“THE VALUE OF ASSEMBLING”

How would you determine the value of a diamond ring? You would likely ask for an appraisal by a competent authority. How does one determine the value of assembling with the saints to worship God? By seeking the appraisal of Him who has all authority: “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching” (Heb. 10:25).

God did not arbitrarily command us to assemble just to give us someplace to go. The book of Hebrews was written to restrain the apostasy that was in progress among certain brethren. One of God’s safeguards, designed to protect them from apostasy, was for brethren to assemble TOGETHER!  This had been the habit of disciples before and after Pentecost (Acts 1:14; 2:42, 46).  

The focus of the command to assemble is not just be together. The phrase ‘with one accord’ is significant to our assembling (Acts 2:1, 46, 4:26; 5:12; 15:25). It indicates harmony of purpose. The absence of accord indicates the presence of division. It is clear from the N. T. epistles that this lack of accord was attributed to a lack of diligence (Eph. 4:1-3). Diligence is a personal effort. The lack of diligence has a negative effect upon the ‘lump’ (1 Cor. 5:6). Giving diligence ensures that our ‘gathering together’ will be in sincerity and in truth (1 Cor. 5:4, 7-8).

Diligence begins with oneself. When the Corinthians sought proof of Christ’s speaking in Paul; he told them to examine themselves to see if they were in the faith (2 Cor. 13:5).

Through diligence, brotherly love will ‘cover a multitude of sins’ (James 5:20).

THE PARTING OF THE RED SEA AND SALVATION IN CHRIST

As the Israelites neared the Red Sea, Jehovah gave instructions on where they were to encamp (Exodus 14:1-2). Jehovah then told Moses of Pharaoh's reasoning and plans to pursue, which would result in two things: 1) Jehovah gaining honor upon Pharaoh, and 2) the Egyptians being convinced of Jehovah's greatness (Exodus 14:3-4).

As Pharaoh's army neared, Moses said to them, “Do not fear! Stand by and see the salvation of the Lord which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever. The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent.” (Exodus 14:13-14).

Jehovah told Moses, “Do not fear! Stand by and see the salvation of the Lord which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever. The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent.” (Exodus 14:15-16).

Notice the differences in Moses' words and Jehovah's words. Moses told the people to “stand by and watch the Lord save…”; God had a different response… “tell the people to go forward…”.

How often is it that people are preached a message similar to Moses’; i.e., “do nothing; keep silent...just believe in God to do it all; sit back and let Him save; you can’t be saved by ‘doing anything’; salvation is by faith alone...”?

God has given commands to obey with the assurance that He will save us…do we believe that? THAT is exactly what happened in this story from Exodus. Their deliverance from bondage was by the Lord’s hand, yet they were not to sit idly and watch, doing nothing…they were to ACT on their belief in God to save. On the night of the exodus, they were commanded to apply blood. They were then to march as directed by the pillar of cloud and fire that HE provided. At the Red Sea, they were to march across; Moses was to do something as well. “Lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it…”.

Now think for a moment on that command…did Moses, by his own power, cause the waters to divide, or was it God who caused the parting? What did this command have to do with anything…could not God part the waters without Moses doing this act with his staff? Consider also, had Moses NOT obeyed God's command, would the results have been the same?

We need look no further than another instance when God gave a command to Moses about causing water to flow by speaking to a rock, yet Moses smote the rock. Water came forth, but what effect did it have on Moses? Who caused the water to come forth? Did Moses please God, or disobey God? Did it matter? Truth is simple, we can easily see the implication that is meant from these stories…that’s why they’re there for… “our learning”; “our admonition” [Rom. 15:4; 1 Cor. 10:6, 11].

These stories are in our Bibles, so we might know for sure how God saves us from our bondage to sin. Faith in God’s power to save us is the gospel message (Rom. 1:16). The gospel calls upon us to exercise our faith in obedience to specific commands, whether those commands are relevant in our minds or not. Nothing commanded is an act of merit, nor is it understood to be robbing God of the glory due Him.

So it is with belief, repentance, confession, and immersion in water. These are commands from God. Through them God reveals the treasure in men's hearts. This is seen from the parable of the sower. "Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. And those by the way side are they that have heard; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word from their heart, that they may not believe and be saved. And those on the rock are they who, when they have heard, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. And that which fell among the thorns, these are they that have heard, and as they go on their way they are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. And that in the good ground, these are such as in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, hold it fast, and bring forth fruit with patience." (Luke 8:11-15).

Faith, repentance, and immersion in water are not works of merit. They are, however, commands from God which constitute the response to His grace. The pardoning is God's doing.

​​“DO YOU KNOW THE CONDITION OF YOUR TENT?”

TEXT: Job 5:17-27

Take note especially of v. 24. Has God ever delivered you from troubles? Can you identify with the many situations mentioned by the Temanite? If not, then you have the answer for why happiness has eluded you. What is this deliverance? God’s corrective love “maketh sore” and “wounds”. Afterwards, God binds and heals. This is an exaltation to a blessed status. The blessings are enumerated in vss. 19-23. While Job’s latter end may reveal physical exalted-ness (cf. Job 42:12-13), harmony of scripture points to an exaltation of wisdom. “Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding.” (Prov. 3:13). “Happy is the man that feareth always; but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.” (Prov. 28:14). Blessed is the man whom Jehovah has exalted from the wages of his sin. This story of Job really speaks to the assurance and certainty God’s word provides about our salvation.

Job’s exhortation to confess his sin from his three friends, raises some interesting questions. Was Job an alien sinner? Are sinners to acknowledge this in a prayer, for sins remission (as is popularly taught)? Harmony of scripture reveals that Job was a righteous man, blessed for his endurance of trials of his faith (cf. Job 1:22; 2:10; 42:7-9; James 5:10-11).

Eliphaz spoke the truth about Jehovah’s chastening. Job acknowledged the same (chapt. 22:23); so also the Hebrew writer and James (Heb. 12:1-8; James 1:2-4; chapt’s. 4 and 5). God’s sore-wounding is an act of love and for our benefit as his children. God’s longsuffering is with a view to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). Let us count our blessings for His enduring mercy.

“DISAGREEMENTS: THE SOURCE”

Some hold to the idea that we cannot understand the truth, but that is not what the Bible declares. How fair would GOD be to place our salvation upon “what is written” and then give us a written revelation, knowing that we could not understand it? The apostle Paul declared by inspiration, “when ye read, ye can perceive my understanding in the mystery of Christ” (Eph. 3:4; see also Eph. 5:17; 2 Tim. 2:7).

If the Bible cannot be understood, only one of two reasons would explain why. Either God does not want us to understand it (cf. 2 Peter 3:9; 1 Tim. 2:3-4), or He is not able to make the word understandable. Yet, the Bible says that we can “know” truth (cf. Psa. 119:60; 117:1-2; Prov. 23:23; John 1:17; 2 Thess. 2:10-12).

There can be only one correct understanding of GOD’s will. There is a rule of logic that says two things cannot differ on the same subject and both be right. We can agree on what is written. Disagreement arises on the Bible’s silence. Note these examples:

1. Exod. 3:1-3. We can agree that it was a burning bush. The Bible doesn’t reveal the kind of bush.

2. John 3:1-2. We can agree that Nicodemus came to Christ by night. The Bible doesn’t reveal why.

3. John 8:1-8. We can agree that Jesus wrote on the ground. The Bible doesn’t reveal what He wrote.

4. 2 Cor. 12:7-10. We can agree that Paul had a thorn in the flesh. The Bible doesn’t reveal what it was.

Faith and opinion are not the same thing. It is that which is written that produces saving faith, and which is the standard and foundation for unity. 

“AUTHORITY: IN WHAT IS STATED”

 I have often thought that if we applied what we use in everyday language to the scriptures, we would have much less trouble. We recognize that ‘saying what a thing is, eliminates saying what it is not’. It is understood that “the authority” is in the statement of “what is said”; not in “the silence of what is not said”.

A few examples:

1. In Cooking ~ When a recipe calls for 4 eggs, must it state, “this does not mean 1,000 eggs”?

2. In a Wedding Invitation ~ When the date and time are listed, such as Thursday, September 21, 7:30 p.m., must it also state, “this does not mean to come at 2:00 or at 9:00 p.m., or on Saturday, or on the 23^rd”?

3. In Advertising Our Assembly times ~ When we list the time of Bible study at 9:00 and the assembly at 10:00, must we explain that we do not meet at 7:30 for Bible study and 11:15 for the assembly?

4. In Giving My Telephone Number ~ When I give my telephone number to someone, must I say, “Now you must dial it in the order that I give it, and be sure you do not invert the order”?

5. In Ordering Shoes...?

6. In Naming a Child...?

7. In Buying a Car...?

Perhaps these are sufficient to see that we live, work, worship, and buy by ‘the thing stated, not by what isn’t stated’. The answer to all the above items is, of course, “no”. The reason is so simple. Authority is in the stated; the written.

Remember, God's power and the source of our faith is God's word (Rom. 1:16; 10:17).