Two Minutes With The Bible

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November 22, 2005

FIRST COMMUNION
by Cornelius R. Stam

For some years a little girl passed our window at Berean Bible Society each day on her way to and from school. Every time she passed she would smile, wave and throw a kiss.

Occasionally she would come in to tell me something special, and I was always impressed by her natural refinement. One would not have wished to meet a sweeter child.

One day she came in to show me a picture of herself, all dressed up for her “first communion!” “How pretty!”, I exclaimed. “But do you know what happened at the very first communion supper?” “Yes,” she said, “they killed Him.” “That’s right,” I agreed, “but there’s much more than that.”

She had given me a wonderful opportunity to breathe into her little ears, what St. Paul calls “the preaching of the cross”, “the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth”.

If only we could persuade all of our readers of “the truth of the gospel”, (ICor.15:3), and that “by Him all who believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the Law of Moses” (Acts 13:39). This is why St. Paul could tell the trembling Philippian jailor: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31).

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November 23, 2005

THE MOST IMPORTANT HOUR OF HISTORY
by Cornelius R. Stam

The most important hour of all history was the hour when the Lord Jesus Christ died on Calvary’s cross for the sins of mankind. Often, in Scripture, the hour of our Lord’s death is called simply "the hour ," "My hour ," or "His hour."

To fulfill prophecy He could not have died one hour ear- lier, or one later: Until that hour arrived His enemies were somehow restrained from doing Him bodily harm, so that we read in John 7:30:

"Then they sought to take Him: but no man laid hands on Him, because HIS HOUR WAS NOT YET COME" (See also John 8:20).

This hour was to be for Him a time of unspeakable agony and shame. Referring to this, He said to Andrew and Philip:

"Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father save Me from this hour? But FOR THIS CAUSE CAME I UNTO THIS HOUR" (John 12:27).

He had come to die for the sins of the world and would not now turn away from the sufferings involved. But this hour of suffering and shame was also an hour of glory, for there the Son of God paid a debt which would have sunk a world to hell. This is why, at this same time, in the very shadow of the cross, He said:

"THE HOUR IS COME THAT THE SON OF MAN SHOULD BE GLORIFIED. Verily, verily I say unto you, Except a grain of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone; but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit" (John 12:23,24. See also John 17:1,2).

Little wonder we read 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."

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November 24, 2005

BE YE RECONCILED
by Cornelius R. Stam

Reconciliation postulates alienation. Only enemies can be reconciled. Thus God’s message of reconciliation takes us back to Adam, the father of the human race, who first rebelled against God, and explains why God must deal with us all on the same level, as sinners who need salvation.

In Romans 5:12, we read: “…By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned”.

Thank God, though, the message of reconciliation is not concerned exclusively with the “one man” by whom sin entered into the world. Indeed, it is chiefly concerned with the “one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus” (ITim.2:5).

“Therefore as by the offence of one, judgment came upon all men unto condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one, the free gift [of salvation] came upon all men to justification of life.
“For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous” (Rom.5:18,19).

It is by this other “one Man” and His death on Calvary, then, that sinners may be reconciled to a holy God. In Colossians 1:21,22, Paul, the Apostle of reconciliation, writes to believers:

“And you, that were once alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath He reconciled,
“In the body of His flesh, through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in His sight.”

Thus “when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son” (Rom.5:10). And thus, too, the Apostle pleads: “We pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For He hath made Him to be sin for us, [Christ] who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him” (IICor. 5:20,21).

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November 25, 2005

PUZZLE OR PICTURE
by Cornelius R. Stam

Where “rightly dividing the Word of truth” (IITim.2:15) is concerned, our spiritual leaders are like a group of people, each one of whom holds a part or several parts of a jig-saw puzzle, but who fail to put them together and so never get to see the picture.

One sees clearly that the so-called “Great Commission” was a Kingdom commission and not ours. Another sees that the “one baptism” of Ephesians 4:5 MUST be the DIVINE baptism which makes believers one in Christ. Another sees that Paul’s apostleship was wholly distinct from that of the Twelve. Another sees that Romans 6:3,4 does not contain one drop of water. Another sees that the Christian’s position is spiritual and heavenly in character. Another sees that the Body of Christ, the Church of today, was never prophesied — even, that it did not begin at Pentecost with Peter and the eleven, but later, with Paul.

But while each sees some component part of “the Mystery”, Satan has used tradition to blind him to the rest. The result is that confusion continues to prevail and they still have a puzzle instead of a picture.

If only they would put the pieces together! What a clear picture they would see of “the Dispensation of the Grace of God”, and how eagerly they would join us in “THE PREACHING OF JESUS CHRIST ACCORDING TO THE REVELATION OF THE MYSTERY” (Rom. 16:25)!

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November 26, 2005

"LIBERTY NOT LICENSE"
by Cornelius R. Stam

The fact that we are given perfect liberty in Christ does not mean that we should spend our lives in gratifying our own fleshly desires. Just the opposite is the case. Believers have been delivered from the bondage of childhood and given the liberty of full-grown sons in Christ (Gal.3:24; 4:1-7), and this advance from infancy to maturity in itself implies the acquisition of a sense of responsibility.

The doctrine of our liberty in Christ does not support, it rather refutes, the false theory that those who are under grace may do anything they please. Paul was “slanderously reported” in this connection (Rom.3:8), but there were carnal believers then, as there are now, who actually did use their liberty as license to gratify their own desires. To turn from liberty to license in this way is fully as serious an error as to turn from liberty to law.

Many a believer, motivated only by his own fleshly desires and not at all by love for Christ or others, has indulged in pleasures of the flesh and of the world, justifying himself on the ground that he is under grace and has liberty in Christ. Taking others down with him in his spiritual declension he complains of any who would help him, that, “They are trying to put me under the law”.

Such are actually guilty of departing from grace, for “the grace of God…hath appeared”:

“Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world;

“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

“Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works” (Tit.2:11-14).

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November 27, 2005

A DOUBLE HEART AND DECEITFUL TONGUES
by Russell S. Miller

A double heart! Interesting title indeed, for some do speak "flattering" words of "vanity" to accomplish their ungodly and unrighteous motives.

"They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak" (Psa.12:2).

The Bible has a great deal to say about the depravity of man. Jeremiah put it this way: "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it" (Jer.17:9). In His denunciation of the Pharisees in Matthew 23 the Lord rebuked their hypocrisy with the indictment that they made their converts "twofold more the child of hell" than themselves (Matt. 23:15). In my study of this, it was also interesting to discover that the Greek word, dilogos, is translated "double tongued" in I Timothy 3:8. W.E. Vine defines this word as "saying a thing to one person and giving a different view of it to another". That’s double-tongued.

We read in Hebrews 4:12 that "the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword..." It was when "Elymas the sorcerer... withstood" the truth of God’s Word that the Apostle Paul said, "O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?" (Acts 13:10). Elymas was using deceit "to turn away the deputy from the faith"! Paul wrote the Corinthians about "false apostles, deceitful workers, [who] transformed themselves into the apostles of Christ" (IICor.11:13) that they might keep men in bondage and the darkness of unbelief, "...lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them" (IICor.4:4). They would be set gloriously free if they but believed the gospel (John 8:32,36; IICor.3:17; Gal.5:1).

It has come down to this, that our world is full of wickedness: "with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness..." (Rom.3:13-18). But there is One who can bring peace, "[He] is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners" (Heb.7:26), and I would like to introduce you to the Lord Jesus Christ:

"WHEREFORE HE IS ABLE ALSO TO SAVE THEM TO THE UTTERMOST THAT COME UNTO GOD BY HIM, SEEING HE EVER LIVETH TO MAKE INTERCESSION FOR THEM" (Heb.7:25).

He will save you from your sins if you will just ask Him.

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November 28, 2005

CAN THE LAW SAVE?
by Cornelius R. Stam

This writer does not wear clerical garb, but somehow when he visits a church away from home, someone is apt to step up to him and ask: “Are you by any chance a minister?’’

Acts 13 tells how this once happened to Paul and Barnabas. They had entered a synagogue as strangers and simply sat down to listen. After “the reading of the law and the prophets,” however, the leaders of the service sent someone to ask them: “Ye men and brethren, if ye have any word of exhortation for the people, say on” (Verses 14 and 15). Somehow Paul and Barnabas had been recognized as men of God.

The custom at that time was to read a passage from the Law and then some passages in which the prophets urged the people to observe the Law. This was followed by an exhortation by one or more of the religious leaders present.

Well, Paul did have a word of exhortation for the people, but it would be somewhat of a surprise. Getting to the point of his message, he preached to them Christ and the resurrection, and closed his talk with the words: “Be it known unto you, therefore, men and brethren, that 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” (Verses 38 and 39).

This was the gist of his “exhortation”: Don’t trust in the Law for salvation -— trust in Christ, who fulfilled the Law and died for your sins. This makes sense, and it agrees with the Bible as a whole. “By the Law is the knowledge of sin” (Rom. 3:20): "it was added because of transgressions" (Gal.3:19): “for as many as are of the works of the Law are under the curse” (Gal.3:10); but “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the Law, being made a curse for us” (Gal.3:13). “Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the Law” (Rom. 3:28).

It should be obvious that the Law can only condemn sinners, but it is also a fact that Christ died for sinners, to save them from the condemnation of the Law. “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 5:1).

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November 29, 2005

FAITH, HOPE AND LOVE
by Cornelius R. Stam

"And now abideth faith, hope, love, these three, but the greatest of these is love" (I Cor. 13:13).

St. Paul had been discussing, in I Cor. 13, some of the miraculous signs that were to vanish away as God’s revelation became complete. But faith, hope and love, he declared, would abide as a triune evidence of true Christianity.

These three are all we need in the present "dispensation of the grace of God." Any church where faith, hope and love are found in abundant measure is a "full" church. It may have but a few members, but what greater blessing could it wish for than faith, hope and love in its fellowship?

Faith, hope and love are a trinity often referred to in St. Paul’s epistles. Each is of basic importance in its way, and none can exist without the other two.

Faith is of primary importance. "Without faith it is impossible to please [God]" (Heb 11:6), and how can there be hope and love without faith?

Hope holds the central place among the three. Hope in the Bible is more than a wish; it is the opposite of despair, an eager anticipation of blessings to come. Hope is the Christian’s experience, his living with eternity’s glory in view.

Love is the crowning virtue of the three; it is the fruit of faith and hope, and is greatest in the sense that it is "the bond of perfectness." Moreover, love is eternal. Some day, for every true believer, "faith will vanish into sight; hope be emptied in delight" and love will reign supreme.

May God help us, in our fellowship with each other, to evidence a full measure of faith, hope and love.

________________________

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November 30, 2005

PAUL’S PHRASEOLOGY
by Cornelius R. Stam

The careful student of the Epistles of Paul soon observes that the Apostle makes many specific statements as to the distinctiveness of his ministry and message. Even apart from this, however, and considering his phraseology alone, we often wonder how anyone could possibly deny that his message was distinct from that which the twelve had proclaimed. Note the following examples:

Rom. 2:16: "In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to MY GOSPEL."

Rom. 16:25: "Now to Him that is of power to stablish you according to MY GOSPEL, and the preaching of Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began."

II Tim. 2:7,8; "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."

Gal. 1:11: "But I certify you, brethren, that THE GOSPEL WHICH WAS PREACHED OF ME is not after man."

Gal. 2:2: "And I went up [to Jerusalem] by revelation, and communicated unto them THAT GOSPEL WHICH I PREACH AMONG THE GENTILES, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain."

I Cor. 15:1: "Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you THE GOSPEL WHICH I PREACHED UNTO YOU, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand."

Add to this the Apostle’s explicit claims as to the distinctive character of his ministry and message and you have irrefutable proof of the fact.

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December 1, 2005

HEAVEN -- AND WHO WILL GO THERE
by Cornelius R. Stam

Most people are surprised when they learn that the Old Testament, though three times as large as the New, does not contain one single promise about going to heaven. God’s people, in Old Testament times, looked forward to a glorified earth, with Messiah as its Ruler.

This was so even when our Lord was on earth and continued to be so through Pentecost. Peter, addressing his kinsmen just after Pentecost, said in essence: "Repent, and God will send Jesus down here" (See Acts 3:19-20), but Paul, in his epistles, says by divine inspiration: "Believe, and God will take you up there."

This apostle of grace teaches us that God has already given believers in Christ a position and "all spiritual blessings" in heavenly places in Christ (Eph. 2:4-6; 1:3). And he teaches further that at the close of this dispensation of grace "the dead in Christ shall rise" and "we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together ...to meet the Lord... and so shall we ever be with the Lord" (I Thes. 4:16,17).

Thus it is that Paul, God’s special apostle for our day, declares that "our conversation [or citizenship] is in heaven" (Phil. 3:20) and writes of "the hope which is laid up for you in heaven" (Col. 1:5). Thus it is that he encourages persecuted saints, saying: "Ye...took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing...that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance" (Heb. 10:34). And thus he writes even of death:

"For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dis- solved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens" (II Cor. 5:1).

"...to die is gain....to depart and to be with Christ...is far better" (Phil. 1:21,23).

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December 2, 2005

WHEN THE LORD ASKED WHY
by Cornelius R. Stam

There are two occasions when the Lord asked "Why?" that stand out from all the rest.

Once it was to God He cried it and once to Saul of Tarsus. Once to the Holy One and once to the chief of sinners. Once He cried it from the shameful cross and once from His glory in heaven. In each case the name was repeated.

In Matt. 27:46 we find the first anguished "Why?" as He cried: "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" The other is found in Acts 9:4, where He called from His exile in heaven: "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me?"

These two questions represent the greatest riddles of history and yet strangely, one of them is the simple solution to the other! Why did God forsake His Son? You will find the answer when you ask why mankind, represented by Saul, forsook and even persecuted God’s Son. God’s action, in giving Christ up to die, was the antidote to man’s. Christ’s death was the remedy -- the only possible remedy -- for man’s sin. It was because of the utter unreasonableness of man’s sin that God, to save him, had to be more than reasonable.

Saul had led his nation and the world in rebellion against Christ, but this is just why, in infinite love, God chose him to become the great apostle of grace, telling the world that "Christ died for our sins."

Hear him tell how he had been "a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious" but how "the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant" (1 Tim. 1:13,14). Hear him say:

"Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief, Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show forth all long suffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on Him to life everlasting" (Vers. 15, 16).

Since the "chief of sinners" is now in heaven, there is hope for us all if we but trust in the Christ who died for us.

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December 3, 2005

A PRAYER WE NEVER PRAY
by Cornelius R. Stam

Down through the centuries many sincere believers have uttered this prayer: “Come, Lord Jesus; come quickly,” but we have not joined them in this.

Lest we be misunderstood, we hasten to explain that we, personally, long to see and be with our blessed Lord, and did we think only of ourselves we would have Him come now, without further delay.

But this continued absence of our Lord in grace is the special subject of Paul’s epistles, as Peter states:

“AND ACCOUNT THAT THE LONGSUFFERING OF OUR LORD IS SALVATION; EVEN AS OUR BELOVED BROTHER PAUL ALSO ACCORDING TO THE WISDOM GIVEN UNTO HIM HATH WRITTEN UNTO YOU;
“AS ALSO IN ALL HIS EPISTLES, SPEAKING IN THEM OF THESE THINGS…” (II Pet.3:15,16).

How gracious has our Lord been in delaying His return for His own and the judgment to follow! How gracious to extend the day of grace until now! Now that we are saved we would fain be with the One we love and long for, but how grateful we should be that He waited for us, and how eager we should be to win others to Him while He waits still longer!

As we consider the lost about us, therefore, we cannot implore the Lord to “come quickly,” though His coming for us is indeed a “blessed hope,” and we remain on the alert for it to take place at any time.

In this connection it is interesting to observe that the prayer, “Come, Lord Jesus,” and its counterpart “How long!” are both “tribulation” prayers, uttered by saints (not of the Body) who will live during that dreadful time of God’s wrath. Both are found in the Book of the Revelation and both in connection with our Lord’s return to earth to judge and reign, and not in connection with the rapture. In both Revelation 2:5 and 2:16 our Lord says: “Repent…or else I will come unto thee quickly,” i.e., to judge. In Revelation 3:11 He writes to the church at Philadelphia, but again in warning: “Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.” Revelation 22:7 and 12 are used in the same way, indicating that in that day only those who are “overcomers” will long for the Lord to come and put an end to the world’s rebellion. Thus John closes the Revelation with the declaration: “He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly”, and the response: “Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (Verse 20).

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December 4, 2005

"GO, AND SIN NO MORE"
by Cornelius R. Stam

The self-righteous Pharisees had brought a fallen woman to Jesus and, “when they had set her in the midst”, they began to accuse her, saying: “Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest Thou?” (John 8:5).

They were using this fallen woman to embarrass the Lord into agreeing that this woman should be stoned, or else leaving Himself open to a charge of repudiating Moses’ Law.

At first He made “as though He heard them not”, but, when they continued asking, they got what they asked for! Simply answering: “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her”, the Lord turned away again to let that sentence do its work. They had “set her in the midst”. Now He had set them in the midst and, “being convicted by their own conscience”, they “went out one by one” (Ver.9).

And there stood the woman alone before Him: a great sinner and a great Saviour. Since none of the Pharisees had dared to cast a stone at her, the Lord said: “Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more” (Ver.11).

Thus the Lord graciously forgave the sinner-woman, yet without ignoring the demand of the Law. He had not denied that the woman deserved punishment. He had only pointed out that the Pharisees themselves were sinners; that they, like she, needed a Saviour.

Thank God! Since “Christ died for our sins”, God can justly forgive us — and He will, IF we but acknowledge our sin and our need of a Saviour, and do not join the self-righteous who keep “going about to establish their own righteousness” (Rom.10:3).

“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save SINNERS…” (I Tim.1:15). God is very gracious to those who will acknowledge their sin and their need: “For the same Lord over all is RICH UNTO ALL THAT CALL UPON HIM.”

“FOR WHOSOEVER SHALL CALL UPON THE NAME OF THE LORD SHALL BE SAVED” (Rom. 10:12,13).

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December 5, 2005

PAUL’S THREE "I AM’S"
by Cornelius R. Stam

Three times in Romans 1:14-16, the Apostle Paul uses the phrase “I am”, and each one carries an important message for every true believer in Christ.

First, he says in verse 14: “I am debtor” — debtor to all men, to tell them about the saving work of Christ. But why was he indebted to people he had never even seen? For several reasons:

First, he had in his hand what they needed to be saved from the penalty and power of sin. If I see a drunkard lying across the railroad track and I do nothing about it, am I not a murderer if he is killed by the train? If I see a man drowning and I have a life buoy in my hand but do not throw it to him, am I not a murderer if he goes down for the last time? If I see millions of lost souls about me and, knowing the message of salvation, do not tell them, am I not guilty if they die without Christ?

Further, Paul felt himself a debtor to others, because the Christ who had died for his sins had also died for the sins of others. As he says in II Corinthians 5:14,15: “Christ died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him who died for them and rose again.”

Finally, the Christ who had died for Paul’s sins, had commissioned him to tell others of His saving grace. Thus he says in I Corinthians 9:16,17:

“Woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel! For…a dispensation of the gospel is committed unto me” (ICor.9:16,17).

Paul could say further what every true believer should be able to say: Not “I am debtor, but”, but rather, “I am debtor…SO, as much as in me is, I AM READY…” (Rom.1:15). He was ready to discharge his debt because he had that with which to discharge it — the wonderful “gospel of the grace of God”. And he did indeed make this the message known to others with all that was in him.

And now the third “I am”: “I am debtor…So I am ready… For I AM NOT ASHAMED of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth…” (Ver. 16). Paul was always proud to own Christ as the mighty Saviour from sin. Do you know Christ as your Saviour? Do you tell others of His saving grace?

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[nChrist]

December 6, 2005

ALL FOR US
by Cornelius R. Stam

Have you ever thought how much God has done “for us” in Christ?

In Romans 8:32 we read that to save us from sin, God “spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up FOR US all”. In Titus 2:14 we are told that Christ “gave Himself FOR US, that He might redeem us from all iniquity…”. In Romans 5:8 the Apostle declares that “while we were yet sinners, Christ died FOR US”. Galatians 3:13 says that Christ was “made a curse FOR US”.

Hebrews 9:12 states that “He entered…into the holy place [the presence of the Father], having obtained eternal redemption FOR US”. And if we trust Him for this “eternal redemption” we may read further in Hebrews 9:24 that “Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands…but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God FOR US”. Romans 8:34 asks who can condemn the believer in Christ, since HE [the Lord Jesus Christ] is now “at the right hand of God” and “maketh intercession FOR US”.

Hebrews 6:20 declares that our Lord entered the Father's presence “FOR US” as our “Forerunner”. Hebrews 10:19,20 therefore encourages believers to come to God in prayer: “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…”.

Just think how much God has done FOR US in Christ! He delivered His beloved Son to death FOR US, Christ gave Himself FOR US, died FOR US, became a curse FOR US, intercedes FOR US, entered heaven FOR US as a Forerunner, and consecrated “a new and living way” into God's presence FOR US, so that we may “come boldly unto the throne of grace” to “obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb.4:16). “If God be FOR US, who can be against us” (Rom.8:31)?

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