HYMN: WHAT A FRIEND WE HAVE IN JESUS

The Witnesses: Joseph Scriven
(1819-1886)

Joseph Medlicott Scriven was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1819. After receiving his degree at Trinity College in Dublin, Joseph fell in love with a girl from Banbridge County, Ireland in 1842. Two years later, they were engaged. On their wedding day, as his bride-to-be crossed a bridge over the River Bann, the horse bucked, throwing her into the river. Joseph watched helplessly from the other side of the river as his beloved drowned. Unable to recover, the Irishman became a wanderer, hoping to forget his sorrow and at age 25, he finally settled in Canada.

Scriven first came to Rice Lake in Ontario, and later to Port Hope, Ontario. There, he worked as a private tutor to several local families. In 1854 he was engaged to Miss Eliza Roche, but Miss Roche caught a chill after swimming in Rice Lake and three years later, she died of severe pneumonia.

On the streets of Port Hope, Ontario, a man walked carrying a saw and a sawhorse. One day, a rich man from across the street noticed him and said to a friend, "He looks like a sober man. I think I'll hire him to cut wood for me." The friend swiftly replied, "That's Joseph Scriven. He wouldn't cut wood for you. He only cuts wood for those who don't have enough to pay." That sums up Joseph Scriven’s philosophy.

This devoted member of the Plymouth Brethren Church took the Sermon on the Mount literally. His faith led him to perform menial tasks for poor widows and the sick. He often worked for no wages and was regarded as a kind man in his community, albeit a bit odd.

In 1885, a friend visited the desperately ill Scriven and he discovered a poem that Scriven had written for his ailing mother in faraway Ireland. Scriven didn't have the money to visit her, but he sent her the poem as an encouragement. He called it, "Pray Without Ceasing."

When the friend inquired about the poem's origin, Scriven reportedly answered, "The Lord and I did it between us." This poem was eventually put to music entitled, "What a Friend We Have in Jesus."

What a friend we have in Jesus,
all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry
Every thing to God in prayer!

O what peace we often forfeit,
O what needless pain we bear,
all because we do not carry
every thing to God in prayer.

Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged;
take it to the Lord in prayer.

Can we find a friend so faithful
who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness;
take it to the Lord in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy laden,
cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge;
take it to the Lord in prayer.

Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?
Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In his arms he'll take and shield thee;
thou wilt find a solace there.

This hymn has brought, and continues to bring, comfort and peace to thousands of people around the world.

What can we learn?
1. Prayer is a privilege. We get to converse with the Creator!
2. Pray and never give up.
3. We will all have trials and temptations but prayer unleashes the peace of God.
4. Even after tragedy, God proves Himself strong on our behalf.
5. Take what you have and give generously to the needy.

WHAT BIBLE ARE YOU USING?

If a person is to derive benefit from one's reading and studying of Scriptures,
such a person must be confident and therefore assured, that the copy of Scriptures he or she is using is God's Precious Pure Words.

The question though that one must ask is: Are all Bibles the same? That is: every one of the more than 100 plus Bible versions that are available in the market today?

Many more questions must be asked by a serious student of Holy Scriptures specially those in the preaching, teaching ministry. Many though are not willing to investigate, scrutinize and make sure for their own benefit that what they are using is truly God's Precious Pure word.

One of the things that this blogger could not understand is how is it that many so-called educated and seminary graduates (M. Div and Ph.D holders)seemingly have been blinded and deceived that every Bible is the same.

Plain lay people that this blogger have shared about this controversial topic, in such a short period of time, their spiritual eyes are opened and they clearly see, crystal clear, the deceptions of most of the so-called New Version Bibles.

Unfortunately also, many pastors of many different denominational persuasions, are indifferent or simply ignorant of this most important issue. Many are hesitant even afraid to tackle this issue headlong.

To those who read this blog, I would like for you to answer the following questions that I believe with all my heart, must be answered to the satisfaction of those that are Authentic, Genuine, True Bible Believers like me. These are the following:

What is Dynamic Equivalency?

What is the Theory of Textual Criticism? And who are the men behind this theory?

Who is Brook Foss Westcott and Fenton John Anthony Hort? Are these two men Bible Believers? Born again & saved?

What was their role in the raging controversy about Bible Translations?

Did you know that Bible Printing & Publishing is a multi-billion dollar business?

Did you know that the major publishers and printers of these new bible versions are also the publishers of books like: The Satanic Bible and many books about homosexual
and feminists books and pornographic materials?

Who is Dr. Marten H. Woudstra and Dr. Virginia Mollenkott?

What was their role in the translation of the NIV in the 1970's?

Do you believe with all your heart that the Bible you are personally using for your reading, study and preparation for your so-called preaching & teaching ministry is without a doubt God's Precious Pure Word? Therefore, you have the conviction that the God of Holy Scriptures will and must bless such? Hebrews 4:12 KJBible describes God's Precious Pure Word as: alive and powerful. Is it so in the Bible you are using?

These and many more questions begs to be answered.

I encourage and challenge serious bible students (every authentic believer in the LORD Jesus Christ is and must be a student of the Bible)to answer the above questions to their own satisfaction. More so, for those in the preaching and teaching ministry simply because not to is irresponsible to say the least. Why? because many are dependent on your declarations concerning Scriptures.

I will say the following: If there is the true, there must be the false!
Genuine or Counterfeit! It is kind of naive to believe that every Bible is the same.

B E W A R E! DO NOT BE DECEIVED! FOR YOUR OWN SAKE AND THE SAKE OF MULTITUDES OF PEOPLE WHO ARE DEPENDENT ON PREACHERS AND TEACHERS OF SCRIPTURES LIKE YOU AND I. REMEMBER WE ARE ACCOUNTABLE LIKE THE PROPHET EZEKIEL.
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VATICAN LIBRARY REOPENS
(Friday Church News Notes, September 17, 2010, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org,)

- The Vatican Library has reopened after a major three-year renovation costing $11.5 million. The bunker where the 150,000 ancient manuscripts are kept was made fireproof and dust-proof and the library’s 70,000 books were fitted with computer chips to prevent loss and theft, among other things.

- The Vatican Library houses the Vaticanus codex which is dated to about 325 A.D. and is the oldest extant copy of the New Testament (though large portions are missing, such as the Pastoral Epistles and all of Revelation). It represents the corrupt Egyptian text upon which the modern Bible versions are based. It omits many entire passages such as Mark 16:9-20 and in John 1:18 it changes “only begotten Son” to “only begotten God,” thus perpetuating the ancient Arian heresy that disassociates the Son of God Jesus Christ from God Himself by claiming that the Word was not the same as the Son. John’s Gospel identifies the Son directly with the Word (John 1:1, 18), but by changing “Son” to “God” in verse 18, this direct association is broken in the Vaticanus.

- Erasmus, the first editor of the printed Greek Received Text, was familiar with the Vaticanus through more than 300 readings that were sent to him by a correspondent in Rome, but he and the other editors of the Greek New Testament of that day rejected it. It was not until the end of the 19th century that its readings appeared in a standard English Bible (the English Revised Version of 1881).

- Westcott and Hort, who published the Greek New Testament upon which the ERV was founded, considered the Vaticanus to be superior to all other manuscripts. It was “their touchstone” (Kurt Aland, The Text of the New Testament, p. 14). The ERV and its U.S. counterpart, the American Standard Version, were not popular, though. It was not until the publication of the New International Version in the 1970s that the Vaticanus readings became widely accepted.

The home of the Vaticanus is unholy and is certainly not the place one would expect to find the preserved Word of God. I toured the Vatican in 1992, 2003, and 2005, and was astounded at how pagan the place is. Fitting to the home of the man who claims the titles and position of Jesus Christ and who accepts adulation, the Vatican is a monument to idolatry and blasphemy and man’s shameless rebellion to God’s Word. The columns of the Vatican Library feature paintings of pagan gods and goddesses, such as Mercury and Isis.

CH SPURGEON'S MAGNUM OPUS - PSALM 1

Psalm 1
This Psalm consists of two parts: in the first (from verse 1 to the end of the 3rd) David sets out wherein the felicity and blessedness of a godly man consisteth, what his exercises are, and what blessings he shall receive from the Lord. In the second part (from verse 4 to the end) he contrasts the state and character of the ungodly, reveals the future, and describes, in telling language, his ultimate doom.
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EXPOSITION
Verse 1. "BLESSED"—see how this Book of Psalms opens with a benediction, even as did the famous Sermon of our Lord upon the Mount! The word translated "blessed" is a very expressive one. The original word is plural, and it is a controverted matter whether it is an adjective or a substantive. Hence we may learn the multiplicity of the blessings which shall rest upon the man whom God hath justified, and the perfection and greatness of the blessedness he shall enjoy. We might read it, "Oh, the blessednesses!" and we may well regard it (as Ainsworth does) as a joyful acclamation of the gracious man's felicity. May the like benediction rest on us!

Here the gracious man is described both negatively (verse 1) and positively (verse 2). He is a man who does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly. He takes wiser counsel, and walks in the commandments of the Lord his God. To him the ways of piety are paths of peace and pleasantness. His footsteps are ordered by the Word of God, and not by the cunning and wicked devices of carnal men. It is a rich sign of inward grace when the outward walk is changed, and when ungodliness is put far from our actions. Note next, he standeth not in the way of sinners. His company is of a choicer sort than it was. Although a sinner himself, he is now a blood-washed sinner, quickened by the Holy Spirit, and renewed in heart. Standing by the rich grace of God in the congregation of the righteous, he dares not herd with the multitude that do evil. Again it is said, "nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful." He finds no rest in the atheist's scoffings. Let others make a mock of sin, of eternity, of hell and heaven, and of the Eternal God; this man has learned better philosophy than that of the infidel, and has too much sense of God's presence to endure to hear His name blasphemed. The seat of the scorner may be very lofty, but it is very near to the gate of hell; let us flee from it, for it shall soon be empty, and destruction shall swallow up the man who sits therein.

Mark the gradation in the first verse:
He walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor standeth in the way of sinners,
Nor SITTETH in the SEAT of SCORNFUL.

When men are living in sin they go from bad to worse. At first they merely walk in the counsel of the careless and ungodly, who forget God—the evil is rather practical than habitual—but after that, they become habituated to evil, and they stand in the way of open sinners who wilfully violate God's commandments; and if let alone, they go one step further, and become themselves pestilent teachers and tempters of others, and thus they sit in the seat of the scornful. They have taken their degree in vice, and as true Doctors of Damnation they are installed, and are looked up to by others as Masters in Belial.

But the blessed man, the man to whom all the blessings of God belong, can hold no communion with such characters as these. He keeps himself pure from these lepers; he puts away evil things from him as garments spotted by the flesh; he comes out from among the wicked, and goes without the camp, bearing the reproach of Christ. O for grace to be thus separate from sinners.

And now mark his positive character. "His delight is in the law of the Lord." He is not under the law as a curse and condemnation, but he is in it, and he delights to be in it as his rule of life; he delights, moreover, to meditate in it, to read it by day, and think upon it by night. He takes a text and carries it with him all day long; and in the night-watches, when sleep forsakes his eyelids, he museth upon the Word of God. In the day of his prosperity he sings psalms out of the Word of God, and in the night of his affliction he comforts himself with promises out of the same book.

"The law of the Lord" is the daily bread of the true believer. And yet, in David's day, how small was the volume of inspiration, for they had scarcely anything save the first five books of Moses! How much more, then, should we prize the whole written Word which it is our privilege to have in all our houses!

But, alas, what ill-treatment is given to this angel from heaven! We are not all Berean searchers of the Scriptures. How few among us can lay claim to the benediction of the text! Perhaps some of you can claim a sort of negative purity, because you do not walk in the way of the ungodly; but let me ask you—

Is your delight in the law of God? Do you study God's Word? Do you make it the man of your right hand—your best companion and hourly guide? If not, this blessing belongeth not to you.

Verse 3. "And he shall be like a tree planted"—not a wild tree, but "a tree planted," chosen, considered as property, cultivated and secured from the last terrible uprooting, for "every plant which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up:" Matthew 15:13.

"By the rivers of water;" so that even if one river should fail, he hath another. The rivers of pardon and the rivers of grace, the rivers of the promise and the rivers of communion with Christ, are never-failing sources of supply. He is "like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season;" not unseasonable graces, like untimely figs, which are never full-flavored. But the man who delights in God's Word, being taught by it, bringeth forth patience in the time of suffering, faith in the day of trial, and holy joy in the hour of prosperity.

Fruitfulness is an essential quality of a gracious man, and that fruitfulness should be seasonable. "His leaf also shall not wither;" his faintest word shall be everlasting; his little deeds of love shall be had in remembrance. Not simply shall his fruit be preserved, but his leaf also. He shall neither lose his beauty nor his fruitfulness. "And whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."

Blessed is the man who hath such a promise as this. But we must not always estimate the fulfillment of a promise by our own eye-sight. How often, my brethren, if we judge by feeble sense, may we come to the mournful conclusion of Jacob, "All these things are against me!" For though we know our interest in the promise, yet we are so tried and troubled, that sight sees the very reverse of what that promise foretells. But to the eye of faith this word is sure, and by it we perceive that our works are prospered, even when everything seems to go against us. It is not outward prosperity which the Christian most desires and values; it is soul prosperity which he longs for.

We often, like Jehoshaphat, make ships to go to Tarshish for gold, but they are broken at Ezion-geber; but even here there is a true prospering, for it is often for the soul's health that we would be poor, bereaved, and persecuted. Our worst things are often our best things. As there is a curse wrapped up in the wicked man's mercies, so there is a blessing concealed in the righteous man's crosses, losses, and sorrows. The trials of the saint are a divine husbandry, by which he grows and brings forth abundant fruit.

Verse 4. We have now come to the second head of the Psalm. In this verse the contrast of the ill estate of the wicked is employed to heighten the coloring of that fair and pleasant picture which precedes it. The more forcible translation of the Vulgate and of the Septuagint version is— "Not so the ungodly, not so." And we are hereby to understand that whatever good thing is said of the righteous is not true in the case of the ungodly.

Oh! how terrible is it to have a double negative put upon the promises! and yet this is just the condition of the ungodly. Mark the use of the term "ungodly," for, as we have seen in the opening of the Psalm, these are the beginners in evil, and are the least offensive of sinners. Oh! if such is the sad state of those who quietly continue in their morality, and neglect their God, what must be the condition of open sinners and shameless infidels?

The first sentence is a negative description of the ungodly, and the second is the positive picture. Here is their character — "they are like chaff," intrinsically worthless, dead, unserviceable, without substance, and easily carried away. Here, also, mark their doom, — "the wind driveth away;" death shall hurry them with its terrible blast into the fire in which they shall be utterly consumed.

Verse 5. They shall stand there to be judged, but not to be acquitted. Fear shall lay hold upon them there; they shall not stand their ground; they shall flee away; they shall not stand in their own defence; for they shall blush and be covered with eternal contempt.

Well may the saints long for heaven, for no evil men shall dwell there, "nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous." All our congregations upon earth are mixed. Every Church hath one devil in it. The tares grow in the same furrows as the wheat. There is no floor which is as yet thoroughly purged from chaff. Sinners mix with saints, as dross mingles with gold.

God's precious diamonds still lie in the same field with pebbles. Righteous Lots are this side heaven continually vexed by the men of Sodom. Let us rejoice then, that in "the general assembly and church of the firstborn" above, there shall by no means be admitted a single unrenewed soul.

Sinners cannot live in heaven. They would be out of their element. Sooner could a fish live upon a tree than the wicked in Paradise. Heaven would be an intolerable hell to an impenitent man, even if he could be allowed to enter; but such a privilege shall never be granted to the man who perseveres in his iniquities. May God grant that we may have a name and a place in his courts above!

Verse 6. Or, as the Hebrew hath it yet more fully, "The Lord is knowing the way of the righteous." He is constantly looking on their way, and though it may be often in mist and darkness, yet the Lord knoweth it. If it be in the clouds and tempest of affliction, he understandeth it.

He numbereth the hairs of our head; he will not suffer any evil to befall us. "He knoweth the way that I take: when He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold." (Job 23:10.)

"But the way of the ungodly shall perish." Not only shall they perish themselves, but their way shall perish too. The righteous carves his name upon the rock, but the wicked writes his remembrance in the sand. The righteous man ploughs the furrows of earth, and sows a harvest here, which shall never be fully reaped till he enters the enjoyments of eternity; but as for the wicked, he ploughs the sea, and though there may seem to be a shining trail behind his keel, yet the waves shall pass over it, and the place that knew him shall know him no more for ever.

The very "way" of the ungodly shall perish. If it exist in remembrance, it shall be in the remembrance of the bad; for the Lord will cause the name of the wicked to rot, to become a stench in the nostrils of the good, and to be only known to the wicked themselves by its putridity.

May the Lord cleanse our hearts and our ways, that we may escape the doom of the ungodly, and enjoy the blessedness of the righteous!

From the “MAGNUM OPUS” by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

"DO YOU HAVE A TESTING MINDSET?"

A Testing Mindset‏
by David Cloud

One thing that a Christian must develop if he wants to have spiritual victory is a testing mindset. This means that he must learn to test everything by the Bible to see if it is right or wrong, true or false.

I thank the Lord that the man who led me to Christ taught me this so that I started out my Christian life with a testing mindset. It has protected me from many spiritual pitfalls. Traveling together from south Florida to Mexico, we stopped at a Christian bookstore somewhere on the Gulf Coast. I think it was Mobile, Alabama. He bought me a King James Bible , and then he pointed to all of the books that were for sale and said, “You must be very careful and test everything by God’s Word. You can’t trust man; you can’t trust the “big names.” The Bible warns that there will be many false teachers.”

It was with this wise counsel that I began my Christian life.
The testing mindset is despised today among most professing Christians, even “evangelicals.” I recall the first ecumenical conference I reported on. It was in New Orleans in 1987 and there were tens of thousands of attendees representing 40 different denominations. Roman Catholics formed a large presence. There was even a Roman Catholic mass each morning. One day I was talking with an Episcopalian lay leader and he gave me his testimony of salvation which sounded Scriptural. I then said something to the effect, “If you believe the Bible and know the Lord, how can you be comfortable in the midst of this heretical stew?” He replied, “You need to relax more; you are too afraid of being deceived.”

That is dangerous and very foolish advice in light of the warnings that follow.

Matthew 7:15-17
1. Jesus warned that false prophets will deceive men. We should not be surprised that there are so many false churches today. We must expect that there will be false prophets and we must be careful so we will not be deceived by them.

2. Jesus said that the false prophets will appear as true prophets outwardly and by this means they deceive the unwary. They have Bibles; they talk about Jesus and salvation and good living. They have churches and teach doctrine.

3. False teachers are known by their fruit (vv. 16-20).
a. The fruit is not works; in verses 22-23 Jesus says that false teachers will do “many wonderful works.”
b. The fruit is biblical salvation (v. 23), obedience (v. 21), and doctrinal truth.

The sure fruit of a false teacher is his false doctrine (Acts 20:30; Rom. 16:17; Gal. 1:6-7; 1 Tim. 1:3; 2 Pet. 2:1; 1 John 4:1-2). Consider Mother Teresa. She did many good works in caring for the poor and sick in the neediest parts of the world, but she didn’t know Christ and trusted in a false gospel and taught heresies. The 2007 book Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light contains statements made by the nun to her Catholic confessors and superiors over a period of more than 66 years. She continually referred to her spiritual condition as “my darkness” and to Jesus as “the Absent One.” In March 1953 she wrote, “... there is such terrible darkness within me, as if everything was dead. It has been like this more or less from the time I started ‘the work.’” At the suggestion of one confessor she wrote the following to Jesus: “I call, I cling, I want -- and there is no One to answer -- no One on Whom I can cling -- no, No One. -- Alone ... Where is my Faith -- even deep down right in there is nothing, but emptiness & darkness. ... When I try to raise my thoughts to Heaven -- there is such convicting emptiness that those very thoughts return like sharp knives & hurt my very soul. -- I am told God loves me -- and yet the reality of darkness & coldness & emptiness is so great that nothing touches my soul.”

In 1962 she wrote: “If I ever become a Saint -- I will surely be one of ‘darkness.’”

In 1984 we interviewed Sister Ann of the Missionaries of Charity, which is Mother Teresa’s organization. Ann was working with elderly people in Nepal, and she said that they do not try to convert dying Hindus to Christ but simply instruct them to pray to their gods.

Matthew 24:4-5, 11, 24
1. Jesus warned again that there will be false prophets and they will multiply at the end of the church age. The closer we draw to His return the more spiritual deception we can expect to encounter, and we are seeing that in our day. Most churches are not true to the Bible. False teachers abound.

2. Observe that the deception of the end times will be so effective that “insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.” That is powerful deception. How diligent and cautious we must be!

3. It is the believer’s responsibility to protect himself and his loved ones by being cautious and having a testing mindset.

4. Jesus warned that false teachers will deceive through “signs and wonders.” This brings to mind the Pentecostal-Charismatic movement, which has a great emphasis on miracles. In light of Jesus’ warning, we know that just because a preacher’s ministry is accompanied by alleged miracles does not mean it is of God. Every ministry must be tested by the Bible , and by the Bible alone.

5. Jesus warned about false Christs, and the world abounds with them today. The Christ of the Roman Catholic Church is a consecrated wafer and a weak man in strong Mary’s arms. The Christ of Jehovah’s Witnesses and Unitarians is not God. The Christ of the Mormons is a brother to Satan. The Christ of the New Age gained mystical wisdom in India. The Christ of the Da Vinci Code is a married man. The Christ of Liberation Theology is a freedom fighter. The Christ of the Jesus Seminar brand is a confused man that didn’t know what he was doing. The Christ of Christian rockers is a party dude. The Christ of the emerging church is an environmentalist. The Christ of Islam didn’t die on the cross.

John 8:31-32
1. The only way to know the truth and to be set free from sin and error is to continue in Jesus’ Word. Notice that He didn’t say “words” plural but “word” singular. This refers to the inscripturated Word, the Bible . The Word of God has been written under divine inspiration, canonized, and preserved for us in the Bible. Therefore, if we want to know the truth, we need to read it, study it, memorize it, meditate on it, obey it, and test everything by it.

2. This is the only way, and it is also a sure way . Jesus gives His solemn promise that if we continue in His Word we WILL know the truth. This is one of the promises that motivated me to study the Bible diligently as a young Christian and to persist over the past 37 years. I want to know the truth, and Christ has given me His promise. Many voices within Christianity claim that we cannot be certain of what doctrine is correct, so we should just get along, but Jesus gave His promise that we can know. Compare John 7:17.

Acts 17:11
1. The Jews at Berea are commended for testing everything carefully by the Scriptures. This isn’t popular in modern Christianity but it is called “noble” in God’s Word.

2. Notice that they searched the Scripture daily. Before you can test anything by God’s Word you must first study it.

1 Thessalonians 5:21
1. We are admonished to prove all things. This is a far-reaching obligation. We should test everything in our lives by God’s holy Word, not only Christian teaching and “church” things but also job, friends, fashion, entertainment, marriage, child training methods, music, and all other things.

2. We are also admonished to hold fast that which is good, which refers to those things that are in accordance with and approved by God’s Word.

2 Corinthians 10:5
1. God wants the believer to bring every thought into captivity to the truth. What a far-reaching command! .

2. We do this by filling our minds with God’s Word and letting it measure every thought that enters our hearts.

3. The human imagination is a great spiritual battleground and must be guarded jealously. The modern entertainment industry aims its heavy guns at man’s imagination. Satanic-led entertainment creators want to corrupt the imagination through sensuality and turn it from the living God through the creation of vain worlds. There is particular danger for believers in the genres of science fiction and horror.

2 Corinthians 11:3-4
1. There is great spiritual danger for Christians (2 Cor. 11:3-4). Paul was afraid for the Corinthian believers because they were not careful about doctrine.

2. The devil complicates doctrine (“corrupted from the simplicity,” 2 Cor. 11:3). Examples of this are theological modernism, Calvinistic Reformed theology, and emerging church doctrine. The truth of God’s Word is exceedingly deep, but it also has a basic simplicity that is comprehensible to ordinary people (Luke 10:21).

3. Paul warned of false Christs, false gospels, and false spirits. The believer must be careful not to believe someone just because he talks about Christ or the gospel or the Spirit. Everything must be carefully tested by God’s Word.

4. We see in verse 4 that the teaching of the apostles is the standard for the truth (“whom we have not preached”). We have the teaching of the apostles in the New Testament Scriptures. This is the “faith once delivered to the saints” (Jude 3) by which we are to measure teaching and practice.

5. The devil is clever and must be resisted with much wisdom and zeal (2 Cor. 11:3).

6. Broadmindedness in doctrinal matters is evidence of carnality, not spirituality. Because the Corinthians were carnal (1 Cor. 3:1-2), Paul knew they might “well bear with” the false teachers (v. 4). This does not mean they would necessarily follow the false teaching but they would put up with it; they would not resist it properly. Being able to “see both sides” is not a mark of spirituality. There is only one side to the truth! The way of truth is narrow (Mat. 7:14).

7. False teachers imitate true teachers (2 Cor. 11:13-15). They don’t invent new things; they pervert the old things. They have churches and Bibles and preach Jesus. The closer something is to the truth, the more difficult it is to discern its error.

Colossians 2:8
1. Again we are exhorted to beware of false teachers. We must have a testing mindset.

2. Notice that false teachers desire to “spoil.” The idea is to rob. False teachers want to rob believers of their absolute confidence in the truth of God’s Word and in the grace of Christ and to replace this with human tradition and philosophy.

3. The way to defeat these false teachers is to hold fast to the Bible as the divinely-inspired Word of God and as the sole authority for faith and practice (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Revelation 2:2, 6
1. The church at Ephesus was commended for testing false teachers and for rejecting them. Jesus was pleased with this. It is something that every individual believer and every church should emulate.

2. Observe that the church felt very strongly about this matter. They labeled the false teachers “liars” and hated their deeds.

Proverbs 14:15
The book of Proverbs contrasts the wise with the foolish. In this proverb, the foolish person is said to be gullible and easily deceived because he doesn’t carefully test everything by God’s Word. The word “simple” here does not refer to simple-minded; it refers to gullible. The “simple” reads Christian books and hears sermons and attends conferences and takes everything in without testing it.

Psalms 119:128
1. The Psalmist gives the example of loving God’s Word and hating everything that is false. That is a testing mindset. The Bible is the absolute standard for truth, and by comparing everything in life with this Standard we can be protected from error.

2. We see that the believer should be passionate about the truth. The Psalmist was not neutral or half-hearted in this matter. He held God’s Word in great esteem and hated every false way.
________________________________________Distributed by Way of Life Literature

EIGHT GLIMPSES OF THE GENUIS OF CHARLES SPURGEON

Eight Glimpses of the Genius of Charles Spurgeon
by Mike Ross — last modified May 29, 2010 11:55 PM
Spurgeon's genius sprang from his latent gifts enhanced by the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Eight Glimpses of the Genius of Charles Spurgeon
by J. J. Brown

J. J. Brown is the former Chairman of Spurgeon's College Council, and Secretary of Spurgeon's College (London). He still serves at the Spurgeon's College Archives, where memorabilia, artifacts, and other materials from Spurgeon's era are housed for viewing.

#1 - His Spiritual Depth
He was utterly dependent on the Holy Spirit — "If we have not the Spirit which Jesus promised, we cannot perform the commission which Jesus gave." His simple trust in God which enabled him to face the eventualities and tasks of a demanding life was sustained by earnest prayer. "Prayer has become as essential to me as the heaving of my lungs."

#2 - His Preaching Power
He was acclaimed as "the greatest preacher in an age of great preachers." At the age of 17 he drew hundreds to churches in Cambridgeshire. At 19, thousands attended his ministry in London. Congregations were spellbound as with his bell-like voice he expounded Scripture in plain and memorable language. His preaching was accompanied by pastoral care and philanthropic work. The Stockwell Orphanage, which accommodated 500 children, was said to be his greatest sermon.

#3 - His Uncompromising Stance
"If a minister is not sure about his message let him keep quiet until he is." The Bible is to be expounded, not criticised. The Gospel is a message to be proclaimed, not debated. His strong assertions let loose some painful controversies. But he stood his ground and refused to betray his conscience.

#4 - His Reading Talent
As a young child his toys were books. He learned to read them early and quickly. Eventually he could read six ordinary books at a sitting, and as many substantial volumes in a week. A retentive memory and a computer-like recall system provided grist for the mill of preparation for sermons, lectures, and books. Spurgeon's magazine The Sword and the Trowel often contained as many as fifty book reviews from his pen — sufficient proof of his capacity.

#5 - His Generous Giving
Much of his personal money was used for the support of his College, his Orphan Homes, and other institutions which he founded. In addition, many individuals benefited from his benevolence.

#6 - His Evangelistic Passion
"If I had worlds to buy one of your souls, I would readily give them if I might but bring one of you to Christ." The front cover of the earliest volumes of his published sermons carried the motif of Moses with the serpent of brass to which poisoned people looked to find life. The motif is surrounded with the text — "We Preach Christ and Him Crucified." Spurgeon thus remembered his own conversion experience when he was urged to look to Christ. His whole ministry was designed to point people to his Saviour. He founded his Seminary in order to equip preachers to be evangelists as well as pastors.

#7 - His Observant Faculties
His eyes were open and his ears attuned to the sights and sounds of the world around him. Many of his sermons are illuminated by the things he saw and heard. The rural environment in which he spent much of his boyhood coloured his thought and speech. He developed the character of "John Ploughman," and preached a series of "Farm Sermons." He was also a shrewd observer of human nature, sharpened by his experience of interviewing prospective ministerial students. He was quick to see human need and equally ready to provide practical help.

#8 - His Nonconformist Mould
Among his ancestors were those who suffered in the cause of religious freedom. His father and grandfather were Independent (Congregationalist) Ministers. Their churches were self-governing, free from State control. Spurgeon's nonconformity bred innovation — he rejected clerical attire, and he refused ecclesiastical titles. He preferred a platform to a pulpit. He was not averse to preaching in secular buildings. He published a sermon every week from the year 1855 until he died in 1892 [and previously unpublished sermons from Sunday & Thursday evenings continued to be printed weekly until 1917, finally ceasing during World War I].

Conclusion
Spurgeon's genius sprang from his latent gifts enhanced by the ministry of the Holy Spirit. His voice, his command of language, his inimitable style, his sensitivity, imagination, passion and intellect were all at the disposal of his Lord and Saviour. Through his College, his Child Care Charity, his churches, his printed sermons and published books...
"He being dead yet speaketh."

Listen for his word through the book you hold in your hand.

J. J. BROWN is the author of The Adventures of Charles ($4.00),
an excellent new children's biography about C. H. Spurgeon (Pilgrim Publications).

NOTES OF INTEREST
A Message For Today
by Dr. Raymond Brown
— Former Principal, Spurgeon's College

It is an immense delight to me to know that Spurgeon's sermons are still in demand and that these masterly expositions originally published as The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit are available to modern readers.

Spurgeon's sermons are so utterly BIBLICAL. He had an intense desire to let Scripture speak for itself, and time and again in reading the sermons one rejoices in their expository character. He was deeply influenced by the English Puritan tradition and shared their desire to make the message of Scripture absolutely clear and deeply convincing.

Spurgeon's sermons are so utterly CHRISTOCENTRIC. He had a passion to exalt Christ, and time and again he focuses our attention on the Person and Work of Christ. He is not interested in marginal issues or peripheral concerns. Whatever his subject, in the end the reader is brought face to face with the Saviour of mankind.

Spurgeon's sermons are so utterly RELEVANT. To read them in our own decade is not to take a journey into the archaic past, or to study an outdated style peculiar to Victorian England. His masterly analysis of man's sad condition and his rich exposition of man's only Hope brings the modern reader face to face with reality.

Anyone who reads these sermons cannot fail to be helped. A preacher who studies them with care will derive inspiration and insight from any time he devotes to them. I am glad that the ministry of this great preacher lives on.
— Brown's comments here are from the
Jacket Cover for MTP Vol 49, Year 1903

(Note: Raymond Brown is not related to J. J. Brown, above)

PILGRIM PUBLICATIONS

The Life and Ministry of the Prince of Preachers

Introduction to C H Spurgeon (1834-1892)
by Mike Ross — last modified Jul 05, 2010 08:34 PM
"We Preach Christ and Him Crucified." -- The motto of Spurgeon's ministry and Metropolitan Tabernacle church (based on 1st Cor. 1:23-24 and John 3:14)

"I take my text, and make a bee-line to the CROSS." - Spurgeon
"The best preacher is the man who charges his gun with all he knows, and then - before he fires - puts himself in." (from W. Y. Fullerton's Biography of Spurgeon - page 197)

C. H. Spurgeon's blessed ministry was grounded in the holy scripture of 1st Corinthians 1:23-24 "But we preach CHRIST CRUCIFIED, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God."

Based on the Biblical declaration of John 3:14, "And As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up," the striking emblem was his motto and appeared on the cloth-binding spines of the original New Park Street and Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermon Series volumes.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892) was a noted British Baptist minister who preached to throngs of souls at the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London, England (which held a total capacity of 6000 people, including Standing Room only). Greatly blessed by the Holy Spirit, his success and worldwide popularity were due in large measure to a genius intellect, natural gift of oratory, thoroughly biblical expository messages, along with the fervant prayers of his congregational Tabernacle members.

In 1854, just four years after his conversion, Spurgeon, then only 20, became pastor of London’s famed New Park Street Church. The congregation quickly outgrew their building, moved to Exeter Hall, then to Surrey Music Hall. In these venues Spurgeon frequently preached to audiences numbering more than 10,000—all in the days before electronic amplification. In 1861 the congregation moved permanently to the newly constructed Metropolitan Tabernacle. Spurgeon's many writings and brilliant sermons are still widely published today, testifying to his timeless appeal.

How C. H. Spurgeon found Christ --
"I looked to Him; He looked to me;
and we were ONE forever." (CHS)
Isaiah 45:22 --
"Look unto me and be ye saved all the ends of the earth,
for I am God, and there is none else."

Who is on the Lord's side? Who? Wounded on the battlefield, I raise myself on my arm and cry to those around me, and urge them to espouse my Master's cause, for if we were wounded or dead for His sake all would be gain. By the splendour of redeeming love, I charge each believer to confess his Lord, and live wholly to him. Yours for Christ's sake, - C.H. SPURGEON

Excerpt from C. H. Spurgeon's Letter
read to his congregation on January 17, 1875
-- Published in the Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit
(Vol 21, Year 1875, pg. 48)

CREMATION

FRIENDS:

Nowadays, people even so-called "born again christians", have followed the ways and
methods of the world. This is true even in death, in the matter of how we deal with the body of a loved one who have gone ahead into eternity.

May I strongly suggest that you read and study the following article on the above subject matter. It will do you well to be Biblically informed.

Authentic, Genuine & True "born again" Christians are Bible Believers. As such, the Holy Bible (KJBible), God's Precious Pure Word, is and must be "Final and Ultimate Authority" for faith and practice even in the matter of how one's body is to be interred after physical death.

Manny


CREMATION: WHAT DOES GOD THINK?

Updated March 9, 2010 (first published via the FBIS January 10, 1998) (David Cloud, FBIS, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org;–

In a book on the subject of Christian funerals, a writer gives the following advice regarding cremation:

“Personally, the minister may or may not approve of such proceedings. Privately, he is free to hold any opinion that he will. But officially he should keep an open mind. In the Christian religion there is nothing that frowns upon cremation or requires burial.”

Is this sound advice? Is cremation a matter of Christian liberty? In certain places land space is so crowded that burial plots are very expensive and in some cases there are efforts by the governments to discourage burial in preference to cremation. That this problem has become acute in Singapore is referred to in the following official statement made by the Bible Presbyterian Church of Singapore in May, 1987--

“1. There is an increasing number of cremations in Singapore even amongst Christians. 2. It is quite evident that our Government favours cremation by improving the facilities of the existing crematoria and columbaria, and by increasing the cost of burial while keeping down the cost of cremation. 3. Some non-Bible Presbyterian pastor have spoken and written in favour of cremation and have officiated at cremations while some non-Bible Presbyterian churches have even built columbaria. 4. Those who favour cremation claim it is more hygienic, cleaner and cheaper. 5. They see cremation as a convenient form of disposal of the dead. 6. Cremation does away with burial plots that need to be upkept and falls in line with our Government’s stress on strategic land use” (Far Eastern Beacon, July 1987, p. 4).

In light of this situation, the Bible Presbyterian Church of Singapore has taken a clear and commendable stand for the Word of God and against the practice of cremation. We have included their statement on this issue in the back of this booklet.

CREMATION INCREASING IN NORTH AMERICA

The number of cremations in North America is increasing dramatically. In 1975, only 6% of the people who died were cremated. By 2007 this had increased to 34%. In Hawaii, the percentage of dead that are cremated is 66%, Washington 64%, Nevada 65%, Arizona 59%, Oregon 63.7%, Montana 59%, Alaska 58%, Colorado 56%, Maine 53%, California 52%, Florida 51%, Wyoming 46%. (The states with the least percentage of cremations per death are in the “Bible Belt” -- Alabama at 9.5%, Mississippi and Tennessee 10%, Kentucky 12%, Louisiana 15%.)

The 2005 statistics for Canada are as follows: British Columbia 79%, New Brunswick 61%, Alberta 59%, Manitoba 53%, Nova Scotia 50%, Quebec 47%, Ontario 47%, and Saskatchewan 46%.

According to the cover story in the December 5, 1995, issue of USA Today, the rising acceptance of cremation has coincided with a drop in “religious barriers to cremation.” It is interesting that this secular newspaper noticed the connection between religion and cremation. The disposal of the body after death is a religious matter. One’s beliefs will determine such choices. Historically, burial has been a testimony of faith in the bodily resurrection. Historically, cremation has been practiced among those, such as Hindus, who deny the bodily resurrection and who believe in reincarnation. Historically, wherever the Gospel of Jesus Christ has found acceptance, pagan practices such as cremation have been rejected. The increase in cremation in North American society has paralleled the wholesale rejection of the Bible in this same society. As paganism increases its steely hold on American and Canadian hearts, cremation becomes increasingly popular.

THE METHOD OF CREMATION IN THE WEST

The following is excerpted from USA Today, December 5, 1995:

“The three-hour process of burning a body and grinding it to small fragments often takes place away from loved ones’ eyes. The body, usually dressed but stripped of all jewelry, slides into “retort”--a brick-lined oven that looks like a big bread oven.

“Pacemakers are removed because their batteries can explode at high temperatures. Silicone breast implants, which can’t be removed, are creating problems for crematory operators who say remains often stick to the melting silicone.

“The gas or oil-fired ovens are heated to about 1,700 degrees. Although often called ashes, the remains are actually bone fragments. These are swept with a giant hoe-like scraper from the bottom of the retort and put in a container to cool down. Any large debris, such as dental crowns or hip prostheses, is removed.

“Everything is then ground to granule-sized pieces. The whole process takes about three hours. The result is about six pounds of remains compact enough to fit in a shoe box.”

For the following reasons, we are convinced that the practice of cremation should be rejected by God’s people:

CREMATION HAS A HEATHEN ORIGIN AND PURPOSE

Cremation, as just described and as practiced today in the more technically advanced nations, no longer has the physical ghastliness associated with cremations performed in the less developed parts of the world. The modern method, as we have seen, incorporates the use of an exceedingly hot incinerator which reduces the body to ashes quickly, and the entire process is done out of the view of loved ones and the public.

Not so in places like South Asia, where we have lived and served Christ for nearly 20 years. It would seem that any Christian who could stand beside the “holy” River Bagmati in Kathmandu, Nepal, and observe the burning of the body of a Hindu and the heathen death rituals, would cast aside in repulsion every thought of cremation being an acceptable Christian practice.

Some years ago, I stood three or so feet from a burning corpse with a missionary pastor from Singapore and his wife who were visiting us. The head was already burnt beyond recognition and the skull was split open due to internal expansion from the heat of the fire. The lower legs and feet were unscorched, as they were protruding from the pile of burning wood and stubble upon which the man’s body lay. The professional Hindu burners were poking the body from time to time to keep the members in the fire and adding stubble and wood as needed. The bones were contracting and popping; the bodily organs were frying and the juices sizzling in the intense heat.

My wife, a nurse with experience working with lepers in a hospital in a very remote part of Asia and in an intensive care ward in the United States, stood with another friend observing the ghastly sight from a distance, unwilling to come closer. The air for a hundred yards or more was filled with the unmistakable, stomach-turning stench of burning human flesh. When the fire had burnt most of the body, the ashes and remaining members were shoved into the river.

This is cremation as has been practiced by heathen religions for centuries, but without the sanitization adopted in more technically advanced areas.

Would you treat your loved ones so? Is this an acceptable Christian practice? No sir, cremation is a heathen practice. It is of heathen origin and serves heathen purposes. Why do the Hindus and those of other heathen religions cremate? It has a connection with their belief in reincarnation.

There is nothing Christian about cremation. We were standing that day, as I have many other times, observing cremation in the surroundings from which the practice arose--idolatrous, Christless heathenism.

GOD’S PEOPLE HAVE ALWAYS PRACTICED BURIAL

At the outset let me answer an objection sometimes made at this point. The objection is, “Yes, God’s people in the Bible practiced burial. The example is clearly there. But are we bound to follow these examples; they are not direct commands?” The answer is given in Romans 15:4. “For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning ...” And again in 1 Corinthians 10:11 we read, “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.” In these passages God is telling us that we are to follow the Bible’s examples as well as its direct instructions.

Following are just a few examples.

Abraham was buried (Genesis 25:8-10)
Sarah was buried (Genesis 23:1-4)
Rachel was buried (Genesis 35:19-20)
Isaac was buried (Genesis 35:29)
Jacob was buried (Genesis 49:33; 50:1-13)
Joseph was buried (Genesis 50:26)
Joshua was buried (Joshua 24:29-30)
Eleazar was buried (Joshua 24:33)
Samuel was buried (1 Samuel 25:1)
David was buried (1 Kings 2:10)
John the Baptist was buried (Matthew 14:10-12)
Ananias and Sapphira were buried (Acts 5:5-10)
Stephen was buried (Acts 8:2)

EVEN WHEN BURIAL WAS DIFFICULT

Even in difficult circumstances God’s people in olden days practiced burial. For example, Joseph’s body was kept for over 400 years in Egypt and then carried through the 40 years of wilderness wanderings before being buried in Palestine, the Promised Land. We read of this in Genesis 50:24-25; Exodus 13:19 and Joshua 24:32.

How much simpler it would have been for the Israelites to have cremated Joseph, then carried his ashes with them in a tiny container! But this they refused to do. Joseph, a follower of the one true God, a man who looked forward to the bodily resurrection, was given an honorable burial. From this important example, we learn that even if cremation is less expensive or easier than burial, it is still to be rejected, as the Israelites rejected the economical and simpler way to carry Joseph to the Promised Land.

BURIAL LOOKS FORWARD TO RESURRECTION

“For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” (Rom.8:22-23). See also 1 Cor. 15:20-23; 2 Cor. 5:1 and 1 Cor. 15:51-57.

The reason God’s people have always been careful to practice burial is not difficult to understand. We believe in a bodily resurrection. Yes, the buried body will decompose in time. Yes, there are occasions in which Christians die in ways which render burial impossible--in the sinking of ships, in house fires, etc. But when at all possible we bury. Why the trouble? Because it is our certain hope that the same individual will be raised in the same body, only changed.

The physical body is called the seed for the resurrection body. When planted, a seed decomposes, and the new plant comes forth. The Bible uses this to illustrate resurrection.

“But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come? Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die: And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain; But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed his own body. ... So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power; It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body” 1 Cor. 15:35-44

Notice that the Apostle answers those who would ask how it is possible for God to raise again a decomposed body. The terminology used by the Holy Spirit in this passage is that of husbandry--planting seed. The farmer does not destroy his seed; he plants it, then from the decaying seed comes forth the new life. Such is burial and the resurrection. When we bury a Christian loved one, we are planting the seed for the resurrection body! It is a powerful testimony of our unwavering faith in God’s Word regarding the promise of bodily resurrection.

Contrast heathenism. They have no such knowledge or hope. The Hindus and Buddhists, for example, believe in reincarnation. Yes, they believe in a human soul which is distinct from the body. But they do not believe that soul, once departed from the body at death, will be resurrected in any relation whatsoever to the first body. Rather they believe the soul will be reincarnated in another entirely unrelated body, or into a non-physical sphere of existence.

Were those who were buried in Old Testament times buried with a knowledge of resurrection? Yes, God’s people have had some knowledge of a bodily resurrection from the earliest days. The book of Job is commonly considered to be the oldest book in the Bible. There is no mention in the book of Job concerning Israel, or Jerusalem, or Palestine, the temple or the Jewish kingdom, and it is most likely that Job was a God-fearing man who lived in the days prior to Abraham. Yet we see in Job 19:25-27 that this ancient man of God had thorough knowledge of the bodily resurrection.

“For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.”

God’s people have always buried their dead with this magnificent hope burning in their hearts. “We will see that brother or sister again in that same body, only changed, glorified!” Hallelujah! Only through the death and shed blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ can we have this certain hope. He has taken upon Himself on the cross the punishment for our sins, carried our sins into the grave, and rose again in eternal triumph three days later. When an individual thoroughly acknowledges his sinfulness before God, repents (changes his mind about and desires to turn from his sinful, self-willful life) and receives Jesus Christ as his or her Lord and Savior, the sin debt is paid, and eternal life and glory is promised from God the Father. Part of this heritage in Christ is the glorified resurrection body.

GOD PRACTICES BURIAL
Another reason I believe burial is the will of God for His people is seen in the fact that God Himself buried Moses: “So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord. And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Bethpeor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day” (Deuteronomy 34:5,6).

CREMATION IS A SIGN OF GOD’S CURSE
Throughout the Bible the destruction of a human body or of an object by fire is used as a sign of divine wrath. Consider with me some examples:

The example of Sodom and Gomorrah (2 Peter 2:6)
The example of Nadab and Abihu (Leviticus 10:1,2)
The example of the men who rebelled with Korah (Numbers 16:35)
The example of idols (Exodus 32:20; Deut. 7:25; 2 Kings 10:26; 1 Chron. 14:12)
The example of magic books (Acts 19:18-19)
The example of unsaved cast into the lake of fire for eternal punishment (Revelation 20:15)

FOR A PERSON NOT TO HAVE A PROPER BURIAL WAS CONSIDERED A DISHONOR
A key example of this is Jezebel who, because of her wickedness, was eaten of dogs (1 Kings 21:23-24). Again, we read of the Midianites “which perished at Endor: they became as dung for the earth” (Psalm 83:9-10). Shall we dishonor our loved ones by failing to give them a proper Christian burial?

THE CHRISTIAN’S BODY BELONGS TO GOD; IT IS NOT OURS TO DESTROY BY FIRE OR BY ANY OTHER MEANS

“What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).

When something does not belong to me, but is only borrowed from its rightful owner, I certainly have no right to destroy it. If the master destroys his own possession, that is his prerogative, but such does not belong with the borrower. This is true of death and the Christian’s body. The body is not ours to desecrate or destroy. If God chooses to allow a Christian to die in a house fire, that is His prerogative. But the Christian himself has no such freedom to chose to destroy his own body. And Romans 14:8 reminds us that this is true both in life and in death! “... whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.”

GOD HAS PLAINLY CALLED CREMATION WICKEDNESS
“Thus saith the Lord; For three transgressions of Moab, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because he burned the bones of the king of Edom into lime” (Amos 2:1).

THE LORD JESUS WAS BURIED, AND HE IS OUR GREAT EXAMPLE
“Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury. ... There laid they Jesus therefore. ...” (John 19:38-42)

Just as the Lord Jesus Christ was buried in certainty that He would rise again on the third day according to the Scriptures, even so is the Christian said to rest at death. To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord, as the Apostle Paul testified (2 Cor. 5:9 and Phil. 1:21-23). The body without the spirit is dead (James 2:26). The dead body sleeps in the grave while the redeemed soul waits in glory for the great resurrection day.

In light of the above Bible facts, the statement, “In the Christian religion there is nothing that frowns upon cremation or requires burial,” proves to be untrue. Of course we cannot force people either to bury or not to bury. And we know that the manner of one’s burial does not affect his resurrection.

But we do believe these things are important, and we are convinced that Christian leaders and God’s people should patiently share these truths in the churches and with friends. In these days of widespread apostasy and doctrinal confusion a clear voice in all matters of Bible teacher is urgently needed.

Isn’t it wonderful that in Christ Jesus the sting of death has been removed! We no longer must live in fear of death, but in hope of the dawning of that Perfect Day! Let this be the Christian’s testimony: If I die before Christ returns, lay my body to rest in quiet sleep to await that Day. Please don’t treat me as the heathen treat their loved ones.

WHAT IF MY LOVED ONE ALREADY HAS BEEN CREMATED?
Many sincere Christians have approached me after reading this book or after merely seeing the title of the cover, and have expressed deep concern about the status of their loved ones who have already been cremated.

I always remind these friends that the way the body is disposed of has no eternal consequences. While I strongly believe cremation is contrary to Scripture and is therefore not something a Christian should do, the most important question is whether or not the deceased had trusted Jesus Christ as his or her Savior, whether or not that one had been born again.

The question of whether someone is buried or cremated is a decision which primarily affects the living rather than the dead. Burial witnesses to our faith in the bodily resurrection, but the witness is to the living. Burial honors the body of the deceased, but this honor, again, is something which relates largely to the living who witness the burial, because the soul of the deceased has already departed.

The soul of the saved person goes to be with Christ immediately upon death (Phil. 1:23; 2 Cor. 5:8; 2 Tim. 4:6; Lk. 23:43). The soul of the lost man or woman descends to hell immediately upon death (Lk. 16:22-23; Rev. 20:13). That which is done to the body after death does not affect the soul’s condition nor the future resurrection.

Thus, if a loved one has been cremated, it’s not something to fret about. It is over and done with and has no eternal consequences. If that loved one was saved through the blood of Jesus Christ, the fact that he was cremated certainly didn’t keep him out of heaven!

A similar situation arises with those Christians who have loved ones who have determined to be cremated. Many in such a situation have asked me what they should do about this matter. An example would be a wife whose unsaved husband wants to be cremated. Another example is a son or daughter whose parent wants to be cremated.

The only thing that can be done is to try to explain with that loved one the things we have shared in this study. We have seen many Christians change their mind about cremation after reading this booklet. Again, the most important issue is whether or not that loved one is born again and is ready to meet God. Sometimes the very discussion of this topic can offer an opportunity to share the Gospel. One man who was dying in a hospital was saved after his sister read this booklet to him and discussed his need to be saved.

May the Lord encourage your heart and give you wisdom in dealing with these sensitive but crucial subjects with your loved ones.

_________________________