What The Bible Says
“What The Bible Says - Vol. 3 / No. 7”
.jpg)
What The Bible Says
Vol. III - No. 7 / August 30, 2020
INTOLERANCE
Listening to the various television and radio news and talk shows, it doesn't take long to realize the only "sin" today's society recognizes is intolerance. To speak against homosexuals is to be intolerant. Nearly all "Christian" religions are branded as intolerant. Even in the religious arena, to speak and insist only for what the Bible teaches is to labeled as intolerant to other beliefs and practices. Intolerance is quickly equated with hate and bigotry. So, no one wants to be even remotely speaking in such a way as to be considered intolerant.
Was God intolerant when He commanded Israel: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." (Exodus 20:3)? Today, our "multi-cultural society" would have us to accept all religions whether they worship God or not. We must not attempt to teach a Buddha or some other idol worshiper like Paul did in Acts 17:16-33. This would show our intolerance of their beliefs. When verse 16 says, "Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry.", there would be those who would accuse Paul of hate and bigotry. The solution for today is simply set aside our belief in the One True God and accept a plurality of gods.
Was Jesus intolerant when He said: "...I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me."(John 14:6)? There are those who would never be guilty of intolerance and are ever on guard to quickly chastise others who are. They would insist that we dare not teach the Jew or the Islam that Christ is the Son of God because we will be committing the sin of intolerance! The solution is for us to lay aside our belief in "one mediator" (1 Timothy 2:5) and accept others. Even among the "religious" there are those who would have us to accept the virgin Mary, the Pope, or a priest as an intermediary between us and the Father. To speak or teach against any of these will cause others to accuse us of intolerance.
Are the Scriptures intolerant when it teaches that those who commit "...adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like:...shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5:19-21)? We must sit by and let the fornicator, drunkard, and the person who practices witchcraft do all they can to influence others to their lifestyles but we must not say one thing against it. If we do, we've committed that unpardonable sin of intolerance. We are branded as being full of hate and bigotry. If standing for what the Bible says makes me intolerant and a bigot, so be it. I'll take my chances on the Judgement Day.
—E.R. Hall, Jr.
GOD DOESN'T NEED A LABEL
Someone wrote, “God doesn’t have to put His name on a label in the corner of a meadow because nobody else makes meadows.” Ethan the Ezrahite wrote in Psalm 89, “The heavens will praise Your wonders, O Lord; Your faithfulness also in the assembly of the saints. For who in the heavens can be compared to the Lord? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the Lord? God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be held in reverence by all those around Him. O Lord God of hosts, who is mighty like You, O Lord? Your faithfulness also surrounds You. You rule the raging of the sea; when its waves rise, You still them. You have broken Rahab in pieces, as one who is slain; You have scattered Your enemies with Your mighty arm. The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours; the world and all its fullness, You have founded them. The north and the south, You have created them; Tabor and Hermon rejoice in Your name. You have a mighty arm; strong is Your hand, and high is Your right hand” (Psalms 89:5-13).
Man has been able to accomplish some spectacular things in the generations since Eden. Pyramids stand today that are thousands of years old. Great buildings testify to the architectural prowess of ancient man. Medicine and science is an increasing field of growing knowledge. Space yields small secrets with each adventure by man into the darkened world. Technology has shrunk the world to within the space of cell-phone. What man has accomplished is remarkable yet still pales in comparison to what God created in six days. “You alone are the Lord; You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, The earth and everything on it, the seas and all that is in them, and You preserve them all. The host of heaven worships You” (Nehemiah 9:6).
Man cannot make a meadow nor create a mountain as majestic as Everest (Matthew 6:28-29). The beauty of the hummingbird can only come from the hand of God. A baby’s cry is borne by the hand of angels from the mouth of God. The starry host is without number and yet the Lord God has a name for each one (Isaiah 40:26). Can man create a force as powerful as the sun or soothing as the moon?
To feel small before God consider His words to Job in Job 38-41. We need to feel small before the beauty and the power of God’s creation - because we are small. The meadow bears the mark of God because nothing else has the power to establish the divine nature but Jehovah God. Who are we to argue with God and pretend He does not exist? How can we stand in a world of testimony and suggests there is no God? “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork” (Psalms 19:1).
Who is like God? What can man do that would even compare to the mighty works of God? “Inasmuch as there is none like You, O Lord (You are great, and Your name is great in might), Who would not fear You, O King of the nations? For this is Your rightful due. For among all the wise men of the nations, And in all their kingdoms, There is none like You” (Jeremiah 10:6-7). “Praise the Lord! Praise, O servants of the Lord, Praise the name of the Lord! Blessed be the name of the Lord From this time forth and forevermore! From the rising of the sun to its going down The Lord's name is to be praised. The Lord is high above all nations, His glory above the heavens. Who is like the Lord our God, Who dwells on high” (Psalms 113:1-5).
—Kent Heaton
" I STUDY MY BIBLE LIKE I PLOW MY FIELD"
A farmer explained: “I study my Bible like I plow my field. Oftentimes when I’m plowing or breaking new ground, my plow will get hung under a root, and if I’m going at a pretty good clip it will really jar me. But I don’t get mad and beat my mule and burn my plow. No, I just back up a little, ease over the root and get on with my plowing. Next time around I’ll probably hit that root again and it still shakes me up, but I don’t quit farming. I just back up, ease over the root and keep on working. Pretty soon I have hit that root so many times that it’s loose and the first thing you know I plow right through it and don’t even notice it. I’ve got it shook loose. That’s the way I study the Bible. When I come upon a hard passage, it might shake me up a little bit, but I don’t throw away my Bible and quit the Lord on that account. I just ease over it and keep on studying. The next time I read that passage I jar it a little bit more. I keep on doing this until finally, because of information that I have gathered from other parts of the Bible I am able to jar the passage loose. I understand it.”
—Selected
Live Video Streaming Of The Bible Study
SUNDAY 9:30 AM and Wednesday 7:00 PM WWW.EASTALBERTVILLE.COM - click on “Live Feed”
or
Go To East Albertville church of Christ on YOUTUBE/FACEBOOK
Live Video Streaming Of The Bible Sermon
SUNDAY 9:30 AM and 5:00 PM WWW.EASTALBERTVILLE.COM - click on “Live Feed”
or
Go To East Albertville church of Christ on YOUTUBE/FaceBook
HAVE A BIBLE QUESTION YOU’D LIKE ANSWERED?
HERE’S YOUR CHANCE…
BIBLE CROSSFIRE
A CALL-IN RADIO PROGRAM
WBSA
93.5 FM & 1300 AM
also
SIRIUS XM CHANNEL 113
SUNDAY NIGHTS @ 8 PM CT
PREVIOUS SHOWS AVAILABLE AT:
BibleCrossfire.com
IMPROVE YOUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE BIBLE...
FREE ONLINE BIBLE CORRESPONDENCE COURSE
http://EastAlbertville.org/course
"What The Bible Says” is e-mailed twice a month. If you know of others who might benefit from the articles contained in this bulletin, we would be glad to have you submit their e-mail addresses and we will include them in the next mailing. If you are receiving this bulletin and do not wish to continue to do so, please e-mail us with your desire to be removed from the mailing list and you will be removed promptly. Continue to the bottom of this page for further instructions as to how you may contact us.
--- E.R. Hall, Jr.
SCHEDULE OF SERVICES
For The East Albertville Church Of Christ
meeting at
4777 U.S. Highway 431
Albertville, AL 35950
Sunday
Bible Classes …………..….…………… 9:30 AM
Morning Worship ……..…….….……… 10:30 AM
Evening Worship …………………........ 5:00 PM
Wednesday
Bible Classes …………..………........... 7:00 PM
Radio Program
Sunday
WBSA 93.5 FM/1300 AM ………………………….. 8:30 AM
Monday - Saturday
WBSA 93.5 FM/1300 AM ………………………….. 11:15 AM
Website: www. EastAlbertville.org
