The Heaton File

There is also an antitype which now saves us—baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 3:21)

But That Is What It Says

She was a remarkable woman for the circumstance she found herself in. Linda had many health problems that limited severely her ability to walk and move about resulting in her remaining in bed 24-hours a day. She lived alone with caretakers coming by to help with various chores. Surrounding her bed was everything she needed including the ability to fix hot food and provide meals. Her spirits were good considering the plight of her handicap. Through the suggestion of a friend, I began to have Bible studies with Linda. She had a sharp mind and enjoyed the discussions about the Bible. We talked about her health problems and how difficult it was to live each day with the many problems she faced. One of her favorite shows to watch on television was the televangelist Benny Hinn who claimed to heal people. On occasion she would send money to the program and one year wrote to the preacher asking him to come and give her some healing. About a year later some men came by and talked with her laying their hands on her and when they left she remained in bed with the same afflictions she had before. No healing for Linda.

During our discussions we talked about baptism. The study focused on the necessity of immersion and how the Bible said that men are saved by baptism. Linda said the Bible did not teach such a doctrine. She denied the scriptures said anywhere that baptism saved. Turning in the Bible to 1 Peter 3:21, I handed the Bible to Linda and asked her to read the passage. She carefully read the passage out loud and when she finished her mouth dropped open in complete surprise. I could tell by the reaction on her face that she had never seen this passage before. About a minute passed and she closed the Bible and firmly stated that baptism did not save a person and handed the Bible back. I asked her what the passage had said and she continued to deny that baptism had anything to do with salvation. Shortly after these studies Linda did not desire to study anymore and a few months later quietly died in her sleep.

The Bible is a book of words filling the pages of sixty-six books. Through the written word God has revealed His mind to men so they could read and understand the mystery of the Divine. The essential question for humanity has always been to find salvation from the wrath of God and never in the history of mankind has man not had the ability to know and understand the will of the Lord. Through the grace of God the Bible contains the whole counsel of redemption and when the heart opens to the merciful message of salvation in Jesus Christ, the word of God convicts, rebukes, establishes doctrine, and instructs a man in the way of righteousness. Faith will blossom from the hearing of the word spoken and read as the words of truth declare the eternal majesty of God’s love. But there is a catch and a challenge: the word of God will have no effect if the heart is unwilling to accept what is written.

God has never made it difficult for a man to understand His will. The Bible is a book of clarity showing all men the path to eternal life. What kind of God would He be if the Lord gave man a book so hard to know and understand that no one could find salvation? The Bible is not a book of mazes with impossible conclusions or riddles hard to understand. Salvation is a plain as the written word. The religious world denies that baptism has anything to do with salvation in denial of what is plainly written down in words for men to read. No one is saved by baptism alone and the Bible never teaches the doctrine of salvation alone by anything whether faith alone or grace alone. But it does teach that there is also an antitype which now saves us—baptism. Denying it does not remove the ink from the page. Satan has done well to convince religious hearts to believe in God but never receive the remission of their sins. The greatest tragedy will be when the religious lost stand before the author of the Bible, He will sadly remind them of what was written in the book. God’s word has not changed. Read 1 Peter 3:21 again. Has it changed since Peter wrote it two thousand years ago? It will never change but you must.

Now the sons of Eli were corrupt; they did not know the Lord. And the priests’ custom with the people was that when any man offered a sacrifice, the priest’s servant would come with a three-pronged fleshhook in his hand while the meat was boiling. Then he would thrust it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; and the priest would take for himself all that the fleshhook brought up. So they did in Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there. Also, before they burned the fat, the priest’s servant would come and say to the man who sacrificed, “Give meat for roasting to the priest, for he will not take boiled meat from you, but raw.” And if the man said to him, “They should really burn the fat first; then you may take as much as your heart desires,” he would then answer him, “No, but you must give it now; and if not, I will take it by force.” Therefore the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord, for men abhorred the offering of the Lord. (1 Samuel 2:12-17)

Priestly Bullies

Israel during the time of the Judges was a land filled with chaos, rebellion, wars, and a world where everyone did what was right in their own eyes. No king ruled over the people and for many years a cycle of God’s wrath followed by deliverance by the Lord defined the early history of the people of God. During the final days of the judges, Eli was High Priest and his sons Hophni and Phinehas served as priests. Their gross misconduct disgusted the people with their bully tactics of forcing the worshipers to give them meat beyond what was prescribed in the Law of Moses. The Law defined the portion of the sacrifice that was to be given for the food of the priesthood but Hophni and Phinehas took more than the law allowed. They forced the worshipers to stop while the servant took the meat out of the pot with a fleshhook.

Eli served as High Priest for forty years and lived to the age of ninety-eight. However, he did not restrain his sons and while he admonished them for their wickedness, Hophni and Phinehas did not heed the voice of their father. The immorality of the two priests was so gross the scriptures describe how the sons were seducing the young women who assisted at the entrance of the Tabernacle. This was a terrible time for the people of the Lord as those who were in the position of spiritual leadership were filled with corruption, wickedness, and bullied the people with their carnal demands.

The reason Hophni and Phinehas were corrupt is they did not know the Lord and had no respect for the Lord or the duties of priests of the Most High God. They treated the sacrifices of the Lord with contempt and abused their power. Life for the sons of Eli was filled with their desires and wants and no one was able to stop them. Their father’s pleadings fell on deaf ears. The people could not withstand them. It seemed hopeless. Then came the day Israel went out to battle against the Philistines. At the end of the first battle, four thousand men of the army of God lay dead in the field. Appealing to the elders of Israel, the Ark of the Covenant was brought from Shiloh by Hophni and Phinehas. When the people of Israel saw the Ark of the Covenant coming into the camp, their shout of joy was so loud it made the ground shake! They knew that victory would theirs against the Philistines. So the Philistines fought against Israel and thirty thousand soldiers of God’s army died by the hand of the Philistines. Included in the carnage were the sons of Eli who were guarding the Ark of the Covenant. Hophni and Phineas would no longer be a scourge among the people. The Philistines killed the sons of Eli and captured the Ark. When Eli heard the news he fell over backward and breaking his neck, died.

Bullies are those who believe they can run roughshod over others with impunity. Sadly, the sons of Eli abused their office as representatives of God for their own purposes. For a time they had free reign to do as they pleased. What they failed to understand is that their days of oppressing the people would come to an end by the hand of God. The Lord told Eli by the word of a man of God that his two sons would die on the same day. Hophni and Phineas died as determined by the counsel of God. In a field between Ebenezer and Aphek, two men felt their lives slipping away by the hand of a Philistine sword. They were no longer bullies but pitiful men moments away from meeting the Lord God Almighty. When they stood before the Judge of all men they would not demand anything but eternal grace and mercy and find none. The days of their bully tactics came to an end.

The remarkable conflict of a man is to think he is the most powerful being on the planet. Many abuse their positions, their power, and their wills upon others. They will be able to subdue their victims for a time but when death calls these despots will come to know a power so great they cannot fathom its breadth. Hophni and Phineas were priestly bullies abusing their power as spiritual leaders of the people. Their reign of terror ended as all plans of men will come to naught. The greatest need of the world is for all men to realize how great and powerful the Creator of the world is and how all that has the breath of life will one day stand before one throne and be judged. Bullies are misguided and misinformed. God is not.

Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up. Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; but how can one be warm alone? Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken. (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12)

You’ve Got A Friend

When God created man, He realized His creation was not complete without companionship. Forming the woman from the side of man, the Lord opened a new world for Adam when he first saw Eve and formed a bond of love and friendship. It must have been an incredible world for Adam and Eve to exist in a world that for a time held only two souls. The joy would have been inexpressible when children were born and the noise of laughter filled the home. As the children multiplied for the first family, the bonds of friendship formed with their growing family as the purpose of procreation were realized with the world filling with people. God designed the world to fill with people. The children of Adam and Eve formed families and communities were begun. After the great flood and the failed attempt to build a tower into the heavens, nations were formed as the people spread across the face of the earth. Common bonds brought people together as neighbors, friends, fellow-workers, and family.

The key element in the development of humanity has been the need for companionship. What purpose would the world serve if God created Adam without Eve? When the Creator said it was not good for man to be alone He was speaking beyond the union of a man and a woman but to the nature of the creation. God’s creation needed the companionship of others. Two people are better than one so that they can help each other thrive. When Adam was feeling bad, he had Eve to comfort him; and vice versa. The joy of children into the world would have filled the hearts of Adam and Eve with incredible joy as companionship blossomed in relationships. This was the divine purpose of God.

There are many times in life that hard decisions must be made as uncertainty is faced with unknown answers and anxious moments. The human spirit is not designed to face life without the blessing of another human being. Isolationism is against the human spirit. If a person falls and there is no one to help him up, he will languish and die. God did not create man to be self-dependent. The pride of man can deceive himself into believing he needs none other but he only deceives himself. How can a man be warm alone? Two lying down together will keep the other warm and save the other because they are helping each other. When someone attacks one man he may prevail but it will be more difficult if two stand back-to-back defending the other. There is power in the union of two.

The value of a friend is fully realized in the body of Christ. Jesus did not die for Himself but others. His sacrifice was to bring all men together as a family to find the peace that passes all understanding. There is incredible joy in being able to be among the people of God. In the divine plan of God, He ordained for His children to gather as one in a community to work in one accord for the glory of the gospel message. The unity of spirit is found in the friendship of brethren one for another. One of the most difficult parts of the COVID-19 pandemic is the impact on the union of spirits together held in check. There is an incredible need to be with brethren because the union of spiritual fellowship is the core of the Christian life. This has been a great test of faith for many who have had to stay apart from others. It could also be a realization that if the spirit does not long to be with fellow saints there is a weakened faith.

Many see no need to join in fellowship with other Christians and now that it has been taken away, the hope is the appreciation is heightened. Before the impact of the virus, many of God’s people would only assemble with the saints sporadically. Sunday nights and Wednesday nights were seldom filled with all the members because they had more important things to do. People need friends. They need others. Christians need other Christians. As the assemblies begin to join together the realization of how important the bonds of spiritual friendship increase. Sadly, some feel no remorse being separated from their brethren. When they fall, they find little to help because they are alone by their own choosing. God created man to need the companionship of others. Nothing is more precious than the fellowship of saints with saints. If the heartstrings are not touched by the absence of other saints; how deep the void in the heart. Two are better than one. The church is made up of people who need people. You have a friend when you become a friend.

Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:14-15)

The First Word Of The Gospel

Jesus came to seek and to save the lost. His miracles confirmed He was the Son of God and they pointed men to the authority of the Son. The teaching of Jesus was simple in design yet challenged the foundation of Jewish thought in the first century. When the Lord finished His sermon on the mountain the people were astonished by his authoritative manner of teaching. It was clear, concise, and forthright in its simplistic yet powerful message. Jesus was a master teacher. When the Lord began preaching the word of His Father, His message was defined by the problem that man has faced since Eden: repentance. If there is a single idea that has plagued the will of humanity is the refusal to change their hearts to serve God. Satan challenged Eve in the garden deceiving her that she could do what she wanted regardless of the will of the Lord. The devil convinced her that her will was more important than the restrictive word of the Father. Eve succumbs to the wiles of the adversary because she was seeking her own wisdom. Repentance is necessary because it returns the authority of the will of God to the heart of man.

To repent is to perceive afterward, to have a change of mind or such a change as would reverse the effects of a previous action. It means to change from sin and turn to God. Jesus began His preaching ministry with the profound need of men to change their hearts. This was an individual need. One of the important aspects of Jesus’ preaching repentance was the appeal for the individual to regret their actions, change their hearts, and accept the will of God as supreme. It has been difficult for the pride of man to be set aside so the heart can accept the failings of the human spirit. The problem is that all men sin and all men require repentance. Jesus never sinned and there was never a need to repent. His message of repentance came from a pure life without the stain of sin directed to the failings of men. No man has lived that has not needed repentance except the teacher of repentance, Jesus Christ. He began His preaching by telling man his basic and intrinsic need: repentance.

The struggle with humanity has been the refusal to admit failure. Pride exalts the heart of man to believe he is his own god and can determine his own destiny. Denying that he is a creation of God, man exalts his wisdom above the word of God which ends in disaster and ruin. Jesus pointed out that all men need to change their hearts and accept they need the grace of God. As Creator, the Lord has the right to demand the will of man to repent. Good and evil are established by the hand of the One who made the world and established morality. Jesus taught men the first word of the gospel was repentance because that is the basic need before the grace of God can be received from heaven’s throne. Without repentance, there can be no forgiveness and without forgiveness no salvation. The heart must begin with repentance.

On the Day of Pentecost, the first words from the apostles of Christ to the multitude of those asking what to do to be saved was repentance. The message of the early church was for all men to repent. Paul preached that all must repent of their sins and turn to God and prove they had changed by the good things they did. The content of the early writings to the churches was for changes to take place in the heart of men from the works of the flesh to the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Everything found in obedience begins first with repentance. Preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ begins with repentance. If a man is unwilling to change his life at the beginning of the gospel there will be no change in the administration of the word of God on the heart as a child of God. The saints of the Lord are changed people. Christians are saved because they are changed. Repentance is the first word of the gospel because without repentance man has not accepted the rule of God. Every person who comes to Christ must change. Unless you repent, you will perish.

No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. (Matthew 6:24)

You Cannot Sail Under Two Flags

The flag of a ship is the identifying mark of its allegiance. When a ship is commissioned it must be registered with documentation of the nationality of the country of certification. It does not require the country of its origin to be the flag that it bears as in modern times many ships are built in one country and registered in other countries. These documentations can change hands numerous times over the life of the ship. What is clear is that only one flag can be attached to a ship at a time. Flying more than one flag shows deception and falsehood. The flag identifies the allegiance of the ship to a certain nationality and is placed in a place of prominence so that everyone that looks upon the ship will know immediately to whom the ship belongs. Pirates used the ruse of flying a common flag to lure victims close before striking their own colors. For a moment the intended ship was tricked to believe the ship was friendly when all the while it was a ship of lawlessness and deceit.

Jesus declared the meaning of allegiance when He taught His disciple that no man could serve two masters. There are only two avenues a man can walk and he must choose one over the other. In the world, there are no fences to straddle because no fences exist. A man can’t sit on the fence of indecision when it comes to his relationship with God. Either he is for God and is willing to serve the Lord or he is not. Often, the ploy of hypocrisy is to attempt to fly two flags on the same ship and that is not possible. The interest of serving the world is not compatible with the righteousness of serving God. They are in stark contrast to one another. While the carnal desires of the flesh desire to engage in the freedom of self, the constraints of the will of God forbid the unchecked passions of the heart. The flesh and spirit are at war with one another because they are so opposed to one another. It is impossible to serve the carnal appetites and receive the blessings of the spiritual. No man can serve two masters.

God created man and has the propriety of lordship over the will of man. As the potter has power over the clay, so the Lord forms man from the dust of the ground and breathes into him the breath of life. Everything man possesses and everything man is belongs to God. The dominion of the world has been granted to humanity but only because the will of the Creator ordains such authority. Man’s habitation is restricted by the hand of God. There are things the human frame will never be able to attain. In the early days, men of the world men could live for hundreds of years but they died. Man is restricted to the world he lives because the Creator will not allow man to journey through the universe unchecked. There are no worlds man can live but the planet earth as this is his domain. Man was not created to live under the seas and while he may temporarily journey to the watery underworld his existence is on the land. All of this suggests there is one God and he demands respect as Creator. As the Maker of all humanity, God demands His creation to give Him honor and fidelity.

No one can serve two masters and the problem with the spirit of man has always been his attempt to serve God and to serve the mammon of the world. Sin will always bring about misery and heartache because it is not the plan of God. Human wisdom constantly tries to outsmart the will of the Lord. That is like falling out of an airplane without a parachute and denying there is a law of gravity. Denying God’s will does not change God’s will. Trying to serve God and serve the flesh will not change the consequence. One will bring joy and happiness and the other destruction and damnation. This is experienced in life when the works of the flesh destroy the character of a man and then when eternity awakes in the soul, eternal suffering is the reward. Living for the will of God is profitable in this life and the life to come. When the heart of man follows the divine plan of the Creator for His creation, good things happen because of the love of God.

There is a need to have singleness of heart in serving God. Too many of God’s people try to have one foot in the kingdom of God and the other in the world. In reality, both feet are firmly planted in the world because it is impossible to serve God and serve the desires of the world. When a man firmly places his life in the hands of God, the world will not be his master. His love will be for God. Whose flag are you flying? The world will know whose allegiance you have when they look at your life. More important – God sees whose flag you fly.

Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are You a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause, I was born, and for this, cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” (John 18:37-38a)

Three Feet Equals One Yard – Always

Religious division is evident in the world by the many different kinds of churches that dot the landscape. Many in denominations profess an imagined unity among all believers of Christ yet stand in stark contrast by the names, doctrine, worship, and faith. There is no single rule of law with the different churches. Each group follows its identifying marks historically traced to less than five hundred years. The term Protestant comes from the protest against the Roman Catholic Church for its teachings of salvation by works beginning the Reformation era spawning the illegitimate offspring of apostasy. Why is there so much religious division and why are the believers in Christ not united? The answer comes from the yardstick.

A yardstick is comprised of measurement of three feet typically divided into inches. It is used for measurements to have a common rule of law applicable at any time and any place. If a man uses a yardstick in Nome, Alaska to measure a length of a board, he could use the same yardstick to measure the length of the board in Two Egg, Florida and the board will be the same. Using the same yardstick, a length of a board could be measured in Masaya, Nicaragua which would equal the same length of the board in Metula, Israel. No matter where the yardstick is taken, the length of the board will remain the same length of three feet because the same unit of measure is used.

Time does not change the length of a yardstick. In October of 1956, a yardstick measured three feet. Today the yardstick remains the length of three feet. A lot has changed since October 1956. Technology has transformed the world into a global living room of information, politics changed with new leaders and laws, morality has transformed into a self-serving hedonistic mantra of gratification, and religion has created more variations of belief but the standard yardstick remains the same. Time cannot change the yardstick from its length of three feet. What was three feet or a yard in 1956 remains the same today as three feet or a yard. The influences of culture cannot redraw the length of a yard.

A man can refuse to accept a yardstick as three feet but he only makes himself foolish in the eyes of the world. He can create a group of followers who profess a belief in the yard system but if he denies the authority of the yardstick as three feet, he denies the authority of measurement. What he will build will not be able to endure because he is using a faulty system of measuring. No matter how sincere a man can be to believe a yardstick is only two feet long, it does not change the fact the yardstick is three feet long. His grandparents, parents, brothers, and sisters could have held long believed traditions that a yardstick was two feet long but he holds to a wrong family belief. Great learned men can write volumes about how to interpret a yardstick to be two feet long but at the end of the day, the yardstick remains three feet long.

There is a yardstick that is more than three feet long. It is the spiritual yardstick of divine authority that is as long as eternity. The Bible is the yardstick of the Almighty God. This book was measured by the eternal will of the Creator as truth and there is one truth. Jesus came to bring truth to the world because He is the Word. Everything about Jesus bears witness to the truth and everything in the Bible is about Jesus. Obedience is when a man hears the voice of the will of God and accepts it as truth. There is no other truth. Pilate asked the eternal question of what is truth but the truth was standing before him. Killing Jesus did not change the truth. Denying Jesus did not change the truth. Everything that was truth is embodied in Jesus Christ.

The religious world is divided with many churches wearing different names following different creeds practicing a variety of beliefs. Why is there so much religious division and why are believers in Christ not all united? The answer is simple: they are not using the standard of measurement given by God. In our world of the yardstick, the churches of today believe a yardstick is a matter of interpretation and left up to the individual. They believe that all believers in Christ are united regardless of how long a yardstick is. Some teach a yardstick is three feet ten inches while some believe a yardstick is two feet one inch long. The reason there are differences in faith comes from the different measuring tools used to build their church. None of those came from God.

Religious division will never end while men use their own measuring stick. The only authority is the one measuring rod of God’s will that will measure all men in the final day of Judgment when the Lord surprising the religious world by showing them one rule of law. It will not be their yardstick created for their own desires. God has one yardstick and it is exactly as long as He says it is. What is truth? There is one truth.

When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed. (Revelation 6:9-11)

How Long, O Lord

The Revelation given to the apostle John was in incredible visualization of the judgment of God against worldly powers standing against the kingdom of Christ. Whether it was the powers of government, influences of the carnal nature, or religious persecution, victory would be achieved through the blood of Jesus Christ and His great army. The Christians who lived under the plague of persecution would endure a period of nearly two hundred years when the entire world stood against them. In the face of such a terrible ordeal that tried to destroy the church, the people of God rose from the ashes of despair and gained the victory through their faith in the will of the Lord and the promise of eternal life.

In the midst of their suffering, the cry for help was heard as the fifth seal is described in the Revelation. Many of God’s people had been slain for the word of the Lord and it seemed to never end. The testimony of righteousness was not destroyed by the death of the saints but exalted in their example of trusting the will of the Father. There was a sense of urgency that demanded an answer as they cried out with a loud voice, “How long, O Lord?” They were no doubting the power of God. The cry of the saints declared God to be holy and true. What was happening to them was promised by Jesus that if the world hated Him, the world would hate His followers. The holiness of the Lord was not diminished by the persecution. His truth was as bold as the first day it was declared on Pentecost. All the saints lifted up their voice to declare that no matter how terrible the conditions of the world, God was still holy and true and He was still the Judge.

Mixed in the cries of their plea to the Father was a child-like heart seeking for answers. They just wanted to know when the suffering would be over and when righteous judgment would be vetted against the forces of evil. Their answer came in time. It may have come in their death when released from the bondage of mortality when the blessed saints died in the Lord. The full scale of persecution for the world would not end until the days of Constantine. Regardless, a great event came to an end. The patience of the saints had won the day and the church remains strong and courageous for centuries since and centuries to come.

The world is not under the heavy hand of persecution. There is no considered effort by the government to oppress the church. For many years the carnal nature of sin has attacked the church trying to destroy its foundations. There has been no religious persecution by other religions against the principles of the church. In the face of the present distress, the question remains to ask, “How long, O Lord?” The pandemic that has swept the world is a moment in history almost without parallel. There have been many plagues that have swept through the course of humanity but few on the global scale as COVID-19. It has shattered all precepts of normalcy. The world will never be the same in many regards. The question remains, “how long?”

Certain things should be understood about the global virus. It will come to an end. All things come to an end. The question is not if it will stop but when will it stop. This answer is unknown. Why has the world been gripped with the pandemic? Many pundits surmise a righteous hand of God or even the evil work of Satan responsible. Again these answers evade the heart of human wisdom. Some lessons should be taken from God’s perspective of trying to remind man what is important in life and what is not. Ultimately the clear truth is that God is still in control and He has allowed this virus to reach global proportions. In everything that happens in the world, there are lessons to be learned from the mind of God. Whatever role Satan has played in the situation is secondary to insignificance.

The church has been greatly impacted by the virus. Assemblies have been rearranged, reordered, retooled, and rethought on how to continue the work of teaching, admonishing, evangelism, and worship. Bible classes have been impacted, the fellowship of the saints is conducted with greater care and the outlook for the local church is changed forever. What changes will take place and how long these must be in place is unknown. It does not suggest a lack of faith to ask ‘how long’ as the appeal is for the work of the church to return to a vibrancy of teaching. But could that be the chiming of the bell to warn the people of God to awaken from the slumber of the past century that has deadened the efforts of the church? Is there a deeper message from the Lord when He answers back to revive the spirit of the New Testament church and take the gospel into all the world? The future is uncertain in many ways but the certainty of the future remains rooted in the will of the Father. No matter what happens, God is holy and true and He will be glorified. His will is accomplished through the COVID-19 viral pandemic. He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon!” Amen! Come, Lord Jesus! May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s holy people.

And they kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with joy; for the Lord made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of Assyria toward them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel. (Ezra 6:22)

Worship The Lord With Joy

There was much to rejoice as the children of Israel who returned from captivity looked upon the rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem. Many of the older priests, Levites, and other leaders who had seen the first Temple wept aloud when they saw the new Temple’s foundation. Sixteen years later the finished Temple stood gleaming in the bright sunshine and the heart of the people wept and rejoiced at the completion of the house of God. The Passover marked the beginning of restoring worship in Jerusalem and the Feast of Unleavened bread was kept for seven days with joy because the Lord had given them a purpose for rejoicing. Through the providential mercy of God, the king of Assyria allowed the people to return to Jerusalem. There had been a great revival in the land through the preaching of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo fortified by the hand of God moving in the hearts of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, the kings of Persia.

Joy permeated the worship at the dedication of the Temple because the people recognized the hand of God in their lives. Without the power of God, they would remain in bondage and captivity. They could see the will of the Lord working among the nations of the world to bring the Jews back to the land promised to them through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The Temple was the manifestation of God’s grace and they lifted their voices in praise with joy. Worship must come from the understanding of where man is in the scheme of things and how God’s grace overshadows his life. The people knew the new temple was a manifestation of the love of God and without the kindness of the Lord to allow them to return, there would be no hope. Joy filled their hearts because they had a purpose to live in serving the God who had rescued them.

Nearly ninety years had passed when the Temple of Solomon was destroyed. After seventy years in the land of Babylon, the Jews were allowed to return as declared by God through the prophets. After some delay, the second temple was finished. Worship in the early days of the second temple filled the walls with praise, honor, and thanksgiving. The joy that flowed in the hearts of the people came from knowing what God had done for them. Worship has always been true when men realize the source of their blessings. Joy must be a part of worship for without joy there can be no worship. The key to worshiping the Lord is to know that man is dependent upon the grace of God and without it, there would be no hope. Realizing all that God has done turns the heart from pride to humble acceptance of the blessings of a loving Father.

Worship does not come from temples made with hands but hearts formed by the love of God. Standing before the throne of God and realizing without the grace, mercy, and love of a forgiving Father, no one would have any hope. Yet, gathering with the hosts of God’s people in a place of worship and realizing all that God has done, every promise the Lord has made and the hope given through the blood of Jesus Christ; the heart can hardly restrain from bursting forth in eternal praise. It is easy to go through worship without any emotion or feeling of praise. The Lord made the people joyful because of His love for them. True worship comes from the heart of God’s people who reflect upon the price paid for their redemption. Jesus died a miserable and horrible death so that His disciples could worship in joy. God loved the world so much He willingly gave His only begotten Son to die for the sins of the world. How more love can man receive from the hand of God and not desire to sing the praise of joy? Worship is praise and joy.

I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. (John 17:20-21)

Christ Prayed For Unity

Prayer is a powerful tool to communicate with the Father and Jesus knew full well its impact. He spent many, many hours in prayer. When it was time to choose the twelve apostles, the Lord spent all night in prayer. With the shadow of the cross bearing down upon Him, Jesus prayed earnestly to the Father for strength to endure the suffering. Prayer was a vital part of the character of Jesus. As He spent the final hours with the eleven, the Son of God prayed for Himself, the eleven, and the world. The request of Jesus to His Father for the world was that when the gospel would be preached that all men would unite under the single message of salvation found in Christ. Those who believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, must be united in one. The word of God would bring lost souls to the kingdom and there was going to be only one kingdom. Jesus wanted His followers to be one. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were united in one and those who made up the body of Christ must also be one. When the believers of Christ are united in one the world will see the power of the gospel.

Two thousand years removed from the prayer of Jesus, the world is struggling to fulfill the desires of His prayer. The nature of prayer is rooted in the blessings of God from heaven but it requires obedience in the will of men to bring the prayer to fruition. Jesus prayed that all believers to be one but the selfish hearts of men deny that prayer as the religious world of Christianity is severely divided. No honest person can admit that all believers are united. Believers in Jesus wear different names like Baptist, Lutheran, Catholic, Methodist, Mormon, Nazarene, and Presbyterian. The phrase “hyphenated-Christian” is an accepted means to identify the different kinds of faiths under the flag of Christ. How can men be united when they wear different names?

The doctrines of supposed believers in Christ are different. Some churches teach that baptism is not essential for salvation while others deny remission of sins in baptism; infant baptism is practiced including different modes of “baptism” by sprinkling and pouring. The Lord’s Supper is practiced in many different ways at different times while churches like the Salvation Army do not follow the practice. Salvation varies from the doctrines of each church where some insist salvation by grace through faith alone, a paradise on literal earth with only a select group entering heaven, salvation based solely on works, and many churches embracing some or all tenets of Calvinism. Creeds vary from group to group with the Baptist Manual, International Executive Council of the Churches of God, Watchtower Bible, Methodist Book of Discipline, Book of Confessions, Apostles Creed, Nicene Creed, and Athanasian Creed. The Roman Catholic Church follows their Catechisms, Councils, and the infallible word of the Pope.

It is impossible to find unity among those who profess a belief in Jesus thereby making void the prayer of the Son of God. Jesus prayed that all those who believed in Him would be one but the carnal hearts of men deny that prayer. Paul would later describe unity as those who spoke the same thing perfectly joined together in the same mind and the same judgment with no divisions among them. How can any rational person suggest the world of believers is united in one? Did the prayer of Jesus fail? No, the prayer of Jesus did not fail because those who believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God are united under one flag. They follow the same teachings found in the scripture without variation of doctrines contained with the word of God.

The prayer of Jesus pleaded for all men to be one in Christ. This can only be done when men turn away from the teachings of the religious leaders that teach what is not found in the Bible. One of the clearest proofs of apostasy is when churches reflect doctrines never found in scripture. All of the Protestant churches that exist today began less than five hundred years ago by men. When different names are worn not found in scripture the church is man-made. The Bible is not hard to understand and doctrines that deny the word of God do not find unity in Christ. The challenge of truth is measured by what is found in the word of God. Unity can be found today among those who accept the Lordship of Jesus Christ turning away from the teachings of men. Let the Bible speak! Jesus prayed for unity. You must fulfill that prayer by subjecting to the word of God alone.

And Jeroboam said in his heart, “Now the kingdom may return to the house of David: If these people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn back to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah, and they will kill me and go back to Rehoboam king of Judah.”

Therefore the king asked advice, made two calves of gold, and said to the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, which brought you up from the land of Egypt!” And he set up one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. Now this thing became a sin, for the people went to worship before the one as far as Dan. He made shrines on the high places and made priests from every class of people, who were not of the sons of Levi.

Jeroboam ordained a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the feast that was in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. So he did at Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he had made. And at Bethel, he installed the priests of the high places which he had made. So he made offerings on the altar which he had made at Bethel on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, in the month which he had devised in his own heart. And he ordained a feast for the children of Israel, and offered sacrifices on the altar and burned incense. (1 Kings 12:26-33)

Knock-Off Religion

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a “knockoff” is a copy that sells for less than the original; broadly, a copy or imitation of someone or something popular. It is not the real thing but looks and feels like the original and is made at a much cheaper price and of less quality. The market for knock-off goods impacts consumers’ products in the billions of dollars lost every year. Bogus luxury goods fill the markets luring customers to buy what they believe to be the real product when in reality they are counterfeits. The market for fake merchandise is not new to the modern world. Men have always found ways to fool the public into buying what they believe to be real for something phony.

King Jeroboam was an early trader of the system of forgery when he fooled a large part of God’s people to follow after a religion that was nothing more than a knock-off religion. Worried the tribes he had been able to influence to his cause would return to Rehoboam and the tribes of the south, Jeroboam made a false religion that looked like the true religion of Jerusalem. His marketing ploy first appealed to the carnal nature of the human heart to want religion to be easy and comfortable. The king insisted it would be too far to go up to Jerusalem and it would be more convenient for the people to worship in Bethel and Dan. These two cities were the southern and northern reaches of his kingdom but kept the people out of the southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin. Who would not want to have worship to be an easy thing to do?

Jeroboam took a gamble in making two golden calves but he trusted the hearts of the people would see more to the difficulty of traveling to Jerusalem and the expense, time, and effort to worship in the Temple instead of the blatant sin of idolatry. He was right. His perception of the fickle nature of man played right into his plan. There was no uprising against him for introducing calf worship. No one stood against his plans for idol worship in great public unrest of rebellion. Many stood against the king but the religion of convenience introduced by Jeroboam began the northern tribes on their downward spiral of destruction in 200 years.

Under the Law of Moses, priests were to come from the tribe of Levi alone. No other tribesman could be a priest unless they were born of the house of Levi. Jeroboam relaxed the law and allowed anyone who desired to be a priest to serve. Every class of people became priests. This would be acceptable for the people as they could serve in the priesthood without restriction. The change of law went unchallenged by the masses as the calf worship in Dan and Bethel became the national religion. Jeroboam changed the celebrations of the feasts. The feast on the 15^th day of the 8^th month was like the feast in Judah but unlike the feast of Tabernacles in Judah which was held in the 7^th month. Jeroboam subverted the Law of Moses in changing the feast and the character of his knock-off religion took roots. The prophets of God would decry the acts of Jeroboam and all the kings that followed but to no avail. Following a convenient religion appealed to the heart of the people leading to their destruction.

The false religion of Jeroboam is still active in the world today as many knock-off churches look like the real thing, have parts of their makeup that look like the real thing and beguile the people to believe what they are part of is the will of the Lord. In the days of Jeroboam, it would have only taken an examination of the Law of Moses to see how corrupt and sinful the religion of the north had become. There was no divine authority that established the worship of the golden calves. The king was guilty of leading them astray but the people were also guilty for not standing against the king and his false religion. There are many churches today who have a semblance of the New Testament church mingled among their garments but the cloaks they wear are filled with false doctrine and lies.

The Bible teaches plainly the nature of the New Testament church and if a church does not look like the one found on the pages of holy writ, it is a knock-off religion. Many religious leaders have led their flocks astray in great numbers and their lives will be judged accordingly before the throne of God. The people who blindly follow the teachings of men rather than holding to the truth of the gospel of Christ will not be found innocent before the divine judge. Every person has a responsibility to hold in check the teachings of those who lead them whether it is truth or a lie. The motto of attending the church of your choice is the propaganda of the great deceiver who would allow men to worship God but to worship the Lord in their way. Satan knows there is one way and one truth but he wants his followers to follow their way and their truth. Like Israel of old, the end is worse than the beginning. You might want to check your religion. It might be a knock-off.