Remove Not the Ancient Landmark

Berean Baptist on November 26, 2018

Proverbs 22:28

There is scarcely a Christian in a fundamental church that has not heard a sermon on Proverbs 22:28. There is no debate over the original meaning of the verse. Landmarks were used to set the boundaries of a person’s property. These were set to designate the ownership of land in recognition of a person’s legal right to a specific part of the land. Often, large stones placed at corners of the property made it obvious to others where the property lines extended. We still use the same basic principles today in less obvious ways. Surveyors set property pins. It is impossible to move the property lines by theft since modern surveying techniques do not depend on physical markers. GPS coordinates take their place. But, in Bible times, to move a marker to increase one’s part of the land and to decrease another’s, was very dishonest and destructive to property owners.

The question about this text is whether it is right to make a spiritual application. I have never heard of a fundamental preacher who said we should not. It is a favorite text for teaching the danger of moving away from the great doctrines of the Bible. These doctrines are the markers of our faith and practice. We cannot go beyond or fall short of them. To do so is to destroy the faith as it was once delivered by the Holy Spirit through New Testament authorship (Jude 1:3). In Jude’s terms, contending for the faith is the defense of these landmarks.

As Bereans, we examine every doctrine to be sure it corresponds to the written word. If it does not, we reject it as an attempt to move the landmark. In two thousand years of church history, many splinter groups have been busy moving landmarks all over the map. They put new ones down while adjusting others or completely removing them. These bogus landmarks should be soundly rejected. If they are not scriptural, they do not come from God. This shows the main positioning pin is vital. This pin is the belief the Bible is the infallible, unchanging word of God.

When others describe our church as a traditional church, some may think this refers to our worship style, such as the types of songs we sing and the way we present them. This is a tradition in one sense, but not the tradition we care to be most descriptive. Rather, we want to be known as a traditional Bible church. We want to be known as those who have no other standards than those found in God’s word. We want no other doctrines than those we can defend with an open Bible. We want no other text of scripture than translations that are faithful to the author’s original intent. We want no flirtation with non-biblical methods of increasing attendance. The church belongs to Christ and He will build it as He sees fit.

Don’t move the landmarks! Every doctrine must fit as God delivered it in His word. We preach nothing more as if to add is to help the word, and we preach nothing less as if to subtract is to correct the word. The word as given is sufficient to furnish us to all good works (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

Puny Preachers and Politics

Berean Baptist on November 19, 2018

“The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.” (Proverbs 21:1)

 

This scripture is both appropriate and comforting in these days of political turmoil. Everyday there is a news story of mostly complaints about the activities of the president. In my lifetime, I have never seen the amount of sour scrutiny of every action in negative reporting of everything he does. It is as if the right action is always the opposite action of what he does no matter the subject. Those who clamored most that we should accept the results of the election in 2016 are the loudest in their protests we should not. Those who live to defend free speech die when the speech does not agree with them. Such is the hypocrisy of American politics.

This political unrest engages many pastors, and I do not want to ride on that bandwagon. As one author said, “I am concerned when I see pastors throw their weight behind causes good Christians might disagree on. There are many reasons one might be cheered by Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, but there is nothing in the Bible that says Christians must be originalists when it comes to the Constitution.” I certainly have my viewpoint on how the Supreme Court should be constructed, but I agree with this author. The pastor’s position is not to be an interpreter of the Constitution. Our calling is to interpret the Word of God. I do not need to inject controversies that have no bearing on the eternal destiny of the soul, nor if they do not speak of the virtues of the Saviour.

I will speak from the pulpit on moral issues that face us because those are addressed in the scriptures. We have an obligation to the people to engage them because they bear on righteousness. Other matters I do not care to address. Last year, I steadfastly refused to fight a battle over the Internal Revenue 501(c) 3 issue. It will neither help nor hinder me from preaching the truth from the Berean pulpit.

There is something that seriously irks me about political commentary. It is the strange concern over Hollywood’s opinions of governmental policies. I tend to believe much less attention is paid to their opinions than they think. Mostly they are ignorant people supported by other ignorant Hollywood people just like them. I care nothing at all what George Clooney or Leonardo DiCaprio say. How they get to congressional hearings is beyond my capacity to understand. I have never voted for or considered for three seconds whether Robert De Niro supports a candidate. I believe he probably still wants to punch Donald Trump in the face. I wish he would, then we would never hear of Robert De Niro again. These people have no policy expertise that compels any reasonable person to listen to their advice.

Ah, but here is the rub. Neither do preachers have any policy expertise. What makes a preacher any more a reliable guide than a Hollywood star? When he strays away from the field he knows, he is dumber than De Niro. At least, he ought to know better. Quite hypocritical, me thinks! Another quote strikes me: “I am concerned when I see pastors making extravagant, unqualified statements on issues that require some level of nuance and expertise.” Seems running the United States government might have a small requirement for that, doesn’t it?

I am content to leave the king’s heart in the hand of the Lord. Nothing he does or does not do will affect the church. The preacher who says it will needs to sit down and shut up. For most of Christian history, the government never favored the true church. It did not stop us then and it will not stop us now. We need to stick to the Lord’s business. On the individual level, go at it with all the vigor and vim you please. This pulpit will stay out of it. Do not expect to be ratified by the Word of God when God does not speak.

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

Photobombing Jesus

Berean Baptist on November 12, 2018

Last year, I read an interesting article with the title, Photobombing Jesus. The article began with a definition of photobomb. It means, “to spoil a photograph by appearing in the camera’s field of view as a picture is taken.” If you still don’t understand the meaning, ask any teenager with a cell phone. They will be happy to demonstrate for your education.

The article was about a pastor who lamented the beginning of his ministry. He attempted to outshine Jesus. It started with his testimony. God saved him out of a life of drugs, parties, gambling, and women. Everyone knows this testimony is much more interesting than one like mine. I was a preacher’s kid who grew up in church and saved at an early age. No wild parties for me. A testimony like this man’s will help catapult a person to the top 40 on the evangelistic circuit. In his words, the author was ushered on the stage of churches and campus ministries to tell what Jesus had done for him.

With this experience, he thought a good place for God to use him was in a large campus ministry, and soon he was involved in one. To his dismay, he wasn’t put up front. Instead, his job was to raise and lower the curtain for people who were on stage. He was upset at the turn of events because he thought his ministry was more valuable to God than being a backstage hand. It was then the Lord convicted him. He recognized this as his attempt to photobomb Jesus.

From this point, he ended the article with “six glory-stealing confessions.” The first one caught my eye relating to this evening’s sermon. He confessed, “I want Jesus to be glorified, but I want glory too.” Nothing better describes a photobombing pastor. He seeks applause as a way of getting into the picture with Jesus. It is fine if Jesus is in the picture too, but he must be sure he isn’t left out and gets the recognition he needs. His bio will read about how the church has grown since he became the pastor. The numbers in attendance are noted, the value of the buildings is announced, and don’t forget how many books he’s authored. He is a jack of all trades but master of none. He expects the congregation to applaud as he enters the sanctuary with his entourage in tow.

In a similar way, there are preachers such as I who pastor smaller less prominent ministries. We do not expect applause for good reason. If you have heard our attempts, they are too weak to be anything but embarrassing. We seek recognition in other ways. Ours is to photobomb Jesus by seeking compliments. We love to hear someone at the door tell us how great the sermon was that day. We need at least one of these to remind us who is the most important around here. If we get two, there is no doubt Spurgeon was in the building. If there are no compliments, we are grossly under appreciated.

Do we need this affirmation to be successful preaching God’s word? If it bothers us, we need to step back and remember who should receive glory. This author said, “A servant who seeks affirmation steals something that does not belong to them…A preacher who preaches to gain glory for himself is flirting with Christ’s bride for whom he died to have for His own.” This quote works for either the morning or evening message. Let Christ be the only one framed in the picture. This is His church not mine.

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

 

A Complicated Commandment

Berean Baptist on November 5, 2018

Exodus 20:12

The fifth commandment may be the least understood of God’s Ten Commandments. It seems direct without much room for interpretation—simply do this—respect your father and mother. However, the commandment is much deeper than appears on the surface. A careful study of its placement as the hinge-pin connecting the first and second divisions of the law reveals the mystery of its complexity.

God is the father of all life which provides the strongest argument for the insistence of obedience to all the commandments, especially the first four which are revelations of His transcendence. Respect is due Him as He is God alone and worshipping Him because of His divine favor in granting us life flows from this. Providential wisdom juxtaposed these thoughts to the commandment to honor our parents who are secondarily responsible for giving us life. These two spheres are linked in the fifth commandment which produces a perpetual duty to respect the highest authorities in both spheres of influence.

Secondly, the commandment stands at the head of all human relationships. The next four commandments proceed with directions for the treatment of our fellow man. Thus, as Ezekiel Hopkins describes, we have the basis for handling all spheres of influence, that is the relationship to those in authority, the relationship of those in authority to their inferiors, and the lateral relationships of those who are our equals. The fifth commandment reflects the first sphere, namely, how do we respond to those in authority?

The command is more complex than imagined because it encompasses all authorities, not just the authority of parents. The scope is broad starting with God who gave the commandment, down to every relationship of every kind in which others are placed over us in the societal order. The command is difficult because of our natural resistance to authority. This begins with the resistance of man against God, as men do not like to retain God in their knowledge (Rom. 1:28). The rejection of God filters down into reluctant submission to all authorities. For this reason, children must be trained to respect their parents. If we fail here in the second greatest level of authority, there is no hope for the final commandments to be obeyed.

The fifth commandment produces an explosion of theological implications making the exposition of it a journey into some of the most important doctrinal concepts in scripture. This short list of statements caused Jesus to preach His most important sermon, the Sermon on the Mount, which relates the law of the Kingdom to the hope of eternal life.

We need to take time with this commandment as its concepts are woven throughout many Bible passages. Thomas Watson wrote, “By the first table, we walk religiously toward God; by the second, we walk religiously toward man. He cannot be good in the first table that is bad in the second.” This tells us there is no way to rest secure because we are through with the severity of judgment for our disobedience to the first table. The way becomes harder because of 1 John 4:20: “…he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?” Perhaps you thought you could escape extreme scrutiny because God is invisible leading us to subconsciously believe no one really knows if our heart is right towards Him. Oh, no—the image of God is in the person you curse and treat badly. The recesses of your heart are cracked open and made visible each day in regards to your treatment of every human being. Learn these complications or miss obedience to all the commandments.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Thank God for Our Church

Berean Baptist on October 29, 2018

(This article was written two years ago before the presidential election. I believe it is as timely today with upcoming elections as it was then.)

At times, it seems we hope against hope for our survival as each year presents new challenges to our faith. The gruesome presidential election is over, which for the first time presented us with no good options, or at least none we felt we could make without violating every decency of a sanctified conscience. Never have Christian Americans had to vote for such unqualified evil. We were torn between our patriotic duty of voting, and a feeling if we did vote we might in fact conflict with our duty as citizens of the heavenly country. How do you vote when evil wins either way? You can decide how you feel about the outcome. I am thankful that Bereans can sit together in church today, and that despite different political opinions, we rejoice as one in the word of God.

How are we able to do this? It is because our political divisions pale in comparison to our spiritual agreements. We are not divided about the gospel. We have firm unchanging conviction in the saving power of Jesus Christ. No campaign for a different salvation will shake us from our belief in justification by faith alone in Jesus Christ alone.

We are not divided on the Bible. We believe it is the inerrant, inspired word of God that is our constitution of faith and practice. We are not divided on its proper translation. We believe the King James Version is the best translation for English speaking people.

We are not divided on Christ. There is no other way to the Father but through Him. He is the way, the truth, and the life. We believe salvation is exclusively in Him as the author and finisher of our faith. We are not divided on His cross, believing it is the only place for our sins to be forgiven. We are not divided on His death as the atonement for our sins and that Christ died as a penal substitute to redeem us from all iniquity.

We are not divided about our standing in Christ. We are held safely and securely in the Father’s hand and no power of hell can separate us from the His love. Our perseverance in the faith is assured because He is the defender of His people.

We are not divided on the work of the Holy Spirit. He regenerated us when we were dead in trespasses and sin and brought us to life to hear and believe the gospel. His work precedes our repentance and faith in a secret operation upon the soul. We realize it only by the fruits it produces. We are not divided on His sanctification of believers which is sealed to us upon our belief. We receive Him in His fullness as an abiding presence when we place our faith in Christ.

We are not divided concerning the Father’s work of choosing us in Christ before the foundation of the world. All benefits of salvation flow out of this sovereign choice founded only in the good pleasure of His will. No blessings are secured to us based on any act of foreseen faith.

And lastly, we are not divided about the body of Christ, the church of the living God. We are a visible body complete in Him—vessels of mercy made to glorify Him through the preaching of the gospel. Our duty is to bring more of His chosen ones to the throne of His grace.

We are thankful that human government rules temporally for the good of our society. We have no trust in it beyond God’s stated purpose to be His instrument to restrain evil. Though it often disappoints and causes temporary dissent, it will not dampen our enthusiasm or ruin our faith that God always does all things well. Rejoice with us in our Thanksgiving holiday. God’s kingdom and His church are great no matter who our elected representatives may be.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

The Sunday Sabbath

Berean Baptist on October 22, 2018

In these past weeks, I have enjoyed the opportunity to study the fourth commandment which teaches us to remember to keep the Lord’s Day holy. There are many who believe this Old Testament law was done away with in the fulfillment of Christ’s death which is the antitype of many Old Testament practices. However, this law was given immediately upon the completion of the creation which tells us God intended it as a perpetual law that is given to all nations to remind us of His power and sovereignty.

Recently, I listed to a sermon by someone who holds a different opinion. He claimed the idea of a Christian sabbath is not very old but is mostly of English Puritan descent and was not believed by Christians other than the Puritans. One of his arguments said that Baptists are wrong, and we ought to reject the historic confessions of faith that teach Sunday is a sabbath that replaced the Old Testament seventh day sabbath. The argument goes that our most popular confessions do not use the term “Christian Sabbath.” It is true the New Hampshire Confession of 1833 to which we closely adhere in our own statement of faith does not use the term “Christian Sabbath” in the 15th article entitled The Observance of the First Day of the Week. However, the language is very clear this is meant by the exclusions and duties that are put upon the day. In addition, the last phrase says the day is to be used for “preparation for that rest that remains to the people of God.” This reference is to Hebrews 4:3-11 in which the author says in verse 9: “There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.” Rest in this verse is the Greek word sabbatismos which is derived from the word that means sabbath. The Second London Baptist Confession of 1689 in its article on the Sabbath begins, “The light of nature shows that there is a God…” This confession begins by connecting the sabbath to laws that are written on the human heart. It ends by using the word sabbath: “The sabbath is then kept holy unto the Lord.”

The man who preached this message is a Southern Baptist who referred to the Southern Baptist Abstract of Principles which is their confession of faith. He noted the Abstract of Principles does not use the word sabbath. And yet the language in the Abstract uses the same concepts as are found in others that do. James Petigru Boyce, one of the founders of the Southern Baptist Convention asked in his catechism: “Why do Christians keep Sunday as the sabbath?” Answer: “Because it was on that day of the week that Christ rose from the dead.” Further: “What name is given to it on this account?” Answer: “The Lord’s Day.” Likewise, Spurgeon’s catechism emphasis the same point even more extensively in positively declaring the first day of the week is the Christian sabbath.

It is interesting to note that the Reformers did not regard a Sunday sabbath. Luther, Calvin, Zwingli, Knox, Beza, and others argued against it. However, their opinions were fashioned against the background of the abuses of Roman Catholicism in making Sundays festival days, and of course to their sacramentarian views of salvation regarding it. Their opinions prevailed over their churches for less than a century when the practice overwhelmingly returned to a Sunday sabbath. Calvin’s arguments notwithstanding that the change to a Sunday sabbath happened about A.D. 60 instead of upon Christ’s resurrection, proves to be only an argument, whereas the law written on the human heart continues to prevail.

It is therefore disingenuous to assert the Sunday sabbath is a recent invention. It appears the Sunday sabbath did not prevail as practice among Bible believing Christians for only a short interval in the late 16th century. It only seems to hold sway today among those who are bent on returning to the enlightenment of the Reformation, which in most cases is good except when it is not.

 

                                                                        Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

 

Sunday Is the Lord’s Day Wherever You Are

Berean Baptist on September 10, 2018

During the year, many of our church members are traveling on Sundays. This thought comes to mind that Sunday is the Lord’s Day no matter where you are. All days should be used to honor the Lord, but Sunday is especially set aside for God’s people to honor Christ in corporate worship.

Many times, you have heard me tell stories of the scores of Baptist churches located in my hometown of Lexington, Kentucky. This should make it very easy to find a good one to worship in while I visit there. It is true that in my hometown there are several that I have full confidence in to visit and enjoy worshiping on Sunday. However, I am not usually in Lexington on Sunday. I go to Lexington to see my mother who is suffering from Alzheimer’s, and then for several days I travel to other parts of the country. These are places with churches that I am not familiar with. I am still in the South with many, many Baptist churches, but finding a good one is an unbelievably hard adventure.

I remember last year looking on the internet for one in southwest Virginia. There were many to choose from, but I found none that weren’t seriously bothersome to me. Since I am well versed in what to look for and can decipher a lot of adverse language in doctrinal statements, I know what to expect if I choose the wrong one. Sometimes the clues are on the surface where they blast BAD EXPERIENCE. For example, I look at the pictures of leaders on the web pages. Do I see the choir director’s name? Is it he or she? Is there a picture of a deaconess? This tells me what the church believes about leadership.

Several years ago, when I came to California, I attended a Baptist church in Petaluma. I have always used this church as an example of how going to church can be a nightmarishly bad experience. It is very difficult to worship when your stomach is turning like an agitator in a washing machine. I think Paul may have described it as his bowels were yearning (that is if he spoke King James English as some believe!).

The scriptures say we must worship God in spirit and in truth. Very simply, if we do not, we do not worship. While I believe corporate worship is best on Sundays, I know there are times it is not profitable to join yourself to a congregation that pretends with their lips, but their hearts are far away from God and His truth. It is best not to listen to a sermon from a preacher who is a mockery of the God ordained profession. It is certainly awful to hear sermons from preachers that do not preach salvation in Jesus Christ alone. If these are your choices, stay away. There are some fundamentals that cannot be compromised, and worship is not possible without them.

One of the things I love about Berean is our location. We have a prominent easy location in the city which makes our church attractive to visitors from other areas. Almost every Sunday we have visitors from other cities, states, or countries. They witness a good confession by their desire to worship on the Lord’s Day even though they are away from home. I am especially gratified when we have repeat visitors. They are back in our area again and because their first experience was good they desire to return and hear the word of God faithfully preached once more.

When you travel, look for opportunities for corporate worship if possible. Some bring back bulletins as proof to show the pastor they tried. Thanks! I am always happy to hear there are others that still preach the truth of God’s word. Remember, you can worship God no matter where you are. If there is no good church, Sunday is still the Lord’s Day!

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

Violating the Fourth Commandment

Berean Baptist on September 3, 2018

Exodus 20:8-11

The fourth commandment may well be one of the most neglected and least convicting of all the commandments in the Decalogue. This is not because of lack of seriousness in what God demands, but because the modern Christian has become so complacent about reserving time for God. I also believe the modern pulpit holds much culpability for this unhappy phenomenon. The interpretation that the fourth commandment is not a part of the moral law written on the heart is the major contributor to the problem. Many preachers who are otherwise stellar in their interpretation of scripture tell us this command is not binding on Christians today. They teach there is no such thing as a Christian sabbath which seems from my research of historical positions not to be the consistent teaching of Baptists or others.

To be fair, these preachers do not teach you are not obligated to give time to God, but rather they say there is no special day to for it. Sunday is more of a convenience based on Christian agreement that it is a good easy time for us to get together. It is by mutual consent rather than a commanded time. I fear that when the observance is taught this way it is much easier for the individual to say Sunday is not convenient for them, and since there is no command there is no need to concern themselves. We see the convenience card played too much as churches offer Friday night services for those whose weekend plans are too much encumbered to accommodate what they don’t much like doing anyway. It is not exaggeration that many Christians treat church as if they need only a light dose to assuage their conscience. After all, they do claim to be Christians, don’t they? They go to church for the minimum time to put in their appearance and while they are there it is not worship they think of. Boating, fishing, football, shopping or a hundred other plans run through their minds. In all fairness, most of the time the Friday night churches are not giving anything worth thinking about anyway.

If we have a hard time keeping Christians on track when we have a command, what happens when there is none? Evidently church attendance has been a problem from the beginning. Hebrews warned early Christians not to forsake the assembly. No doubt some of this was advice for Christians who were fearful of persecution and thus would not come, but surely there must be at least a modicum of instruction for Christians who were lax and lazy about attending. Some of them did what many of us do—seek other venues to spend our Sunday time.

We are determined to get the exposition right, and so we will follow the historical interpretation that God has not changed the principle of the sabbath. The New Testament did nothing other than change the day. If we argue there must have been some change because we don’t follow the rigid requirements of the Jews and that Jesus chastised the Pharisees for their abuses, we only need concede their practices were wrong. This does not mean there isn’t a sabbath and a right way to keep it.

The important point to realize is its status as a command. Arguably because it comes at the end of the first table of the law, it stands in a special place of importance. There should be more conviction over its violation. We will not tolerate repeat offending adulterers nor repeat thieves and certainly not mass murderers. Where is the censure of Christians over repeat violations of this command? I hope there is conviction after this little miniseries on the fourth commandment. Baptists surely need more contrition because of it.

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Intentions

Berean Baptist on August 27, 2018

Exodus 20:7

In this morning’s message, we take up the final exposition of the third commandment: “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain.” In the previous messages, I have shown you there is more to taking the Lord’s name in vain than using it as a swear word. Today, we examine some of these other ways. Since there are several of them, I do not have a lot of time to spend on each one. I have already shortened the list to make the point in the briefest time possible.

I would like, however, to expand on the common usage of God’s name as “filler speech.” For want of some other expression, God’s name is inserted as an exclamation of surprise, of disgust, or some other emotion. The expression “Oh my God” is so common it is spoken without thought. Since most people do not actually talk to one another any longer, the expression shows up in texts, tweets, and emails as “OMG.” I would think to type this out surely requires a little bit of thought—more so than in spoken language because many are indeed so foolish as to speak without thinking.

The problem of determining whether this is sinful relates to intent. Is this intentionally disrespecting God’s name? Does intent rule, or is it overridden by the clearness of the command? In other words, if you do not intend to act wrongly are your wrong actions sinful? If you speak God’s name without intentionally disgracing Him, is it still sin? We only need to compare it with other things we do without intent. Go back to the second commandment. If we hang a picture of Jesus on the wall without the intent of worshiping it, is it still wrong? If you listened to those sermons, you hardly need to ask. If you offend someone unintentionally, is it still wrong? Ask Hilary if you use a private email server for national security conversations, is it wrong if you had no intent to put this country in harm’s way? Wait, don’t answer that—apparently it is okay. Usually, however, the government is not concerned with your intent. The law has been broken and consequences must be faced. Most people have no intent to run over people on the sidewalk, but it could happen if you text while driving.

Likewise, with this command. We do not expect the world to get this, but Christians are definitely under obligation to get it. We are supposed to think about what we say. We are supposed to be deliberate in our speech. Jesus said, “Every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment” (Matthew 12:36). We can very well take this as His exposition of the third commandment: “The LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.” There is no argument left to excuse the careless speech of those who say, “Oh my God,” “Oh, Jesus Christ,” “geez” and so on. They are clearly in violation of the command. The Christian should work overtime completely expunging these expressions from his vocabulary. Every word we speak has meaning whether said with intent. Our conscious thought should be as Paul advised: “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him” (Colossians 3:17).

Pay attention to this today and the other ways the Lord’s name is used wrongly. God allows no excuses. This is not the preacher’s opinion; it is the word of God. As the end of the message encourages, go to the Lord in repentance and contrition. He will forgive this sin as He does all others. The key is to recognize that you have offended the precious Saviour with or without intent, and to come with a promise to change your ways. I promise He will give great thought to intentional forgiveness.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

 

The Perfect Name of God

Berean Baptist on August 20, 2018

Exodus 20:7

Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

Exodus 20:7 is the text of the third commandment which speaks of the glory and majesty of God’s name. The commandment says we are not to take the Lord’s name in vain. Many times, I have commented on the spelling of LORD in all caps which in this part of the scriptures represents the Hebrew name of God transliterated into the letters YHWH known as the tetragrammaton. The true pronunciation of this name is not known, although in English we say Jehovah or Yahweh. This is the name by which God was known to Moses revealed in the supernatural appearance of the burning bush.

The Jews held the name of God in such reverence that what they wrote in the transcription of His word they would not speak when it was read aloud. Since they would not speak the name, this leads to the confusion over how the ancients would have pronounced it. Instead as they read, they would substitute another of the many names used throughout scripture. Most commonly, this would be the name Adonai. This seriousness over speaking the name aloud may have gone beyond the pale of reasonableness, but it nevertheless strongly insisted that God’s name should never be used in light-hearted frivolous ways and certainly never with profanity.

I am reminded of the many ways this command can be broken. Thomas Watson identified twelve ways it can be broken and in most of those ways he posited many sub-points. Ezekiel Hopkins gave five ways but those five were equally as verbose as Watson. This tells us most Christians do not know how many times they have broken the command without realizing it.

One of the most intriguing ways to me is the misinterpretation and misapplication of scripture. Whenever we interpret that God said something He did not say, we attach the authority of His name to a falsehood. I believe many preachers would do this without intent, but I believe many others are malicious or otherwise very careless in their study. They shake the foundations of truth and utterly blaspheme God. The worst offenders are the priests of Roman Catholicism and the preachers of the charismatic movement. These are opposite extremes although the gap between them is rapidly closing. In the gap between these two, are many Christians who know enough to be saved but are taught multiple false doctrines.

The danger of breaking the commandment in this way lays great responsibility on preachers to be very diligent in their studies. Every text must be approached carefully. The word of God is the expression of God Himself. Jesus is the living word as John 1 shows, which means any misinterpretation of it is a misunderstanding of Christ. We do not often consider these misunderstandings seriously, and as I said they are often unintentional.

Thankfully, the Lord knows our human frailties. He knows this commandment will not be kept perfectly until we reach the glorification of heaven. Then, we will know God face to face in all His perfections. Our service to Him will be perfect and all misunderstandings will fade away in the face of Christ. I cannot wait until that day comes. Until then, we will do our best to depend on the Holy Spirit to guide us into all truth.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

All Creatures of Our God and King

Berean Baptist on August 13, 2018

Psalm 148

In the last week of Jesus’ life, He entered Jerusalem to the wide acclaim of the people. They hailed Him as the King whom they believed would deliver them from the occupation of Rome and restore the kingdom to Israel. With one voice they shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest.” It was a remarkable display as palm branches were strewn in His path. The people wondered as He approached.

Perhaps the most intriguing part of this display is the way Jesus chose to enter. It was not on a fine steed with bright regalia but on the foal of a donkey. No Roman official would enter a city this way. They would have a full cohort of soldiers in a display of power and they would ride on white horses with heads held high. Jesus, however, was meek and lowly and riding on a beast of burden that was the transportation of the common man. This fulfilled the ancient prophecy which said: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass” (Zechariah 9:9).

In Luke chapter 19, the story is told in a little different way. Like did not concentrate on the people’s shouts of praise but rather on the disciples. A multitude of them gathered to join the people’s homage. The Pharisees protested and asked Jesus to rebuke them, to which He replied, “If these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.” From this we can see that all creation was made to glorify Jesus Christ. Stubborn men may withhold their praise and never make mention of the majesty of His name, but the creation shall never cease to give their maker the acclaim He deserves.

The psalmist would certainly agree. In 14 verses of the 148th psalm, he bids all of creation to witness the glory of Christ. He encourages all from every corner of the universe to sing their maker’s praise. He begins in heaven with the powerful angels. They were made to protect God’s throne and His holiness. They always do His perfect will and never stop as messengers of His good will to men.

Then the psalmist moves to the celestial creation. He calls upon the sun, moon, and stars to join the chorus. And then it is the physical earth with its wide variety of creatures and natural beauty. From there, kings and rulers must lend their voices. Finally, it is all people especially those who are called by His name. The creation cannot be silent. Wicked men will not lift up their voices, but need we be disappointed because of them? Jesus was not. The Pharisees would not give Him praise and insisted others should not. Jesus simply said, “They may be silenced but you cannot silence the creation.”

Christ will have His glory. We do not worry that the race of fallen men will not bow. We are not offended by what they may or may not do. The mighty vast creation is sufficient for this beautiful chorus. It will not be silenced no matter how loudly unbelieving skeptics may rail against Him. Remember this when you are worried about what America will do. The leaders of this country will not trample the sovereignty of God. He will triumph with all of the hosts on His side. “Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest” (Luke 19:38).

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

 

Stars, Stars, and More Stars

Berean Baptist on August 6, 2018

He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names. (Psalms 147:4)

In our study of the Ten Commandments, we have noted the personal nature of the commands. The old English pronoun thy in Exodus 20:3 is an indication of this individual emphasis. Thy is a singular personal pronoun while you found in modern versions of scripture can be singular or plural. I point this out to show how God is concerned with the individual. Your personal response to His commands is vitally important. God’s people are not a faceless mob but consist of those whom God knows personally and intimately.

I want you to notice how Psalm 147 indicates this truth in a very special way. In verse 4, the psalmist wrote, “He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names.” I am not sure the psalmist could understand the full significance of this statement. However, he did observe more stars with the naked eye than most of us today.

Recently, I watched a short video on light pollution and how it obscures our view of the stars in the nighttime sky. Hardly any stars are visible when viewing the sky from our large cities because of the extreme amount of ambient light in which the small pinpoints of the light from the stars are diffused. However, to look at the night sky in a place like Death Valley where light pollution is reduced to much lower levels, the universe is dramatically opened to the human eye.

The psalmist would have seen this kind of sky especially if he was out in the hills of Judea. This lends much more meaning to the scriptures when we see in places the stars are spoken of as examples of vast multitudes. Looking at the night sky in Santa Rosa would not cause us to number the stars in comparison to the sands on the seashore as the Bible does (Gen. 22:17; Heb. 11:12). And yet, with what the psalmist could see and with how he would lose track while counting, he had no idea of the real impact of the Bible’s comparisons. With modern telescopes, we have learned the stars really cannot be counted. There are about one hundred million galaxies visible with each containing billions of stars. This is the visible portion of the universe. There is no reason to believe that beyond what we can see there aren’t one hundred million more galaxies.

Take all this information and put it back into the context of Psalm 147. Verse 5 says the Lord is infinite. Only He knows how many stars were created. Whatever the number is beyond the 1024 number of stars that are observable, He knows the name and exact coordinates of each one. We are told this because God has such grasp of minute details that He could not fail to know about every one of His children. He certainly knows their names and every trial they encounter.

If you feel alone and think nobody cares, who would you rather would know about you—the infinite God or fallible, finite men? Who has the real ability to help you, God or man? Who is to be depended on and can never fail, God or man? Your most intimate relatives may forget you—father and mother may forsake you—but never God (Psalm 27:10).

Some of you grew up with abusive fathers and/or mothers. Some of you never had anyone to hold you or care about you. For your entire life, you’ve had to forge through on your own. When you became a Christian, you gained a loving church family. This is a wonderful experience, but you should still remember it is God that brought you to where you are. Learn to trust God and lean wholly on Him. Your brothers and sisters in Christ are still fallible and they may fail you. Remember, God knows your name. He has your number. You never get lost in His filing system because He has your name written in the palms of His hands (Isaiah 49:16). “He heals the broken heart, and bindeth up their wounds” (147:3). Such knowledge is more glorious than all the stars.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

Princes and Politics

Berean Baptist on July 30, 2018

Psalm 146:3

“Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help.”

(This article appeared in our bulletin before the 2016 election.)

I cannot think of a more appropriate psalm to read in this time of political unrest than Psalm 146. For too long, evangelical Christians in America have done what this psalm clearly tells us not to do. In the early 1970s, the Christian right formed a political organization named The Moral Majority intended to advance an agenda for the restoration of the Ten Commandments to our public schools and the repeal of abortion rights. We certainly applaud their righteous stands and we are very much aware of how changes in our laws have critically affected our society. We are at the point of complete moral collapse and possibly a Romans 1:28 problem in which God has turned us over to a reprobate mind.

Although the Moral Majority no longer exists as an organized political movement, its impact on fundamental churches is still alive and well. I have no problem with Christians carefully choosing candidates to ensure we vote pro-life and pro-morality, but I do have a problem with the way many Baptists think we will change America. Our hope is in princes instead of the LORD our God. When politics were brought into the church, the focus of the church’s mission began to change. Our aim was to make America great instead of proclaiming the greatness of God’s kingdom to the American populace. In this year’s election, the party in whom many Christians trust has promised to make America great again, but unlike former days God has no part in it.

In 1984, I attended a conference in Washington, D. C. known as Baptist Fundamentalism ’84. I was privileged to hear both President Ronald Reagan and Vice-President George H.W. Bush speak. It was a rousing event with plenty of doses of American pride. The arena was awash in patriotism with enough to make the eyes well up with tears. We thought a political party was America’s savior. It was events like this that gave American Christians an unhealthy attachment to a party in which the church began to focus on men instead of God. In fairness, it was a logical move since it was the other party that was like the northern ten tribes that quickly fell into apostasy.

Pastors of churches jumped on the political bandwagon to motivate congregations to vote and to involve themselves in political processes just like a political action committee seeks to influence legislation. It is not uncommon to have patriotism days in the church or to have church services whose purpose is to applaud public servants. These are manipulative ways to draw crowds which only goes to show these churches have little confidence in the Holy Spirit to draw to Himself those He pleases to save.

I am trying to point out that politics has become the church program. We gather to ourselves those who are politically like us which the New Testament apostles avoided. With each person we draw, there are ten others who are repelled because their politics do not fit ours. We are dependent on changing things with politics rather than gathering all publicans and sinners to hear about Christ. We are reaping the results of our trust in party rather than God. The party leadership is made up of those whose program it is to stay in power, which means compromising Christ will never be a problem for them. The egregious violation of commandments, especially of loving self, has never been more apparent than in this year’s choices.

This year we get the consequences of misplaced trust. We are told to vote for the lesser of two evils. Hopefully, we will delay the worst of the inevitable for at least a little while. Perhaps there is some sense in this reasoning. However, be assured a clean thing will never come from the unclean. I believe the church is better off backing off from the political process. We should preach against the immorality of the culture whenever it intersects our teaching of the word of God. We should seek the salvation of the people of this culture through our dependence on the Almighty God, not on the princes of politics. Let us return to the preaching of Christ instead of the preaching of the Constitution.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

The Living and Energizing Word

Berean Baptist on July 23, 2018

For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

One of the greatest tragedies of the modern church is the failure of both pulpit and people to honor God’s word. There are many that regard the Bible as a stuffy book that was written by ancient men who were overly superstitious and whose opinions are not applicable to the modern world. If the Bible is read in church, it is a version that has been stripped of its original meaning and paraphrased so that it reads like the newspaper or a cheap novel.

Modern Bible translators believe God is incapable of saying what He meant to say. It is therefore their task to put scripture into a more readable form so that anyone can understand it. In doing so, their eclectic translations interpret scripture rather than translate. Their actions deny a fundamental element of Bible comprehension, which is the power of the Holy Spirit to speak to the heart and mind to reveal truth. The Bible is not man’s book but rather as Hebrews 4:12 describes, it is the word of God.

The Bible has special characteristics that make it more than just an “ancient” book. It is “quick” which means it is alive. It does not die like an ancient language. It is as new and fresh to every generation as if it was spoken this morning. It is also “powerful,” which is a word from which we get “energy.” The Bible is constantly active so that it is able to awaken people that are dead in trespasses and sins and give them spiritual birth (1 Pet. 1:23).

The writer also says it is “sharper than any twoedged sword.” We should pay attention to this phrase because this speaks of God’s judgment. Those who do not listen to the word and heed its commands are going to be judged severely by it. It can reveal the “thoughts and intents of the heart.” Those that reject the message of the scripture, the way of eternal life through the gospel of Christ, will be held accountable in the Day of Judgment.

It is not very hard to understand the reason so many churches have abandoned scripture. As churches desire an atmosphere that caters to an unregenerate crowd, the word of God becomes a terrible sore spot because of its exposing and condemning nature. The scripture says that people love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil. The word of God is a glaring spotlight on an evil generation, so trying to draw a worldly crowd by preaching the truth of the word is an exercise in futility.

At Berean, we are committed to reading and preaching the Bible and are content to let the Holy Spirit work on the hearts of the people. The Bible does expose sin, but the Holy Spirit is able to take the preached word and break down the resistance of the sinner. Clever tactics and manipulation are not our method. We depend solely on the work of the Holy Spirit as He uses the “quick” and “powerful” word to draw sinners to Christ.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

The LORD of the Law

Berean Baptist on July 16, 2018

Exodus 20:1-2

Throughout the scriptures, the Law is known by many names, which means multiple passages reference the Ten Commandments without using what we regard as its most recognizable term. It is amazing to see how much the content of scripture relies on the information given in this short passage of Exodus 20. It was given 3500 years ago and yet remains the most impactful document in the history of man. Though human courts and self-proclaimed moralists disdain it and seek to remove it from every avenue of public life, it is the truth to which the Supreme Judge of the living and the dead will hold us accountable. It is established forever in the court that really counts—the court of Chief Justice, Jesus Christ.

He is identified as the LORD. His name is a description of His abilities and authority. His name gives authority to His Law; it is righteous and just by virtue of the character of the one who gave it. It is good and righteous because He is the ultimate good and righteousness. Every commandment we break is neither good nor helpful for man. It is not only a violation of God, but also a violation of man who is made in the image of God. This is the reason the Ten Commandments address our relationship to God and to each other.

The apostle Paul wrote that the Law was given to show us our offenses. Their magnitude is exceedingly great so that we are left helpless to defend ourselves against the Law’s relentless condemnation. We have no escape from its penalty and are offenders with nothing to shield us from its terrible consequences. The Law has no recourse for lawbreakers. It cannot fix any transgression. It is black and white with no ability to be anything other than what it is. It cannot be merciful—it is sterile, without personality or compassion. However, the judge who enforces it is personal, He is merciful, and He is compassionate. But, He does not clear the guilty by setting aside its punishment. Instead, He allows the penalty to be imposed on a substitute who stands good for the penalty on our behalf.

The Law is marvelous because it sets us up for the manifestation of God’s grace. We could never understand the merciful and gracious character of God without the Law to condemn us. God could have dealt with us based on the Law alone and would have maintained His righteous character, but this would not teach us His whole character. God seeks to be glorified by everything that is inherent in the name LORD. He shows us His justice by bringing us to the judgment seat of the Law, and then takes us around the bench to see the other side where is found His mercy and grace. We learn to reverence, honor, respect, and glorify God through the full revelation of His character.

When we study the name LORD, these amazing facts leap out at us. His name encompasses all these wonderful features—lawgiver, judge, sovereign, AND redeemer. Rejoice because God gave the Law. Obey it for His glory! The commandments are the beginning of the full revelation of Almighty God.

Pastor V. Mark Smith

The Agreement between Law and Grace

Berean Baptist on June 25, 2018

In studying the Ten Commandments, we are presented with a subset of scripture that permeates the whole. The Law is both Old and New Testament and is the basis for all our dealings with God. The preacher wrote in Ecclesiastes, “Let us hear the conclusion of the matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments” (Eccles. 12:13). This Old Testament verse seems to be at odds with what we think we know about the New Testament. We are living in the dispensation of grace and we are accustomed to singing songs like “Free from the law oh happy condition…” How does this agree with the statement that keeping commandments is the whole duty of man? The conflict can only be resolved by recognizing the different spheres of law and grace. They are not opposed to each other. They work seamlessly together to give us the full picture of how God brings us to salvation.

The song says we are free from the law, but this has nothing to do with our obligation to obey it. We are free from its condemnation. We are free from the consequences of its unrelenting justice as it insists that all transgressions against the holy God must be satisfied. This satisfaction is achieved for us by Christ’s perfect obedience which is transferred to us by faith. His goodness becomes ours, and thus we stand perfect before the judgment bar of the law. We are free from condemning justice but never free to disobey the law. As Paul said, “Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?” (Rom. 6:1). In our salvation more than ever, we recognize the whole duty of man is to keep God’s commandments. No one who truly loves God will sidestep any command and regard it as unimportant.

In today’s message, we see the gravity of the law. It was momentous as God was about to give Israel the most important document in history. It was accompanied by His personal presence. It was direct as chapter 20 in Exodus shows and intended to speak to each individual. Earthquakes and thunder and lightning on Mount Sinai showed the power of God and the reverence that must be observed for His holiness. It had not been written yet, but Israel knew “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Heb. 10:31).

We tend to believe that because of God’s grace law is relaxed and therefore we need not fear God any longer. It is okay to speak of God like a tired old grandfather whose sternness has played out over time. He is not really serious when He tells us we must obey. This is a terrible mistake. Grace has not calmed God and taken the bite out of His rebukes. Grace heightens the responsibility of obedience. Without grace, we are ignorant of His ways. Though without excuse for disobedience at any time, surely with right understanding comes more serious responsibility.

This is not an abstract. The person saved by grace recognizes this truth. God put it into his heart in his regeneration. Lack of obedience reveals a lack of saving grace. The person who says, “Free from the law oh happy condition” and by this he means I am free from condemnation therefore I need not be concerned for the way I live—that person has never experienced the saving grace of God.

Make sure you evaluate your understanding of God’s law. Jesus said, “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). This is equivalent to saying, “If you keep my commandments, you prove you have been touched by my grace.” He never meant this as an option—that any can be saved without it. Christ is not just a Saviour who keeps you from the condemnation of the law. He is also the Lord that requires absolute strict obedience. He will not be one without the other.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

The Name Matters

Berean Baptist on June 18, 2018

Although the name BAPTIST was not intended for this, each of the letters in Baptist stands for a doctrine that has been a scriptural tenet of our churches since the time Jesus began the church. The consistency of church doctrine through these many centuries is a remarkable testimony to Christ’s promise in Matthew 16:18 that the church would never lose the truth or surrender to the attacks of Satan.

The doctrines represented by the acrostic are not necessarily the core essential beliefs that make a person a Christian, but rather the criteria that makes the Christian a Baptist. They are distinguishing doctrines that separate us from Roman Catholics, most of the Protestants, and all of the cults. We believe each doctrine in the acrostic should be taught and believed by all churches and to whatever degree some or all of them are not taught will determine the seriousness of their error. If these doctrines were held by all churches, there would be no denominationalism. All Christians would be Baptists because they would be in compliance with the doctrines Christ and the apostles gave the first church.

Some might think this is an arrogant statement, but it is only a logical conclusion that any church would want to claim for itself. Shouldn’t any church want to make the claim they are apostolic? What is the point of belonging to a church that makes no claim to hold to all the same doctrines given at the beginning to the church? Clearly there are differences in denominations. We are divided but Christ is not, which means we must determine which church most closely adheres to the New Testament.

There are some doctrines that when changed do not affect the salvation of the soul but do affect the constitution of the church. Enough error in a series of these doctrines would prevent the church from being a true church. This is the point of the acrostic. Can we take each of these doctrines and find a scriptural basis for it?

Some of the doctrines will affect not only church constitution but will indeed affect the soul’s salvation. In some cases, an error on baptism may not be serious enough to affect salvation. For example, a church that practices infant baptism or sprinkling in which they are in error on the mode and the recipient of baptism, has not necessarily committed an error that condemns the soul. It does affect their recognition as a true church because proper baptism is essential for church constitution. If this error is compounded by teaching that baptism is a sacrament whereby saving grace is obtained, it has become a salvation issue. Salvation is affected because the critical method by which we are justified with God is breached. Justification is by grace alone through faith alone. In this is changed, the church fails because salvation cannot be obtained when justification is compromised.

Many times in my sermons I refer to the name Baptist on our sign. Our doctrine is different from Methodists, Presbyterians, Assemblies of God, and others. We believe the doctrinal differences matter. If we didn’t think so, we would identify as a “community” church or simply a “Christian” church. With those names people are left to guess if they have a good starting place to find a true New Testament church. Baptist identifies us historically. Historians agree people who believe like Baptists have been present in every age since the time of Christ. As a seeker, I believe I would have more confidence in the doctrine of a church if I know it has an apostolic claim.

Admittedly, the name on the sign does not guarantee the truth of the doctrine within. However, it is a good place to start. Investigations must be made to prove the doctrines are true. At Berean, we gladly invite this and encourage it—we expect no less. In our case, historicity of doctrine is extremely important. It matters because we want to be known as a true New Testament church.

Start with the name. Is it historical or does the church you are interested in fall into the generic category of startups and may only be a few months or years old? The name could be the first key piece of your investigation. Note this last comment. Baptists were not always known as Baptists. We were identified by our doctrine first and then we were named by our enemies. The name became significant because it identified us with apostolic doctrine. Therefore, the name is important.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Doxology and Benediction

Berean Baptist on June 11, 2018

Psalm 134

Psalm 134 is both a doxology and a benediction concerning the priests and Levites who served the Lord at the temple. The first two verses of the psalm are spoken by the people as encouragement for their intercessory leaders as they labor on the behalf of God’s chosen people. In this psalm, worshipers recognize that God is to be praised for all the gracious benefits He richly bestows. I especially like this part of the psalm because I like the way the people held their leaders to a standard. They desired for the Lord to be magnified and would accept nothing less or expect nothing less from their leaders than uncompromising devotion.

I like this part because there is nothing that warms the heart of a godly pastor than to know the people appreciate the word of God declared plainly, without mixture, without compromise—without restraint even though it can be painfully convicting. Psalm 120-134 are known as Pilgrim Psalms. You will notice as you read through them there is continual recognition of God’s power and His providence. The people recognize where they stand in relation to Him. They are fully dependent which always puts them at God’s mercy where they should be.

I believe these are people that had no problems with instruction on man’s depravity. They had no problems with God’s sovereignty. They were not resistant to teachings that God’s will is not dependent on the whims of fallen, fallible man. A pastor loves to preach when there are no subjects like these that make the church uncomfortable. He does not answer to the people for acceptance of his sermons. His allegiance is to God alone and he fears to leave out anything God says to His people. The priests did not fear to teach the whole counsel of God, for it appears the people demanded it of them.

The last verse of the psalm speaks of the power of God. Why should praises be lifted to the Lord in the sanctuary? It is because He is Lord that made heaven and earth. This is the priests’ benediction upon the people. It is the last words they spoke in this grouping of psalms for pilgrims.

The priests pronounced a blessing on them in the name of the Lord. His omnipotence grants to them all spiritual blessings in Christ. The blessings come from Zion which means they originate where God dwells in His holy temple. Although the church is not Old Testament, I believe an application can be made that all blessings for the world come through the work the Lord does through His church. The church is the authorized place for His work. This work is given to no others for Christ loved the church and gave Himself for it.

The Lord dwells in the church as the temple of His praise. The people themselves are His temple. The Holy Spirit lives in each of us. Corporately we do His work, but individually we are responsible for its holiness so that all work will have God’s approval on it. We are reminded of this holiness in our study of the New Jerusalem, the home of the bride of Christ. The church is His bride, and He intends for it to be spotless, holy, and without blame (Eph. 5:26-27).

These three verses show pastor and people working together with the same sense of duty. This is what church is—a place for the glory of God and for thankfulness and appreciation that the mighty omnipotent God should consider lowly creatures for His service. “What is man, that thou are mindful of him? (Psalm 8:4a).

This benediction and word of thanks comes from the Pastor. Thank you for standing on and appreciating the word of God. Blessings on you from the Lord that made heaven and earth.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Every Day Is for God’s Glory

Berean Baptist on June 4, 2018

In the text of Revelation 21, the glory of God is depicted in the Bible’s consistent manner which is its connection with light. The New Jerusalem is a place of brilliant light because of the unveiled presence of God. That same light would blind us if God were not hidden from us by a spiritual veil.

Glory is an expression of God’s holiness which is essentially the aggregation of all God’s attributes. Everything God is can be summed up with glory which is why we consistently teach that all of creation exists for God’s glory. The creation is an extension of God which helps us understand why God is intent to restore the world to its original perfection.

In this article, I want to speak about how we glorify God. Fundamentally, the method is worship. Since we are created for the glory of God, everything we do must be centered on worship. You may think it is not possible or necessary to worship in everything because only church is the place of worship. However, the scripture says, “whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31). This means your work, your school, your home—wherever you are, is a place of worship.

I think we would all agree that of all places church is not a place for sin. Generally, we treat others better at church. We are friendlier at church. We are less likely to be angry at church, and we act like we care more at church. We pray, we sing, we read the Bible at church; and most of you will be sure to check your bad language at the door. I have pastored for a long time and although I have heard some bad language at times in church, I have yet to hear that anyone sat in the church service watching smutty videos on a smart phone. Why do we think God is only at church? More pointedly, why must worship be confined to church? I would submit if church is the only place you worship, the quality of your worship when you get here is very poor. We never have a pass on the glory of God and thus we do not have one on worship.

The biblical mindset for a Christian is to be alert, to be vigilant, to be holy, and to be ready. A song of praise or an utterance of worship should never be more than an instant thought away. Too often we think of church as the fulfillment of duty. We come to worship and get it over with and to finish our obligation. When the last amen is said at 12:30 on Sunday afternoon, we are through until next week.

This attitude is wonderfully changed when we get to heaven. It is objectionable to some because it seems far too boring to spend eternity in perpetual worship. And yet, heaven is the perfection of what we should be doing already. A perfect mind in heaven is locked on God’s purpose for us. When sin is completely removed, the mind can go nowhere else but to the glory of God. Perhaps this will help you understand that not worshiping at all times is sin. When you pat yourself on the back for the occasional good deed, are you really all that good? When we have done the best we can do, we’ve done nothing more than what we were told to do and what we were created for. There is no special commendation for the occasional good deed. You should always do the right thing.

This week think about worship. You don’t have to break out in song when you punch the time clock. You don’t have to preach a sermon at break. You just need to live in the light of God’s presence. Think on Christ and you will glorify God.

Passing from Death unto Life

Berean Baptist on May 28, 2018

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. (John 5:24)

The resurrection is an intriguing subject because it falls outside the realm of the physics of nature into the realm of the supernatural sphere of God. Science says that dead is dead. There is no scientist or any doctor who can revive a dead body and this is because humans do not have the power of life. But it is not so with God. God gave life, God can take away life, and God can restore life.

Jesus’ resurrection is proof positive that the dead can live, and they can do so in a body. Jesus’ bodily resurrection is the model for all resurrections both of believers and unbelievers. All dead bodies will arise, but when they arise and where they go when they arise is another matter.

John 5:24 is about a resurrection from death to life but it does not speak of the resurrection of the body. This is the resurrection of the spiritually dead. It matters right now, today, whether you have been called from spiritual death into spiritual life. Your status as a spiritually alive born-again believer in Christ or as a spiritually dead unbeliever determines where your body and soul will reside forever in eternity.

Those who hear the words of Christ and believe that God sent Him as a sacrifice for sins—those who desire to repent of their sins and trust Christ alone for salvation—are those who have passed from death unto life. These have been raised into spiritual life and in the resurrection their bodies will be called up to rejoin the soul and spirit in heaven.

If you have passed from death unto life, praise God! If not, trust Christ today. Repentance and faith in Him ensures that when your body dies, it will also be raised into a perfect, glorified body to live with Christ forever.

 

                                                                                                                Pastor V. Mark Smith

Closed Communion

Berean Baptist on May 21, 2018

In thinking of the Lord’s Supper, I am prompted to regard the great privilege we have of being a part of the Lord’s church. The Supper is one of two ordinances Christ gave the church and both are observed only by those who are born again believers. The first ordinance is baptism which is a response of the believer’s obedience to show publicly he has committed his life to Christ. Baptism is an outward expression of an inward change. It occurs before church membership but is closely connected to it as it is the door of admittance into church relationship. As such, it is prerequisite to both membership and participation in the Supper. Most Christians have no problems with this order since it is clearly shown to be apostolic in Acts chapter 2.

However, when it comes to the privilege of taking the Supper, many churches stray from the biblical precedent by allowing unconverted, unbaptized people to partake of the precious symbolic elements of Christ’s body and blood. This is a more modern practice among evangelicals that is one of the most egregious violations of church order that is observed today. Although it is becoming more common, there are still good churches that are careful to avoid this as best they can.

We believe the Bible provides a better solution to the problem and one that is more doctrinally correct. The scriptures teach a more restricted communion than to limit it to baptized believers. The scriptural precedent is to drill down further to restrict the communion to members of the local body. In addition to salvation, baptism, and church membership, the further requirement is for the participant to be a member of the particular New Testament church body that is observing the Supper. Due to space and time, let me only briefly explain why this is true using only one argument.

The argument comes from Paul’s instructions to the Corinthian church regarding church discipline. The apostle enjoined the church that no one should take the Supper unworthily, meaning the church should do its best to ensure there were no open sins and as much as possible no hidden sins that would hinder fellowship with the Lord. In the case of the Corinthian church, there was open sin described in 1 Corinthians 5, a sin bad enough that Paul said even heathen idolaters knew better. Paul commanded the church to withdraw fellowship from the man who sinned until he was brought to repentance. Specifically, the church was commanded not to permit him or others that were guilty of offenses to come to the Supper (1 Cor. 5:11).

The withdrawal of fellowship in church discipline indicates that all who are permitted to partake of the Supper must be under the jurisdiction of the church. If a person is not a member of the church, there is no enforcement mechanism against him for his sin. We cannot withdraw fellowship from someone who is not in the body and neither are we apprised of their particular lifestyle and qualifications as we are those who are regular participants in our fellowship and activities (1 Cor. 5:12-13). The purpose of church discipline is first of all formative rather than punitive to help a person realize the need of repentance.

The practice of restricted communion, also known as closed communion, is not a judgment of the spiritual condition of any person who is not a member of this church. We have many friends that are good Christians from other churches and some who are denominationally different. We do not doubt their salvation. We simply believe in New Testament church order. The Supper is the Lord’s table not ours, so we only invite those in the same intimate fellowship that Christ and the apostles practiced. We have no more right to change the scriptural precedent in the Supper than we do to change the ordinance of baptism.

Our position is not meant to be offensive to anyone and does not make us better than any others. We are all sinners saved by God’s grace. We desire to honor Him in the best ways we know how.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Zion

Berean Baptist on May 14, 2018

Psalm 132

Psalm 132 is most interesting as it relates to the temple built by Solomon and the placing of the ark of the covenant in the most holy place. For the previous five hundred years, Israel worshiped at the Tabernacle which at this time was located at Gibeon. When David was anointed king, he vowed to build a house for the Lord God but was prevented because scripture says he was a man of war. Instead, the building of the new magnificent sanctuary that would hold the most holy ark of the covenant was left to David’s son, Solomon.

Solomon’s reign was one of peace as no major wars occurred during his lifetime. At the same time, Israel increased in power and influence throughout the world. Solomon’s days were the most prosperous for Israel leading his reign to be known by successive generations as the Golden Age. In the New Testament, it was Solomon Jesus appealed to for His example of prosperity and notoriety telling the people He was greater than Solomon (Mt. 12:42) and comparing Solomon’s beauty to the loveliest of God’s creation (Mt. 6:29).

In the 13th verse of the psalm, the psalmist speaks of Zion as God’s choice for His holy habitation. Zion is Jerusalem and is synonymous with the city of God. The area was originally the hill on which David built his fortress, but later was expanded to include the temple mount. In the Old Testament when people spoke of going to Zion, they were referring specifically to making the trip to the temple.

Jerusalem is the only place God allowed a temple to be built. In the ancient world, temples for pagan gods were built in various locations such as Paul saw in Athens and Ephesus. However, the one true living God had only one place of worship and one place of sacrifice. In Paul’s time, the ark was long since gone but there was a stone in its place in the Holy of Holies on which the priest put a censor on the Day of Atonement. There were no images allowed and no representation of the ark. Any Israelite that wanted to observe the solemn feast days had only one place to go—he must go to Jerusalem.

Zion’s was further expanded to mean the holy city of the New Jerusalem (Heb. 12:22). This is the brilliant city of light in Revelation 21. It is the home of the bride of Christ, the Lord’s church. The New Jerusalem is a city that comes out of heaven and descends to rest above the new earth, possibly touching it at some point. Although all of heaven belongs to God and His presence fills it all, His special manifestation is in the New Jerusalem whose entirety is His temple. Essentially, God’s people dwell within His temple. We are in Christ so that scripture says Christ Himself is the temple.

The beauty of worship in Solomon’s time was unparalleled by any other period of Israel’s history. It most closely models the worship of heaven. When the Queen of Sheba visited Solomon, she was stunned with the magnificence of what she saw. And yet, Jesus, the one who was a lowly carpenter, said He was greater than Solomon. The real beauty of Jesus is not seen on the outside. It is to be inside Christ to be able to understand how glorious He is. You can see His beauty by faith. Trusting Jesus is to have a glimpse of Zion, the holy city of God.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Connecting the Dots

Berean Baptist on March 27, 2018

 

Psalm 129

I have often mentioned the importance of Bible study so that we may understand how one place in scripture compares and explains other parts of scripture. Often preachers will search through multiple books of illustrations looking for something that will enhance their sermon points and help capture the meaning of a passage. Sometimes the illustrations are the point and the sermon is built on the illustration rather than using the word of God to speak to us.

Instead of looking for multiple illustrations from other sources, I much prefer to let the Bible speak for itself. The Bible is its own best commentary, but to use it as such, a good working knowledge of scripture is necessary. Psalm 129 is a case in point. This is one of the frequent times scripture recounts the history of the Jewish people who have been oppressed since the day God made them a nation. As the psalmist says, Israel was afflicted from its youth.

The nation grew up in Egypt under cruel taskmasters, and then became a people set apart to God through the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai. It seems there is barely a chapter from that point when somebody was not trying to destroy them. The reason is not because Jews have some inherent despicability. I think modern Jews often do not understand this themselves. The real reason is the one who hates God’s people hates because of the one particular person Israel would produce.

If I were preaching this passage, the first place I would go for illustration is the book of Revelation. The first thought that came to my mind was the 12th chapter verses 1 and 2: “And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.” The woman is Israel. The illustration grows with the imagery of sun and moon under her feet and the crown of twelve stars on her head. This is the same as Joseph’s dream when he saw father and mother and brothers bow to him when he became the vice-regent of Egypt.

The chapter goes on to speak of Israel travailing in birth. The birth pains are the difficulties by which the Saviour was brought into the world. Israel suffered because the Messiah was the fruit of her womb and He is the enemy of Satan. He intends to crush the head of the serpent, an illustration taken from Genesis 3.

This causes reflection on the 129th psalm verse 3 which speaks of plowers plowing her back. This is the deep pains of sorrow continually heaped on Israel because of the child that was to come. He too would have His back plowed by the cat o’ nine tails that left Him ripped apart in a mess of mangled flesh.

From point to point to point—dot to dot to dot, the scriptures weave the story of Christ. From Genesis to Revelation, the story of heaven and earth’s hero is told. Do we see these things in scripture as we read, or do we glance over them not understanding how the 129th psalm is one of the stepping stones in the story? Bible study is the only way this book comes alive. I can tell you it is more exciting to discover it for yourself than to have me simply tell it to you. If you try it and stick with it, you will learn this.

If you want the Bible to be your precious book, make it a part of your everyday life. Don’t let a day go by without reaching into it and gathering another of its nuggets of precious truths. If you do, Jesus will be more real to you than you can possibly imagine.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

 

Honoring Women

Berean Baptist on March 19, 2018

Psalm 128:3

Sometimes I wonder how people can think the Bible is an old dated book that is irrelevant to the issues of the modern world. The truth is the Bible is amazingly modern and has answers for many of our dilemmas. The problem is we don’t like the answers.

A case in point is this verse in Psalm 128. The first part of verse 3 says, “Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house.” Sit down because you might not like this. The psalmist made one of the most politically incorrect statements he could make. He indirectly affirms that women are weaker constitutionally and require special support. The fruitful vine is a tender plant that cannot stand on its own but requires a superstructure to support it. It grows up the side of the house and only then is it able to bear its plentiful fruit. In this case, the structure is a strong family unit that is anchored by a husband who takes care of his wife and in turn she bears him children that are pleasing and honorable.

Although seeing this in the verse may be difficult, the concept is plainly taught in many places of scripture. None is a clear as Peter says in 1 Peter 3:7 when he calls the woman the “weaker vessel.” He said that men should dwell with their wives in knowledge, understanding his and her God-given roles. It is his job to protect her not only from those who would do her harm physically, but also those who would do her harm spiritually. The serpent beguiled Eve, not Adam, which led to the fall (1 Timothy 2:13-14).

The sense that women need protection is not a strange tenet of Bible thumpers. It turns out to be one of those pieces of inherent knowledge that God put into the human heart just like knowledge of His existence, of heaven, and of hell. Though there are some societies in which women are dominant as matriarchs, I know of none in which women are charged with protection of men. We know instinctively to shelter women and to risk dying for them should it be a choice between the man’s life or theirs.

This brings me to one of today’s hot topics. Should women be allowed to serve in the military in combat roles? No one mistakes there are times when women have been forced to defend and they have afforded themselves well. This is not about whether women should be excluded because they are never courageous. The problem is putting women in the position to protect men and to take the fall for them when this is against what God put instinctively in the heart.

Political correctness says that anyone who does not see women in all ways equal to men is a misogynist. However, there is no use lying to ourselves on this front. Women are not the same as men physically and are not suited for the same rigors of wars that men fight. They are not the same and neither is there a need to be. There is no inferiority in being different. Men and women are equal in worth to God, but He made us different to perform distinct functions.

Put yourself into a foxhole with your daughter. Who gets shielded from bullets? What man lets her be killed to protect him? What man lets any woman take a bullet for him? We aren’t wired this way and if there is anything a woman should cherish it is to be so revered by a man that he would give his life for her without ever thinking their roles should be reversed.

The Bible simply has a better way of doing things. The God who made us knows how to use us. If the world has a problem with this, we understand. The world has forever tried to suppress innate knowledge. What we do not understand is why any Christian would argue with it. We do not need a political debate on this. The Bible has already settled the debate.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Children and Confusion

Berean Baptist on March 5, 2018

Psalm 127

In the 127th Psalm, the first verse is a pithy comment on the futility of what we do unless God is in our plans. Spurgeon made an interesting comment on this verse by noting how those who built the tower of Babel said, “Go to, let us build a city and a tower,” to which God promptly replied, “Go to, let us go down and confound their language.” We would surely save much frustration and wasted time if we made sure God is in our plans before we proceed. This works on a personal level and certainly on the corporate church level.

The first verse, however, is not what caught my eye. Verses 3-5 speak of the blessing of children—not just children but lots of them. According to the psalmist, the more you have the better it is. I suppose some would say he was not a mother! I also suppose this is true of grandchildren because you get the love and affection from them and when that part is through you can send them home. Obviously, the parent does not have this luxury.

When visiting our daughter Clarissa in San Diego, I wonder how she makes it work with six children. She doesn’t get any relief since seven days per week they are home. They are home-schooled which means there must be a strict regimen to make sure everything gets done decently and in order. Without observing how her home runs, you may think she wonders how verse 2 fits with the rest. She rises very early in order to have some time for Bible reading, study and prayer. Early bedtime is neither usually an option.

Does God understand these things? He does. He never steers wrongly with bad advice. Most people cannot understand what is going on with God. When visiting the market, there are many stares from those who are thinking, “What in the world is wrong with that woman? What was she thinking?” But that’s not just the world’s reaction. It’s also the same in the church. Initially it was the same from us. “Are you crazy? What could possess you to have six kids?” as if such a preposterous thought must be from the underworld. Here it is—it is biblical. It is as much a part of the word of God as John 3:16. If you can believe one part, can’t you believe it all?

The truth is she likes being a mom. She is fulfilled by motherhood which is eminently biblical. God made the woman for motherhood not corporate boardrooms (or president…). This is the rub in our society. Being parents is not as fulfilling as it should be. The more selfish you are the less time you will want to spend on the hard stuff of building a family. Most of our planning stages do not end with being fifty years old and with young children. Get them grown, get them out, and get it over.

Perhaps we need to take a step back to see if God knows what He is talking about. But don’t forget verse 1. The Lord must be in it which rules out the unconverted and the unfaithful. For members of the church, the Lord does not want many children from those who don’t care to raise them to serve Him. God is never in a plan that does not put Him at the head of every list.

Thankfully, this is what I see in my daughter. She rises early to start her day with the Lord. God is in this plan and it will not fail. Whatever you seek to build just pray you have included God so that He doesn’t say, “Let us go down and confuse them.” You will know the difference. The outcome without Him is chaos and confusion.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Seeds and Sorrows

Berean Baptist on February 26, 2018

Psalm 126

Psalm 126 is one of the psalms written during the captivity of Judah in Babylon. It is hard for us to relate to the extreme sorrow the Judeans experienced when they saw their holy temple destroyed, the walls of their beloved city breached, and then their subsequent deportation to a foreign land. The temple and the city were the center of their lives. Everything they were was structured around the worship of the temple from their diet to their health and hygiene, to their morality and social interactions, and then finally to their spiritual welfare. The tragedy of the deportation was the realization that their lives were destroyed. Everything they were was lost—except for one thing—they were still God’s people with a promise that if they would return to Him, He would be faithful to restore them (2 Chron. 7:14).

In verse 6, the psalmist wrote: “He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” The Reformation Heritage Study Bible helpfully explains: “The imagery suggests that the sorrows of believers are like God’s seeds by which He will produce a harvest of happiness for them.” We can relate this to the suffering of God’s people in the church age. As Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians, the experiences of Old Testament believers are for our learning. The hardships of living a Christian life and the inevitable suffering that results will at last bring joy when we enter the heavenly kingdom. Each heartache for the cause of Christ is a seed sown which will be reaped with the benefits of eternal reward.

Peter commented on this phenomenon by saying, “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.” (1 Peter 4:12-14).

These blessed words are a reminder of God’s faithfulness to us. We should never worry that in the dark night of sorrow God has abandoned us. Each sorrowful seed that is sown will someday grow up to our health and happiness in His eternal presence. It is hard to imagine the soul could be strengthened by such hard labor when at times it seems we are in such despair of trials that we are ready to die. However, true to the scriptures, no sorrowing in a life of toils lived for Christ goes unnoticed. None of the seeds fail to germinate into life everlasting.

The story this psalm tells is of the exiles going home. They realized their mistakes in turning from the living God. They repented of turning against Him, and the Lord was faithful to honor His promise by turning the hearts of kings to allow them to return home. God’s marvelous providence in changing the rulers’ hearts amazingly caused them to give financial aid and protection for the rebuilding projects of the temple and the city walls (Ezra 9:8-9). Tears welled in the eyes of the Judeans as their hearts burst for the graciousness of God in forgiving their terrible sins and restoring them to their homeland.

Relief was granted but the way was still difficult. Rebuilding took several more years as work stoppages by opposition kept them from their task. However, the leaders trusted God and were patient to work through every difficulty. Eventually, the work was done and the sorrows of hard labor and the weeping for troubles turned to the joy of being home in their beloved city.

The same is true for you, Christian. It may be hard now, but as the psalmist said in another place, “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning” (Psalm 30:5). Keep your hope through the long night of despair. The seeds of sorrow you have sown will grow and you will have the joy of knowing God never leaves you or forsakes you.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

From Hell to Heaven

Berean Baptist on February 19, 2018

Any preacher who has the privilege of preaching God’s word ought to relish the opportunity and thank God he has been chosen to proclaim the Great Sovereign’s message. This is the way I feel about the doctrine of hell. It is unpleasant because of the terrible consequences of unbelief, but hell, like all Bible doctrines, glorifies God when it is taught faithfully without compromise.

Sometimes we think hell is the forgotten Bible subject, but oddly enough there is very little preaching about heaven. With the affluence of our modern society and the pervasive preaching of the prosperity gospel, most people are content to stay here and enjoy their best life on this planet. The lack of suffering experienced by Christians in former times tends to dampen the zeal for heaven because we think we have little to escape. Things are not all that bad and with a little fixing we’ll be just fine. Nothing has destroyed the hope of heaven like the prosperity gospel.

We are also turned away from the doctrine of heaven by lack of understanding of its purpose. If the focus is on us and what we can get out of it, then certainly if we are satisfied with what we have now there is little desire to leave here for it. This is where we must learn that heaven is about Christ. The New Testament authors had little to say about what we will get. They were more concerned about who we will see—a face to face meeting with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

It is amazing that in many of the popular books about NDE (near death experience) so little is said about Christ in these supposed trips to heaven. One of the most popular books (written by a Baptist preacher!) says nothing about seeing Jesus. Apparently, this fellow was able to hang around the environs of heaven with no indication Jesus was there. How strange it is that many of them describe similar things like going through a tunnel and seeing a light at the end. I hope it’s a wide tunnel because Elijah rode his chariot through it!

I don’t think of these things when I think of heaven. The Bible describes it as brilliant light that surpasses the brightness of the sun. It is the magnificence of the glory of God that envelopes heaven. No one goes to heaven through the darkness of a tunnel. The light is not a pinhole at the distant end. To die in Christ is to immediately wake up into the glory of God into a place you will feel as comfortable as if you had been there a million years. Heaven will be home because it is our Father’s house.

Christians need hope revived and to learn what heaven is truly about. Paul said to depart and be with Christ is far better. It truly is, and no prosperity preacher can outdo it.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

If Not for God…

Berean Baptist on February 12, 2018

Psalm 124

This article was posted in our bulletin in January 2016. The occasion was the death of Tom Dewitt’s father, Clif.

Clif was one of those brave men from the World War II generation that served his country well facing the dangers of the enemy while flying bombing missions out of North Africa. On November 10, 1943, he flew a mission headed to destroy a freight supply line to Germany from the town of Bolzano, Italy. There were problems with the mission that caused them to abort, and with complications Clif’s plane was low on fuel. The plan was to return to an emergency base on the island of Corsica, but before they could make it, they were attacked by German aircraft. Clif’s plane was hit and the crew was forced to bail out. Clif was wounded in the process and later captured and spent 17 months in a German prisoner of war camp.

These kinds of stories have been told over and over as brave soldiers stood to fight for our country. Unlike Clif, thousands did not come home. We are left to wonder what if those men did not make the sacrifice and what would it be like in America today if we had lost the war? Surely America would be a much different place if God had not intervened to preserve our freedom.

As we look at Psalm 124, a great question looms. What if the Lord had not been on the side of Israel? Israel became a nation at Mount Sinai when Moses was given the Law. Only months before, a rag tag group of Jews stood at the Red Sea with a body of water too deep to cross. Behind them was the Egyptian army bearing down to either destroy them or force them back into slavery. What if God had not parted the sea? Later, the multitude came to the waters of Mara. They were hot, thirsty, tired and ready to die. The waters were poison and they were unable to drink. What if God had not made them sweet?

When they reached the Promised Land, the swelling of Jordan was before them. Beyond Jordan was the city of Jericho, fortified against invaders with walls too high to breach. What if God had not made the walls fall? Fast forward to the time David wrote this Psalm. No specific trouble is mentioned but there were surely countless times David faced enemies too big to conquer. What if God had not been on their side? And so, the history of Israel goes. From Elijah at Mount Carmel to Hezekiah facing the invincible Assyrian army that had never lost a battle, each time Israel was preserved because God was on her side.

The question comes down to this: if God had not continually taken sides with Israel, she would have been destroyed. Along with her destruction, would have been the ruin of redemption. Israel survived because the Redeemer must come from them. They had to survive because God promised it as far back as a few days into the creation. If God had not been on her side, you and I would have no hope of salvation. We praise Him now because every believer knows He is on our side too. “The LORD is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?” (Psalms 118:6). “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31).

There is always a big “what if” in nearly every situation. What if God had allowed Clif to be shot down and killed? He never would have made it to the age of 92 when he received Christ as Saviour. The “what if” is hell instead of heaven. We are helpless without Christ. Our help is in the name of the LORD, who made heaven and earth. I am thankful He is on my side and nothing can separate me from Him.

Do you have the same assurance? Are you worried about the “what if’s?” Rest at ease IF you know Christ. There is no worry if the Lord is on your side.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Living in Wisdom

Berean Baptist on February 5, 2018

It is impossible for the natural man to choose a holy and righteous life, or essentially the things that will make him healthy and wholesome. The health I am speaking of is not necessarily physical although many of us have a very difficult time making the right choices in that area. I am speaking of choosing health for the soul—the ability to come to Christ in salvation and to begin a course of living for God.

Righteousness eludes every person who does not know Christ. Our fallen nature prevents us from choosing godliness which is the reason we need the Lord to change our hearts. Jesus said we must be born again. This infers the old life must be replaced with the new life that only He can give. Until the Holy Spirit opens our eyes to this truth, we remain carnally minded and cannot please God (Romans 8:6-8).

In regeneration, God changes the disposition of the mind and gives the ability to choose the right path instead of repeating the frequent failures of the past. However, this new capability does not mean we possess immediate wisdom to use it. As we well know, there is a sanctifying process in which good choices are cultivated by prayer, study, and practical experience. Wisdom in this case is not a sudden miraculous endowment as God gave Solomon. This wisdom is best described as discernment achieved through repetitive training. In fact, it is wisdom that will never show itself unless great care is taken to work on it daily. When we indulge sin on a regular basis without being cautious to protect ourselves from it, the heart grows cold and calloused and strongly resists correction. The spiritual man can become a couch potato that never heeds the call to work out our salvation (work out your own salvation—Phil. 2:12).

The first way the Bible tells us to discern properly is in our moral choices. Because the moral character of a Christian is changed, it is possible to choose ways of living that are consistent with the Bible’s commandments. Many of these ways we never thought of before and were never bothered because we did the opposite. With the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, comes the ability to see sin differently, and rather than enjoy its pleasures, we are grieved in our heart and broken by it.

The second area of discernment concerns doctrinal distinctions. All right choices whether moral or theological are governed by our doctrine. For example, the Gnosticism of the first century led to very immoral lifestyles because the doctrine of the body/soul relationship was wrong. We should recognize that every false doctrine leads to unbiblical thinking. Wrong thinking leads to wrong practice and to compromise which in turn becomes bad lifestyle choices.

There are moral and doctrinal distinctions that must be made. We do not have the option of ignoring them. The best place you can learn how to make right choices is to attend church and sit under good doctrinal preaching. Living in wisdom is not mystical. It is to follow the objective truth of God’s word.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

The Wrong Worldview

Berean Baptist on January 29, 2018

As Christians, there is no need for us to be despondent over the way the world is headed. The future of believers is very bright as we are promised to reign with Christ in His millennial kingdom. Yet, there is a sense in which we are greatly dismayed because we know many family and friends will not be a part of it. They will fall in the destruction of Satan because of their rejection of the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

We must remember the gospel has great enemies to overcome. Satan and his demons are powerful. We are painfully aware of this because of the rapid deterioration of this country which was founded on principles of Christianity. A new worldview is now embraced, one that our Founding Fathers could hardly imagine. Although we may argue about their specific religious beliefs and whether any of them were actually born-again believers, we cannot argue biblical principles influenced their moral and ethical decisions.

The shift in our worldview could not be better elucidated than what George Lucas has done in his indoctrination of movie-goers is his Star Wars films. The religion of Star Wars is decidedly unchristian—in fact paganistic. Coinciding with the release of a new Star Wars film, Peter Jones explained this worldview in an article from Ligonier Ministries. He stated, “In spite of the fun elements we all enjoy, the message of the film is self-consciously pagan.” He goes on to describe the elements of Star Wars religion which are part and parcel of Oneism theology. He explains Oneism is worship of nature: “Worship of nature is Oneism because nature is all there is, and everything is made of the same stuff. ‘All is One!’ This is the essence of a pagan worldview.”

Here are the elements he describes as the Oneist principles of Star Wars. (1) Morality is what you make it. The Force is either good or evil, depending on how you tap into it via your emotions. There is no objective distinction between good and evil. (2) Existence creates itself. Obi-Won Kenobi says, “The force is an energy field created by all living things.” There is no Creator/creature distinction. (3) Spirituality is found within, not revealed from the outside. Luke Skywalker must trust his feelings, empty his mind of questions, and “feel the Force flowing through him” in order to create his own truth. (4) In redemption, Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader optimistically “saves” the galaxy and destroys the Emperor, though evil cannot be ultimately eliminated because evil is an integral part of a Oneist world. (5) According to Yoda, death is eternal sleep.

At once we see this worldview is reflected in today’s society. (1) Everything is relative (2) There is no distinction between animals, humans, and machines (3) There are no moral absolutes (4) There is no unique divine/human mediator (5) There is no God separate from us who is Creator and redeemer.

Sadly, the last generation and this one has grown up on Star Wars instead of the Bible. If Star Wars did not shape their worldview, it certainly encapsulated it. It enunciated its principles very clearly. Someday there will be a real Star Wars. God is real, Satan is real, righteousness is real, and evil is real. Jesus Christ the Redeemer is real, and those who trust Him have eternal redemption. Neither those who trust Him nor those that reject Him will experience a death that results in “eternal sleep.” All will give an account to God. The righteous will shine as the stars forever. The wicked will not sleep forever but awake to shame and everlasting contempt. (Daniel 12:2-3).

God has never changed His worldview. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. This is the factual worldview. Fantasy is—fantasy. You had best make the right distinction between them. Eternity is also forever.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Distorted Scriptures

Berean Baptist on January 22, 2018

The Bible is the only record we have of the way God works, and so it stands to reason that if Satan wants to confuse people about who God is he would work very hard to distort the only record we have that tells us what God is like.

The scriptures give a very clear description of what happens when people do not have the Bible to tell them what they must believe in order to know God. The knowledge of God’s existence is revealed in the creation, but this revelation is not enough to tell us His plan of redemption. It reveals His transcendence and His providence but does not tell us how we can have a personal saving relationship with Him. When people do not understand this, they have a tendency to transform God into an idol fashioned by their own hands and make Him into things that match even the lowest forms of the created order. This is a conscious effort to push God down. As Paul said, God is made into an image like corruptible man and to birds and four footed beasts and creeping things (Romans 1:23). Though most today do not have a visible idol of God as do the pagans, they still reinvent Him as the invisible likeness of man who thinks and acts like us. In this scheme, God becomes the approver not reprover of our sin.

Conversely, when we have the scriptures, we learn who God really is. As David said in Psalm 119, “I love thy law.” This was not because David had a special propensity for doing what was right, but he saw in the law of God a reflection of God’s true character. He learned to love and trust God because of it. He learned these things while possessing only a small portion of the scriptures. He had access only to the books of Moses and a few of the historical books. How much greater is our ability to know God’s goodness when we have the full complement of the sixty-six books of the canon of scripture?

Before the completion of the Bible and the globalization of it we enjoy today, Satan had to contend with only a very small population that possessed any of the Word. Today the world is filled with copies of the Bible and Satan must work overtime to confuse the minds of those who read it. For this reason, he attacks the Word at its core. He twists not only the concepts of scripture but also the very words themselves. How does he do it? By flooding the marketplace with counterfeit scriptures. He plants mistranslations—even missing translation such as is found in the NIV. Once the words of scripture are changed or eliminated, he has great success at changing the doctrines. When we concede that the Bible has errors, it is only a short step to include men’s ideas of how those errors should be corrected. Thus, we get Bibles with interpretation instead of translation.

This is just one of the many tactics Satan uses in relation to the Word to distort the truth of God’s character. How do we avoid these errors? Without question, the first measure is to stick to a tried and true translation. We have a reliable text that God has used to save the souls of millions of English speaking people. For more than four hundred years, the King James Version has led people to Christ and established believers in the faith. Why change what we know God has approved? Be safe—stay with the Bible of our English forefathers. We are determined to do this at Berean. The foundation of truth must be solid before the faith built upon it can stand. Satan has many avenues of attack. This is one we refuse to allow. We will not let him begin his deception by taking away the true Word of God.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

I Hate Every False Way

Berean Baptist on January 15, 2018

Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way. (Psalms 119:104)

Edward Reyner an English nonconformist of the early 17th century wrote, “Hatred is a stabbing, murdering affection.” If this were all we knew of Reyner’s quote, we would assume hatred is perfectly inconsistent with Christian teachings about love. However, we go on to read the rest of his thought in which he said, “Hate sin perfectly and perpetually and then you will not spare it but kill it presently. Till sin be hated, it cannot be mortified; you will not cry against it, as the Jews did against Christ, Crucify it! Crucify it! but show indulgence to it as David did to Absalom and say, Deal gently with the young man—with this or that lust, for my sake. Mercy to sin is cruelty to the soul.”

Reyner’s thoughts capture the meaning of Psalms 119:104 extremely well. Knowledge of God’s Word will cause us to hate every false way. The Word enlightens the mind to the destructive nature of sin. We hardly believe sin will kill us, and yet it was sin that brought death to the world. As Reyner said, “Mercy to sin is cruelty to the soul.” Sin always leaves death in its wake. To allow it and tolerate it, is to let it ruin us. Jonathan Edwards said hatred of sin is the way true religion may be known and distinguished.

These quotes show the great disparity of understanding about what Jesus taught. It is not uncommon in today’s world to hear Jesus’ approval attached to support nearly every false way rather than to hear Him thundering against sin. God’s love is defined. It exists within the parameters of His holiness, so that it cannot embrace sin any form—not the act nor the ones who commit it. The scriptures say God is love and God hates sin. Therefore, it is nonsense to create in our minds a Jesus who loves and is at the same time tolerant of sinful lifestyles.

From this point, I could go on to enumerate the multitude of sins that have become accepted as normal behavior, but I am sure you are very aware of our church’s position on these. Rather, I prefer to take a moment to speak of other false ways we must hate. We must hate and take to task any religion that denies the deity of Jesus Christ. We must hate and strongly preach against those religions that deny justification by faith alone in Jesus Christ. We must hate and take a resolute stand against religions that claim there is any other God but Jesus Christ, and any other way to the Father but Him. We must hate the influx into our society of those who say they practice their religion peacefully when that same religion teaches them to be violent and to kill those who disagree with them. We dare not fool ourselves that a religion is peaceful when its history is one of murder, especially murder of those who since Abraham have been called God’s chosen people. We are fooling ourselves to think we can take a cold, dormant viper into our bosom, warm him up, and not expect him to bite.

Sin in any form always destroys. Your personal sin will do it; your toleration of sin in others will do it. Your compassion to give it mercy is cruelty to your soul. When the preacher preaches against sin and those who perpetrate it, do not think he is without love. Hatred of sin distinguishes true Christians. No one can love your soul more than one who says, Crucify sin! Crucify it! Stand with the preacher who stands for God. Stand with the preacher who stands against a society without God, or one that tolerates the wrong god. Anything less is cruel death.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Can You Thank God for Everything?

Berean Baptist on January 8, 2018

Psalms 119:71

In Psalm 119, there is an unexpected blessing for which the psalmist gave thanks. He said in the 71st verse, “It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I might learn thy statutes.” Could you see yourself writing this line? Most of us would never welcome hardships as a teaching method, so we are not likely to ask God to send us pain in order to teach us a lesson. It is only after the pain is endured and has yielded the benefit of bringing us closer to the Lord that we appreciate it.

This thought is expressed in Hebrews 12 regarding chastisement. The writer said chastisement is always grievous, but it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness. Even when chastisement is not the issue, suffering has great benefits for the soul because it teaches us to pray and depend on God. The Bible never tells us to ask God that we would never suffer and neither does it promise we will not. God knows how to bless in mysterious ways and this is the realization of the psalmist after considering his problems.

While preparing this article, I found another interesting perspective on suffering. J.R. Illingsworth wrote: ”The earliest form of trouble is for most of us physical pain, and our instinctive tendency is to view pain as an unmitigated evil. But such a view of pain is not in accordance with the facts of life. Pain is beyond question the great educator of the soul. Pain makes men real. It indurates their character. It endows them with spiritual insight. But, beyond all this, pain invests a man with a mysterious attractiveness for others. There is a heroism in the very fact of suffering which lifts the sufferer above us, and makes us feel that he is moving in a realm of being to us unknown, till our sympathy is hushed into something of awe-struck admiration, and from the blending of sympathy with awe comes love.”

I thought this was a truly sublime thought. Think of those you have seen endure pain for long periods of time. Do you admire them for their courage to suffer without complaint? Isn’t there something about them that causes you to lift them up as a model you think you could never attain?

I still remember a lady that passed away more than fifty years ago from cancer. My dad would go to visit her and many times I went along somewhat reluctantly because I did not like those kinds of visits. She suffered terribly, and yet her faith was firmly in God and she never complained that God had been unfair to her. What caused me to remember her when there are so many in my dad’s ministry I have forgotten? Pain etched her memory in my mind. Her ability to endure it left an indelible impression. Did this lady know her pain was for this purpose? She probably never imagined it. But, such things God knows. Blessings do not always seem to be blessings until they have yielded the peaceable fruits of righteousness.

Learn to bless God in the bad times as well as the good. Either way, God works all things for your good. Patient endurance of suffering may very well be the work that attends your entrance into heaven and causes others to rejoice with thanksgiving to God.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

The Supremacy of God’s Word

Berean Baptist on January 1, 2018

Psalm 119

 

The 119th Psalm which is rightly called “The Ode to the Word.” Here are 176 verses of the psalmist’s praise for the Holy Scriptures which are the source of life for the Christian. Peter said we are born again by the Word of God, which shows the indispensable nature of God’s perfect revelation. The Holy Spirit uses the truth to speak to the heart and with the Word He regenerates to make us new creatures in Christ.

Upon conversion, the Word does not stop its powerful influences. It also sanctifies us (John 17:17) which means it perfects us in the holiness of God. Throughout our Christian lives, we can never depart from its usefulness for without it we have no means to discover how we can be pleasing to God. The Word declares Christ who is the Son of God, and is the model of God’s expectation for every son of God. It is the revelation of precepts by which we are given understanding of all false ways (119:104).

All roads to successful, victorious Christian living run through the scriptures. There we find all things that pertain to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3). The psalmist makes this same point repeatedly. Each section begins with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet which is God’s way of showing us His word is A-Z of divine revelation. Everything that can be said in English must be said with 26 letters from A-Z. Our Bible is God’s complete revelation so that everything God has to say to the human race is contained in these 66 books we call the canon of scripture. There are no other revelations that will be given. There is no outside source that will discover to us anything more God wants us to know. Paul wrote that scripture is able to furnish unto all good works, so there is no area that needs further elucidation to increase our understanding of Him and make the servant of God complete (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

The Bible’s internal claim holds great significance. It at once dismisses the doctrines of cults that are claimed authoritative by their extraneous revelations. When groups like the Mormons or Jehovah Witnesses knock on your door with a claim they have another testament, another communication from God, you can dismiss them at once without further investigation. They are deemed deceivers by this criterion alone. Likewise, those who seem to be more orthodox can be turned away. Pentecostals must be rejected because they seek more revelation through tongues, dreams, and visions. Roman Catholicism must be rejected because the traditions of their church are claimed to be as authoritative as scripture. One thing is abundantly clear about this psalm—the psalmist has no patience for anything considered more valuable than scripture. He finds in it all he needs.

As I write this article, there is a knock at my door. The Jehovah Witnesses are peddling their literature. To them I say verse 29: “Remove from me the way of lying.” I say to them verse 95: “The wicked have waited for me to destroy me.” I say to them verse 115: “Depart from me, ye evildoers: for I will keep the commandments of my God.” And finally I say verses 118 and 119: “Thou hast trodden down all them that err from thy statutes: for their deceit is falsehood. Thou puttest away all the wicked of the earth like dross: therefore I love thy testimonies.”

I advise you to love the Holy Bible as the psalmist loved it. Feast on it every day. It has the power to change you and make you righteous. Let nothing come between you and the Word. To do so is to let something come between you and God.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

The Devil in the Details

Berean Baptist on December 18, 2017

Satan is an intriguing character, is he not? It is with guarded interest that we delve into the subject of Satan because it is possible to become too fascinated with him until the interest itself becomes a snare he can use to lure us in and captivate our thoughts. Many have become too interested in the details of the occult and of the supernatural. People have always been enchanted with the spiritual world which has led many to delve too far into the subject to the detriment of their eternal souls. As Paul said, we are not ignorant of his devices. This should keep us at arm’s length when we investigate the Bible’s descriptions of him.

In light of this, what I am about to say may see strange. Each of us should have profound respect for Satan’s capabilities. We do not admire them for their virtues since he has none, but we do respect the craftiness by which he deceives. Like a man has respect for the quick strike and deadliness of a cobra, so we should respect Satan’s prowess. His counter wisdom in all ways of evil is unparalleled in the spiritual world. No person possesses the power to outwit him. Indeed, he was brazen enough to approach our Lord with temptation. If not for Jesus’ complete reliance on the Holy Spirit for His protection, we might well perceive that Jesus the man would have given in to Satan’s offers. While we do not believe Jesus was capable of sinning, we do believe God used means to protect Him. The means unfailingly kept Him from sin because He is God, but to tempt God certainly speaks to Satan’s confidence in his ability.

Jesus never dismissed Satan out of hand. He first took him to the Word of God to dispel any hope of his success. The Scriptures are also our means for nothing is accomplished against Satan without the power of the Word. I believe the temptation is the Bible’s most formidable example of Satan’s power. It is interesting that no demon ever challenged Jesus like Satan. Even thousands of them begged for a measure of mercy when they were cast out of the Gadarian maniac. Satan boldly approaches God as he did in his accusations against Job.

None of this speaks to any real threat to God’s supremacy. Satan’s courage in the face of God belies his uncommon wisdom. While he deludes us, no doubt his greatest deception is perpetrated upon himself. He is relentless in his pursuit of God’s throne without understanding he is more of a pawn in God’s scheme than he makes us to be in his. God is setting Satan up for a destruction that will exalt God in ways that could never be accomplished by any other means. Satan’s destruction will cry out a confession of the one true living God. God has never done anything that does not redound to His glory, so you can be sure this present time of putting up with the devil will find out the ultimate greatness of God.

God continues to tell us to fear Satan. He tells us to walk circumspectly with eyes always scanning for places the devil might attack. Even though God promised to defeat Satan, the danger is real. Satan’s potency teaches us to fully depend upon God, which is God’s way of using Satan to strengthen His people rather than demoralize them. We can defeat the devil now in this life, but only with God’s help.

All the myths you hear about him are part of Satan’s disguise. He uses them to throw us off track. Chasing the myths divert us from the truth about him. This will get you in trouble if you are too interested in the wrong details.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

The Conclusion of Matthew

Berean Baptist on December 11, 2017

Matthew ends with the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ that has through the centuries changed the lives of millions of people. We are sure of the scripture’s promise that heaven will be filled with a vast number of people who will praise the name of our Lord forever and forever. Their salvation was made possible in only one way—the good news that Jesus came to earth, lived, died, was buried, and then arose from the grave. The sacrifice of our Saviour at Calvary satisfied every demand of God’s justice that was laid against the vile repentant sinner.

The gospel is good news; the best news any person can hear. It does indeed change many hell-bound sinners into heaven-bound saints. For this reason, it is strenuously resisted by Satan and his followers who do everything in their power to corrupt it. The gospel alone can save which means a perverted gospel cannot save. Unfortunately, for the unsuspecting, the means of corruption can be so subtle that many who promote Satan’s methods do not even realize they are helping him accomplish his goal of keeping people blinded to the truth.

Energetic soul-winners who are no doubt often sincere in their efforts to see people saved are often guilty of giving people false assurance by leading them through cheapened presentations of the gospel. When the gospel is reduced to a three to five-minute presentation in which repentance from sin is not mentioned and faith is presented as nothing more than intellectual assent, the ingredients of a false gospel are there. This is not the true gospel of Christ. The true gospel demands genuine sorrow for sin, a sense of self-loathing because of offenses against the holy God, a forsaking and turning from sin in deep contrition, then turning to Christ alone in faith as the only hope of salvation. It also includes the surrender of all we are to the Lordship of Christ over our lives.

Quick five-minute presentations will rarely bring a person to the understanding of these important truths. Enthusiastic soul-winners are lightning fast in their efforts to get people to pray the sinner’s prayer when they have not adequately dealt with the demands of Christ for repentance and faith. This method of soul-winning is never found in scripture. There is not one instance of it in the ministry of Jesus, the apostles, or any evangelist in the New Testament. None of them asked anyone to pray what we call the sinner’s prayer. None of them would have sanctioned this method as an indication of real conviction and turning to Christ in repentant faith. Does this mean we are not to call on the Lord in prayer for salvation? No, we must, but not before we have rejected all that we are and are ready to be humbly obedient to all the Lord commands.

I want you to see these truths. We do not want to sell the gospel short. Never let it be said we have wasted time because our converts never really understood the gospel. Jesus is Lord and Jesus saves! But, Jesus never saves with a false gospel. Repent of all your sins, place your faith in Christ with a faith that leads to obedience to His Lordship.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

For Sale: The Gospel: Are You Buying?

Berean Baptist on December 4, 2017

Our focus in this article is the real meaning of the gospel, which sadly is distorted and misunderstood by many. The gospel is the good news, but what particularly is this news?

Some say it is the news that God has a wonderful plan for your life. I believe this is far too simplistic even to the point of being almost heretical. There are many who have a very bad plan mapped for their lives because God has no dealings with them. To assume God has a good plan for them that might not happen is too have too little confidence that He is able to make any plan happen. On the other hand, for those who hear and believe, it is rare their lives include much good—at least not an attractive good that would cause them to come to Christ. Jesus said the lives of His people would be filled with suffering. They would be hated, ridiculed, and considered the scum of the earth.

As we know, God’s wonderful plan is for the afterlife which puts us in the position of enduring the world until this plan is realized. This is not to say a Christian cannot be happy and find peace and contentment in this life. The apostles suffered beatings for their preaching, and yet they rejoiced they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name. Most do not consider this their kind of joy.

Rarely do we find an honest approach with the gospel. Most feel they must sell the gospel as the most attractive offer you can get. If the pot is not sweetened enough, nobody will buy. However, the real gospel does not need to be sold. The Holy Spirit is not concerned whether people weigh the pros and cons of believing and decide accordingly. The Spirit convicts the heart and brings the person to Christ despite all his objections. He makes us willing to receive the gospel when before we were dead set against it. No matter how bad it looks, people will come to Christ because they have been made willing through His power (Psalms 110:3).

In the days of the apostles, it was impossible to hide the negative aspects of belief in Christ. People could see what it meant to follow Him. Christians lining the roads for miles on crosses was a pretty good indication what it meant to trust Christ. If this is what you were selling, they weren’t buying. In one interesting case in Acts 5, it wasn’t enemies that killed Christians—it was God. Two believers were struck dead for lying to God. In that passage, it says fear came on the people. Many wanted nothing to do with the apostles for fear they would be killed as well. Interestingly, those that were drawn to Christ continued to come and the church continued its rapid growth.

Is it necessary to resort to deceitful tactics and hide the truth? A gospel that is not radical and changes the lives of those who believe is no gospel at all. The good news is the saving power of Christ not a short, sweet version that involves little to no commitment. The gospel may cost your life. It declares the wrath of God against sin and the penalty in hell for those who commit them. It provides the alternative for eternal death by repentance from all sin, faith in Jesus Christ alone, and surrender to His Lordship over the life.

This kind of commitment is not good news for those looking for comfort. Christianity does not end life’s problems. It may very well create many more. You cannot sell this because nobody is buying. Tell the truth. The truth is used by the Holy Spirit to save no matter how difficult it is to believe.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Attitude of Gratitude

Berean Baptist on November 27, 2017

What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me? I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD. I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of all his people. (Psalms 116:12-14)

The phrase “attitude of gratitude” is one you will often hear Bro. Gary Moline use in his offertory prayers. The phrase is certainly biblical and a really good time to use it is just before we give our tithes and offerings. This thought is contemplated by the psalmist in Psalm 116 as he asked, “What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me?”

This is a great question since we are too often prone to ask, “What shall I complain to the Lord about all the problems I have?” This seems to be our primary thought when we go to the Lord in prayer. There is always some trouble that fills our mind so that our purpose in praying is only to lift up our complaints. We ignore prayer unless there is a problem just like many people ignore church until they figure things are so bad they had better resort to church attendance as their last best hope. Prayer is often viewed the same way.

In teaching the model prayer, Jesus said God knows every problem before we have a chance to tell Him. We do not bring Him any information He has not already considered. In fact, He brings many of our trials upon us to teach us to trust Him. The model prayer teaches that before making any petitions we should express glory to the name of God. We do this in several ways, among which is thanking Him for being our benefactor in His providential care of our lives. In this way, we acknowledge His sovereign control and remember we cannot exist a minute without Him.

The psalmist goes on to say how he will show his appreciation for the Lord’s benefits. He knew it is impossible to repay the Lord, but the Lord is not really looking for repayment. His benefits are by His free grace bestowed because of love. This is all the more incentive to show our appreciation. How would the psalmist show his gratitude? He began by thinking of the wonderful gift of salvation. It is hard to imagine anyone saved by God’s grace could be forgetful of this, but this is precisely what Peter described in 2 Peter 1:9. He said some have forgotten they were purged from their old sins. Their sins kept them from God’s favor, and yet it is to the old sins they return. The forgiveness of sin brought us into right relationship with God and turned His wrath away from us. Forgiveness removed all legal claims for punishment. How can we not be grateful for His salvation? What shall I render to God? First, my undying thankfulness for the salvation of my soul.

The second action of the psalmist verifies the first. The demonstration of thanksgiving is obedience to His commands. The Jews expressed their gratefulness by taking vows in which they promised certain acts of service. These vows were to be strictly observed. In like manner, we must strictly observe our vows to God. The first vow is the one made in baptism. Baptism is the acknowledgment of our belief in the atoning sacrifice of Christ. It is also a vow that we have died to our old way of life and we will no longer allow the old life to control us. We are risen to walk in the new life of Christ. In other words, in your baptism you promised to obey Christ as the Lord of your life.

There are also times we make vows that are bargaining chips to receive something from God. We do not need to make these vows but nevertheless if we do, we had better be sure to fulfill them. In Old Testament times, it was good to make a vow. It showed willingness to surrender to the Lord in service. The idea of it was good but the idea became very bad if there was no follow through. The scripture says it is better not to make a vow than to make one and not perform it (Ecclesiastes 5:4-5).

The most important point for today is to show gratitude by honoring Christ with faithful service. No one likes ungrateful people, and neither does God. Stop complaining for a while and show an attitude of gratitude. God is pleased when we remember His abundant mercies.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Legalism vs. Discipline

Berean Baptist on November 13, 2017

Recently I read an article that was helpful for those who misunderstand the dichotomy of legalism and discipline for Christians. As you know, I decided long ago as the pastor of Berean not to adhere to a lengthy list of rules that are enforced by the “holier than thou committee.” Many churches use rules to sit in judgment of others’ Christianity. Legalism is a theological issue in these churches and often they do not understand they are legalists.

Strictly speaking, legalism is the belief that salvation is obtained by keeping commandments (rules), or in other words that we are justified by works rather than by faith. This strict definition causes many legalists to say they are not legalists because they would never teach that salvation is by any other means than grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ.

However, a broader definition is needed because legalism also concerns an inordinate preoccupation with the Law. Legalism may be defined as “excessive adherence to law or formula.” This is where many churches fall into legalism. Their issue is not usually justification but sanctification. Unfortunately, these two doctrines are often blended until unbiblically, sanctification becomes justification. These churches become excessive and insistent about rules for the membership to follow. This definition of legalism must be resisted as much as the other.

We have our own problems to deal with in this area, and my purpose is not to throw stones at those we disagree with. Our problem is not legalism—it is lack of discipline. In our efforts to combat legalism, many have fallen away from good Christian discipline. Discipline may be defined as “activity, exercise, or a regimen that develops or improves a skill; training.” As the author of this article said, “The danger of confusing the two [legalism and discipline] is that we can lose the important spiritual disciplines which are crucial to our growth, sanctification, protection, and intimacy with Christ.”

This author did not address personal appearance issues but went on to describe other spiritual disciplines that are not optional if a person wants to grow in his walk with the Lord. These are extremely important, and we discussed those things in our Living for Jesus series. I want to turn our attention instead to the issue of how we appear to others.

How we dress is also a spiritual discipline. The teaching of our testimony before the world in all its facets forms an integral part of New Testament instructions for Christian living. How we appear can cause instant formation of opinions, and whether it is right or wrong to form an opinion of someone merely by the way they dress is immaterial to its being a fact of life we must live with. We have few opportunities to sit down with people to explain what we believe. The limited amount of information someone knows about you—who you are and what you are in their minds—is communicated instantly through your appearance. An unkempt appearance, sloppiness, even the wrong swagger evokes its assessments. A clean-cut conservative appearance does the same. We tend to form good opinions of the latter and poor opinions of the former.

Likewise, assessments of moral values are made by appearance. Provocative clothing does not speak a character of godliness. It characterizes the wearer as conforming to the purpose of modern fashion, which is to entice, exude sexiness, and invite the onlooker’s inspection. We can make all the excuses we want, but we can never escape that exposing the body invites examination of things which should never be seen.

What is my point? Disciplining ourselves in appearance is godly and expected. We cannot justify our resistance to legalism by developing habits that kill our influence for Christ. Think about the testimony of your appearance wherever you are. From what I see inside in our church services, more personal discipline is needed, which no doubt means it is needed much more outside among those who do not know us personally.

Personal appearance is not all there is to godliness, but surely it has its important part to play.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

God’s Works Remembered

Berean Baptist on November 6, 2017

He hath made his wonderful works to be remembered: the LORD is gracious and full of compassion.

(Psalms 111:4)

As I was thinking on the 111th psalm, verse 4 reminded me of a negative application of the same thought in 2 Peter 1:9:  But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. The psalmist said God has made His work to be remembered while Peter said the one who does not care to build on his faith by adding Christian graces will soon forget the mighty works that God has done in his life.

I think it is interesting how many times the Old Testament retells the story of Israel’s deliverance from Egypt. I have commented on this before from other psalms and scripture texts, and here we find it again in more subtle references in the 111th psalm. It seems the crowning achievement of all God’s wonderful works for His people is how God humbled the defiant Egyptian Pharaoh and brought His people out with a mighty strong arm. He brought them through the perils of the wilderness and gave them the land promised to Abraham. This is reflected in verse 6: He hath shewed his people the power of his works, that he may give them the heritage of the heathen. The scriptures continue to remind of this fact so that Israel would never lose the assurance that God was on their side and would always fulfill His promises to them.

The same is true for the Christian today. Our deliverance in the moment of our salvation when God broke through the stronghold sin had on our hearts is a grand touchstone to return to time and time again. God brought us into the marvelous light of the gospel of Christ and became the author of our eternal salvation. Like Israel’s remembrance of deliverance from Egypt, this is our place of remembrance of God’s wonderful works.

There is, however, another similarity between the 111th psalm and the quest for holiness in 2 Peter 1. Israel was taken into captivity because they forgot what God did for them. They were not careful to maintain their obedience which caused them to fall and to experience bitter chastisement. The Christian has the same propensity if he is not careful to maintain his focus on Christ. We will also fail and find ourselves back in the captivity of sin.

This is what Peter warns against in 2 Peter 1:9. The person who forgets that he was purged from his old sins will soon fall into those old sins again. We are doomed to repeat our past mistakes which is the exact problem with Israel. Old sins always yield the same results—it never changes. The loss of assurance is its fruit; when the fruit of the Christian life should be grace, peace, and the contentment of resting in God’s promises.

As I read the psalm and compared it to 2 Peter, I was also reminded how scripture says Old Testament stories were given to warn us not to fall in the same holes as Israel. We must guard ourselves and be diligent to add all spiritual graces. This is the sure method of never failing to remember God’s wonderful works. Look at the world around you and see the immensity of His power. And then, look into your heart once blackened by sin and see it cleansed by the gospel of Christ. Keep looking and you will never forget the joy of being purged from your old sins.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Thy People Shall Be Willing

Berean Baptist on October 30, 2017

Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth. (Psalms 110:3)

At the end of Matthew’s gospel is one of the most familiar of all texts concerning the work of the church. It ends with the commission of world evangelism given to the apostles by the risen Christ. The task of preaching the gospel to the nations was daunting to say the least, and seemingly unreasonable given the nearly wholesale rejection of the Lord’s own ministry. He was despised, rejected, beaten, humiliated, and crucified which was no indication the message He preached would gain widespread acceptance.

There was, however, a very important factor that made the task possible. It was His resurrection from the dead which told the disciples that anything was within His power. He was “declared to be the Son of God with power…by the resurrection from the dead” (Rom. 1:4). If the risen Christ commanded world evangelization, it was therefore possible. Jesus further declared the success of His commission by saying, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth” (Matt. 28:18).

This brings me to the 110th Psalm with its powerful message of the authority of Christ. In verse one of the psalm, David wrote, “The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.” This is a conversation between two persons of the Godhead. God the Father spoke to God the Son promising He would receive all authority in His kingdom. The suffering and death of the cross would result in His exaltation to the right hand as the King of heaven and earth.

This psalm holds the distinction of being the most quoted Old Testament passage in the New Testament. The importance of it cannot be overestimated especially as it relates to the closing verses of Matthew. There are two critical factors for the success of the commission of Matthew 28:19-20 that arise out of Psalm 110:3. The psalmist wrote, “Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power…” As witnesses of the gospel, the disciples were not much willing as they forsook the Lord and despaired in His death. They saw no hope of a dead Messiah fulfilling His promise of being the King in an earthly kingdom. However, their hope was revived with the resurrection. The power of the risen Christ and His promise to remain with them by the presence of the Holy Spirit gave them the sorely needed motivation for gospel preaching. They were willing to attempt an impossible task because the strength to accomplish it was not their own.

It is wonderful to have courage induced by the strength of Christ, but as impressive as this is, it is not enough to complete the task. This alone will not turn wicked sinners with depraved hearts to Christ. The factor of a willing soul-winner is needed but another factor must also accompany it. The second factor is a willing lost soul. This is equally impossible without supernatural ability because no souls are willing to come to Christ. Man’s will is bent away from Christ and will be forever unless it is changed by the Holy Spirit. This is what the Holy Spirit does in regeneration. He brings dead sinners to life and enables them to choose Christ in repentance and faith. When scripture says, “Thy people shall be willing” we know the gospel will be successful because God makes it so. He empowers the soul-winner with the courage to preach and then guarantees the success of the preaching by empowering the sinner to believe.

This is a topic that requires much more time and space, but it should be noted the word says, “Thy people shall be willing.” No others become willing except those who have been chosen by God to believe the gospel. This powerful combination of enabled soul-winners and enabled lost souls is far more than enough to convert those intended to be reached. Thank God none of this depends on our power. There is no success without God’s power and nothing but success with God’s power.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Help me, O LORD my God: O save me according to thy mercy…

Berean Baptist on September 25, 2017

In Acts chapter one after the ascension of Jesus, the disciples entered a ten-day waiting period for the coming of the Holy Spirit. During those days (Acts 1:15), Peter stood before the disciples to explain the need to appoint another apostle to fill the place of Judas who had betrayed the Lord. Peter spoke of the traitor’s awful death and then quoted Psalm 109:8 as justification for the selection of a replacement (Acts 1:20). This is a truly amazing exposition of the psalm as no one before could have interpreted this verse in this way.

If we care to investigate this Old Testament reference, we find ourselves immersed in one of the most perplexing of the psalms. Psalm 109 is perhaps the chief imprecatory psalm in which vengeance is asked against the enemies of David in particular and the enemies of God in general. David’s attitude does not seem to support Jesus’ teaching that we are to forgive our enemies.

I have read several explanations for the harshness of David’s words and how we might excuse him for what seems to be the opposite of a Christ-like spirit—but is it really unlike the Lord our God? I am convinced that God wants us to see the side of Him most people ignore or just completely dismiss. This side is God’s wrath. This is His commitment to justice in His condemnation of sin. I do not believe we need to make excuses for David because he asked God for vengeance. When he made the statement in verse 8 which was quoted by Peter in Acts 1:20, the link was established that what was spoken is the mind of God. This is not a repudiation of His love and mercy in the forgiveness of sin. It is confirmation of the awful consequences of the rejection of Christ.

My thoughts are drawn to Jesus’ words on the cross: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” They did not know He was the Christ for if they had they would never have crucified Him (1 Cor. 2:8); but perhaps of equal importance, they would not have crucified Him if they knew the wrath of their coming judgment. Without repentance and faith, the blackness and darkness of an eternal hell were their destiny.

The modern pulpit rarely broaches the subject of God’s wrath. Sin and its consequences are negative and depressing, while the prevailing opinion is that church services should be positive and uplifting. Trevin Wax made this enlightening statement: “Hell is full of people who think they deserve Heaven. Heaven is filled with people who know they deserve Hell.” Churches are unwittingly confusing people and making far more of the first category than of the second. The first part of the quote is the problem of the “God loves you” pulpit. God’s love for people is never juxtaposed to His disgust for their sin. All of us deserve hell because we are guilty of sin. We do not have a few faults that need to be corrected. We have not made minor mistakes, but at heart, we are basically good people. No, we are nasty, vile, wicked, and disgusting. Such descriptions do not play well in the pulpit.

Psalm 109 is a reminder of what we deserve. David’s inventive mind in suggesting different punishments for his enemies cannot touch what God has planned. David’s imprecations only go as far as humans understand. No one knows how deeply God is offended nor how capable He is of satiating His vengeance. “God is love”—yes. John wrote this in his first epistle. Jesus came to save deeply offensive hell-deserving sinners which prove it. However, John also wrote the wrath of God abides on those who do not believe. Turn past 1 John to Revelation to see page after page of examples of God’s execution of wrath. Read chapter 19 and see Jesus in the thick of it as He wields the bloody sword of vengeance.

Heaven is never sweeter than when we understand what would have been if not for Jesus Christ. God’s wrath accentuates His deep love. We must preach it or else confuse people about what they deserve. “Help me, O LORD my God: O save me according to thy mercy.”

 

                                                                                    Pastor V. Mark Smith

Book V – The Word of God

Berean Baptist on September 18, 2017

Psalm 107

Chapter 107 begins the last division of the Psalms. At each division, we marked the theme. In Psalms 1-41, the theme is man and these opening chapters correspond to Genesis, the first book of the Pentateuch. The next section (42-72) corresponds to Exodus with the theme of deliverance. Book III (73-89) has sanctuary as its theme and is comparable to Leviticus. Book IV (90-106) is about wandering and matches Numbers. Finally, Book V relates to Deuteronomy with the theme of chapters 107-150 being the word of God.

The pinnacle of this section is Psalm 119 which may be considered The Ode to the Word. This is the longest of the psalms with 176 verses of the psalmist’s exuberance for the importance of the word in his life and that of all believers. Today’s reading of the 107th psalm sets the tone for the section as the author describes the source of all problems—“…they rebelled against the words of God, and contemned the counsel of the most High…” (v.11). Who does not see this as the cause of Adam’s fall? No truer words could be spoken for the causes of evil that have fallen upon our country. As the word of God became less prominent in homes, schools, and government institutions, the influence of righteous morality suffered. Finally, it has come to the place that any candidate for public office that claims guidance from the principles of the Bible, as our founding fathers did, is regarded as a religious buffoon. Political parties distance themselves from the morally upright to garner votes from the godless.

The psalmist catalogs the successes and failures of Israel according to their respect for and obedience to God’s word. When they rebelled against the word, “…he brought down their heart with labour; they fell down, and there was none to help…” (v. 12). When they came back to Him, “…he saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder.” (vv. 13b-14).

While we cannot claim a spiritual revival for America or any promise of preservation for this nation, we can claim God’s promise to the church. Israel is representative of God’s people, and what God’s people need is a revival of the word. In the church, the Bible has gone away just as it has in society in general. Few Christians make it a regular practice to read and study scripture. They would much more readily pick up a fad book of how to with its 7 Steps to God’s Blessings, or 5 Ways to Spiritual Success. Browse the bookstores and see how many formulas there are for peace, happiness, and contentment. Rarely do you see one that says, One Step—Obey God. This is the psalmist’s basic message—“Do not rebel against the words of God.” The command presupposes knowledge of what God’s word says.

In each of our messages with their variety of subjects, each topic always comes back to one issue—what does God’s word say about it? This is always central—what do we know about the word? I must always impress the value of the word. Living for Jesus is nothing more or less than living in His word.

“Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the lovingkindness of the Lord.” (v. 43).

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Who Needs Whom?

Berean Baptist on September 11, 2017

This past Monday I got up to start my day in the usual manner. Every day starts with a review of one of the sermons I will preach the following Sunday. I had just finished my Sunday morning review when I picked up the TableTalk devotional which is next on the list of the morning reading. To my surprise, the devotion for the day included this important statement: “God doesn’t need you! Never has. Never will. For anything. Ever.” This was an interesting assertion because I had just seen the same concept in my own sermon on the resurrection.

In this sermon, I examined the terrible lie that was concocted by the wicked religious leaders who tried to conceal the truth of the resurrection. I looked at their lie to wonder how would God deal with it. What could be done to fix it and how would people learn the truth when the most influential, powerful leaders of religion told a story in direct contradiction to the truth?

It’s a very good question considering only eleven uneducated men were given the responsibility to preach what the leaders so steadfastly denied. How were they to overcome such powerful opposition? As it turns out, God did not need them to fix things. Although God never lies, He certainly did set up all the circumstances that made this lie testify to the truth.

In His resurrection plans, God never allowed the disciples to dwell on the promise Jesus gave that He would rise from the dead. He told them many times, but it is as if they never heard it. They never latched on to it as a means of hope which is proved by two of them in their conversation with the resurrected Christ on the road to Emmaus. If they had believed it, they would have been a constant presence at the tomb eagerly waiting for the exact moment to see Jesus just as He came back to life. If this had happened, it would help make the lie the body was stolen more plausible. God did not want them anywhere near the tomb until it was over in order to make the leaders’ lie completely self-defeating.

It was the leaders who insisted that Pilate post a guard and put the Roman seal on the tomb. Their efforts were to ensure there was no way the body could be stolen. It was so tightly secured that when the resurrection happened, the lie the body was stolen was impossible to believe. God did not need the disciples to fix this for Him—the religious leaders did the job themselves and God directed them every step of the way.

Today’s theology is dominated by seriously bad thinking. The idea is that God cannot do anything without us. God sits in heaven crying because He is helpless. He is so disappointed because He created man and loved Him and now nobody will love Him back. So, God needs to be made happy and we are the only ones who can help Him. The truth is God does not need us. Never has. Never will. For anything. Ever. He doesn’t need you—you need Him. Always have. Always will. For everything. Forever.

This theology is proved over and over again in scripture. God is sovereign over all affairs and always has been. Adam’s fall was not a surprise. Jesus’ death was not a responsive afterthought. The lie about the resurrection was not a problem for God to overcome.

The author concluded with this thought: “God is not looking for ‘helpers’ to assist Him in saving the world…God has never commanded us to go save the world for Him. He calls us to follow Him as He saves the world through us.” You see, it is not about you—it’s all about Him.

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Touch Not Mine Anointed

Berean Baptist on September 4, 2017

Psalms 105:15

One of the great warnings of scripture is the danger of perverting the word of God. God is not pleased when His words are misused, misapplied, or otherwise twisted to teach things He never intended. We fight this battle constantly with new Bible versions as often they are translated to satisfy certain consumers with their own theological axes to grind. Many translations are not translations at all but rather a commentary on scripture. There are Bibles to fit almost anyone’s viewpoint whether it be sodomites, feminists, genderless (or too many genders), too many verses (thus, infamous missing ones in the NIV), etc. etc.

We also fight against cults that want to include unusual, bizarre writings of their supposed prophets. These strange revelations (?) such as the Book of Mormon are claimed to be other testaments of sayings and doctrines that God left out of the sixty-six books recognized for centuries as canonical. The Bible contains its own internal proof of supernatural origin while these spurious books only have super stupid claims. The Book of Mormon is especially noteworthy for its almost comical attempt at sounding authoritative by its copying of King James language.

These are real problems to be confronted, but the one I want to speak of is the Baptist preacher who thumps the King James and declares it to be the infallible, inspired word of God without error even down to the way flowers should be pressed between its pages. I am speaking of that same preacher who has no problem twisting scriptures to accommodate his own ends.

Psalms 105:15 is a good case in point. The pastor will quote this out of context, “…touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm.” The psalmist is speaking of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and how God called them and protected them to fulfill His promises to Israel. While it is true God has a special hand of protection on His ministers, it is also true that the people should hold them accountable. How well we as pastors should note that our usefulness is according to God’s eternal plan. Stephen was martyred after a very short career even though he was called a man full of faith and power. God had his vengeance on those who did the deed while using the evil that was done to glorify His name. How often have we used Stephen as an example of courage?

My problem is with the pastor who insulates himself from criticism and honest evaluation by claiming Psalm 105:15. He requires blind obedience, unwavering devotion, and near godlike worship. This pastor teaches people to never question his authority and never inquire about his teachings. And God forbid anyone should offer a word of correction when he has obviously missed something or misinterpreted a scripture. Touch not God’s anointed means “fall in line, don’t make waves, and if I go over a theological cliff everybody is sworn to go with me.”

Does God require absolute commitment to the pastor? This is a huge mistake. Even the great apostle Paul said who am I? God gives the increase. He wanted no followers except as he followed Christ. I would submit you had better research Christ to see if the pastor is following Him. It is unquestionably true that you should respect the pastoral position and the authority invested in him by God through the church. “Against an elder receive not an accusation, but before two or three witnesses” (1 Tim. 5:19). Moral and doctrinal accusations should not be charged lightly, but they can be charged. Aside from those types of glaring issues, pastors ought to welcome honest inquiries. I find no better teaching times than when I can walk someone through a doctrine or scripture I have taught.

I want you to be Bereans (Acts 17:11). I don’t consider it an offense when questions are asked. They sharpen me and show me areas that need better explanations. So, come with your questions. Those asked in the right spirit will be answered. Those asked in the wrong spirit will be answered too. Each receives their appropriate answers.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Avoid the Path to Nowhere

Berean Baptist on August 27, 2017

A few weeks ago in this space, I wrote about spiritual thirst and how important it is to quench this thirst by often visiting God’s word. That article was prompted by my experience in the exercise routine of walking up Taylor Mountain. These walks have been very productive both physically and spiritually as I use the time to think on sermons and pray (yes, you can walk and pray at the same time—no extra coordination required). This past week I developed a sermon outline while walking and had nothing to write on, so I used my iPhone to dictate the points. Passersby must have been a little stunned to hear Exaltation! Encouragement! Equality! as I walked by.

Here is one of the thoughts that came to me on one of the trips last week. At Taylor Mountain, there are well-marked trails that are mapped and traveled by most. I have my own section I walk regularly because I know how long it will take, how difficult it will be, how many miles it covers, and how many calories it will burn. I stick to this section 90% of the time.

I noticed every time on every trip I pass a path off to the right that disappears into the trees. I often wondered where it went but I never took time to explore it. I just kept passing it over and over and kept on walking where I was supposed to. Finally, I decided I had to satisfy my curiosity. I took off down the trail with the lizards and ticks over a creek and up a rocky incline until it leveled off in a clearing. The path was well-worn and then abruptly stopped. There was no trace of it beyond that point.

It turns out the path was well-worn because the many people that traveled that way found out there was no gorgeous view like walking the right path. The path was beaten down because every person made an about face and traveled back the way they came. It occurred to me that the marked trail is the one you are supposed to follow and if you get off it you end up nowhere. This is much like the Christian life. God has the right way for your life marked out clearly in His word. There is a path that wastes no time, produces the right results, and leads straight to the proper destination.

We too easily give into the temptation to that which appears to be a more appealing path and we take a different direction only to find out it leads nowhere. Worse yet, if I had been in a wilderness area, this kind of foray could have led to bewilderment and a nasty fall from a cliff. Fortunately, it is hard to get lost on Taylor Mountain. Not so in life when you leave God’s path. When you are off His trail, there is no guidance. It’s a difficult walk and each step leads you farther and farther away from the one who can help.

The moral of this story is not to yield to the temptation of the new and exciting. The old path is good so don’t pick a new church, don’t pursue a new doctrine, don’t take a new job, don’t get with a new crowd unless you have evaluated each step to see if it is the right way. The reality is that you might be on the wrong path right now. You thought it was right but your faith is weak, your growth is stunted, and your contentment is suffering because you have been going the wrong way far too long.

The goal of Berean is to lead you in God’s path. We stay in God’s word to point you to the spiritual markers that give assurance of the right way. We promise every step will be backed by the scriptures—and with them, you will always end in the beautiful somewhere of God’s glory.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

The Word of God or Spirit of God?

Berean Baptist on August 21, 2017

 

In our Fundamentals of the Faith class, we studied the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer. One of the very important topics of the Spirit’s work is His filling. We learned that being filled with the Spirit is the same in meaning as being filled with the word of God. In relation to this, I read a great article by J.D. Greear in TableTalk magazine that I thought was well worth repeating here.

Greear wrote: “When it comes to the Holy Spirit, Christians tend to gravitate toward one of two extremes. Some pursue experience in the Spirit apart from the inscripturated Word of God. They listen for voices in their hearts or seek ‘signs’ from God in the heavens. Others, however, seek to know and obey the Word without any tangible interaction with the Spirit. These Christians believe the Spirit, but they relate to Him the way I relate to my pituitary gland: I’m really grateful it’s in there; I know it’s essential for something. I would never want to lose it…but I don’t really interact with it. For these Christians, the Holy Spirit is not a moving dynamic person. He’s more of a theory.

“The problem with both sides is the assumption that we have to choose between the Word and the Spirit. But Scripture indicates that the two work inseparably. The vibrant Christian life is a union of clarity in the Word and openness to the Spirit. If we seek the Spirit of God apart from the Word of God, our faith will end in shipwreck. More havoc has been wreaked in the church following the words the Spirit of God just said to me…than any other phrase. God’s Spirit never acts independently of His Word. Since He inspired it, why would He work apart from it?

“But in the same way, if you seek to obey the Word apart from the power of the Spirit, not only will your spiritual life be lifeless and dull, you’ll also miss out on the help God wants to give you and the most exciting things He has planned for you. You’ll miss out on the dynamism of relationship. I know; I’ve been there.

“If you want to be led by the Spirit of God, then devote yourself to the Word of God. The Spirit’s primary vehicle for moving and speaking in our lives is the scriptures. The Spirit, through His Word, works in us to shape us into the kind of people God wants us to be, we will do the things God wants us to do.

“Almost every time we see the phrase ‘the will of God’ in the Bible, it refers to the shaping of our moral character in response to the gospel. The Spirit conforms us to Christ’s character: ‘For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son’ (Rom. 8:29). ‘Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind’ (12:2). And the Spirit helps us walk the paths of wisdom that the righteous travel (Prov.2:20-22; see 1 Cor. 2:6-16). As we do, we accomplish the will of God.

“You won’t know the Spirit any more than you know the Word. But the Word won’t yield up its treasures until you allow God’s Spirit to apply it directly to you. So, if you want to walk with the Spirit of God, get on your knees and open your Bible.” (Tabletalk, June 6&7, The Word of God or Spirit of God?)

This article perfectly complements our teaching on the relationship between the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. Never expect any movement of the Spirit without the knowledge of the Word and heartfelt obedience to it. Every Christian is indwelled by the Spirit, but not all are adequately filled. Filling is in direct proportion to your surrender of obedience to the Word. Expect us to continue to exposit the Word because we desire the Word of Christ to dwell in you richly (Col. 3:16).

                                                           

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

God’s Providence in a Child’s Conversion

Berean Baptist on August 13, 2017

John Flavel has long been one of my favorite Puritan authors and his masterpiece on God’s providence is one of the first of his books I read. Providence is a very important concept in scripture as it describes how God works all things after the counsel of will and knows how each detail of His creation works together for the blessings of His children. In other words, providence comprehends more than the predestination of God’s people to salvation. It considers His total control of all His creatures to bring about His sovereign purposes. Among its many properties is the confirmation that all things consist by the power of God and that no creature is self-sustaining.

In chapter 3 of Flavel’s book, he deals with God’s providence in salvation. Flavel seems enraptured as he expounds on the way God orders all the occasions that bring His people to belief in Him. There are no accidents in our conversion. Each step is carefully planned by God. Of all the good God does for us, nothing compares to His meticulous care to bring us to salvation.

The point of this chapter is the gratitude and the testimony of a Christian because of what Christ has done. And yet Flavel points out that all testimonies are not equal. All experiences of conversion are not the same. Every Christian does not tell the same story or give as much detail in relating what happened in their lives at the time God saved them.

This interested me because I have experienced exactly what Flavel describes. I was saved when I was very young. My father was a Baptist preacher and I grew up in a Christian home. The first place I was taken as a child was to church. My name appeared on the cradle roll of South Broadway Baptist Church when I was just a few days old. There has never been I time when I have not been in church, and at the age of seven I trusted Christ as Saviour. Believe me, that was a long time ago.

If you ask me to provide the details of my conversion, to tell you the sermon, the songs, to relate what happened afterwards, to tell you how I felt—I cannot. I do remember the conviction, but that is all. Because I can’t remember the details, does it mean I am not saved? Surprisingly, I have heard preachers say if you don’t know the day, the hour, and the minute you trusted Christ, then you aren’t really saved.

Your experience of coming to Christ may be different. I have heard many testimonies of people who were in deep sin when they were saved. Some were in drugs, alcohol, adultery, pornography—and each has a very clear recollection of the day God brought them out of those horrible lives of sin. And there lies the difference. I was young and had very little life experiences. I needed salvation as much as anyone, but I don’t have that riveting, interesting, enthralling story that causes people to shout, Praise God! I don’t believe anyone ever said ooh and ah at my testimony.

Here is the point. An exciting testimony is no more proof a person is saved than a dull, vague, boring memory of a child who came to know Christ. In fact, you should pray to God every day that your children end up with a boring story of conversion rather than a spectacular turnaround. When a child is saved, it is the most exciting salvation of all.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

God Is Grieved with this Generation

Berean Baptist on August 7, 2017

Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways: Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest.

(Psalms 95:10-11)

In April when we began our reading of Book IV of the Psalter, I mentioned this portion of the psalms is linked to the book of Numbers with the theme of unrest and wandering. This is especially evident in today’s reading of Psalm 95. This psalm mentions Israel’s temptation in the wilderness and how God was grieved with their unbelief. Israel saw God’s wonderful works numerous times, yet still they hardened their hearts in sin. As punishment, God would not allow them to enter their rest in the Promised Land. The entire generation that left Egypt died in the wilderness without realizing their hope.

Two weeks ago, in preparation for this article, I was reading the results of a Pew Center study that said the numbers of people in America who identify as Christians has reached an all-time low and is still sinking. Most in our church would not find it hard to believe seeing we live in California where real Christians are as scarce as hen’s teeth. Our assumption is there are far more Christians in other places, particularly in the Bible Belt where I was born and raised. However, the phrase “real Christians” is a very limiting term. For many, many years the numbers of “real Christians” even in the Bible Belt has been dismal.

Russell Moore who is president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention noted there was a time that anyone living in the South or Midwest had to at least claim to be Christian to be considered “normal.” Good parents and good neighbors and people you weren’t afraid to have your kids around would always carry the Christian label. Any other claim would push them out of the mainstream of accepted social behavior.

Moore rightly acknowledged that Christianity for maintaining social status is not really Christianity at all. Including those types in the definition of Christian, has caused many mainline denominations to tailor their doctrinal beliefs to the masses. The result of churches making peace with the world is that too soon the church is the world with no discernible difference. These denominations are losing their identity which means the Bible Belt is taking in notches from a size 40 as if it was on a crash diet.

America is certainly in the wilderness of unbelief. We never hear of the revivals that gripped this country like they did in the early days. Poorly guarded theology is a huge reason for this which has given us unconverted “Christians.” These pseudo-Christians eventually lose the need for the label. When we think God did nothing for us, why do we want to have anything to do with Him?

As each year goes by, we wonder if there is anything worth saving in this country. Our brand of democracy has seen its own conversion to one that more seeks a mandate not to worship God rather than for freedom to worship Him. Perhaps God is letting this generation die in the wilderness. Has He sworn they will not enter His rest? If so, real Christianity is not dead. The gates of hell are no stronger than they were. As Moore said, the light of Christ still drives out the darkness of all false gospels.

Remember this—God’s Promised Land is for His people. They are still going, still trudging on with enemies on every side. The worse the foes the greater the grace, and we shall never fail to make it there.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Vengeance is God’s

Berean Baptist on July 31, 2017

 

O LORD God, to whom vengeance belongeth; O God, to whom vengeance belongeth, shew thyself. (Psalms 94:1)

Psalm 94 is an exasperating cry for God to bring vengeance on Israel’s enemies. Many people do not realize such psalms exist because they believe God is never upset with anyone and walks around all day with a flower behind His ear blowing kisses. How far from the truth are these misguided souls!

A few days ago, I was interviewed by a very nice Sonoma State student who was doing a research paper on Christian funerary practices. She asked me what a funeral service was like in a Baptist church and what kinds of things we did and what things I say when trying to comfort grieving friends and relatives. Of course, I told her it was important to be sympathetic, compassionate, and diplomatic. The last of those required a little explanation because of a very sensitive topic that needs to be discussed at the time of death. I did not want to shock her and seem uncaring, but I explained the death of a loved one is one of the best times to talk about the awful consequences of dying without Christ as Saviour. I told her I felt it a necessary duty to warn people about God’s wrath because some that attend funeral services have never heard a gospel message. I feel a responsibility to warn people that although God wants people to go to heaven He will not tolerate their sin and rejection of Christ. When we preach this way, we are following the example of Jesus who also found it necessary to speak of hell and judgment.

I think too many Christians are apologetic for God. They want to leave out His anger and pretend He turns a blind eye to evil. You cannot read Psalm 94 and come close to that conclusion. The psalmist is sure that even though God delays judgment, it will never be escaped. Further, he expects it and desires it to happen. You might have a little trouble reconciling such feelings with the love and compassion taught by Jesus, but nonetheless, both aspects of God’s character are true. Jesus preached both as true.

The first verse opens with the word vengeance. Vengeance belongs to God. He will not let the wicked escape. Sooner or later, God will say “enough” and at His divinely appointed time, He will issue the order and court will be in session. This is what I tried to impress upon this young lady. All of us will meet God at some time, and I am remiss if I do not discharge my duty to grieving mourners to warn that we must answer to Him.

The other piece is why the psalmist expected it. It is a personal thing. There is payback for all we go through. It seems like a strange reward but we learn to appreciate justice as much as God does. He never lets us pursue personal vengeance, but He promises justice will be satisfied. “Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.”

 

 

                                                                        Pastor V. Mark Smith