"Supplement Your Faith" #2

By Bob Myhan

If Christians would be "partakers of the divine nature" (2 Peter 1:4), they must “make every effort to supplement…faith with virtue" (2 Peter 1:5, ESV). But what is "virtue"? While this word sometimes means "moral excellence" it surely does not mean that here since Peter distinguishes between it and other qualities that are necessary to "moral excellence."

There are at least three reasons for understanding Peter to be referring to "moral courage.”

1. The word translated "virtue" [arête] comes from a military term that was given as a personal name by the Greeks to their mythological god of war (Ares). What better name for a god of war than a word meaning courage?
2. The English word "virtue" comes from the Latin "virtus" meaning, "manhood." This also conveys the idea of courage.
3. Since the Christian is to be engaged in spiritual warfare (Eph. 6:10-17) one should naturally expect "moral courage" to follow on the heels of faith in such a list as Peter's.

Whether or not one agrees with the above paragraph, it cannot be denied that the demands God makes upon His people require moral courage.

First, Jesus said, "And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matt. 10:28). Some are so afraid of what others will say or do that they will refuse to obey God. Such do not believe that "it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Heb. 10:31). Such are destined for “the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death” (Rev. 21:8, ESV).

Second, Jesus also said, "So everyone who acknowledges me before men, him I will also acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven" (Matt. 10:32-33). This involves more than a public confession of faith in Christ prior to one's baptism.

If one is too afraid of being called "anti" to take his stand with those who oppose institutionalism, he is "denying Christ” just as much as one who is too afraid of being called "Campbellite" to confess Christ and be baptized. Both actions necessitate moral courage! Other demands that require moral courage include resisting temptation (1 Peter 5:8, 9), confessing sin (James 5:16), rebuking sin (Eph. 5:11; Luke 17:3), giving a reason of your hope (1 Peter 3:15), contending for the faith (Jude 3), standing fast in the faith (1 Cor. 16:13), and living right (2 Tim. 3:12).

It is true that doing what God requires will occasionally result in persecution. But by facing persecution with moral courage you will not only save yourself, but will also have a positive influence on the lives of others (Matt. 5:11-16). Therefore, do “not in any way [be] terrified by your adversaries" (Phil. 1:28). &

“Jesus Is the Answer to a Permissive Society”

Something has gone wrong in America . We seem to be on a course that is destined to cause us to self-destruct. The "land of the free and the home of the brave" which at one time was proud of her National Motto, "In God We Trust," is now so bent on separating, "church and state," that the voice of religious people can barely be heard without a court battle ensuing. An all-out war is in progress by Humanists who are determined to choke out the religious voice of hope for America . Hedonism of the rankest kind dominates our airwaves and night life.

"It happened so subtly that few people noticed at first. Little by little, morality and freedom started to crumble. It came first in government, in education, in the media--and finally it began to shake our families and our own lives. Something fundamental has changed. Law and government no longer provide a foundation of justice and morality but have become the means of licensing moral perversions of all kinds. Education has become the enemy of religious truth and values. And the media have provided the means for propagating the change." (Introduction of a book by Dr. Francis A. Schaffer, A Christian Manifesto, Westchester, Illinois: Crossway Books, 1982)

Considering the course that other nations have run before us, we see the survival of our nation, as well as the betterment of mankind, totally hinging on the restoration of the righteous principles that once made our country great. Consider these precious reminders from the Word of God:

Psalms 33:12 -- "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord."

Proverbs 14:34 -- "Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.”

Isaiah 5:20-21 -- "Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!”

Judges 17:6 -- "In those days there was no king in Israel , but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.”

Jeremiah 10:23 -- "0 Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man that walketh to direct his own steps.”

Our founding fathers established this nation on the principle of "In God We Trust." They understood more clearly than our Supreme Court Justices that they were building this nation upon the reality of a Supreme Being who was the Creator, and without whom this nation was destined to fail.

Friends, the Christian religion is the only acceptable alternative to our present moral predicament. Christ offered the highest moral standard conceivable in the Sermon on the Mount. The greed, covetousness, selfishness, and sensuality of our day are all once and forever remedied by a careful application of those sacred principles set forth in His beautiful sermon. Christ has offered an alternative to the stranglehold of sin. Truly He alone is the answer to self-destructive permissiveness that eats away at our very foundation. &

BULLETIN DIGEST                                                 Terry Broome

844 Pine St .                                     Broad Street church of Christ

Abilene , TX 79601                                                 Scottsboro , AL

Buzzard, Bat and Bumblebee

Author Unknown

If you put a buzzard in a six or eight foot square cage and leave it entirely open at the top, the bird, in spite of his ability to fly, will not escape. The reason is that a buzzard always begins his flight by running ten or twelve feet before hand. Without space to run, as is his habit, he will not even attempt to fly, but will remain a prisoner for life in a small jail with no top.

The ordinary bat that flies around at night, a remarkable nimble creature in the air, cannot take off from a level place. If it is placed on the floor or flat ground, all it can do is shuffle about helplessly and, no doubt, painfully, until it reaches some slight elevation from which it can throw itself into the air. Then, at once, it takes off like a flash.

A bumblebee, if dropped into an open tumbler will be there until it dies unless it is taken out. It never sees the means of escape at the top, but persists in trying to find some way out through the sides, even though none exists, until it completely destroys itself.

In many ways, there are lots of people like the buzzard, the bat and the bee. They are struggling about with all their problems and frustrations, not realizing that if they look up, they’ll find the answer.

Don’t you love it? Look up…. GOD Is the Answer…..&

We Are Not Saved by Anything Alone!

By Bob Myhan

We are saved by many things, according to the Bible but not by anything alone. We are saved by God but not by God alone. We are saved by Jesus but not by Jesus alone. We are saved by the Holy Spirit but not by the Holy Spirit alone. We are saved by grace but not by grace alone. We are saved by the blood of Christ but not by the blood of Christ alone. We are saved by preaching but not by preaching alone. We are saved by believing but not by believing alone. We are saved by repentance but not by repentance alone. We are saved by confession of faith but not by confession of faith alone. We are also saved by baptism but not by baptism alone. &