Articles
by Evangelist Frank Tyler
I. Introduction
Nicodemus, a Pharisee and teacher of Israel (John 3:1-21), a woe-begotten Samaritan adulteress (4:4-26), an entire village of Samaritans accounted as a whitened harvest (John 4:28-42), and a nobleman from Cana pleading for his son’s life (John 4:46-53)—Jesus’ disciples, themselves a motley group of whoevers (John 1:35-51), witness the power of Jesus’ loyal covenantal or promissory love poured out freely on an ever-widening array of unrepentant whoevers under the most unpredictable of life circumstances. Each of these individuals comes to Jesus and believes in Him as the Christ, the Son of God and in His promise of eternal life; each of these individuals receives the very thing our Lord promises to whoever believes in Him—eternal or everlasting life.
Read more: John 5:24: Part One - The Burden of Legal Righteousness
(Preface and Chapter One)
Preface
I wrote my doctoral dissertation, “Repentance and Salvation in the New Testament,” at Dallas Theological Seminary from 1983 to 1985. I have since changed my view of repentance from the change-of-mind position to the turning-from-sins view.
There are very few books on repentance. Of the major books available in English, none of them give the New Testament the emphasis it deserves. (Zane Hodges’s book Harmony with God only covers the New Testament. Though it is short and does not deal with the Old Testament or church history or objections, it is, in my opinion, outstanding. Indeed, it was Hodges’s writings that led me to change my view on repentance.) For example, Mark Boda’s ‘Return to Me’: A Biblical Theology of Repentance, barely covers the New Testament teaching on repentance. Boda has ten chapters and 125 pages on repentance in the Old Testament. He only has two chapters and 28 pages on repentance in the New Testament.
By Don Crouse
I thought it might be time to talk about real life. We tend to avoid that when things get difficult.
First, you and I are gonna die. That's the reality of living. It's a reality I don't much like, because I enjoy living my life. Sure, I've messed it up in spectacular fashion on numerous occasions, but I still find time to ask God to forgive me and move on. But I find it's those difficult and challenging times that make life the most interesting. I didn't say 'easy', I said 'interesting'... and probably the most enlightening. Regardless, eventually we’re gonna die.
Second, nothing gets us focused like imminent death. So now we have the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 at our door, also known as SARS-CoV-2. Most people haven't heard of SARS-CoV-2, because all the media talks about is the coronavirus or COVID 19, which is all very confusing for most of us. The actual disease caused by the virus is COVID 19, AKA the coronavirus disease. The virus causing all the trouble is SARS-CoV-2. If it knocks, don't open the door. Does that help? Still worried about death—I thought so.
By Don Crouse
Researchers from the University of Liège in Belgium noticed that red-bellied piranhas make barking noises when they are picked up by humans. Who knew? Of course they wanted to know why. Ooh, I know, pick me—it's because they don't like to be picked up! (Hopefully that saves the university millions of euros). As it turns out, piranhas bark about other stuff as well—but it mostly seems designed to avoid aggression by other piranhas... and to let people know they really dislike being held. Don't believe me? Ask the researcher with 3 fingers.
But piranhas aren't known for their barking abilities. They are, however, known for their ability to strip a carcass to the bone in a matter of seconds. And while there is probably a great deal of exaggeration in piranha folklore, it's not over their ability to bark. So I've decided I want to be a Christian hungry like a piranha. I want to be known for my bite. I want to bark less and do more biting. And the 'bite' is sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with others. The great part about sharing the Gospel is that it actually involves talking—and that's right up my alley.
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.
By Don Crouse
Perhaps you're aware that the elephant is the strongest animal on land. Despite that fact, a handler called a mahout uses a modest chain to restrain the elephant; a chain which the elephant could easily break. The curious among you might wonder how this is possible.
When the elephant is a baby, the mahout uses a chain that the animal can't break. Over months of unsuccessful attempts the baby learns the chain is too strong for it to break and finally gives up trying, accepting the fact that any further attempts will only have the same result. As the animal grows, its past failures prevent it from trying to free itself, even though it could now easily break the chain. Those past failures have restricted its current actions and doomed it to a life of bondage. The elephant's great strength has been put under bondage to the seemingly insignificant mahout, who relies on the elephant's acceptance of failure as a means of controlling it.
By Lindsey Adkins
Ever noticed how confusing most gospel presentations are? Even our most beloved evangelists fail at times to present a clear gospel message, and some go so far as to popularize confusing methods.
Now for a tough self-examination of our gospel presentation: Are you and I trampling down the seed by sowing a gospel of confusion? How do we present the gospel? Is it clear? Is it logical? Is it subjective? Are there contradictions throughout our presentation? Let’s examine ten flaws in our evangelism in hopes of eliminating confusion about salvation. Let’s be persuasive and clear, not giving Satan a chance to diminish our evangelistic efforts: Then the devil comes and takes the word out of their hearts lest they should believe and be saved (Luke 8:12; underlining added).
Lest There Be Subjectivity
by Grant E. Christensen
Matthew 9:35-38 Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. {36} Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd. {37} Then He said to His disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. {38} Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest." (Italics and underlining added)
Just as He began His third tour of the cities and villages of Galilee while seeing the distressed condition of those living within the region, Jesus commanded His disciples to pray one of the clearest evangelistic prayers in the New Testament: “ Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.” So often, we Christians have approached this prayer hoping that God would raise up another Billy Graham or those trained in evangelism, thereby limiting our expectations to a select few—those gifted and trained. Yet, Jesus, in choosing the twelve, did not begin with calling priests, scribes, or Pharisees. Instead, He called ordinary fishermen and even a tax collector. Immediately following His command to pray, Jesus sent out these very ordinary men to reap a plentiful harvest, knowing that the workers were few.
Read more: Praying for Workers to be Sent Out into the Harvest
by Evangelist Frank Tyler
As America engages the 2020 elections, the media paints a portrait of our nation rife with riots, unemployment, and malaise—all the while reminding us that this election is an epic turning point in American history. Symbolically the choice would seem as simple as whether or not to wear a face mask. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
Though no one openly addresses it, for you and I as Christians, the epic moral issues surrounding reproductive or abortion rights oppress our collective conscience.[1] Afterall, what loss of life from a pandemic will ever compare with 61 million American babies lost in their mother’s wombs since Rowe verse Wade (1973)? [2] Where is the discussion of this vital moral issue in the election of 2020? Buried in the staging and seldom on the lips of any candidate, abortion rights fold into the larger agenda of women’s rights, and no one seems willing to question the rights of over 50% of the electorate. Where do Christians find hope?