They Were Just Like Us

     In Acts 5 we find the apostles before a very angry Sanhedrin just itching to put them to death.  Verses 27-29 say, “And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, saying, ‘We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.’ But Peter answered, ‘We must obey God rather than men.”

     It required extraordinary courage for Peter and the others to stand before the council and say the things they did. The Sanhedrin charged the apostles with disobeying their specific command to teach no more in the name of Jesus (Acts 4:18). The apostles said that it was right for them to disobey. The Sanhedrin accused the apostles of trying to bring the blood of Jesus Christ upon their heads. The apostles turned right around and accused them of killing Jesus (Acts 5:30). The Sanhedrin denied that Jesus possessed divine authority. The apostles boldly declared that “God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins” (Acts 5:31). By then much of the Sanhedrin saw red and were prepared to kill the apostles (Acts 5:33). Had they not heeded the advice of Gamaliel (Acts 5:34-39) they may very well have killed them.

     We tend to shake our our heads at the faith and courage of those men. In doing so we join the countless throng of saints throughout the ages who have marveled at them. It is not difficult to begin imagining that they were a different breed of human, a group of first century “supermen” exempt from the discouragements and fears that often plague “the rest of us.” After all, what else could explain their ability to stand with such determination before an enraged Sanhedrin? 

     Well, they were not supermen. In fact, they had not always been as bold as they should have been. Even after this event Peter, the spokesmen for the group, would briefly turn hypocrite and lead others astray by his example (Galatians 2:11-13). God shows us their failings so that we will recognize that they were just like us, fraught with all the frailties and fears indigenous to humanity. Like us, they occasionally succumbed to temptation. Like us, they experienced illnesses and death. Like us, they sometimes needed a brotherly or sisterly shoulder to cry on. Like us, they needed to be encouraged.  Like us, they needed to be saved!

     So if they were not supermen, if they really were just like you and I, how did they manage to do what they did? I believe we find all the answer we need in Acts 4:13, the first time two apostles were brought before the council. “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.” They had been with Jesus. They had traveled with Him, listened to Him, received their training from Him, imbibed Him, and been saved by Him. They had been with Jesus.

     When ordinary people are filled with extraordinary faith that they have been with Jesus becomes apparent to all who are paying attention. Our ordinary daily lives should show us the truth of this. Why do faithful Christian spouses patiently work at their marriage when folks all around them with similar troubles and fears separate from one another? It is because they have been with Jesus. Why do faithful Christians sacrifice financially by contributing to the church when folks all around them are saving like mad to purchase more things and to visit more places? It is because they have been with Jesus. Why does the faithful Christian see the glory of God in the brilliant morning sunlight while other folks are grumbling about going to work in the morning? It is because they have been with Jesus. Why doesn’t the faithful Christian curse and throw out vulgar gestures when someone cuts them off while driving or shoves in front of them in the grocery line? It is because they have been with Jesus.

     Living hand in hand with Jesus does not reveal itself only when one’s life is on the line. It is something that shines through in every action a Christian takes. Of course, it does require a very mature, committed faith to hold its resolve in the face of personal danger. It is the type of faith all saints should work for. Christians often say that they do not know what they would do if faced with the same challenges of some of our earliest brethren, such as those faced by the apostles in Acts 4 and 5. I don’t believe that is the correct attitude. It seems that all committed Christians should be prepared to not just have their faith tested, but to cling to it to the very end, even if that end is death (Matthew 10:22). Such would certainly not be easy, but it would be expected by the One prepared to welcome them on the other side.

     Yes, we are ordinary people. None of us are masquerading as regular humans until we find the nearest phone booth. Yet we are all capable of extraordinary things through our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Living the faithful Christian life each day is every bit as extraordinary as surviving the most trying moments with faith intact. Both are made possible because the saint has been with Jesus.      

"He has prepared for them a city"

     A few years ago I was returning to Lexington from Michigan. I drove through Ann Arbor, passed Toledo, through Bowling Green and Dayton, and then reached Cincinnati. As I drove through it occurred to me that I’ll probably always consider that city home. I know many of the streets and buildings like the back of my hand. There is an easy familiarity and comfort with Cincinnati that I have not developed with any other city.

     However, such thoughts also make me think of the lessons learned from Hebrews 11:13-16. “These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.”

     Truly it doesn’t matter where I live on this earth. Whether I am in Lexington, Cincinnati, or a city on the other side of the globe, I am merely spending up the days of my exile. It is up to me to make sure that I do not allow myself to become so attached to a place. It is up to me to make sure that I am a useful and active instrument for the Father regardless of my location in this world. Through the eyes of faith I see my homeland and everything that I do here on earth, and in whatever location I do it, is just preparation for that city to be revealed after my Lord returns.

     Think of that place, my friends! I have heard so many Christians say things very similar to what I said at the beginning of this article. So many speak of their home, talking about some place in this country. They speak with longing in their hearts and a far away look in their eyes. Even if we have the opportunity to return to the earthly city we think of as home, how will that change our current condition? We will still have to struggle with sickness. We will still have to struggle with death. We will still have to struggle with temptation. We will still have to struggle with sorrows. In the end, one city is just as good as another when it comes to changing the things all humans must face because none of them can do it. 

     However, one place can. “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:1-4).

      Whatever troubles us here will not trouble us there. There will be no sitting in cold, stark waiting rooms while a loved one is being operated on. There will be no gazing down upon the face of friends and family for the final time as the casket is closed. There will be no worry, pain, or sorrow. There will be the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, surrounded by the saints singing endless songs of praise. There will be our faithful loved ones who have gone before waiting to embrace and welcome us. There will be eternal paradise.

     “I’ve a home prepared where the saints abide, just over in the glory-land. And I long to be by my Savior’s side, just over in the glory-land.” Perhaps I’ll find myself back in Cincinnati one day. Perhaps you’ll find yourself back in whatever city holds a special place in your heart. Though in the end it really doesn’t matter, does it? I just want to go home! What about you?  

Thoughts On Tradition

     In the time that I have been preaching much has been said about tradition within the Lord’s church. It has been interesting to hear what’s been said and read what’s been written. Within the last several years a number of blogs and websites have begun that seem designed primarily to militate against what is called “Church of Christ tradition.” The majority of the sites that I am aware of were started by Christians in their twenties or thirties, though a few are operated by those much older than that. The problem, according to many of the people who operate these sites, is that too often human traditions are elevated to the same level as inspired revelation. However, in their haste to make their point, they have a tendency to place the “our tradition” label on certain things that are not human traditions at all (necessity of baptism-Acts 2:38, instrumental music-Colossians 3:16, women evangelists and elders-1 Timothy 2:11-12; 3:2, etc.). While I believe their concerns are valid, I also believe they tend to run to very dangerous extremes.

     Many brethren have arisen to combat these individuals, either through word or in writing. I have heard many brethren, usually older Christians, speak of the great arrogance involved in taking established traditions and tossing them all out as if the people who helped to establish them were not careful Bible students and had given no thought to the matter at all. It is insulting, they say, for young Christians to scoff at the traditions of those much older and more experienced. I could not agree more. Yet I have also listened as a defender of human tradition worked himself into such a frenzy that he concluded a young Christian who questioned a particular congregation’s uninspired tradition may have very well forfeited his soul. Here, too, is a dangerous extreme.

     The word “tradition” simply means, “The transmission of customs or beliefs from generation to generation.” Much of what Christians do today is the result of inspired tradition. “What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.” (Philippians 4:9) “Now we command you, brothers, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us.” (2 Thessalonians 3:6) Sometimes people claim that a Christian from the first century would not recognize our worship assemblies today. I deny that and challenge them to produce the evidence reasoning solely from Scripture. We follow the same revelation they did, thus we follow the same inspired traditions. No one has ever produced evidence to the contrary.

     However, for the purposes of this article, inspired traditions are not really the issue at hand. Each individual congregation has its own peculiar uninspired traditions. We can see this in things like the order and times of worship, “special” assemblies like prayer or singing services, approach to Bible classes and meetings, and things of that nature. It is rare indeed to find two congregations who match perfectly in these areas. The question is this: how are such traditions to be viewed? Answering this question is so important because it will have a bearing in the way we view those who differ and/or advocate changing them. For the remainder of this article let’s consider a few thoughts on uninspired congregational traditions.

     Though they are in place for a reason, they are in need of constant examining.  Whether it is the times of service, an approach to gospel meetings, or how Bible classes are conducted, thoughtful Bible students with a wealth of experience established those traditions for a reason. Sometimes they did it to protect against potential problems, sometimes they did it to aid in carrying out an inspired command decently and in order, and sometimes they did it because the circumstances of the day were simply conducive to doing it that way. It is foolish and arrogant to disregard such traditions out of hand. Nothing that is the result of careful thought and Bible study should ever simply be dismissed.

     At the same time, it is unrealistic to imagine that the world remains static. That potential problem of many years ago is perhaps something completely different today. That method that aided in carrying out a command many years ago may perhaps need some tweeking now. It is important to regard highly faithful saints who have gone before and to carefully consider why they established the traditions they did. It is equally important to regularly examine those traditions to ensure that they still meet the needs they were designed to meet.

     Souls will not be saved on the basis of their loyalty to uninspired human traditions, but to Christ (Luke 9:23; John 21:21-22). This may sound a bit strange to you, but for many years I struggled mightily with congregations that did not have a closing song. The reason was not because Christ commanded it and not having one was a violation of his will. It was because my grandfather, whom I loved and admired tremendously, thought it was important to conclude a worship assembly with an energetic, up-tempo hymn for saints to carry out into the world with them. Was it immature of me to struggle this way? Probably. May I suggest that it happens among brethren all of the time?

     It is not uncommon to hear brethren who prefer two Sunday worship assemblies and weeklong gospel meetings to speak disparagingly of those who do not. Just over a decade ago a congregation chose to have a single extended worship assembly on Sunday morning. A brother at another congregation with two assemblies began to rake them over the coals. He claimed they didn’t really want to worship God, that they were lazy, and that they were trying to do as little as possible. It was pointed out to him that they were actually meeting for well over three hours with a few breaks spread throughout. There were more prayers being said, more time spent on the Lord’s Supper, more songs, and more time in Bible study and proclamation in that one assembly than they’d had in two. However, that brother would not accept it and eventually got to his real problem when he declared, “We just don’t do it that way!” He was not rejecting them because of any unfaithfulness to Christ, but because they were not following a human tradition he subscribed to. That’s a problem on his part, not theirs.

     The same is often seen in relation to gospel meetings. Those of us who continue to stay with meetings that last a week must not besmirch the character or faithfulness of those congregations who have shortened them or chosen to go in a different direction altogether. There have been times when I’ve questioned their commitment because of this very thing and I was wrong to do so. Brethren from a hundred years ago, when meetings could span an entire month, could very well question our commitment. The disciples in Jerusalem who attended the temple and spent time together every day (Acts 2:46) could very well question us all! It is appropriate to point out that both society and circumstances have changed in the past one hundred years and certainly since the first century. That understanding alone should help us prevent viewing uninspired human traditions as sacred and above review. 

     Let us remember that an extended single worship assembly on Sunday or two “regular” assemblies is a decision each congregation is entitled to make for themselves. Let us recall that gospel meetings, whether they last a month, a week, or a weekend are traditions established by individual congregations to facilitate growing in the faith, evangelizing their communities, and building up the local body. If they determine there is a better way for them to meet those needs they have every right to do so and I have not the right to disparage them for it. Let us strive to remember that they will be saved on the basis of their faith in Christ, not their faithfulness to an uninspired human tradition, even if that tradition happens to be one that I prefer.

     So what do we do? We remember that our congregational traditions, though uninspired, have a very important place. We recognize the good they do in serving as safeguards as well as helping to facilitate obedience to our Lord’s command’s. At the same time we recognize that our loyalty must not be to those traditions but to Jesus Christ himself. This understanding makes it easier to keep our uninspired traditions in their proper context so that they can be carefully and prayerfully examined to see if they continue to meet the needs they were designed to meet. If a change is necessary it can be made with the understanding that the design is to better serve our Lord and not to dishonor those who have gone before. When all of this is understood there is no cause to view brethren whose uninspired traditions differ from ours with suspicion or disdain.