James Dyck

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Elaine Nordman

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Jim Joyce - When I was 16, I decided to leave home and live on the street.  I thought real living was having fun and going after a thrill.  I became a regular user of drugs and alcohol. In my parents' home, God and spiritual things were most important. Just as I decided to leave the house, it occurred to me, “If I leave, I will leave behind the gospel. This will be my final decision to reject God.” It was as real as if I was opening a door and walking into hell. I didn’t want to go. I didn’t want to be lost. I wanted to be saved...

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Safety, Certainty and Enjoyment

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Gary Sharp

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OXFORD GROUP
What do you think of the Oxford Group movement?

Much has been written for and against this religious cult. It ought not to be difficult for anyone who has experienced true conversion to God and found peace with Him by faith, on the ground of the precious blood of Christ, to form a correct view of a movement in which, no doubt, as in Freemasonry, Roman Catholicism, Seventh Day Adventism, etc., some true children of God are entangled. But the crucial question is, what place has Christ and His atoning work in it? It is the Sermon on the Mount, vaguely grasped, not the Atonement of Calvary, which is the favourite watch-word. It is “the Spirit” as a sort of “familiar spirit,” whispering in the ear, rather than the Holy Spirit of God testifying to Christ through the Scriptures. As far as we learn, no questions are raised to aspirants as to their doctrinal belief. A Unitarian is just as welcome as a Trinitarian; a Roman Catholic, as a Protestant; an Anglo-Catholic, as an Evangelical. It is as though the prodigal son had staged a homecoming scene, with confession, reconciliation, best garment, shoes, fatted calf, etc., all complete, but remaining the while in the far country. It is Cain offering the fruits of the earth and making himself believe it is he, not Abel, who is accepted. It is a building without foundation, but ‘best hotel accommodation’ provided for all. It is assuming the name and privileges of the family without being born into it. It would indeed be surprising were such a system anything but attractive to decent woridings.

William Hoste

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Is going to the doctor a sign of weak faith?

No.

Some forms of faith-healing teaching states that since God is capable of healing the body as an answer to our prayers it would be sinful or at least showing a lack of faith to go to the doctor. Such teaching is seriously flawed.

Do Christians eat healthy food and call it a lack of faith?  Of course we don’t.  We believe that a healthy diet, vitamin supplements, exercise, adequate sleep, avoidance of toxic substances such as tobacco and alcohol contribute to a long-life and disease-free lifestyle.  Why would going to the doctor be any less of a sound and healthy choice? The fact that God can and does perform miracles of healing does not mean we should always expect a miracle instead of seeking the help of individuals who possess the knowledge and skill to assist us.

If the water pump in your car breaks, do you wait for God to fix it and keep driving until the engine overheats?  No.  You get a mechanic to replace it right away.

The Bible speaks of health care in a positive light but with the knowledge that it is limited. Isaiah 1:6" TARGET="_blank">Isaiah 1:6 talks about binding up wounds.  James 5:14" TARGET="_blank">James 5:14 speaks of anointing the sick with oil.  The Good Samaritan poured in oil and wine to the wounds of the man on the side of the road in Luke 10:34." TARGET="_blank">Luke 10:34.  Timothy took wine for his stomach infirmity in 1 Timothy 5:23." TARGET="_blank">1 Timothy 5:23.  Revelation 3:18" TARGET="_blank">Revelation 3:18 says that the blind should anoint their eyes with eye salve.

Luke is the best-known doctor in the Bible.  His vocabulary and mention of various illnesses mentioned in his gospel show us that he was very aware of the meager technology of his day.  Although the Great Physician, Christ, was capable of healing what earthly physicians cannot, he does not condemn the use of medical treatments.

The numerous miracles that Christ performed are evidence that God can, and is willing, to heal when all humanly known remedies fail.  Mark 5:25-30" TARGET="_blank">Mark 5:25-30 is the story of a woman who spent all that she had on doctors for a bleeding disorder.  Her faith in Christ linked her to the power that was in him.

Should a believer go to the doctor?  Yes.  Should we view medical science as superior to God’s ability to heal?  No.

The elders who visit the sick man in James 5" TARGET="_blank">James 5 anoint him with oil and pray for him that he would be raised up again.  Although we have much far superior medicine available than mere olive oil, we should have the same prayerful attitude toward healing in our prayers.

The answer to the above question is from the examples of scripture.  I’ll now relate a story from a friend from Guatemala who now lives here in the United States.  One morning while living in Guatemala my friend Cupertino awoke to see his son with a severe eye infection.  Both eyes were “as red as tomatoes and swollen closed.”  A simple antibiotic treatment would likely have healed the infection.  However, Cupertino had barely enough money to feed his son, let alone visit a doctor.  He spent the day working with his hoe out in the fields.  Half of the time he worked the soil.  The other half of the day was spent in prayer beneath a nearby tree.  He poured out his heart in tears to God: 

“Lord, you know that my son is at home and very sick.  Please heal him.” 

When he arrived home, his son ran out to meet him with bright eyes. 

After immigrating to the United States, my friend had a severe case of stones in his gall bladder.  After suffering a sleepless night with severe pain, he agreed to go to the hospital. After a successful surgery, he was back at work 7 days later.  If he had been in Guatemala, he likely would have prayed, just as he did the night he was in pain.  The visit to the doctor would not have been an option, let alone surgery.  In both instances, he prayed and availed himself of the best help he had available.  The lesson is that if you have access to good health care, you should not consider it a lack of faith to take advantage of it. 

Shad Sluiter

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1 Corinthians 6:1-6" TARGET="_blank">1 Corinthians 6:1-6  When one of you has a grievance against another, does he dare go to law before the unrighteous instead of the saints?  (2)  Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you incompetent to try trivial cases?  (3)  Do you not know that we are to judge angels? How much more, then, matters pertaining to this life!  (4)  So if you have such cases, why do you lay them before those who have no standing in the church?  (5)  I say this to your shame. Can it be that there is no one among you wise enough to settle a dispute between the brothers,  (6)  but brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers?

There were problems in the church at Corinth with conflicts between brothers.  Christians should be above such petty behavior.  And then Paul suddenly writes the surprising statement that Christians will judge angels.  He adds no explanation in the immediate context to help us understand where, when or how this will happen. 

It is known from from Jude 1:6" TARGET="_blank">Jude 1:6 and 2 Peter 2:4," TARGET="_blank">2 Peter 2:4, 2 Peter 2:9" TARGET="_blank">2 Peter 2:9 that angels will be judged. It is also clear from scripture that Christ will be the Judge (John 5:22)." TARGET="_blank">John 5:22).  It must be that we are united to Christ that gives us this right to be involved with the judgment upon angels.  Since Christ will include us in this task in the future, shouldn’t we be able to handle matters of judgment in this life?

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Are the “rests” of Matthew 11:28," TARGET="_blank">Matthew 11:28, 29 two distinct “rests”, or does it mean that the rest is not obtained by soul approach, but by taking the yoke, and learning of the Lord?

I judge that two “rests” are indicated, or perhaps I should say, two distinct stages of rest: the one, rest of conscience for the soul who has never known true rest in Christ; and the other, rest from a restless will, unsatisfied desires and self-seeking service. The word for “rest” is the same in both cases (anapausiS—or up-rest), which might be illustrated by the action of the Good Samaritan: first he relieved the smitten one, pouring in oil and wine, and then set him on his own beast, brought him to an inn (set him down there) and took care of him. This latter action may denote the “rest” (katapausis—down-rest) of Hebrews 3" TARGET="_blank">Hebrews 3 and 4, where this root is always used, except in verse 9: “There remaineth, therefore, a rest for the people of God.” The word here means a “Sabbath rest” (Sabbatismos)—the true spiritual thought of the Sabbath—a resting from our own works. This does not describe a future heavenly rest, but a Christ-rest, to be enjoyed here and now by all the people of God.

W.H.

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CHRIST’S GLORIFIED BODY
Does the Lord still bear in His glorified body the marks of the Cross?

Most certainly. In Revelation 5:6" TARGET="_blank">Revelation 5:6 John was granted a vision of the Lord in ascension on the throne of God, and He was seen as a living Lamb, standing, and yet as having been slain, that is, as plainly bearing in His body the sacrificial marks, or in other words, the scars, of Calvary. Besides, how could we admit for a moment that the marks in His resurrection body to which He made appeal again and again to prove His identity, have been removed since? How, moreover, could such appeal be real, unless the marks were something more than temporary and indeed an essential part of His spiritual body? It would be like some one appealing to imitation scars, to prove identity with someone who had received real wounds. We should lose, too, antitypically in a very serious way were we to admit the possibility hinted at in the question. For then how explain the blood on the live bird let loose into the open field in the day of the leper’s cleansing? (Lev 14:7)." TARGET="_blank">Lev 14:7). Or what would there be in the Heavenly temple to correspond to the blood on the earthly mercy seat, if the One on the throne no longer bore the marks of Calvary? When the Lord arose He had the same body that was crucified and slain, but under new conditions, that is, it was now a spiritual body. Again in ascension He had the same body as before, but once more under new conditions, for it was a glorified body, but still bearing as its highest glory the scars of Calvary.
It is indeed the presence of the Lord on the throne, which gives it its character as a throne of grace, and how appropriate then that He should retain His scars of atonement!

W.H.

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