My Sin Is Always Before Me

(Psalm 51:3)

Mike Johnson

The writer of Psalm 51 expresses great sorrow for his sins.  Most agree that David is the author, and he wrote it after his sin with Bathsheba.  In 2 Samuel 11-12, we learn that David committed adultery, and then he committed murder trying to conceal his actions.  Confronted by Nathan, a prophet of God, he admitted his wrongdoing, and in the Psalm, he appeals to the mercy of God and asks for forgiveness.

In verse 3, after acknowledging his transgressions, he said, “… my sin is always before me.”  David knew God granted his forgiveness, but he would not forget his awful deeds.  He would always carry a picture in his mind of murder and adultery.  Although forgiven, he still had to face earthly consequences for his sin.

Consider the apostle Paul who had persecuted Christians before becoming a Christian.  God forgave him, but no doubt, his sins were always before him.  Note what he said in 1 Timothy 1:13-15, “although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.  And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.  This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.”  Like David, because of God’s mercy, he received forgiveness.  But clearly, he never forgot his past.

Consider the following story:

“Years ago, a father tried to teach his son how wrong sin was.  Every time the boy did wrong, the father nailed a nail into the tree in the backyard.  After several months, the boy was brokenhearted over all the nails in the tree.  He asked his father if he would take a nail out of the tree for every time he behaved.  The dad agreed.  Finally, the day came when the last nail was removed.  The son thought he would be excited; instead, he became sad.  Though all the nails were out, the scars and holes remained.  Though a person becomes a Christian, the scars of sin remain.” (Author Unknown)

Indeed, sin scars.  It can even have long-lasting earthly consequences, which would be one reason to avoid it.   One way to prevent these scars is by staying away from sin.

Although it may be difficult to forget our past, we must never forget that God loves us and will forgive us if we comply with his conditions.  Further, we should never let the past hold us back from faithfully serving God.   We learn from the past, but having received forgiveness, we press forward with joy and confidence.  Note Paul’s statement in Philippians 3:13-14, “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

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The Black Type in the Red-Letter

Edition of the New Testament

Gary Smalley

Of course it is extremely disturbing to read or hear destructive criticisms toward the Holy Bible as unbelievers state disparaging comments regarding the reliability of the Godbreathed writings (2 Timothy 3:16; cf. 2 Peter 1:16-21; 1 Corinthians 2:12-13). But even among Christians there are some who seek to diminish the authority of the apostles of Christ and the other inspired New Testament writers. They say things to indicate that the words spoken directly by Christ (highlighted by the introduction of the Red Letter Edition of the Bible in 1899) are more authoritative and more important than words written by Paul, Peter, or John.

Christians and other Bible students must remember the words of the Lord Jesus that speak directly to this issue. This is what Jesus said to His specially chosen apostles: “I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.” (John 16:12). [These words are in red!] In the Lord’s wisdom, He did not disclose the sum total of all truth that His Father would impart to the world prior to His leaving (His ascension). The Master Teacher imparts truths to His disciples only as they are able to receive it. This He had done during His personal ministry (example: the forecast of His crucifixion) with the promise that such would continue, following His departure, through the heavenly agent, the Holy Spirit. Additional revelations would be given to them as they were prepared to receive them and go deeper and deeper into divine knowledge. Heaven’s plan for the church that Jesus would build in the days ahead would need additional details in order to be established and function according to God’s eternal plan (cf. Ephesians 3:8-12). The Holy Spirit sent from God would supply what was needed when it was needed (cf. Luke 12:11-12).

Our Lord was not foolish in thinking that people would not devise schemes to discredit and reject parts of His doctrine. Men who love evil love the darkness rather than the Light; they hate the Light because it exposes their evil deeds (John 3:19-20). Adding to or taking from the doctrine of Christ is evil. The motives for altering the truth are evil. The wrath of God will fall upon one who perverts the truth (See 2 John 9-11; cf. 2 Thessalonians 1:3- 12; Revelation 22:18-19). The truths taught by the apostles of Christ cannot be rejected without rejecting Christ and His Father! This principle was taught by Jesus when He sent the seventy out to preach (Luke 10:16), again in red letters.

The apostle Paul was a man of integrity; he would not deceive people. Note carefully what he wrote by inspiration: “If anyone thinks he is a prophet or spiritual, let him recognize that the things which I write to you are the Lord’s commandment. But if anyone does not recognize this, he is not recognized.” (1 Corinthians 14:37-38). Note carefully what he declared to the Thessalonian Christians: “For you know what commandments we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 4:2). After giving further instructions, he said, “So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you.” (1 Thessalonians 4:8). Further, note that the apostle John powerfully emphasized this truth: “We are from God; he who knows God listens to us; he who is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.” (1 John 4:6). One is in error when he rejects what the apostles and inspired writers wrote in the New Testament.

These brave writers were ambassadors of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20), and as such they were entrusted with the “utterances of God” (1 Peter 4:11). These they wrote and spoke, Jesus being with them and the Holy Spirit’s words delivered to them according to the Lord’s promise (Matthew 28:20; John 14:25-26; 16:7-15). The Lord Jesus is certainly a promise keeper! And the gift of the Holy Spirit prevented them from forgetting what they had been taught or adding things from their own fallible judgments.

Friend, we cannot reject any words in the New Testament without rejecting the teaching of Christ Himself. We cannot reject the ambassadors of Christ, those specially chosen by Him for His divine purpose, without rejecting Christ! We best not tamper with God’s divine truth!

                                                         (from The Old Hickory Church of Christ website)

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Why No Instruments of Music

Bobby Graham

This question often comes from honest people, wondering why some of us do not use such mechanical instruments in the worship of the Lord. It is a fair question that demands a fair answer.

All worship of God is limited by whatever divine instructions have been given for our guidance. God has always prescribed what constitutes acceptable worship of Him under every dispensation that He has made with mankind. We must conform our efforts to His will and seek never to impose our own wills upon His. A lesson learned from the very first instance of worship recorded in the Old Testament — that of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4 — is that we must act by faith in God, based on what He has spoken, if our worship is to please Him (Hebrews 11:4). The same lesson can be learned from the Mosaic dispensation, in the case of Nadab and Abihu offering strange fire to the Lord in Leviticus 10. Whatever God has not sanctified as acceptable to Him in worship is unauthorized and constitutes will worship.

We also learn from the New Testament that worship can be will worship—worship established by one’s own will (self-directed worship). Paul spoke about this in Colossians 2:23. The Lord himself declared that worship based upon the doctrines and commandments of men is offered in vain (Matthew 15:8-9). Because no instruction from God under the New Testament shows the use of any music besides singing to be acceptable in worship, a person adding any other kind of music is doing so on the basis of human desires and pleasure, not the expressed will of God. Will worship fails to meet God’s approval, as seen in Colossians 2:23.

New Testament regulations for worship are those that apply to God’s people under the new covenant of Jesus Christ (Colossians 3:17). Old Testament regulations like those during David’s day have no relevance or application to people in the Lord’s church. To use the Old Testament is to burden oneself with the entire Mosaic Law, according to Galatians 5:1-4, including its insistence upon animal sacrifices and the Levitical priesthood. To accept part of the Old Testament practices but refuse others, in the absence of any such direction from the Lord to do so, is to make one’s own thinking superior to God’s thinking.

In spite of David’s use of the instrument or the encouragement to use such, as in Psalms 150, the New Testament instructs the Christian to sing and make melody in his heart to the Lord. The heart of the worshipper is the instrument that is employed in acceptable worship, and its melody is the only melody that the Lord stresses (Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16).

In view of Biblical teaching along the lines discussed in this study, it is important to ask for New Testament teaching that authorizes the use of the mechanical instrument of music in worship to God. Where is that teaching found in the New Testament? If it can be produced, then we should all practice it and stop condemning its use. If it cannot be found, then all should omit its use in order to please the Lord, which is the very essence of worship.

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He That Is Baptized Not

Mike Johnson

Mark 16:16 says, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved…” This verse plainly shows the purpose of “belief” and “baptism.”  However, some point out that since the last part of verse 16 says, “…but he who does not believe will be condemned,” and does not say, “he does not believe and is not baptized will be condemned,” baptism is not necessary for salvation.

The objection stated above is not valid.  First, there is immediate suspicion of the argument because the first part of the verse says a person who believes AND is baptized shall be saved.  Would Christ contradict Himself in the second part of the passage?  Secondly, since there are two conditions stated as being necessary to receive a particular promise, and it only takes the neglect of one of the requirements not to obtain the assurance, it is not necessary to state the failure of both.  In the case of Mark 16:16, if a person does not believe, he usually would not be baptized.  Also, all it takes for a person to be lost is a lack of faith.  So it is unnecessary to say, “He that believes not and is baptized not.”

Consider the following statement.  “He that eats and digests shall live, but he that eats not shall die.” The example gives two conditions for life.  It is only necessary to state one term for death.  The person who does not eat will not digest, and the mere lack of eating will cause a person to die.  Therefore, saying, “He that eats not and digests not shall die, is unnecessary.”  The same is true of Mark 16:16.  “He did not need to say, “He that believes not and is baptized not shall be lost.”

It would be difficult to misunderstand Mark 16:16.  It teaches that belief AND baptism are necessary for salvation.

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Which Is More Important?

David Sain

  1. The condition and appearance of your house, or what goes on inside your house?
  2. The time you spend on the condition and appearance of your body or the time you spend on the inner man?
  3. Reading about life according to magazines and newspapers, or about “life” according to God’s Word?
  4. Loyalty to the company for which you work or loyalty to the church of which you are a member?
  5. Being on time for work or being on time for worship and Bible study?
  6. The temperature of the building in which the church meets, or the “temperature” of the church which meets inside the building?
  7. The number of people who are friendly to you, or the number of people to whom you are friendly?
  8. What you think of the sermon, or what God thinks of your response to the sermon?
  9. The food you put into your and your children’s body, or the “food” you put into your and your children’s mind and soul?

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 Editor: Mike Johnson

www.seekingthingsabove.org

 

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