CALLING ON THE NAME OF THE LORD

By Bob Myhan

T

hen one, Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good testimony with all the Jews who dwelt there, came to me; and he stood and said to me, 'Brother Saul, receive your sight.' And at that same hour I looked up at him. Then he said, 'The God of our fathers has chosen you that you should know His will, and see the Just One, and hear the voice of His mouth. For you will be His witness to all men of what you have seen and heard. And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord’” (Acts 22:12-16).

I

t is often said that Saul of Tarsus was saved on the road to Damascus. But it wasn't until after he arrived in Damascus that he was told what to do to be saved. Jesus had said, "Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do" (Acts 9:6). Jesus then sent a man named Ananias to tell Saul what he must do (Acts 9:10-16). As one can see in the above quotation, he told Saul, "Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord." If Saul was saved on the road to Damascus, therefore, he was saved before his sins were washed away.

S

ome contend that Saul’s sins were actually washed away when he saw Jesus, and only symbolically washed away when he was baptized three days later. But the Bible says nothing about sins being symbolically washed away. Rather, it says, "whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Acts 2:21; Romans 10:13). Is one actually saved when he calls on the name of the Lord, or only symbolically saved when he does so? Did Saul "call on the name of the Lord" before being baptized? No, for he was told to "arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord." If he was actually saved before he was baptized, then he was actually saved before he called on the name of the Lord. But if he was actually saved when he called on the name of the Lord, then he was actually saved when he was baptized.

J

ohn wrote that Jesus " washed us from our sins in His own blood " (Rev. 1:5). Ananias tells us when Jesus washes us from our sins in His own blood—when we are “baptized…calling on the name of the Lord" (Acts 22:16). &

WHAT? NO SINGING?

O

ne Sunday morning a preacher stood before the congregation, silently looked at each individual present, and then in a voice that sounded like a crack of doom, he exclaimed: "If I had my way I'd eliminate singing. It makes liars of each of you."

T

ake that last hymn for instance. You sang ‘I Want to Be a Worker’ at the top of your voice, yet we have to beg you to take part in any work to be done.

Y

ou sang ‘I Surrender All’ yet you contribute only two or three percent of your income to the greatest cause in the world.

Y

ou sing ‘Anywhere with Jesus,’ yet you are always too busy to go and talk to one who needs to hear the gospel, and win sometimes not even drive around the corner to worship the Lord.

Y

ou sing ‘Give Me the Bible,’ but when someone gave you one all you did was put it in the closet to collect dust.

H

owever, there is one hymn where you speak the truth. I know you mean what you say when you sing ‘I Shall Not Be Moved!’"

F

or by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” (Matt. 12:37). [Selected] &

THIS IS NOT A HAMBURGER STAND

By Bob Plunket

I

 had a call early one Sunday morning and the person asked, "How long will your service last, and do you serve the Lord's Supper first or last?" They were probably traveling and wanted their "crackers and grape juice" to go. Many are demanding today that we be quick and convenient. It seems that many religious leaders are taking the Burger King approach: "Have it your way!" But we are not a hamburger stand. We're the body of Christ. It is tempting today to apply the fast food approach, but it will be deadly to the church.

O

ne church in California already has drive-in-services. You simply put the speaker in your car to hear a brief message, hang it up, and get on your way. Will some offer drive-in window where one can get the Lord's Supper on their way to go fishing? Will we eventually have home delivery? Yes, the hamburger people say, “We can hold the lettuce. We can hold the pickle. We can hold the onion." It seems that some even hold the patty'!

T

he same cry has come to the church: “Hold the water. Hold the works. We want the grace only salvation. Hold the preaching. Hold the doctrine. Hold the singing.” We are not at liberty to hold anything God's Word specifies.

M

any in our great brotherhood today, "Change! Adapt! Conform, or die!" We must not panic because we're not growing like the hamburger stands. We must not let the liberals exploit our frustration by saying, “You would grow if you were more liberal." The Catholic Church has tried to accommodate their people for years, and every year their numbers shrink.

W

e are not in the growth business. At least this is not our priority. We are to sow, plant, and water. God will give the Increase. Paul saw this day-and said, "For the time will come when they will- not endure sound doctrine." Another version says, "When people won't tolerate sound doctrine but after their own lusts, appetites, and fancies they will have it their own way" (2 Tim. 3:2-3). And what was Paul's recommendation? Preach the word, not relevance, not mere peace and harmony, not that the end justifies the means. Nor are we in the people pleasing business. Paul said, “If I were still pleasing men, I should not be the servant of Christ” (Gal. 1:10). His business and ours is to please God.

M

aybe the church is like a hospital room where men and women from all walks of life come in sick, hurt, bleeding, and dying. Yet they all ask for the same thing—please help me! They don't ask to have it their way. They are not concerned about how long it will take. They don't ask how soft the mattresses are. They don't ask the temperature of the room. They don't notice whether the carpet and curtains match. They don't walk out because there is someone in the next bed they don't like. They don't go back home because no one spoke to them. They do not leave because the doctor has on a green jacket instead of a white one. Why? They know they are sick and dying.

U

ntil we can convince the world of its sick, lost and dying condition and lift Jesus up as the Great Physician and the only hope of the world, men will continue to be picky. The prodigal was picky until he was destitute. Then he said, "Make me a servant!" The church is facing a spoiled, pampered, indulged generation and we must not give in. [Via Topics for Thought, Nov. 30, 2003] &