THE RESURRECTION: HIS AND OURS

The doctrine of the resurrection is the breathing essence of the Gospel. It is the embodiment of all Divine truth. This singular doctrine establishes the Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 1:4), attests to His sinlessness (Romans 6:23; 5:12; John 10:17,18}, pronounces His Lordship making Him "Lord both of the dead and living (Romans 14:9). It also vital to man’s redemption because it begets his regeneration (I Peter 1:3,4), permits his justification (Romans 4:25) and assures his resurrection and judgment (Acts 17:31).

If there were no resurrection there would be no judgment, and thus no reason to be moral, There would be no salvation. It might then be to a person’s advantage to rape, to steal, or to murder. Therefore, they who commit such things do so because they do not believe in the resurrection of the dead. So necessary is a belief that in the doctrine of the resurrection Scripture asserts that if anyone believes in his heart that God hath raised the Lord Jesus Christ from the dead, he shall be saved. (Romans 10:9)

If there is no resurrection, why should a person bother to go to church? Why pray? Why resist the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life? Why bring an offering when he can ill afford it? It is clear to see that they who are careless about their soul are so because they do not believe in the resurrection of the dead. They are unbelievers.

Life is a probation, or period of testing. One day the test of life will end in death. It will then be graded -- that is the Judgment. Then the test will be awarded with either eternal approval or everlasting contempt. The doctrine of the resurrection is therefore the cornerstone of the Christian faith.

Preaching this single doctrine, the Apostle Paul confounded the Jews teaching that Jesus was indeed the Christ. When they sought to kill him, he went to the Greeks with the doctrine. (Acts 9:22-24)

Greek philosophy fell into three basic categories, there were those who said, "Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die." It was a philosophy of nihilism. There were others who believed money was power and they sold themselves to the gods of gold and silver. A third group of philosophers emphasized the intellect and taught that man has within himself all the answers to the problems of life. Greek philosophy was therefore simple humanism with its worship of man. Man was the measure of all things, a god unto himself, The doctrine of the resurrection annihilated all such notions and left the wise men of centuries totally devastated. To silence him, the Greeks laid wait to murder him.

It was for preaching this doctrine the lives of the apostles were in jeopardy. In Acts 4:1,2, the priests, the captain of the Temple, and the Sadness were grieved with Peter and John for preaching through Jesus the resurrection of the dead, In Acts 17, the Athenians assembled on Mars Hill heard the Apostle Paul preach unto them "Jesus, and the resurrection." In Acts 24, Paul is called unto Felix to answer charges the Jews levied against him. Before the Governor himself, the Apostle asserts their accusations, though groundless, were given because he cried standing among them preaching the resurrection of the dead. In Acts 26, Paul stands before King and asks him, "Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you that God should raise the dead? How lamentable that in most churches one time a year is allotted to proclaim such an important doctrine and that time usually being in March or April!

So important is the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead that an entire chapter of Scripture involving 58 verses is devoted to it. That chapter is I Corinthians 15.

The proof there is a resurrection of the dead lies in the fact Christ arose. (I Corinthians 15:12) If there is no such thing as the resurrection of the dead then Jesus Christ Himself did not rise and revive. (Verse 13) And, if Jesus, Who was dead, is not alive forevermore, our preaching is worthless and a waste of time. (Verse 14) And, if Jesus Christ did not rise from the dead, our faith is empty and vain be cause we are still in our sins and our hope is only found in this life. We are of all men most miserable. (Verses 18,19) If there is no resurrection of the dead, then the dead will never rise. They are perished, and gone forever, never to be seen again.

The doctrine of the resurrection is also a very reasonable doctrine. In I Corinthians 15:32, the Apostle Paul asks, "If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die." Life loses all meaning apart from the doctrine of the resurrection. What advantage is it to die for the Lord, or to live for Him if there is no resurrection of the just and of the unjust? Nevertheless the saints of old died in faith though they had not received the promises. They nonetheless saw them afar off and being persuaded of them, they embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. (Hebrews 11:13) Some were tortured because they would not accept deliverance that they might obtain a "better resurrection."

Is it reasonable that the saints who have had trials of

Cruel mockings and scourgings, who have suffered bonds and imprisonments, who have been stoned, put under saws, and to the sword, who have wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins who have suffered destitution, affliction and torment, who have been exiled to deserts, forced to flee to the mountains to find refuge in the dens and caves of the earth --is it reasonable they should experience the same kind of resurrection from the dead as their" persecutors? Is it logical their lot will be identical as that of Christ-deniers and God-haters?

There must be a resurrection from the dead: God has decreed it! "This corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. (Verse 53) This glorious doctrine was known to Job who confessed, "And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God." (Job 19:26) At the dawn of creation God spake,

"Let there be light," and creation instantly obeyed, "and there was light." Once again in the twilight of creation God speaks and says we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump. And when the trumpet shall sound, creation will again obey, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye " (Verses 51,52)

What triumph is afforded by the resurrection of the dead!

"Death is swallowed up in victory." (Verse 54)

Lives again our glorious King:

Where, o Death, is now thy sting?

Dying once lie us doth save:

Where thy victory, o Grave?

Love’s redeeming work is done,

Fought the fight, the battle won;

Death in vain forbids Him rise;

Christ has opened Paradise. -Charles Wesley

In vain are the dead sealed. Robert Lowry wrote,

Death cannot keep his prey

He tore the bars away.

We need not do as the South Sea islanders who have no hope.

When they lose a loved one they climb a hill overlooking the sea and bray, "Come back! Come back!" "Thanks be to God which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (Verse 57)

The resurrection of the dead is a triumphant doctrine because it affords absolute proof of the Truth and the reliability of Scripture. Each resurrection is a victory for the work on the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. How immeasurable is the salvation proffered men! How amazing that God would have anything do with the likes of you or me!

How encouraging is the doctrine of the resurrection! Our labor as not in vain. (Verse 58) Then we will receive reward for every prayer uttered and every trial endured. Everything we have scrimped to save in order to give, whether it be money, time or talents --all will be recompensed. "Then shall the righteous shine forth as the stars in their Heavenly Father’s realm" They will be rewarded for every person they brought to church and them to whom they gave the Gospel. Every child they guided in the way of the Lord "Therefore, my beloved brethren, wrote the Apostle, "be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord for as much as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." (Verse 58)

But the resurrection is not a doctrine welcomed by all, for there is "resurrection of life" complete with all the joys omnipotence can provide; but only the blessed of the Lord will inherit them. It has been provided for them from the foundation of the world." (Matthew 25:34) And, there is the resurrection of damnation replete with all the despair and woe Justice measures the finite creature called man is worthy for having offended the infinite Majesty on high.

When Judgment Day is drawing nigh,

When God the works of man shall try,

When east and west the fire shall roll,

How will it be with your poor soul?

When wicked men His wrath shall see,

And to the rocks and mountains flee,

When hills and mountains flee away,

When all the works of men decay,

Where shall you be?

When Heaven and earth as some great scroll,

Shall from God’s angry presence roll,

When all the saints redeemed shall stand,

Forever blest at God’s right hand,

Where shall you be?

-Charles P. Jones

THE "MASSA" MENTALITY

Prejudice is as ancient as sin. It is an evil found in every inhabited part of earth, but no where is its evil more apparent and more harmful than when it raises its ugly head in the heart of a Christian. Once it is detected the testimony is reduced to shambles and its message sounds strangely like sounding brass and tinkling cymbals.

The germ of prejudice is filled with harm, yet it often lies unrecognized by its carrier. How often has it been said that Hispanics, Indians, Blacks, etc. are only children and must be treated as children. This paternalistic attitude of a superior ministering to an inferior allows all too many missionaries to live like lords among people who are barely able to subsist. Some "missionaries" go so far as to hire household servants to tend to common chores. This air of

haughtiness and arrogance emanates from pride and is one of the six things God hates, and one of the seven that is an abomination to Him. It is a gracious privilege given by God to be a servant to men.

The missionary is often portrayed as a do-gooder helping the less fortunate. But does the lack of formal education make a person inferior? Do differences in language and customs make a person inferior? Does skin color or facial features pronounce a person inferior? Is the poor inferior to the rich? They are men and women: are we more than that? With apologies to Robert Burns, "a man is a man is a man." He is worthy of civility and respect accorded to all. They too are fathers and mothers. The ministry then is a ministry among equals.

People are naturally suspicious of them whom they do not know. Therefore, love is the name of the game. People must be seen as souls. In the last sermon he preached on earth, John Bunyan took John 13:1 as his text: "Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour was come that He should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved His own which were in the world, He loved them unto the end." In it he exhorted,

He closed his sermon by saying,

THE FAITHFULNESS OF GOD

IN TIME OF TEMPTATION

Text: "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above what ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it." -I Corinthians 10:13

Temptation abounds everywhere in every thing. The world in which we live continually brings it before us. Every place we go, the work we do, every relationship in life, every pleasure we experience contains the germ of temptation. Yet, at no other time is the faithfulness of God more keenly evidenced.

The word translated "temptation" speaks of a "testing" or "tempting," and is often used in the sense of testing them who only pretend to belong to Christ. Their testing is designed to make their fiction apparent. God is said to "try" or "tempt" a man as in the case of Abraham, (Hebrews 11:17) not that he may stumble and fall, and show himself "reprobate" but that he may emerge more humble and stronger in faith. Christ refines His saints not because they are pure gold, but because they are not all dross. His purpose is that they may come forth a finer vessel. For this reason we ought to count it all joy when we fall into divers temptations. (James 1:2)

God’s faithfulness is demonstrated in times of temptation first by its commonality: temptation is "common" to man. It is meted out for a short time, in a moderate degree. We are not assaulted by temptation in a greater degree than we bear because God is faithful.

What a comfort! In the hour of trial, God is faithful, and His faithfulness is proven as often as we are put to the test. The crux of the verse, therefore, is not "temptation" but the faithfulness of God, and such faithfulness as is evidenced in times of temptation.

God is faithful! Great is His faithfulness! Every test is tailored to our individual need and capability. With each trial He gives strength sufficient. Nor are we tested but God provides for us a way to escape. Satan, the great Tempter, is not allowed to hem us in, for when there is no way out we may implore His defense that we may be able to bear it.

In this passage, God dismisses Himself from blame if we should sin. He lays full responsibility upon our shoulders. The fault is laid on our doorstep. He has controlled the temptation. It was not uncommon, nor was it beyond our ability to bear. We were not left without an escape had we sought it. Correlating our love for the Lord with our enduring temptation, James wrote,

PRAISE THE LORD! First, seven years ago we began praying for a typewriter that would be useful in our printing needs. For the past several months we have been borrowing an IBM Selectric II made available to us by Grace Baptist Fellowship of Augusta where Mr. Wade Trimmer is pastor. Their kindness enabled us to maintain the quality of "The Angelus". However, we often write 35 letters a week. We were in great straits recently when the carriage on our manual typewriter froze and had to be turned "manually" for each line of type. This month, however, a dear pastor and his wife ministering in California, sent us a down payment for our own IBM Selectric II. We labor scrupulously to use money in the manner for which it is given, so we went immediately to secure this machine.

Second, we have just been given the names and addresses of 3,500 churches for placement on our mailing list. This will bring our readership to 5,000 of which nearly 4,300 will be pastors or churches. However, it will triple our expenses. In 11 years, we have never charged a subscription fee for "The Angelus". We would rather fall before the Lord and ask Him to make His people willing to help us carry the load.

If our Lord gives you a willing heart to help us with expenses either for "The Angelus" or for our typewriter, would like to show our appreciation by sending you a copy of John Brown’s classic work, The Sufferings of Jesus the Messiah.