putting aside and hiding away just when they should display and wave it boldly. Some, recognizing the spiritual decline among fundamentalists, prefer to be called simply believers or Christians. We can appreciate this point of view but do not feel it is valid in this time of spiritual crisis.

At a time when the fundamentals of the Christian faith are being threatened as never before, we can do much to show that we stand for these basic doctrines, identifying ourselves openly with them by calling ourselves fundamentalists. The rapid pace at which the apostasy is rising about us makes it the more urgent that we display this banner. We believe that there is strong Scriptural support for this view, e.g., in Acts 23:6, where we read that Paul called himself a Pharisee to show that he stood for basic Bible doctrine and against those who denied it.

Bible-believing Christian: show your colors!

[nChrist]

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February 14, 2012

WHAT IS GRACE?
by Cornelius R. Stam

"The father of lies" always hates the truth, but he does not always oppose it by the same methods. If he fails to succeed as a roaring lion he may appear as an angel of light, suggesting that surely a God of love will not condemn Christ-rejectors forever. Sinners, he will contend, are not responsible for their sins anyway, for does not Eph. 1:11 teach that "[God] worketh all things after the counsel of His own will"? And thus God Himself is supposed to have conceived the idea of sin as "a gracious means to a glorious end," and to have caused man to fall into sin so that He might finally save him from it!

Why an almighty, all-wise, all-loving God permitted sin to enter the universe must, for the time being, remain an impenetrable mystery to us, but one thing is certain: He is not the author of sin, and never accepts the responsibility for it -- except that in grace and love He bore its penalty for man.

God calls sinners "children of disobedience" and "children of wrath" (Eph. 2:2,3), explaining in the clearest language that He hates sin and that His anger is kindled against it (Rom. 1:18; Eph. 5:6; John 3:36). But if God meant man to sin and caused him to sin, how was man disobedient and what cause could God have to be angry? Those who would shift the responsibility for sin from themselves to God should remember that He proclaimed His standards of righteousness in the Law "that every mouth may be stopped and that all the world may be brought in guilty before God" (Rom. 3:19).

The contention that all will finally be saved may at first sound like wonderful grace, but actually there is not one particle of grace in it, for it is based on the theory that since God got us into sin it is only just that He save us from its penalty. But grace is God's mercy and kindness to the undeserving. In Eph. 2, after calling sinners "children of disobedience" and therefore "children of wrath," the Apostle Paul goes on to say:

"BUT GOD, who is RICH IN MERCY, for His GREAT LOVE wherewith he loved us... hath quickened us... raised us up... and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus; that in the ages to come He might show THE EXCEEDING RICHES OF HIS GRACE IN HIS KINDNESS TOWARD US THROUGH CHRIST JESUS" (Eph. 2:4-7).

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February 15, 2012

TWO WALLS
by Cornelius R. Stam

We were all doubtless surprised when the East German authorities began opening the Berlin Wall to West Berlin visitors at Christmas time. We can never be sure just what might be up the Communists' sleeves, but for the time being it sounds encouraging. What they ought to do, of course, is to tear the wall down. It is a crime against humanity and a sin against God to confine half a city in a cage, to treat human beings as if they were animals.

The Bible speaks of a wall that separated all mankind into two parts. In Ephesians 2 the Law, the Ten Commandments, is called "the middle wall of partition."

The Law was given to God's covenant people. The Gentiles had been given up long before at the Tower of Babel and God had called out Abraham and his seed and had given them the Law. They broke the Law, however, so that Rom. 3:19 says:

"Whatsoever 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."

Because of the broken Law all men have been placed on the same level, but this was also God's purpose of grace: "For God hath concluded them all in unbelief: that He might have mercy upon all" (Rom. 11:32). And thus God offers salvation to all through Christ, who died for our sins at Calvary. This is why Eph. 2:13-16 says:

"But now, in Christ Jesus, ye who once were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For He is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us... that He might reconcile both unto God in one Body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby."

Thank God there is no "Berlin Wall" between God and those who trust His Son, nor between believers who have been made "one Body in Christ."

[nChrist]

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February 16, 2012

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 Peter's 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 God's 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 subjection to water baptism should be left to each person's conscience, and he did not believe that it had anything to do with salvation. He would doubtless have said to any inquirers 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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February 18, 2012

HEALING, THEN AND NOW
by Cornelius R. Stam

"And there came a leper to Him, beseeching Him, and kneeling down to Him, and saying unto Him, If Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean" (Mark 1:40).

It is interesting to observe exactly what the leper did and did not say to our Lord in the above passage. He did not say: "If You could, You would," even though more and greater miracles would unquestionably have enhanced our Lord's fame. He rather said: "If You will, You can" --- "If Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean."

The people of our Lord's day did not question the genuineness of His miracles. No one suggested that the infirmities He dealt with might be psychosomatic in nature, that they were probably either real healings of imaginary infirmities or imaginary healings of real infirmities. They could not raise these objections, for the evidences of the supernatural character of His healings were too overwhelming to admit of this. Everywhere He went healing the sick or casting out demons, the people "wondered and were amazed," and spread "His fame" abroad from city to city. At Capernaum:

"All they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto Him, and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them" (Luke 4:40).

How different it is with the "healers" of our day and with their claims! Entirely apart from the objections of those who question these "healings" on Scriptural grounds, it is a simple fact that great numbers of people among the general populace question the validity of both the "healers" and their "healing miracles."

Meantime, as one has said, the death rate remains "one apiece." There always comes that last time, when the "healing" doesn't work and the patient dies. This is why all modern "healers" leave behind them a long, sad trail of disillusionment and shaken faith.

[nChrist]

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February 19, 2012

"A TRUE VETERAN"
by Cornelius R. Stam

Before you have placed your trust in Christ as your Lord and Savior, there is nothing whatever you can do to please God or to gain acceptance with Him. John 3:35 declares that "the Father loves the Son" and cares what you think about Him and do with Him. This is why Verse 36 goes on to say:

"He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him."

But once you have received Christ as your Savior and Lord there is much you can do to please God. You can witness to His saving grace, you can please Him by living a godly life, you can work for Him, you can sacrifice of your means to further His cause, and yes, you can fight for Him. "Fight for Him" you say? Yes indeed, for this world system, our Adamic natures and Satan and his hosts, are all antagonistic toward the Christ who died for our sins. Satan's forces, especially, work behind the scenes to "blind the minds of them that believe not" (II Cor. 4:4). These fallen angels, we read, are "the rulers of the darkness of this world" (iEph. 6:12).

This is why God urges His children to be "strong in the Lord," putting on "the whole armor of God," so as to meet and defeat these evil forces (Vers. 10,11). This is why He puts a sword ("the Word of God") into our hands and bids us "stand... stand... stand!" (Vers. 11-14).

Ah, but a great veteran, who waged many battles in making Christ known to the lost, gives us an inkling of the thrill that goes with being "a good soldier of Jesus Christ." In his last words, just before his execution, the Apostle Paul declared triumphantly: "I have fought a good fight!" (II Tim. 4:7). It was indeed "a good fight" in which he had been engaged, a fight to bring light and salvation and blessing to benighted souls. And the reward:

"Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown" (Ver. 8 ).

[nChrist]

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February 20, 2012

THE BIBLE AND THE AMERICAN HOME
by Cornelius R. Stam

More than nineteen hundred years ago St. Paul wrote to a young man named Timothy: "From a
child thou hast known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation, through faith which is in Christ Jesus" (II Tim. 3:15).

Timothy was a fortunate young man. His father was not a believer, but his godly mother made up for the lack, and her mother helped as, day after day, from his earliest childhood, they taught him the Word of God. As a result he came to know Christ as his Savior at an early age, and later became Paul's faithful co-worker and closest associate in making known the wonderful "gospel of the grace of God." In his very last letter the Apostle recalls Timothy's "unfeigned faith... which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice" (II Tim. 1:5).

If only we had more such grandmothers today, and mothers, with husbands to help them! If only our American children were not set adrift on a tossing sea of human speculation, but were taught the eternal truths of that Old Book, the Bible!

Certainly the rebellion of so much of our American youth against law, authority and morality is directly related to the disappearance of the Bible from American life. It is not those young people who have been brought up in Bible- reading homes and in Church and Sunday School, who are making us ashamed today; it is those, from backgrounds both rich and poor, who have been brought up without Bible teaching.

We all need to "know the holy Scriptures," not only because they teach reverence for God and build moral character, but most of all because they "are able to make [us] wise unto salvation through faith... in Christ Jesus." The theme of the Bible, Old Testament as well as New, is the Lord Jesus Christ, the riches of whose saving grace are unfolded to us in the Epistles of Paul, the chief of sinners saved by grace.