Tag Archives: GOD

BIBLE QUESTIONS, CHURCH

SINCE THERE IS ONLY ONE GOD, WHY ISN’T THERE JUST ONE CHURCH? — BOB PRICHARD

Paul tells us explicitly that there is “One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Ephesians 4:6). Most people have little trouble with this concept, understanding that our Heavenly Father created our world and loved us enough to send Christ to save us from our sins. Paul does not speak only of  “One God,” however, but mentions seven “unities.” “There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;  One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Ephesians 4:4-6). The first of the seven unities Paul mentions is “one body.”    

At the end of the first chapter of the letter to the Ephesians, Paul explained that because Christ obeyed the Father and conquered death, that God “hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all” (Ephesians 1:22-23). The church is defined as His body, the “one body” that Paul mentioned in Ephesians 4:4. This is just what we would expect, one head connected with one body. Our religious world today, however, presents a monstrosity to God, with many churches or bodies claiming to be attached to the one head, Jesus Christ.

The Lord’s desire from the beginning was that all of His followers would be united in His church. As He prepared for the cross, Jesus prayed for His disciples, and then said, “Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me” (John 17:20-23). Jesus understood that the unity (or disunity) of His followers would be a powerful witness to the world. Surely the disunity of the current denominational system hinders the spread of the gospel of Christ.

Paul warned the Corinthians against disunity, as they began to follow various preachers, forgetting Christ. “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you. Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?” (1 Corinthians 1:10-13). Jesus promised Peter and the disciples, “I will build my church” (Matthew 16:18). He did not promise to build the many denominational bodies we see today, but His church. The way to be a member of His church today is to reject the creeds, manuals, and catechisms of the denominations, and just be Christians, wearing the name of Christ. This is the plea of the churches of Christ.

BIBLE QUESTIONS, CHURCH

IF THERE IS ONE GOD, WHY NOT ONE CHURCH? — BOB PRICHARD

Paul wrote that there is “One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Ephesians 4:6). Most people have little trouble with this idea, understanding that our Heavenly Father created our world and loved us enough to send Christ. Paul also mentions six other “unities.” “There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Ephesians 4:4-6). The first of the seven unities Paul mentions is “one body.”    

Paul explained that because Christ obeyed the Father and conquered death, that God “hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all” (Ephesians 1:22-23). The church is His body, the “one body” that Paul mentioned in Ephesians 4:4. This is just what we would expect—one head connected with one body. Today’s religious world, however, presents a monstrosity to God, with many churches or bodies claiming to be attached to the one head, Jesus Christ.

The Lord’s desire from the beginning was for the unity of His followers in His church. As He prepared for the cross, Jesus prayed for His disciples, and then said, “Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me” (John 17:20-23). Jesus understood that the unity (or disunity) of His followers would be a powerful witness to the world. Surely the disunity of the current denominational system hinders the spread of the gospel of Christ.

Paul warned the Corinthians against disunity. “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you. Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?” (1 Corinthians 1:10-13). Jesus promised Peter and the disciples, “I will build my church” (Matthew 16:18). He did not promise to build the many denominational bodies we see today, but His church. The way to be a member of His church today is to reject the creeds, manuals, and catechisms of the denominations, and just be a Christian, wearing the name of Christ. This is the plea of the churches of Christ.

CHRISTIAN LIVING, JAMES, NEW TESTAMENT

MAKING PLANS? — BOB PRICHARD

Croesus, who lived in the sixth century before Christ, was fabled for his wealth. He is the historical source for the legend of Midas, whose touch turned everything to gold. As the king of ancient Lydia, he planned a war against the Persians. When he consulted the oracle at Delphi, he was told that if he went to war, “he would destroy a great empire.” He took this as a green light to fight the Persians, and went to battle. After being decisively defeated, he sent messengers to question the oracle. The answer: “The oracle was right. You did indeed destroy a great empire—your own.”

Croesus, as a pagan, consulted an oracle, which gave him ambiguous advice. His story might have been very different had he consulted the God of heaven, Who actually knows the future.

James warns about making plans without considering God. “Go to now, ye that say, Today or tomorrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin” (James 4:13-17).

I have always been impressed over the years when people come by to visit and say something like, “We are checking you out, because I am considering taking a new job, and I want to make sure that I will have a faithful congregation to place membership with, before I accept the new job.” Too often Christians don’t even think about what the church will be like where they are moving, or even if there is a faithful congregation.

Whatever plans for the future you are making, make sure that you are including God!

BIBLE QUESTIONS, CHRISTIAN LIVING

WHAT IS THE PROVIDENCE OF GOD — BOB PRICHARD

God is active in our world today. It is unreasonable to think that He would create a world such as ours and then take no interest in it. Paul’s statement, “We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28), demonstrates His interest in our world. Since this promise must be true, then the real question lies in how God will act to carry this out.

Many believe that the only way God can act in our world is through miracles (acts of direct intervention, above and beyond nature). He does not act through miracles today, however, because with the full revelation of His written word, there is no longer a need for miracles. Paul said miraculous gifts would cease when the perfect revelation of God’s will occurred (see 1 Corinthians 13:8-10; James 1:25). The age of miracles has passed, but God still intervenes through His providence. “Providence” comes from the Latin providentia, meaning foresight. God’s providence is His indirect, non-miraculous support and care of His creation, from its very beginning through eternity. His providence includes not only a general providence over all creation, but also a special providence over His children, such as is demonstrated in the power of prayer (James 5:16).

  We see the difference between miracles, God’s direct intervention, and providence, God’s indirect intervention, by comparing parallel events such as the conception of Christ and the conception of Samuel. The virgin Mary, even before she and Joseph her espoused husband came together, was found “with child of the Holy Ghost,” as Isaiah had prophesied (Matthew 1:18-25). The conception of Christ was thus unique, a miracle, God’s direct intervention in time and history to send the Messiah. On the other hand, Hannah, a righteous woman was barren (unable to have children), so she prayed to God to send her a son. She promised to dedicate the son to His service. Returning home, “Elkanah knew Hannah his wife; and the LORD remembered her. Wherefore it came to pass, when the time was come about after Hannah had conceived, that she bare a son, and called his name Samuel, saying, Because I have asked him of the LORD” (1 Samuel 1:19-20). The conception of Samuel was not a miracle. God, through His providential care, worked through the laws of nature to bring Samuel to Hannah.

In providence, God works “behind the scenes.” We may not realize His providential care until much later. Joseph went from favor in his father’s house to slavery in Potiphar’s house, and from prison to authority in Pharaoh’s palace. Each step of the way he was in God’s providence, although neither he nor his family understood. With the exception of his interpretation of dreams, there was nothing miraculous in the whole chain of events as God providentially preserved His people. As he returned the slave Onesimus to Philemon, Paul said, “perhaps he therefore departed for a season, that thou shouldest receive him for ever” (Philemon 1:15). Paul realized that “perhaps” it was God’s providence. God continues his providential care of His children.

BIBLE QUESTIONS, Blog, GOD

HOW CAN GOD HAVE ALWAYS EXISTED? — BOB PRICHARD

When God called Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egyptian bondage, Moses was afraid.  “And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you” (Exodus 3:13-14). God called Himself “I AM,” indicating His eternal existence. This name implies that God always has been, and always will be. Moses recognized the eternal nature of God in Psalm 90:2: “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.”  

Perhaps the greatest difficulty hindering finite man from understanding the eternality of God is that man is a time-bound creature. We are born, we live, and we die. We live exclusively in the duration of time. But God is outside time, and not bound by time at all. Job’s “friend” Elihu said, “Behold, God is great, and we know him not, neither can the number of his years be searched out” (Job 36:26). The scriptures declare God’s eternality. “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty” (Revelation 1:8).  Peter understood that God is not bound by time.  “Beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (2 Peter 3:8). Peter was not giving a mathematical formula that one day equals a thousand years, but he was indicating that God stands above time, and sees it all as present.

“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handiwork” (Psalm 19:1). The fact that there is a creation demands that there be a Creator!  The Bible begins with the words, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). He is the Creator. Was He created? If God was created, then there would have to be a greater God Who created God. What greater God would then create that God? Obviously there must be a great “uncaused Cause.” In other words, God is eternal and has always existed, because there is no greater God that could have created Him. The universe is not eternal. Even non-theological theories such as the “big bang” suggest that the universe had a beginning. The scientific evidence suggests that the universe is wearing out, as the third law of thermodynamics demands. Since the universe clearly had a beginning, it had to have someone or something greater than it to begin it. The Bible tells us that the self-existent God created the universe, and revealed Himself to man in Jesus Christ. Christ identified Himself as eternal when he said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58). God “hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds” (Hebrews 1:20).

GOD, SALVATION

IS HE STILL WAITING? — BOB PRICHARD

I read of a Victorian era lady who arranged her library so that no books by male authors were placed beside books by female authors (unless they were married, of course). I’m not exactly sure what she thought those books might do, but it does seem that books do take up more and more shelf space! Keeping up with my books is a big job. I try to treat my personal library like any other real library, with the books accessioned, classified, and properly cataloged. It takes time to process books though, so many sit on the shelf wherever I happen to find the space (irrespective of the author’s sex) until I process them. Two books recently caught my eye.

Sitting next to each other on the shelf, ready to be fully processed were The Hurried Child, by David Elkind, and The Waiting Father, by Helmut Thielicke.  Elkind’s book is about our fast paced, stress filled society that hurries our children to grow up too quickly. Thielicke’s book is a series of sermons on the parables, with the title taken from two sermons on what we usually call the “Prodigal Son.”

The two titles juxtaposed on the shelf reminded me how the pace of our world today causes too many of us to become a “hurried child.” We are not so much hurried to grow up, but to just keep pace with the world swirling around us. We may be too hurried to remember God. How often do we really find the time for serious prayer and communication with our heavenly father? Most of us, it seems, keep such a pace doing our work, keeping up the house, preparing meals, chauffeuring to soccer practice, and doing so, so many other things. Where do we find time for the “Waiting Father”?

Thielicke portrays the Father watching the son leave, and then waiting expectantly:

“I imagine that as he stands there in silence a deep affliction shadows his face and that in itself is eloquent. I am sure he is not thinking that the boy will grow more mature in the far country. He is asking the anxious question: How will he come back?

The father will keep the son in his thoughts.  He will wait for him and never stop watching for him. Every step he takes will give him pain. For the father knows better than this son who sets out, happy and lighthearted on his chosen life. But the voice of his father in his heart will follow him wherever he goes.”

We do not have to go to the far country of the prodigal to be away from the Father. We can simply get too busy for him. “For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not. But ye said, No; for we will flee upon horses; therefore shall ye flee: and, We will ride upon the swift; therefore shall they that pursue you be swift. … And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him” (Isaiah 30:15-18).

BIBLE, BIBLE QUESTIONS, GOD

IS “ALLAH” THE GOD OF THE BIBLE? — BOB PRICHARD

Allah is the name given to the one God in the Qur’an [Koran], the holy book of Islam. When a Muslim prays, he prays to Allah. The name “Allah” is the Arabic form of a simple generic word for god found in the Semitic languages (Hebrew, Arabic, Akkadian, etc.) The biblical word is El which is found more than two hundred times in the Old Testament. It is commonly found in compound names for God, such as Elohim and El Shaddai. This is not evident in our English translations, because most of the time the words are simply translated as God or Lord. 

El Shaddai is usually translated as “God Almighty.” “I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty [El Shaddai]” (Exodus 6:3). Elohim is the most common Hebrew name for God, being found over two thousand five hundred times in the Old Testament, such as Genesis 1:1, which reads, “In the beginning God [Elohim] created the heaven and the earth.” Elohim is plural in form, but is used as a singular name with plural verbs or adjectives. “And God [Elohim] said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness” (Genesis 1.26). This use of a singular noun with plural modifiers is sometimes called the plural of magnitude, or plural majesty, indicating the greatness of God. This is also at least a hint of the fact of the trinity. The Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. They are not three gods, but three different persons in the Godhead. As Paul said of Christ, “in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” (Colossians 2:9). 

In some senses, then, Allah could be considered just another name for God. In fact, the word most often used for God in the Arabic translation of the Bible is Allah. In many ways, the story of God in the Qur’an is a retelling of the Old Testament God. In the Qur’an, Allah is the great Creator God, the God of Abraham and Ishmael (not Isaac). Allah is the God who reveals His will through His prophets. The word of the prophets is considered the very word of God. 

One striking problem with the Qur’an’s portrait of God, which shows it to be inadequate, is in what it says (and does not say) about Jesus. Jesus is mentioned some sixty-three times in the Qur’an, and is recognized as a great prophet (although Muhammad is a greater prophet). His virgin birth, and even some of His miracles (including some non-biblical miracles) are described. According to the Qur’an, however, He did not die on the cross, He is not the Son of God, He is not a member of the Godhead, and He did not sacrifice Himself for mankind. This is truly a tragedy, because Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). By this He tells us that He is the only way to the Father. As Peter explained to the rulers of the Jews, it was by the authority of the name of Jesus that he and John had healed the lame man at the Beautiful gate. “This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:11-12). “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him” (John 1:18).

BIBLE QUESTIONS, GOD

WHAT IS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF “JEHOVAH” AS GOD’S NAME? — BOB PRICHARD

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Names are important. It is difficult for us to conceive of things apart from their names. The many different names for God in the Bible describe and demonstrate His character. Jehovah (usually rendered “Lord” in the King James Version) appears often in the Scriptures. Jehovah means “the Eternal One, the Unchangeable One, the One Who was, and is, and is to come.” When Moses met God in the burning bush, he asked His name. “And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you” (Exodus 3:14). God spoke as Jehovah, the self-existent God.

The Hebrew people came to consider one particular name of God His personal name. Scholars call this name, derived from four Hebrew letters, the “tetragrammaton” (from “tetra,” four, and “gram,” letter). The Jews were so concerned about using this name in vain that they would not even pronounce it when reading the Bible aloud. (They substituted Adonai meaning Lord.) As a result, the proper pronunciation of the original Hebrew is unknown. Most scholars say “Yahweh” or “Yahveh” is likely the proper pronunciation, although Jehovah has been used since the sixteenth century.

The Bible stresses the importance of respect for God by emphasizing the importance of the name of God. Solomon said, “The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe” (Proverbs 18:10). The psalmist said, “He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name” (Psalm 111:9). Isaiah spoke of “the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones” (Isaiah 57:15). Jesus told His disciples, “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name” (Matthew 6:9).

The third commandment warns, “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain” (Exodus 20:7). Although this commandment is part of the old covenant, the need for respect for the Lord’s names continues. Paul wrote, “Let as many servants as are under the yoke count their own masters worthy of all honour, that the name of God and his doctrine be not blasphemed” (1 Timothy 6:1). – Bob Prichard

GOD

“Search God” Campaign (WVBS)

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Check out the Videos from World Video Bible School’s “Search God” Campaign
The web address is: http://wvbs.org/video/
I am going to embed these short videos in this post, but check out the site often because WVBS is always adding more good videos.

If you enjoyed these short videos, watch a deeper look at the existence of God: http://youtu.be/YW80lpOMIaI