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CHANGE CAN BE GOOD OR NOT GOOD

When we do not like the present state of things we want change, of course. In spiritual matters that change needs to be toward the original divine prescription, not away from it. In fact in all areas of life we want the change to be for the better, not for the worse. Change for the sake of change is not necessarily good, especially if it is directed only by human tastes and ingenuity, not by Biblical decree.

Most of us know that during the 20th century many churches of Christ came to be known for some undesirable characteristics. One of these was a judgmental attitude. Another was too much commitment to our traditions, including some that were man made theories. Another was a loss of objectivity in handling the scriptures. For several years now, many in the church and out have recognized that some flaws have developed and are calling loudly for change. Let’s think about the idea of change realistically.

In American society it has often come about, especially in recent years, that change is called for. In the last election the ground swell outcry was for change. Most of the campaign promises by the candidates were focused on what they were going to change. The people were demanding that. Now I think we may have to learn by experience that the mere fact of change may not be the answer. It has to be the right kind of change.

America has often seen movements calling for change. In the 1960s the “hippie” culture was a revolution against “the establishment,” the traditional American way of life. They demanded change, but not toward a higher form of civilization but toward a lowering of behavior standards. Ironically, they often clashed violently with another revolution which was going on at the same time. The “civil rights” movement was demanding more justice for black folks. That situation did need changing but in the right way. Among both of these groups people were disatisfied with the circumstances in which they lived and were insisting loudly that change had to occur. But both were much less than accurate in the kind of change needed. The hippie group needed to learn that “freedom” does not mean the right to lay aside personal responsibility. That is not a workable concept. The civil rights group needed to learn that you cannot make laws especially favoring one race of people and not have them be applied to other races also. Laws governing a whole nation have to be balanced in their application. Changes just for the sake of change may not improve the situation at all.

Both John the Baptist and Jesus came preaching repentance, which is a call for change. Both came to a nation which had back slidden from God. The change they needed was to return to the original divine directives. In our case today the problem is also a departure in some ways from the original way that God prescribed. Our need is not change to something new, motivated by personal preferences or a desire to be popular, but change driven by the realization that we are off course and need to return to God’s way. This is what too many change advocates now being heard most are not seeing. They are not wrong because they call for change but because the kind of change they call for would replace one error with another error, just as bad or worse.

We need to fix what is broken, not what is not broken. Several things they call “mistakes” and want to change are Biblical decrees. For instance, the idea that “strait is the gate and narrow is the way that leads to life and few there are who find it,” is viewed as judgmental and intolerant. They prefer to see “the way” as broad  enough to include just about all systems which claim to be Christian. They say our emphasis on correct doctrine was a mistake and we should change that. They believe we should not preach the doctrine of Christ “in season, out of season,” (a Biblical decree) but we should preach love and fellowship and unite with virtually all religious groups. The Bible says, “Let God be true but every man a liar,” but they seem to regard popular opinion as a higher authority than the divine voice. 

 So we agree that remedial change is needed. Let’s join together in a call for change. But let it be a change of improvement, not further deterioration. Any of the things we do which the Bible says to do are not wrong, such as refusal to compromise with error, recognizing that the way to life is narrow, diligently trying to handle the word rightly and get the doctrine of Christ correct, and boldly preaching the word whether popular opinion approves or not. Our mistakes are in things not in harmony with scripture, such as an attitude of judgmentalism, binding laws beyond what is mandated in scripture, dividing and drawing lines of fellowship where God has not drawn them, and not being careful enough to compare every suggested teaching with the entire Bible. Let’s fix these wrongs, not the things that are right. The scriptures are profitable for “doctrine, reproof, correction, instruction in righteousness, that the man of God might be complete, fully furnished unto every good work.” (2 Ti. 3:16) This is exactly what we need right now. Making course corrections by that standard will bring about changes that are right.

THE WHOLE COUNSEL OF GOD

Any explicit Bible statement is true. In the case of each such statement no less than what is said there can be true. More might be true, as revealed in other passages, but there cannot be less and that verse be true. Thus it is wrong to pick out one statement and base a conclusion on it, even though explicit, and consider it alone when there are other explicit statements which speak on the subject.

An example of this kind of misuse is the  “faith only” theory of salvation. They pick out Eph. 2:8-9 which says expressly that we are saved by grace, not of works, and on that basis, conclude that there is nothing we can do that will impact our salvation. This conclusion rejects all other Bible statements where it is said that the grace by which we are saved is conditional. (Example: Heb. 5:8, Acts 2:38. Mark 16:16) The bottom line is that their interpretation over rules explicit scripture statements. This is what we call “proof texting.” It is wrong and can be very misleading. Since these statements are in the same Bible, inspired by the same Holy Spirit, it would make more sense to try to understand how they harmonize, instead of deciding which one to discard. Handling aright the word means that we accept every express Bible statement as true, but we do not ignore or disallow other Bible statements which shed further light on the point. If God has said it, it is true. Instead of arraying scripture against scripture, we need to understand how it is that we are saved by grace, not of works, and also be true that God has appointed conditions to the gift of salvation. Then we have the whole counsel of God.

Over against this proper hermeneutic is the practice of imposing interpretation, theory, and rationalized argument, slanted because they are based on incomplete research. Many differing religious factions are produced by this faulty procedure. For example, when you offer the explicit Bible statements which say “There is one God,” no less than that can be true and those verses still be true. Other passages which also refer to the Holy Spirit and Jesus as God, do not contradict that. They simply offer the further light that the one God is a triune being. Thus in Genesis one the word for “God” is a plural word. Whether the human mind can understand it or not, one God consisting of three personages is a Biblical fact. It is also true that a human being has three parts. Scripture refers to them as “body, soul, and spirit.” (1 Thess. 5:23) Perhaps when we enter the next life and our spirit is separated from our body, we may come to understand this better.

In the meantime we have the very serious threat of Satan’s continuing efforts to mislead us by perverting the scriptures. Often the “proof texting” procedure is the way it is done, isolating certain passages from other passages. Even in tempting Jesus Himself Satan gave incomplete scripture quotations. But Jesus answered, “It is also written” and gave more of what God said. In Matthew 7 Jesus warned to beware of false prophets “which come to you in sheep’s clothing,” i.e. appearing to be one of the believers. Satan is able to deceive many because they think the Bible is being preached. Later in the chapter the warning Jesus gave is directly connected with the judgment. The apostles repeatedly issued the same warning. (2 Cor. 11, 2 Peter chapters 1 & 2) Paul stated that to have God’s approval we must handle correctly the word of truth. (2 Tim. 2:15)

In Acts 19:13 some Jewish exorcists “took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits saying, “We exorcize you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.” They had seen the miracles of Paul and did not get the rest of the story. At verse 15 the text says, “And the evil spirit answered and said, ‘Jesus I know and Paul  know, but who are you?’” Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, beat the stuffings out of them, and drove them from the house. These exorcists “took it upon themselves.” They were not appointed. Many today presume in the same way. They read about what Jesus and Paul did and they think, as these men did, that because Jesus and Paul did it, they can. Other scriptures, which they fail to consider, clearly tell us that the apostles were especially appointed, chosen by God before the world began, to be His witnesses and that Jesus gave them special powers to do supernatural things. Yet Satan gets people to fail to recognize this fact, something even the evil spirits know, that believers in general have not been so appointed and were not given that power.

Knowing that “your adversary, the devil, walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour,” (1 Peter 5:8) and knowing that he has a huge bag full of deceptions by which to do that, and knowing that “many false prophets have gone out into the world,” it certainly makes sense to be wary. The right thing to do is avoid the “proof texting” procedure, avoid human rationalizing, and be careful that our conclusions always have the foundation of the whole counsel of God, the scriptures fully considered and handled rightly.

WHAT IS GOSPEL ENTERPRISES?

In the mid 1970s we saw what many of you have recognized, that some bad leadership had led most churches of Christ across the country into legalism, closed minded attitudes, and too much commitment to doctrines of our tradition. Particularly the matter of divorce and remarriage was being mishandled in a way that was ruining the lives of many individuals and impairing the health of the church. 

I had studied that subject intensely for 17 years with a lot of research. The prevailing view was one that had come from the council of Trent, not from the Bible, and it could not be harmonized with the scriptures. We first tried to reason with “those who seemed to be somewhat” but were met with an unworkable attitude. They issued a disfellowship decree against me. I asked, “Wait a minute. Can’t we talk about this?” They replied, “There is nothing to talk about. You are a heretic and it is our duty to blow you away and we mean to do that.” Obviously someone had to try to do something.

So, In the spring of 1980, after 25 years of working with local congregations, I resigned a good ministerial position to begin a traveling ministry, aimed at bringing about reform, a return to the Bible standard, as far as we could achieve it. In order for folks who would help with our financial support to get income tax deduction for contributions, and in order to have the support money be free of income tax for us, we applied for and received a “non-profit” status from the IRS. That is still our status now. It was necessary to form a corporation with a name. So we formed “Gospel Enterprises.” 

There are several facets of this ministry, nearly three decades old at the time of this writing. Basically it is a continuing series of efforts to contribute to the spiritual and doctrinal health of the brotherhood. The church has several things to rethink. One thing we do is personal counseling for folks who are experiencing or have experienced the trauma of divorce. We have traveled many miles to work with one couple. Another facet has been going to church leaders to present private studies, helping them to reconsider the traditional view in comparison with clear statements of scripture. We also do seminar presentations with churches and other study groups, not only on Divorce & Remarriage but also on right attitudes and on Unity. I have participated in 10 public debates, 5 of which are in print. About 4 times a year we have been making a lengthy trip to certain parts of the nation, scheduling speaking stops along the way. Each year starts with a month long trip to Florida, beginning in January.

I have written 17 books on various subjects. Most of them we published through Gospel Enterprises. By setting the type myself and not using middle men as publishers, we have been able to keep our book prices very low. The great need right now is to recover a greater reliance on the scriptures as our guide and avoid the other extreme of liberalism. We hope we can help with that. On another part of this web site we will soon have a listing of our books and materials, a description of each, and the prices. We are more concerned with getting the word out to those who need it than with making money. 

God has blessed our ministry in tremendous ways, especially in the matter of opening doors of opportunity for teaching. Many leading brethren have helped us and we found that they do not have the bad attitudes we encountered in many at the first. So this work is going extremely well. Thousands of people have been helped in very meaningful ways. This is what makes it worth doing. If there is a need where you live for the services we offer, please contact us and we will work out whatever it takes to accomodate that need as soon as we can.

May God’s richest blessings grace your life. Thanks for reading this brief version of our story.

Love to all of you!  Olan & Barbara Hicks

E-mail:  gospelen@arkansas.net

A HUGE QUESTION FOR LIBERALS

Liberalism is the disguise with which Satan makes lawlessness look respectable. It makes the concept appealing to people as “kindness, tolerance, generosity, etc.” This is the “sheep’s clothing” Jesus warned about in Mat. 7:15. Under that disguise is a “ravenous wolf.” Satan, being the “lawless one.” (2 Thess. 2:9) has the primary aim to “take the word out of their hearts lest they should believe and be saved” (Luke 8:12) and put lawlessness in its place. Jesus said that those who are fooled into going this wrong way will claim at the judgment to have done wonderful things in his name, but He will say to them, “I never knew you, depart from me, you who practice lawlessness.” (Mat. 7:23) It is unbelievable that Satan could have such success at selling the lawlessness idea as he is having now. How is he doing it?

One of the keys is to get folks angry at each other. “The wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” (James 1:20) What you may not have noticed is that the bitterness is not just on the part of the conservative side of the controversy. Some of the most judgmental and vicious brethren in the world are the liberals. If you openly disagree with them they will usually talk down to you and can be quite fierce. What they say about legalists is every bit as harsh as what legalists say about them. In chapter 3 James said of bitter envying and self seeking, “This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic.” What this attitude does is to distract from the issues that are disputed and obscure the Biblical facts in the case. Regardless of which side one is on in the controversy between liberalism and legalism, the bitterness is what Satan wants. It is blinding and destructive.

A major factor, the matter of priorities: Then James said, “The wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, etc.” Being a kind and tolerant person is important and willingness to yield is a high priority. But according to God’s word these are not the highest priority. Unity is a high priority but not the highest. The text in James 3 says the wisdom that is from above is first pure. This is where Satan gets a foot in the door, inverted priorities. By making a willingness to yield more important than purity our minds are shifted away from purity. This is compromise. It is what the Bible calls “lawlessness,” and Jesus said it will not pass the judgment. (Mat. 7:23)

Even the Son of God would not tamper with the doctrine. “My doctrine is not mine but His who sent me.” The apostle John stated, “He who does not have the doctrine of Christ does not have God.” (2 John 9) Paul told Timothy, “I urged you when I went into Macedonia – remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine.” (1 Tim. 1:3) Have you noticed that more and more it is being preached that we ought to lay aside doctrinal concerns and just focus on the man, Jesus?

Two sides of God: It is a mistake to suppose, as some apparently do, that there is no such thing as the wrath of God concerning His own people. The apostle Paul told the Romans to reconsider that idea.   “Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God. On those who fell, severity, but toward you goodness, if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off.” (Rom. 11:22) Yes, God is love and He has grace toward His people. But the Bible also speaks often about His wrath upon those who are not obedient, even of His own people. Most of the protestant reformers respected this and began a good thing with the motto “The scriptures only.” But it degenerated into squabbles about WHO is right instead of WHAT is right. In an effort to resolve that they bought into the idea that grace eliminates law, elavated peace and unity above truth, and issued anathemas against any who would try to truly honor and respect the sovereign word of God. 

The restoration movement was an even better beginning, more focused on the scriptures as the final authority in spiritual matters. But in recent years it is moving into the same battle field as protestantism, WHO is right instead of WHAT is right. Brethren most often heard today seem to be making all the mistakes that protestant denominationalism made. I believe our only hope is to return to the concept that “the way of man is not in himself. It is not in man that walks to direct his own steps.” We must recognize that the word of God is the supreme authority and loyalty to it is more important than anything else. Anyone who is hostile toward this concept, from either direction, liberalism or legalism, needs an attitude adjustment. In our preoccupation with peace we are being blind sided by lawlessness. Please think about it. Jesus said that will not pass the judgment. The big question for liberals is this: “What will you do at the judgment when you encounter the Bible passages that condemn what you are doing?” 

PURPOSE STATEMENT