And take…the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Ephesians 6:17

THE
SPIRIT’S
SWORD

Volume 14, Number 31
09/18/2011

Published by
Mt. Baker
church of Christ

Location:
1860 Mt. Baker HWY
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 30821
Bellingham, WA 98228
(360) 752-2692

Sunday:
Bible Classes..........9:30 AM
Worship..10:30AM; 6:00PM

Wednesday:
Bible Classes.........7:00 PM
All sing last Wednesday

Web sites:
Mt. Baker church
Bible Answers

Editor......Joe R. Price

Elders
Morris Bass
Rick Holt
Joe Price

Deacons
Aaron Bass
Rich Brooks
Mike Finn
John Hague
Dan Head

In this issue:

• Gospel Meeting September 25-30, 2011

  The Devil's Beatitudes

  The Lord's Beatitudes

  Sermon Outlines:

  • The Nature of Love
  • By the Grace of God

  Noteworthy News: Divorce for Alzheimer’s?

Gospel Meeting September 25-30, 2011

Mt. Baker church of Christ
Gospel Meeting

September 25–30, 2011

Evangelist
Marc Smith
(Hewitt, Texas)

Bible lessons nightly, Mon-Fri at 7:00 PM
Sunday, September 25^th at 9:30 & 10:30 AM; 6:00 PM

Sunday Class - According to Jesus: Five Principles of Prayer

Sunday AM – The Man Born Blind

Sunday PM – Born of Four

Monday - God Created Man

Tuesday – Just Give Me the Bottom Line!

Wednesday – The Age of Accountability

Thursday – Do Not Sin Against the Child

Friday - The “Kinds” of Genesis

(From I-5 take Exit # 255 and go East 4.2 miles)
For more information please call (360) 752-2692

The Devil's Beatitudes

1. Blessed are those who are too tired, too busy, too distracted to spend a few hours a week with their fellow Christians. They are my best workers.

2. Blessed are those Christians who wait to be asked and expect to be thanked. I can use them.

3. Blessed are the “touchy” who stop going to church. They are my missionaries.

4. Blessed are the trouble makers. They shall be called my children

5. Blessed are the complainers. I’m all ears to them.

6. Blessed are those who are bored with the minister’s mannerisms and mistakes, for they get nothing out of the sermons.

7. Blessed is the church member who expects to be invited to his own congregation, for he is part of the problem instead of the solution.

8. Blessed are those who gossip, for they shall cause strife and divisions that please me.

9. Blessed are those who are easily offended, for they will soon get angry and quit.

10. Blessed are those who do not give their offering to carry on God’s work, for they are my helpers.

11. Blessed is he who professes to love God but hates his brother and sister, for he shall be with me forever.

12. Blessed are you who, when you read this, think it is about other people and not yourself. I’ve got you too!

-Author Unknown-

The Lord's Beatitudes

Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.

Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

-Jesus Christ-
Matthew 5:2-12

You can find the complete outline of this sermon plus PowerPoint and MP3 Audio files at BIBLE ANSWERS

The Nature of Love

Scripture Reading: John 15:9-14

1. The Bible paints a clear and undeniable picture of love as God is revealed to us (1 Jno. 4:8).
2. By this we know love: The nature of love, 1 Jno. 3:16.

I. LOVE IS OBSERVABLE (LOVE IS AN ACTION WORD), Jno. 3:16.

A. To Say we Love Someone without Acting in Good Will toward that Person is not Love, 1 Jno. 3:16-18; Eph. 5:25, 28-29.

II. LOVE IS SACRIFICIAL.

A. It is not Selfish: Giving, not Taking, 1 Jno. 4:9-10; Jno. 3:16; 1 Cor. 13:5 (3).
B. Willing to be Spent in Order to Help Others, 2 Cor. 12:15.

III. LOVE IS OBEDIENT TO AUTHORITY.

A. Obedience to the Lord is a Direct Reflection of One’s Love for Him, Jno. 14: 15, 21-24, 31; 1 Jno. 2:3-5.

IV. LOVE DOES NOT MEASURE ITSELF BY HOW OTHERS ACT OR TREAT IT, 2 Cor. 10:12.

A. The Motives of Love, 1 Cor. 13:1-3; Jno. 15:9-14.
B. Love on Display, 1 Cor. 13:4-8.

V. LOVE IS JUST, 1 Cor. 13:6.

A. Love does not Free the Guilty or Punish the Innocent, Exo. 34:5-9.
B. Love Disciplines, Heb. 12:5-11 (Prov. 13:24); 2 Cor. 2:3-11 (1 Cor. 5:4-5).

Conclusion

1. Love is the enduring motive and defining attribute of the Christian (1 Jno. 4:8, 19).
2. Love is powerful/effective, 1 Cor. 13:8, 13.

You can find the complete outline of this sermon plus PowerPoint and MP3 Audio files at BIBLE ANSWERS

By the Grace of God

Scripture Reading: Titus 3:4-8

1. Grace and meritorious works do not coexist, Rom. 11:5-6.
2. But, grace and works of faith do coexist, Titus 2:11-12; Gal. 5:6 (4).
3. False doctrines about grace give comfort and cover to sin, Jude 4.
a. Irresistible grace, Josh. 24:15; Matt. 11:28.
b. Cannot fall from grace, Gal. 5:4.
c. Continual cleansing, Rom. 6:1-2; 1 Jno. 1:9.
4. Christians stand in and rejoice in the true grace of God, Lk. 17:9-10.

I. BY THE GRACE OF GOD...

A. Sinners are Saved, Eph. 2:1, 4-7, 8-9.
B. We are Justified, Rom. 3:24 (Tit. 3:7); 5:1.
C. We are Accepted in the Beloved, Eph. 1:6, 3; Rom. 3:24; Gal. 3:26-27; Tit. 3:4-5, 7.
D. I Am What I Am, 1 Cor. 15:10; Eph. 4:7, 11); 1 Tim. 1:12-16; Eph. 1:7.

II. NOT BY THE GRACE OF GOD.

A. Grace does not make it Impossible for Christians to Sin and Fall Away, Gal. 5:3-7; 1:6-9; Jas. 5:19-20; 1 Cor. 10:11-13.
B. Grace does not Turn Sin into Righteousness, Rom. 6:1-2, 11-14; Gal. 2:18
C. Grace does not Sanction Fellowship with Sin or with those who Condone the Practitioners of Sin, Heb. 13:9; 2 Jno. 9-11.

Conclusion

1. God's grace does not and will not save you in spite of your sins.
2. God's grace has appeared and offers salvation to every sinner.
3. The gospel of the grace of God calls the lost to salvation by grace through faith, commanding a willing faith that obeys the Master, Heb. 5:8-9.

NOTEWORTHY NEWS
(Current events in the light of Scripture)

Divorce for Alzheimer’s?
Joe R. Price

According to TV evangelist Pat Robertson, divorcing one’s spouse because he or she has Alzheimer’s “is justifiable because the disease is ‘a kind of death’” (Pat Robertson says Alzheimer’s makes divorce OK, Yahoo!News.com). When asked “what advice a man should give to a friend who began seeing another woman after his wife started suffering from the incurable neurological disorder”, Robertson told his “700 Club” audience, “I know it sounds cruel, but if he’s going to do something, he should divorce her and start all over again, but make sure she has custodial care and somebody looking after her.” (Ibid.)

Such self-serving rationalization does not accord with the word of God or with the marriage vow made in His sight. God ordained marriage for life and expects man not to sunder what He joins together (Matt. 19:4-6; Rom. 7:2-3). The meaning of “in sickness and in health” and “until death we do part” seems to have escaped Robertson’s attention. He redefines “death” by saying Alzheimer’s is “a kind of death”. Be assured, God does not redefine death to include devastating and debilitating illnesses, thereby freeing one from the obligations of marriage. (By the way, if Alzheimer’s can be used to free one to divorce and marry another, what else may be added to that list? And, who makes the list: Robertson, a medical ethicist, or each person for himself? Judges 21:25)

Some brethren have used similar rationale by telling people who face such difficult trials that they may divorce, “but just don’t remarry” (Matt. 19:9; 1 Cor. 7:11). Like Robertson, they overlook 1 Corinthians 7:10: “A wife is not to depart from her husband”.

Incapacitating injuries (without the possibility of recovery) and terminal illnesses are not causes for divorce. They are occasions for love’s enduring care and undying service “until death we do part” (Eph. 5:25, 33). Robertson – and such brethren – ought to be ashamed!

The Spirit's Sword is a free, weekly publication of the Mt. Baker church of Christ, Bellingham, WA
Send all questions, comments and subscriptions to the editor at: ssword@bibleanswer.com