by Hoyt H. Houchen

There are different kinds of premillennialists, but whether they be historic or dispensational in their views, all of them agree that after the second coming of Christ, He will reign upon this earth for one thousand years before the final judgment. This teaching must not be regarded as harmless and merely speculative. It is a system of error and must therefore be dealt with accordingly. As other writers in this special series will be dealing with the doctrine itself, this treatise will be more concerned with its logical consequences.

The Scriptures teach that the church was built by Jesus Christ (Matthew 16:18), was purchased by His precious blood (Acts 20:28), is revealed in the New Testament and originated in the mind of God. It was eternally purposed by God (Ephesians 3:11) and designed to be a part of God's redemptive plan for man (Ephesians 5:23). A distinguishing phase of premillennialism, however, is the view that the establishment of the church was not prophesied in the Old Testament. The idea is that the kingdom was foretold by Old Testament prophets and was announced by John the Baptist and by Christ, but because the Jews rejected Christ (the Messiah) it was postponed and the church was devised to serve as a substitute or contingent. The period in which we are now living is "the church age," and is to continue until Christ comes again. Then there will follow the establishment of the old Jewish kingdom, at which time Jesus will occupy the literal throne of David in Jerusalem where He will reign for one thousand years. During this millennium the temple will be rebuilt, and even the Levitical sacrifices of the Old Testament will be re-established. This is the general structure of the premillennial view, and their distinction between the kingdom and the church is clear.
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The Battle of Armageddon

By Kyle Campbell

It seems that every time the country has a recession, premillennial speculations go on the upswing. The opposite is true for periods of prosperity: premillennial speculations decrease. When these speculations begin to circulate, people want to connect biblical events to events in the Middle East. I have heard it said that whenever someone sneezes in the Middle East, someone in America thinks it is the end of the world!

One of the events we have heard the most about is the battle of Armageddon. Revelation 16:16 says, “And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.” This is supposedly the one final battle after the seven year tribulation period and before Christ sets up His earthly throne in Jerusalem to rule for one thousand years. Most premillennial theories revolve around two major events in Revelation: the battle of Armageddon in chapter 16 and the millennium in chapter 20.

In Hebrew, Har-Magedon literally means “Mount Megedon” or “Megiddo.” The figure is based on...
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I Don't Know If I Can Make It

by Chris Carter

I'm discouraged. I'm not going to give up, but I am discouraged. Am I struggling spiritually? Truthfully yes, but it's not because I'm wallowing in sin (though I know I have much room for improvement). It's because the greater majority of the studies, sermons and bulletins I hear and read are centered upon a seemingly endless stream of warnings, admonitions, pricking the heart and calls for self examination, and of a truth, I can't live on a steady diet of this stuff.

How could I possibly be hurt and offended when someone warns me of the dangers of sin? Don't I want to avoid sin? Of course I do! I want to be as good at any aspect of godly service, conduct and living as I can be, but I'm beginning to doubt my ability to make it. I am fully aware that the men who teach and preach are trying to help us all aspire to and maintain a state of righteousness, but I also remember that we are to do as Paul instructed in Philippians 2:12 "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling." Without a doubt I ultimately am responsible for my own spirituality, but other influences can make it more difficult.
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The Rapture

by Keith Sharp

THE ULTIMATE TRIP..., Those who are alive to tell the story of 'Project Disappearance' will try in vain to describe the happening which will verify the oldest secrets of God's word.... 'There I was, driving down the freeway and all of a sudden the place went crazy ... cars going in all directions ... and not one of them had a driver. I mean it was wild! I think. we've got an invasion from outer space!' (Lindsey. 124-125).

This is Hal Lindsey's description of "The Rapture," a concept extremely popular with fundamentalists in Christendom. Does the Bible teach the doctrine of "The Rapture"?

To answer this question we must first know what the doctrine is. Lindsey states it thus:
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There's A Better World Coming

Roy Davison

We assemble in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, Creator of heaven and earth. We believe the promises God gives us in His Holy Word.

A better place to live

God has promised us a better world: "For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former shall not be remembered or come to mind" (Isaiah 65:17).

God's new creation will be so much better, we will not even think about the former one. But first, this present world must pass away: "The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells" (2 Peter 3:10-13).
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Grace, The Basis of Justification

By Grover Stevens

In Ephesians 2:8-9 the inspired word of God tells us: "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast."

That salvation from sin is by God's grace is positively affirmed and clearly stated by the inspired apostle (Eph. 2:1-3), and then to make sure that there be no misunderstanding he adds negatively that salvation is "not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast." The word "grace" means not deserved or unmerited. The word "gift" likewise indicates something received without compensation, unearned. It is abundantly clear that God's grace alone is the very founding stone on which man's salvation from sin rests.

By God's Grace - Through Man's Faith

However, this passage also informs us that this grace saves us "through faith." The apostle Paul says in Titus 2:11-12, "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world." If our salvation is solely by grace on God's part and there is nothing that man can do to receive that gift of God's grace, then all men will be saved and we would have universal salvation. But the apostle Paul tells us that we become the recipients of God's saving grace "through faith." The eminent Greek scholar, A. T. Robertson, says in commenting on this passage: "Through faith: This phrase he adds in repeating what he said in verse 5 to make it plainer. 'Grace' is God's part, 'faith' ours. And that (kai touto): Neuter, not feminine saute, and so refers not to pistis [faith] (feminine) or to charis [gift] (feminine also), but to the act of being saved by grace conditioned on faith on our part."
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Creation, Faith and the Authority of God

By John Robertson

The author of Hebrews writes, “Without faith it is impossible to be well pleasing unto him; for he that comes to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that seek after him” (Hebrews 11:6). What causes people to believe in God? Parents play a great role in many people’s lives that come to believe in God (see Ephesians 6:1-2). Sometimes preachers, friends, family members, or a spouse help us come to faith (2 Timothy 2:2). What caused you to believe that God is? Our Bibles reveal that creation is the central cause of man’s faith. Creation establishes faith, the authority of God, revelation, and our responsibility to be obedient. Creation ought to be the beginning point of study with unbelievers.

Genesis chapters 1 and 2 give the account of creation. God, over six days of twenty four hour periods of time, created the world (Exodus 20:11). The Lord took rest on the seventh day (Genesis 2:1-2). After creation man was expected to look upon what God had powerfully formed and determine that he is the Lord. The Psalmist wrote, “The heavens declare the glory of God: and the firmament shows his handiwork” (Psalms 19:1). God simply spoke and by his authoritative voice the world was formed (Psalms 33:6-9).
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Father, Forgive Them for They Know Not What They Do

Lucas Ward

To me this is the most interesting of the seven sayings from the cross. The reason for this is that the purpose of Jesus saying this was clearly not to directly effect the forgiveness of these men. If that were His purpose, He would have just done it Himself. Several times in the Gospels Jesus forgave the sins of various people, and performed miracles to show that God approved of His actions. The first occasion being in Mark 2:1-12 in which Jesus forgave the lame man who was let down into the house to be healed. Then there is the woman in Luke 7 who washed Jesus' feet with her tears. Finally, there is the thief on the cross next to Jesus, to whom He said, "Today, thou shalt be with me in Paradise." Obviously, if Jesus had just wanted to make sure these men were forgiven for the sin of nailing an innocent man (Him) to a cross, Jesus could have just pronounced their sins forgiven. Instead, He asked the Father to forgive.

So, if their direct forgiveness was not His main purpose in saying this, then what was? A couple of things come to mind, the first being that Jesus was being a perfect example for us to the end. In Matt. 5:44, He says, "But I say unto you love your enemies and pray for them that persecute you." Being crucified is about as severe as persecution gets, and those carrying it out are definitely enemies. What did He do, but pray for them, and show extreme love. Surely if He can pray for those men, we can love and pray for our paltry enemies. Really, does that guy at work who is always trying to make you look bad compare to the Romans crucifying our Lord?
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The Indwelling Spirit

by Vaughn D. Shofner

The Corinthian church members of the Apostolic age were exposed to such powerful temptations to unclean living that they had been influenced to look with complacency upon their sins, some of which were not even tolerated by heathen opinion. They had reduced the value of the Lord's church to the place that caused it to be treated as only another form of social and political life, with natural divisions of opinions and passions, and the taint of the world was everywhere evident. Candidly, the church in many ways today is becoming much like the Corinthian church was at that time.

The remedial truth which Paul revealed to the Corinthians should be given attention today; that is, Christians compose the organization in which the Spirit dwells, because he dwells in them individually, and thus has made them collectively the body of Christ. That he might emphasize these facts, to the one he wrote, "Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ?" (I Cor. 6: 15). To the other he wrote, "Know ye not that ye are the temples of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" (I Cor. 3:15).
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Burdens

by Lucas Ward

I think most of us would agree that different people have different temptations. For some people, lying comes naturally and they have to focus on telling the truth. Others are naturally honest and even blunt. Some have trouble controlling their tempers; others stay on an even keel. Some have considerably more trouble with illicit sexual temptations than do others. We each have our burdens, but regardless of that burden God expects us to live righteous lives in all aspects of our lives. I can't live righteously in all other ways, but allow myself to occasionally lose my temper, if that is my particular burden. I have to work to learn to control that, and the fact that I have to work harder in that area than others do is no excuse to allow sin in my life. After all, there is someone out there who is struggling to control, I don' know, their desire to steal rather than earn a living, and that is something I don' have to struggle against. We each have our burdens. God expects righteous living.
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Darwin: The Father of Evolution, Racism and Abortion

by Jefferson Davis Tant

The world has changed since Charles Darwin concocted the idea that we have all evolved or ascended from the slime in some primeval swamp. In many ways, the development of scientific achievements has been a great blessing to us in the way of comfort of living and other advances. But there is a dark side to the changes that have come over the 150 years since Darwin. The Origin and Descent of Man has produced revolutionary changes that probably were not a part of Darwin' thoughts.

An example of some of the evils that have come from Darwinism is the following quote from Roger Lewin in his book, Bones of Contention:

"The brain of the Negro is that of the imperfect brain of a seven-month infant in the womb of a white." Racism, as we would characterize it today, was explicit in the writings of virtually all the major anthropologists of the first decades of this century (20th Century, jdt), simply because it was the generally accepted world view (pages 306-307).
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That Little Voice In Your Head

by Kevin Cauley

"Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain" is the famous line from the Wizard of Oz wherein the "Wizard" doesn't want Dorothy and the others to know what is actually going on. Once his "magic" is revealed for what it really is, Dorothy and the others are no longer intimidated by the "wizard and he is free to give them what they have actually had all along.

It seems to me that many people view the inner workings of their mind in just this way. God has created man with unique mental faculties. We have a reasoning mind; we have a conscience; we have a will; we have emotions. Each of these aspects of the human psyche operate together to make us what we are, namely, a functioning human being.

There are times when we hear the proverbial voice of reason. We need to hear that voice when we are studying for an exam or trying to get certification for a particular job. God appeals to our reason (Isaiah 1:18) when trying to convince us of our need for repentance and salvation.
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Denominational Baptism

By David Phillips

In the New Testament we do not read of "other churches," nor do we read of people being baptized into something other than Christ. Those who believed simply obeyed as they were commanded and continued to learn the doctrine of the apostles (Acts 2:41-42). There may have been the exception of some who sought to add things to the gospel. but within the first few years that the church was established this was not much of an issue.

Yet, as we all can so clearly see, different churches have been established since that time and there are many people being baptized into those churches for various reasons. Because of this those who preach the gospel of the Bible are left in an interesting situation: we preach baptism unto salvation to the lost, but what about people who have already been baptized as a member of a denomination? Has God given us any instruction in the New Testament on this matter? Yes He has. He left us with the information that we need in order to make the necessary conclusions. Let us therefore search the scriptures in order to find an answer to the question, "What about denominational baptism?
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Desire Is Often the Mother of the New Interpretations

[Editor's note: I have noticed in talking to some over the years who have given way to error, that when asked why they no longer believe as they once did, they will say something like "I just couldn't believe that so many people could be wrong and condemned," or "I just couldn't believe that God would actually require that of people who are divorced or in bad marriages." One man even said he had been searching for a way to "help" those who were in error because of adulterous marriages, so he "found" a way to excuse them. I believe this article touches on that tendency, and will, I hope, help prevent some of us from departing from the truth.]

by John Waddey

All have heard the old saying, "Necessity is the mother of invention." It's truthfulness is demonstrated daily. There is a religious variation of this proverb. "Desire is often the mother of new interpretations."

Our Protestant neighbors greatly desire salvation without baptism. Faced with the several verses that clearly link salvation and baptism, what can they do? They interpret all the verses that link faith with salvation and pronounce that the Bible teaches salvation by faith alone. Some desire to have their infants baptized. Finding nothing in the New Testament about infant baptism, they discover the Hebrew ordinance for circumcising baby boys. Noting that the surgery made them members of the covenant nation, they conclude the New Testament must teach infant baptism. Then they discover that Lydia was baptized and all that were in her household (Acts 16:15) and voila they interpret that to mean babies were baptized. They are free to proceed as they wished.
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Reading the Bible from Cover to Cover

by Abraham Smith

We should read the Bible from cover to cover. We should want to know what the Lord said. Many of us, while acknowledging that the Bible is the word of God, have not read it in its entirety. We have been hindered from reading the Bible completely for several reasons. It is my hope and prayer that we would all be rid of all obstacles to the hearing and reading of God's word.

We must realize that the Lord expects us to read all the Bible. The Lord said on one occasion, "It is written, `Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God"' (Matt. 4:4). Not "live by some words," but by "every word" of God. Thus we need to read "every word" of God. We need to be like the Bereans who "received the word with all readiness, and searched the scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so" (Acts 17:11).

These Scriptures should dispel the idea that we need only read some of the Scriptures. This notion would cause us to be judges of what in the Bible is important. But "Every word of God is pure" (Prov. 30:5).
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