Gospel Guardian Tell-Al- Gram
THE POSTMAN'S DELIVERY: Eugene Crawley: "I always enjoy reading and appreciate very much The Gospel Guardian. You are doing a good work." .. . Calvin C. Essary: "The Gospel Guardian is certainly a meaningful and relevant paper, and I thank you for efforts toward making it so." . . . Carol Bates: "Am enjoying the Guardian." ... Paul Branch: "I wish to commend the Guardian. You are making some improvements."
William C. Sexton: "The Tenth and Lincoln Street church of Christ in St. Joseph, Missouri has seen four persons baptized in the last few months. We have a meeting scheduled for April 13-19. Earl Lewis from Macon, Missouri is the speaker. During the week services will be each night at 7:30, and on Sunday at 10:00 A.M. and 10:50 A.M. and 6:30 P.M. All who are in the area at this time are invited to attend. If you have friends in the area, we would be glad to visit them and give them an invitation to worship and work with us..."
Mrs. C. O. Stout Passes: Mrs. C. O. (Lillian) Stout departed this life on March 2, 1970 after an extended illness. Her husband, known much more widely than she, through his great work in gospel meetings directing singing, serves as one of the elders of the Washington Avenue congregation in Russellville, Alabama, and has for many years . . . she had rendered service that will not soon be forgotten as she ministered to many in her work, as she went about quietly, and so often unnoticed by many, to serve the God she loved ... Her influence for good will continue to live in the lives of those whom she has influenced and inspired to greater service in the church. — Eugene Crawley.
From Lloyd Moyer: The next best thing to having loved ones visit in our homes is to have a letter from them. The next best thing to having teachers of God's Word visit in our homes is to have articles written by them. Receiving the Gospel Guardian each week brings from five to seven articles by some of the finest teachers of God's Word into your homes; plus news of what is happening in the brotherhood. An hour or two of family discussion, of the contents of the Gospel Guardian, will have a wonderful influence on the thinking of the entire family. — 41325 Kathlean St., Fremont, California 94538.
From Jimmy Tuten, Jr. — "Believing that the pen is mightier than the sword, I recommend to you the very best in religious reading. I personally recommend it because as a subscriber a number of years, I have benefited in many ways by having the Guardian come into my home. It can be a great help to you also. Why not try it for one year? $5.00 will bring this fine weekly publication into your home each week, with the exception of the first week in July and the last week in December. Subscribe to it — You will be glad you did!" (Note enclosed in promotional material handed out by brother Tuten.)
CAPSULE SERMON by Carl A. Allen "THIS WORLD IS NOT MY HOME"
There are three words, in the New Testament, which project to the Christian the idea of preparing for an eternal home. These words are: (1) SOJOURNERS, I Pet. 2:11; (2) PILGRIMS, I Pet. 2:11; (3) CITIZENSHIP, Phil. 3:20. The idea is, we live in a land without the right of citizenship; or, our home is not here but elsewhere.
Abraham, upon leaving his home land and wandering in a "strange" land, is spoken of being a "sojourner in the land of promise." Heb. 11:9. All who are after the heart of God are spoken of as "strangers and pilgrims on the earth," Heb. 11:13. The brethren who had been dispersed from their homes and home land were said to be "the elect who are sojourners," I Pet. 1:1. One who gives his heart to God, through obedience, has become a "sojourner" and a "pilgrim" in this life. He is not a "citizen" of this land but looks for a "heavenly home."
You can understand why Paul said, "And be not fashioned according to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God." Rom. 12:2.
The ties that are established here, are temporal. One can see this by looking around and observing nature and people themselves. You look at a beautiful flower and think it is heavenly and enduring; but then, you notice a falling petal. The large and stately oaks which have stood for one hundred years seem not to yield to time; but, when observed closely you note a branch that is dying. Look at the mountains, though large and majestic; yet, they yield to the wind and rain. When you cross the brook, in the valley, observe the grains of sand that are being rushed along! The mountain is not eternal! The graveyard offers testimony that this is not my eternal home; hence, we are to look for a "better country." Were it not for the hope of a "better country," we would be of all men "most pitiable."
"For we know that if the earthly house of our tabernacle be dissolved, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal, in the heavens." II Cor. 5:1. There are those who revel in the things of this life, spend their time devising how they can enjoy it more — they have their reward — but, the Christian spends his time thinking how he can make himself a fit subject for heaven. Truly we are "sojourners," and "pilgrims," and our "citizenship" is in heaven.
— Box 724 — Lufkin, Texas 75901 —
THE PRICE — MC CORD DEBATE Reported By Dudley Ross Spears
E. Paul Price of Duncan, Oklahoma and T. G. McCord of Comanche, Oklahoma, met in public debate on the nights of March 2, 3, 5, 6 of this year. It was one of the most unusual debates I have ever witnessed in one respect. The affirmative speaker for the last two nights, McCord, did not even read the proposition all the way through during his part of the discussion.
Paul Price is the preacher for the Southside Church of Christ in Duncan and McCord is the pastor of the Jesus Name Church in Comanche. Price affirmed the first two nights on the number of persons in the Godhead. McCord affirmed the last two nights on baptism in Jesus name.
The propositions read: "The Scriptures teach that there are three separate and distinct persons in the Godhead, the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost." Price affirmed. "The Scriptures teach that the correct ceremony to be said over a candidate in water baptism is 'in the name of Jesus.' " McCord affirmed.
Price read and defined the proposition by the use of several charts all designed to show that he was contending for one God, or state of Deity, in which there were three divine beings. He argued that the Scriptures were clear in showing that the Father is not the Son and the Son is not the Holy Ghost and that the Son is not the Father and the Holy Ghost is not the Father. On this last point, McCord made his only real objection to the arguments Price advanced. He went over Matt. 1:18-21 which he contended showed that the Father in Heaven was the father of Jesus and that the Holy Ghost had conceived Jesus in the womb of Mary. Therefore he concluded that the Holy Ghost and the Father are the same person.
Price countered his objection by showing that we are born of water and the Spirit (John 3:5) but that neither means water and spirit are the same nor that water is our mother and the Spirit our Father. He also showed that Paul said he had begotten the Corinthians by the Gospel. (I Cor. 4:15). But the Gospel is an agent in our conversion, not our father, Price said. McCord paid no attention to these remarks but went over and over his same point again and again.
Price demonstrated how the Scriptures teach that the three divine beings in the Godhead are one. He illustrated it with the church which is said to be "one body." (Eph. 4:4). He pointed out that Jesus in praying for this one body prayed that all those in it might be one. (John 17:20). Price also showed that Christ was praying that the members of the body would be "one" "as the Father and Son are one." This, Price concluded, did not and could not mean that the body of Christ would be composed of only one person. McCord did not reply to this or refer to it in any of his speeches.
The last two nights the disputants discussed the ceremony that McCord contended must be said over a candidate for water baptism. He began his part of the discussion by reading from a 1911 edition of Encyclopedia Britannica to establish a point he had made the previous evening. He had said that Matt. 28:18-20 was not in the best manuscripts in the original language. His reference to the encyclopedia failed miserably as Price pointed out. Price pointed out that the reference said "possibly" Matt. 28:19 was an addition since it was not found in the Acts or Gospels and then said he did not believe the man who wrote the article in Britannica. He called on McCord to prove that this verse was not in the best manuscripts. McCord suffered badly on this point.
Then McCord complained that he had been tricked into signing the proposition and then later admitted that he was not tricked. He did everything he could to avoid the expression "ceremony" in his proposition. It was evident all the way through that he was completely unwilling to step up to an honest affirmation of his proposition. His time was spent trying to show that people must be baptized in Jesus name and that Matt. 28:18 was a "parable" or not in the original or didn't mean what it said.
McCord contended that Price was denying the name of Jesus. Price countered by showing from a chart that every passage in the New Testament relative to baptism in Jesus name shows what was done to the one being baptized — not what was said by the one doing the baptism. But this did not satisfy McCord who repeatedly returned to the pulpit to affirm that Price and the church of Christ denied Jesus name.
Price introduced such passages as Col. 3:17, "do all that you do in word or deed in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ," and Luke 24:47, "repentance and remission of sins to be preached in the name of Christ" and asked if there was a "ceremony" inherent in either of these phrases. Price argued that if a ceremony is inherent in the phrase "in the name of Jesus" in connection with baptism it also inheres in the command to preach repentance and remission of sins in Jesus name and in doing all that we do in word or deed in Jesus name. McCord never made references to these verses at all.
Price pressed the point that Matt. 28:19 is the only instructions in the New Testament that are given directly to those who were commissioned to baptize others. McCord did not deny this. Price then showed that all the passages in Acts of the Apostles like Acts 2:38; 10:48, et. al. were instructions to those who were to be baptized. He then said that McCord had mixed the Lord's instructions up by trying to bind those given to the candidates on those who were doing the baptizing. Again, McCord did not reply to Price's argument.
McCord almost read the proposition on the last night, but did not get quite through it. This is emphasized because it was so evident that he knew he could not prove his contention from the Bible that he did not even want to read the proposition to the audience. Price copied the proposition on a long chart and tacked it up high above the pulpit. McCord had repeatedly used the expression, "Any old mule can kick and bray," and so Price exhorted McCord to "quit kicking and braying and try to prove your proposition."
The first two nights were conducted in the new meeting house of the Southside Church in Duncan, located on south highway 81. The auditorium was nearly full for both sessions. The last two nights were conducted in the VFW hall in Comanche and about the same number attended there. A good spirit prevailed and the truth was ably defended. It seemed evident to this writer that those of the "Jesus Name" persuasion were not satisfied with McCord's efforts as they were very noisy, arguing with Price from their seats and constantly trying to pump McCord with notes. Paul Price did a very commendable job and is doing a good work for the Lord in the Duncan area.
Out of this discussion, which was a "first" for both men, may come another discussion between a representative of the Jesus Name Church. David Bonner may meet a man there later this year on the same propositions also to include the use of instrumental music in worship. Among the preachers that were present were Jesse Jenkins, Hayse Reneau, Hillery Moore, and a preacher from Velma, whose name I have forgotten. A lot of good was done by the debate. There should be many more of them. Maybe if we quit fighting each other over inconsequential matters and all get busy fighting the error of the denominational world, we will be able to heal some wounds that have been hurting for quite some time.
Reporter — ROBERT A. BOLTON
Preaching The Word:
Arizona: GROVER STEVENS, of Caprock in Lubbock, Texas, at Mesa, February 6-13.
California: PETER J. WILSON, of Salem, Oregon, at Lancaster, March 2-8 . . . HAROLD TURNER, of Fort Worth, Texas, at West Anaheim, March 2-8, and at Brea, March 9-15 . . . . MILTON ANDERSON, of Roseburg, Oregon, Hollydale in South Gate, March 9-15, and at Nelson Street in Garden Grove, March 16-22. ... FLOYD THOMPSON, of Fairview in Garden Grove, at Montebello, March 9-15 . . . RAY VAUGHN, of Newark, at East San Diego (50th and University), March 15-22 ... E. LACY PORTER, it Norwalk, March 15-22 . .. GLEN LOVELADY, of Wilmington, at Rexland Drive in Bakersfield, March 23-29, and at Redwood City, April 6-12 . . . MAURICE BARNETT, of Phoenix, Arizona, at Clairemont Mesa in San Diego, April 6-12 ... FOY LAYTON, of Irving, Texas, at Sepulveda, April 20-26. .. ROBERT A. BOLTON, of Ontario, at Pioneer Drive in Bakersfield, April 13-19, and at Mt. View in San Bernardino, April 17 — May 3 . . . DON WILSON, of Gardena, at Selma, May 3-10 . . . DEN STERLING, of Selma, at Madera, May 11-17.
Oregon: PETER J. WILSON, of Salem, at Albany, January 26 — February 1. . . WALT HUDSON, of Hillsboro, at McMinnville, March 2-8.
Datelines:
Oceanside, California — February 15: A special three day meeting, February 19, 20, 21, by the church meeting at 1234 Division Street, presented GORDON WILSON, of Clairemont Mesa in San Diego, discussing the following subjects in order: "Archaeology and The Bible," "Historical Confirmation Of The Bible," and "Harmony of the Bible and Science." LARRY DAVIDSON is the local preacher in Oceanside.
Rowland Heights, California — February 18: Bro. CARROL FINK, who lives in Rowland Heights and is a member of the congregation in Brea, is interested in doing some "fill in" preaching for congregations in Southern California within driving distance of his home. He is a good man, an excellent student and teacher of the Word, and I can heartily recommend him to those needing his services. He may be contacted as follows: CARROL FINK, 18803 Carreta Drive, Rowland Heights, California, 9175; Phone: 213-964-4787. — R. A. B.
BY THE WAY: "He that falls in love with a dimple or a curl is foolish indeed to marry the whole girl!"
This is really "off" — in the state of Illinois it is illegal to read the Bible in the public schools, but that state requires that a Bible be provided for all of the prison inmates of the state.
MORAL: "Don't worry kids, if you can't read the Bible in school — wait until you get to prison."
"Our footsteps are more readily followed than our advice."
He who waits to do a great deal of good at once, will never do anything. — Samuel Johnson (Highland Helper)
"Quitters in the church are like motors: they start 'sputtering' before they miss, and start 'missing' before they quit."
"If God would give you as much time this week, as you gave Him last week, how much longer would you be alive?" Startling, isn't it?