Categories
Bible Teaching

The Benefit and Purpose of Suffering

Sometimes suffering and adversity appear senseless to us, and we ask questions like, “How can anyone possibly benefit from this calamity?” Or, “Can someone tell me what purpose this is serving?” Or, simply, “Why, Lord?”

While there may be many answers to these questions, Daniel L. Segraves offers an answer from 1 Peter 5:10 in his book If God Loves Me, Why Am I Hurting?

“But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you” (1 Peter 5:10).

1. Perfect = “the idea of mending or repairing something that has been broken….It may be the will of God for believers to suffer temporarily, but the suffering will be followed by restoration and mending of whatever may have been broken during the suffering.” 

2. Establish = “making something firm….a promise that God will firmly establish those who have suffered to any degree that they have experienced loss by their suffering.” 

3. Strengthen = “making something strong, with specific application to the soul. God will remove any weakness that may have resulted from suffering.” 

4. Settle = “laying a foundation or making something stable. Thus, if any believer’s stability has been damaged by suffering, God will correct it.”

The believer will suffer, but the blessing — Yes, the blessing — of suffering is God’s promise to perfect, stablish, strengthen, and settle each believer before they reach God’s eternal glory.

Categories
Bible Preaching

Baptism In the Name of the Lord Jesus – William Crowther (1867)

Historically, this is an interesting sermon for apostolics to read.

Doctrinally, it is a unique message for oneness pentecostals to consider.

Sermon: Baptism In the Name of the Lord Jesus
Preacher: William Crowther
Text: Acts 19:5

Delivered: Artillery Street Chapel, London, England

Date: August 27, 1867

Originally posted on https://thepillarandgroundoftruth.blogspot.com/2013/11/baptism-in-name-of-lord-jesus-william.html

Categories
Consider this...

One Solitary Life -Phillips Brooks

Here is a man who was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in another village. He worked in a carpenter shop until He was thirty, and for three years He was an itinerant preacher. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never owned a house. He never had a family. He never went to college. He never put His feet inside a big city. He never traveled two hundred miles from the place where He was born. He never did one of the things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credential but Himself.

While still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against Him. His friends ran away. One of them denied Him. He was turned over to His enemies. He went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed upon a cross between two thieves. His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He owned and that was His coat. When He was dead He was taken down and laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend.

Nineteen wide centuries have come and gone, and today He is the centerpiece of the human race and the leader of the column of progress.

Iam far within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched and all the navies that were ever built, and that all the parliaments that ever sat and all kings that ever reigned, put together have not affected the life of a man upon this earth as did that One Solitary Life.

–Phillips Brooks

Categories
Consider this...

That’s Entertainment

Philippians 4:18, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

In 1985, Neil Postman argued; in his seminal work Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business, that the public had an oppressive addiction to entertainment through the content available on television.[1]  Today, media and technology have advanced to the place where this entertainment addiction has risen to epidemic proportions.

https://www.livemint.com/industry/media/media-and-entertainment-projected-to-be-100-billion-industry-by-2030-11664273679645.html

The use of gaming consoles, televisions, smartphones, laptops, personal computers, mp3 players, DVDs, tablets, and so on has swept our culture.  These technologies entertain people from the cradle to the tomb.  It is common today to see a 4 year old playing a game on a mobile device while nearby a74 year old is playing a Scrabble game on a smartphone.

Other forms of entertainment include: movies, sporting events, amusement parks, outdoor activities, and even literature.  It’s not our suggestion that Christians divorce themselves from all forms of entertainment, but that we choose our entertainment based upon the principles of our faith found in the Word of God.

 As Christians we understand the necessity of adhering to Paul’s teaching when considering what choices we make regarding our entertainment. Therefore, we need to be vigilant when it comes to the content of entertainment we allow into our homes, minds, and even the church house.

With that in mind, Texas pastor and writer Rodney Shaw suggests that Christians ask themselves the following questions when making entertainment choices:[2]

  1. Can I maintain my Christian witness and engage in this activity?
  2. Can I glorify God in this activity?
  3. Can I invoke the blessings of God, praying in the name of Jesus, for my involvement in this activity?
  4. Does this activity leave me feeling as if I have compromised my values?
  5. Would I be comfortable inviting my spiritual mentor to engage in this activity with me?
  6. Does this activity promote godly attitudes and behaviors?
  7. Do I leave this activity more or less equipped for the spiritual life?
  8. Does this activity appeal to my carnal nature, i.e., the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, or the pride of life?
  9. Does this activity portray, promote or condone behaviors, attitudes or philosophies which are condemned in the Bible?
  10. Do I feel guilty, like I am violating my conscience, or the need to repent after I have engaged in this activity?
  11. Am I committed to ceasing my involvement in any activity which turns out to be in violation of biblical principles, including but not limited to turning off a device or walking out of a venue?
  12. How does my commitment of time and resources to this activity compare to my commitment to spiritual disciplines and participation in the life of the church?

[1] http://www.amazon.com/Amusing-Ourselves-Death-Discourse-Business/dp/014303653X

[2] http://rodneyshaw.wordpress.com/2011/01/13/questions-to-help-christians-make-entertainment-choices/ . Accessed: 2/18/2012.

[Originally posted on 18 February 2012 on https://thepillarandgroundoftruth.blogspot.com/2012/02/%5D

Categories
Consider this...

While You’re Waiting

I was going about my daily activity recently when this thought entered my mind: “while you are waiting, God is shaping your life.” I believe that this was God’s way of speaking to me in that moment. So, bear with me as I try to convey this idea in a clear and concise manner.

Joseph was an immature younger brother and it’s possible that he was also a spoiled son doted upon by his father. He had a dream, but he was not ready to receive the fruition of that dream. So, God, in His great wisdom, allowed the 17 year old to be put into precarious situations and he did not see his father until he was 41 years old, at which time his dreams were fully realized. Each trial in Joseph’s life added responsibility and served to increase Joe’s maturity and integrity preparing him for the role he was to play in his dream.

Waiting for the second table : Inmates of the Poor-House on Randall’s Island, East River, at New York City, forming in line for dinner | Artist: Joseph Becker | 13 February 1875

Just as Joseph was not ready, we sometimes find that while we are impatient for fulfillment, we are not quite ready for what God has promised us, or given us in dreams and visions. Therefore, while we are waiting, God is shaping and preparing us to receive the fullness of His promise.

Instead of becoming impatient, we need to learn how to let God shape us. All too often, we can get in the way of God’s plan by allowing the flesh to rise up and prolong the shaping that God’s hand is doing on our inner man as the Great Potter molds us into a vessel that He can use, and if we’re not awfully careful, we can get in the way of the Master’s preparation.

Joseph is a great example to us of one who suffered for his dream, but we read in no passage where he complained or charged God foolishly. In fact, the Word of God indicates twice God’s continued presence even in circumstances where the carnal mind would doubt His proximity (Genesis 39:2 & 21 “…the LORD was with Joseph…”), but Joseph teaches us a principle that will serve us well when our ambition collides with God’s timing.

I admonish you today to trust God in your time of preparation and allow the maturing process to complete its cycle because while you’re waiting, God is shaping your life.

Originally posted on 30 August 2010 on https://thepillarandgroundoftruth.blogspot.com/2010/08/while-youre-waiting.html

Categories
Bible Teaching

Saying the Name of Jesus

According to the late T. W. Barnes, many people pronounce the name of Jesus without really knowing how to say it. He specified four ways to say the name of Jesus:

  1. Say His name with love; the early church had great success, because they loved not their lives, they loved that Name. Love is powerful. Their love gave them reverence for the Name.
  2. Say His name with vision. Say it seeing the invisible. A woman said, “I resist the devil and he doesn’t leave.” Bro. Barnes asked her, “What do you look for? The Bible doesn’t say resist him and see him sitting on your shoulder; when you resist him you should see him running. The devil no doubt left you when you said in Jesus Name, but since you did not expect him to go, your thinking made you as miserable as if he stayed with you.”
  3. Say His name with faith. Religious leaders in Israel asked the disciples, “How did you heal the man crippled from his mother’s womb?” Peter answered, “…by the name of Jesus Christ…”
  4. Say His name while living a life of sacrifice. The disciples sacrificed everything for that name. We need to love it enough that no sacrifice is too great to make for Jesus.

-Nona Freeman, A Prophet in our Time (2007)

********************************

Why is there so much power in the Name of Jesus?  T. W. Barnes attributed it to the following reasons: 

  1. His Word is in it – John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Word…”
  2. His Blood is in it – Jesus is a blood name that redeems all people from sin and the effects of sin (sickness, disease, mental disorders, etc.).
  3. His Spirit is in it – The Holy Ghost that you received when you spoke in tongues the first time is that Spirit of Christ in you.
  4. The authority of heaven is in it – All power in Heaven and earth belongs to Jesus Christ.
  5. His faith is in it – He made everything by the power of His own Word; He spoke it and it happened.

–Nona Freeman, A Prophet In Our Time (2007)

T. W. Barnes’ website: https://www.twbarnes.com/index.html

T. W. Barnes Memorial Page: https://www.leestoneking.com/T%20W%20Barnes%20Memorial.htm

Originally posted on 2 June 2010 on https://thepillarandgroundoftruth.blogspot.com/2010/06/tw-barnes-saying-name-of-jesus.html

Categories
Bible Teaching

Jesus Christ: Sonship

Isaiah 9:6 = Jesus is God

The Purpose of Sonship

God has always desired to fellowship with man, but sin came into the human family and separated God from man. The purpose of Sonship was so that God could provide the best means by which He and man could regain their fellowship, and to give dominion over the earth to man again. This fellowship is the result of the sacrifice of the Savior on Calvary. He could only do this by providing complete redemption for mankind. He is the Lamb that was slain from the foundation of the world, Rev. 13:8. In short, the Sonship is about God and man engaging in a loving and healthy relationship that is void of any hindrances (sin), which would separate each from the other. For that to take place a Mediator (the Son) had to provide reconciliation between God and man. This Mediator was realized in the person of Jesus Christ.

Who Fulfilled the Sonship

Jesus Christ fulfills the Sonship. In Colossians 2:9 we are told that in Jesus dwells all the fullness of the Godhead (all the characteristics of God) bodily, and we (the Church) are complete in Him (Jesus). Paul did say that the Gospel message was a mystery, but then he went on to explain what the mystery was: “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory” (I Timothy 3:16). Only Jesus Christ fulfills these six points. Thus proving the adage, “Jesus Christ of the New Testament is Jehovah of the Old Testament.”

Originally posted on 5 June 2010 on https://thepillarandgroundoftruth.blogspot.com/2010/06/jesus-christ-sonship.html

Categories
church history

Pamphlets from Oneness Pentecostal Writers (Part 3)

Here are some more pictures of pamphlets written by Oneness Pentecostal / Apostolic writers, which I took at my Grandmother’s home in South Bend, IN several years ago.


I read recently that if you want to change your generation you need to preach, but if you want to change future generations then write.  I’m thankful these authors wrote these pamphlets.

Originally posted on https://thepillarandgroundoftruth.blogspot.com/2012/12/more-pamphlets-from-apostolic-writers.html

Categories
church history

Pamphlets from Oneness Pentecostal Writers (Part 2)

Here is an excellent pamphlet written by the late David F. Gray, entitled “Chart of the Seven Men and the Two Natures the Secret of Victory Over satan and Power with God,” which he wrote and published in 1957.

Read and enjoy!

Title: Chart of the Seven Men and the Two Natures

Author: David F. Gray

Publisher: David F. Gray

Year: 1957

Description: The secret of victory over satan and power with God.

Originally posted on 19 April 2010 on https://thepillarandgroundoftruth.blogspot.com/2010/04/seven-men-and-two-natures-rev-david-f.html

Categories
church history

Pamphlets from Oneness Pentecostal Writers (Part 1)

I spent some time in South Bend, IN at my grandmother’s home (Helen Virginia Kuntzman) back in March 2009.

As is my custom when I’m there, I spent a considerable amount of time in my grandfather’s library looking, reading, and studying his collection.

Edwin Eugene Kuntzman

My grandfather (Pastor E. E. Kuntzman) was an Apostolic preacher and went to his eternal reward many years ago. I treasure the library he left behind and the notes he jotted in books, pamphlets, Bibles, and sermons. They are always a blessing to me and their truths are ageless.

My grandparents have several books and pamphlets written by, or about, some of our early pioneers and proponents of the Oneness Pentecostal message. While I didn’t take pictures of them all, the ones below I read this weekend.

Originally posted on 16 March 2009 on https://thepillarandgroundoftruth.blogspot.com/2009/03/pamphlets-from-oneness-pentecostal.html