|
Introduction:
Before leaving town for my meeting in Arkansas, I had
received three questions. I believe we will have time to deal with
each of these questions during one session. However, these three
questions are completely different. We are going to roam from
ancient history to modern issues and from the ethereal realms of
the spiritual world to the practical hands-on application of
scriptural authority. Discussion: I.
Is the devil an omni-present being? If not, how does evil
seem to be everywhere? A.
Before answering this question we must first understand
that any time we start speaking in infinite terms like
“omni-present,” we finite people are going to run into
roadblocks of understanding. Second, since the scripture was not
written to explain every aspect of the spiritual realm, but rather
to explain how we may be saved, we should expect to find gaps in
our ability to answer these questions. B.
Matthew
25:41
says that the devil and his angels will be confined into the
everlasting fire just as those among us who are not faithful to
the Lord will be. If the devil were omni-present, or present
everywhere, then his presence could not be confined into the
everlasting fire. The devil must not be omni-present. What are the
exact limitations on his presence? I do not know. C.
Then how does evil seem to be everywhere? Matthew
25:41 demonstrates part of the answer. In some way, the devil
has angels or messengers. His work of evil influence will be
partly conducted through them. Additionally, Genesis
3 helps answer this question. The devil was present in the
form of a serpent and personally tempted Eve to eat the fruit.
However, it was the influence of the devil through Eve that
tempted Adam in Genesis 3:6.
The devil did not have to be actually present for the temptation
to take place or sin to occur. Once that first sin occurred a
domino effect of sinful influence began, which has permeated our
entire world. II.
Would it be wrong for a group of Christians to gather their
own money and build a pavilion on the back of the property here
since the money was gathered separately from the contribution? A.
This question came as a result of my sermon a few weeks
ago, in which we learned that a local congregation needs to
recognize the difference between the spiritual work which God has
assigned to local congregations and the social, secular work which
individuals can perform separate from the function of the church.
We learned this from the example of Acts
2:46-47, where the church met daily in the temple, but
individuals met in their own homes to do social things. We also
noted I Corinthians 11:20-34, in which Paul rebuked the church because it
was not eating the Lord’s Supper when it gathered together, but
had turned the Lord’s Supper into a common feast in which some
were going hungry and others were being greedy. Paul’s answer to
the situation was to come together to eat the Lord’s Supper, but
if you want the secular, social function of fulfilling
hunger—eat at home. B.
So, what about our question? Can a group of Christians pool
their own money and build a pavilion onto the back of this
property? The question betrays the answer. Whose property is it?
It is the property of the church, purchased to conduct the work of
the church. While the collection of funds for the building may
indeed be done separate from the church’s treasury, you cannot
separate this pavilion from the work of the church if you are
going to put it on the church’s property. What did Paul say?
“Eat at home.” Put the pavilion on your own personal property,
not the church’s. C.
Let’s go a step further. Could a group of Christians pool
their money to build some sort of park or pavilion to allow
Christians to get together? Of course they could. However, let me
warn you of the slippery slope you will have just entered. Once
this group of Christians purchases this property and pavilion, who
really owns it? Who governs how it can be used? Will others be
able to use it? Who decides? Who gets precedence in its use? Who
will keep it up? How will it be passed down from generation to
generation? Who gets to decide to sell it? If one person in the
group moves, will the others have to buy out their share?
Typically, this scenario is entered in by people who want to try
to abide by the letter of the law, as they see it. But what they
have actually done is bought something they always intended to be
the church’s property and run by the church. They simply
established a second treasury, trying to claim it was not really
the church’s treasury. However, even when this venture is
entered innocently, it inevitably leads to trouble that in the
best case scenario will lead to hurt feelings among brethren. But
in the worst case scenario will get the church wrapped up in work
which distracts it from its spiritual mission of saving souls and
involve it in the entertainment and recreation business. III.
How do dinosaurs and prehistoric man fit in with the Bible?
A.
At the outset, let me say that I cannot go very deeply into
this subject. For the very simple reason is that it takes me out
of my area of expertise and into someone else’s. Perhaps someday
we could invite brethren such as Don Patton or Buddy Payne to
conduct a series that could go much more deeply into these issues
than I can. B.
But on the surface let me point out three things in regard
to the issues of prehistoric men, dinosaurs and the Bible. 1.
Despite what our evolutionist friends tell us, there is
increasing evidence that dinosaurs and men roamed the earth
together. In Texas, a footprint trail has been uncovered that not
only show dinosaur footprints in the same layer as human
footprints, but actually has a human footprint embedded in a
dinosaur footprint. That can only happen if the dinosaur and the
human crossed paths in a matter days, but more likely minutes.
Additionally, in South and Central America, figurines and drawings
of dinosaurs have been discovered that predate our scientific
discovery of dinosaurs. For more information go to www.bible.ca
and follow the links about dinosaurs and humans. 2.
The Bible actually contains what I believe to be a pretty
good description of a dinosaur. In Job
40:15-24, we do not have a description of any animal that
lives on our planet today. But it is a pretty good description of
a brontosaurus. Dinosaurs fit in the Bible the same way every
other extinct animal does. God created them. They existed on this
earth. Man probably steered clear of the dangerous ones. At some
point, they became extinct. What caused that? Who knows, the Bible
does not say. But then how many animals have become extinct for
which the Bible offers no explanation. 3.
Finally, regarding how prehistoric man fits in with the
Bible. Prehistoric men, as described by the scientific evolution
crowd, do not fit in with the Bible at all. Their claim that they
have found fossils of early manlike life forms that preceded homo
sapiens is really quite bogus. Have they found fossils? Certainly.
But is their explanation correct? That is highly debatable. They
have found fossils of men and they have found fossils of animals.
But that is it. These supposed scientists will find one small
section of a skull and then draw a whole “man” based on it. Is
that really a prehistoric man? Absolutely not. Look around you at
the different shape heads that are just in this auditorium. If
they found a fossil of our heads down the line, might they think
it was some kind of prehistoric man? Keep in mind, even the
scientists are still looking for the “missing link.” Despite
all their searching, by their own admission, they have not found
any real evidence that links any other animal life to men on an
evolutionary scale. I will paraphrase one friend of mine, “In
the fossil realm there are some good men and some good apes and a
lot of nonsense in between.” C.
Rest assured—science has yet to discover anything that
repudiates the Bible story of our world. The only thing science
has that denies the Bible is the scientists’ preconceived
notions that nothing exists greater than them. But one day they
will all become believers. There will be no atheists on judgment
day. Conclusion: Speaking of the judgment day, are you ready for it? On the day of Pentecost, nearly 2000 years ago some people asked a very important question when they realized they had crucified the Messiah. “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” Peter’s clear answer continues on today in Acts 2:38, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins.” Have you done that? If not, why not right now?
Glory
to God in the church by Christ Jesus
|
||||||||||
