One Ray of Glory

December 14, 2017 by

Men of Yesterday

I believe the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world, that whosoever believeth on him might not perish, but have everlasting life. I believe that all power and authority in heaven and earth are given unto him and that he is able to save unto the uttermost all that come to God by him; that in him are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge; that it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell, the fulness of the Godhead, the fulness of the Spirit, the fulness of grace and salvation. When we see him we see the Father, his image, his character, his glory, and his perfection. Let me lose my life before I would detract from my Lord one ray of glory.

—Barton W. Stone

The above post is an excerpt from the book, Men of Yesterday: A Series of Character Sketches of Prominent Men Among the Disciples of Christ by Thomas W. Grafton. Follow the link to learn more about the book and purchase your copy today!

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The 3,000 on the Day of Pentecost

August 16, 2017 by

The Plan of Salvation (John H. Hundley)

If the reader will examine with me the circumstances attending Peter’s discourse on the day of Pentecost, I think I will prove to him that the three thousand, who were that day added to the Disciples, were not saved by faith alone.

We find, upon examination, that Peter, being moved by the spirit of God, preached to the assembled multitude concerning Jesus, whom they had recently put to death. He proved from the Holy Scriptures that the same Jesus whom they had so ignominiously crucified, was none other than the promised Messiah, of whom all the prophets bore witness. He made the matter so plain that they could not help being convinced. They were cut to their hearts, and in great agony cried out, “Men and brethren, what shall we do to be saved?” Now, mark Peter’s reply. He did not say to them, “Believe on Jesus,” for they believed on him already. Nor yet did he say to them, “Brethren, you are already truly justified, inasmuch as you have believed on Christ, that he is the son of God,” for Peter was commissioned to proclaim the truth, and not a lie. What, then, was his response to their interrogatory? See Acts, chap. 2, ver. 38.

“Then said Peter unto them, Repent, and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”

Then, in order to “remission of sins,” there is something else required besides faith. What, then, is the office of faith? I answer, faith purifies, or changes the heart. It destroys all our love of sin, and fills the heart with a longing to know the will of God, that we may do it. Of which the above recorded action of the believers on the day of Pentecost, is a very striking example. And how is faith to be obtained? I reply, by diligently reading God’s word, examining the testimony of the prophets and Apostles, until we are firmly persuaded in our own minds that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, that he died for the sins of the world, and having lain in the grave three days, arose on the third, and afterwards ascended up to heaven, where he now intercedes for man, at the right hand of the Majesty on High. A saving and rational faith is never received in any other way. In proof of which, read Romans, chap. 10, ver. 17.

“So, then, faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

The above post is an excerpt from the book, The Plan of Salvation: Made Plain to the Sinner by John H. Hundley. Follow the link to learn more about the book and purchase your copy today!

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What the First Disciples Endured

August 15, 2017 by

The Plan of Salvation (John H. Hundley)

It is not the experience of any age of the world, that twelve men will willingly and mutually co- operate to propagate a lie, which can be readily proven to be a lie by their contemporaries. And this becomes still more incredible when we consider that their whole lives in every other respect are blameless, and the doctrines they teach are of the purest and sublimest character, for the promulging and teaching of which they are led, some to the stake, others to the wheel and the rack, and others yet again are sawn and torn asunder, or are cast to wild beasts, to be devoured and cruelly mangled for the gratification of unbelieving and revengeful enemies.

No, reader, it is not in human nature to endure what the first disciples of Christ endured for the sake of the Cross, merely for the purpose of propagating a lie. They were always prepared to give a reason for the hope that was in them, and confident of a glorious immortality beyond the grave, they met all the tortures their enemies could inflict upon them with cheerfulness; and as the swan is fabled to sing sweetest when nighest death, so did the early martyrs with a more joyful shout sound the anthems of praise just before entering the fiery furnace, or the wild beasts’ den, for they felt that soon would they stand redeemed in the presence of the great King, whenceforth their harps would be of gold, and their victorious shout ever more would rise, Hallelujah! the Lord God omnipotent reigneth! Praise Him, all you his saints! For His mercy endureth forever, even from everlasting to everlasting!

The above post is an excerpt from the book, The Plan of Salvation: Made Plain to the Sinner by John H. Hundley. Follow the link to learn more about the book and purchase your copy today!

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The Sum of God’s Word Is Truth

September 22, 2016 by

The Psalm of the Word: A Study of Psalm 119

“The sum of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous ordinances is everlasting” (Psalm 119:160).

This twentieth stanza brings together some themes we have seen throughout this psalm. We have already seen in this psalm that God’s word is truth (Psalm 119:43, 142, 151). This same thought is expressed elsewhere in the Bible. In particular, we should note the passages from the New Testament. In Jesus’ prayer to the Father, He said, “Your word is truth” (John 17:17). Paul identified “the gospel” as “the word of truth” (Colossians 1:5; cf. 2 Timothy 2:15).

The reason why the Bible is the truth is because it is from God. He “cannot lie” (Titus 1:2). Because of this, the promises contained in His word serve as an anchor for us. The Hebrew writer made this point in his letter: “So that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil” (Hebrews 6:17-18). We can have hope because God’s word is right and cannot be wrong.

In considering this point, it is important to note that the sum of God’s word is truth. All of it is true because it is all from God. Paul told Timothy, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Since all of the Bible is
from God, we can be confident that it is all true.

However, many will attack various parts of the Bible, claiming that they are not true, but instead are myths, lies, mistranslations, etc. This is commonly done with events like the Creation (Genesis 1), the crossing of the Red Sea (Exodus 14:15-31), and the resurrection of Jesus from the dead (Matthew 28:1-9; et al.). Yet if we reject parts of the Bible – as is often done with examples such as these – how can we believe any of it? The psalmist wrote, “If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (Psalm 11:3). Faith comes from the word of God (Romans 10:17); but if our faith in the integrity and veracity of the Scriptures is compromised, where does that leave our faith? Regarding the resurrection of Christ, Paul wrote, “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied” (1 Corinthians 15:17-19). If Jesus was not raised from the dead, our “faith is worthless.” In the same way, if we do not believe His resurrection really happened, our faith is just as worthless. We must always remember that the sum (entirety) of God’s word is truth.

The above post is an excerpt from the book, The Psalm of the Word: A Study of Psalm 119. Follow the link to learn more about the book and purchase your copy today!

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NEW RELEASE: The Importance of Faith

May 17, 2016 by

The Importance of FaithOur newest title is now available – The Importance of Faith by Andy Sochor. This book is not available in print, but you can get the Kindle version for just 99 cents!

The Bible repeatedly emphasizes the importance of faith. But why is it important? What is the point of believing, trusting, and obeying God? There are several reasons given in Scripture. This series of lessons considers ten reasons why faith is important so that we might be motivated to “live by faith” (Romans 1:17).

Again, this title is available in Kindle format. If you have a Kindle, you can purchase the book for just 99 cents and read it on your device. If you do not own a Kindle, you can download a free Kindle reading app for your computer, tablet, or smart phone, which will give you the ability to read this ebook on these other devices.

The following link will take you to Amazon’s website where you can get this book in Kindle format – The Importance of Faith.

Also be sure to check out our other titles that are available in Kindle format.

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