Volume 3 March, 1962 Number 3

THE NAME CHURCH OF CHRIST

For over a hundred years men have sought to escape theforce of the scriptural name for the church by contendinthat since Romans 16:16 has Churches of Christ in the pluralChurch of Christ in the singular will not meet God's requirements. It has often been pointed out to theseteachers of error that if they were all Churches of Christ then each one was a chur ch of Christ. Consider the following 12 r easons why the chur ch of firstborn is named the church of Christ as well as the church of God.

1. CHRIST IS THE BUILDER OF THE CHURCH. Matt.

16:18 "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter; and upon this r ock I will build my chur ch; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it!

  1. IT IS CALLED THE HOUSE OF CHRIST. Heb. 3:3-6 "For this man was counted worthy of more glory thanMoses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath mor e honour than the house. For ever y house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God. And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which wer e to be spoken after; But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house ar e we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end." THIS IS THE EXACT EQUIVALENT OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST.
  2. IT IS THE CHURCH OF CHRIST BECAUSE CHRIST IS HEAD. E ph. 1:22 "And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church," 1st Cor. 12:12 "For as the body is one, and hath many member s, and all the member s of that one body, being many, are one body; so also is Christ." Col. 1:18 "And he is the head of the body, the chur ch: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the pre-eminence." If he is the head of the body, it is the body of Christ, THEREFORE IT IS THE CHURCH OF CHRIST.
  3. IT IS THE CHURCH OF CHRIST BECAUSE IT IS THE BRIDE OF CHRIST. E ph. 5:25 "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;" Rom. 7:4 "Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body ofChrist, that ye should be married to another, even to him who is r aised fr om the dead, that we should bringforth fruit unto God." 2nd Cor. 11:2 "For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ."
  4. THE BRIDE WEARS THE NAME OF THE HUS BAND. She gives him glor y thr ough the name. E ph.

3:21 "Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen." 1st Peter 4:14-16 "If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy ar e ye; for the spirit of glory and of God r esteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but onyour part he is glorified. But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men's matters. Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorifyGod on this behalf." WHY NOT CALL YOURSELVES GODians?

  1. THE CHURCH COMPRISES THE SAVED. Acts 2:47 "Praising God, and having favour with all the people.And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved." Thus we see that if they SHOULD BE SAVED they were added. They did not join and it was not left up to them, but the LORD ADDED the saved to the Chur ch .
    1. MEN ARE RECONCILED IN THE CHURCH. Eph.
    2. 2:16 "And that he might r econcile both unto God in one body by the cro , having slain the enmity thereby:"The church is the body. Eph. 1:23 "And hath put allthings under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the chur ch. Which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all." Col. 1:18 "And he is the head of the body, the chur ch: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might havethe pre-eminence." Question, where else can a sinner be reconciled?
  2. CHRIST IS THE SAVIOUR OF THE BODY. Eph. 5:23"For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body." The body is the Church. Eph. 1:20-23 "Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, Far above all principality, and power, and might, anddominion, and ever y name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come; And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the chur ch, Which is body, the full ness of him that filleth all in all." Col. 1:18 "And he is head of the body, the chur ch; who is the beginning, thefirstborn from the dead; that in all things he might havethe pre-eminence."
  3. IT IS THE CHURCH OF CHRIST BECAUSE IT IS THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST. The kingdom and thechur ch ar e the same institution. Matt. 13:19 "When anyone heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth awaythat which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the wayside." They both come from the same seed. Gen. 1:11 "Whose seed is in itself." CALLED T HE KINGDOM OF HIS SON. Col. 1.13 "Who hath

delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:" JESUS CALLS IT "MY KINGDOM" John 18:36 "Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now is my kingdom not from hence."

  1. IT IS THE CHURCH OF CHRIST BECAUSE IT IS IN CHRIST. Rom. 12:4-5 "For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another." Gal. 1:22 "And was unknown by face unto the churches of Judea which were in Christ."
  2. IT IS THE CHURCH OF CHRIST BECAUSE CHRIST IS THE SAVIOUR OF THE BODY. Eph. 5:23 "For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the chur ch: and he is the saviour of the body."
  3. IT IS THE CHURCH OF CHRIST BECAUSE THE CHURCH IS SUBJECT TO CHRIST. Eph. 5:24 "Therefore, as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in ever y thing."

WILLIE THE WATER COOLER

H. Dowdy, DeLand, Fla.

"Willie the Water Cooler's" coils got clogged one Sunday and he thought that being stationed at the entrance of the meeting house and being bought with chur ch funds, sur ely made him the much sought after authority for the church's fun and frolic. And since even visitors drank from Willie, surely he was authority for the church's general benevolent program too.

But when Willie's coils began to clear he distinctly remember ed that he had been pur chased as an incidental to the church's ASSEMBLING. He knew that he was neither bought nor used for benevolence and certainly not for entertainment. However since Willie knew that he was the last chance for authority of any kind for these projects, nobody was going to cloud the issue with the truth. SoWillie dr owned the facts in his ego and merrily bubbled on.

"Sidney the Seat" became interested in Willie's reasoning and not wishing to be left standing, counted himself in the plan. Surely everyone knew that Sidney and Willie were incidentals in common with needed seats. Bible study classes and banquets needed seats— so let the church furnish the seats for both, since it does for one. The church is in the seat furnishing business isn't it? Now don't disturb us with the fact that there IS authority in the Scriptures for worship and NO authority for church financed fun and frolic, and that Sidney was bought and used as an incidental to this assembling for worship— not general benevolence, not for entertainment.

But "Bascomb the Baptistry" not to be out-done, decided that if Willie was authority for church sponsored entertainment he could help with a church swimming party. For he was a pool of water already, wasn't he? The church paid for him did they not? He was in the meeting house, right? Therefore with a little enlarging, a diving board or two, let the elder s decide that it is a "good wor k", andthat's that.

So Sindney, Willie and Bascomb join together in inviting all those who have given up hope of ever finding SCRIPTURAL authority for their projects to take up the chant, "Seats, baptistries and water coolers," "Seats, baptistries and water coolers."

ABSENTEEISM

Absenteeism is a term that well defines the general conduct of many chur ch member s today. We view withalarm the increasing numbers who are baptized or who"place member ship" and attend wor ship only occasionally. Many have the stock-in-trade excuses of being too tired, having a headache, or being too busy, and these ar e supposed to explain to the satisfaction of God and man why they seldom attend worship. This is a grave sin that involves other s besides the guilty one.

Absenteeism falls into four well defined classes: 1) the physically handicapped; 2) the vacationers or visitors; 3) the business people; and 4) the pleasur e seeker s.

The physically handicapped include those who are ill, feeble or stranded. Only those who are so ill that they are unable to carry on the other necessities of life, such as business, play, housework, etc., are released from the responsibility of worship to God. Many have that chronic illness some have called "Sunday Morningitis," which comes on the patient about 9 a.m. Sunday morning and leavesabout 11:30 a.m. It appears again about 5:30 p.m. and thepatient is well by 7:30 p.m. Who do we think we ar e fooling?

The feeble are those who have reached the age or have such weakness in body as not to be able to go anywher e. Those who might be (although it is not likely in this age and this country) imprisoned or stranded for the faith would not be able to attend public wor ship. But those who use a little headache or toe-ache as an excuse for not meeting with the saints ar e sinning and will be lost unless they r epent and turn to the Lord.

There are many who select the Lord's day to govisiting or to take short vacations. It would not be so bad if this wer e not a constant thing. Some do not attend wor ship at home half the time. E ven if visiting relatives can onlybe done on Sunday, it should not be at the expense of meeting with the saints to worship God where you go. If you must

go visiting on Sundays, be sure to attend worship somewhere, and be present at the congregation where you are a member just as often as po ible. Christ does not mean much to the one who neglects worship to vacation and visit friends everyLord's day.

Business keeps many from the Lord's day worship. Thegr eed for money drives thousands to hell each week. Anyman or woman who puts his business ahead of his duty toGod is in a bad way. He is just too busy to go to heavenJesus said: "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you(Matt. 6:33). Certain types of work may hinder one occasionally, but if it becomes such a habit that we lose our spiritual interest, we need to change jobs. It is not so much the job itself that hinders, but rather it is the other things we want to do on Sundays that we do not have the time to do through the week. This is the business that usually keepsone fr om wor ship on the Lor d's day

Pleasure seekers include the greater part of those who frequently miss the worship. Having a good time is muchmore important than worshipping God. Most pleasure seekers soon r each the point wher e they do not expr ess any inter est or love for the church. Everything that appeals to the lusts of the flesh, or the comfort of the body, entices the pleasure seeker to absent himself from one or more of the worship periods of the church. Those pleasure seekers who do not want to give up the church or their pleasure have inventedways of getting their games and pleasure periods into the church. Some elders and preachers have become more interested in making the church appeal to this type peoplethan in fulfilling the mission of the church as Christ gave it

We do many things by habit. The forming of habits is good if the habits themselves ar e good, but to form habits that are at variance with the will of God is a dangerous thing. Much of the failure to attend worship on Sundanights and Wednesday nights is due to habits formed over a period of time. Let us take a good look at our attendance record over the past year and see if we fall into this class. If we find that we have not been attending wor ship as weshould, now is the time to r esolve to be faithful in this respect throughout this year. It is po ible that we will not always have the opportunity to attend regularly that we nowhave. But even if we enjoyed the opportunity to worship regularly all our lifetime, we must answer to the Lord atthe last day for the way we have spent our time. We must be "faithful unto death" to receive the crown of life.

SALVATION -MEN ARE LOST! No. 1

Thomas G. O'Neal, Jasper, Ala.

The statement of Christ in Lk. 19:10, "For the Son of man is come to seek and to save which was lost", means that Jesus Christ came to this earth to save ever y individual! Men because of their transgression of God's law are sinners (I Jno. 3:4).

Christ did not find some in the world who were not sinners, and should Christ come back this very day, He would not find some who were not sinners for "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;" (Rom. 3:23). In the Roman letter the Apostle Paul starts out to show that the power of God unto salvation, the Gospel, Rom. 1:16-17, is needed by all because all have sinned. In chapter one, Paul shows the depths to which the Gentiles had gone, 1:18-32. In the second chapter, the Apostle points out the sins of the Jews, The Jew thought

BOUND

Bound copies of volumes I and II of SEARCHING THE SCRIPTURES will soon be ready. Due to the fact that thefirst numbers were nearly sold out, we will have limited number of these bound volumes. If you wantone, order it today and we will reserve a copy for you.Copies will be reserved as we receive the orders. Bound in a fine blue cloth binding. Price $5.50 per copy.

that because he had Abraham as his father that there were special ble ings that he enjoyed that the Gentiles did not and that he did not have to obey the law of Christ in order to be saved. In fact, the Jews asked, "What advantage thehath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision?" (Rom. 2:1). The Jew then asked the question if the Jew was better than the Gentile, Rom. 2:9, to which the Apostle responded,"No"! Inspiration said, "we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin; As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one; There is none that under standeth, ther e is none that seeketh after God. T hey are all gone out of the way, they are together become unpr ofitable; ther e is none that doeth good, no, not one""For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God(Rom. 3:9-12, 23,).

Since men are lost, they therefore stand in need of thegreatest thing in the world -SALVATION ! There is no thought that should take precedence over the thought of man as to what he must do in or der to be saved fr om sin. The question, "What must I do to be saved?" is the greatest question man will ever ask! When one consider s the never ending eternity that man must spend, all questions fade intounimportance except the question of what one needs to do to be saved.

The first thing necessary to the salvation of a soul is to convince that soul that he is lost! When this is done there will be little effort spent in telling him what he must do. A man in a river unaware of the fact that there was danger of him drowning would not likely reach for the rope of rescue. But once he is convinced that he is dr owning and unless something is done he will dr own, ther e will be little effortspent upon the part of rescuers getting him to reach for a life preserver.

It is the conviction of this writer that if men could be made to see themselves as God looks at them when they are lost, that there would be no problem getting them to respondto the Gospel of Christ! We need to preach to convincepeople who have not submitted to the righteousness of God that they are lost and unless they turn from the ways of sin, they will spend a never ending eternity in the lake of fire and brimstone, where the fire is not quenched and the worm dieth not, (Rev. 20:14). Once people are made to seethemselves lost and with no hope of saving themselves from the fire of hell, those who are sober -minded will want to do whatever is necessary to escape that place

Our purpose in this series of articles is to tell those who have not obeyed the Gospel of Christ what they must do if they will be saved from sins. Remember, if you have obeyedthe will of the Lord, you are lost and in need of the rich provisions of God's scheme of redemption

In our next article, we will show those lost what wonderful love God has for them in making it po ible for them to besaved!

If any of my br ethren have any doubts about the existence of the social gospel among Churches of Christ they should read the October i ue of the journal published for the Northeast. The four leading articles were as follows:

    1. Being A Good Neighbor 2. The Wall Of Hostility 3. Should A Christian Strike?
  1. Gr owing Flower s With A Purpose Also noted is the announcement of a Preacher's Seminar for 1962 with this theme: '"Developing Spiritual Maturity Through The Psalms." I marvel that brethren have now found a way to become Spiritual and Matur e through a covenant that the Lord gave his life to take away. NEW YORK AGAIN

I have before me an elaborate brochure from the Manhattan Church in New York making another appeal forone half million dollars. Br ethren have alr eady contributed over a half million to this wor k but that much more is needed. Those who gave the first $550,000.00 will becompelled to give the next $500,000.00 to pr otect the first. After all the New York elders only want to build askyscraper 16 stories high and sell apartments to the tune of $1,800,000.00. I do not know if the first contributors knew they where going into the apartment house business or not but they are, provided they come through with another half million. WHAT ABOUT IT BRETHREN?

THE CHURCH AT WORK IN

BENEVOLENCE AS FOUND IN II Cor. 9:12-14

"Unto Them and Unto All"

Rhymer H. Knight, Tampa, Florida

This scripture, besides others, has been quite loosely used by different ones, in the past year, to prove that the Lord's church, in the work program of each local church, is responsible for supplying the needs of alien sinners as well as of saints. It was thus used in a r ecent debate in Clearwater, Florida. Read verses 12-14 of our text. "For the ministration of this service not only filleth up the measure of the wants of the saints, but aboundeth also through manythanksgivings unto God; seeing that through the proving ofyour ministration they glorify God for the obedience of yourconfession unto the gospel of Christ, and for the liberality of your contribution unto them and unto all (all men— K.J.V.); while they themselves also, with supplication onyour behalf, long after you by reason of the exceeding grace of God in you." (Italics mine-RHK)

The purpose of this study is to determine, from a study ofII Cor. 9:12-14 and all the passages related to this particular "ministration", whether these passages teach that the church has the responsibility for supplying the needs of alien sinners or whether saints are specified. A. Let us consider certain words and phrases which are used

in the text to see what they mean

1. "The ministration of this service", ("the administration of this ser vice"— K.J.V.); or "this ministration", (v13). What ser vice, which was not yet completed but was in process of being carried out, did Paul have reference to? It was very important to Paul for the apostle considered it one of the most important occasions of his career.

a. The word which is translated "service" in the English is "leitourgias". According to A. T. Robertson, Word Pictures, Vol. Ill, p. 249, it was an old wor d having in it the wor ds "public" and "wor k". "So public service either in worship to God (Luke 1:23) or benefaction to others II Cor. 9:12; Phil. 2:30)." Lenski (Commentary on I, II Cor.) saysthat Paul saw them in a grand public work, publicbecause all those Gentile congr egations wer e participating together in it. b. In speaking of "this service" note Paul's references to it in other scriptures: II Cor. 8:4 "this grace and the fellowship in the ministering to the saints", in vss. 6, 7, "this grace", in vs 14 "your abundance being a supply at this present time for their want"; in vs 20 "this bounty which is minister ed by us";chap. 9:1 "the ministering to the saints"; in vs 5 "a matter of bounty". In I Cor. 16:1 Paul calls it "the collection for the saints"; in vs 5 "your bounty". In Romans 15:26 "a certain contribution for the poor among the saints that ar e at Jer usalem". In Acts

24:17 "alms", "offerings". (Italics mine— RHK).

2. Where, and to whom in particular, was "this service" sent? There were certain saints who were in want (vs 12).The apostle tells who wer e in want and where they were. Rom. 15:26 " for the poor among the saints thatare at Jerusalem". See also I Cor. 16:3.

a. Those in want, then, wer e the poor among thesaints. b. The place is specifically named—among the saints at Jerusalem.

3. The design of this service: The "ministration of this service", "this ministration", was designed to and was adequate to "fill up the measur e of the wants of the saints" under consideration.

a. The word which Paul uses means "to fill up by adding up" (Thayer: Lexicon); "to supply fully" (Abbott-Smith: Lexicon). It was designed, then, to take care of that particular need completely. Another wor d, meaning to overflow, translated "abundant", aboundeth", is used to expr ess the effect that this "ministration" would produce but the "ministration of this service" "filled up full" the particular need in our context. b. The Lord never, anywhere in His word, laid upon the church the burden of caring for the world in general (that is, people out of Christ) in the sense providing for the material needs and it would be an utter impo ibility for the chur ch to "fill up" the needs of the world. This would completely destroythe possibility of her doing the primary work of preaching the gospel. This service was, then a sum of money being gather ed in each of many Gentilechur ches of Christ, from their own member s, to be sent by these churches via their messengers (II Cor. 8:18-24) to Jerusalem for the poor saints there.

B. "THE SAINTS" verse 12: "Saints" are, of course, those who are in Christ's body, the church. Eph. 5:23-27.

1. Is Paul speaking, in regard to this particular "ministra

tion", of the saints in general, or of a particular groupof saints? We have learned that they wer e saints in aparticular place, but note further: Acts 24:17 "Now after some years I came to bring alms to my nation,and offerings"; they were, then, Jewish saints (of "mynation"); Rom. 15:26 "for the poor among the saints"; they were destitute saints; and "that are at Jerusalem"; they were the destitute Jewish saints at Jerusalem. .___

  1. "THEY" and "THEM" (verse 13): Who were the theyand them? These were the ones to receive the contribution, to be benefited by it, and upon whom Paulhoped it would r esult in the joyous and happy effectof bringing the Jewish and Gentile saints closer together in spirit (Romans 15:30-32; II Cor. 9:12-14).Thus, the "they" and "them" wer e the "saints" in want in Jerusalem.
  2. "THEM" and "ALL":

Since the apostle made a distinction between "them"and "all", we want to know who the "ALL" refers to. We have learned definitely who the "they" and "them" refer to— they were not all the saints in general but the destitute saints in Jer usalem. Thus Paul was NOT making the distinction between "saints in general" and "all men— alien sinners".

The word "all" is an adjective and demands here an antecedent, and if it is not specifically stated it must be implied in the context. The word "men" might binserted, as was done in the King James translation, but that does not enlighten us on it because we know that Paul was speaking of MEN— not ANIMALS! We are interested in what CLASS of men, in whether the "all" are saints or alien sinners. A man who says that the "all men" were alien sinners must merely ASSUME that it refers to them, and this he cannot prove. There is nothing in any context of all the references to this particular mi ion which would remotely indicate thathe "all" were alien sinners. On the other hand, all that was written, by Paul or by Luke, in every contexdealing with this mi ion, shows that the relationshipunder consideration was the church's relationshiptoward responsibility toward needy saints, whether in the home locality or elsewhere.

When one takes all that is written on this particular subject, the antecedent of the "ALL" is not onlyimplied in the various passages but must be concluded to be "saints".

Thus Paul was not making a distinction between the needy "saints at Jer usalem" and "alien sinners" but made the distinction between the "poor saints in Jerusalem" and "saints in general". After all, saints are still ME N just as alien sinner s ar e men.

Thus far we have learned that many Gentile churches were making up their own collection of funds to send to Jerusalem, via their own messengers, for the poor saints there. Paul, in speaking of its results, made a distinction between the "them" and "all"— between the poor saints in Jerusalem and saints in general. There is nothing whatever so far to indicate that the apostle even had alien sinner s in mind. We shall discuss further the factors motivating them in making up this contribution and the results Paul said it would produce to see if it could apply to alien sinners.

(To be concluded in next issue)

EXODUS

Continuing our study of God's gr eat song of r edemption

we now note the great theme of the book of Exodus. Many

times we have heard about the going out of Egypt by the

Israelites, their journeying, the law given and so much about

the unfaithfulness of these Hebrews and, my friend, all of

which is ver y good, but to me, it seems the r eal keynote in

the book of Exodus to harmonize with the note of Revelation

in our study of this book is the Passover .

Christ is our pa over. It was the blood of the innocent on the door post and door lintel that pr otected the fir st born of man and beast from death. It is the blood of our Saviour that saves every responsible person from sin. Of course the firstborn could not start the journey apart from the blood. He would not have been alive to journey. When we start our walk as a Child of God we must contact the blood of Christ. This we do by getting where the blood was shed. In John 19 we find the blood was shed in his death. In Romans 6 we learn that we are baptized into his death. When we start this journey to the pr omised land ther e is a line of separation as there was for the Israelites at the Red Sea. There is a time of trial and preparation before we can enter into this rest. The children of Israel had their trials and temptations in the wilderness wandering. They did not, in the main, pr epar e themselves for this countr y for which they yearned, and many of them fell in the wilderness. Many in the church will not hold not faithful and their faith is not gr ounded in God's wor d, so, they will not r each the heaven of rest.

As the Israelites were guided by the pillar of fire by nightand the cloud by day we, too, are guided by Christ. As theydrank of that rock that followed them and the rock was Christ, so says Paul in I Cor. 10. Did it ever occur that on one occasion Moses was to speak to the r ock and another time to strike the r ock? Would it not seem a small thing tohave one's hopes of heaven sacrificed for such a small act of disobedience? When God told Moses to strike the r ock he used a different word for rock than when he told him to speak to the rock. The word for rock, (we are told by Hebrew scholars) when commanded to strike the rock was a low,embedded rock; possibly Christ in his humiliation. The word for rock when told to speak to the rock was a high, towering rock; po ibly looking to the High Priesthood of Christ. It was a death penalty to strike the High Priest.

Think of the tabernacle and the chur ch as we study thbook of Exodus. Think of the wandering, the unfaithfulne , the blood of animals and see in this a wonderful pointing toof the complete r evelation and the consummating of God's song of redemption and his scheme of redemption sowonderfully harmonized. Can you not see in this book Christ the complete expression of His will to us?

QUESTION: On Pentecost (Acts 2) were the one hundred twenty (Acts 1:15) or only the twelve apostles baptized with the Holy Ghost? -H. H.

ANSWER: Only the twelve apostles were baptized on Pentecost with the Holy Ghost.

The difficulty in answering this question grows out of trying to determine the antecedent of "they" in verse four: "And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." It is evident from the context that the "they" of verse four is the same "they" of verses one, two, and three. Some think the antecedent is the "apostles" in the last verse of the precedingchapter. Others think it is the one hundred twenty of Acts

1:15. The rule of grammar demands that ordinarily anypronoun must have for its antecedent the noun in agr eement with it that immediately pr ecedes it. If this r ule be applied our answer would have to be the "apostles" of Acts 1:26. However, ther e ar e exceptions to this r ule, e.g.,if there be an elliptical statement or an understood subject.The controversy then is over whether or not the one hundr ed twenty be the under stood subject. In view of this controversy the general rule of grammar of itself hardly settles the question beyond all doubt. There are some things, however, about which we may be certain which do identifythe understood subject with certainty.

While other s wer e pr esent (Lk. 24:33) when Jesus gavethe command to "tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until yebe endued with power from on high" (Lk. 24:49), nevertheless, Acts 1:1-5 shows that it was directed to the apostles so far as the reception of the promise is concerned. This accor ds with the pr omise Jesus gave to the apostles(Lk. 22:14) as recorded in John 14:26; 15:26,27; 16:7-13.

Verse four of Acts two shows that all of those "filled with the Holy Ghost . . . began to speak with other tongues asthe Spirit gave them utterance." Verse seven shows that all of those thus speaking were Galileans. Acts 1:11 shows that the apostles were Galileans. This could hardly be so of theone hundred twenty.

Some of the multitude accused "these men" (those doingthe speaking) of being full of new wine. Peter denied it onbehalf of himself and the eleven (Acts 2:13-15). There was no denial on behalf of the one hundr ed twenty — not even on part of the women who were part of the one hundred twenty.

Again, in Acts 2:37 we learn that when "they were pricked in their heart," they ask "Peter and the rest of the apostles" what to do. This implies that only the apostles were qualifiedto give the inspir ed answer .

From these considerations it is evident that only theapostles wer e pr omised the Holy Ghost at this time in this measure; that only the apostles spake as the Spirit gave them utterance; that only the apostles were all Galileans; that onlythe apostles caused the amazement by speaking in tongues;that only the apostles were accused of being drunk, and thatonly the apostles were qualified to give the inspired answer.

Therefore, the understood subject of the pronoun "they" must be only the apostles. Hence, only the apostles wer e baptized with the Holy Ghost on Pentecost.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN TAMPA

Everett C. Mann, Tampa, Florida

This article concerns the recent establishment of two congregations in Tampa by liberal brethren, known as the Manhattan church of Christ and the Florida Avenue church of Christ. It is the intention of the writer to set forth the actual circumstances concerning the establishment of these two churches and to inform interested brethren everywhere of the true natur e of these gr oups. Since these gr oups ar e advertising themselves as churches of Christ in the localnewspapers and the Gospel Advocate, and since we honestly believe that many people ar e being misled thr ough theefforts of these groups, we feel that it is necessary to set forth the things that actually tr anspir ed.

It is not the purpose of the writer to impugn the sincerity or integrity of any person who has had a part in the establishment of these congr egations or who has become connected with them since their establishment. We are not concerned with the intent or purpose of those who have had a part in this wor k as each man shall be judged by God and only He and the "spirit of the man, which is in him" know the things of a man that ar e contained in his heart, but we are deeply concerned as to what has been done and the result to the body of Christ.

The i ues in the brotherhood over benevolent work are not new in the Tampa area and no effort is made here to hide the fact that ther e wer e people in some of the congr egations in this area who leaned toward the liberal view of benevolent work or who openly advocated such. However, there was no open division in any church in Tampa and each congregation was trying "to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace"

The i ues in the brotherhood over benevolent work had divided congregations all over the country and had reached even to nearby Winter Haven. In early 1960, N. B. Hardeman came to Bartow, Florida and preached his views of thechurch supporting both the organized orphan home ancolleges operated by brethren. He aroused the zeal of someliberal brethren and preachers in Polk County which eventually resulted in a group of brethren in Winter Haven who did notbelieve in the support of organized orphan homes from the church treasury beginning to meet and forming a congregation. With these brethren it was a matter of FAITH, and they were compelled either to support this view of work being done out of the treasury, in which thedid not believe, or in separating themselves and starting a new work. Liberal brethren say that it is a matter of expediency as to whether or not a congregation supports orphans bycontributing to them in a direct manner or whether it can be done through a human arrangement such as the orphanhomes. Conservative brethren do not consider it a matter of expediency, but a matter of faith. Since liberal brethren say it is a matter of expediency, they have no right to br eak thefellowship and unity of the body and divide over how to do this work. Paul's example in I Cor. 8:1-13 over a matter of expediency shows that the law of love demands that those who consider it a matter of expediency not create division over that which can be done in another way. Since eachcongregation should take care of its own orphans and needy, directly from its treasury, there is no excuse for those who want the church to do this by contributing to benevolent or ganizations, who thenprovide the facilities for taking care of the needy On thother hand, those who have deep convictions concerning this, and consider it a matter of faith, have every right and are commanded by the teaching of Christ not to engage in thatin which they do not believe (Rom 14 23)

When the group began meeting in Winter Haven and announced a "Gospel Meeting" to be held by Glenn Sheumaker, preacher at the Northside congregation in Lakeland, Gentry Stults, who preaches for the South Florida Avenuecongr egation in Lakeland, made the following statement in his bulletin bearing the date of Januar y 15, 1961

Note of Warning

The faction in Winter Haven, meeting on HavendalBlvd , is announcing and encouraging faithful brethren to attend a "gospel meeting" beginning today It is advertised that Glenn Sheumaker, minister of this cityis to be the meeting pr eacher

This Havendale group was marked as a faction by the elders of the church in Winter Haven at morningwor ship ser vices, Januar y 1, 1961 FAIT HFUL brethren will not support, encourage or assist factious brethren in any respect To do so would be to become partakers in then evil works (II John 10

Only a few of these brethren will preach their divisive doctrines at home and fewer still will put their "doctrines" in writing so that the average member of their congregation can understand and draw his own conclusions One reason is that there is division amon"the divisives" or "antis".

Factionism begins in an undercover, underhanded, "termitic" (from termite) sort of way by factious brethren, usually preachers who are seeking some kind of pre-eminence It results in the division of the church of our Lord, which is so contrary to His prayer for unity recorded in John 17 After this division has been accomplished, the faction seeks to mar k itself as the "true chur ch" and set all other s at nought God is not deceived, neither are thinking Christians

This "note of Warning" is in keeping with thecommand and spirit of Romans 16 17-18

"Now I beseech you, br ethr en, mark them that ar e causing the divisions and occasions of stumbling, contrary to the doctrine which ye learned and turn awayfrom them For they that are such serve not our Lord, Christ, but their own belly, and by their smooth andfair speech they beguile the hearts of the innocent"

/s/ Gentr y M Stults

You will note that brother Stults says that this group wasmarked as a faction by the elders at Winter Haven, but does not say WHY He does not set forth the "divisive doctrines" of these brethren, but rather charges that they will not preach them at home or put them in writing What are the terrible and divisive doctrines? The Bible teaches that it is unlawful to charge brethren with teaching false doctrine or doing eviwithout clearly setting forth the nature of their evil teachingand practice (See Acts 24 20) The "evil doctrine" thatthese brethren believe and teach is that the New T estament is the fully revealed will of Jesus Christ, and that the commands, examples and necessary inferences thereof are sufficient to guide us in every undertaking, and that we must have scriptural authority by one of these three methods to do any wor k the New T estament teaches

We shall not follow the pattern of brother Stults in charging brethren with evil and then fail to set forth the nature of the charge, but we shall clearly describe the evil committed by these br ethren in the establishment of the two mentioned congr egations her e in T ampa

Brother Stults clearly described the nature of factionism as "termitic" and "underhanded" This is exactly the wathe two "liber al" congr egations began in T ampa In the summer of 1961 a number of the brethren who were instrumental in the establishment of these two congregations removed their membership from various congregations in Tampa to the Pinellas Park congregation and the Northside congregation in St Petersburg Soon these brethren gotogether in a "secret" meeting in Tampa and planned tostart one new congregation with the "liberal" view Others instrumental in this work were still attending the congregations in Tampa of which they were members, and"secretly" meeting to plan this new work Soon these br ethren also withdr ew their member ship and moved tPinellas Park, Northside in St Petersburg, or Mango, east of Tampa

That this had been planned a long time is evidenced by

J. E. Whigham's "report" to the Gospel Advocate,printed in the December 21st i ue of that paper, in which he termed their first meeting on December 3rd of last year "the first fruits of a long planned and prayerfully considered move-ment to set in order a congregation free of the contentious i ues relating to benevolence " During the formation period these people wor ked diligently contactinpeople by phone and other unobtrusive -means and trying to interest them in joining them You will note that these peopledid not meet with any of the more than 16 faithful congregations in Tampa, nor did they at any time announctheir intentions publicly When they finally began meeting on December 3rd, 1961 there was evidently some disagreement and another congregation began forming on the same basis This one began meeting early in January, 1962 I do not believe all of the people who have placed their membership with these congregations understand the "issues" involved I personally talked for hours with those who left the Henderson Blvd congregation, who permitted me to do so, in an effort to get them to r econsider and not divide the body of Christ here over something that they believed could be done either way I know that there is a great deal of division among them as to what organizations can be supported by the church treasury Some believe that the church cancontribute to the orphan home, colleges, Gospel Press, Herald of Truth and most anything the elders approve Others believe that the church can contribute only to theorphan home Still other believe that the church can contribute to the or phan home and the college but not tothe Gospel Pr ess

It is my firm conviction that these brethren did evil individing the body of Christ to form these two congregations and we list specifically below the charges

1 They created division in the various congregations of which they were members by breaking the fellowship of God's people over a matter which they consider a matter of expediency (See I Cor. 8:13) They violatedPaul's law of love stated therein and sinned against Christ by dividing his bod

2 They formed themselves together for the purpose of teaching and practicing works which are the result of the wisdom of men and not taught in the revealed will of Christ This was done in opposition to the teach-ingand influence of the elder s and leader ship of the congr egations they lef

3 They have set all those at nought who are opposed to them and consider the chinches in Tampa who do not believe in the support of human institutions as "unfaithful" churches This is evidenced by their departure fr om these chur ches and their attendance at chur ches

in Pinellas Par k, St Peter sbur g and Mango who wer e in

sympathy with them

It is my sincere desire and motive that the people in thchur ches who have given aid and comfort to these two groups be made aware of the facts concerning their estabhshment The South Florida Avenue congregation ofLakeland, Florida, where I spent nearly five years in pleasant and I hope pr ofitable wor k, has given advice anfinancial support to the Manhattan group, meeting isouthwest Tampa. According to the words of their own preacher in the bulletin quoted herein they have becomepartakers in this evil endeavor by their support They havebeen supplying James W. Jordan of Plant City to preach for them, who, while an elder at Plant City, would notallow any pr eacher to discuss the "i ues", and yet he has come to preach for a group started over the "i ues" I feel sur e that many of the people in the South Florida Avenuecongr egation do not know what is going on of that thegroup they are assisting in Tampa is a faction and not infellowship with any congregation in Tampa, except thother factious group meeting at the Miles School in North Tampa

It is my sincere hope and prayer that the information contamed in this account will enable those who love the tr uth and the unity and harmony of God's people to determine their course of action concerning these factious groups It is also my hope and prayer that many who have joined these two groups will turn back in repentance over the division of God's people and seek with us to "wor k out our salvation" and the Bible solution to these and all other "i ues" or "problems" by abiding in the teaching of Jesus Christ asrevealed in the New T estament

THE CHURCH BUILDING

Curtis E. Flatt, Florence, Alabama

Practically all churches of Christ have church buildings There is much emphasis placed on church buildings in this generation. Pictures of new buildings occupy prominent places in the papers published by our brethren When a new chur ch is begun, one of the fir st things to be done is to build a building Often plans for a new building are already inthe making by the time the fir st one is paid for Right orwrong, this seems to be the way of the day

IS THERE BIBLE AUTHORITY FOR A

CHURCH BUILDING?

Dining the past sever al year s ver y little has been said in our writings about the authority for such buildings. So far as I can recall, very little restraint has been suggestedexcept to occasionally warn against being extravagant or to warn against wor shipping the building However, towardthe close of the last decade some brethren began to speak and to write as though the) think we do not have to have Bible authority for chinch buildings These brethren are quick tosay they think it is all light to have such buildings But they raise the subject of authority in a vain effort to give somejustification for the existence of then institutions which thehave already created to do the work of the church Theyhope to leave the impression that we have some thingwithout authority and we can have these too If there is no authority for chur ch buildings, then lack of authority condemns them just like lack of authority condemns these br otherhood institutions. It looks like anyone couldsee that The amazing thing about this is that when our denominational friends told us that they could have the mechanicalinstrument in their worship on the same ground that wecould have church buildings in which to worship, these same brethren were quick to point out -that one was without authority and the other was with authority But is ther e authority for a church to have a building in which to meetfor worship? I am glad to say there is such authority Yowill not find it in the form of a command, but you wilfind it In Hebr ews 10 25 and also in I Corinthians 11 yowill find the necessity of assembling. That gives authorityfor a place Any suitable or adequate place will do Weknow that we can't assemble without a place It appears that the Jerusalem Church met in the temple In Colo ians 4 15 we find Paul sending gr eetings to Nymphas and the chur ch which was in his house In Romans 6 5 we find that a church met in the house of Aquilla and Priscilla. InActs 20:8 we find the chur ch in Tr oas made arr angements to meet in an upper room There is a place involved in thcommand I know that Christ did not say "build a house in which to worship " I am glad he did not say that, for then it would be necessar y to have a house built befor e we could worship and nothing else could be used Christ gave theperfect law of liberty It is adaptable to the needs of allWhen he gave the command for the church to come together, he also gave the authority for the church to provide a place to meet This is fundamental and we have under stood it through the years Our brethren need to show authority of some kind for their institutions instead of making gr eat pr oblems gr eater by casting doubts on pr actices that can beestablished by the wor d of God

FOR WHAT SHOULD THE CHURCH BUILDING BE USED?

It is also needful to give some consider ation as to theproper use of the church building Some people say thchurch building is sacred and that should determine its use However, I doubt that many people ar e of that per suasion We know the use of the building would be determined if the building wer e sacr ed However most people who objectto the way many chur ches use their buildings, do not do so on the basis of the church building being sacred The use of the building must be determined by considering the purpose for which it was built It is a misapplication otruth and right to build it for one purpose and justify its existence on that ground and then use it as we please There is no way to justify the use of a church building for political purposes or for community projects or for entertainment purposes When we object to such misuses, let it be understood clearly that we do not object to thingathering, to the eating, or to the drinking that is incidental to and necessary for the performance of the required service But I know we can see a difference between these things and the pr actices of many who conduct secular education classes, who have non-religious services, and who eat and drink in an assembly which has gathered together under church direction for purely social and entertaining purposesMaking fun of a water fountain or a blackboard or a baby's bottle and comparing such things to many practices of the day may satisfy a number of people, but it will not satisfypeople who want to go by the Bible People can make fun of and ridicule conscientious Christians who object to such abuses all they choose, but such ridicule does not producthe authority for the church to provide a building for these misuses

Let us build good buildings in keeping with our needs Let us equip them with the things which are incidental to andnecessary for the performance of the required service Then let us use them for the purposes by which we justify their existence

ORIGINAL SIN

Let me call the r eader s' attention to the thr ee psalms that are used repeatedly by the preachers of the Baptist Church, The Church of God, and others to prove the doctrine of the inborn sin. The first is Psalm 58:3 where the psalmist said, "The wicked are estranged from the womb; they goastray as soon as they be born, speaking lies." Let us continue and read verses four, five, six and seven that we may understand fully whom the psalmist is talking about in this connection. Beginning in verse four he said:

"Their poison is like the poison of a serpent; they are like the deaf adder that stoppeth her ear; Which will not hear ken to the voice of charmer s, charming never so wisely. Break their teeth, O God, in their mouth:break out the great teeth of the young lions, O LORD. Let them melt away as waters which run continually: When he bendeth his bow to shoot his arrows, let them be as cut in pieces."

Anyone who is fair with this reading will see that David did not say that the wicked are born from the womb estranged. He said they go astray as soon as they are born. They are old enough to reach the age of accountability, andinstead or remembering their Creator, they go astray. Then, he tells that when they go astray the poison of adders is in their lips and they are like the dead adder which stoppeth their ear; and no matter how wise or how cunning the snake charmer may be he cannot play music or charm the deaf adder that is not willing to hear. 'Then in verse six he said "break their teeth, O God" and certainly he is not talking here about infants who have just come from the mother's womb. "Break their teeth, O God, in their mouth" and illustrates what he means by saying break out the great teeth of the young lion, O Lord. Here is the young lion who is now old enough to seek its own prey but instead of following the laws of nature turns into a ravishing killer and that David said is the condition of those that go astray. They are not born astray but they go astray. He said let them melt away as waters which run continually. Then when he bendeth his bow to shoot his arrows let them be cut in pieces, and certainly the psalmist had no idea of cutting the little baby intopieces, neither does this ver se teach anything of the kind.Psalms 58:3 teaches that they go astray from the word and that they ar e old enough to go, that they ar e old enough to stop their ear s like the deaf adder, they have teeth and like the young lion that turns into a killer instead of following the laws of natur e they become wicked by their own conduct and by their actions. The preachers of this false doctrine will have to look for some text other than Psalms 58:3 to pr ove their contention.

PSALMS 53:2-3

They turn usually from Psalms 58:3 to Psalms 53:2-3 and David has this to say: "God looked down fr om heaven upon the childr en of men, to see if ther e wer e any that did under stand, that did seek God. Every one of them is gone back; they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one."

If you will read again these verses, you will see that he does not say that was their condition at birth. He looked downupon the children of men to see if there were any that hadunderstanding; they were old enough that they should understand. He looked down to see if there were any thatsought for God. They were old enough that they ought tohave known and understood about their Creator. Then he said everyone of them is called back, they were old enough to go back and when they went back that is when they became altogether filthy. They wer e not born filthy; they went back and became filthy. Their interpretations of the psalm wouldindicate that this was true and could not in any sense pr ove the doctrine of the inborn sin. They were not born sinners; they went back, and when they went back they became filthyand then the psalmist said in the State of Isr ael of old ther e is none that doeth good, no not one.

PSALM 51:5

The third psalm usually used by Baptist and Church of God" preachers in their contention for the inborn sin is Psalms 51:5 wher e David is talking of his conception and the sinful conception on the part of his mother. He said in ver se, five, "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sindid my mother conceive me." He does not say he was born a sinner. He does not say he came from his mother's womb as a sinner, he said he was conceived in sin. The act of conception and the act of birth are two entirely different things. He is talking about the desperate conditions of his mother at the time that he was conceived in the sense that he was conceived in sin. Certainly such does not prove that he was a sinner or was born in sin but rather that his conception took place in sin.

Hamartano, "I Sin," - No. 15

The second primary denotation of hamartia in the New T estament is "the act of sin," "the deed itself."

It may be noted that when hamartia is so used, it is often used generically without reference to specific forms of sin.This is always the meaning of the noun in the SynopticGospels except in Matt. 12:31. In Acts hamartia always means the act of sin in general, with no reference to specific sins, except in 7:60. Further, the term is always used in the plural in the Synoptic Gospels and Acts in the passages just noted: Matt. 12:31 and Acts 7:60.

Hamartia in the generic sense meaning "act of sin" may be seen in representative passages from the Synoptic Gospels. "And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins (hamartion)." ( Matt. 1:21. Cf. also 9:2; 3:6; 9:5, etc.)

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". . . THEY REHEARSED ALL THAT GOD HAD DONE WITH THEM . . ."— Acts 14:27

The Spring and Blane congregation in St. Louis, Mo.sending a large contribution to Hugh Tinsley in North Ireland. Tinsley's address, 34 Sarajac Crescent, CavehillRoad, Bel-fast 14, North Ireland. He has lost the greater part of his support in the work there . . . Foy Short long timemi ionary to Southern Rhodesia speaking in the south in theinterest of his work. The following letter from Bennie Lee Fudge tells of hisneed.

Foy Short is a faithful gospel preacher. He is responsible directly or indirectly for the establishment of all five congregations among the white people of Southern Rhodesia. He tells me that he is confident that those who have been in the chur ch any length of time ar e well gr ounded on the i ues of institutionalism and unscriptural cooperative arrangements.

Foy has just closed a meeting at Eastside in Athens, wher e Sam Binkley pr eaches (Doyle Banta was ther e before Sam), and did some excellent preaching

We must raise $2,000 to send Foy and his family backto their field of labor. (This is his second trip home in14 years). Time is short, as they must leave the latter part of March. Please do what you can to secure a good contribution from the chur ch towar d this travel fund. Make the check to H. F. Short and mail to H. F. Short, Box 858, Athens, Alabama. He will acknowledge allcontributions. My per sonal thanks in advance for anyhelp you br ethren may send.

Yours in the Fellowship of the Gospel,/s/ B. L. Fudge

David Bradford now the preacher for the Westvue church in Murfreesboro, Tenn. He takes Richard Weaver's placewhen Weaver moved to Cullman, Ala. . . . New congregation started at Chapel Hill, Tenn. meeting in the OldLavender building while a new building is being constructed. Frank Coffield is the preacher. Coffield was formerly a member of the Hickory Heights church in Lewisburg, Tenn. where Brooks Webb labors . . . Robert H. Williams speaker in a February meeting at Shivley near Louisville . . . Gene Tope working in Krugersdrop, SoutAfrica reports his first two baptisms in that city of about80,000. His address is Gene Tope, P. O. Box 519 .. . Roger

M. Hendricks of Harlingen, Texas preaching in a meetinwith the Northside church in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. This congregation meets at 912 N.W. 19th Street . . . Plans for the Wendell Avenue congregation in Louisville, Kentucky where Grover Stevens pr eaches call for $365.00 each week,evidence of gr owth.

James P. Miller co-editor of SEARCHING THE SCRIPTURES will speak in a meeting with the Hickory Heights church in Lewisburg, Tenn. April 1-8. Brooks Webb is the preacher for this fine congregation. Miller will also be the speaker from April 8 at the eveningser vice through the 13 at the E astland congr egation inNashville, Tenn. Rufus Clifford is the well known and faithful preacher there. All readers of the paper are ur ged to attend these meetings.

Roy E. Cogdill working in a meting at Bradenton, Florida with Oaks Gowin, March 4-11. Cogdill is without question one of the greatest living preachers . . . January 21-26 was the time of a series at Central in Louisville with the following speakers, Ben Shropshire, David Claypool, Grover Stevens,Don Townsley, A. C. Grider, A. Guillermo and Keith Burnette . . . Robert Jackson in a meeting with the Franklin Road church in Nashville beginning March 25th . . . Paul Ball now working with the church at Grady, Arkansas reports increase in interest and attendance . . . Thomas G. O'Neal preaching for the McArthur Heights congregation in Parrish, Alabama just outside of Jasper publishing an attractive bulletin called Walking in Truth . . . Recent series of sermons at Arch Street in Little Rock featured the following speakers, Paul C. Keller, Eugene Britnell, Louis J. Sharpe, Kent Harrell, Tommy McClure, Hayden Mahan, Dudley Spears, Jerry Westbrook and Yater Tant. Arch Street congregation meets at 1506.

Ward Hogland, Box 166, Greenville, Texas — My meetings for '62 will begin with the following find pr eacher s and churches: B. J. Thomas, Haynesville, La.; O. J. Swinney,Walnut Street, Hope, Arkansas; Robert A. Bolton, Southside, Mt. Pleasant, Texas; Eugene Britnell, Arch Street, Little Rock, Arkansas; James P. Miller, Seminole, Tampa, Florida. I will also be with James W. Adams and the 10th and Francis church in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma during their lecture program in June. I will speak on the "Organization of thechurch." Robert Jackson of Nashville, Tennessee will preach in a summer meeting here at Walnut Street.

Glenn L. Shaver has resigned his work in Denton, Texas, effective the last of June this year. Earl Dale of Harlingen,Texas has been asked to take his place. He reports that he has not yet made plans after June, and has some time opefor meetings.

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"Why do people get so upset over the theory of organicevolution? After all it is just an attempt to explain ourbeginning upon the earth. It is just a harmless attempt to answer questions heretofore unanswered." This is the attitude of many today. They do not know the fulextent of such a theory nor do they realize that many overzealous individuals teach this, not as theory, but as a proven and accepted fact. Those who are unconcerned do not realize the ramifications of such a theory. Those who attempt tgain individual support and acceptance of Communism do not teach all that this philosophy includes. T o do so would turn even the most gullible individuals away from this doctrine. The evolutionist also holds back some of the obvious conclusions that must be accepted if this theor y is acceptedThose who accept this theor y must deny the existence, power, presence and truthfulness of Jehovah. They are forced to deny the existence of the soul of mankind.

After all; man did not arise according to the Bible account but as a result of progressive evolution from some lower form of life. This being true, man could not have been cr eated in the image of God nor could he be any differ ent fr om thelower forms from which he evolved! With just a littlequestioning we can see where the "harmless" theory takesus if we are willing to go along. To deny God's part in the creation of man is to deny the Bible as the revelation of God and His work. This "harmless theory" is no more compatible with truth than light with darkne . There have been scoffers of truth during all ages (Peter 3:1-8), butther e ar e always those who have held fast to the tr uth. There are such individuals even today. These, even in themidst of scoffers, shall stand.