Monthly Archives: September 2017
The Pillar and Ground of the Truth
“…the house of God…is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth” (I Timothy 3:15).
The word “pillar” should remind every Bible student of the pillar that God gave Israel to guide them through the wilderness to the promised land (Nehemiah 9:12). After the people of Israel crossed the Red Sea, they needed a guide. They had been slaves for 400 years, and didn’t have a clue as to where they were going! It’s not like Pharaoh let his slaves take exploratory vacations. So God had to lead them every step of the way with the pillar.
Once Moses had written the Book of the Law, however, the pillar disappeared. Of course! Now they had a Book to guide them every step of the way. No matter where they went in life, they had a reliable Guide to teach them how to walk and please God. And now that Book has been completed and resides in the local church! No wonder God calls the church the pillar of the truth! God’s people should follow that Book as closely as the Jews followed their pillar. How closely was that?
“…when the cloud tarried… then the children of Israel…journeyed not… when the cloud… was taken up… then they journeyed…” (Numbers 9:18-22).
When the pillar moved, they moved. When it rested, they rested. In other words, they didn’t make a move without the benefit of its guidance. Does that sound like a good way to follow the Book today? Beloved, God has graciously given us a Guide that can help us navigate the most treacherous paths of life. The One who steers the stars (Job 38:32) has deigned to guide the lives of His people. May we never forsake His direction!
This great Guide has further equipped us with a place to meet to hear His Book taught. If there is no church near you where God’s rightly divided Word is taught in all its clarity, continue to share the gospel with the lost and Pauline truth with the saved. The people with whom you share God’s guidance just might want to start meeting at your house to discuss it. And God has a word for such meetings—He calls it church (Rom. 16:5; I Cor. 16:19; Col. 4:15; Philemon 1:2).
These references to churches that met in homes are especially significant when we remember how small the homes were in those days. There’s a reason the Lord had to send the apostles out to find a home large enough for twelve men to eat the Passover (Mark 14:12-16). Such rooms are not that uncommon today, but they were then! Thus Paul’s allusions to churches that met in those humble homes tells us that the smallest of gatherings is a church in God’s eyes, one that He will be pleased to call His house, the pillar and ground of the truth in your community.
To the Reader:
Some of our Two Minutes articles were written many years ago by Pastor C. R. Stam for publication in newspapers. When many of these articles were later compiled in book form, Pastor Stam wrote this word of explanation in the Preface:
"It should be borne in mind that the newspaper column, Two Minutes With the Bible, has now been published for many years, so that local, national and international events are discussed as if they occurred only recently. Rather than rewrite or date such articles, we have left them just as they were when first published. This, we felt, would add to the interest, especially since our readers understand that they first appeared as newspaper articles."
To this we would add that the same is true for the articles written by others that we continue to add, on a regular basis, to the Two Minutes library. We hope that you'll agree that while some of the references in these articles are dated, the spiritual truths taught therein are timeless.
Two Minutes with the Bible is now available on Alexa devices. Full instructions here.
Words You Should Avoid – 2 Timothy 2:16-19
Summary:
“Profane” (v.16) means unholy (Ezek.22:26), and “holy” means set apart to God (Ex.20:8). If the Jews didn’t keep the sabbath holy, God considered it profane (Ezek.22:8). So what kind of profane babblings was Paul telling Timothy to shun?
Well, since verse 16 begins with a “but,” and the previous verse speaks of rightly dividing the Word, the profane words he has in mind are words that aren’t rightly divided. We saw in Verse 14 he has the words of the law in mind. The words of the law were holy for the Jews, but unholy when placed on us since we’re not under the law. For instance, we don’t have to keep the sabbath (Col.2:16), so putting Exodus 20:8 on us is unholy.
Some parts of the law are interdispensational, of course. It is always wrong to take God’s name in vain (Ex.20:7) because His name is holy (Lu.1:49). When the Jews didn’t treat it as holy, God considered it profane (Ezek.36:20). “In vain” means for no reason, no purpose, so when Paul says to shun “profane and vain babblings” (2:16) it is because the law serves no purpose for us.
When he says the words of the law will increase unto “more ungodliness,” that must mean the words of the law are ungodly in and of themselves. Religion always is! (IITim.3:5). When the Galatians messed with the Law they were “removed” from God (Gal.1:6). That’s ungodly!
Paul says these profane babblings will “increase” because sin always increases! Carnal sin spreads like leaven (ICor.5:6) and so does legalism (Gal.5:9). The only way to keep it from spreading is by rightly dividing the word and paying heed to Paul’s gospel (ITim.6:19,20).
Speaking of things that spread, Paul says that unrightly divided words will eat like a canker (2:17). The Greek word is gaggraino, from which we get gangrene. Gangrene is dead flesh that eats up living flesh and spreads, like the words of Hymenaus and Philetus. Hymenaeus was sailing along with Paul, teaching what he taught, when he “made shipwreck” of the faith (ITim.1:19,20) when he stopped teaching what Paul taught. Here we learn he did so by teaching the resurrection was past (2:18).
Paul called that erring from the faith because he is thinking of how the Lord said that to deny the resurrection was an error (Mark 12:18-27). Some of the Corinthians were denying the resurrection (ICor.15:12) and it was overthrowing their faith (v.13-19). But misplacing the resurrection will overthrow faith just as much! And the word “overthrow” means the complete destruction of something (cf.Ex.14:27; Jer.49:18).
The resurrection for us is the one associated with the Rapture (ICor.15:51-53), and if you thought it was past and you were still here, you’d think you’re not saved! Paul’s answer to this is to insist the Lord knows them that are His (2:19). He has always known His own (Nahum 1:7,8; John 10:4), and always seals His own (John 10:27,28). And now He knows you (Gal.4:9), and has sealed you (Eph.1:13). The fact that He knows us is our seal (2:19).
Old Testament seals identified a document with the king (Esther 8:8), and our baptism into Christ identifies us with Him (Rom.6:3-5). That means not even God can reverse your seal (cf.Esther 8:8; Daniel 6:17). Job could be confident of his salvation (Job 19:25-27) because God sealed his sins (Job14:17). Jeremiah bought some land and the seal was evidence of his purchase (Jer.32:10,11), and the Spirit is the evidence that your body is His purchased possession (Eph.1:13,14). You’re sealed with the same Spirit the Lord was (John 1:33,34; 6:27). We know God never loses any that He seals because He will seal 144,000 on earth (Rev.7:3,4) and all make it to heaven before God’s throne (Rev.14:1-5). Not even the devil can break our seal (cf.Rev.20:1-3).
Religion says you can’t tell men they are sealed and can’t be lost, they’ll live in sin, but Paul says we should “depart from iniquity” (cf.Eph.4:30).
And Hearing By the Word of God
“I can understand why Romans 10:17 might say, ‘faith cometh by hearing the Word of God.’ Why does it rather say, ‘faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God’?”
It is sometimes taught that an unsaved sinner is so spiritually “dead in trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1) that he cannot even hear the Word of God in the gospel, let alone respond to it in faith. It is argued that if you go to a funeral and tell the deceased to rise up out of the coffin, he cannot even hear the words of your command, let alone respond to it. It is then argued from this that the Spirit must first regenerate a lost sinner so that he can hear the gospel and believe it.
While that sounds logical, the Lord Jesus gave a different explanation for how a sinner who is “dead in sins” is “quickened” (Eph. 2:5) when He said,
“It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63).
The Lord here asserts that His words “are spirit.” That is, His words have the spiritual power to raise a dead sinner from spiritual death. The Lord also taught that His words “are life.” Thus, if a sinner must be given life in order to be able to hear the gospel, then the Lord’s words are able to give a dead sinner all the life he needs to hear and respond to the gospel in faith.
This is why Romans 10:17 is worded in that manner. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God, to be sure, but even the hearing comes by the Word.
To the Reader:
Some of our Two Minutes articles were written many years ago by Pastor C. R. Stam for publication in newspapers. When many of these articles were later compiled in book form, Pastor Stam wrote this word of explanation in the Preface:
"It should be borne in mind that the newspaper column, Two Minutes With the Bible, has now been published for many years, so that local, national and international events are discussed as if they occurred only recently. Rather than rewrite or date such articles, we have left them just as they were when first published. This, we felt, would add to the interest, especially since our readers understand that they first appeared as newspaper articles."
To this we would add that the same is true for the articles written by others that we continue to add, on a regular basis, to the Two Minutes library. We hope that you'll agree that while some of the references in these articles are dated, the spiritual truths taught therein are timeless.
Two Minutes with the Bible is now available on Alexa devices. Full instructions here.
What God Committed to His Servants
Things To Remember – 2 Timothy 2:14-15
Summary:
The “things” Paul told Timothy to put them in remembrance of were the things of his gospel that he told Timothy himself to remember in v.8. If a grace pastor re-minds his people of Paul’s gospel it will keep them from “words to no profit.” Those words “no profit” are asso-ciated with idolatry (Isa.44:9,10; Jer. 2:8-11; 16:19,20).
The spiritual Ephesians to whom Timothy ministered wouldn’t bow to idols of wood or stone, but Paul is talking about “words to no profit.” That’s a reference to religion (Jer. 7:8-10), the religion of Judaism. Since Paul is talking about words of no profit that “subvert” the soul, we know he was talking about the law (cf.Acts15:24). The Jews of the circumcision were subverting believers with the law in those days (Tit.1:10,11; 3:9-11). So Paul was warning Timothy about striving about the words of the law.
“You can make an idol out of the law?” The Jews did! They trusted in the law of Moses (John 5:45) rather than in the God of Moses (II Sam.22:31). They rested in the law of Moses (Rom.2:17) rather than in the God of Moses (Ps.37:7). When the Lord tried to introduce the New Covenant, they made a god out of the Old Covenant. It happens whenever God changes things (IIKi.18:1-4). We know the Galatians made a god out of the law for Paul compared their worship of idols to turning to the law (4:8-10). Keeping Paul’s gospel in remembrance prevents this.
We know this is important, for Paul charged them not to fall for the law, a word he only used for important things (IThes.2:11,12;5:7). And the “they” of v.14 refers to the “faithful men” of v.3, so this warning was very important.
After telling Timothy what to warn the faithful men about, he tells him to study to show himself approved to God (v.15). The solution to the law is rightly dividing the Word! The Law is in the Word, just not in the part of the Word that is written to us. That makes it of “no profit” to us. “All Scripture is…profitable” (3:16), but only if it is rightly divided!
“Study” (2:15) can mean to “do your best,” as the context shows it does in IThessalonians 4:11. But the context in Ecclesiastes 12:12 shows that “study” there means to study books, as it does in II Timothy 2:15. If you don’t study the Word, you’ll think it is all written to you. Only those who study it notice the dispensational differences and so know to rightly divide it. You can’t be “approved” of God if you think you are still under the law (cf.Lamentations 3:36).
But you have to do more than just study, you have to work as a “workman” to be approved of God (2:15 cf. Phil.4:9). And the work we should be involved in is building up the Body of Christ (Eph.4:12). Paul uses the word “workman” because the only workmen in the Bible either built the tabernacle (Ex.35:35) or idols (Isa.40:20). If you build the law today, you’re building an idol. If you are building up the Body of Christ, you are building the house of God.
If you build up the law, you’ll be “ashamed” because you’ll be minding “earthly things” (Phil.3:18,19). When God doesn’t make you prosperous when you’re good as He did under the law, you’ll be ashamed of Him. There were probably healers glorying in their supposed ability to heal, and ashamed when they couldn’t heal people. Paul says our conversation is in heaven, from whence we look for the Lord to heal us (Phil.3:20). No one will be ashamed then!
We don’t rightly divide the Word to throw any away (cf.Jer.36:23). Wise students of the Word teach old things of Israel’s program as well as new things from our program (cf.Mt.13:52). Of course, you won’t get famous rightly dividing the Word, but you’ll be as approved as Apelles (Rom.16:10), an unsung hero who rightly divided the word. It all boils down to whether you want the approval of God or men. Ishmael lived and died “in the presence of his brethren (Gen.16:12; 25:18), not for God’s approval.
Some say rightly dividing isn’t important, but that phrase “the word of truth” is used for the very gospel of salvation itself (James 2:18; Eph.1:12,13). Since the Bible presents more than one way to be saved, even the word of truth of the gospel must be rightly divided!
The Hope of Eternal Life
“In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began” (Titus 1:2).
Dr. Tony Evans says this about eternity: “If we were to empty the Pacific Ocean, the largest body of water in the world, we’d be left with a hole that’s beyond imagination. If we were then to fill that hole with sand and make a pile as high as Mount Everest, we’d be talking about a lot of sand because Mount Everest is the tallest mountain peak in the world. Since the ocean is fairly deep and Mount Everest is fairly high, we’d have a fairly sizable sandpile! Now, if we had a bird that would take one grain of sand from that sandpile every 100 billion years, how long would it take the bird to finish the sandpile? I don’t know that in human language we have such a number. It is probably beyond numerical count. Whatever that number is, when the bird finishes the last grain of sand, you will have been in eternity your first second.”1
It is glorious to think of spending eternity with Christ in heaven, but it’s also heartbreaking to think of those who will be in the lake of fire forever. Our faith rests on the sure hope of eternal life. We can live our lives for Christ confidently and courageously, knowing that nothing we do for the Lord is ever in vain (1 Cor. 15:58). We have certainty in what we believe. The “hope” Scripture holds out is not a hope-so hope. Our hope is a complete certainty, a confident expectation. It is a destiny.
Eternal life is both a present possession and a future hope. It doesn’t just begin when you die; we have it at conversion, the moment we trust Christ as our Savior. God is “eternal” (Deut. 33:27), and having “eternal” life means we have been given God’s life, which is Christ in us (Col. 1:27; 3:4). Our future hope of eternal life is in the sense that we confidently look forward to eternal life in its final, victorious form when we’ll be in our eternal home in heaven, having received our eternal, incorruptible, glorified bodies (2 Cor. 5:1), dwelling in Christ’s presence forever (1 Thes. 4:17).
All the truth of the Bible and the hope of eternal life is based in God Himself. Our faith is secure by virtue of God’s unchanging character and the fact that He cannot lie. God is Truth and free from all deceit (Deut. 32:4). Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not a man, that He should lie.” Hebrews 6:18 tells us it is “impossible for God to lie.” God’s character backs up our absolute hope of eternal life. If He said it, it’s true, He cannot lie, and it will happen.
From eternity past, “before the world began,” God promised what He was going to do for those who believed (2 Tim. 1:9; Titus 1:2). God is a promise-keeping God. What He has said, He will do. You can place your soul’s eternal destiny in His hands, and you don’t need to be anxious about it. We can rest in Him because we can count on Him and on His character. When (not if) we find ourselves in heaven one day, we’ll praise Him saying, “The Lord was faithful, faithful to me, faithful to all His promises.”
Notes:
- Tony Evans’ Book of Illustrations (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2009), p. 91.
To the Reader:
Some of our Two Minutes articles were written many years ago by Pastor C. R. Stam for publication in newspapers. When many of these articles were later compiled in book form, Pastor Stam wrote this word of explanation in the Preface:
"It should be borne in mind that the newspaper column, Two Minutes With the Bible, has now been published for many years, so that local, national and international events are discussed as if they occurred only recently. Rather than rewrite or date such articles, we have left them just as they were when first published. This, we felt, would add to the interest, especially since our readers understand that they first appeared as newspaper articles."
To this we would add that the same is true for the articles written by others that we continue to add, on a regular basis, to the Two Minutes library. We hope that you'll agree that while some of the references in these articles are dated, the spiritual truths taught therein are timeless.
Two Minutes with the Bible is now available on Alexa devices. Full instructions here.
Be Strong
There was once a young man who stood in the shadow of a great leader. When that leader passed away, it fell to his young apprentice to pick up the reins of leadership. As he did so, he faced his circumstances with a certain amount of understandable doubts and fears. Then someone encouraged him, telling him to be strong and exhibit courage, because God would enable him. The leader was Moses, his apprentice was Joshua, and the encourager was the Lord Himself (Josh. 1:1-9).
God likewise challenges believers in the dispensation of grace to be strong. Paul told grace believers to “…quit you [or act manly] like men, be strong” (1 Cor. 16:13) and to “…be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might” (Eph. 6:10). We must not cower in fear nor surrender to Satan who is waging spiritual warfare against us. We must be strong!
We can do so by remembering God’s power is available to us. Paul prayed the saints would comprehend “…the exceeding greatness of His power [is available] to us-ward who believe” (Eph. 1:19). The Lord offers us His power, and wants us to have it. Believe it! God’s power is accessed “by His Spirit in the inner man” (Eph. 3:16). We can never triumph over Satan in our own strength, but we can when we allow God’s power to flow in our lives in our inner man. Nourish your inner “new man” in Christ!
Our inner man is empowered by equipping ourselves with “the whole armour of God” (Eph. 6:11). This can be summarized by choosing to have a consistent daily walk in truthfulness and righteous behavior as our standard (v. 14), being always prepared to give the gospel (v. 15), protecting our minds through faith in God’s Word (v. 16), living in the confidence of our eternal victory (v. 17a), using the Scriptures to slice through Satan’s lies (v. 17b), and being constant in prayer (v. 18). Be vigilant in clothing yourself with apparel that enables you to have victory in your daily life!
Paul’s admonition is “…and having done all to stand, stand therefore…” (Eph. 6:13-14). Have you done all you need to do to stand victorious today? Are you remembering God’s power is available to you? Have you been spiritually strengthening your inner man? Will you consistently equip your soul with the whole armour of God? Be strong believer! God will enable you if you look to Him for His power to overcome whatever you face today.
To the Reader:
Some of our Two Minutes articles were written many years ago by Pastor C. R. Stam for publication in newspapers. When many of these articles were later compiled in book form, Pastor Stam wrote this word of explanation in the Preface:
"It should be borne in mind that the newspaper column, Two Minutes With the Bible, has now been published for many years, so that local, national and international events are discussed as if they occurred only recently. Rather than rewrite or date such articles, we have left them just as they were when first published. This, we felt, would add to the interest, especially since our readers understand that they first appeared as newspaper articles."
To this we would add that the same is true for the articles written by others that we continue to add, on a regular basis, to the Two Minutes library. We hope that you'll agree that while some of the references in these articles are dated, the spiritual truths taught therein are timeless.
Two Minutes with the Bible is now available on Alexa devices. Full instructions here.
Romans 11
Enduring All Things For the Elect’s Sake – 2 Timothy 2:10-13
Summary:
Paul was in prison, but the word of God was “not bound” (2:10) because Paul could still write letters to the churches. So he was willing to “endure” prison for “the elect.” Christ is God’s elect, chosen by God to judge the Gentiles in the kingdom of heaven on earth (Isa.42:1 cf. Mt.18:18). Who else would He have chosen, an adulterous murderer like David. He demands rulers be just (cf.IISam.23:3).
But if God couldn’t choose sinners to rule in the kingdom, why’d the Lord tell the 12 they’d rule with Him (Mt.19:28) as well as other Tribulation overcomers (Rev.2:26)? Well, once they got saved they were as just as He was, and will be able to rule as justly as He will (Rev.3:21).
But God also chose Christ to rule the heavens, and us with Him (ICor.6:3). We’re not worthy to be chosen to rule either, but God chose us “in Him” (Eph.1:4). Now that we’re saved, we’re as just as he is (IICor.5:21) and can rule as justly as Him.
Paul was willing to endure prison so the elect could obtain salvation (2:10). The only other place that talks about obtaining salvation is a reference to the salvation of the Rapture (IThes.5:9 cf. Rom.11:13). Paul had to endure prison so they could obtain the Rapture “with eternal glory” (2:10), the kind we’ll get for suffering the sufferings of this present time with Christ (Rom.8:17,18). Suffering includes the light suffering of mocking (Gal.4:29 cf. Gen.21:9), light affliction that God plans to reward us for (IICor.4:17) if we keep our eye on the “unseen” glory we’ll receive (v.18) and so react to suffering in a godly and spiritual manner.
This suffering also includes the “pain” kind that Paul went on in Romans 8 to speak about (22,23). We don’t live under the law, when they had the chance to be spared pain and sickness (Deut.7:12-15), so God plans to reward us with glory for suffering pain. Since we all suffer pain, we’ll all be rewarded to some degree (ICor.4:5), if we keep our eyes on the unseen glory and react well to it.
To do that we need Paul’s epistles, and that’s why Paul was willing to suffer, to keep writing those epistles. He was ready to die earlier, but chose to stay because it was more “needful” for the saints for him to stay and finish his epistles (Phil.1:23-25). Once he knew he’d written them all he was “ready” to die (IITim.4:8).
To be eligible for glory you have to be saved though, so Paul reminds Timothy of this in 2:11, speaking about our identification with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection (cf.Rom.6:3-8).
If you are saved, you are eligible for the glory of reigning with Christ (2:12). We’ll all reign to some extent (ICor.4:5), but just as “one star differeth from another star in glory” (ICor.15:41), so some of us will shine brighter for the Lord. We have the opportunity to rule more angels, just as the Jews had the chance to rule more “cities” in the kingdom (Lu.19:17,19).
If that makes you uncomfortable, remember God has always wanted to glorify His people (Jer.30:19). Ultimately glorifying us glorifies Him (Phil.1:11). Just as every one of the stars glorifies its Creator no matter how strong or weak it shines, so will we.
We don’t have to suffer for the Lord, but if we “deny Him” our suffering, He’ll “deny us” the privilege of reigning with Him (2:12). Paul knows that some might think He means that He’ll deny us salvation, so He says that even if we get to the point where we don’t believe any more, we’re still saved (2:13). Think about that! The only thing you did to get saved was believe, and even if you stop doing that, “He cannot deny Himself.” You are part of Him (Eph.5:30) so to deny you He’d have to deny Himself.
If you think a true believer would never deny Him, you’re underestimating what the hard knocks of life can do to a believer’s faith. And what a lack of rightly dividing the Word can do! If you thought God promised you that you wouldn’t get sick if you were good (Deut.7:12-15), if you were good and got sick, it would shatter your faith too!
