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The Fruit Of Grace
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam


When John the Baptist and the Lord Jesus Christ appeared on earth, God’s people had been under the law of Moses for fifteen hundred years. Little wonder John and his Master looked for fruit among them.

When the hypocritical religious leaders came to join John’s growing audience and asked to be baptized, John called them a “generation of vipers” and bade them “bring forth… fruits meet for repentance” (Matt. 3:7,8). True repentance, with fruit to prove it, was the basic requirement of the kingdom John proclaimed. This is evident from his declaration:

    “And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire” (Matt. 3:10).

Our Lord appeared, proclaiming the same message as John, and also sought for fruit among His people (Matt. 7: 16-20; 21:33-43). We know, however, that John the Baptist was beheaded and Christ crucified. The fruit produced under the Law was meager indeed. Even after the resurrection of Christ the majority of His people refused to repent and failed to bring forth the required fruit.

But what the Law requires grace provides. It was at this time that God raised up the Apostle Paul, whose “preaching of the cross” showed that Christ had not died an untimely death, but in infinite love had come into the world to die for sinners so that they might be saved by grace, through faith (Eph. 2:8,9). Paul’s message was called “the gospel [good news] of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24), and where the Law had failed to bring forth fruit, grace brought it forth abundantly.

God’s grace in Christ, when accepted in true faith, always brings forth good fruit. Thus Paul wrote to the Colossians that his good news was going forth into all the world, adding: “and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you since… ye knew the grace of God in truth” (Col. 1:5,6 cf. Rom. 6: 21,22).

Accept God’s message of grace, trust in Christ as your Savior and He will help you to produce the fruit.

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A Guilty Conscience
by Pastor Paul M. Sadler


Four of our grandchildren have a large high-spirited dog named Molly. Molly is like most dogs; she loves to eat and romp with the kids. But she also likes to roam the neighborhood, crashing through the neighbor's flowerbeds and vegetable gardens. Needless to say, a dog her size could do a lot of damage in short order. To correct the problem, Kevin and Jessica purchased an electronic collar. They merely set the transmitter in the house to all the boundaries of the yard. When Molly approaches one of the borders, her collar begins to beep, and then the unit gives her a mild shock when she gets too close to the perimeter. It didn’t take Molly long to realize that, when she hears a beeping sound, she knows to stop before she gets zapped.

Along these same lines, God has put an invisible beeper, a conscience, inside every human being, which warns us when we're about to do something wrong. At his second appearance before the Diet of Worms, Martin Luther stated about his stand, "To go against conscience is neither right nor safe."

    "For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses" (Rom. 5:13,14).

The term impute in this passage is an accounting term; it simply means "to put to one's account." While men sinned during the period between Adam and Moses, they were not held accountable for those sins because God had not yet given the commandments that prohibited them. This does not mean that they were any less guilty of sin or any less deserving of eternal judgment. It is important to remember that, during this period, men were living under the dispensation of conscience; therefore, they were without excuse. This is what Paul means in Romans 2:

    "For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another" (Rom. 2:14,15).

Conscience means "to know" or "with knowledge." Under that dispensation, conscience was to govern mankind. It required men to do all known good, and abstain from all known evil.

After Adam and Eve had sinned, "they knew that they were naked" and consequently, they sewed figs leaves together to cover themselves (Gen. 3:7). In other words, their consciences were activated to know the difference between good and evil, and right and wrong. They knew they had sinned against God and felt guilty as a result of it.

Cain knew that God required a blood sacrifice, but he did evil in the sight of the Lord and brought an offering from the fruit of the ground. He sinned and had to deal with the guilt of his decision (Gen. 4:5). God would not receive Cain's offering because it came from the earth, which had been cursed. Abel, on the other hand, responded to God in faith and brought what God required of him.

God is teaching us that, even though there was no Law between Adam and Moses, we are to understand that conscience was their guide, for they were "a law unto themselves." As a result, they were without excuse. You see, God is demonstrating that, no matter what dispensation He has placed man under--Conscience, Law, Grace--all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

With this in mind, Paul adds, "Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses." Even though the Law of Moses hadn't been implemented at that time, death still reigned supreme in that, eventually the people died. But that raises this question: if the sins of men were not charged to their account, why did death still have mastery over them? Simple: they had sinned in Adam, which is true of the entire human race. Since we are Adam's posterity, we are all born in him. He is our federal head. What was true of him is true of us as well.

God, in His infinite knowledge, sees what we are unable to see. When Adam reached for that forbidden fruit, we were in him; consequently, we are identified with his sin. Another example of this principle is found in Hebrews 7:9,10. So then, the trio of death-- physical, spiritual and the possibility of eternal death--reigned because we have all sinned in Adam. This also explains how a newborn, who has never committed one sinful act, sometimes dies due to complications. They sinned in Adam! Personally, I believe God has made a very special provision for these little ones (II Sam. 12:22,23).

"Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound" (Rom. 5:20). The Law magnified sin! It shined a spotlight on it to show man how exceedingly sinful he really is. When the Law says, "Thou shalt not steal," man's natural response is to question the law rebelliously and disobey it. When you tell a toddler that he is not allowed to open the basement door and then move out of their range of sight, he will put his hand on the door knob and look to see if you're watching. You see, it shows us that there is a natural tendency to do wrong. God magnified that a hundredfold when He gave the Law. Once again, it was to demonstrate that all are sinners in word, thought, and deed.

From the beginning, conscience has been woven through all the ages and dispensations. It is what's known as a trans-dispensational truth. But we find it interesting that there is very little emphasis placed on conscience under the Mosaic system, which shouldn't surprise us (Heb. 9:9). The commandments served as the conscience of the people of God in time past: "Thou shalt not…," "This do and thou shalt live…," "If you hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep His commandments and His statutes…." There was a law or statute to govern every step of their lives.

When we turn to the Gentile epistles, Paul makes frequent references to the conscience under grace. Today we have liberty in Christ, but we are never to use that liberty for an occasion to the flesh, whether it's to entertain impure thoughts or commit an immoral act. Grace teaches us to deny ungodliness and worldly lust. The Law demands; grace beseeches! As God implores us to walk worthy of our calling, He uses His Word, the Spirit, and our consciences as an early warning system, to assist us in living a life that is well pleasing to Him. Remember and remember well: it's a dangerous thing to disobey your conscience.

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Are You a Servant of God?
by Pastor Ricky Kurth


    "Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle..." (Titus 1:1)

Did you ever wonder why Paul, an apostle, began his epistle to Titus by first referring to himself as a servant, the Bible word for a slave? Well, it helps to learn why the apostle opened two of his other epistles this way.

First, he identified himself as a servant to the Romans (Rom. 1:1) because Rome was the capital city of the Roman Empire, and the citizens of Rome were used to owning slaves, not being slaves. Paul himself had been born with all the rights and privileges of Roman citizenship (Acts 22:25-28), yet he was humbly willing to acknowledge that he was a servant of God. So in writing the saints in Rome, the apostle introduced himself as a servant to remind them that they too might be free citizens, but that "he that is called in the Lord...being free, is Christ's servant" (I Cor. 7:22).

Paul also introduced himself as a servant to the Philippians, where two of the ladies were feuding (Phil. 4:2), and everyone in the church was taking sides. When they received Paul's letter, they probably thought that he was going to take a side in their squabble and settle it in so doing. But rather than siding with either faction, he made it clear that he was writing to them "all" (1:1), praying for them "all" (1:4), thought highly of them "all" (1:7), longed after them "all" (1:8), rejoiced with them "all" (2:17), and wished them "all" well (4:23). His marked and repeated use of the word all in this epistle shows that he refused to take sides in their feud. Instead, he told them to get on the Lord's side, saying,

    "...be likeminded...being...of one mind...let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God...took upon Him the form of a servant..." (Phil. 2:2-7).

When two believers are not of one mind, the only way they can become of one mind is to let the mind of Christ govern their lives--the Christ who "took upon Him the form of a servant." If you have a dispute with a brother in Christ, I can tell you whose side Paul would be on. He'd be on the side of whoever was willing to be the other one's servant. Lowliness like that will solve any and all disputes, but it is high spiritual ground. But then, isn't that what you have in mind when you sing "Lord plant my feet on higher ground?"

Finally, the reason Paul called himself a servant in addressing Titus was because Titus was an intimidating man (II Cor. 7:15). Spiritual leaders like that sometimes need to be reminded that the strongest leaders of men are nothing more than servants of God. Titus might have been a tough man, but that's not what made him fit to pastor a church. His fitness was found in his willingness to be a servant of God and lead His people in serving Him by example, and not by force (cf. I Peter 5:3). I've heard horror stories of pastors who act like little Napoleons--and some of you have lived such horror stories. Men like that would do well to remember the humility Paul displayed when he referred to himself as a servant, and stop dominating the faith of God's people (II Cor. 1:22), and "by love serve one another" instead (Gal. 5:13).

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Significance of the Loaves and Fishes
by Pastor Ricky Kurth


    "What's the significance of the five loaves and two fishes the Lord used to feed the multitudes (Matt. 14:15-21)?"

The significance lies not in the actual number, but in the fact that loaves of bread were smaller in Bible days, with three loaves being about the right amount for one man's meal (Luke 11:5,6). This means that the boy who shared the five loaves and two fishes (John 6:9) had packed just enough to feed himself, with a little left over to share with another. But it also means that he was willing to share his provisions even when it became evident that sharing them among so many would likely mean that he himself would go hungry.

This is a prophetic picture of the Tribulation saint who will be willing to help others who are hungry after the beast issues his mark and God's people cannot buy food without it (Rev. 13:16-18), but who may fear that in so doing there may not be enough for himself. Faithful Hebrews in that day will trust God when He said that "there is that scattereth, and yet increaseth" (Prov. 11:24,25), a proverb that perhaps motivated the boy in our text. When the lad gave all that he had to the Lord, and the apostles distributed the loaves and fishes (John 6:9-11) "unto every man according as he had need," it typified what Tribulation saints will have to do to help one another (Acts 4:32-37), and it proved that you are never too young to serve the Lord and His people!

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When The Lord Became Angry
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam


    “And He saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace.

    “And when He had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, He saith unto the man. Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other” (Mark 3:4,5).

Why did our Lord become angry when the Jewish leaders refused to answer His questions? He was “grieved for the hardness of their hearts.” Their silence was not the silence of ignorance but of willfulness. They had “watched Him whether He would heal… on the sabbath day; that they might accuse Him,” but they could not tell Him what was wrong about it. Indeed, when He asked them what was wrong they refused to answer His questions.

How inconsistent! How unreasonable! How unjust! And, as we read the context, we are amazed to find that this sullen, stubborn opposition came not from the Sadducees but from the Pharisees, not the religious “liberals” but the “conservatives,” the Bible-believers of the day!

They were the orthodox group. Nevertheless, because of their pride and bigotry generations following have looked down upon them and have pronounced with contempt the name Pharisee.

Paul stood with them, doctrinally, against the Sadducees. He said: “Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee” (Acts 23:6), nevertheless the Pharisees had joined the Sadducees in their opposition to him and to the glorious message he proclaimed. In this respect times have not changed, for those who stand boldly for God’s message and program for our day will find themselves still opposed by Sadducees and Pharisees alike.

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To Pray Or Not To Pray: That Is The Question!
by Pastor Ricky Kurth


    "Pray not for this people..." (Jeremiah 14:11).

    "Pray without ceasing" (I Thessalonians 5:17).

Here we go again! Another contradiction in the Word of God. One of the many incongruities in Scripture that make us wonder how to serve God when His Word gives conflicting instructions. Its easy to understand why we should pray without ceasing, but why did God instruct Jeremiah to "pray not" for His people?

To answer, a quick look at the preceding verse will reveal that in Jeremiah's day God's people "loved to wander" from Him, and had "not refrained their feet" (v. 10) from so doing. Little wonder their Father deemed them unworthy of the prayers of His prophet!

But aren't God's people today just as prone to wander? Don't we sing that old hymn, "Prone to wander, Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love"? Why then does God tell us to pray without ceasing?

The answer lies, as it so often does, in "rightly dividing the Word of truth" (II Tim. 2:15). You see, God's people in Jeremiah's day had a contract with Him, a covenant called the Law of Moses. Under that Law, if His people walked contrary to Him, He vowed to walk contrary to them (Lev. 26:23,24; 27,28). And in Jeremiah's day, God's people had not refrained their feet from wandering and walking away from Him. They left God no choice but to walk contrary to them, and no amount of praying on the part of His prophet could change what He was contractually obligated by His covenant to do (Jer. 15:1).

How different things are for God's people today! We are not under the Law, we are under grace! (Rom. 6:15). In "the dispensation of the grace of God" (Eph. 3:2), God is not obligated by the old covenant of the Law to walk away from His people when they walk away from Him, He is obligated by the new covenant of His grace "to dwell in them, and walk in them" and "be their God" no matter what (II Cor. 6:16 cf. Jer. 31:33).

So there you have it! Yet another contradiction in the Word of God explained, another puzzle solved, by rightly dividing the Word of truth.

But don't just sit there reveling in the riches of God's grace. Now that you know that God will hear your prayers for His people, pray! When you see your brother stumble in his walk, pray! When you find that you yourself have wandered from God, pray! God will never walk contrary to us, so pray that His people will respond to such amazing grace by choosing to "walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing" (Col. 1:10).

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The Law And The Wrath Of God
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam


Romans 4:15 clearly states that “the law worketh wrath,” but so many people, it seems, do not wish to see this. Even some clergymen tell us that God gave the Law to help us to be good, when God Himself says the very opposite; that it was given to show us that we are bad and need a Savior.

“The law worketh wrath.” Every criminal knows this and every sinner should know it, for the Bible has much to say on the subject. Rom. 3:19,20 declares that the Law was given “that every mouth may be stopped, and that all the world may be brought in guilty before God,” and this passage goes on to say:

    “Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight; for by the law is the knowledge of sin.”

II Cor. 3:7,9 calls the Law “the ministration of condemnation” and “the ministration of death.” Gal. 3:10 says that those who are “of the works of the law,” i.e., who seek to make themselves acceptable to God by keeping the Law, “are under a curse,” because the Law can only condemn them.

Those who approach God, expecting eternal life in return for “good works” are offering Him their terms — which He will never accept. God will not sell justification to those already under condemnation for sin. But He does offer sinners complete justification by grace because:

    “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written; cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree” (Gal. 3:13).

Thank God, those who trust in Christ, “having redemption, through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Eph. 1:7), “being justified, freely by His [God’s] grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3:24).

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Are You Ready?
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam


I wonder what finally became of Molotov? Most of us know only that he was expelled from the Communist Party and was later recalled to Moscow to answer for what Kruschev, of all people, called “barbarous crimes”! Molotov, “the hammer,” was active in the Communist Revolution since 15 years of age. A close friend of Stalin, he served Soviet Russia variously as Secretary of the Central Committee, Premier of USSR, its Foreign Minister and its Representative to the UN.

But in 1957 Kruschev, jealous of Stalin’s popularity, dismissed Molotov from the Presidium and sent him away as ambassador to ‘Outer Mongolia’. Now disgraced along with his old friend Stalin, this once popular hero of the Soviets was discarded by the system he championed. Pathetic, but he deserved it.

Contrast this with the Apostle Paul. He had been great, prospering in his religion above many of his equals, being “more exceedingly zealous” of the traditions of his fathers (Gal. 1:14). But he gave all this up and counted it loss for “the excellency of the knowledge of Christ.” Serving Christ amid unceasing persecution, he said:

    “But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel [good news] of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24).

Yes, and in his last recorded words before Nero beheaded him, Paul said:

    “I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown…” (II Tim. 4:6-8).

What a triumphant way to go! And you, my friend, can go that way too — if you can say with Paul, “I am ready.”

    “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31).

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The Law Misunderstood
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam


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

    Most people have a vague notion that the law always was in existence and that it must have been given to the first man, Adam, or soon after. Actually, God gave the law to Moses for Israel about 1500 B.C., after about 2500 years of human history had elapsed (John 1:17). So mankind lived on earth for about 2500 years without the law or the Ten Commandments.
    Most people suppose that the law and the Ten Commandments were given to mankind in general, while, in fact, it was given to Israel alone (Deuteronomy 5:2,3).
    Most people suppose that the law and the Ten Commandments were given to help us to do right. Even some clergymen teach this, although the Bible clearly teaches that they were 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 Romans 3:19 says:

    “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who 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 following 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, [Christ] 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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A Solemn Agreement
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam


The Apostle Paul, referring to his journey to Jerusalem to tell the apostles and elders there about the good news that had been committed to him, says:

    “And I went up 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… And when James, Cephas [Peter] and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, THEY GAVE TO ME AND BARNABAS THE RIGHT HANDS OF FELLOWSHIP, that we should go unto the heathen [Gentiles, nations], and they unto the Circumcision [Israel]” (Gal. 2:2-9).

Here, by solemn agreement, Peter, James and John promised publicly to confine their ministry to Israel while Paul went to the Gentiles with his “gospel of the grace of God.” This is striking in view of the fact that the twelve, not Paul, had originally been sent into all the world.

Were they all out of the will of God in making this agreement? By no means! Subsequent revelation proves that they were all very much in the will of God and that with the rejection of Christ God had ushered in a new program.

In the light of these Scriptures it is difficult to understand how anyone can argue that Paul’s ministry was merely a perpetuation of that of the twelve, or that “the gospel of the kingdom” and “the gospel of the grace of God” are identical.

If the above passage teaches anything clearly, it teaches the unique character of Paul’s apostleship and message. The Apostle devotes almost two chapters of his letter to the Galatians to the fact that he had not received his message from the twelve, but rather had communicated to the twelve.

He stresses the fact that those who had first been sent to all nations, “beginning at Jerusalem,” had now, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, agreed to turn over their Gentile ministry to him that he might proclaim far and wide “the gospel of the grace of God,” as found in Eph. 2:8,9 and Rom. 3:24.

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Personal Safety In An Atomic Age
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam


The neutron bomb, they tell us, will not wreck buildings, but will destroy all life, easily penetrating concrete walls three feet thick. Yet we are also being advised to build fall-out shelters for the safety of ourselves and our families! These can be erected for only a few hundred dollars — obviously not with walls three feet thick!

As General MacArthur once rightly said: “There is no security on this earth.” No man can count on physical safety, for the simple reason that, apart from bombs and death rays, “it is appointed unto men once to die” (Heb. 9:27). The moment we are born we begin the race with death, and death always finally wins.

But physical safety is not most important anyway. It is not so much death that men fear as the thought that death might usher them into the presence of God (Heb. 9:27; Rom. 14:12).

But even this need not be feared if we have “peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 5:1). The Apostle Paul, once a self-righteous Pharisee, came to trust the Christ he had persecuted and now proclaimed:

“This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief” (I Tim. 1:15).

Having thus been saved from sin by faith in Christ, he had no fear of death. Indeed, he could say: “For, to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” and “to depart and be with Christ… is far better” (Phil. 1:21,23).

Why then, should we Christians shudder with fear at those things which are so frightening to others? Our Lord said to His disciples: “I say unto you, My friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do” (Luke 12:4). No, the true believer need not fear, for he is safe in Christ, not only in this life, but forever. “He that believeth on the Son [of God] hath EVERLASTING LIFE” (John 3:36).

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Moses And The Prophets
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam


Now our Lord, when on earth, encouraged, indeed He even challenged His audiences to “Search the Scriptures” for themselves (John 5:39). Indeed since God revealed Himself and His plan of salvation in the written Word, we are responsible, each one for himself to study the Scriptures. When the rich man Dives begged Abraham to be allowed to go and warn his five brothers about the horrors of hell, Abraham replied, “They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them”. And when the rich man urged that a word from him would be more effective, Abraham answered, “If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead” (Luke 16:29,31).

Don’t depend upon your clergyman, my dear friend, to interpret the Scriptures for you. See for yourself what God says in His Word. For “every one of us shall give an account of himself to God”, says Romans 14:12. And it won’t be enough in that day to say, my minister or my priest told me so and so. You are responsible, you, to search the Scriptures for yourself, to see whether these things are so.

Why don’t you search the Scriptures, especially the epistles of Paul, our apostle. For it is Paul who says, “For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the Apostle of the Gentiles [Nations], I magnify mine office” (Rom.11:13). Learn in his epistles this mystery among the Gentiles which is Christ in you the hope of glory and how it is that Christ’s death on Calvary’s cross can save you.

    “In Whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Eph.1:7).

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The Apostle Of The Nations
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam


Not Matthew, Mark, or Luke; nor Peter, James, or John, but Paul alone wrote Romans 11:13 by divine inspiration:

    “FOR I SPEAK TO YOU GENTILES [or OF THE NATIONS] INASMUCH AS I AM THE APOSTLE OF THE GENTILES [NATIONS]: I MAGNIFY 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 Himself. 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 Corinthians 11:23; 15:3; Ephesians 3:2,3; I Thessalonians 4:15; etc.).

To Timothy, Paul wrote 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…” (ITim. 6:3,4). This could not indicate more emphatically Paul’s claim that his words were “the words of the 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” (IICor.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 salvation. To the believers at Corinth he wrote what he could have written to many thousands of others: “The seal of mine apostleship are ye in the Lord” (ICor.9:2).

[nChrist]

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The Stars Of Messiah's Reign
by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam


    “And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever” (Dan.12:3).

The day is coming when redeemed Israel and all the saints of the Old Testament times will taste the joy of Messiah’s glorious reign. But some — the wise — will be honored more than others and will shine in that day as the stars of the firmament.

Who are these “wise” ones? Our text answers: “They that turn many to righteousness”. Not those who merely knew all the technicalities of the prophetic program, but remained unmoved, but those who, understanding the prophetic plan and recognizing that God must judge sin, did something about it and labored to turn many to righteousness.

These will be the stars of Messiah’s reign.

What a lesson this passage holds for us who have trusted Christ as our Saviour in this present “dispensation of grace”!

When we stand before the Lord, all saved by His abundant grace, not all will be equally honored. Outshining the rest will be “the wise”, who, understanding God’s message and program of grace and, “buying up the time because the days are evil” (Eph.5:16), URGED THE LOST TO ACCEPT “the gift of righteousness”by faith in Christ. Of these we may well say by way of adaption:

    “And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.”

[nChrist]

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Small Talk
by Pastor John Fredericksen


"This is some weather we've been having." While there is nothing wrong with the "small talk" about trivial things that occupies much of our interaction, based on the Book of Titus, the Apostle Paul would almost certainly encourage us to cultivate conversations about bigger and more important things.

Paul told Titus to "speak thou the things which become sound doctrine" (2:1). In other words, Paul wanted this co-worker to consciously talk about meaningful things that would ground the saints in truths for today and encourage them to live for the Lord. Paul instructed the "aged men" to act like men of real spiritual maturity (2:2). That meant to purposely serve as examples to follow in godliness. Paul specifies areas of conduct such as being serious-minded, sound in doctrine, loving, and patient; but the context seems to imply he also wanted their discussions to be weighted with spiritual content.

Paul likewise urges the "aged women" to pay careful attention to sound, godly behaviour that "becometh holiness" (2:3). But he also tells them to be teachers, or to talk to young women about proper, godly living within their home and marriage. Paul instructs Titus to speak to the "young men" about the importance of being consistently serious-minded about living for the Lord, so that they serve as an example or "a pattern of good works: [and] in doctrine shewing uncorruptness, gravity, and sincerity" (2:6-7).

Paul continues by telling Titus to constantly remind all saints to be very careful to be "ready to every good work" and to "be careful to maintain good works" (3:1; 3:8). It is noteworthy that Paul also tells Titus, "These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee" (2:15). Here we see an anticipation that some would prefer "small talk" and not appreciate serious discussions about spiritual matters, but as a servant of Christ, Titus was encouraged to keep on talking about important things, no matter how others responded.

As we think about these instructions to Titus, we should remember to apply them to our own daily walk. We too need to move beyond just "small talk" with other saints and cultivate discussions that will encourage true, godly living and doctrine. When we do, our own walk can become a walk with more purpose and meaning, and we can have a positive spiritual impact on others that will be a cause of rejoicing in eternity.