Symbols of Christianity

by

Many hope to be identified as Christians by the implement of torture they wear around their neck, the fish on the back of their car or by a big building with icons and a steeple.

This may sound a bit silly, but these are the symbols that have been appropriated by those who want others to know they are followers of Christ. What is further disconcerting is the fact that these items come out of paganism or have less than Christian roots.

That being said, there are symbols that designate us as Christians. These are not signs that are easily read and may not be as obvious as the tangible ones, because they are inward. They are a broken heart and a contrite spirit (Psalm 34:18). These are the symbols of Christianity that God recognizes. If we are truly Christians, then we will have the Word of God written in our hearts and minds, thereby transforming our inner selves. The end result will be an outward manifestation of Godly fruit and a shining example, not a man-made object.

To truly be identified as a Christian, we must work from the inside out.

Commitment

On Saturday, July 30, 2005, Edwin Pope will give the sermon, addressing the topic of commitment.

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org at 12:30 pm Pacific Time (which is 2:30 pm Central Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

What did Christ mean when He said that we are to take up our cross, when we want to follow Him?

Christ used the metaphor of taking up the cross in numerous places, for instance, in Matthew 10:38 and in Matthew 16:24; in Mark 8:34 and in Mark 10:21; as well as in Luke 9:23 and Luke 14:27.

Especially Matthew 10:38 is interesting, in view of its context with verse 39:

“And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.”

We may understand WHY Jesus uses this particular analogy, because He did literally bear His own “cross” as He was led to His own execution! We read in John 19: “And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha, where they crucified Him…” (verses 17-18).

The “Illustrated Dictionary of the Bible,” in its explanation of the cross, states: “Those sentenced to death on a cross in the Roman period were usually beaten with leather lashes–a procedure which often resulted in severe loss of blood. Victims were then generally forced to carry the upper crossbeam to the execution site, where the central stake was already set up.” We know that Jesus had even been beaten before His judgment by Herod (compare Luke 22:63-65). Then Jesus was also flogged by the Romans in preparation for His execution: “Then he [Pilate] released Barabbas to them; and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified” (Matthew 27:26).

Adding to this, Jesus was further tortured by the soldiers as the account in Matthew 27, verses 27 through 31, reveals. Although Jesus evidently attempted to carry this crossbeam for a little while, He was so severely weakened by the beatings He had undergone that He was not able to do so: “Now as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name. Him they compelled to bear His cross” (Matthew 27:32).

In discussing Christ’s statement in Matthew 10:38, the Nelson Study Bible points out: “Taking up a cross here stands for commitment to the extent of being willing to die for something.” Although not incorrect, MUCH MORE is meant by Christ’s statement.

The parallel Scripture of Luke 9:23-24 sheds additional light on the meaning of the phrase, “taking up the cross.” We read Christ’s words: “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him DENY himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.”

The Nelson Study Bible comments: “Although Jesus offered salvation as a free gift (John 1:12; 3:16-18; Eph. 2:8, 9), He also warned that following Him would entail suffering and hardship (Matt. 5:10-12; see also Rom. 8:17; 2 Thess. 1:5).”

This explanation is also correct, but, again, it does not convey the fullness and richness of the intended meaning. A more comprehensive understanding has been stated in the Broadman Bible Commentary. In focusing on the fact that the cross is mentioned in the context of SELF-DENIAL (compare, again, Luke 9:24), the Commentary states:

“The cross is the utter self-denial and self-giving, first in Jesus himself and then as a transforming principle in those who trust him… The one who, under trial, seemingly saves his life by renouncing Christ actually loses it. The one who suffers martyrdom as the price of acknowledging Christ seems to lose but actually finds his life… [In] principle [one] accepts his cross or rejects it… one finds life by surrendering it to Christ or forfeits it by his self-trust, self-love, and self-assertion.”

In discussing Christ’s words in Matthew 16:24 (“If anyone desires to come after Me, let him DENY himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.”), the commentary points out:

“Having accepted the disciples’ confession of him as the Christ, Jesus moved next to indicate the way which was his and theirs to follow. Matthew records that Jesus… declared that it would be the way of the cross, the way of utter self-denial and self-giving… The cross could prove to be literal for disciples as well as [the] Master. Whether literal or not, it represents a real way of life through ‘death to self’ for each disciple [Please note that Paul later said that he was dying DAILY, compare 1 Corinthians 15:31]. That the follower of Jesus deny himself is not optional within discipleship… Denying self is not to be confused with denying something to oneself, whether material things, pleasure, or whatever. Wicked people often deny themselves many things in order to achieve their selfish goals or conquer their enemies… What Jesus meant by self-denial is far more radical than denying something to oneself. He meant that one must say no to oneself. He meant the opposite of Adam’s yes to self and no to God… All man’s sin and self-destruction centers in self-love, self-trust, and self-assertion. The cross means the opposite… One for the first time becomes what he was made to be when he denies himself.”

When we are in Christ, we are a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). The “old man” of selfishness and evil desires, of sin and death, died in baptism and has to stay dead (Romans 6:3-6). But the “old man” does not want to stay dead. That is why we have to continually see to it that we are taking our cross of self-denial and conquer the old man, by “putting on” the “new man which was created according to God” (Ephesians 4:20-24; compare Colossians 3:9-10). To follow Christ means to follow Him completely and without reservation. It means that we are willing to take up daily our cross of self-denial. When we look back, wanting to return to what we left behind, including our selfish desires, we are not worthy or fit for Christ and the Kingdom of God (Luke 9:62). The act of profound obedience by Jesus Christ to His Father’s will stands as our example (compare Philippians 2:8 and Hebrews 12:2). Like our Savior, we must be willing to entrust ourselves completely to God’s purpose in each of our lives–regardless of the personal sacrifice we are called upon to make!

Preaching the Gospel and Feeding the Flock

A new member letter has been written by Dave Harris. It was sent out on Wednesday. The letter discusses the incredible purpose of our calling.

A new StandingWatch program was recorded and placed on the Web. Its title is: Noisy Neighbors.

An article was submitted to the Journal, as follows:

The Church of the Eternal God (CEG) recently concluded its first Public Bible Lecture in Arcadia, California. Mr. Norbert Link spoke to 32 people on the subject, “Europe is Uniting — What Does This Mean To You?”

It was very exciting to be dealing with people directly after having put most of CEG’s efforts into other mediums, noted one attendee.

More lectures are being planned around the U.S. as finances permit. Until then, CEG is making CDs available of the initial address. Also made available on a CD are current StandingWatch programs, addressing diverse topics, such as, life after death, the resurrection, peacemaking, attitude, hope, Christ’s return, the Church, and accountability. In addition, CEG’s new booklet, “Should You Fight in War?” is ready for distribution. As usual, all of these are free for the asking. Simply send an email to info@eternalgod.org, or write to:

Church of the Eternal God
PO Box 270519
San Diego, CA 92198

Shine Bright!

Shine Bright!

by Shana Rank (31)

I’ve been thinking a lot about what it means to be a light in this dark world. The analogy of letting our light shine bright in relation to God’s perfect outpouring character is exciting, and the only type of character I wish to imitate. Since I must strive to be an excellent example to those around me, what kind of light should I be?

Possible scenarios:

Candlelight: This type of light is sufficient in limited situations. Often times candle light is easily extinguished by wind or other outside forces. Candlelight could also be described as timid and shy when compared to the brightness of other light. Do I want to be a weak light?

Fluorescent light: This type of light has endurance; unfortunately, the quality of light is poor in comparison to natural light. Fluorescent bulbs also exhibit symptoms like flickering and buzzing which can be very unpleasant. Do I want to be an inconsistent light?

Flash bulb: This type of light is especially effective at nighttime or for poorly lit areas. The effect a bright flash has on the pupil can be likened to the first impression we have on those with whom we come in contact. Is my light short and intense, or will my light have a lasting impression?

Sunlight: This type of light is the brightest light known to man. So bright that it can cause blindness for those that gaze too long. Sunlight is able to penetrate the darkest places imaginable; this is also how I think about the perfect Spirit of God the Father and Jesus Christ. God is also described in the Bible as being light–with no darkness in Him. Can I be the brightest light possible? With God’s help, yes!

I know I would like to shine bright like the sun. Which type of light would you like to be?

Would you please explain Jesus' statement in John 2:19, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up…"? Is this statement, as a direct quote of Christ, to be believed as presented to us in the English language?

Let us read the Scripture in context, by quoting John 2:18-22:

“(18) So the Jews answered and said to Him, ‘What sign do You show to us, since you do these things?’ (19) Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.’ (20) Then the Jews said, ‘It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?’ (21) But He was speaking of the temple of His body. (22) Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.”

There is no reason to believe that the above-cited translation is incorrect. However, we must understand, in light of the other Biblical evidence, what this passage does and does not say. Some use this passage to teach that Christ rose Himself up FROM THE DEAD. They claim that Christ, the Son of God, never died, but that only His “human mantle” did. They teach that the Son of God was the second member of an immortal and unalterable Trinity, and that He therefore could not have died. They postulate that Christ–the Son of God–raised up the human mortal Jesus. This ABOMINABLE HERESY is nowhere taught in the Bible! The Bible makes very clear that God is NOT a TRINITY; that Jesus Christ was the Son of God; and that HE DIED (For more information, please read our free booklet, “Is God a Trinity?”). It was God the Father who raised the DEAD Christ FROM THE DEAD.

For instance, Galatians 1:1 states: “Paul, an apostle (not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God THE FATHER, who raised HIM from the dead)…”

When Christ died and was brought back to life shortly thereafter as an immortal spirit being, God the Father CHANGED Christ’s physical body (which had not yet decayed) into a spirit body. That is why Christ, after His resurrection, could go through closed doors (John 20:19), and it is also why He could disappear after He had materialized Himself in a bodily, albeit different form (Mark 16:12; Luke 24:13-16, 31). In fact, when Christ returns, His disciples will be resurrected to immortal SPIRIT beings, and those who will still be alive at that time will be CHANGED to immortal SPIRIT beings (compare 1 Thessalonians 4:17; 1 Corinthians 15:51-52).

After three days and three nights in the grave, God the Father brought the DEAD Christ back to life. Christ got up, and at THAT moment, He fulfilled the prophecy that He had given to the Jews in John 2:19: He raised up His BODY. In other words, He was lying on the ground in the tomb (John 19:40-42), but when He received immortal life from God the Father, He got up from the ground. The word for “raise up” (in Greek, “egeiro”), as used in John 2:19, is used many times to describe someone who simply STANDS UP. It is used in Mark 1:31; 9:27, and in Acts 3:7, as well as in James 5:15. In all of those cases, sick people stood up from their sick bed. God “raises or lifts” them up by giving them the power or strength to stand or to get up.

John 2:18-22 does not teach that Christ raised Himself up FROM THE DEAD. Rather, it teaches that after God the Father resurrected Him from the dead, Christ raised up the temple of His BODY, by getting up.

For more information on Christ’s death and resurrection, and the fact that He was indeed three days and three nights in the tomb, as He said He would be, please read our free book, “Jesus Christ–A Great Mystery.”

Faith in Luke's Writings

On Saturday, July 16, 2005, Norbert Link will be giving the sermon from Colorado. The title of the sermon is, “Faith in Luke’s Writings.”

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org at 12:30 pm Pacific Time (which is 2:30 pm Central Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream

Preaching the Gospel and Feeding the Flock

We have entered the final review cycle for our new booklet on the Ezekiel warning message.

A new StandingWatch program has been recorded on Thursday and will be posted on the Web soon. It’s title is: “Why the Terror in London?”

The German translation of our booklet, “The Keys To Happy Marriages and Families,” has been finalized and can be found on the Web.

Norbert and Johanna Link, as well as Norbert’s mother and Michael, are planning to be in Colorado for the Sabbath of July 16. Mr. Link is scheduled to give the sermon that day. If anyone would like to attend services in Colorado and needs further information as to the time and place, please contact us.

What did John the Baptist mean by the phrase, "baptism with fire," as mentioned in Matthew 3:11?

Notice what exactly John said in Matthew 3:11: “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me … will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.”

As a part of his ministry, John was baptizing “with water unto repentance” (verse 11). He required that we must “bear fruits worthy of repentance” (verse 8). In comparison, Christ would be coming to also baptize, not just unto repentance, but also, with the Holy Spirit and with fire!

We, of course, are all very familiar with the first part of that statement John had made, in reference to the baptism Christ would bring. One receives the Holy Spirit after repentance, the belief in Christ’s sacrifice, and being baptized with water. In the process of baptism, prior to being submerged under water, one pronounces his or her repentance of past sins, and one’s belief in Christ’s sacrifice and one’s acceptance of Christ as his or her personal Savior. Following the actual submersion under water and being brought out of that grave of water, which event pictures the washing away of all our past sins, the ministers of God lay hands upon the person being baptized and he or she receives God’s Holy Spirit.

But what was John saying when he stated that Christ would also be baptizing with fire?

The fire John was speaking of is perhaps noted in verse 12 of Matthew, chapter 3, when John speaks of an “unquenchable fire.” With this fire, John says that Christ will “burn up the chaff.” What is this “unquenchable fire” and is it something to be desired?

Malachi 4:1-3 also describes this fire and its result. Malachi speaks of this event in verse 1: ‘For behold, the day is coming, Burning like an oven, And all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble. And the day which is coming shall burn them up,’ Says the Lord of hosts, ‘That will leave them neither root nor branch.'” In verse 3, Malachi continues to quote the Lord, where He is quoted as saying “‘You shall trample the wicked, For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet On the day that I do this…'” Christ is speaking of the same event in Revelation 20:14-15, which describes the second death of all who do not enter the Kingdom of God!

There is, however, a second possibility which John might have intended, when speaking of the “baptism with fire.”

Some ministers in the Church have referred to this Scripture from time to time in describing the TRIALS true Christians suffer through, during this lifetime, as they seek to live according to the Way to which they have been called.

Christ makes an interesting statement in Mark 9:49. In the previous verses of this chapter Christ was speaking of how one must live to be able to enter the Kingdom of God, rather than suffering the pain of hell fire, ”(verse 48)… ‘where… the fire is not quenched.’ (verse 49) ‘For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt.'”

The fire Christ speaks of in this verse is the fire of all the trials one goes through as he or she continually seeks to live God’s Way of life. Of course, our lives are to become living sacrifices in this Way of our calling. If one does not eventually become seasoned with God’s Way of life, he or she will be seasoned with the fire of Gehenna.

Salt, of course, has a preserving quality about it. We are to develop this preserving quality within our lives, whereby we will be an influence for peace and for good while living in this world.

Paul says to the Church in Romans 12:1-2: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living SACRIFICE, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

Christ Himself had to go through serious “fiery” trials — including His suffering and death on the cross. Christ said that He came to bring fire or division on the earth (Luke 12:49, 51-53). He continued that He Himself had to be baptized with a baptism, and that He was distressed until it was accomplished (compare Luke 12:50; Mark 10:38). He referred to His fiery trial as a “baptism,” which His disciples had to also experience (Mark 10: 39).

Some outside the Church claim that the “baptism with fire” must accompany the baptism with the Holy Spirit, and that the Holy Spirit is not given, unless supernatural events accompany the baptism. They refer, as proof, to the events described in Acts 2, when “divided tongues, as of fire, sat upon” the disciples (verse 3). However, Acts 2 describes a very unique circumstance, which was never repeated in the recorded history of the Church (with the possible, but not very likely exception of the baptism of Cornelius and other Gentiles, as recorded in Acts 10; compare Acts 11:15). NONE of the other recorded baptisms with the Holy Spirit were accompanied by supernatural flames of fire being placed on the disciples’ heads. John the Baptist was certainly NOT talking about these unique events, as described in Acts 2 (and possibly in Acts 10), when speaking of the “baptism with fire.”

In conclusion, the baptism with fire, mentioned by John, might very well refer to the second and final death in Gehenna fire. It might also include fiery trials which we must go through in this life, to AVOID that second and final death.

We Must Conquer Pride and Vanity

On Saturday, July 9, 2005, Edwin Pope will be giving the sermon, titled, “We Must Conquer Pride and Vanity.”

The services can be heard at www.cognetservices.org at 12:30 pm Pacific Time (which is 2:30 pm Central Time). Just click on Connect to Live Stream.

©2024 Church of the Eternal God